(Location Unknown)

No mortal had ever seen this place before, nor were they likely to. The Universe this location resided in was old, one of the oldest in the Multiverse, and absolute in its design. There was nothing that existed here naturally that did not have an absolute function or purpose. As an example, the giant round table in the middle of the cathedral’s purpose was to allow for the meeting of the first gods. All of them. The chamber the table sat in negated the fundamental rules of this Universe and allowed any of the Old Gods to enter and exit as had been agreed upon. None could come to harm in this chamber, a rule that was enforced by the Universe itself, though in the early days some Gods had found out that they could feel pain when they disrespected their betters, or as the young Gods thought of them, the really old Gods. The table also served as a platform for any who wished to address the assembled Gods, whether they were a God or servant of the gods. The table protected any who stood on it from the awe or terror that each God put off so that they could make their reports.

An Arch-Angel stood in the middle of the table as one of the Gods addressed him.

“Raphael, how does the Abattoir fair?” the God asked.

“A child has reached level 5,000,” Raphael responded.

All the Gods’ gazes hyper-focused on Raphael and a larger, more powerful God spoke. “Explain.”

“A mage from another universe created a ring tied to a Labyrinth, the 1st one. It responded and destroyed the mage. In doing so, the ring ended up in the Abattoir on Earth.”

“Continue,” the same god intoned

“A boy picked up the ring and put it on. This ring is linked to the Labyrinth and siphon's experience to the wearer of the ring.”

“Surely the changes that were made to the Abattoir thwarted this?”

“The Fundamental laws that were enacted remain. No creature within the Abattoir may access their Personal Interface, nor can they in any way modify their settings. The spell that funnels the ring’s experience has placed its primary purpose outside space-time in the Labyrinth and cannot be affected by any mortal, save the one who created it, since he is no more, and became a soul in the Abattoir.”

“He is no more?” the eldest God asked.

“Yes,“ Raphael said.

“The boy?”

“The boy gains experience by the second without knowing that he is doing so,” Raphael answered.

“Options?” the eldest God asked.

“It would seem that The Labyrinth has taken steps to try to take over or contact the boy, barring any accidents or the willful murder of the boy, which will be very hard now for any creature on Earth.” Raphael paused for a moment then continued, “I would suggest we allow this to play out and perhaps try to guide this boy towards our purpose. As the rules were devised, no mortal in the Abattoir is given the opportunity to ascend until they die. The level of 5,000 was set as the first level of the Divine thereafter all the previous Gods were moved to other motes of order, so that it became quite difficult for any mortal to attain Divine status upon their death. This has worked thus far as no mortals, until this boy, had reached level 5,000 since the change.”

“Can we control him?” another god asked.

“No, the rules that make the Abattoir ideal for its purpose prohibit any magical domination, nor would any of us be able to affect a mortal so blatantly. Perhaps a mage could if their magic would work. As that’s not possible the simple answer is no.” yet another god explained.

Raphael waited until the gods stopped talking then said, “Should he somehow make it to another mote of order, he will not fall within the bounds of the laws that rule that mote, as he does not have class levels. He will instead be given the choice to become an Ascendant Human, A Law that was added to cover the very low possibility of a mortal reaching level 5,000 there. There are of course motes of order where mortals can attain the same levels as the divine, but none with the rules of the Abattoir. This boy will be unique in that the rules of his Universe will allow for a path of progression that does not include the Primal Powers. That could be useful. Therefore, my recommendation is to allow things to develop as they may.”

The Gods around the table looked at each other then all turned to the eldest of them all. The eldest nodded thoughtfully, “So be it.”

Raphael disappeared, as did the other Gods who returned to their motes of order throughout the multiverse. The Eldest God, who knew he wasn’t actually the eldest, was the last to leave and returned to his home at the center of the Abattoir to find Raphael waiting for him, looking out upon the cosmos of his mote of order. “There could be change after so long?” he asked.

“There could,” Raphael answered.

“True Change?”

“Possibly,” the angel answered, “I will of course keep watch and inform you of any developments.”

“You always do,“ the God said, then turned and walked towards his study. Earth? He had not reviewed Earth in a while. Perhaps he should see what had happened in the last 6,000 years.