I don’t think the word needs to imply a creator necessarily.
“Clouds are created when water vapour in the air condenses”.
“Black holes are created when giant stars collapse”.
I’ll concede that going on to question political motive implies a creator, though.
I read that book about 30 years ago! I didn’t remember the eye-scanning gargoyle, but for some reason I still remember the phrase “Ultima Ratio Regum” from the nuclear powered gun.