Michael awoke to the distant thunder of approaching footsteps. “She's coming!” he thought, and without a moment's delay he scrambled out of bed, put his clothes on, and ran out of the inn, together with all of the inn's tenants, its staff, and even the innkeeper. Outside there were people streaming out of every building in sight, all gathered in groups as they waited patiently for their goddess to arrive, eyes bright with anticipation as they looked up at her bedroom door. It seemed an eternity since the goddess had graced them with her presence, though in truth it had only been a few months. Well, a few months for them; their goddess and the vast world outside operated at a radically different timescale than they did, so that a year for them was a day for her.
Not that most of them thought in those terms. Most of them had been born after parents had suddenly appeared in this world, in the kitchen of the two women who would come to be known as their goddesses; Sarah and Barbara Winters. They had never known a world that wasn't ruled over by the two women.
Almost everyone in the town was soon outside, chatting with each other while they waited for their goddess to arrive. Another thundering step was taken, followed by yet another one minutes later, each one louder and more earth-shaking than the last, until finally the handle on the door began to turn, giving rise to an excited murmur in the town. That murmur swelled as the door came closer to opening. Once they caught their first sight of their goddess, the middle-aged blonde, Barbara Winters, the murmur grew into uproarious cheering. People danced, sang hymns, and held feasts in her honor of her return, which marked one of the great religious holidays of the land of Barbaria. The occasion was especially important for this town, one of the major holy sites of Barbaria. Built right on the ridge between two of her toe prints, there was no other town that could boast a greater proximity to the goddess herself than Toetown. Pilgrims had flocked from all over Barbaria just for this occasion, hoping to be able to touch the goddess's foot, whose divine aura was said to be able to cure any disease, granted one was a truly devoted believer.
The festivities lasted for hours as the goddess stepped into the room as if in slow motion, stripping off her work clothes and donning something more comfortable before sitting down at the desk where she had her computer, and under which she kept the terrarium full of micro people whose inhabitants had come to call in her honor.
Sitting down, she looked down into the terrarium, granting the people inside a glance from her divine eyes. Then she spoke, her voice a low rumble far too slow for most of them to understand. It fell on her priests to decipher her words and relay them to the rest of her worshippers, that being one of their many duties.
“Hello down there, dears. Did you miss me? I missed you. Today was such a hard day at work. I kept thinking of you all, and how much I wanted to have you at my feet already. Your dirt looks so inviting right now.” As she spoke she let her feet hang above the micro people, filling them with anticipation. “Are you all ready? Here I come!” She said, and her feet began their slow descent into the terrarium.
The people of Toetown grew silent. This was a moment of judgement for them. Their town could easily be smothered out if their goddess so chose, wiped off the face of the earth as if it had never existed. They knew the risk of being here, but they were willing to die at their goddess's feet if that is what she willed for them. As her foot came closer and closer, it seemed for a moment as if the city would be crushed under her toe. When it finally settled on the ground, however, their town was spared, and many praises were offered up to Barbara for her great mercy.
The people rushed out to meet Barbara's big toe, which had landed just a hundred feet beyond the town's borders. They wanted to touch the goddess, believing that would confer her divine favor on a the truly devoted worshipper. The cleaned her toe, bowed and prayed to it, hugged themselves against it. For most that was enough. Not so for a daring group of her followers. They were to set out on a journey to climb up the goddess herself, seeking to brave the vast distance up to her toenail. Legend had it there was a paradise city there, where they would have their every need taken care of for the rest of their lives, allowed to live immortally in Barbara's divine presence. Every year a daring few went to make the journey, knowing fully well that success was nigh impossible, and their return only slightly less so.
As the group made their way up to the toe. None carried food or water; as part of their divine journey, they would have to live off the resources of the goddess's body alone, drinking her sweat and eating her dead skin cells until they reached the paradise city, where they would be received with a feast fit for kings.
Their departure was preceded by a lengthy ceremony, in which they received the blessings of the local priests and kneeled to the goddess Barbara's toe, praying for her protection. At last, however they all set off, slowly climbing up the ridges of her toeprint. Theirs was a journey of many miles, and even if everything went smoothly it would take them well over a week to reach the top. As fate would have it, however, their journey wouldn't even last a day. Once the group had stopped to rest for a while, they suddenly felt a terrible shaking as the goddess's toe twitched. She first stretched her toes out, then scrunched them up, crushing the brave climbers against the dirt in an instant.
Their lives would be mourned by the people of Toetown for the rest of the day. Meanwhile, far above them, their goddess sighed and enjoyed the feel of the cool dirt between her toes, blissfully unaware of what she had just done.