Whence

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Athira Krishnan loves photography and song writing coupled with an obsessive love for music. She always strives to find harmony in her thoughts and in the work that she does. She showcases her creative work on her Behance page.

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Once, a little girl was delivered unto Mother Earth, whole, sparkle-eyed and healthy. As she lifted her chubby arms, the light poured through her little fingers, passing through her tiny nails, like transparent glass. She giggled, and the wind moved, the stalks of plants stretching towards her, the trees sighed and the sun hummed.

As she grew, she was beaten and forced to the ground, her will disappearing beneath the soil. Silence befell the land as she stayed quiet, as though a sinister plan was brewing. They waited in fearful silence, afraid of what might come. No one dared whisper and the world waited. Bees stopped buzzing, birds stopped chirping and branches ceased all movement. One day, all the clouds around the world, gathered together, casting an ominous shadow that stretched for miles. Then, she rose, towering over trees, buildings, cities and she wouldn’t stop growing. They begged and pleaded, asking her to stop. But she continued to grow, till the top of her head brushed against the clouds. Yet, she didn’t stop. She ducked as a flock of birds brushed past her ear and when she straightened her back, she could see beyond the world she knew, the clouds now gathering at her knees. She reached forward and pinched the sun, extinguishing it like one does a flame. Everything froze. Ice hung from the tips of noses to the ends of lashes. From the edges of leaves, to window panes. They turned into a beautiful display of ice sculptures, parents frozen mid-shout and children mid-laughter.

Consumed with the thrill of what she had just done, she swept forward, snuffing out stars as she passed by them. She crumbled planets in the palm of her hand, the dirt and dust clinging to the lines and grooves in her palm. A tiredness washed over her, her eyes closing. She lied down, floating like an ethereal being through an endless cosmos. As she settled into her slumber, her breath slowed and evened, each exhale pushing the universe further and further away from her and every inhale collected star dust in her lungs. She slept through her life, unmoving, unawakened until she finally awoke, eons later, at the very beginning. The beginning of the end. A gentle thrum ran through her body, tickling her toes and bristling her hair, nudging her awake. She awoke, her eyes wide, peering into the eyes of her maker, her master.

She smiled and approached the being. It pulsed in hypnotic patterns, pure energy radiating from its every pore, a warmth that gently washed over her. Closing her eyes, she moved closer and it enveloped her, its warmth reverberating through her and its colours cascading over form. It continued to embrace her, till she was engulfed in its purity, becoming one with this being.