"When all of it started, there was space. Beautiful, and yet boundless.
To keep everything flowing, time was created.
But as Space and Time started to establish themselves, Power came to be. Power was order.
Space built the canvas, and Time painted it. Power oversaw their limits.
The planets, the stars, and everything in between formed with their nurturing hands.
But Space, Time, and Power were not alone. The Stars had come to life, and so many more.
Where the light touched was life, and where it did not lay darkness and death."
An old woman cleared her throat. "Did all of you get that?" She glanced at the children who sat beside her.
"You've told us this a million times, Elder!" one said cheerily, to which the other four agreed.
"And yet," she smiled, "you still listen."
"No!" one of them gasped.
"Deny it all you want, but that is how it is," she laughed. "Now get going. There's an entire festival going on outside, and yet, you're all here with an old woman? Go on!"
The children made their way out of her home, but not before saying goodbye.
A boy of about sixteen walked on the streets of Magnes as his lightless black eyes scanned each stall and customer alike.
The stalls were lined up by the roadside, with the people who headed the stalls calling out for customers.
But the boy didn't enter one. His eyes lingered on a family of three, where the daughter tried to play a game for a prize, but ultimately failed.
After the family had left with their heads hung low, he approached the stall.
"Tyler," he called out. "May I have a try?"
The stall owner, Tyler, grinned upon seeing him. "I thought I'd find you moping around, Alan," he said as he handed him a water gun. "Just try and hit the targets."
Alan fired a shot, which was very much off target. "Don't they know it's a scam?" he said as he adjusted his aim.
"Well," Tyler cleared his throat. "My store is very fair."
Alan fired another shot, then another, and another. "This is rigged," he sighed.
"It's not," Tyler smirked. "But if you hit the target with your last shot, I'll give you the top prize."
"Deal," Alan said immediately. "And the gun is indeed rigged. It always shoots a bit off." He held the gun high and paused. "Well, here goes nothing."
He pulled the trigger, and the stream of water barely grazed the target.
"Damn," Tyler said with a grin. "Nice one."
Alan's mouth hung open. "That was lucky," he muttered. "And I don't want any prize. Keep it for someone else."
"Right, right. But you look too gloomy. This is the annual harvest festival! It comes-"
"Once a year, annually, whatever," Alan cut in, "I know, I know. But it's the same thing every year."
Tyler paused for a moment before walking up to him. "Alan," he said softly. "I know you feel like you're alone." He placed his hand on Alan's shoulder. "But you're not. Haven't we all taken care of you? Doesn't that mean that you have more parents than anyone else?"
"That… That's not how it works," Alan said as he gently pushed the hand off.
"What did you feel when you saw that family, then? Don't think I didn't see you watching. If you were any older, you'd be a creep!"
"I'm not a creep," he huffed, "I know it's not their fault, and I don't dislike them for being a family."
"But…?" he prodded.
"But I envy that. I wish… I wish I could have that too."
Tyler patted his head with a grin. "That's it! Don't keep anything bottled up."
"I'm not!" Alan insisted as he tried to fix his black hair. "Anyway, it was nice talking to you. See ya," he said with a small smile.
"See you at the mayor's speech," Tyler said as he walked back to his stall.
The city, while not huge, was mostly farmland. The city center, however, was densely packed with occupants. For the vast majority of the citizens here, the things a person might find at every corner in another city were just fairy tales. Despite most of the people here knowing about the wonders of the world beyond their walls, very few of them ever got to see them with their own eyes.
But that didn't matter to them. The citizens held pride in having very few "powerful" people in their populace. In fact, the harvest festival was celebrated because a city managing to be mostly self-sufficient without the help of Flux users was a rare case, with Magnes being one of them.
But the outskirts of Magnes were different. They were somewhat hilly, and barely anyone ventured there. That was why Alan made it his spot.
As Alan started walking up the hill, his eyes landed on a tree that stood alone on the top of the hill. The tree had withered, and none of its leaves were in sight. Its bark was a pale grey and skeletal in a way.
However, all around it grew fields of flowers that seemed to take joy in its death-like state.
But on top of the hill sat a girl his age. Her golden hair fluttered with the wind, and as Alan stepped closer, her blue eyes glinted like the cornflowers around them. It was Lyra Ferris, the only teenager to have gone past Magnes's walls.
"You're late," she said with a smile. "Does that watch even work?"
"It should be fine," Alan muttered as he inspected it. "The mayor wouldn't give it to me if it wasn't. And I'm sorry for being a minute late, Lyra."
"Maybe he gave you a broken one as revenge?" Lyra suggested with a hum. "You haven't been to a single one of his speeches since we were ten!"
"If he had a problem with that, he'd tell me… Right?"
"Absolutely," Lyra said with a laugh.
Alan looked to the city center. "Anyway, his speech is starting soon, no? Should we head there?"
Lyra gave him a strange look. "But you wanted me to come here? Still, even if we ran now, we'd miss a bit."
"Right," Alan sighed as he sat on the ground. "We can hear him from here, then."
As if on cue, the old voice of the city's mayor rang throughout the village. It was not loud, and yet, it echoed through everyone's ears, even Alan and Lyra, who were far away.
"I don't get why he does this," Lyra sighed. "He'll get elected again anyway."
"I'll ask him when we get home. Aren't your parents worried, though?"
"I think they know that I deserve a break," she said as she traced a callus on her palm. "Besides, they know you bring me into your stuff."
Alan sighed at a particularly bold promise of the mayor. "He's lost his mind."
"Hey…" Lyra said slowly. She stood and pointed at a dot in the bright sky. "What's that?"
Alan's eyes landed on the dot, which inched closer. The dot had streaks heading away from it in all directions. The dot kept growing until the colors of the streaks blinded the sky. He slowly rose to his feet as well.
The dots went over Magnes' skyline with a thunderous boom, but not before sending a parting gift. A white streak headed from the dot, and straight to Magnes' center.
For the first time, likely, Alan's lightless eyes reflected white. The streak struck the city, and it erupted into flames.
Lyra fell onto her knees while Alan remained there, staring at the white flames that seemed to devour all life. Soon after, it had covered the entire residential area.
The distance between the city center and the hill where the two were was not small, and yet, the flames crossed it in an instant. They raced further and further, devouring all life they could find. In the blink of an eye, they had reached the foot of the hill.
Not a single wildflower was touched, however. The flames refused to step any closer to the hill. They formed a perimeter around it and stood as still as they could.
But what even were they?
Alan felt the voice of the Elder whispering into his ear. "The soul flame," she had once explained. "It devours all things with a soul. And it can never go out."