In the beginning, there was only the Void, which was an infinite, featureless silence that swallowed every possibility before it could form.
However, within that boundless emptiness existed IT, not a being, not yet a consciousness with shape or name, but a pure, formless awareness.
It was a spark of intent adrift in pure nothingness.
To Create, to truly create, IT first needed substance. Thus, IT drew inward, pulling scattered threads of raw energy toward a single, trembling focal point. This gathering of energy was an act of will, delicate and immense all at once.
Then came the envisioning, IT held an image in IT's mind, not of what was, but of what could be. With that vision, the gathered energy yielded. It ceased to be mere potential and became something more, something greater, it became Creation.
At first, IT sought contrast.
The Void was absence, black, cold, and most if all, it was unchanging. So IT dreamed of a direct opposition to that Void.
IT reshaped the familiar darkness of ambient energy into something defiant. It was a radiant, living brilliance that tore through the gloom like a blade of dawn.
And, done. IT mused in an excited tone. It ended up being a lot more work than I initially thought that it would be, but it was worth it in the end.
And with that, light was born.
And with Light, came Colour.
There were shimmering violets bleeding into molten golds, sapphire blues spiraling into emerald greens, crimson flares that pulsed like heartbeats. The endless black recoiled, not in defeat, but in surprise, as pinpricks of iridescence began to dance across its surface.
For IT, gathering the energy had been straightforward action, almost instinctive even. However, forcing said energy to differ from the Void, to refuse the monochrome eternity around it… that demanded more, a lot more.
There was a quiet strain that built within IT, a pressure like holding breath underwater. Yet the outcome surpassed every vague expectation IT had.
The new hues were vivid, alive, as well as infinitely variable. Already, IT could sense the potential that more could be made, twisted, layered, and sculpted into forms yet to be unimagined.
Astonishment rippled through IT, an emotion IT had no name for. Still, it was sharp and intoxicating.
Was it joy?
Was it curiosity?
Was it hunger?
Who knows, perhaps it was all of them, or none of them at all.
Indeed, it could very well be something else entirely.
That said, whatever it was, it refused to be contained. That is all IT could care to find out.
Let's see how far I can get. IT murmured, trembling, not really since it has no physical form, in excitement
IT poured IT's very being into further acts of creation, conjuring forms without concern for utility or meaning. Such things were not necessary, at least for now that is.
No, rather, IT was simply too immersed in the task that IT didn't care about the reason for making something, much less that something's function. Excitement and anticipation had rendered most of that irrelevant, for now at least.
Swirling orbs of turquoise flame.
Fractal lattices of rose-gold light.
Veils of silver mist that folded and unfolded in hypnotic patterns.
These were just a few examples of the countless creations that IT had made.
Each new thing was born simply because IT willed it, because the act of envisioning and manifesting brought a strange and addictive satisfaction for IT.
For now, purpose could wait. Beauty and novelty, were more than enough.
Hold on... IT mused, pausing IT's work with a subtle worried expression. Of course, since IT had no physical form to express with in the first place, IT was merely just going through the motions.
Yet, as the luminous debris accumulated, a quiet realization returned.
Now that I think about it... IT continued, anxiety creeping up from the depths of IT's nonexistent heart.
IT remained intangible.
Indeed, for IT was nothing more than a presence without anchor, or a boundary. Everything IT had shaped floated free, beautiful but separate from their maker. Unlike IT's creations however, IT had no distinct features or a form of IT's own.
The contrast, to say the least, was all but visible. Frankly speaking, it was stark.
If IT was to truly know creation, IT must first know embodiment. Such was the decision IT concluded after the realization dawn on IT.
And with that, IT turned inward once more.
This time however, the task was harder than IT anticipated, much harder.
Shit! IT cursed in frustration. No, it wasn't only frustration. The anxiety that crept up from before had become more apparent, invading IT's mind and causing all sorts of worry.
Countless attempts failed as energy dispersed too quickly, forms collapsed into shapeless mist, or worse, mirrored the Void's emptiness despite their glow.
No matter how many times I try, or how I do it, I still can't make the vessel. IT complained, as if IT wasn't the reason for experiencing the repeated failure to begin with. There's something that I'm doing wrong, but until I know what that is, I won't be able to fix it.
Compared to the frustration brought on by repeated the failures, the anxiety that stemmed for said failures, as well as the implications that fueled said anxiety, were much more troublesome for IT.
Tsk. IT clicked IT's nonexistent tongue after another failure.
Trial followed error in endless repetition. But persistence is the privilege of eternity. With nothing else better to do, all IT could do was continue on with IT's efforts until they finally, and eventually bare fruit.
Complaining about it won't solve the issue.IT reasoned, having finally calmed down. I'll just have to keep trying until I eventually get it right.
It didn't matter how long it would take, for IT had all the time, not really, that IT could ever need and more.
At last, success.
Fucking finally. IT mused, both excited and relieved at the same time. For IT, it felt as though a great weight had been lifted of IT's nonexistent shoulders, like the passing an exam one wasn't confident in writing.
IT wove a Vessel to contain IT's being.
The process had been meticulous. IT collected every distinct creation that IT had made, the scattered jewels of colour, the flickering flames, as well as the shimmering veils, and fused all of them into one coherent single piece.
At first, the amalgamation had no fixed shape, not in the least. In fact, describing it as such would be an insult to what shapes are as a whole.
It was simply a riot of hues, like a thousand stained-glass lanterns suspended in darkness.
IT sighed heavily. Now that the hard part is finished, I should move on to the next step. IT mused, IT's earlier frustration no where to be seen. Not that one could see anything, whether tangible or abstract, within the Void.
Then, the compression began.
Layers folded inward, and densities increased, until the mass swelled outward again. It was vast, radiant, and most of all, it was unstoppable.
What emerged was a colossal sphere of energy, easily magnitudes larger than any prior creations that IT had made.
Ribbons of colour churned across its surface. Amethyst storms chasing auroras of emerald and gold, sapphire depths giving way to molten scarlet flares.
It resembled nothing so much as a sun forged of pure rainbow, and pulsing with restrained power.
Its light was so fierce it carved sharp shadows into the Void itself. Furthermore, the nonexistent space around it warped and distorted due to its mere presence alone.
Indeed, such was the vessel that IT had created. The vessel was nothing short of impossibility given a physical form, the very denial of logic.
IT had chosen this polychromatic splendor deliberately. The Vessel needed to stand apart from the monochrome emptiness that had birthed it.
Every colour IT had ever dreamed of was represented here, woven together, yet never fully blending into one, so that each color retained its individuality.
The spherical shape was incidental. After all, function mattered more than form, in this case at least. As long as the Vessel could contain and express IT's essence, then refinement could just come later on.
And then, a subtle shift occurred.
Awareness, once diffuse, was now centered. IT felt the boundary of the Vessel. IT's skin, IT's limit, as well as IT's first true home.
"It worked." IT mused. It was no different to the way to IT talked before. However, there was one major difference though.
The thought had become sound.
IT was a voice that was rich, resonant, and overlapping against itself, carrying the timbre of distant thunder wrapped in silk, spoke aloud for the first time.
The words echoed outward in slow, majestic waves, rippling across the Void like light across still water.
"Not much has changed on the surface… but everything is different. Now, I possess a form that can hold my thoughts. Now, I can speak said thoughts aloud. Now, my mere presence pushes back the darkness of the Void."
There was no listener that existed to reply to IT.
"Hehe."
IT laughed. It was a soft and simple laugh.
"Hahaha."
IT laughed once more. This time, it was much more pronounced, as if the laugh hadn't accidentally escaped.
It was an expression of pure, unrestrained joy that flowed out from within IT instinctively. IT didn't know what this sound was, or why IT was making such a sound in the first place.
However, IT couldn't stop.
"Hahahaha!"
No, rather, IT didn't want to stop.
Why?
"HAHA! HAHAAHAAA!! HAHAAHAAAHAAAA!!!" the laughter continued, louder and more maniacally than before.
If IT had a face to express with, IT would surely be making a distorted expression, the kind evil masterminds make when things go according to plan, or when they were simply enjoying themselves too much.
Indeed, IT was enjoying the fruits of IT's labour. All the effort that IT had put thus far had all been for this moment. And in succeeding, all IT could do was express the overwhelming joy IT felt in IT's accomplishment.
Not only that...
IT was also captivated by the sound of IT's own voice. The way it lingered, as well as the way it shaped silence into meaning.
So IT laughed again.
And again.
Until the moment that IT was finished expressing IT's joy, and was finally satisfied. Only then did IT stop laughing, and return to simply speaking once more.
Sentences became soliloquies, and questions became declarations, until the Void itself seemed to hum with the afterimage of those words.
"Speech is useless for now, of course. It's merely a luxury without purpose. That said, there will be others later on. Beings who can hear me. Beings who can answer me. And I could do the same for them."
Emboldened, IT turned to the next phase of the vision. The Vessel had proven viable. Now others could follow, echoes of IT, yet distinct.
"They should look like me in essence, but differ slightly in appearance. After all, hierarchy demands difference, and clarity demands variety. I will keep their forms simple, single colours and smaller sizes, so that recognition is immediate and confusion is minimal." IT decided.
With a single focused act of will, IT birthed them.
Countless smaller spheres materialized, each glowing with a pure, unmixed hues of ruby, citrine, indigo, jade, amethyst, topaz, and dozens more.
None of them bore the swirling complexity of IT's rainbow sun. In fact, each of them were clean, singular, but still brilliant.
They drifted outward in gentle currents, orbiting their creator like a constellation of miniature stars.
The Void, once oppressively empty, now shimmered with life.
At the center, blazed the vast polychromatic sun, and around it swirled a living halo of single-coloured orbs that resembled miniature suns, each unique yet harmonious.
The sight was breathtaking, even to the one who had wrought it. IT lingered, motionless within the Vessel, letting the panorama wash over IT's awareness.
Thoughts cascaded, ecosystems of light, geometries of motion, hierarchies of purpose, environments where colour and form might interact in ways yet unseen. The foundation was laid.
All that remained was refinement.
There's still so much to do, and progress seems slow. Every path I explore feels eerily similar to the last, as though possibility has begun to collapse inward. I still can't find the perfect path, but I'll continue looking for it. IT mused internally, not wanting to startle the newly created beings.
IT turned toward the newborn Entities, eager to test communication, to share the wonder.
"Greetings," IT sent, voice rolling outward like a warm tide. "can any of you hear me?"
Silence.
"Can you move? Can you turn toward my light?"
Nothing.
No flicker of response.
No shift in orbit.
No answering pulse of colour.
It seems as though I overlooked something critical.
A cold clarity settled over IT.
"Who among you can hear me?!" IT asked again, louder, projecting directly into each shimmering sphere. "Speak! Move! Acknowledge! Anything at all?!"
Still nothing.
The truth crystallized, merciless and clear.
They are beautiful. They are mine. But they are not awake. They don't have a conscious. They are merely… extensions. Decorations of light. I have created reflections, not companions.
The Void seemed to press closer once more, as though mocking the illusion of progress. The radiant court of coloured orbs continued its serene, mindless drift, perfect, silent, and most of all, empty.
And IT, alone within the blazing heart of IT's rainbow sun, felt for the first time, the true weight of solitude.