Written for Monty Oum.
You are loved and missed.
The horizon was slowly starting to glimmer with the first visible stars, the sun sinking below the western edge of the world in a blinding display of energy, creating a sunset of unimaginable beauty. Speckled violet stretched from the growing twilight in the east, spreading across the sky until it lightened into a mild blue that mixed and twirled with bright yellow and orange, each color trying to merge with the others to build a more dazzling and spectacular display. Fierce, vibrant red glowed just above the setting sun, glaring and screaming it's glorious hue into the dusk.
The path was blanketed in gentle, calming shadow, the trees and grass on either side shaking lazily in the slow, warm breeze. Birds chirped and called for mates and children from their woven beds nestled in high branches, the melodies and songs ringing through the park and harmonizing with the growing music of the thousands of crickets and grasshoppers that hid and hopped throughout the long lawns of green. Fireflies danced and swirled in the darkening air, flashes and blinks of the light of chemical insect love that created a magical atmosphere of pure Spring in the park. The air was cooling down for the coming night, the scent and feel of moisture blowing in on the tranquil wind. Blooming flowers graced the park with their fragrant pollen and vivid petals, appearing throughout the expanses of grass and stretching to the borders marked by low wooden fences.
Giggles and laughter bounced and echoed along the path, sounds of cheer and joy that could only come from a happy child. Summer Rose and her daughter Ruby watched cheerfully from a wood and metal bench as Yang and her father rushed through the grass, chasing after the bright sparks of fireflies, the small beetles illuminating their fingers and faces from within the bowls of their hands. Their smiles and excited eyes glittered in the dim light of the evening, reflecting the pinpoint lights of their catch. Ruby clapped her hands and yelled joyously whenever the pair would add another insect to their collection, causing her mother to smirk and chuckle quietly. The young girl, excitement and energy filling her large silver eyes, eagerly clambered off the bench and ran over to her sister and father, chortling and cackling in glee, her long red cloak that she refused to ever remove dragging lightly along the tips of the grass. After the sun had finally disappeared behind the edge of the world and the stars were glinting and twinkling beside the rising moon, Summer finally gathered up her husband and two children, and started on the path home.
Tai-yang walked ahead with Yang riding piggyback on his shoulders, raising her arms over her head and grabbing each passing branch, pretending she was a regal jungle princess swinging her way through the dense wilds. Ruby rested cradled in Summer's arms, eyelids drooping sleepily as she bobbed up and down in time with every one of her mother's footsteps. Her cloak, red as a rose, was wrapped around her tiny form, the hood pulled over her dark hair, keeping her warm and cozy against the cooling wind that blew along the path, ruffling the leaves of the surrounding trees.
"Mama...?" Ruby asked quietly, her high-pitched voice softly revealing her tiredness.
Summer gazed down at the small child, love and comfort filling her sterling eyes. "Yes, my darling?" Her voice delicate and smooth, like a spoonful of warm honey.
Ruby mouth spread in a tiny grin as her eyelids closed, her exhausted body no longer able to resist the temptation of sleep. "Mama, will you tell me a story?"
Smiling wide, Summer reached over and brushed a stray lock of hair off Ruby's forehead. "Of course, dear. What would you like to hear today? Heroes? Princesses? Pirates?" This had been a long tradition, Summer reading a fairy tale to her young daughter as she fell asleep.
"I want... a new one..." Ruby mumbled faintly, closer to slumber than wakefulness.
Summer hummed in thought, placing a finger on her lips. "Why don't I tell you about the gods of Remnant? Hmm?" She glanced down to see a flicker of attention on Ruby's face before her eyes closed again and her breathing grew slow and calm. Summer shook her head and smiled, amused by her daughter's snoozing. "I guess it doesn't matter. You're asleep!" She cooed to the child in her arms.
The tiny hand that had been grasping faintly at her coat tightened, indicating that Ruby was still awake, and still wanted her story.
"Since you insist." Summer whispered to the beautiful girl. "Remnant has many gods, many greater influences on it's path through the heavens. But there are mainly three, and this is their story. First, there is Keh'ri, the smallest of the three gods. He is the god of travelers, having walked across the cosmos until he finally found Remnant. He fell in love with watching the creatures of the world move and wander across the surface and underground, and used his great power to help them on their way. He created the Faunus, giving them the traits of animals to make them stronger. Watching the wonderful lives and travels of his people, Keh'ri desired to join them. He took the form of a walrus faunus, making long tusks grow out of his mouth!" Summer tickled Ruby's tiny tummy, causing the girl to giggle in her sleep. "Many Faunus still worship him, but he's not too popular in Vale. Maybe one day we'll visit his temple."
"Can we Mommy? One day, can we?" Summer looked up to see Yang hanging backward off her father, long blonde hair dangling toward the ground.
"Of course we can!" Summer chuckled at her step-daughter.
"What about the other gods?" Yang asked, enraptured by the story.
"Ah, yes. Well after Keh'ri, there is Luna. Luna arrived on Remnant long before his friend Keh'ri-"
"The gods are friends?"
"Definitely! All the gods are friends! Luna arrived early, and saw Remnant cold and empty, its people and creatures shivering and shaking. He felt sad and worried for the creatures, so he summoned his power and poof! He made the sun. The sun was very heavy, hot, and bright, and while it warmed the world of Remnant, after the first day or two the creatures complained of being unable to sleep! Luna felt bad for making something that made life difficult, so he sat down and thought for a long time. In a stroke of brilliance, because Luna was very smart, he pushed the sun around the world, giving heat and light to half the world at a time, and let the surface cool and sleep for half the day."
"Wow!" Yang's bright lilac eyes glistened with wonder and imagination.
"Wow exactly. But then the world was still too dark, so Luna invented the moon, and set it to roll around the world."
"But why did he make it broken?" Yang asked, frowning in curiosity and confusion.
"Oh, he didn't mean to. When he was busy pushing around the sun, he tripped and kicked the moon, breaking it into the hundreds of pieces we see today."
"Oh! Hahaha, he's so clumsy!" Cherubic laughter erupted from Yang, spreading it's way into Summer.
"Indeed he is, haha! Luckily for us, some of the pieces of the moon fell all the way down to the ground, and melted into Dust. So Luna gave us the sun, the moon, and Dust."
"What about the third god, Mommy?"
"The story of the third god is both sad and happy, I'm afraid. The third god's name is Oum, and he was the most powerful and oldest of the gods. He looked into the empty void of the universe, where nothing existed, and decided that he wanted to change that. He put forth all his energy, all his power and imagination and created the world and the stars. But he wasn't satisfied with just balls of light and chunks of rock, so he cracked his knuckles and started creating life. He created trees, animals, and people. Many people today who still worship him call Oum the 'Animator', because he gazed upon his creations and breathed life into them, giving them movement and thoughts and emotions. He took pieces of his own imagination and gifted it to each individual being, spreading happiness and creativity across the world."
"That's amazing! Go Oum!"
"Haha, yes!" Summer's grin slowly faded into a solemn expression. "But, sadly, Oum got very sick, and quickly afterward he died."
The tiny hand that had clung softly to Summer's jacket tightened, prompting the silver eyed woman to look down at the child in her arms. Ruby's eyes were wide open and filling with the preamble of tears, her mouth and chin wobbling with barely contained sobs. "Mama, say Oum didn't die. Change the story!"
Inclining her head, Summer closed her eyes. "I'm sorry Ruby, but Oum the Animator died. Everything dies, even gods."
"But what about his friends?" Yang asked over Ruby's faint wails and sniffles. "What did they do when Oum died?"
"Luna and Keh'ri, and all the other gods and all the living things on Remnant were very sad. They cried and mourned, their tears falling as heavy rain across the mountains and forests. But Oum's friends knew that he would not have wanted them to be sad for too long, he would have wanted them to continue to make Remnant a better place, keep improving and creating new things of bright imagination. While they cried, they also put forth extra effort to accomplish amazing things, creations that Oum would have enjoyed." Summer looked up into the starry night, her own eyes watering. "Not everything has a happy ending, Ruby."
The young red-headed girl wiped away her tears with the side of her hand, sniffling up the mucus dripping from her nose, and grimaced in determination. "I'm gonna do what Oum would have wanted! I'm gonna grow up, and I'm gonna do amazing things!" She shook her hands in the air and asked her mother to be put on the ground. Yang did the same with her father, and the two girls ran ahead along the path, two bright souls of light that blazed with resolve. "For Oum!" Ruby shouted into the darkness, dashing along with her fist raised above her head.
Summer smiled and laughed quietly as she grasped the arm of her husband, the latter slowing his pace to allow her to catch up. He turned to her and kissed her cheek, warmth and love spreading from the contact. He sighed and watched as his two children sprinted along the path, able to feel their drive from his far position. "Quite the two little munchkins we have, huh?" His voice was strong and deep, like the roots of an old oak tree.
"Yes," she said as she rested her head on his shoulder. "They're going to grow up and do amazing things, aren't they?"
"Beyond a doubt."
"I'm glad I could inspire them, keep them moving forward."
The moon arose over the unlit leaves of the treetops, casting stark silver light across the dark branches and along the stretching path. Six white birds rustled from their nest and took flight, spreading their wings and launching into the bright illumination of the shattered satellite.
A peaceful, quiet night descended on the world of a dead artistic god.
Author's Notes: This isn't meant to be anything more than a tribute to Monty. It's my attempt at doing something creative.
Keep moving forward.