Marvel-616 Universe
Thousands of years ago.
On a lifeless planet.
Gorr was born under a sky that did not know rain.
The ground was cracked, the grass withered, and his tribe was devoured by hunger.
As a child, Gorr watched his mother fight two wild beasts for a few fruits. She fought until her last breath, then fell before his eyes, gravely wounded.
Before she died, she held Gorr's hand and prayed to an unknown deity.
That was the first time Gorr heard about gods.
The gods, he was told, created all things.
The gods are full of love.
The gods are merciful.
The gods grant their believers eternal peace.
The gods would lead the pious to a paradise where there was no hunger or poverty.
But his mother received nothing but death. Her body, according to custom, was hung on a tree to be eaten by carrion birds.
Thus Gorr grew up.
The second loved one he lost was his wife.
While pregnant with their third child, weakened by hunger, she fell from a cliff.
As she fell, she cried out: "Pray to the gods for forgiveness!"
But the gods did not answer.
Gorr rushed down the cliff and found only her mangled body.
A few months later, Gorr carried his last child, Agar, as they wandered the desert.
His first child had died twelve years earlier, just before sunset.
"Dad, I'm hungry… Mom said the gods will hear our prayers, right?"
Little Agar curled up in his arms, a skeleton covered in skin, but still clinging to the hope of divine mercy.
"It's true," answered Gorr, though he knew he was lying.
Soon after, his last child died in his arms.
This time Gorr did not follow tradition. He did not hang him on a tree. He buried him in the ground.
"That is taboo!"
"You've harmed the child!"
"You should have hung him on the tree so the gods could see, so they would take him to paradise!"
The tribal elders accused him, but Gorr's hands trembled with rage.
"Where are the gods?"
"I ask you, where are the gods?!"
He pointed to the sky, eyes filled with blood and tears.
"Where were they when beasts tore apart my mother?"
"Where were they when my wife fell from the cliff?"
"Where were they when my child died of hunger?!"
"I tell you, gods do not exist!"
"Mortals were not created by God!"
Gorr bled and wept, but his tribesmen pelted him with stones.
"Blasphemer!"
"Smash him!"
"Don't let the gods hear his lies!"
"My sick leg was healed by God! That's proof!"
"He is unclean!"
The elders passed judgment.
They exiled Gorr, wounded and alone, into the desert.
He was left by himself.
He staggered, eyes blurred with blood, not knowing how long he had walked.
Until darkness nearly swallowed him.
Then two meteors fell from the sky!
Boom!
The impact shook the ground and jolted him out of half-consciousness.
Gorr wiped the dried blood from his face and dragged himself to the crater.
Inside, he found a sight that changed his life.
Two gods!
Two clashing deities had fallen onto his planet, pierced through each other's bodies.
One was black, the other golden.
Their duel of madness ended in mutual death.
Gorr descended into the pit in disbelief.
As he approached the golden god, a weak voice suddenly reached his ears.
"Save me… save me…"
"What?"
Gorr froze, stunned.
Then, from the depths of his heart, a nameless fire arose.
"Save you?"
Gorr looked at the god in golden armor, his eyes growing fiercer.
"Why didn't you save my mother when she died?"
"Why didn't you save my wife when she fell from the cliff?"
"Why didn't you save my son when he was dying in my arms?"
With effort, Gorr lifted a stone and moved toward the god in golden armor.
"Why did you do nothing?!"
The stone crashed against the deity's head as Gorr roared.
The stone shattered, but the god in golden armor did not react.
Mortals could not harm gods.
As Gorr, consumed by rage and despair, tried again, the weapon of the dead black-armored god suddenly began to change.
It turned into black liquid and started sliding toward him.
"Go away! Go away!"
At first he resisted, terrified, but as soon as his fingers touched the blackness, everything changed.
He felt a promise.
An oath.
"Swear that you will kill all the gods in the universe."
The black liquid formed in his hands, becoming a black, tar-like blade.
Without the slightest resistance, it pierced the head of the golden-armored god.
Thus Gorr completed his first divine murder.
But by no means his last.
...
The universe where Aron was located.
On the same nameless planet.
Gorr walked through the endless desert, carrying his daughter in his arms.
They had eaten the last piece of food, and there was no hope left.
"Dad, I'm hungry…"
His daughter, Love, spoke with a weak, almost inaudible voice.
"I know, my daughter… I know."
Gorr slowly put her down and knelt on the ground. He took out the totem of the god he wore around his neck and clutched it tightly.
"Great god Rapu, please, give us water and food…"
He fell prostrate, pressing his forehead to the hot dust, repeating prayers.
Time passed, but there was no answer.
When he finally lifted his head, behind him all was silent.
Love no longer breathed.
"No! No! No!"
Gorr, in despair, held his dead daughter close.
Hunger and pain crushed him, his consciousness fading.
In a trance, he saw a forest, green, full of fruit and flowers.
Thinking it was a mirage, he crawled toward it.
But when he touched the moist grass, he knew it wasn't a dream.
The forest was real.
The fruit was real.
"Haha, a stray dog stealing my fruits!"
A mocking voice echoed above him.
Gorr looked up.
His pupils shrank in disbelief.
"Great Rapu, herald of light! I am Gorr, your last disciple!"
He quickly dropped the fruit and fell to his knees.
"Haha… You still believe in me?"
The voice was full of mockery.
Laughter spread among the gods gathered in the forest.
"Great lord," Gorr trembled, "we lost everything. The river dried up, the children died, but we never lost faith in you. We only await your eternal grace."
His words were met with even more cynical laughter.
"Hahaha! Eternal grace? You are just a dog, nothing more!"
Mockery filled the forest, until it suddenly stopped.
Gorr did not raise his head. He knelt, trembling, still repeating his prayers.
Until his fingers felt golden liquid spreading on the ground.
Confused, he looked up.
The great god Rapu lay dead.
His head had been severed, golden blood flowing into the earth.
Beside the body stood a tall figure, cloaked in black shadow.
"…"
Gorr froze.
He was sure he knew him.
And yet, he looked unfamiliar.
"Who are you?" he asked in a trembling voice.
The figure pulled back its hood. The black liquid receded, revealing a face that was his own.
"I am you."
–––
Support me on Patreon:
patreon.com/_BlackRose
Enjoy 30+ advanced chapters for just $3.
Your support would mean a lot to me. ❤️