From her seat above the world, the goddess watched a rotting sea of boiling flesh spill from the dark corners of her lands, gathering and melding into a horrid beast with a single purpose, to drown her lands in suffering. The goddess leaned forward in her seat, looking down on her world, moving her vision back and forth along the endless, ever forking stream of time, searching intensely for a break in her protections. A place this creature could have exploited to get past her veil and onto Alta, hoping she would be able to seal it, preventing what was coming. She found nothing.

This darkness would make it past her defenses. She had to accept that and focus on what to do next. What could she do to save her world? The answer came quickly, closely followed by a commingling of anger and disappointment. What she had to do was clear; she would need to act from within the veil. It was the only way to save Alta. It was also impossible. By her own law, the goddess couldn’t intervene directly in matters that were within the veil. Leaving her no choice. She needed a surrogate. A creature that would wield a fraction of her divinity and be reborn in her world to stand against this darkness. It was her only choice. It also made her sick to think of. In a flash she conceived of a better idea. One that wouldn’t put her power into unworthy hands.

Her vision switch to a world barren of magic and gods to find what she needed. Her sight settled on a nameless mortal. A mortal whose hands where drenched in blood, and mind was broken beyond repair. His life was meaningless, and his soul would be damned in any just world, making him perfect. The goddess sat back in her throne and put her plans into motion.

The trial of Alta had begun.