# ORIGIN
##### Explosions Inspired
A conqueror came to Pathik’s monastery and ordered the refugees seeking asylum be turned over. The conqueror was known for cruelty and leaving a wake of irreversibly damaged land and people. Most in the monastery detested him and many were willing to fight to the end. The monks refused his demand. The conqueror allowed them three days to think about their decision and prepare for their deaths while he and his soldiers rested from their travels and celebrated their pillaging. In that time Pathik meditated on life, death, and pain. He sought answers about purpose and existence. He listened to the warriors revel over their rape of the land and the whimpers of ordinary people doomed to die. He searched within for shadows of past lives and echoes of the soul that would appear in future lives; he wondered about the first life and what would be the last. He aimed to attune himself to the nature of the universe itself.
When the three days were up, Pathik joined a number of monks who chose to make an act of protest by peacefully meditating at the entrance of the monastery. As the invaders began their slaughter, and Pathik’s more violent brethren began to fall in battle around him, he found clarity in the noise and chaos. His mind cut through the veil of the immediate reality before him and he saw a pure void. Truly empty, such that it could not yet even contain the concept of emptiness. Yet somehow there was an energy. A desire born from the void that singularly tore through nothingness just to be. And with a great bang the nonexistent lack had become infinite; a glorious blast of light, heat, and mass gave birth to all that is.
At that moment Pathik knew that life was an explosion.
Upon opening his eyes Pathik was greeted with the site of cataclysm. The monastery had been blown to rubble. The entirety of the invaders’ front lines had been vaporized, and many more still beyond were torn apart, maimed, and otherwise ravaged by a great fiery blast. Despite all this destruction, what struck Pathik the most was the calm. It was the first time in three days that there was silence. It was perhaps the first time in his life that Pathik knew true peace. He understood now that destructive ends could create vibrant new beginnings.
Pathik himself was not unharmed. His clothes were gone, much of his skin had been burned and some small patches seemed to be melted entirely, though by all rights any such explosion should have destroyed him too. Through the pain he noticed that he could still feel some small spark of the power that had manifested. It was puny compared to the awe inspiring force of his revelation, but he knew he could kindle its power to divinity once again. Offering a silent prayer for the reincarnated souls of his victims and brothers, Pathik set out to walk the path of enlightenment.
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### Credit
GMBinder for the template, markdown tools, image assets and formatting.
Credit to /u/Salieris_Neighbor_ and their post about Explosion Magic for the original versions of the spells between Minor Explosion and Total Annihilation. Some credit goes to /u/Emurlahn as well for their comment with balance suggestions