Beginning

Shamus awoke with a start, and pulled his back away from the grassy field as he sat up. He braced his hands against the ground, but paused as he felt the greenery slip in between his fingers. It was unlike anything he had ever felt before… in fact, he wasn’t sure he had felt anything at all before this very moment.

His gaze was drawn towards the sky above. A vast veil of darkness cloaked everything in sight, with only the soft twinkling light of the millions of stars above, and the pale glow of a large moon overhead. It was the most incredible thing he’d ever seen; he felt as if he could lie there forever.

Several minutes passed before Shamus moved again, bracing his hands against the grass once again. He pushed himself up to his feet, almost falling as his legs shook underneath him. With great struggle, he finally managed to obtain some semblance of balance, now feeling the grass slip in between the gaps of his toes.

With his new point of view, he was able to examine his surroundings in far greater detail. In front of him lay a vast expanse, a grassy plain that seemingly stretched on forever. Breaking up the dark horizon stood groups of trees: imposing willows with feathery leaves, and long vines that climbed from the base of the tree, all the way to its crown; towering oaks that reached up towards the stars above; and rigid pines pointed like giant spears thrust from the earth.

Shamus saw something else, however, another figure not too far from where he now stood. The figure was like him only… different.

Where his body appeared to stay rigid and straight, theirs was curved. Where the hair atop his head remained short and still, theirs flowed into curls caught in the midnight breeze. Where his features were of toughened bone and muscle, theirs appeared far softer.

Yes, whatever this was had certainly been created in a similar fashion as him, similar but different all at the same time.

No matter what they were… he found them beautiful. More beautiful than the wondrous landscape surrounding him; shining brighter than the moon and the stars; captivating him so much that he couldn’t take his eyes off of them. As he stared, the figure turned their head towards him, and began examining him, much as he did them.

As if losing control of his own form, Shamus began to walk slowly towards the figure. His inexperienced legs shook with every step, and he had to catch himself numerous times as he nearly tripped and fell into the grass.

It took him a short while, but before long he stood mere feet away from her. As Shamus drew closer to her, he felt himself staring into her eyes, beautiful white pearls complimented by inky black spheres, each surrounded by a gorgeous brown ring.

“You… are… b-beautiful,” Shamus managed to say, the first words man had ever spoken. Beautiful…yes, that seemed like the word to describe the form he found in front of him.

“Thank… you,” she murmured. It seemed to take her just as much effort to speak as him.

Shamus extended out an arm, gesturing to the horizon. “This… sky,” he said, struggling to find the words to express what he was feeling, “...is also… beautiful, but… even in all this beauty… I find… my eyes… going back to… your own beauty.”

The woman’s mouth curved into a smile, a loving smile, the kind of warm, affectionate look that could light a fire in a man’s heart.

“I am… Elizabeth.”

This must have been her word; just as Shamus was his, Elizabeth was hers.

“Wonderful name… it fits you… well. I’m… Shamus,” he smiled at her. Their gazes caught once more, admiring each other’s unique beauty.

Shamus, without thinking, reached for Elizabeth’s waist. He wrapped his hands around her and pulled her close to his chest. He felt her hair lightly brush against his skin. He felt her soft skin press against him, and he felt it heat subtly as she, too, began to wrap her arms around him, maintaining just enough distance to keep her eyes lost in his.

They stayed like this for a few moments, until Elizabeth, fueled by nothing more than pure instinct, suddenly grabbed Shamus’s chin, pulling his mouth to meet hers. It felt like they had done it thousands of times before, that despite their mere minutes of existence, this simple action had been mastered hundreds of years ago. With that simple act of passion, the first kiss, the first act of love, had been committed.

As their lips met a flash of light exploded from their bodies, and in turn several images began to play in their minds: a series of scenes projected into their consciousnesses nearly instantaneously. They saw an impossibly tall tree, with countless branches and vines stemming from the trunk. At the base of that tree sat the two of them, holding one another tenderly. They saw the construction of all civilization, from caves, to huts, to log cabins, to brick houses, towering skyscrapers and buildings that stayed suspended in mid air. They saw all the creation this one act of love would cause, and in turn, the end of it all too.

Animals hunted and butchered just for humanity to survive. Murders committed in cold blood, horrific acts of violence against innocents, neighbors, and friends.World spanning wars on an impossible scale. Machinery built to kill; industry that plagued the skies.

They watched the midnight sky in front of them cloud and distort into nothing more than a vile mass of grey smog. They watched each building, every person, all crumble under the foot of time. They watched all of the wondrous creations be made and destroyed, all within a matter of seconds. At the end of it all, they saw themselves watching it all, clad in gracefully flowing robes. Even in the end, whatever they became, they were still together.

And as quick as it had begun, they escaped the vision in their minds and found themselves back in the grassy plain. There were no other people, no structures. No death, nor decay. The stars and moon in the midnight sky were still clear as can be.

Shamus stared wide eyed at his love, haunted by what he had just seen. Elizabeth stared back, sharing a similar expression… although a glint of hope still shone in her eye. She pulled Shamus close and looked him tenderly in the eyes.

“I… love… you,” she uttered softly.

Shamus felt tears well up in his eyes; he couldn’t explain why they were there, but he was certain they weren’t bad.

He wrapped his arms around his love and whispered into her ear, “I… love… you too.”

He intertwined his hand in hers and pulled her alongside him. They ran through the night and only stopped when they reached a large willow atop a hill. Shamus and Elizabeth sat next to one another, pulled close, resting themselves against the willow tree. They gazed out towards the horizon, and watched the sky change color as a great ball of fire began to light up the fading night.

They made a simple choice that night, one that forever altered the course of that world. Despite the destruction, despite seeing what would become of this choice, in the end the only thing that mattered was that they would continue to stay with one another.

The first act of love, fittingly, set the world on a course of creation and inevitable destruction.

The act of ultimate beauty: to create, and to live forever in each other's arms.