The wind was oddly quiet these past few days, its silent hush falling over what felt like the entirety of Novus. But even though it was Winter — a time where the lull was not unheard of — it was too quiet even for the season of snow.

The gods had all been silent for some time, too... until today.

Winter had just begun and with it, the snowstorms - but the snow itself never seemed to settle on the gods' altars, all of which seemed to pulse softly with both light and energy. And then, sometime during the night in those first few weeks of this new season, they arose from their altars and began to walk.

Come the first morning no one had seen the gods walking freely yet, though their altars were empty. Were they hidden away somewhere... or worse yet, had they left this world & abandoned Novus?

Thankfully, they had not. Instead, they rose and walked. And walked, and walked.. Until they reached the sea. At the beach that bowed before the great Mother Terminus, they finally stopped and their immense forms stood still. Over a hundred feet tall they towered, stone hooves sinking into the soft sand as their eyes all drifted towards the same spot on the horizon: the stone arch of the Portals.

Atop it, stood one god who had never set foot onto the Novus we know today. Tempus, the father of time. His eyes, somehow kind after all these years, regarded his children. His four children looked back at him with worry in their own eyes, yet no words.

Oriens - god of wisdom and knowledge, over Delumine and the Dawn Court.

Solis - god of pride and strength, over Solterra and the Day Court.

Vespera - goddess of healing and care, over Terrastella and the Dusk Court.

Caligo - demigoddess of passion and protection, over Denocte and the Night Court.

And for those who called none of the four their home, Tempus still welcomed and loved them as his own. Allfather of all inhabitants, but especially the Vagabonds.

"Do not worry, my children," he greeted them. "This world has its cracks, but it is not broken."

From the sea, rose four more stone archway Portals - two to each side of the one Tempus stood upon. Each of his children stepped forward, the waves stilling their turmoil as the stone hooves of this world's gods stepped into the Mother Terminus. Behind each step, the water receded and created a sandy path to the Portals.

Each of the children gods stood beside a Portal for a moment, before turning back towards the beach. Without a sound or a word, the stone of their knees bent and all the children gods' forms came to rest on the sandy ground, their weary legs tucked underneath them. Tempus still stood atop the largest stone archway in the middle, his eyes cast out across the rest of Novus.

"Inhabitants of Novus," came his voice, simultaneously familiar yet strange. It was not booming, but carried across the entire continent regardless. "Come to the Terminus Sea, where the Portals yawn from the waves." There was paternal care etched into each breath and syllable that left his lips.

The Gentle Exodus was to begin.

"Your eyes have not yet seen me, but you have always known me. I am Tempus, god of Time and father to Oriens, Solis, Vespera, and Caligo," was the brief and only introduction, as little was needed for Tempus himself.

"As I told my children, this world has its cracks but it is indeed not yet broken," he assured all. "But I'm sure you understand, those cracks must be mended before they deepen."

"We cannot repair Novus while the hand of Time ticks on and on, so we must make a difficult decision..." His eyes briefly looked to his children, from left to right. As inhabitants of each Court started to arrive, his children looked at them with compassion and love. Many walked up to the gods, immense even when laying down, and the gods responded in kind: pressed their foreheads, their muzzles, to those who were seeking compassion and reassurance.

"We must shield this world, freeze it in time, while we work to stitch and mend its torn edges... We would never wish to trap any inhabitant here, cut off from the rest of the world, so we offer you this." 

The Portals hummed, their energy strong, as Tempus spoke of them. "These Portals will take you to your next journey, wherever that may be. We hope one day in the future, the edges of Novus' tapestry will no longer be left raw - but instead hemmed into a beautiful work of art once more, free of these breaks and cracks - and we can welcome every one of you back."

His eyes were warm, but sad, as he looked over the gathering inhabitants and his children. Surely he loved each of them, but his children loved them more and their love (even if unrequited) was so very apparent. "Unfortunately I cannot say for certain if, how, or when these cracks will be mended. Myself and my children extend our greatest love in letting you go freely to your next journey, and hopefully we will once more meet in this life or the next."

There were tears; many of them from the gods themselves, too. "If you or your loved ones choose to stay, do not worry. You will not perish; you will merely be frozen in time, encapsulated in this world, as the tether from Novus to all other realms is cinched."

Tempus' head bowed, as he finally lay atop the center stone archway where the largest Portal hummed. "Go in peace and with love. From both my children and me: thank you."