Author Information
The Old Black
It all took place in the old black, the big nothing, where nothing was, but all was meant to happen, an empty vessel full of nothing, but meant everything, the empty canvas of creation. It all began when a string of the nothing canvas broke and released two tiny bits of nothing which collapsed forming the first gods, the wise nine-tailed silver fox named time and the mighty fire bird called space. Both time and space ruled the vast nothing, as they grew bored of nothing they decided to fill it with lovely music, so the mighty fire bird and his cunning mate began to sing a song which formed tiny bits of white called light and pale blue dots called water all over the black canvas. As both became used to their songs they wanted someone to sing for them so they created the first beings made of dirt and water but they were flaccid and their singing was weak, in an attempt to listen, the fire bird got too close hardening the muddy pale blue dots becoming planets. On a second attempt they tried to create life, this time with a noble sacrifice of blood from both time and space, they mixed it with dirt and water which formed animals and plants. This time they were satisfied but the animals’ behavior became a repetitive pattern, singing the same songs over and over again. On a third attempt, the gods made a sacrifice of flesh mixed with a tiny bit of nothing. Man was created from the firebird’s flesh; woman from the nine-tailed silver fox’s flesh. This was a perfect match for the gods, the chaotic nothing made humans uneasy, non-resting, innovative, hardworking, always looking for more things to fill their no-thing, they never ceased to sing. The gods rested at the side of the earth giving it warmth and care, the mighty fire bird became the sun and the silver fox the moon. One day the man was resting with his mate, the beautiful woman, both at the side of the sea in a beautiful night, the man felt like if he was empty, like if he was made of nothing, like if his beautiful mate was not enough and needed something more to fill his emptiness so he fell in love with the moon, the silver fox goddess. Days passed and the man had his head on the moon, always waiting at nights for her by the ocean. The woman became aware of that and felt like if the nothing was consuming her, there was more emptiness, so she drowned into the ocean in an attempt to fuse with the moon’s reflection on the sea, trying to become a part of her. The god space didn’t find the man singing attractive so he left him to his own, also abandoning the wise god time since her song was not enough anymore, it was nothing, just as mankind, just as the gods. The silver fox began to cry feeling empty, more than ever; she slowly flooded the earth with her tears until the man drowned together with all the animals and plants becoming nothing. After the planet flooded, all lights and pale blue dots began to vanish as the gods’ song was not being singed anymore, both gods faded and fused with the old black, becoming nothing. The old black just stood there, gazing deeply into himself, watching the everlasting nothing, closely looking how all comes and goes, all the impermanence, the cycles of nothing.
