Heaven's Gardens

Endymion

Endymion could not stop laughing as he clung to Polaris's torso.

The people saw him!

The people had named him!

He could already hear the prayers whispering at his ears, full of praise at the brightness of his light, and wonder as to why he had so suddenly appeared right now. One thing was sure beyond their shared amazement, they all thought he was a good omen that had been heralded by a whole bunch of falling stars.

Endymion grinned as he felt even more Power than he had felt when he started concentrating surge through his veins.

"Can I try to do more now, Polaris?" he asked, looking to his mentor with a hopeful smile. He could see his excitement and happiness reflected in the Star's brilliant silver eyes.

"Do you think you can do more now, Endymion? I would not want you to wear yourself out too much," Polaris answered, setting him down on his own two feet. "When I made the first star flower, I slept long enough your mother had the time to go about and meet each and every star in the sky, naming them and teaching them how to make physical forms before I woke again."

Endymion felt his eyes widen with his amazement before he just had to squirm about a bit. He was so full of energy! If he didn't get rid of some of it by channeling it how Polaris had just taught him, he just might burst into the flames Helia's flowers felt like.

"I'm going to explode if I don't do something," he declared in no uncertain terms. The sound of Polaris's laughing encouragement to do more made him smile in return.

Endymion turned his attention back to the crystal, focusing the image to move into one of the grand houses that were on the seaside, their layout wide and open, the doors decorated with the image of stars. That meant it must be important, or at least he thought that was what the stars meant.

After taking the time to study the entry room, he moved his attention through one room at a time until he had studied the whole house. The image was then shifted to another and another, until he had so many ideas of what he wanted in the home he was going to create, he thought his head would burst.

In a heartbeat, he popped onto his feet, grabbed Polaris's hand and pulled him back from the viewing crystal. He was going to make a room and did not want to be standing on the surface he would be moving about.

"Okay, now watch to see if I do it right," he directed Polaris sternly.

Without waiting for an answer, Endymion closed his eyes, turning his attention into the very core of his being to feel the energy ready to flow forth from his mind. With a thought he gathered it all about him like he had seen people on the surface do with cloaks. And then he thought of the lopsided mound of rock being smoothed away, willing the crystal to remain standing on its own for just a little bit.

When he was sure the mound was gone, he started thinking of the room he wanted to create one piece at a time. First, he smoothed the floor, making it as flat as the crystal itself, with three short steps running the full length of the crystal. That way he could look up at it just as he did to anyone telling him a story.

Next came four smooth walls topped with crown molding and rounded pillars at each of the four corners. These pillars were repeated at the edge of the now rectangular viewing crystal. The top and bottom of the crystal was edged with a pattern of veins twining their way along the seam of where the crystal met the stone of the wall. Above all this soared a vaulted ceiling.

With each new item, Endymion felt the power pouring out of him and into the stone he was shaping with his mind. And when he had thought of all of the features he wanted in the room, he held the image for a moment before releasing his Power and opening his eyes.

To his great astonishment, he and Polaris stood in a room that looked exactly as it had in his mind. A bright grin was on his face when he turned back to the Star. "Look! Look what I did! It is just what I wanted it to be!" he shouted excitedly. He was too excited and amazed to control how loud he was talking. This was far too much to take in and be expected to be quite about anything.

Polaris smiled to him in return. "You have done very well, but, I think you forgot something, Endymion," the Star said, looking amused.

Horror ran through Endymion. He had forgotten something?

"Where are you going to sit to watch your crystal?"

Endymion blinked. Where was he going to sit? What was wrong with sitting on the floor he had just put so much effort into making? Instead of answering with words, he dropped down onto the flat surface, crossing his arms defiantly.

"Oh, you're going to sit right like that?" Polaris asked with a laugh. "But you took away all the flowers in here. There is no cushioning on the stone."

Endymion crossed his arms. Polaris pointing out why he shouldn't want to sit on the ground only made him more determined to sit there. "I don't need any 'cushion'," he insisted stubbornly. "I'm not old and boring like you!"

Instead of watching for the Star's reaction, Endymion looked back at his crystal wall, willing it to show the surface once more.

It took a bit more concentration than it had just a bit ago, but the gentle glow returned as the crystal cleared to show the same small village down below them. Unlike before, there were people wandering around the streets, going about their business for the time they were spending awake. There were people finding food from stands on the street, children running about playing games like he did with the Stars, some were dancing and playing instruments, and some were looking intently into each other's eyes out of the view of other people.

That was interesting. Why would people go to such trouble just to look at each other?

And then he saw a familiar figure with silver hair that glowed slightly in the darkness.

"Polaris?" Endymion called, trusting the Star would still be near enough to hear his voice. Where else would he have gone? "Polaris? Isn't that Rigel? What is he doing with that lady? Is he trying to eat her face? Why would he do that?"

He jumped when instead of words, Polaris answered first with a bout of coughing.

Endymion turned his head, eyes wide with surprise and concern. All that faded into confusion when he saw Polaris was bright red, and making small noises that might have been laughter. What was going on?

"What is going on?" he demanded, crossing his arms grumpily. "Do I need to figure out how to go down there and find out for myself?"

"No! No, don't do that," Polaris choked out after a moment, obviously still trying not to laugh. "Please don't do that. Wait until Rigel comes here and ask him what he was doing then.

This request only confused Endymion more, but he only shrugged, With a huff, he returned his gaze to the wall, only to find Polaris rushing to get between him an the crystal. "Polaris!" he protested. "Get out of the way!"

"No, it's time to go do something else. Let's go run about the flowers before you exhaust yourself," Polaris insisted, taking up as much of the crystal as possible with his body. "You have had enough sitting and learning for one day."

"Fine," Endymion huffed before scrambling to his feet and running out the door. Polaris was right that he had sat still long enough for one day. But that did not mean he was going to forget his questions, they would just wait for a bit. "Let's run."