Beyond the Stars

Millions of years ago...

“What is our purpose?”

It was a beautiful day. The sky was clear, free of any clouds, so the sun shined like a wildfire across the fields of endless grass.

The soil was moist beneath Mother Nature’s legs as she shifted her position, turning down to see who had asked the question. She smiled as she saw, just below her nose, a small boy sitting. “What is on your mind, dear?” She asked him, her voice as sweet as honey and soft as rain. The boy was made of mud, and she heard dry clay cracking as he moved his joints. His face was soft, his figure was lean; yet he did not look malnutritioned. He ran his fingers through his grass hair, then craned his neck up as far as it could go to look into her eyes. “What… What is our purpose?” asked the Child of Earth, tilting his head. “Because I can’t help but feel as though we do nothing in this world.” He frowned, his eyelids drooping over bark-brown eyes.

Mother Nature smiled at him, reaching down one huge finger to nudge up his head. “Of course we do something, dear,” she said, a small laugh escaping her ancient throat, “All the elements have a purpose. Can you guess yours?” The Child of Earth thought for a moment, then shook his head. “All I do is grow plants and make dirt.” He replied, scrunching up his forehead, “which aren’t really useful powers.”

“Ah, well that is where you are wrong. What do you think the animals and humans would do without your plants?” she asked him, her voice tender. He stood up a little straighter in his small puddle of mud, ideas forming. “Well… I suppose they do need my plants,” he admitted, a tiny smile flickering across his lips. Mother Nature turned her eyes to the clouds. “And what would your plants be without water?” Sinking her fingers deep into the earth, she felt a sensation deep in her gut and called upon it. Soon enough, she saw a rain cloud drawing near, and it wasn’t long before tiny droplets began splattering her body, cold and wet as they were.

From the clouds a small boy formed, droplets of water collecting in the sky to create his very form. Where his eyeballs should have been, there were only deep sockets, as there was nothing else to make the eyes with that would not just look like the rest of his face. He smiled down at Mother Nature and waved to the Child of Earth below. He continued to rain for a moment; first light, then hard, and eventually stopped as puddles dotted the land. His body began to evaporate, seemingly disappearing in the sky until only air filled the space where he once had been. Mother Nature turned down to the nearest puddle of water and grinned as the Child of Water began to form there. She waited patiently until his mouth built itself up, then asked him “What do you think your purpose is, dear?”

“My purpose? Well, I suppose it is to bring rain, water, and prosperity to the land. I help to grow the crops, make mud, and give a drink to those who need it.” He smiled, and the Child of Earth looked at him for a moment. “We help each other to do these things. I do a part of growing crops and making mud.” He said, gesturing to the earth all around them. “Indeed,” replied the Child of Water, his voice kind, “The things we make can only be made if we work together.”

“And what of me?”

For a moment, a single ray of sun seemed to shine brighter against a small patch of grass, and flames immediately surged upwards from the spot. Inside the withering fire, the flickering silhouette of a boy was barely visible, but it shone in the light of day. “I can do well to burn your creations,” declared the Child of Fire, a devious look crossing his face. The flames in his eyes flared upwards as he spoke, dancing about his sockets. He extended a hand outward to burn a trail toward them, which he then walked through until he was standing next to The Children of the Elements and Mother Nature. The Child of Earth glanced down at his burnt plants with disdain, then turned to the Child of Fire with a fierce glare. He ignored the sound of the crackling twigs and grass beneath his feet and turned the plants 2 feet in every direction around him to dirt, so he was grounded in one area. The Child of Water put out the flames trailing behind the Fire Child and rained on the circle around him so the dirt turned to mud. “Why must you burn everything you touch?” The Child of Earth demanded, angry.

“I only do what I am made for,” The Child of Fire said innocently, raising his hands, “I do not have a choice but to burn things.”

“This is an example of what I said before; every element has a purpose. Even the minor ones, like light. I create all living things. You,” -She gestured to the Child of Earth- “Build them a beautiful place to live, feed them, and supply them with some needs. You,” -She gestured to the Child of Water- “Give them, as you said before, rain, water, and prosperity. You help grow the crops and make the rivers flow. And you,” -She gestured to the Child of Fire, allowing a note of kindness to slip into her voice- “Keep my creations warm on long, cold nights, and can even be used as a method of hunting in times of desperation. You all have something to do in this world.”

“What of the other worlds?” asked the Child of Water.

“Pardon?”

The Water Child pointed to the sky, a splotch of endless blue at the top of the world. “What is beyond the sky?” He wondered aloud.

This seemed to stump Mother Nature. “Beyond the sky?” She said softly, in a wistful tone. “Well… what would YOU like to be there?”

“Us?” The Children of the Elements all asked at once, bewildered.

“I have to see everyone’s thoughts on it first, don’t I? What kind of leader would I be if I chose only what I wanted?”

Eager not to disappoint Mother Nature, the Elements thought hard, pressing themselves so they could come up with a worthy idea.

“I know!” exclaimed the Fire Child, “A void!”

“A void?” Asked Mother Nature, mildly amused.

“Yes, yes! A void of endless black- Oh, oh! A Black hole!”

“Perhaps something less destructive, dear?”

“Sorry.”

The Child of Water raised a wet hand. “I believe I have an idea… I’m not entirely sure it’s a great one.”

“We have to be good before we can be great, don’t we?”

“Alright. What if… What if we put a huge blanket of black over the entire sky? Like nighttime, but endless night?”

“That is a wonderful idea, darling!” Mother Nature said, smiling widely. "And It isn't too hard to make either." She closed her eyes and raised her hands to the sky, staying in that position for a long moment. There was no sign of strain on her, so it seemed to come easy. After a long while, she opened her eyes and turned down to the Child of Water. “Done,” she announced. “How come we can’t see it?” He said, squinting into the sky.

“It is hidden behind the blue sky and can only be seen at night. We wouldn’t want it to always be dark, would we?”

“OH!” declared the Child of Fire, “I know! We can add giant balls of burning flames! They can dot the sky and light it up at night!”

“Another great idea!” Mother Nature laughed, “I’ll put them far away, however, so they’ll look small from down here, but there will be just enough of them to light up the sky.”

“What will we do with all the extra space?” Asked the Child of Water when she was done.

“We could put more worlds there!” shouted the Child of Earth, “worlds like this one, but they can all be unique!”

Mother Nature nodded, glad that they were all so inventive. With a swish of her hand, one by one, she created more planets, each revolving around the sun like they were. Soon it was done. Mother Nature turned to the Children of the Elements. “I could not give any of them earth, water, or even life, as it is too far for our elemental powers to reach. But they each have their own color and temperature. Fire Child, you may form yourself on any planet close to the sun, as they can spark a flame. But those that are quite some distance away have temperatures too cold for that which you need to survive. It’s best to stay close.” The Child of Fire seemed happy with that concept, and so he quickly disappeared to explore the new planets, leaving only a burnt circle of ashes to mark where he once was.

As the day turned to night, they discovered that some planets were close enough to be visible, although they were quite small. The stars pricked the dark folds of the blanket that formed the night sky and emitted light to shine down on the world. With the moon illuminating the darkness as well, the blue and purple hues all over the world shone like many swirls of paint on a black canvas.

As civilization began to build up, however, and more humans were coming onto Earth, the elements realized that they would be only myths if they were to be seen now but fade away sometime in the future generation. Knowing they had only one choice, they could not ponder it for too long.

They took it.

They abandoned their humanoid bodies, shifting their souls into their own elements; Earth, Water, Fire, and Nature. They became one with the Earth, but let life know they were still there in little ways- little miracles if you will. The Ocean splitting, flowers growing where no flowers could, Wildfires consuming forests without cause (although that one wasn’t so much of a miracle as the others).

They left behind their creations for us to use and gave us the world we have today.

In this world, and beyond.