"What are you?"
I cocked my head staring at the other bring "What are you?" I questioned back. The being hummed sinewy coils gliding over each other.
"I am...Dragon. And you?"
"...I am...Oni...Did you create me?" Dragon shook it's head staring into my eyes.
"Did you create me?" I also shook myself in the negative. We awkwardly regarded each other wondering what our purpose what, what the purpose of the other was.
With a sigh Dragon uncoiled it's self revealing four short and thick limbs tipped with claws and landed on the desolate sandy ground on all four of them. Quite different from my own long and thin limbs that allowed me to balance on two. Dragon gasped and stumbled back as a green thread like thing sprang up around it's claws along with green strands with other colours at their heads. Somehow despite never seeing the things before I knew they where 'Grass' and 'Flowers'.
Cautiously Dragon took to the air again staring in awe at what it had inadvertently made "Did I..." It reached down with a forelimb touching at one of the flowers, the flower grew leaves trying to latch onto Dragon's claw. Curious I knelt and touched a flower with the back of a claw, the little thing shrivelled as if all the life was drained away from it before crumbing to ash. "What did you do?" There was no condemnation in Dragons voice, only curiosity.
"I think I destroyed it..." I blinked "That must be our purposes, you create and I destroy."
"I suppose that makes sense." Dragon mused landing again, on a whim and just to see if they could they swiped their tail over the sand, it bloomed into life before their eyes. I walked through the patch of life watching as it died in my footsteps. Dragon blinked sniffing at one of said footsteps and put a paw over it, when it pulled away a tree sapling was already growing. "Where you destroy you leave the earth better for life, I can make more complex things out of what you destroy."
I touched the sapling destroying it and more of the ash was made "And from the more complex things I made more rich earth allowing you to make even more complex things." We shared a look and smiled.
"Shall we see what we can make this realm into Oni?"
"I would like to Dragon."
It was not to last.
Time had little meaning in the first realm, and any meaning it could have had was lost on the two endless beings who inhabited it. They spent what could have been millions upon millions of years just exploring their home, from the highest mountain to the deepest pit of the ocean they had seen it all, Dragon spreading life and Oni death.
They marvelled every time a new kind of plant came forth from their mutual curiosity. Though as the millennia wore on Oni noticed that Dragon's enthusiasm seemed to die, a slow and quite death. With every new flower, tree and grass Dragon seemed a little less fascinated, a little less interested then they where with the last.
Oni tried it's best to cheer their friend up "Look at this one Dragon, it uses Formic Acid to defend it's self!" Oni nudged Dragon lightly, the serpentine being growled lightly.
"As do a thousand others Oni, I fail to see what makes this thing so special." Oni was taken aback by Dragons words.
"Special? All of these things are special." They motioned at the small grove they where in, Oni precariously balanced on a rock and careful not to brush against a tree so as not to destroy anything "We made them together."
Dragon rolled it's eyes muttering something Oni didn't quite catch "Can we move on?" Oni sighed stepping off the rock feeling a pang as the plants started to shrivel and die.
"Alright...How about to the ocean, you love the ocean." Dragon sighed but nodded taking off Oni walking at their side.
Creation did not end when Dragon made it, all things carried within them a bright spark of it's power inside them, enough that they where able to create more of themselves without Dragon and Oni having to be present. But they hadn't thought they had enough of a spark to do this.
it was a tiny thing, crawling along the ocean floor, blind, deaf, helpless really. But it was new it was different. The pair followed it eagerly fascinated by the creature. It could not last forever.
"Kill it Oni." Dragon yawned, Oni startled stared at his friend.
"Kill it? Why? You can make more from something else without killing it." Dragon snorted.
"I don't want more I want something more interesting then this."
"But look at it." Oni smiled waving a claw at the sightless creature "It created it's self and look at it, so strong."
In a blink of an eye Dragon's tail lashed out catching Oni's wrist and bringing his hand down on the creature, Oni yelped and pulled away, too late the little thing was already dead. "There we go." Dragon purred scooping up the earth already forming something new. Oni stared at their friend who smiled at the slightly larger creature now with eyes that crawled off it's claw.
"I...Dragon why did you do that?" Dragon snorted dropping the creature.
"It's your purpose isn't it? To kill things for me so I can have fun." Oni backed away from them.
"Dragon...I'm your friend, not just something you can order around." Dragon rolled their eyes and nudged Oni.
"Your being over sensitive Oni."
"I don't like my power." Oni stated bluntly "I'm jealous of you Dragon, you get to create such fantastic plants and now animals and I can only destroy them."
"My power is fantastic." Dragon preened nudging them again "Oh do calm down Oni, just use your power like your meant to."
Oni growled lightly fists shaking "...I think I want to spend some time alone Dragon."
Dragon sighed dramatically. "Fiiiiine. Go sulk when your ready to play your part you can come back." He patted Oni on the head with their tail, Oni cringed the normally friendly actions of his friend feeling condescending. He turned and left Dragon shaking his head and turning his attention back on the little creature "Now...How can I make you better..."
Oni hid them self away, inside a deep mountain cave once they and Dragon had curled up together inside during their early days of exploration. Outside life without end bloomed without death to temper it. Aggravated by their friend's silence every few years he could come by the cave and badger Oni till they agreed to take a walk through the realm and bring destruction to it so that Dragon could continue to play with it.
They hated it, they hated how Dragon could look at this beautiful realm and the wonderful plants and creatures they created and just wish their destruction.
"Are you ever going to get over this sulk of yours?!" Dragon snapped as Oni made his way back to the cave "Your ruining this for me!" Oni glared growling at Dragon.
"If it aggravates you that much Dragon, why don't you figure out how to make creatures die on your own!" they snapped storming back to their cave, Dragon gave a thoughtful look to Oni as they left.
"Make them die...Or perhaps...Make them kill each other..."
When a hundred years passed without Dragon forcing them to come out of the cave Oni knew something was wrong. Cautious they left the save worried about what their friend could have possibly done, and despaired.
Where once all things created by Dragon where immortal and able to procreate on it's own Dragon had forcefully taken it away giving them at most a lifespan of a few decades and installed the need for at least two plants or creatures of the same kind to create more. Without their immortality, plants and creatures alike began to starve and die. Out of those dead the Dragon created new life, life that fed on each other, life that killed each other.
Life that didn't need Oni to bring them death.
"Do you like it old friend?" Dragon purred a grin on it's muzzle "You gave me the idea after all, now it is good, now I don't need you, I can play with my creations all I like. And they love me for it."
Oni shook his head stepping back from the being they once called friend "I don't even know you anymore..."
Dragon regarded them "No, I don't think we ever really knew each other. But now I don't need you, so it doesn't matter. Hide away in your cave, or live free among my creations. Your choice it doesn't matter to me anymore I get my fun either way."
"How can you find this fun?"
"How can you not?"
It was the end of a era.