Chapter 5: The Pillars of the World

Inar and Lior ran across the white planet, their bare feet touching the smooth surface beneath them. The wind ran alongside them, laughing in whispered gusts, while sound vibrated joyfully around them. The stars, curious, watched their cosmic dance, flickering softly in the endless sky.

As they spun in endless circles, Lior furrowed his brow, intrigued, and asked:

— "Sister, isn't it strange how no matter how much we run, we always end up back here? No matter how far we go, we never leave this place."

Inar slowed her steps and looked around. The horizon curved gently, embracing them in a perfect loop. The thought of always arriving back at the same place, no matter how far they ran, made her smile.

— "You're right, Lior," — she replied thoughtfully. — "I like running and circling the world. It kind of connects things, doesn't it? It's not like the void… the void is loose, disconnected. The ground keeps us together."

Lior nodded, his hair shifting between golden and silver hues.

— "It does connect things," — he agreed. — "But… what else can we do here? The planet is so white… it feels empty."

Inar crossed her arms, her gaze drifting across the untouched ground. The white was beautiful, but incomplete.

— "What do you think about creating more beings, brother?" — she asked. — "Beings that can live here, that can run, play, and exist."

Lior raised his eyebrows, his starlit eyes sparkling.

— "That sounds like a great idea! But… it can't all be white, right? We need colors. Imagine an eternity of looking at this boring color!"

Inar laughed.

— "You're right, brother. But… how do we give it color?"

Lior scratched his head, his short hair shifting to gold as he thought.

— "I'm not as creative as you, but… why not use the colors of your hair? Your hair is beautiful and always changing. Better than trying to invent colors from nothing, don't you think?"

Inar's eyes widened, her fingers brushing against her translucent strands, which swayed like ribbons of light. Soft, shifting colors appeared and disappeared, like a living aurora.

— "You're a genius, Lior!"

She raised a finger, which shimmered with golden light.

— "Do the same," — she instructed.

Lior copied her, and his fingertip glowed as well.

— "Now, just think of a color and touch the ground. Wherever we touch, the planet will be painted."

The two knelt and began to paint. Inar slid her finger across the surface, and beneath her touch, the ground turned a soft shade of pink, pulsating with a gentle vibrance. It moved like an invisible silk beneath the starlight. Lior, excited, drew circles, lines, and random shapes. His part of the planet became covered in a deep green, a green that carried a sense of calm.

When they were finished, they stepped back and admired their work.

— "It's beautiful!" — Inar said, satisfied.

— "It is," — Lior agreed, smiling. — "Now it's no longer just a white planet. But… if you called this solid part 'ground,' do you think there are other things beyond it?"

Inar turned to him, her mind racing.

— "Yes… why not? We have the ground… we have the wind… but wait." — She frowned. — "I never asked if they like those names."

She turned to the void and called out:

— "Wind! Do you like your name?"

The wind immediately answered, playful and fresh, swirling around Inar and Lior with excitement. Inar laughed.

— "I think that was a 'yes,'" — she said.

Then, she knelt and touched the ground.

— "And you, ground? Do you like your name?"

The ground remained silent, as solid and steady as ever.

Lior tilted his head, thoughtful.

— "Sister…" — he said slowly. — "Don't you think the wind and the ground could be siblings?"

Inar blinked, surprised.

— "Siblings?"

— "Yes. Look: the wind is free, loose, always moving. The ground is still, firm. They're so different, but they seem… like part of a balance. Like they complete each other."

Inar looked at the ground and felt the truth in his words. The wind needed the surface to dance upon, and the ground needed the wind's gentle touch to keep from becoming too still.

— "I think you're right, Lior," — she murmured, smiling. — "The ground… no. The name 'ground' doesn't fit this balance."

She closed her eyes for a moment.

— "Ground, I officially name you Earth. You are the steadfast sister of the wind."

The ground trembled slightly, as if acknowledging the change. The wind blew joyfully, rushing across the green surface.

— "Earth and wind," — Inar said, pleased. — "But it still doesn't feel complete. Something is missing."

Lior nodded.

— "I feel the same. It needs something else. Something… fluid, maybe? Something not as free as the wind, but not as firm as the earth."

Inar gazed at the horizon, painted pink and green. She closed her eyes and tried to feel what was missing. The planet was solid, the wind was invisible, but it needed something… something that flowed.

— "A sister," — she concluded. — "Her name will be… Water."

She lifted her hands toward the sky, and thin, translucent streams began to fall, like liquid threads. Water appeared, filling the low spaces in the ground, spreading slowly. The areas Inar had painted pink became calm, smooth seas, reflecting the stars above.

Lior ran to the edge and dipped his fingers into the water.

— "It's cold!" — he exclaimed, laughing.

— "She will be like the wind, always in motion," — Inar explained. — "But as resilient as the earth."

Lior watched the water, fascinated, but his restless mind was already moving forward.

— "Sister," — he said, turning to her, — "I think something is still missing."

— "What?"

He didn't answer immediately. He was thinking. And as he thought, his hair began to float, shifting from silver to gold, then to a fiery orange. The tips of his strands flickered like… flames.

Inar's eyes widened.

— "Lior, you're a genius!"

She darted forward, stretched out her hands, and concentrated. In her palm, intense light condensed. And suddenly, something new was born: a small, flickering flame, bright and alive.

— "Look, Lior," — Inar whispered, fascinated. — "Fire."

The flame crackled, warm and light, as if laughing.

— "Fire will be the force that transforms, that warms, that burns and renews. It will be the brother of wind, earth, and water."

She raised her palm and blew softly. The flame spread across the planet, settling as tiny embers beneath the surface, waiting to emerge when called.

Inar sighed, satisfied. Lior, beside her, watched in awe.

— "Sister, what have we done?"

— "We've created the four pillars of the world, Lior," — she answered, gazing at the colorful planet. — "Earth, wind, water, and fire. Together, they will keep the balance."

And, hand in hand, the siblings continued to run, laugh, and play, while the planet beneath their feet pulsed with new life.