Chapter One: The Creation

[Soulserenity20]

OOC Thread

Introduction The World So Far The Pantheon

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  And there came a time when the maker of worlds grew weary. His existence, though timeless, has stretched him across millennia and galaxies, wearing his essence to little more than a glint in the vast emptiness of the cosmos. He had created, destroyed, and ventured through all the cycles of being and non-being. Countless worlds had come to life by his hand. His heart he poured into all that rose up, but as his essence began to fade, he would desire one last creation. He would desire one last world to shine with the light of eternity, his being forever imprinted onto its image.
  
  And so, in his last great act of creation, he divided himself up and brought forth entities each bearing aspects of himself. Light and dark. Life and death. Time and eternity. Change and stagnancy. Warmth and cold. Love and hatred. From the most vast of aspects, to the most specific and minute, he brought forth a cohort of creators to live on in his legacy, forging the way for one last world to come to life.
  
  These beings knew not of what they would create, nor how they would do so. They knew only each other, sensing familiarity amidst their ranks. For each was unique, but bore a past of unity that could never be forgotten. They appeared only in essence, before an empty world. The creator waited until the earth god had forged a massive planet of stone before he left to them one last gift. The creator summoned and blessed a great hall made of starlight and called it their own before his departure into the void. Here, they would venture to the nameless world and build an abode upon the sacred land. As time would pass, their urge to create would grow, and with this urge would come forth the last eternal land, forged by the might of the creator's last task, and by the hands of his children.
  
  Our story begins, in a world with no name, among a cohort of gods and goddesses given the power to manifest their will. Each bears a unique nature, given to them by their Father, but all have yet to explore this nature and bring to fruition their ability to create, to build, and to grow. With their first steps out from their abode, they looked out upon the empty, nameless expanse, and with the will of their hearts and souls, began the making of the last eternal world.
  

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  As the children of the great maker entered into the nameless world and took refuge in their abode, halls made of starlight and strong, mighty stone to keep out the outside world, they would peer out at an empty world. At this time, there was only a hard, stony mass of earth. There was no wind, no clouds, no weather, no life. There was nothing but stone and still seas. There was no music, no sound, save for the voices of the gods and goddesses. There was no night and no day. Nothing in this world changed, it was immortal in its lifelessness. All there was, was water, and stone, and an eternal stillness.
  
  Vyria has now tried to coat the rough, hard earth with a blanket of soft grass. The grass has no roots, no manner of growth, for no time passes here. It simple rises up from the ground and exists. Though there is life in the grass, it does not actually grow, reproduce, absorb nutrients, or anything of the manner, and so it will continue to die until the young goddess can learn what life is, and what life needs.
  
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  Vyria
  Goddess of Fertility, Flora, and Fauna
  

  

  
  Euvaran
  God of Darkness, Night, Void, and Corruption
  

  

  
  Isavhii
  Goddess of Passion, Heat, Fire, and Love
  

  

  
  K'ra-Keyam
  God of Preservation, Ice, and Cold
  

  

  
  Ëa
  Goddess of Time, Seasons, and Change
  

  

  
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[Soulserenity20]

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Vyria looked out of the great skylight in the main hall of Eruin's Keep. Eruin, meaning Honoring Thou, was named so in honor of the great maker, the father of she and her kin, and had served as a protective hold for the deities in the three years since they had arrived. Such a short amount of time was hardly a blink in the eye of an immortal, but it had been sufficient enough time for the group to grow accustomed to their physical manifestations. Vyria had chosen a body with fair skin, delicate and soft as if worn to its shape by the celestial winds, and flowing dark hair that mimicked the darkness. She wore bits of stardust in her locks, completing her appearance to match the flowing sky above, a small, but beautiful memory of her birthplace. She wore no clothing, at this time, save for a light veil of white cloth that hung loosely around her body. She had no preference for color, for the physical world had not yet taken hold on her. The very appearance of her body, with limbs and a face, eyes and hair, all the details of her strange capsule, were gifted to her mind by the maker upon her creation. The same was the case for the others, though each had instilled their own preferences into their appearance in small ways. Each chose their size, their color, and whatever other details they wished.

The delicate cloth she wore had been woven from stardust, the only material she really had access to within these halls. Pure white eyes gaze about, observing the stars, and searching for an explanation for the lure she felt within her. Her essence seemed to ache for the outside world, though she knew there was nothing beyond the halls Eruin but emptiness, stillness, and an unforgiving world without a name.

Months, it took, for her to gain the courage and will to venture out into the hall. Her brothers and sisters had yet to reach the same point of will, but she could no longer ignore the pull. She closed her eyes and lowered her gaze from the open sky and turned to the long hall that led to the gates of Eruin. Slowly, she moved with bare feet along the cool, smooth floors and when she reached the mighty doors of the keep, she paused, uncertain of what come next. Bravery filled her heart and she took hold of the brief moment, harnessing it to fuel her will, and she leaned into the mighty door, pushing the bright, while bodies out and exposing the world behind them.

Silence met her ears and though she knew little of what sound should have been, she knew the silence was unforgiving and unwelcoming. Even the voice of her kin would have sufficed as a manner by which to fill the void, and yet there were no others at her side. She opened her lips a little and let out a low note, humming into the stillness. Quickly, she silenced herself. It felt foreign. Strange. And yet, she felt the allure of potential stirring within her. This world, was empty and lifeless, but some part of her felt the powerful will to create, so bestowed upon her when she came into existence. One foot at a time, she crept down the mighty steps and when she reached the dark ground at the bottom, she quickly recoiled her foot. The feeling of cold, hard, and rough earth displeased her greatly. The halls were smooth, but she felt no desire to replicate such a texture. She lifted her hand and ran her fingers through her hair, enjoying the texture, and for a moment, was lost in thought. But then, the texture stirred an idea in her. With a smile, she lifted her hands and willed forth the earth to expel a bounty of hair for itself! A soft coat of tendrils that would reach up towards the sky and grow on forever, but quickly, she stopped and withdrew what she had created for the hair burst forth from the ground and sprang on, growing eternally so, into the skies and all about the land, becoming uncontrollable. She receded her will and the hair followed.

"This cannot work. The growth is eternal and uncontrollable. There must be moderation..." She spoke quietly to herself. "And yet, I have not the power to wield such things... nor the skill to do so." She was frustrated, for the barren stone before her simply begged for a coat of soft, delicate hair. She decided then, that she would offer no growth, for she had no control over time, which did not exist in this world. Instead, she urged a coat of hair that would only lie a few short measures above the hard ground, just enough to soften it beneath her feet. Then, she looked about at the black mass and while fond of the darkness that matched the dark skies above, she felt a need to create something unique, and so she did something she had never done before: she made color, as vibrant as she could imagine, into the hair. The outcome would appear a deep, rich green color and the eternal hair of the earth would remain this color. Pleased with what she had done, she took on the color of grass for her eyes, and cloaked her starlight veil in it, making robes of the same rich tone.

She stepped out onto the hair and felt its softness beneath her feet and a smile moved to her lips. The world was not so unforgiving now.

Standing out on the sea of green hair she had given the world, she enjoyed the sight for some time. But she began to see that the tone of the earth had begun to seep into the vibrant green tendrils. Sorrow filled Vyria's heart, for the hair, which she had decided to call grass, had not remained. This disheartened her, but after some time of woe, she dipped her creation into the depths of her heart and drew forth a bit of the life that had been given to her by the maker. This life, was her very essence, the one thing that he had given her that was so different from the others. It was not mere existence, but a desire to be. She called forth another bout of the grasses, and this time, they were hearty and strong, with a desire to exist and to continue existing. But they still did not last, rather dried up on the hard, cracked earth.

Angry, she let out a shout of frustration. "Why does this world destroy what I create? Why can the life I offer not survive here?" She glared at the dark, stoney ground and thought for sometime. Perhaps it was as she had felt herself: the ground was too hard for the grass, as it had been for her. She needed a means of softening it, making it more welcoming. She turned and head back to Eruin to seek out her kin to find the one with domain over water. Perhaps the great, still seas could wear down the hard stone grounds and make them more welcoming for her simple grasses.
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[Mowkie]

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For what could have been mere moments or millennia, the children floated there with their Maker, unsure of themselves. Uncertain of their own goals or destinies, many of them waited and watched. With their Maker's guidance, a planet could be born as many had in the past times. But he simply watched to see what they would do. What they would achieve.

At first, they were faceless beings, nothing more than sculpted clay much like his planets before them. They had no unique features or meanings. They simply were. Just as he simply was.

One of the beings reached out before it, however, and touched its hand to a star. And that star filled the being with warmth, heat, and passion. A face came upon the emotionless creature, but so much power was derived from that star that her glowing eyes were almost instantly covered to keep her safe and contained. She knew her destiny then. She knew that she could never open her eyes. But still, she felt such warmth and a need for celebration that she lifted up her arms, her black hair curtaining into the endless void, and attempted to recreate what she had touched mere seconds ago. Was it seconds? She did not know, for she had no aspect of time. Only space and an endless void filled only with these strange, powerful stars, planets, and the other beings that were just like her, but still faceless. Or were they? She could not tell.

Between her outstretched hands, a small orb of light began to appear and grow. It was hot, but not too much so. Warm. That was the word she would use. And it pulsed, much like the star. For her, it lived. Was it truly alive? She could not say, for she had no knowledge of life. This orb was weak. Weaker than the star she had touched, for she had not the power to create a star. She only had a small part of the star she had touched. But she held it close and wished with all her might that it would thrive. In this cold, endless expanse, though, how could it? How could she make sure it survived? Was survival an option if life was not? There were so many things to consider. So young and new, she did not understand such concepts. She only understood the star, its heat and desire to thrive in the endlessness that she remained within herself.

Another came forward, still faceless, shapeless in the darkness. It touched her shoulder first, then reached out and touched a stone. What kind of stone was it? A moon? A planet? An Asteroid? It did not know, nor did it truly care. But as its fingers grazed the stone, a face formed upon it, taking up the hardiness of the rock beneath its fingers. Was it an it anymore? Stony, hard features, contrasting to the smooth texture of its sister. So is she was so different, perhaps he would be something else…yes, a he. Moving her to where she faced him, he took the little orb from her arms. He did not know if he spoke, or if she simply understood, but she relinquished her creation with little fuss. In return, he gave her his first gift, wrapping the orb of warmth in his stony shell of protection. It was not perfect or smooth. Instead, it was bumpy, with great rises and drops all over. But it would do. Together, they placed this shelled orb near the sun she had touched and released it to their nameless siblings. Names…yes…they would need names. Names to match their destinies. Their power.

Their names came to them instantly, just as their faces did. No longer were they simply creations of dust and nothingness. They had meaning. And with meaning and purpose, they all looked towards their Maker, who blessed them with one last gift. A temple made of starlight – stronger even than the star touched by the child of warmth. And just like that, he drifted away to leave his children to do their work and find their place in the void that was home to them.

The temple drew them in then, and they came to know their more physical forms. Each unique, representing what each of them would do for themselves and the world that had been created. Drawing from the images gifted to them by the Maker, they created their forms uniquely to themselves. From the strange lettering, they created names for themselves. An understanding came to them instantly at each touch and graze of the eyes or hands. They knew the words, though not where they came from. They knew the letters and the meanings.

She chose a more childish form, innocent and light with short, dark hair sparkling with some of the light of the star she had touched. Her blindfold was white, covering her eyes and cursing her to contain the power within her so as to not destroy what she had already helped create. She had other senses, and though she could not physically see, she knew anything and everything, as her Maker had granted her with images to love and cherish. She was clothed in a simple white dress honed with the strange colors of the star she touched, all ranges of fiery colors from gold to red to orange. For these were the colors that she had attuned herself with already, even though there was little of the world that had yet to be made, and they were the colors she was gifted with as she sewed her dress of sunlight. She named herself then, Isavhii, meaning heart of fire.

By contrast, he was tall and muscular, hardened like the stone he had touched moments ago…or were they years? His head was bald, and his eyes glowed golden to mark his help to his sister of heat and sunlight. Around his chin was a thick beard of brown, oddly smooth against the hardiness of the rest of him. Two red dots adorned his forehead – one for the sun and one for the planet that he now stood upon. He wore heavy beads around his neck of a simple brown – perhaps stone – resting over an orange tunic of sorts that draped over wrapped leggings. Orange for the sun, a piece of which he had touched, brown for the stone, which he could shape however he liked. He called himself Tarzarus, lord of stone.

He was the first to step out, yearning to feel beneath his feet what he had made for himself and his siblings. Outside the doors, the land was barren and dry. His lips cracked, and his tongue slowed within his mouth. Whatever could he do? Putting this out of his mind for now, Tarzarus let his golden gaze fall upon the risen land that the temple was on. It was smoother than he had imagined, only tiny bumps here and there. Pitiful. Pathetic. He wanted more. So he built a wall of massive mountains in a half moon around the temple. He stretched it beyond the rising of the stone and earth he had already created, letting it trail off into the distance until he could not see it any more. With his first work completed, he re-entered the temple and stepped towards his known sister. "This world is dry and barren. What can we do to make it better?"

She walked out with him and looked about, letting her senses take in every aspect that they could. It was cold, though the sun was out. It was dry, and her lips cracked, her tongue becoming much like stone within her mouth. Shaking her head, she gave a shrug and then idea came to her. "Let me try warming the stone. Perhaps then, something will happen."

Letting her feet then touch the ground, Isavhii pulled on the beating heart of warmth at the center of the stony shell. Instantly, the stone grew hot, and one of the mountaintops exploded with melted stone, creating the first volcano. The stone cracked beneath their feet, and their lips followed suit. She pushed away some of the heat then, sighing sadly and giving another shake of her head. "There is nothing I can do with what power I have. Perhaps another can help. But who?"

Together, they went back into the temple, awaiting the one who could bring about wetness.

They watched another leave, pulled forth by her own need to create. Time still was not something they understood, so they did not know how long it had been or if the sun had risen or fallen beyond sight. As the other left the temple, they watched her attempt her own creation, to no avail. Were they ever going to get anywhere with this? Or were they doomed from the start by their all-knowing Maker?

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[firejay1]

Preliminary image:
What is "the beginning?" What is "what is?" Meaning and form and shape, light and dark, existence and non-existence. What is.... Geliki'sidhe's first form was not a form at all, but laughter. Her other siblings took on shapes soon after they were brought into that undeterminable beginning, that timeless existence, but Geliki'sidhe began with a quiet giggle in the void. That giggle was her name, whispered into being and thus made real. What did it mean? Nothing. Just a sound. The sound of something that was and yet was not. Something soft and solid, strong and weak, that flowed like the light of the stars and yet could be felt. She built her form out of that feeling, not quite knowing what or why it was. With a light giggle, she twisted herself into a being cold and sweet, soft and weak. W-ater. From the formation of the world and the creation of their sanctuary Geliki'sidhe did not venture, but the pull to do so was great, all of their inexorable inheritance.

She watched the others, Vyria, Tarzarus, Isavhii attempt to create something that would, perhaps, last above the stone - something they all sought, though for what purpose none of them knew. They did not succeed, but when Vyria returned, she would find Geliki'sidhe waiting at the door to tug at her hair. She spoke of softening the earth, and that drew the little water goddess's heart closer to the great solidness. She raised one foot to pass the threshold of Eruin, but stopped it in the air, hesitating. A bit of her essence fell from the tip of her toe, onto the waiting land. Drip, drip, drip. The sound was calling her name. G'liki, G'liki, G'liki. Pressing her foot down, she leapt into the awaiting world, flowing, dancing over it, and from her fingertips fell thin streams of th-at. Water. She giggled and let her thin streams race over the unforgiving stone, finding little paths in which to flow with little burbles and echoed laughter. Drip, drip, drip, swish, swish, swish. G'liki, g'liki, g'liki, siiiiiiidhe.

She traversed a path around the rock once, and returned to the gates of Eruin, but did not enter. "Come." She whispered, in her soft, clear voice to those still inside. "Come."

 

[Rainjay]

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The universe flowed, shifting and swaying along to an invisible rhythm, an indecipherable rhyme. It was beautiful. It was... Poetry. The word came to them from the universe itself, or so they thought. Perhaps it came from their creator, but that One was gone, having left naught but a home of stardust in which to reside. This place, too, was befitting of poetry, lovely in its own way, though not nearly as lovely, beautiful even, as they were. Their home did not flow, did not tune itself to the music of the universe. Neither did this chunk of rock that their brother had created for them. Perhaps the closest thing they had here was the pulse of its inner core, replicant of their grand sun, but it felt foreign to them, and thus, they decided to make anew.

But first, they needed a name, and proper form. Inside their home, they had been among the last of their siblings to choose a name for themselves. It was difficult to pick a single name for themselves, when they thought they ought to have many. But a thousand names would simply be a silly extravagance, and surely their siblings would grow frustrated with it. So, they thought, until they settled upon a name they both liked. Shialaevar. It would do.

Next, they would be needing a form, one appropriate for greeting their siblings. After much dilemma, they decided that unlike their name, they could not pick a singular form to suit their identity. As such, they picked two: a man and a woman, siblings by appearance, with flowing dark hair--hers longer than his, with small braids decorating the sides of her squared face--and skin a warm bronze. Their female form dressed with a simple cloth, gray as their world was, worn over her shoulder and tied off at the hip, draping down to form a skirt of sorts, and went without anything on her feet. Their male form went with a simple waist wrap that allowed muscles, sculpted to his desire, to be exposed to the world, and shorter, waved hair around his face, a masculine twin to hers. They made up these bounds of he versus she based on that of their sisters and brothers, and were pleased with their choices.

It was then that they decided to leave the stardust fortress and see the outside world. Their siblings, some of them, were there already, gazing upon their creations. A blanket of a colored substance lay across the otherwise barren land, browned on its bottom and a color--vibrant and bright, one they liked so much they made it the color of their eyes at that moment--at its top. Surrounding their home were taller protrusions of land, in a arc that gave them a sense of safety. They wished to thank their brother for it, but were awed to distraction by the strange substance their sister had made.

Tiny rivulets of a flowing substance came from her, streaming through the floor covering and tearing it up. It must be quite delicate, they thought, kneeling down on bronze knees to observe the flowing creation. They dipped slender fingers to it, letting it wash over them. It was cool and smooth and flowed beautifully--like poetry. Like them.

It was a stream, made of blue. Water. And they wanted more.

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[Soulserenity20]

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[dash=yellowgreen]At first, Vyria had become frightened by the flowing fluid created by her sister. And as she watched, she saw as it began to wash away her beautiful grass, tossing it to the side and pulling it out of the stone ground. For a time she remained upset, bothered by the ignorance of her sister. But after gazing upon the flowing vein and observing it's movement, she began to see the stone had changed, if only a little.

Furrowing her brow, she spoke to her sister who had returned, riding upon her flowing vein, and beckoned for her to join her. Vyria remained, however, and spoke from her place on the starlight steps. "'Tis not enough, sister. For it would seem that no great change can affect this world. And without change, what more can there be?" She quieted, pondering the scene before her. "Still... We mustn't avail. Your flowing veins have thrown aside my creation. They lack the strength to hold on, yet I feel their will to stand strong in their place of creation and so I must heed their desires. You have shown me that this small life I have made will be pushed, even by the most beautiful of forced. It must learn to hold on, and stand it's ground. I will give this grass the endurance it needs survive." She willed hand-like structures to hold the grasses in place, though these rudimentary structures were weak. They would withstand the small vein of flowing liquid so made by her sister, but the ground was still hardened and gave way only a little to the dancing waters. She sensed that her life would require resilience and fortitude to survive this world, for there were surely much greater things to come that would test and try the life to great ends! "I must seek out my brother and ask for his will to give my creation of life more strength. Perhaps he can offer the same to your gentle waters, and perhaps with that strength we can soften the hard stone and make this land viable for my meager creations. I do very much wish to see them flourish and fulfill their desire to exist."

And so, the fair goddess turned once more and ventured back into the great halls of Eruin to seek out her mighty brother who held dominion over strength and fortitude. Perhaps he would offer her aid in her creation.

As she walked through the halls, she passed two of her kin, the blinded one and the behemoth. It was to her massive brother that she spoke in passing, "your might is great. Your creation will not give way so easily to others. Might you strive to create a more gentle mark upon this land, oh Tarzarus, if only for the sake of my humble grasses. I go now to seek our brother, K'ra-keyam, to ask him to offer my creation the strength to withstand the creative forces we wield but if you may aid G'liki as she strives to soften the land, I have hopes that it might ease the burden on my small creations."

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[Mowkie]

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Another would leave not long after. Her presence soothed their dry, cracked lips and made their tongues feel less like stone. She was what they needed. Wetness. Fluidity. Water…yes, that was the word. Geliki'sidhe. She would be the first to begin taming the hardness of the stone created by Tarzarus. What she created flowed through the small imperfections of his land, tearing away the fine hairs that had come to grace the stone only to fall away to nothingness, dry…dead. What was death? The opposite of life…but, then, what was life? Was that what their sister of green beauty tried to create?

These little flowings created their own paths through his hard stone, and he watched as his land fell away to the flexible strength of the water. The paths grew deeper, and he realized that not even his land could withstand the softening nature of this new thing. But then, if she could soften the land by creating little streams, perhaps more could be done.

Isavhii was the first to answer her sister's calls, stepping away from her guardian brother and reaching out to touch the streams. Her hand drew back then, for the streams were cold to the touch. This, she did not like. Yet her mouth yearned for a taste. What was taste? All she could do was reach in and cup some of the water and take a drink. Her stony tongue once more felt normal, and her cracked lips became soft and smooth. She smiled towards her sister then, and a new sensation came out in a simple sound. A laugh. Yes…laughter…that was also a creation of Geliki'sidhe. She liked this feeling and let herself laugh more, giggles erupting from her small chest as the water seemingly rejuvenated her. With her joy came more light and a pleasant warmth. The stone beneath the grasses was warm now, not cold or hot, but warm and delightful. What a pleasant thing, water was.

Tarzarus listened to his sister of green and tiny hair, glowing eyes bearing down upon her as he nodded. "My might knows little bounds, but I now know that there is something that can soften the stone of my land. I must show the stone that it must be good to all, not just a hardened shell to protect the warmth of our sister…but also a surface to hold upon it the hands of your grasses. But we must find a way to let the water spread even further than it already has. It must cover more of my stone so that it may soften and accept the life you give."

He watched her go, his mind knowing her name. Vyria. Bringer of life. Acceptor of death. Turning away, he let himself stride once more outside the threshold to the temple to his two dear sisters. His stone was no longer harshly cold or hot beneath his feet, but a pleasant warmth that soothed him. He turned to look at Geliki'sidhe and gave her a small bow. "Your water is mightier than my stone, and it softens the hardiness in ways I cannot. We must find a way together to soften all of the stone but for the tallest and mightiest of peaks so that Vyria can grow her soft grasses, to protect our feet when we walk from the temple into this land. Can you help me?"

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[firejay1]

Geliki'sidhe watched her siblings for a moment quietly. How serious Vyria was, now fixed upon making her soft covering stick. Why was her little water not enough? But it was no matter. If her sister wished to create this thing... the word came to her... this life, then she saw no reason not to help it along. Perhaps they could play once that was finished. Perhaps it was already play. P-lay. The word delighted her, and she giggled. This time, her laughter was not alone. With pleasure, she noted that Isavhii had ventured to join her and taken joy in her creation. Her water. The ground grew warm with her sister's delight, and that, in turn, thrilled her, causing her feet to play along the hard ground, further ruining the thin layer of grass Vyria had put down. She spun in circles where she was, moving her feet not to go anywhere. What a lovely feeling. Dancing. That would be what it was. Dancing. Coming closer, she took Isavhii by the hands and began to try drawing her into the dance, but was stopped as her brother turned and addressed her.

She let go of Isavhii and her feet lifted off the ground. She floated up and closer to Tarzarus until she was level with his head, far taller than hers. She blinked at him silently in a curious fashion as he spoke, and when he was done, left a moment of silence longer. Then, she lifted both her hands and lightly smacked them against his hard, rough cheeks. With a loud giggle of mischief, the water spirit dove over his head, and then quickly circled back around to face his front, poking his lips with one, wet finger. "My water is not mighty. When a mighty thing meets a mighty thing, both stay strong, but my water is weakness calling to the weakness in your stone. That is my water." She tilted her head over to look at the where her streams met the rock. "And it does not seem to soften your rock, merely crumble it away." She though out loud, curiously. She began drifting away, almost absent-mindedly. "Perhaps if you know or can make greater weaknesses in your rock, my little water can find it and make it weaker, coax it out gently, but I do not know if it may make much softer ground for Vyria's creations. I do not know." She tasted the words on her lips with a kind of self-satisfied glee. All words came naturally, but some were more interesting than others.

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K'ra-keyam's formlessness had first procured eyes. Those eyes had watched the first of his brothers and sisters come into being, and had been horrified by what had happened to Isavhii. It seemed, already, that she had lost a bit of her form with the heat and light. He looked to the thing she had touched, the star. It was beautiful, white, blinding, but something about it had destroyed his sister. Something about it was dangerous, perhaps its heat. So he reached out with hands that appeared out of the desire to contain this thing - cold, colorless, but strong. He reached out and tried to take away its heat, tried to cover it in such a thing as would preserve its beauty, but destroy its danger. Instead, with his great cold hands, he snuffed out the beautiful thing and no matter how he tried to return the light, it remained still and cold. How could this be? With the last of his body formed from the rage he felt at this rejection, he created a powerful form to go with his cold. He tried again and again, but for all the numerous times he tried to preserve the beauty of a star, he could only deaden it.

As a rock was created by Tarzarus and Isavhii, and their dwelling place of starlight given the last gift of their father, K'ra-keyam settled down in one part of its great halls to mourn his power's powerlessness. The chambers in which he walked became a reflection of that sorrow... and that need. Wherever he stepped, the cold reached out to preserve the beauty of their starlight walls, and yet drew back again miserably. He did not watch as his siblings set out to create, nor did he answer the instinctive pull to follow suit. He sat in his mournful solitude, ignoring the world.

In such a state did Vyria find him. He listened to her talk of strengthening her creations, allowing her hairs the fortitude to last against the rough stone. He did not know if he could do such a thing, he had no confidence in it, but what she spoke of was a great desire of his heart, so he allowed himself to be pulled to the edge of their sanctuary. He watched the flowing vein of his sister Geliki'sidhe, so much like her, and the thin green hairs being torn away by it as it grew stronger, and once again his hands reached out before he could stop them. A great cold flashed out across the stretch directly in front of them, freezing the top of his sister's river, and to his delight, it was beautiful. Its beauty was not the same as it had once been, but it was beautiful. The little hairs, however, fared not so well. While some were hardened and stilled where they were, others crackled and broke, unable to withstand the force. It seemed his power could only beautify some, and destroyed the rest. How curious a thing this was. Sad and wonderful at once.

 

[Soulserenity20]

Vyria struggled with her feelings, struggling further to understand exactly what feelings were, once she had experienced them. She gathered they were a part of the physical form she had claimed as her own, but had not the time to sit and learn to understand them. Instead, she named them. She already knew fear, as well as bliss. Disappointment had come across her before with the washing away of her beloved strands of life by the flowing fluid that now pulsed through the dry, empty lands. But the feeling she felt now... it was the opposite of the hope she felt when she had sought out her brother. She felt... defeat.. discouragement... hopelessness, even. For a short time, or so it seemed, she simply watched her beloved life as it sat there, having been struck with the strength of K'ra-keyam's fortitude. She saw that while some of the strands held on, and appeared much stronger than before, many others had been destroyed. This, being the cause of her feelings of defeat, eventually gave way to feelings of hope. She enjoyed the feeling of hope, and so she clung onto this.

It was at this time, that another of her sisters stepped lightly from the halls of Eruin and descended the hard, star-made stairs and stood by the side of the others. She observed for sometime, wondering what the others had been up to, and what they had created. When she asked Vyria of the strands of green, she nodded calmly at the explanation that was offered by the creator of life. "How boring this all must be." She said. And with her words, Vyria's brow furrowed.

"What do you mean, sister? Would you find this life so dull, so bland? Can you not see its beauty? Certainly it lacks perfection, but I am doing what I can. Creation is.... difficult, I find."

"Perhaps. It may be difficult. It may not. I've yet to discover such things for myself." Ëa spoke lazily, as if the boredom of Vyria's life was seeping into her and drawing her interest elsewhere. This angered Vyria, to see another take her beautiful creation so lightly, making fun at what she had worked hard to achieve.

"I would ask that you find other means of entertainment than bothering me with your meager ponderings. If this beauty is so meaningless to you, take your leave and look upon it no more."

But Ëa did not leave, not give even a slight bit of heed to the words of her sister, for her mind was active and her thoughts and imagination inching outward. She turned, looking at her green-eyed sister. "I will not leave." She said, calmly. Stepping forward, she lifted her hand, stretching it out over the spotty sea of grass and earth. "It bores me so, yes. But what good is leaving the broken unfixed? Let me offer us all a bit of entertainment." She pursed her lips and lifted a brow in thought before nodding and releasing her will on the world. At first there would appear to be no change, but quickly after... this would not be the case.

Change swept the land. Suddenly the rivers that flowed and slowly pulled at the earth gain momentum and began to dig away at the hard stone much more quickly. The stoe gave way into smaller bits that clung together more loosely, making the areas around the giggling streams softer and more welcoming. The strange grasses Vyria had brought forth began to stretch and grow! They pushed out their hands and dug deep into the ground, their strength and fortuity ignited with the momentum of cycles and time that had been stirred within them by Ëa.

Vyria watched, unsure of what would happen to her grasses, but quickly she saw they they grew wild and out of control, stealing the land from each other and pushing each other's hands out from the ground. Many more of the stalks began to die, giving up the lives they once held, while those that held on, grew stronger and stronger, though fewer in numbers. Fear struck her once more as she realized that they could not persist in this rapid growth forever, so she turned sharply to her sister and spoke with stern words. "This cannot go on! They change too quickly! What will come of them when there is no more room on the earth? They will die off! One by one! You are the one who has brought death!"

Ëa shrugged, looking to her sister. "'Such things ail me not. For my domain is not one of life, nor one of death. I created no such thing. It already existed in the life you created, for no thing is certain, but the Great Maker. I offered excitement, movement, and change to this stagnant world! Thank me and then pursue your answers on your own." She turned then and began making her way back up the steps to sit and watch what would unfold.

With a frustrated release of her breath, Vyria turned and stared out at what was growing wildly before her, many more stalks dying as they grew larger and larger, passing through their ability to exist. She saw that her creations had no immortality. Death seemed to grasp them after some time, and she seemed to have little control over stopping it. Though she felt she could prolong the grasp of the darkness of death, in the essence of the plants. It was the world around them and the harm they were caused which brought death upon them. It appeared they needed space. "I must not let you all die..." She willed forth a birth within the simple stalks, that periodically, when death drew near, they would release small capsules, durable and hard, with small bits of life stored within them. These capsules would protect the life until it found space to grow.

Watching as time passed, she saw that the capsules of life would simple drop from where they were cast and sprout forth a new stalk, nearby the very place the mother stalk grew. The young stalks quickly took over the land and killed the mother stalk and quickly began to kill each other! It was not out of hate or spite, but simply, a will to live. Their will to exist called for the need of space, and space was limited. So how could she continue to allow them to grow without taking the lives of the others so swiftly?

She turned to her brothers and sisters, seeking out the one who could aid her in spreading the small seeds (as she would call them) and aid her in offering the space necessary to survive.

 

[Silver]

The last to be brought into being, Avzi was weaker than its siblings or so it felt. Was it because their fathers power waned by the time of its creation? Avzi refused to take a form, or perhaps it was not yet strong enough to do so, not sure how or what to do with itself. What was Avzi, really? It wasn't life, It wasn't Earth or strength, it wasn't water or laughter. What was it? What was Avzi in the scheme of things? It wasn't until it watched the first interactions between its siblings that something for the youngest of the beings to click. It was that. That was what Avzi was, it was the in-between of its siblings. The unity that laced them together, and the opposition that existed between them.

Finally, Avzi took form. Avzi took a form of two. Breaking its name in half and manifesting as two figures; both shorter than the majority of their siblings. They to, had dark hair, both fell in waves, with Av's falling to his jaw and Zi's falling to her back. Their very flesh shimmered like stardust and was just as pale, making their mismatched eyes stand out. Av's eyes being red (right) and purple (left), and Zi's eyes being blue (left) and purple (right). Expressing both opposition and unity in their very eyes and the balance between the two. They two where cloaked in cloth made of stardust, and they left it white, not sure as to what colors where yet themselves. Upon forming, their fingers twisted together.

The duo wandered the halls that their father made them and watched their siblings interact. Observing the in-between the existed between them all quietly. While they didn't feel quite the urge to create as their sibling did, they experienced the urge to unify and help their sibling in their creations. So as they peered out of the doors of the halls and watched, their eyes widened in wonder with what happened on the world. The greens of the grass, the blues of the waters, and the warm browns of the earth impressed them, and the cloth they draped themselves in took on all of these colors, and when their brother froze the water and made it sparkle, this too impressed them and they made the cloth covering them do that as well, until their clothing was a shimmering mess of all the colors they witnessed their siblings create. They didn't move away until they were skittering out of Ea's way so that she too could go out onto the world.

They spent just a little more time there before they to burst out of the doors and raced to where there where Isavhii, Tarzarus, Geliki'sidhe, and K'ra-keyam stoof. Avzi marveled at the expanse of earth their brother had made and how far and wide and BIG it was. This pleased them as they ran towards the cluster of siblings. The softness of the remaining grasses made Zi stoop down to run her hands over it while Av touched the brittle frozen strands and grinned as the coldness melted where his hands touched it. The softness of the vibrant green pleased them and the frozen sparkles pleased them. Av stopped and took the time to splash in one of the streams that Geliki'sidhe had made with his own spiel of laughter while Zi squealed a giggle at getting wet. This pleased them.

But the distress their siblings felt did not please them, and as they took the time to further observe their siblings, they felt the need to fix it. Why did they want soft earth? The twins looked down, taking note of how the water made the earth different. Together, they bent down and began to swirl the two together, calling their own power to be the in-between of their siblings, and they swirled and swirled and swirled until they had a small puddle of thick liquid, it was, but wasn't water, and it was but wasn't earth. What was it? Av scooped up a handful of this new substance and then let it drop, grinning when some of it stuck to his flesh. Turning, he put a handprint of the concoction onto Zi's face before looking up at his siblings with pride while Zi tried to wipe the substance off and only managed to smear it further over her face.

"Alone we are mighty, but together we are better." He pipped up at those in attendance "Is this what you wanted?" He asked pointing at the substance, mud. It was mud and it was fun and dirty. It was pliable, but it was squishy and soft. Would it be of any use to their elders? Zi looked up, mud smeared all over her pale glistening face.

"Should we mix it differently?" She asked, her voice a tad softer than her twins.

 

[Rainjay]

[dash=#3366ff]

For some time, Shialaevar was ensnared by the beauty of the water one of their sisters had created. They let their fingers dangle in the little streams, smiling at the gentle coolness they felt as the liquid flowed along. What an amazing creation their sister had laid upon the barren world! If only there were more. They imagined what their world would look like coated with the rivulets of water, dancing like playful Geliki'sidhe as they went on their merry way. But Shialaevar's small pleasure--this emotion was strange, pleasure--was short lived, as one of their mightier siblings, whose name was K'ra-keyam, appeared and promptly changed the water into cold stone! The water stopped moving and stood still, completely and utterly immobile. Frozen. While the frozen waters were beautiful, with a pale crystalline structure and a surface that felt pleasantly smooth to the touch, they came to feel another emotion; sadness.

How could such a beautiful creation be stilled so easily? Water did not have the same qualities as the eldest One's creations did. They struggled for a proper word for the blanket Vyria had created for the world. Grasses, another One had called it. Water was not like the grasses. But it had more freedom and movement than the grasses did, and it was unfair to freeze the water and prohibit it's activity. It was in water's very nature to move... to flow and ebb. But here, there would be no such thing, at least as long as K'ra-keyam remained at this place.

Shialaevar stood then, taking on their feminine form as they began to walk away from their home and the others. She walked for awhile, though she had no true concept of how long or far she had walked, but stopped when she encountered a large hole in the stoney earth, dipping in on itself with a gradual slope before becoming somewhat rocky and jagged towards the bottom. From where she stood, Shialaevar could not see the end of the crater, or see if it ended at all, but liked what she saw and decided to sit at the start of the slope, awash with this emotion sadness.

Sitting there, the thought came to her quite suddenly. Vyria had created grass. Geliki had created water, and K'ra-keyam, ice. Their little sister's water had been small in form, flowing like locks of hair along the earth with such speed. But why not have even more water? Here, away from where Vyria laid her grasses, there would be no harm in washing away the creation of another. And if this great bowl had a beginning and an end, then the water would stay moderately contained, and would hopefully be left alone by the experiments of the others. It was a genius idea! She smiled, and rose to her feet, and raising her arms to the sky in a motion of grandeur, willed for the crater to fill with the marvelous substance she had fallen in love with. It welled with water, a much darker blue than the little streams had been, but just as clear and crystalline. But Shialaevar noticed one thing, and it was that the water did not move like Geliki's water had done. It was still, with an uncannily flat surface that allowed for her to see straight down to the depths of the crater. Cautiously, she reached a hand into the water--and as she did, it broke, moving outwards in a circling movement before coming back to be still. The shook her hand and the water rippled again, but the ripples faded when the motion of her fingers and wrist ceased.

With a stomp of her foot, she removed her hand from the water and crossed her arms. This simply wouldn't do. She couldn't stay here forever and move the water to her liking; it had to move on it's own, like Geliki's water did. Perhaps it didn't move because there was too much of it. But she favored her creation too much to take back what she had gave. Maybe if she threw something big enough into the crater, it would continue to ripple. Unsure of which of her siblings could help, she returned back to the group, this time finding another of their siblings had appeared. More choices for help!

Not having spoken before, it took her some thinking before she could produce the words from her mouth. "I need something big," she said, none too gracefully. "A very big object of any kind. Can anybody do that?"

[/dash]

 

[firejay1]

When Tarzarus did not respond right away, Geliki'sidhe was distracted by the actions of her other siblings. K'ra-keyam forced her freed essence to stand still. Ea caused the soft green hairs to take a hold of the earth, grow, compete, die. Avzi turned two things into one, and then Shialaevar multiplied what had once been her waters into an endless expanse Geliki certainly could no longer call her own. This last action caused her a little bit of concern. She floated towards it, new rivers flowing as her toes dripped onto the ground. When the two forces met, they became one, but Geliki'sidhe did not feel that the mighty waters were the same thing. It seemed more to have swallowed up her little rivers, dark and unmoving as it was - like an engorged beast. It was much more concerning than K'ra-keyam's forced stillness, because she could still feel her waters flowing underneath, tearing away at the layer of ice he had created as Ea's "time" passed. This was.... it was like a rebellious child.

A little unsettled, she paddled her feet on the ground before returning to the area of their dwelling place. She would let her rivers make their way to this great gathering, but she was not inclined her find herself at the brink of this ocean again. The many other things that had occurred were new and exciting and deserved their own attention. She leaned down and ran her fingers across the top of the ice. Her fingers splashed against the solid surface a little and seemed to have no visible effect, but she could tell it was crumbling the ice just a little bit. The twins' mud, as well. It was odd how these things were part hers and part someone else's. It was interesting. Odd and interesting and wonderful all at once.

She took little note of the return of Shialaever to ask for something large, for such things did not interest her, and instead joined Avzi where they stood. "Yes, let us mix it more, mix it differently!" Without really thinking about what it was she was gathering, Geliki randomly grabbed a little of the dead grass, cupped some of her water and a piece of the ice in her hand, thrusting it towards the twins. What would it make?! Her face was brightly lit up with an excited smile, hands out-stretched in front of her.