As Gwyndolin pulled on his metaphysical connection to the Sphere of the Gods, he felt himself being pulled out of the material world. He had assumed that he would only be dragged to the Sphere mentally, but it seemed his physical body was being taken there as well. Spreading his senses, Gwyndolin could tell that it would be easy to find himself lost in the infinitely large realm.

Fortunately, the portion of the Sphere that the connection was taking him towards was also the portion that he instinctively knew was his own. After a few moments, Gwyndolin arrived at his portion of the Sphere to see a sight that took his breath away.

Gwyndolin looked around and was overcome with emotion as he took in the sight of his chambers in Anor Londo. He had many memories, both good and bad, of this room. Gwyndolin had been born, died, and lived for longer than he could count in Anor Londo and he had thought he would never see it again.

For his realm to take the form of this city was a blessing that filled him with nearly overwhelming joy.

Examining the room, he was happy to see the books on magic, history, and all kinds of scholarly subjects strewn around the room. He had always been a bit messy when he knew nobody was watching. Gwyndolin was grateful Sulyvahn had not decided to keep him in this room; he would not want this place ruined with such horrid memories.

Gwyndolin left his chambers and spent the next hour gleefully exploring his realm. From what he could tell, his portion of the Sphere took the form of a perfect replica of Anor Londo at the height of the Age of Fire. The only difference being the lack of any people and the full moon hanging over the night sky.

Gwyndolin was growing accustomed to the moon of his new world, but he was grateful for the chance to once again lay eyes upon the moon he had spent most of his life with.

The large structures of the city emphasized its emptiness, but Gwyndolin did not find it particularly lonely. He had many years in Anor Londo in nearly complete isolation, so he had long since learned to be content keeping his own company.

Gwyndolin was pleased to discover that everything seemed as he remembered until he reached the top of Yorshka's favorite tower.

Laying atop the balcony that overlooked his sister's church was a large ornate bowl that seemed to serve as a container for a shimmering silver liquid. A beam of moonlight inexplicably poured down into the bowl and seemed to coalesce into this strange substance.

Somehow, Gwyndolin instinctively knew that this substance was not only safe, but also extremely important. Without hesitation, he moved over to the bowl and touched the liquid moonlight with the intent of examining it. The substance looked like a liquid, but moved around his palm like a gas and fell back into the bowl as soon as he tried to remove it.

This told him little, but fortunately, whatever strange instinct it was that told him the substance was beneficial now also told Gwyndolin its function.

This bowl of liquid moonlight was a metaphysical representation of Divine Energy, a source of power inherent to the gods of this reality. The collective faith of mortals in the physical realm would flow into the Sphere of the Gods and eventually be distributed to the divine beings that could access it.

This did not surprise Gwyndolin. He had known the power of faith his entire life, even if he had trouble utilizing it himself.

There were many varied factors that influenced the amount of this energy that each deity would find distributed to them. These factors included the number of faithful mortals who worshipped them, the degree of their faith, the overall level of magic in the world, or even the influence of the god's domain. A war god of a peaceful world would find themselves bereft of this power regardless of how exalted they were.

Despite these limitations, Gwyndolin knew this energy was an extremely potent source of power.

By using Divine Energy, Gwyndolin would be capable of feats he could not easily replicate with magic. It could be used to enhance his own body to increase his physical capabilities, enchant items with powerful effects, or even bless mortals with incredible power.

These were the most obvious uses, but in truth, Divine Energy was like magic in that there were very few things it could not be used to accomplish. Compared to magic, however, the effects of Divine Energy were an order of magnitude more potent.

Of course, the effect would be much more potent if the Divine Energy would be used in a way that synergized with his domain or if enhanced with the power of faith. If Gwyndolin were to bless a sword associated with the moon and gift it to a mortal who worshipped him, its power would be extremely formidable. Had he possessed Divine Energy in his old world, his covenant would have wielded truly terrifying power.

As it was, Gwyndolin could tell that he currently had no worshippers in this world. The closest equivalent was the mortal 'fans' he had acquired as a superhero who only marginally increased the rate at which his Divine energy replenished itself. Thankfully, as long as the moon still hung in the night sky, Gwyndolin's supply of Divine Energy would continue to restore itself.

As far as he could tell, one of the main factors limiting the power Gwyndolin could derive from Divine Energy was his capacity to store it. There were many things he would not be able to accomplish even if Gwyndolin used his entire supply of Divine Energy, therefore increasing his ability to store it would benefit him.

Regrettably, the only way he could see to accomplish such a task was through receiving the direct faith of mortals over a long period of time.

Gwyndolin considered the matter and quickly decided this would not be his focus. While he was accustomed to being worshipped, it was not in his nature to seek attention. If the faith of this world's mortals increased his capacity, then he would be grateful, but he would rather focus on increasing his power in a different way.

Not to mention the fact that increasing his capacity in such a way would require many years of effort, even if he was widely worshipped.

The other main factor limiting his power was a combination of his skill in wielding the energy and an understanding of the best ways to use it. Just like his sorceries, he would need to learn how to best channel this source of power to achieve his goals. He would also need to seek inspiration on how to best synergize this new source of power with his domain.

Creativity was important when creating new magics, and Gwyndolin could tell it would be equally important if he wished to make full use of Divine Energy.

Gwyndolin sighed in resignation as he reached the obvious conclusion. The most straightforward source of both knowledge and inspiration regarding the use of Divine Energy was the other gods with whom he shared a domain.

When he decided to travel to the Sphere of the Gods, Gwyndolin was already intent on determining the intentions of the lunar gods searching for him, but now he also needed their cooperation.

How vexing.

Since arriving in the Sphere, he could tell that the other gods had sensed him and wished to enter his realm.

Seeing no reason to delay, Gwyndolin decided to prepare for their arrival. He considered hiding away his serpents with illusions in order to prevent the gods from being able to find him in the mortal world but ultimately decided against it. If he did so, then he would need to avoid using his name as well, now that his true name was public knowledge.

Gwyndolin would simply have to be prepared for the possibility he might have to confront hostile gods in the physical realm. However, he did not think that would be the case. If Gwyndolin could benefit from collaborating with other lunar gods, then it stands to reason that they would gain more from a friendly relationship than a hostile one.

The next thing he needed to do was deal with the bowl filled with liquid moonlight.

He knew there was nothing that the gods could do to harm him while he was in his personal portion of the Sphere, but he still did not feel comfortable allowing them to see the receptacle containing his Divine Energy.

It felt too precious.

With a wave of his hand, Gwyndolin banished the receptacle to his chambers. After expanding the size of the balcony until it was large enough to comfortably hold multiple gods, Gwyndolin allowed the most powerful of the lunar gods to enter his realm first.

He would prefer to meet them one by one, so he would prioritize the most powerful one to avoid causing any insult.

Despite his caution, Gwyndolin could not help but feel curious about his fellow lunar deities. He had tried to research this world's gods through the internet, but most of what the mortals knew seemed like nonsensical fairy tales, so he had dismissed it.

He did not have to wait long. A woman appeared on the balcony, forming out of thin air with surprisingly little fanfare.

She wore an ornate azure robe with gold accents that was styled in a manner that he had only seen amongst the nobles of the eastern lands. Gwyndolin found himself surprised as both her features and her intricate headdress were also things he had only seen in the eastern lands.

He had been expecting the most powerful lunar god to be a member of either the Greek or Egyptian pantheons, so this was an unexpected result.

A rabbit inexplicably materialized next to the woman and immediately ran off to go exploring. Gwyndolin ignored the creature as it was simply a fragment of the god in front of him and he didn't mind if she explored his realm while they were speaking.

The deity showed no reaction to seeing Gwyndolin's true form as she bowed shallowly and greeted him with a polite expression.

"Greetings. I am pleased to make the acquaintance of a fellow deity of the moon. I am known as Chang'e. May I ask for your name?"

Gwyndolin could tell the goddess was speaking a language that was unfamiliar to him, but for some reason, he seemed to understand her, regardless. He wasn't sure if the source of this phenomenon was a feature of the Sphere of the Gods or the deity in front of him, but now was not the time to ponder such things.

With practiced ease, Gwyndolin offered her a formal Lordranian bow meant to express respect towards an equal. Even if he could tell Chang'e was much more powerful than him, Gwyndolin's pride would not permit him to demean himself in his own seat of power.

"Greetings, Chang'e. I am known as Gwyndolin. I have not had the opportunity to meet another god since arriving in this world and am pleased that this has changed," said Gwyndolin, ignoring the fact that he had avoided their attempts to find him since he had arrived.

It was obvious the lunar gods knew Gwyndolin was not from this world given their incessant attempts to find him since his arrival, so he didn't bother trying to hide it.

"I would be grateful for the opportunity to learn more about your previous world, but first I would like to offer reassurance," said Chang'e, her tone solemn and formal. "There are too few lunar deities who frequent the mortal realm. I and my compatriots wish only to offer you peace and cooperation."

Hearing this, most of Gwyndolin's tension disappeared. Given the way Divine Energy functioned, it made sense for gods of the same domain to maintain an amicable relationship.

"I am grateful for your words. I am certain peace and cooperation will benefit us all far more than strife and conflict," Gwyndolin said without subtlety.

After Gwyndolin reciprocated her declaration of friendship, Chang'e also relaxed, allowing her expression to soften into something kinder, yet still polite.

"Thank you for allowing me to explore your realm," Chang'e said with a smile. He could sense that her rabbit was still touring Anor Londo. "This city is very grand. The world you came from must have been truly beautiful."

Gwyndolin hesitated. His world had been beautiful during its height, but his last memories of it had been during its decline.

"It was," said Gwyndolin, deciding to keep his response simple.

Chang'e seemed to sense his reluctance to speak more about the matter and decided to change the subject.

"My companions are eager to meet you as well. When we sensed your arrival into our world, we all grew quite curious."

Gwyndolin could feel the other two lunar deities waiting for permission to enter. He idly wondered why there were only three who wished to meet him when he knew this world had many pantheons.

Gwyndolin allowed the next most powerful deity to enter his realm, still intent on greeting the gods one by one.

The deity did not waste any time, immediately appearing next to Chang'e in a flash of light the moment she was able. The newly arrived goddess quickly glanced at Chang'e—a note of concern in her expression—before turning her focus to Gwyndolin.

Her skin was tanned like the skin of somebody who spent many hours working in the sun and she possessed a muscular physique that did not take away from her beauty. She stood with the stance of an experienced warrior and exuded confidence. The green and brown tones of her robes, the jade amulet she wore that was shaped like a frog, and the decorative headdress adorned with large leaves led Gwyndolin to wonder if she had a secondary domain over nature.

The goddess bowed to him and offered her greetings.

"Well met. I am Yacy, goddess of the moon and creator of the Esquecidas. I'm grateful for the chance to meet a fellow goddess who shares my domain."

Chang'e coughed awkwardly and corrected Yacy before Gwyndolin had the opportunity.

"You are mistaken, Yacy. Our new colleague is a god, not a goddess."

Both Yacy and Gwyndolin blinked in surprise, though for different reasons.

"Truly?"

"How did you know?"

Chang'e nodded to Yacy before answering Gwyndolin's question. "The magic of my people allows me to sense Yang and Yin. They are metaphysical forces that vary in people depending on both their biological sex and their gender. Your Yin is significantly higher than the average for a man, but I can perceive that you are both biologically male and consider yourself such."

Gwyndolin did not quite know how to feel about that. He wasn't quite certain how she differed between biological sex and gender, but it was not something he felt comfortable asking.

Rather than address the topic of his feminine nature, Gwyndolin decided to take advantage of the willingness of the goddesses to ignore his differences and change the topic.

"Well met, Yacy. I am Gwyndolin. I admit to being surprised. It was my understanding that the Egyptian and the Greek pantheons were the most influential in this world, I am surprised they are not interested in meeting me."

Yacy scoffed before offering Gwyndolin an explanation. "The Olympians haven't had a dedicated lunar deity since Selene disappeared, and Khonshu prefers to live in Gemworld. Only we lunar deities who happened to be in the mortal realm at the time of your arrival know about you.

Gwyndolin accepted that explanation and they spent a few moments making pleasant small talk, forcing him to fight the urge to preen as Anor Londo was complimented for a second time.

Once the pleasantries were concluded, Yacy and Chang'e politely requested that he permit the last lunar deity to enter his realm.

"Tsukuyomi is also quite eager to meet you. He has been particularly curious about you since we sensed your arrival."

… He?

Gwyndolin couldn't stop his growing excitement. If the last lunar deity was a male, then did that mean Gwyndolin would have the chance to meet somebody who had experienced the same difficulties as him?

Gwyndolin could feel a smile growing on his face as he eagerly allowed the final god to enter his realm. However, the moment he laid eyes on said god, he could feel his smile turning into something strained.

Tsukuyomi was a handsome man with snow-white hair and like Chang'e he possessed features that Gwyndolin associated with the eastern lands. Unlike Chang'e, he did not dress in traditional clothes and instead wore one of the modern well-tailored suits that Gwyndolin had learned was the favored style of formal dress for the men of this world.

His expression was one of cheer and friendliness as he greeted Gwyndolin and the two goddesses.

He was also entirely and completely masculine, despite the fact that he was undoubtedly a god of the moon.

Gwyndolin barely managed to prevent his intense emotions from spilling over into his expression as he returned Tsukuyomi's greetings and introduced himself. He was not quite certain he had succeeded given the sudden concern he could see from Chang'e.

From there the conversation turned to his origins, and Gwyndolin willingly explained that he had come here from another world, despite the fact that he could barely bring himself to pay attention to the discussion. They did not seem to be particularly surprised.

Apparently, he was not the only god on Earth that had come from elsewhere.

Gwyndolin forced himself to keep the conversation pleasant as he asked questions about Divine Energy and godly politics while doing his best to avoid looking at Tsukuyomi, but eventually, it became too much for him.

"Thank you for this conversation. It was a pleasure to meet you all, but unfortunately, my presence is required in the mortal realm."

The deities looked awkwardly amongst themselves—likely having noticed his discomfort—before saying their farewells. Gwyndolin distantly heard himself agreeing to meet with them at a later time so they could further discuss their cooperation.

After they left his realm and Gwyndolin returned to the mortal realm, he immediately cast a ward over his apartment that would prevent anyone from hearing anything that happened within.

That done, Gwyndolin carefully started to loosen the stranglehold he had over his emotions.

For all of his life, Gwyndolin had accepted his father's belief that his domain was intrinsically feminine, and that he needed to be as well. Gwyn had raised him like a daughter and forced him to wear the Reversal Ring, and he had accepted that to be necessary because Gwyndolin trusted his father's judgment.

Over the years, he had grown to feel comfortable in his own skin and accept his own femininity; he had even learned how to tolerate the disdain of those around him.

Yet, that did not eliminate the many years he had watched his eldest brother with envy or felt like a stranger in his own body. It did not change the many years he had wasted chasing approval from a man who would never offer it due to something he could not change.

And now, he had been confronted with the fact that none of that was necessary and Gwyn's decision to raise him as a woman was merely a product of his father's own bias.

He had been confronted with the fact that all of the suffering he had endured because of Gwyn's decision to raise him as a woman had been completely and utterly meaningless.

When Gwyndolin had first seen Tsukoyomi's gentle confidence and noted how comfortable he seemed with himself, he had seen a possible future that had been taken away from him.

Gwyndolin had accepted that he held some resentment towards his father for the way he had been raised, but for the first time, that resentment curdled into something that resembled hatred.

Gwyndolin wanted to cry, but he had long since learned that tears solved nothing.

He wanted to rage and destroy everything around him, but he had long since been trained out of such "unwomanly" behavior when he was a child.

So instead, he did the only thing he could.

Gwyndolin lost track of time while he screamed and raged as he vented out his frustration and cursed Gwyn to rest uneasily in Nito's grasp. He did not know for how long this went on, but by the time he was done, he felt exhausted despite his ability to function without sleep.

Gwyndolin lowered the silencing ward and made his way to the bedroom he had thought he would not have occasion to use. He did feel exhausted, but he also felt lighter than he could remember ever feeling before—as if a burden he had forgotten the weight of had been lifted from his shoulders.

Gwyndolin was still… upset, but Gwyn had taken too much from him already; he did not wish to allow his father to take even more by falling into a cycle of negative emotions. This world had much to offer him, and Gwyndolin was determined to building a life here where he could find his own happiness.

As he lay down on the bed and considered his plans for the following day, Gwyndolin found himself grateful that he had a simple way to vent his negative emotions.

'Tis to mine fortune that superheroics offer a socially acceptable course of action for relieving mine frustration.