Genesis of Potestatem

Four era's has Potestatem passed through. The first era is by far the largest. Little is known about that period. One of the few stories to survive that time is this one. It predates even The Temple, which also came from that shadowed time.

The Oldesest Version

Before there was existence, there was nothing, and before nothing, there were monsters. The monsters killed eachother until the nothing was born. The nothingness was the only thing so it become something. With that complete, the something took a form. With form came proprties. Proprties started the avalanche into choas. Choas is today. Existence tore into all that isn't.
Infinite time passed and the choas bore unending properties from large to small. Reality formed as a propety and it was barren. Within reality the properties took on choice. Choice was not used until the propeties found the nothing again. The nothing destroyed them. So half the properties were destroyed. The other half lived. The first commandment was born, live.
Thus the properties made their first choice, to live. To avoid nothing. So they made choices to live. Properties unfolded, grew, multipled, and planted. The properties greated the greatest property life. On their reality they fashioned what is life, what isn't life, and what life can do.
Thus, everything was, and the everything that wasn't was guarded against.

Summary

The story in short summarizes that there was a concept of exsistence that was destroyed comepletly. This step creates nothing which in turn creates something. This is a key concept to the story and is considered the basics of philosphy in many Potestatem cultures
As something complexfied by exsisting it eventually led to the creation of what we are now. Many philosphers debate that this reality is what will always come to be, and the mentioned monsters will always be the end. Since the start of nothing to something is always the same. Others argue it is random chance that a reality in which it could think of itself was created is one of many possiblities.
While this story does not go over the creation of our ball of rock and water itself, it is does go over the steps that lead to it. Longer versions of the story only exist in the second era and beyond for some reason. These longer version go over how the properties eventually turn into or create the old gods, who in turn split reality into planes, and one plane is our material. This material plane contains the Potestatem sphere. No spefic old god or property is attriubted to our little corner of the material plane so you could say we are masters of our own world. Well, the Temple is now.

Historical Basis

This myth is based only on second hand reports. Not a single telling of the story has come with the teller claiming to be speaking from memory. Their are two 'pillar' second hand reports that are considered the best evidence to suggest this creation myth is the most accurate as to what occurred.

Zenith

The current eldest god and spirit within the divine Temple is Zenith. With a myth as vauge as this same document it is said Zenith was born in the first era. During this same broad time Zenith founded and enforced the Stratum of the Temple system.
Many of Zeniths Full Slivers often converse with them. They often are curious by nature of their studious tendancies. Many ask Zenith questions about ancient history. While Zeniths taking on of a sprit aspect has robbed them of many of their more humanoids functions, they withold much.
Zenith reports this version of the tale as what they learned during their mortal time. Zenith has also managed to even produce and lead the discovery of first era documents such as carved slates that hold fractions of the tale or references to this version on it.

The Old Gods

Often refered to as Dimensional Dieties, the old gods predate Zenith. They are much more difficult to converse with as Repleti Inanis, Temple God of Warlocks is now their medium to the material plane. Many have broken through the Temple's sphere of protection on their own. The evidence they predate Zenith is Zenith themself claiming as such, and their knowledge of historical events that were later proved likely to have happened. The examples are numerous but often hard to find in, safe libraries of research.
The old gods reference this tale in their more cryptic or even poetic speaking fashion. The most important of which is usually the dimensional dieties of law refering to their 'anscestors' as the first laws.
Many scholars believe this to be a synonym for properties which is the best translation used for the ancient languages word for those first steps after something was created.

Spread

The legend is fairly widely spread but is often not learned till later in life due to the Temple's doctorine being considered the end all be all of religious ideals. Next to no cultures found their beliefs on the myth. The most notable of those that do are those who follow the old gods. Which as mentioned are often heretical in nature. The old gods followings being even more rare than their medium Repleti Inanis, Temple God of Warlocks take a lot of work to find.

Variations & Mutation

Several variations exist on the story which I will list. Most of these are based on old gods contradicting tales, ancient texts found and dated to similar periods as the earliest ones, and simple polling of those who know the many versions of the tale

• In the begining there was something. This version skips the monsters and nothing version of the tale.

• In the begining there were the properties. This version skips even further and is founded on the idea that intelligence came before reality.

• The proprties in many version are switch out for the gods or the laws. Some more rare texts swap all of it and go further than the above versions to skip up to choas being the first step, as well as the first choice making concept.

• Some versions have the monsters annhilating eachother skip into the something, all reality is just what the monsters corpses look like.

• Other versions focus on the small to large aspect and state we are just at the smallest or largest level of properties and are acting out thus. This version is confusing and I have found no further concepts to add to it.

• Many versions personify the nothing more strongly. Traditionalist scholars argue against this as it 'overcomplicates the no assumption start of the story.'

• Mutations of the story simply replace the properties with the temple and its gods as the first something. Very few first era documents supports this compared to other version of the story that are older.

Cultural Reception

One of the most popular cultural receptions of the concept came out of the Desolation of Alan. Alan, Old Death used the concept of nothing being something to back up his world ending death cult. The idea that destruction, annhiliation, oblivion, the end, death, and so on, was the same as creation was wildly popular. Even Letherdonhas admitted in monolouge to adventerers that survived battling the first lich that they were swayed to destroy because of Alans concept.
Many 'villains' over the four era's have copied this as a motive to destroy that which they wish to for various reasons like revenge or ending suffering.
On a more helpful note the story has also proven to many that Temple Gods are not omnipotent. People like Korvas the Kind have used this story as reason to seek power and control outside of the Temple's strong grasp. While I support the Temple I do heretically believe the idea that thirteen 'used to be mortals' leading everyone forever is a bad idea.

In Literature

It is said every time someone wants to become a writer, they write the two lines, "from nothing came something. For without something there cannot be nothing." The line was first penned by the first Perisian Emperor upon founding their empire.
The story often opens historical fantasy tales set in the first era where every fantasy novel seems to be set. This due to the fact it is such a mysterious and open ended time. The more popular subgenre of which is 'I was transported to the first era.' known as Eysaykai. EysayKai is the ancient common word for creation. More artisitcally translated it means nothing is something, something is nothing.

In Art

The idea of nothing needing something to be nothing is a very, very, very, popular art project. The first famous piece that magically survived the third era is an empty frame titled with a blank name plate. The artist is actually rumored to be Sonus, God of Bards when he was mortal. Though this rumor is likely spun by the man himself.
Larger riffs on this have been taken. Empty wall being left in art galleries with rope still blocking people from going near it, half a building exsisting with nothing on the other half of the property, and so on. Progressive artists often use the saying, "The begining of time is becoming a cop out for skill."
More complex, arguably, art comes from later details in the story. Many artists over the four era's have fallen for the idea of something causes growing complexity. Illusory art answered the call in the second era when a young Korvas created the spell Infinite Void. The title is play on the first mentioned concept of unending nothing, which directly goes against the idea of nothing leading to something.
The spell itself was a contained in a ten by ten foot area. If one were to be near it though it would pack their every sense down to thought with so much information they would find themselves stunned. Those who experinced it said as soon as they saw it and thought a single thought, that thought grew and grew till 'it was everything.' Some claim to have experienced great epiphany after the spell due to its 'creation of knowledge within the brain.' The spell was accepted as an art piece by an early art gallery in the arcane veil.

Date of First Recording

2nd Era

Date of Setting

Begining of Time - 1st Era