Page 19 of Darkness Births the Stars #1

CHAPTER

THE DAYS OF BECOMING

before the counting of years

Noctis

I could not remember my beginning. All I could recall was a whirlwind of light, color, and sound, merging and sundering again and again in an eternal dance that never ceased.

Over time, a beautiful pattern emerged, bringing Order to the Chaos, like a masterful tapestry woven from the very threads of existence.

Then, I did not know what loneliness meant.

I basked in the presence of the Allfather alongside my kin.

One of them was especially close to my heart, dwelling at my side through the first days of creation.

One similar in power and still so different in nature to me, his soft glow of dawn a contrast to the frigid burn of my darkness.

He lacked my insatiable curiosity, never venturing as far in the pursuit of knowledge.

Yet upon my return, he was always there, steadfast and waiting.

My brother, unwavering and strong, a reassuring constant.

(There was another—a mischievous little light that would occasionally brush against my mind with a melodic chime, only to dart away when I snarled in irritation.)

Soon I explored the farthest reaches of the Allfather’s realm, driven by an ravenous hunger for more.

There, the pattern of existence was unraveling at the seams, threads of reality fraying and dissolving into nothingness.

Despite the danger I felt, I could not deny my fascination with this unfettered Chaos, with the power it promised, the endless possibilities—only to be harshly reprimanded by our Maker for daring too much.

Until then, the Allfather’s love had been a constant warmth, always surrounding us like a gentle embrace. But now, I learned that he could also rage at us, his disapproval a cruel, biting storm that engulfed our entire world.

“This is the Other,” he warned us, his words a thunderous decree. “A place of Chaos. Stay away from it, for its evil nature will only destroy everything we are striving to build.”

I knew the threat of our Maker’s wrath should have made me relent, yet a small, defiant spark within me refused to be extinguished as I constantly tested the boundaries put upon me.

When the Allfather decided to send us to Aron-Lyr, the new world he had lifted from the maelstrom of Chaos for us to shape, I refused to obey.

I was burning. Burning with the desire to push my abilities to the limit, to attempt the impossible, to create things beyond the imagination.

And he expected me to cage myself. To confine myself to a fragile mortal body, scarcely more than a glorified slave, existing only to fulfill his orders.

I couldn’t. I just couldn’t.

“I cannot unmake your existence. Darkness is a part of this world, as much as I wish it were otherwise,” the Allfather raged when I hurled my defiance back at him, my will close to shattering under the ferocious power battering against it.

“But your madness will corrupt no one else. You are alone, and alone you shall stay, ruling the dark. ”

Then he cast me down into this cursed realm he called his creation.

I awakened alone.

A gasp. Air rushed into my lungs with the thousand small needle pricks of frost. My eyes opened wide, tearing up from the relentless wind blowing around me and the endless gray light overhead.

It took me a long time to realize I couldn’t move with a mere thought.

This strange new form I found myself in required me to bend and stretch long, ungainly limbs to get up.

It took even longer to find the resolve to try.

Curled in on myself, the ground beneath my cheek hard and freezing, I called my shadows to me. Their faint whisper over my skin was a small comfort. At least my powers hadn’t abandoned me. He had not taken them from me. Not out of compassion, I suspected. No, because he could not.

The thought that surely our Maker gazed upon me now, rejoicing in my suffering, finally brought me up on my knees.

As I struggled to my feet, the weight of my new form pressed down on me.

My limbs felt heavy and awkward, as if they didn’t quite belong to me.

But I couldn’t afford to be weak. Not now.

Around me was only white—an infinite barren wasteland of ice and rock, stretching endlessly in every direction. The cruel wind blew small icy flecks into my face. They bit into my skin.

I truly was alone.

None of the others had bothered to search for me, nor would they, obeying the Allfather’s orders.

I had half expected my brethren to join me in my rebellion.

But it was clear they had not. Not even Aramaz, whom I had believed would stand by me through anything.

No, he had been named the king of this new world, our leader, perhaps as a reward for his abandonment.

The perfect servant.

Rage rose within me, as cold and all-encompassing as the bleakness all around me. My power lashed the air in a dark wave, destructive and wild, the way it tore apart everything in its path bringing me at least a brief moment of satisfaction.

It was short-lived. He had not come. Deep within, I must have harbored a desperate, foolish hope that he would. Yet even my brother resented my presence now.

In the cold, I learned, tears froze to glittering ice crystals.

I built myself a home over time, a simple abode made of stone and ice that kept at least the ravaging winds at bay. While I worked, my mind churned. That is the thing about a rebellious mind: it can never be truly quieted. It always finds a way. Eventually.

The Allfather had denied me the power of true creation, allowing us only to give life to creatures born from his thoughts first. Another of those senseless limitations he had put upon us.

One I did not plan to adhere to. A self-satisfied smile lifted my lips as I reached for strands of Darkness in the fabric of the world around me to weave them into a small shape.

A lithe body with leathery wings, carried by four muscular legs, the creature’s tail double the length of its torso, the elegant neck ending in an angular, reptilian head.

My shadows sculpted every detail, every single scale covering the little thing, from its tiny claws to the curved horns rising from its forehead.

It was perfect—fierce yet beautiful, fitting snugly into my left hand. But no breath lifted its chest, no beat moved its heart. It remained dark and motionless.

I did not possess the Flame of Creation. But that did not mean I had not found another way to create life.

With a single thought, the nails of my right hand elongated into claws. A swift, decisive motion slashed my arm; blood dripped down in a dark red flood, steaming as it hit the ground, a vivid contrast to the snow.

As the blood flowed, I directed it toward the creature, watching as the crimson liquid seeped into its form.

Too often had I reached this point only to fail once more.

Yet I had never been as daring as today.

I had come to understand that true creation demanded a part of myself. Demanded taking risks.

The Veil between worlds was thin here in the north.

It took only a fraction of my magic to tear it open and reach for the strands of Chaos magic twisting in the Other just beyond.

A gasp escaped me, not from pain but from the sudden influx of power, a thrumming pulse between my hands.

I watched with bated breath as red and gold swept over scales, and the creature lifted its head, its slitted eyes blinking back at me.

Triumph awakened within me as the small thing stretched and unfurled its wings.

I had done it. I had created life. And in that moment, I knew that nothing could stop me from achieving my goals.

The Allfather’s restrictions were nothing more than obstacles to be overcome, and I would not rest until I had shattered every one of them.

The creature growled, tiny fangs gleaming white as it lunged at my thumb to gnaw at it. It startled a surprised laugh out of me, the hoarse sound echoing in the stillness of my icy abode.

“Ferocious little thing,” I said, scratching it behind one horn. “I shall name you Silvestri, the untamed one. The very first dragon.”

Silvestri grew quickly, aided by my magic, soon forcing me to expand our small shelter into a spacious cave.

I made brothers and sisters to keep him company, their snarls echoing in the cavern, their multicolored scales in green, blue, and red glittering in the pale winter sun when we went outside.

Watching them tumble over each other in their mock fights and witnessing their first graceless attempts to take flight held a simple joy.

They were already bigger than me. In a few more years, their wings would darken the sky, a sight both glorious and terrifying.

I should have known it wouldn’t last, of course. That the Allfather would not let my open disobedience stand. Yet with each passing year, I grew more self-assured, believing I would get away with my little trick.

Why he waited so long to confront me, I never knew. Perhaps because time meant nothing to beings like us, or maybe he wanted his punishment to feel more severe after lulling me into a false sense of security.

“How dare you. Does your disobedience know no bounds?”

If I had thought the Allfather’s wrath terrible before, it was nothing compared to the fury he rained down on me this time. My corporeal form dissolved under the onslaught as my dragons’ terrified shrieks filled our cavern.

“You will destroy these creatures. They are corrupted by Chaos. We cannot allow them to live, for they will taint our entire creation.”

The command tore into my mind. I scrambled to remake my body, kneeling on the icy ground.