1:1 LET THERE BE LIGHT (An Edit)

This is an edit of the first chapter. Been experimenting on some things, and discord said they wanted to see it. LMK what you think, the changes are...well, you tell me how deep the changes are. I think it adds more emotion, but it could also use more.

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In the beginning there was nothing.

Until, suddenly, there was something.

I came to consciousness in the middle of the Eternal Void, a single soul floating in the midst of true nothingness, blinking into full consciousness. Within the Void there was truly nothing. No distance, no sensation, no sight or touch, not even the passage of time. It grated against my senses like sandpaper, the endless emptiness tickling my awareness with a wrongness that could not be denied and seeking to return me to Nothing. My power did not let it, its bite falling uselessly against a barrier of power my presence alone created. But I didn’t know what to do about it – my instincts screamed at me to do something, power almost reflexively lashing out against the Void, but I steeled myself and held it back, enduring the sense of wrongness.

I would not let base instinct guide my actions, and so turned my attention to the only thing of substance I could find; myself.

My mind was sluggish, hints of memory hiding in the fog that clouded my thoughts that I desperately grabbed at, only to have them slip through my fingers like sand. With a mental scowl I let the elusive memories go, turning my focus on what I could actually grasp and feel; instinct, base, almost feral emotions, and…things. If the Void was empty, nothing, I was everything. Time ticked away within me, measuring how long I had been here, the space between the edges of my soul providing distance, motion and feeling all existing within as a swirling maelstrom of color. Yellow fear blended with red anger, all kept in check by my iron will. They would not decide my actions, just as instinct would not. 

I thought, so therefore I was, and I had to understand myself. My consciousness traced the contours and folds of my soul, sifting through the fog of my limited awareness to rediscover the shape of me. It was odd, to be able to hear the workings of my existence, so dead were my surroundings. It ticked away in an odd harmony, ringing in ears I did not have, a miniature world contained entirely within myself, and deep within? A font of power so great it shone like a blinding star, urging me to use it, to deny the Void the nothingness it was. It should have felt disorienting to look in and see eternity and mortality, all the base elements of creation and life swirling together, yet to stare out and find nothing.

And what nothing it was. I hated it. I hated it with a passion so great the nigh limitless font of power within me surged and bubbled forth in response to my will, nearly slipping out of my grasp. Only a supreme effort of will stopped it, the urge to lash out and create substance around myself almost too great to bear. I could not hold it for long, straining, gritting my teeth as I came to a realization. There was nothing else but me, but it wasn’t reality I craved, I just felt…

LONELY.

The power within me surged forth like a tidal wave, crashing together in a brilliant display of chaos that ended just as soon as it began; leaving behind a thousand million tiny specks. Beautiful, gleaming motes of substance that, upon closer inspection, revealed themselves to be tiny souls, scale-models of myself missing the internal font of power and creation. Warmth and excitement both blossomed within me as I directed my soul forward, to reach out and touch these tiny souls with tendrils of energy – only for those that I neared to crumble into nothingness, unable to bear the weight of my existence. All at once I jerked back, watching hesitantly, wanting to reach out but afraid to destroy the only other things in this void but me.

The souls danced about me like dust in a sunbeam, heedless of the precariousness of their existence. My presence was protecting them from the Void, which, if they neared, would seek to return them to nothingness. But too close, and the weight of my existence would destroy them. This hadn’t solved my problem. I did not want to watch ants running about in the sand, I wanted companionship.

Dissatisfaction welled up within me like a black wave, driving the tiny souls further away from me as my aura expanded outward. These souls might have potential to rise up to stand beside me, but I needed…I wanted…they needed to be…

MORE.

This time the surge of creation was greater and thrice more chaotic, rushing out to coalesce into four new souls in a howling burst of raw power. Pain lanced through my as little bits of my own soul were torn off, flowing forward to help make the core of these new beings. And when the dust settled, I beheld my new children. They were far larger than the others though still smaller than myself, and bobbed about curiously as they explored their new surroundings. The bits of my soul they had taken, miniscule things, the wounds from which were rapidly healing despite the soreness that echoed through my being at the loss, were being absorbed and transformed into distinct personalities.

I could see it happening. Their entire being was laid bare to my “eyes,” the way their souls worked, their emotions flashing through them, green curiosity and the interest of a child in their souls. They were not aspects of myself, but their own beings, just as I had desired. Hesitantly I reached out, using a tendril of energy to mimic a hand to touch one of the newly born souls – it leaned into my touch, vibrating with pleasure, and I melted.

They were lesser than me, but these were…my kids. My children. I wrapped the little one in a small bundle of energy, pulling it slowly and carefully closer to myself. It snuggled into my side, and I smiled, warmth blooming into my chest as the other three moved closer, touching and prodding me experimentally. I chuckled as they began to crawl over me, like toddlers clambering over their parent.. Satisfaction. That was what I was feeling. It blossomed within me as I gently played with them, bits of energy snaking out to tickle or grasp them.

They soon tired of the little game, however, and my own foggy state of mind provided little in the way of entertainment. Then, in a sudden bout of fearlessness, one soul that was taking on a distinctly sinuous shape darted away from me before I could react, toward the Void.

I reached out to pull it back, using a bit of energy to try and snag it like a hand, only to narrowly miss and leave me watching as it blew through the thin veil of tiny souls, rushing out to the Void. The Void took issue with that. What was nothing sought to return to nothing, and attacked my child without hesitation, searing off a portion of its soul – the energy I controlled lunged forward, wrapping around my child and dragging it back into the protection my aura afforded. My child did its best imitation of a whimper, for a soul, and I gently washed a tendril of energy over the small wound, patting it comfortingly as it healed and huddled in close to me. The other three pushed close as well, trembling in fear at what their sibling had endured. 

There was a lesson to be learned there, I knew, but…well. It taught me something else. It seemed even my children did not have my own ability to survive the Void. They needed something…safer. They needed a…

HOME.

And with a single, massive, soul-rattling bang, reality exploded into being. The raw ingredients of creation, the primordial chaos that included everything from matter to spiritual substance, howled in a screaming chaos as it expanded out from me, clashing together in a maelstrom of sensation. My children flinched at the suddenness of it all, and I wrapped them in little tendrils of comforting power. They huddled into my touch, watching reality settle into existence with me.

For a time, we stayed like that; observing as a nascent universe swirled about us, not yet fully formed, but providing a safe space from the rigors of the Void. Until, finally, and with a bit of urging on my part, they worked up the courage to explore.

The smallest of the four slowly worked its way out from under my shadow, reaching out to play with the primordial chaos, hesitant at first, then vibrating with excitement at the sensations it brought. Emboldened by their sibling’s actions the other three ventured out as well, darting about in the nebulous energies and matter that was the building blocks of all creation. I watched nervously at first, then relaxed a little. They giggled and chased each other, tossing balls of primordial chaos at each other, their sounds and actions soothing the core of my being. The urge to create was still there, but…for now I felt satisfied. Companionship. Sensation. And my children, still bare souls as they all were, were adorable as they played with each other.

My thoughts drifted, and I found myself watching the swirling eddies of chaos, only part of my mind keeping an eye on my children.

A sudden tug at my existence drew my attention to the side, where two of my children waited eagerly to show me the results of their games. One had draped itself in a power of white, fierce and demanding attention, forming crude wings that flapped lamely. The other swirled a nebulous, subtle black around itself like a cloak, quieter in nature yet no less eye-catching than the white. Neither had chosen physical elements, oddly enough, and I watched as the powers started to seep into the core of their beings, becoming one with them. I smiled, somehow knowing this was simply a stage of growth than some ill-natured event, the sight tickling some core memory of mine that refused to fully surface.

"That is wonderful,” I said, my voice booming and unfamiliar to my own ears as I reached forward to grasp the powers they played with. This close, they seemed even more familiar. But, more importantly, I now knew what to do with them. “May I help you?” The two didn’t seem to understand my question, but affirmation radiated from them nonetheless. With my will guiding them, the powers of black and white started to form actual shapes rather than simply swirling about my children, condensing into true bodies for the two, guided by memories I could not recall and their own inner desires.

The one of white took on a distinctly feminine form with graceful features, long blonde hair, and six brilliant white-feathered wings sprouting from her back. Her eyes glowed a beautiful white, shining with curiosity and vigor, her arm and leg muscles flexing as she tried out her new limbs with unrestrained curiosity. Two whip-like tails, tipped with black, feathery fans, lashed at the chaos behind her, her excitement palpable. With but a thought I created white and gold robes that draped themselves about her form, my daughter beaming up at me even as she examined her new body.

On the other hand, the one of black took on a masculine form. His skin was bronzed and body chiseled, black hair falling to his shoulders in waves. Similar to his sister, two wings sprouted from his back, though his were leathery and black. White horns curled from his forehead, and a large, muscular tail, covered in onyx scales, silently curled itself around his feet. He, too, inspected his new form with awe, looking up at me with dark eyes filled with far too much emotion and compassion. I created robes of black and gold for him, which he inspected with as much interest as his new body.

“Go on, have fun,” I urged, taking note of my inner surprise at how easy creation was coming to me. I had made clothes and bodies for those two without a hint of effort.

They grinned at me, then at each other, and promptly darted off into the chaos while I turned to my other two children. They seemed to be watching in fascination, but unsure of how to proceed. “Why don’t you – “ I started, but was cut off by an explosion of power behind me. Instinctually I shielded my other two children, as well as the myriad lesser souls still near me, as twin realms of white and black swirled into being in the center of the primordial chaos I had created. I whirled, hackles raising as I sought to defend my children – only to freeze when I saw the cause.

My two children were at the center of power, two realms of white and black taking form around them. Take my eyes off of you for a second. I grumbled good-naturedly, more amused than anything after realizing the powers were anything but harmful. They were simply a more extreme expression of the primordial chaos. The boy stood in the middle of the black, digging with his hands and cleaving great scoops out of the center. He seemed intent on making the biggest hole he could, while his sister did the exact opposite. She played in the middle of the white, zooming to the edges of it in single beats of her great wings, scooping up great handfuls of the white power and depositing it in the very middle of the new realm. It seemed she wanted to make the biggest “sandcastle” possible, while her brother dug a hole.

Children. Oh, how I envied them.

The problem was the two realms of power seemed…unstable. Unbalanced. White and black clashed, mixing yet not, sending great quakes through each realm and undoing much of the work my children did with each universe-shaking clash. Not that they seemed to care much that their building was undone, giggling as they were every time the castle fell, and the hole was filled. For the moment, however, things were stable, so I turned back to the other two.

One had clad itself – herself, she was trying to mimic her sister with a distinctly feminine form – in what I could only call physicality. Elements swirled around her in a chaotic dress, the stuff of life suffusing her form. Her other sibling – brother, I noted – had opted not to follow the footsteps of his siblings. Already his soul had taken on a more sinuous form than the others, but now he had draped himself in power. By its own nature it was mysterious, lurking beneath all others, supporting and suffusing all things. It was the stuff of souls and spirits, and made up that overarching realm they inhabited.

I focused on the girl first, forming her body with a thought, using my own power to urge it to grow and form in a way that fit her growing personality. The girl was as beautiful as her sister, albeit very different. Her skin was as dark as rich soil, her hair green as fresh moss. Flowers formed a tiny crown on her head and branching, elk-like horns, sprouted from her forehead. With a wave of my metaphorical hand a dress of green leaves fell about her form. She opened her eyes – burning with all the colors of the rainbow – and blinked owlishly, glancing down at herself. With a little twirl to swish her dress she giggled, smiled serenely at me, bowed, and promptly dashed off to join her siblings in their game.

I turned to the last of my children, humming a song to myself as I gave the same gift to him as I did the others. The power did not give him a humanoid form, as I had expected. Instead, he was transformed into nothing short of a dragon. His body was clad in scales of white, gold, and silver, his horns long and twisting, his maw great and powerful. His eyes were full of depth and emotion, whiskers twitching from the tip of his great muzzle, his sinuous body twisting this way and that, muscles rippling beneath the scales. Yet despite his fearsome visage, he nuzzled me with raw affection, wrapping his short, draconic arms around my soul in what could pass as a hug.

“Go,” I said with a laugh, and the great beast gave me one last squeeze before shooting off to join his siblings, tail thrashing and creating a great wake in the primordial chaos as he went. My second daughter had landed in between the first two, mediating between the unstable black and white, creating her own realm of a thousand colors with a little pop of power. Grey pushed the white and black apart, smaller but no less grand for it. It was filled with more, a variety of colors flashing through the grey like flashes of lightning, while she knelt in the center, trying to get something to grow there by feeding it bits of elemental color.

Her realm acted as a buffer for the other two, no longer clashing so fiercely now they were not directly touching.

But it needed something to bind – ah.

As I watched, my second son, the dragon, swam through all three layers, trailing behind him something akin to thread to tie it all together. Only…it looked almost more like a river and suffused all things, not just where he touched, spreading like water through paper until the entire thing was soaked – yet unlike paper, the binding served to strengthen their bond like a cohesive glue. Something tickled the back of my mind, and I drifted forward. These realms were my children’s creations, using that which had been mine. I didn’t want to one-up them. But I could still help. There was something there, but…it needed…

BALANCE.

A deep rumble echoed through reality as my power raced forward, mixing in with the great realms being formed. My children stumbled as their creations trembled the white and black solidifying, firming up according to how they had crafted them, yet still energetic in nature, swirling above and below the grey physicality that my second daughter had made. And the stuff of spirits? That realm hardened, tying it all together so none could drift apart, all four realms balancing each other out so none were in danger of destroying the others.

And that was only the beginning. I stepped forward, urging more power forth, controlling it, bending it to my will beyond that of instinctual action. My children had shown me a template. I would fill it for them, and create a true home. Not just a house, but land, a place where they could live and grow. Such was my duty to provide, as a parent.

In accordance to my power, a mountain rose in the white, while a valley dug itself out in the black. A tree grew from the elements, fed by all, and the river of spiritual energy flowed through them, mixing them together without muddying the waters. But it wasn’t yet enough. It needed more. My soul screamed in pain as I gripped what remained of my once seemingly-endless power in both metaphorical hands, envisioning my true intent, giving the power more purpose than a single word. And I gave one last command.

GROW.

The universe roared. And it expanded twenty-fold, reality firming to my will. But it had yet to settle, reality still shifting and churning, my children laughing gaily as it rumbled beneath their feet. My entire being sagged as that great font of power mostly left me, what was once an endless, raging ocean turning into a trickle of water, leaving me drained and listless.

I sat back, gasping as my mind began to clear. Now that much of the power had been used, more of myself was returning. And all I wanted was to observe and rest as these great works of mine finished settling, their growth still finishing. With a burst of intent, another bit of creation left me to form a sparkling crystal glass, filled with a brilliant amber liquid.

rest.

Spirit whiskey. Booze even my soul could enjoy. I sipped at the liquid, even bodiless as I was, enjoying the burn as it slid down into the core of my being, providing a pleasant buzz. Chaos churned. Reality grew, and my children played. There was still one last thing to do, however, to finish it all off. One final piece ot the puzzle I was missing. And, finally, I let the last of my instincts free, the words I had been yearning to say since I first awoke, sliding free from my being alongside the last of the power of limitless creation.

LET THERE BE LIGHT.

And there was light.