These Flowers Never Bloom

by Cerulean Voice

Neverbloom

It was Morrow who cursed this place.

Ilias and Rose: firstborns of our Lady Dimiourgia. I remember all that she told us before she disappeared. She named everything that we saw in our vicinity. Plant. Rock. Fruit. Grass. Water. We watched in wonder and awe as the world around us expanded rapidly. We heard strange new sounds as they carried to our ears. A smaller being comprised of feathers settled in a nearby tree and gave a high-pitched cry. Bird. It was joined by others, similar, though not identical. A different, slightly larger creature covered in fur ran up the tree and settled near the bird, giving a lower-pitched chirp. Squirrel.

So it continued. Worm. Bee. Butterfly. Fish. Wolf. For every new creature we witnessed and had named for us, another would show itself—if only briefly—before disappearing into the depths of the ever-expanding forest. Soon enough, there was nothing I could see that wasn't alive. I could feel the life in the forest. It resonated within me. We were connected. This feeling was what prompted me to ask Dimiourgia my first question:

"What am I to this world?"

Dimiourgia encompassed me in her gentle, yet terrifying stare; her sky-blue eyes seemed to pierce right through me. "You are a Pony, Ilias. Of the Equine race, like myself. You have no wings or horn like mine. However, you will not be without skills and magic similar to my own. I intend for you and Rose to reside in this world, as your own paradise. This land—which I hereby dub Earth—is yours to roam, play in, love and cherish. You must take care of the plants and all of the creatures within. You shall feel eternal bliss in this world, for I created you both to witness your happiness. We will all benefit from your existence. Through you and Rose, this land will thrive.

"Ilias, I name you my steward of Earth. I now bestow upon you the power to feel everything in the land. You will sense all of my animals and plants: how they are growing, their health, their emotions. You will feel warmth when one of them sleeps comfortably. You will also know how it feels when one is injured, for you will be aware of their pains as well as their joy. This shall be your task within this world.”

Dimiourgia then fixed her gaze upon Rose. "Rose, I give you the power to create in my stead. You shall be responsible for how the world looks. You will create masterpieces of true beauty with my gift. Although, you must take great care not to create anything dangerous with the potential to harm either yourselves, or any other life in this land, for it would be conflicting with Ilias' own task. Try it out. I cannot wait to see what wonders you come up with!"

Rose nervously stepped away from Dimiourgia, surprised at being put on the spot. She concentrated hard for a short moment. A humming sound filled the air as a pair of drooping, closed-up flowers emerged from a previously bland bush.

Task completed, Rose opened her eyes and surveyed her work. The flowers stood out from the rest. Bright silver hue, shining from within. Yet they seemed... sad, not at all like the other flowers standing with petals wide open happily at our attention. I made a mental note to ask her about it later. A name came to me through my new sense of nature. A name I wasn't sure I was comfortable with.

Neverbloom.

We will all benefit from your existence.

It was then that Dimiourgia told us what she'd planned for this world and for us. She wanted us to create more beings, like ourselves. No explanation was necessary on the hows of it all, though, as Dimiourgia implanted that knowledge then and there into our minds. I understood then why I had that particular feeling about Rose earlier. I was male and she was female. Suddenly everything made sense. That early primal instinct I felt when she first reared up and declared what and who she was to me was explained wordlessly, to both of us.

* * * * *

Wishing upon ages, these flowers will someday bloom.

Dimiourgia next introduced us to the concept of time. Though she intended Rose and I to ever endure, our plants and animal friends were not so fortunate. We learned about how seconds were different from minutes, hours and days. She fashioned two orbs in the sky above us: one too blinding to stare directly at for any period of time and one less so, but possible to observe as a result. She then lowered both orbs below our sight and infused me with her magic. I felt inexplicably warm inside, warmer than I'd felt before. This feeling lingered momentarily before vanishing, upon which I experienced a completely opposite feeling: cold. My eyes felt like they'd stopped working too, or that I had closed them—for now it was suddenly dark. Then Dimiourgia gave me the command:

"Raise the sun, Ilias."

Sun. That was the name she gave it. I did as she ordered, feeling her kind eyes upon me. A feeling of excitement laced with uncertainty flowed through me. I wanted to prove to her that I could do what she asked. I closed my eyes and reached out with my new power. The warm feeling returned, bathing me in its radiance. As I felt the light from the sun shine through my closed eyelids, I chanced a peek skyward. There it was: my sun. Filling the forest with its golden light and... warmth? Why did the sun now generate the warmth? The forest had been perfectly ambient and well-lit before the sun and the other orb came into existence. So why did temperature and lighting suddenly depend upon the sun?

"Well done Ilias," Dimiourgia complimented me. "You are no doubt confused about what has transpired here, so allow me to explain. I intend for you and Rose to control these two Celestial orbs: the sun and the moon. They will be responsible for generating light and warmth, which both you and your world will require to survive. However, you cannot simply have the sun up as long as you like, lest the land become scorched and your eyes become weak. This is where the moon comes in. After you raise the sun, it will move slowly across the sky, signaling the passing of twelve hours, at which time you will need to lower it from sight.

"This is when Rose will raise the moon." Dimiourgia shifted her attention to Rose. "It will still generate a little light over the world, but living things will be able to sleep comfortably, free from the disturbance of the suns rays. The land will also cool in the suns absence, so that it does not overheat. Keeping the sun and moon constantly rising and setting in a pattern will be essential for you to keep the time.

"I want you to raise the moon now, Rose." Rose stepped up next to Dimiourgia and concentrated on using her own magic. The dark of the setting sun was replaced by the gentle glow of the moon over our forest. It was nowhere near as bright, but it was somehow more... Beautiful. The colours of the trees, the shadows, the reflections of moonbeams on flowers giving them a different colour in the night's glow... it was all captivating. I began to understand why Dimiourgia had given us responsibility over each of our separate orbs.

The Neverbloom bush glowed especially bright.

Dimiourgia turned back to us, her eyes glinting mischievously.

"Now go and play in the night. Any way you see fit."

Comments

[JustAnotherTimeLord]

She then lowered both orbs below our sight and imbued me with her magic.

I thought I should mention that "imbued" is used wrong here. While the meaning may seem fitting for this scenario, "to imbue" means to basically implant something within someone else that is an idea. A speaker at a convention, due to his personable attitude, imbued within the audience the knowledge of how one can live a happy life.

It is similar to how someone can inspire a thought within someone else. But anyway, great chapter once again. I sense the Chekhov.

[The Princess Rarity]

...so if Ilias and Rose = Adam and Eve, do Celestia and Luna = Cain and Abel? If so, which one dies?

[PaulAsaran]

You know why I don't read stories all that often? Because they influence my views and lead to inspiration. This is why I now have you to blame for a new creation myth of my own for Equestria and – resultingly – a story depicting said creation myth. Thanks a lot, guess I'll just add it to the pile.

Thus far I'm seeing a rather typical creation myth, complete with a certain "Adam & Eve" vibe. I'm very curious about what will cause the fall of Eden.

But one thing bugs me: Dimiourgia has named the world Equestria, but as we all know there was a nation founded by ponies called Equestria long after the world itself was created. So now there's a nation of Equestria within a world named Equestria? Did the founders of the nation not realize that the world was called Equestria – due to a lack of historical knowledge, for example? Is the name Equestria just instilled in the collective pony psyche so that, even after forgetting, they felt compelled to use it?

Did you just overlook this issue?

[Cerulean Voice]

4588711
.... Yeah, I kinda did. Whoops. Fixed now.

[Ice Star]

4413914

Luna & Tia are often written as immortal

So - no dying for them

[Ice Star]

I am unchangeable in my belief that C&L are natural biological sisters but I will not forsake a good story - I enjoy the various headcanon origin stories they have.

Curious to see where this goes.

[Zenith Sparkle]

4413914

You'll recall Nightmare Moon? Either one of the sisters could be Cain or Abel, depending on how you look at it; Celestia banished Luna to the moon, so she is Cain. Or Luna tried to bring on Eternal Night, so she is Cain. The former is my guess, though it's become somewhat of a FiMficton cliché.

Also, ultimate comment necro achieved.