Before the Catasterismi
The Siderean pantheon wasn't established until at least a few hundred years into Siderea's existence, allowing a number of mortals to attain godhood. But who among them was baby, and what were their lives like before they became gods? Let's find out!
As stated in the Catasterismi and general tales of Siderea's creation, the first Siderean was Cetia, created by Frenzael from Asena's flesh (in other words, prima materia). Serpentarius followed immediately thereafter, created from Humilia's energy. Next came Librae, who Frenzael created from literally thin air to teach Asena and Humilia how to create life from elements. From there Humilia and Asena created the other two air-aligned zodiacs: Aquarians and Gemini, respectively, with Aquari being among the former. After that the Creators split up to get creating - but what became of the OGs?
Cetia and Serpentarius generally tried to stick to the Creators' sides - especially Frenzael's - as much as possible, feeling an immediate attachment to them and a bit of pride (especially in Serpentarius' case) in being the first Sidereans. While Serpentarius stayed steadfast by their sides, Cetia was so curious about the Creators' new creations that she found herself frequently distracted by them.
Librae, meanwhile, didn't quite know what to do, remaining by Frenzael's side until Asena and Humilia headed off to do their thing. She observed as Frenzael bolstered the number of Libras, Ophiuchi, and Cetans, unsure of exactly how to approach any of them or how to approach someone without making everyone else feel left out. The first Siderean with anxiety! Frenzael took note of her shyness and gently urged her onward, encouraging her to do as she pleased and find what made her happy. This prompted her to befriend some of Asena and Humilia's initial failed pseudo-creations and to try and create some funky little things of her own, taking requests from curious onlookers.
Frenzael, pleased with this turn of events, took off to observe their companions' creations. Serpentarius, feeling a bit flustered, felt as though they'd failed to please the Creators' and promptly gathered Frenzael's other creations to tell them the story of their creation, as if it hadn't just happened, like, half an hour ago. In this they more or less founded religion on Siderea, as well as establishing the Creators' famed monikers since Serpentarius had no idea wtf any of their names were.
Aquari, however, didn't need to be told what to do nor did they find themself particularly dependent on the Creators. While some other Aquarians decided to found Albali, Aquari was more interested in following the wind and exploring the world, developing an interest in leaving their mark on it. Compared to their later gossip hound nature, early on Aquari stayed somewhat isolated, committing talc erosion as they pleased.
Anyway, Humilia and Asena went off to create the rest of the zodiacs. Among them, only two of the remaining gods were in the first batch of their race. Which came first is debatable since this was at roughly the same time, but let's start with Humilia's contribution. After creating Virgos and general plant life, Humilia decided to create the Dream Sea to help connect Siderea and give them ample opportunity to process their feelings and dream. Feeling such a place would need custodians to protect and develop it, Humilia created the Pisceans. Among this first batch of Pisceans was Piscium, who was immediately fascinated by their surroundings and general existence. They got to work quickly and... pretty much kept working. Forever. Until they became a god. And then they worked some more. Forever. Someone pls make them take a break
While Humilia was making fimsh, Asena was making Scorpios. One of the last in the batch was Scorpius, who came not long after some other rando named Sariel who would surely never be relevant again. Scorpius was created just in time for Frenzael to arrive to check in on Asena's progress, prompting her to show off her works. Scorpius, bewildered by existence but admittedly curious, inquired as to what exactly he was supposed to be doing now. Frenzael warmly informed him to simply live, advice that would promptly define his life and endear him to them. Without further ado he decided to go off and do just that, ditching everyone in favor of exploring and seeing what Siderea had to offer.
Scorpius proceeded to get himself in trouble almost immediately, a cycle that would repeat a number of times as his curiosity and his youthful stubborn, stupid determination constantly saw him at the bottom of oceanic trenches and lost in abyssal labyrinths. Fortunately for his dumb ass, Cetia - hearing about Asena's hot new species - encountered him soon enough and basically adopted him as her bestest buddy. Beyond keeping him out of trouble, having a Cetus around aided quite a bit in transportation and helped Scorpius see the surface world for the first time, so he accepted her companionship and they traveled together for some time, and surely nothing would ever happen to sever their wholesome relationship for billions of years. :D (sobs gently)
The remaining gods all came later, born in the lucky timeframe where Asena decided to hire some furries for Frenzy to grant godhood so they could sit back and relax for once in their dang life. They otherwise would have lived ordinary mortal lives, though I guess a couple could've lived much longer but WHATEVER ANYWAY, listed in rough order of age:
Leonis, probably somewhere in his 40s at the time of his catasterism, was once baby. Baby cat dad baby cat dad!! Anyway then he was older baby, perhaps you wouldn't really say lower double digits is baby at all, but the point is that he once happened upon a Virgo around his age named Virginis. Virginis, in the midst of rooting (literally rooting oneself in the dirt to absorb nutrients and grow) and thus unable to escape, was being assaulted by people seeking to harvest all of his living plant goodness. Leonis, unable to stand this injustice, promptly fought off Virginis' attackers despite being half their age at best, successfully driving them off. With Leonis gravely injured, Virginis helped heal him but still felt his debt hadn't been repaid. Leonis insisted otherwise - not that he saw much of a debt to begin with - and continued protecting Virginis until he could safely uproot himself.
Virginis, as it turned out, was alone in the world: his bouquet (a Virgoan community/family unit, basically) had fallen victim to harvesters, with Virginis himself being the only one he was aware of that managed to escape. Leonis insisted Virginis come home with him and join his pride (a Leonine family unit) even though he wasn't a Leo. Though there was a bit of resistance, Leonis successfully integrated Virginis into his pride and developed a burning desire to unite all Sidereans, as at the time zodiacs were a bit divided among species lines. Leonis believed that stories like Virginis' were the result of such a society: instead of empathizing and befriending each other, too many Sidereans viewed other zodiacs like aliens or monsters to be avoided or exploited rather than human beings. If he could just get Sidereans to view themselves as Sidereans rather than Leos or Virgos or whatever else, perhaps the world would be free of tragedy. This mindset was ultimately what would help him attain godhood later on. Anyway, he and Virginis fell in love and were eventually married and then they became gods yaaaaaaay!!!
Tauri, somewhere in her mid-to-late 30s at the time of her catasterism, was born to a rural family and lived a humble life. She was never dissatisfied with life of subsistence farming... at least, until she met the glamorous and seductive Ishtar, who insisted she must want more out of life. Tauri, admittedly a bit deprived due to almost exclusively having her family to interact with and thoroughly manipulated by Ishtar's wiles, decided that Ishtar was right and ran away with her with little more than the clothes on her back.
Ishtar, it turned out, traveled the world as a mercenary, handling Siderea's many primordial monsters with ease thanks to being a Fadelike. Tauri wasn't exactly experienced, but her determination allowed her to utilize her strength and talents honed from years of toil to become an accomplished mercenary alongside her in no time. They became quite wealthy and lived a life of thrill, but Tauri never felt quite right. Over time the jobs Ishtar sought out started involved killing other people over monsters, and Tauri began to wonder what the point was. She loved Ishtar, though, and they'd been together for so long that surely Ishtar would never lead her astray or do wrong.
The breaking point came when Ishtar more or less abandoned her for another woman due to Tauri's naivety wearing off and her fascination with Ishtar fading as she began discerning her true character. Tauri was left heartbroken and morally conflicted, abandoning her empty career and wealth. Having no idea how to get back home and unsure if she could even bear to show her face again, Tauri retired to the countryside and back to a humble life of farming and gardening. What exactly transpired during her catasterism is something of a mystery as Tauri will give you a bit of a different story every time, but it's likely that Asena was endeared by her unique combination of apostatic bitterness and earnest warmth. She accepted godhood, and it even gave her the power to reunite with what remained of her family, and surely she would never ever have to deal with Ishtar ever again. Surely.
Capricoris was somewhere in her late 20s to early 30s at the time of her catasterism, born in a cliffside village by the sea. She had a loving family that wasn't too big or too small, not too strict but not too lax, overall happy and healthy. Predictable for the OCverse this couldn't last, and she promptly found herself orphaned after some random Aquarius thought it would be really cool to make a fuckhuge hurricane for funsies, destroying her village and killing most of the people in it. While there was plenty of support in the aftermath - including the village being rebuilt and orphans being adopted by the man who would later be known as Saint Ea - Capricoris resented that such a thing was even permitted to happen in the first place. To make matters worse, it seemed that the Aquarius at fault had gotten away with it, perhaps not even aware of the lives they'd destroyed in their sheer ignorance for the consequences of their actions.
Despite Ea's best efforts, Capricoris never really got over her trauma and became fixated on revenge. She quickly became a central figure in her renewed village, constantly putting in hard work to repair and grow it not solely out of the good of her heart but as an excuse to train. As she got older she trained more aggressively, and eventually set out on her own to find out who that Aquarius was and how one kills an Aquarius in the first place. After many years of searching she eventually found them, and I feel like I might them like A Character so I don't have things totally defined, but both ideas more or less lead to the same place. Either they're still a dick and Capricoris successfully kills them and feels kind of hollow afterward or they're horrified at Capricoris' accusations and Capricoris realizes that maybe death is not the answer and that the real evil lied in Siderea's lack of education and law.
Either way, Capricoris' burning desire for revenge transitioned into a burning desire for law and order, feeling that many of the ails Sidereans had suffered were due to the careless natures of the Creators and the complete lack of structure and unity on the planet. She returned to her village - by now having grown into at least a full-fledged town - and started to establish rules, regulations, and punishments suited for their associated crimes. It prospered like never before, and surrounding settlements were inspired by how Capricoris ran things as well. Once the Catasterismi came about and Capricoris began hearing of the ridiculous ways those before her were declared worthy of godhood, she knew she couldn't stand boy. The moment she had the opportunity to witness Asena in the flesh, before the almighty Creator could issue her decree, Capricoris immediately launched into a tirade about how irresponsible and reckless she was. Asena being Asena, ever charmed by those who dare call her a bitch to her face, decided she'd make a perfect addition to the pantheon and promptly catasterized her.
Cancri was probably somewhere in her mid-to-late 20s when she was promoted to godhood, but was yet another addition to the mortal squad. She was born and raised communally to be a soldier, defending some large underwater settlement or another from primordial beasts, liminal parasites, and at times other Sidereans. Despite all of the death she saw, Cancri never lost her heart and compassionate demeanor. If anything it only drove her, causing her to become an excellent tactician, the greatest defender around, and the leader of her squadron thanks to making every effort to avoid the deaths of her comrades without sacrificing defense. She became well-renowned in her area and had a number of suitors, but Cancri being Cancri she was either oblivious or too dedicated to her job to take time off for froofy things like love. Probably both.
Needless to say, once the Catasterismi were announced everyone figured Cancri was a shoo-in. Asena rolled up with a cool fake city to defend and a cool final boss form to attack it, with the assurance that all of her cool final boss moves would be so incredibly telegraphed as to render the entire event completely safe and non-fatal. Cancri naturally took charge and led her fellow aspiring Cancerians onward and everything went swimmingly under her expert instruction, even complete strangers unable to find reason to doubt her orders. However, in her diligent inspection of the fake city even in the heat of battle, Cancri happened upon... something or another that would most assuredly render the trial unsafe and very fatal. idk the exact details because thinking is hard but imagine the equivalent of like, leaving a big tub of gasoline on the stage of your fire-juggling contest. Or, like, you left a bunch of mirrors in your Real Laser shooting range. The only way for Cancri to ensure the safety of her fellow contestants was to put her own life at risk to defuse the threat, and without hesitance she did so. She was promptly obliterated, but her sacrifice combined with the words of those she saved were enough to convince Asena to resurrect her and choose her to be the Cancerian god.
...Or perhaps seeing who was willing to risk their own life for the good of many was the whole point of the exercise. Or maybe she wanted to test Cancri's resolve specifically, having heard of her deeds. Or maybe it was an actual mistake and even the Creators are fallible and she felt rather bad about it. Or maybe it was an actual mistake and Asena would rather have you believe it's one of the first two. Or maybe it wasn't actually risky after all and it was simply a trap for dumbasses to fall into but everyone begged enough for Asena to be persuaded. Or maybe---
Sagittaria was probably in her mid 20s when she got promoted. She lived with her family in a decent-sized herd, and was a rambunctious child, always trying to do things on her own even when told not to. Really, to her "no" may as well have meant "go", and as such she constantly found herself in trouble. Still, it never caused overly serious issues... for a while.
A common feature in herds - and many early landfaring Siderean settlements with fire signs - was someone (or preferably several people) trained in electric magic. Due to a complete lack of coordination of Aquarians and the lack of regulations and oversight to keep rogue ones from arising - not to mention technology hardly being at its peak combined with the areas Sagittarians tend to roam in - the ability for someone to keep lightning from striking camps or the immediate forestry around them was essential. Sagittaria had her eye on being one of them, but every time a storm arrived she was shooed away due to her cockiness and general lack of experience and training given her age.
Never one to quit, though, the day came where she had her opportunity somehow or another. Maybe the designated lightningbender that day was unconscious or injured or missing or something, or maybe she got in an argument with them and accidentally knocked them out or tricked them into thinking someone else was coming or something. Either way, instead of getting help Sagittaria elected to take care of the storm herself, only to immediately fuck it up, injure herself, and set the whole camp on fire. In shame Sagittaria ran away, eventually coming upon the ragtag herd of misfits Orion was part of and joining them, hesitant to speak about her burns and her past.
Over time her pain healed and she opened up to Orion, and soon enough they wound up becoming more or less the leaders of their herd, traveling around the world. Sagittaria matured and while never losing her energy and desire for adventure, she grew some brain cells and self-control, not wanting to end up making such a mistake again. Still deciding if she ever found out what became of her old herd and what in fact Did become of it, but anyway that's the story of how Sagittaria never made an impulsive decision that she thought would be fun but instead wound up being something she'd regret for the rest of her life ever again!
Arietis was probably in her early 20s at the time of her catasterism. She had an ordinary childhood with an ordinary family, though unsurprisingly she was just as energetic as she is now. However, she was a bit different as a kid in that she frequently found herself stressed, overwhelmed by the sheer amount of ideas she had and becoming easily frustrated whenever she failed at something. Back in those days she had brain cells, and they simply had too much to handle. She had lofty ambitions, but just couldn't focus on anything.
One fateful day, a family member or a teacher or Someone gave her the simple advice to take a deep breath and clear her mind whenever she felt overwhelmed. Baby Arietis did this, and in fact did it so well that she cleared her mind beyond emptiness, her brain immediately replaced with prima materia. With the power of head empty and galaxy brain combined, the handling of prima materia was trivial to her and led to her being granted godhood, changing the course of Siderea forevermore.
...That's what some of the stories say, anyway. It's pretty ridiculous though, right? That advice probably just helped her get control of her sheeple ADHD or something. But... the prima materia theory would kind of explain a lot, right........?
Finally, Geminorum is... complicated. They're technically the youngest of the gods, being born during the Catasterismi as a fusion of all the Gemini who aspired to attain godhood. Thus, they technically were and weren't baby because some of the Gemini that became them were created Gemini and others were birthed Gemini. But their fused form was an adult from the start since all of their components were adults, so can we really say they were baby?? Anyway I guess this is a good place to note that Geminorum wasn't always the cohesive, cursed individual they are today. Well, they were always cursed, but at the beginning their various parts hadn't quite yet become indistinguishable mush yet. As such they often referred to themself as "we" and were prone to changing personality at the drop of a hat. Over time this faded as their old selves lost their individuality and could no longer resist the allure of materwelons and knife bananas, and in modern times they consider themself nothing less than a singular and complete being.
...I guess I should probably mention Arachne even though she was much later. She crawled out of the core of the planet fully-formed and thus does not qualify as having ever been baby.
BABY LINEUP
Was Baby: Arietis, Tauri, Cancri, Leonis, Virginis, Sagittaria, Capricoris
Was Not Baby: Librae, Scorpius, Aquari, Piscium, Serpentarius, Cetia, Arachne
Was Arguably Several Babies: Geminorum
FINAL BABY COUNT
7 babies. Maybe more. Imagine.