To Fall Down Low

Prologue - Sunset Undying

The dead forest shone golden in the setting sun's wake, rotting trees and yellowed grass silhouetted against the evening sky; not a soul could be seen in this dying landscape, as it only served a grim reminder of the past-that is, all but one small figure still lived among the ruins. Its brilliant red coat and yellow mane seemed to catch fire in the blinding sunlight, and with a single swish of its long furry tail it all but set fire the dry grass beneath it. The scarlet creature looked directly into the sun, unaware or perhaps even disregarding the danger in this action; its pitch black gaze seemed to drink in the light instead of rejecting it, so as to create an air of darkness where, elsewhere, there was only heat and unrelenting radiance. Purpose shone brighter than any sun, however, in the creature's eyes-it knew, without hesitation, the one goal it was meant to achieve in all the long years of its existence. The time was close, if not spent already: too much further and history would repeat itself, assuring the structures of present day to join those of the crumbling past. At least, that is what it had thought since the day it heard the promise of a dying soul: "This dark time of ours is not in any way unique; it has happened before and it will happen again. But when darkness meets light, the past will remain just so, and the present will continue onward to the future as was always meant to be." And so, every day since then the creature had awaited the coming of that promise; at this moment, all the circumstances lined up. Surely, within this undying sunset, the darkened air of the shadows could meet the light of the day's end? But what could it possibly achieve in doing so? The creature's eyes boldened with confusion and, finally doubt. Its tail swished more ferociously across the grass, sending sparks of energy flying away from it. Seconds spanned into minutes, and before long an entire hour had passed in which the creature had not moved an inch one way or the other. Long since the sun had disappeared beneath the horizon, showering the land in its last purple shreds of light before giving way to the blackened sky. Perhaps that old decidueye really was just a wise mind gone senile. Darkness cannot meet light after all-they are opposites, never meant to come into contact with one another lest day become night. The sylveons are simply prideful...nothing more, surely? What befell Old Empire could never happen again-the destruction that occurred that day can never be repeated. But even as the creature finally stood and took a step forward, its paws shook with uncertainty and its eyes lost all sense of purpose they once held. "When darkness meets light, the past will remain just so, and the present will continue onward to the future as was always meant to be."