"What are Gods, that we should follow them? What are Demons, that we should fear them?"
Father Archimand almost glowered over his glasses at the one who had spoken, his cheerful demeanor gone, or dampened for the moment.
"What are Gods, you ask? They are the personification, the exemplification of the ideals that men aspire to, the pinnacle of our good will, of our desires and hopes. I am not stating that our desires and hopes shaped them, no, for such as Akbeth are from an age long before the ken of mortal men. Rather, they have shaped themselves as examples to us, to lead us and guide us, to mold us to their plan.
Not that the ideals of men are without their own influence, of course, for was not Demosan a mere mortal man? Was not Rashon shaped by the ideals of his father, the ascended? Did not Noran herself learn our ways of magic, in order to begin The Shaping?
But what of the evil thoughts on our minds? Men are, after all, far from perfect, and even the most virtuous mind must occasionally falter. So what happens to these thoughts? For surely they do not pass away like the breeze, leaving no mark upon the world.
I shall tell you, as you have no doubt never stopped to ponder such things for yourself. These thoughts, these evils, are what spawned the demons, and what feeds the Demon Lords that your heart should quail at even the thought of.
Demons are Gods, after all, but they exemplify nothing but the utmost evil and villainy. For every cardinal sin that exists, and for many that do not, there exists a Demon Lord to rule it, to feed off of it. Fear them well, for should even one of the vile Lords be able to enter our world from their dimensions, we should see the world end before our eyes."
