The more often he came to the weekly meetings at the on campus coffee shop, Sacred Grounds, the better he got to know the participants of the weekly religion discussions. He was surprised, at first, to find out that they weren't all religion majors. Apparently colleges had diversified their offerings since the last time he had attended one. It used to be there were about five different educational paths one could choose from. Now there were literally hundreds. The descriptions didn't even sound very different to Sebastian, but according to his colleagues, they were worlds apart.

DJ, the boisterous leader with the tousled brown hair and the nose ring, was an anthropology major. He explained that it was the study of humans and their societies and cultures across history. Sebastian had a hard time keeping DJ's major separate from Hal's in his head.

Hal, the warm and friendly follower with sandy hair and thick glasses, was the sociology major. That meant he studies groups of humans, their collective behaviors, and the structures of societies. He often seemed so engrossed with studying groups of people that he forgot to interact with them, except for the miniature society at Sacred Grounds with whom he felt completely comfortable.

Perry, the handsome charmer with dark hair and graceful movements, was the real religion major. He studied all of them, with a special focus on the use of music in religious ceremonies.

Arianna, the quiet one who always had her knitting in her lap, the one who somehow won over everyone's hearts without even trying, was the philosopher. When she spoke, she could argue circles around the boys because her logic was nearly perfect. As a philosophy major, she loved most their discussions on the question of how we should live.

Sebastian was the fifth, the medical student still finding his place in the group. He liked most to pose questions and see how the others responded. He gauged their personalities based on how they answered and how passionate they were about those answers. The more he listened to them, the more he got to know them. The more he got to know them, the more he liked them.

“You can't just start a religion,” Perry protested, crossing his arms gracefully over his chest, striking his disbelief pose.

“All religions have to start somewhere,” DJ countered, standing up and excitedly hitting his palm against the table, making all their coffee cups jump and sending Arianna skittering after her ball of yarn that rolled underneath a neighboring table, “and they usually start with one person.”

“Actually, he's right,” Hal adjusted his glasses as he regarded them over the top of his sociology book. He had a test the next day but wasn't about to miss his once weekly social event. “Most religions start with the teachings of one person and his followers.”

“Yeah,” Perry conceded with a handsome sneer toward his bookish companion, “but they're usually gods.”

Arianna returned, picking dry leaf bits off of her rabbit fur yarn. Sebastian moved his chair a little closer so he could help her out.

“But what if they aren't?” DJ almost pounded the table again, but caught the disapproving glance from Arianna just in time. He shoved his hand in his pocket and paced back and forth once instead, “What if the gods people have been worshiping for thousands of years were just early mutants. It would mean that every religion is based on a lie, and it would mean that it could be done again.”

Arianna cleared her throat, the boys all turned toward her. She fidgeted uncomfortably with her knitting needles, “If a religion is based on a lie, does that make it inherently evil or can it do enough good for a society to make up for deceiving millions of people?”

“Religion is a positive influence on society, so yeah,” DJ answered quickly.

“I agree,” Hal closed his book. It was just too distracting to get any reading done. He'd just sleep an hour less and he'd be fine for his exam. “When societies are in trouble, at their darkest hour, so to say, that is when religions have the most power. People want and need something to believe in and religion provides structures and rules when governments fail to control their citizens. It's a win-win situation, whether it's based on lie or truth.”

“Hmph,” Perry stood, letting his chair scrape backwards with probably more force than necessary. He wasn't so sure about that, but he was going to think about it while he got a refill on his coffee.

“I wonder if current times count as one of society's dark hours or not,” Arianna pondered. They all thought about that for the few minutes while they waited for Perry.

DJ sat back down in his chair. Sebastian handed the ball of yarn back to Arianna, completely leaf free. She smiled, then continued working on the hat she was making. Her stitches were so small and so perfect it was nearly impossible to see them. It was almost more like she was weaving a hat out of fuzzy magic than knitting it out of real yarn. Hal riffled through his book bag and slid his text back inside.

Perry returned, coffee in hand, retort at the ready, “If there is a real god, wouldn't he or she be a little upset at a fake religion starting up?”

It was DJ's turn to cross his arms, “Wouldn't he or she have done something by now about all these rival religions?”

Perry frowned over his steaming cup, “Maybe they are all real, each with their own area of influence, their own followers. Either way, any false religion that starts up is running the risk of incurring the wrath of a real god.”

“What if a real god came to you and asked you to start a religion?” Sebastian stroked his goatee thoughtfully.

“Why would a real god ask us to start a religion? We're just a bunch of students,” protested Hal.

“No, no. It could happen. Most religious leaders have had humble origins. Fishermen and the like, you know,” DJ waved his hands to indicate all the other humble origins possible. “Besides, this is hypothetical.”

Sebastian smiled ever so slightly.

“That's one hell of a choice,” Perry laced his fingers together and leaned back thoughtfully in his chair. “On one hand you've got the possibility of a far away, but very real god that could damn your soul for eternity. On the other hand you've got an up close and very real possible god that could damn your soul for eternity. I don't like the odds.”

“What if there was proof? Like miracles or something,” DJ suggested.

“That would help,” Perry supposed.

Sebastian set his empty tea cup on the table, “Supposing you did have someone in front of you who claimed to be a god; who could perform miracles and could give you everlasting life as a reward for following him, one who wanted to start a religion that could help society in it's darkest hour, could you do it? Could you successfully start a new religion?”

There was a moment's silence as they thought about it, and then one by one each of them nodded.

“It's possible,” Perry admitted, “but would we want to?”

Sebastian smiled at him, “We could talk about hypothetical situations all day, but when it comes down to actually deciding you need to have real facts in front of you. Facts like these: I am immortal, I am thousands of years old, I can offer you immortality if you follow me, and I can perform as many miracles as you like to prove it.”

They stared like he had just grown another head, then Perry laughed, “The odds, they're astronomical. Of all the times, and all the places, and all the people in all the world, that we would be chosen for this task... combined with the chance that what you say is true. There's no way.”

“Proof, then.” Sebastian drew his sword and laid it on the table. He ran his finger along edge, then let the group watch as his finger stitched itself quickly back together again.

Three of the students stared with wide eyes.

The tall dark haired Perry scoffed, “Parlor tricks aren't going to convince anyone.”

“Something more dramatic, then?” Sebastian stepped behind Perry, and held the tall boy's left arm with his own left hand. With his right he picked up the sword, turned it inward, and jabbed it through them both. Perry coughed wetly; it wasn't a healthy sound. The unicorn man slowly withdrew the sword, making sure he kept his tight grip on the college student's arm.

Cold fire raced through them both, burning away their injuries. As always, Sebastian could sense the energy's path through his own body and Perry's. He could feel every fiber and every nerve as they reconnected. He could feel their insides twist back into their proper places. He could feel the skin close with an icy zip, then his powers retreated back into himself. He let go of the taller man and stepped sideways.

The college students were all standing and staring at him now. Him, with his dripping sword, Perry with his ashen face, both of them with small red stained slits in their shirts and no injury below to show for it.

“Until next week?” Sebastian suggested, “I'm sure we all have a lot to think about in the mean time.”

This was a gamble for Sebastian, too. As long as he had lived, he had never been convinced that there were any real gods, not the kind that could create or destroy worlds. Not the kind that were all seeing and all powerful. Not the kind that sat in another dimension watching the drama that played out on the little blue and white planet called Earth.

That didn't mean it was not possible.

What if a god really had come down to earth, in some kind of human shape, to observe and be part of the life he had created? What if, in casting off his divine raiments and taking on the cloak of humanity he had to leave some of his knowledge and his powers behind?

How would such a god, blessed or cursed with eternal life, return to his former power? Could it be by recombining the god-like powers of mutant kind to reform his holy mantle? Perhaps all he needed to do was die and be reborn as his former self. Without the powers of omnipotence, it was impossible to know.

It was one explanation for his purpose on this planet. It was one reason that he had been set to wander this earth for such a long time, as a witness to all the brightest and all the darkest times in human history. Sebastian might be that god.

Or he might be just a man.

It was a gamble. He could succeed in his efforts and become a god revered by all, or he could die in the effort. He could challenge the gods and take his place as one of them or the gods could strike him down. Either of those outcomes were acceptable.

The gamble, though, was that he wouldn't succeed or fail. That his efforts would be in vain, and yet he would have to continue living, knowing without a doubt, that he had no purpose in this world and his entire existence had been a waste.