Of course, determination alone was not enough to get past the awning void, and the being had to face reality: it was still stuck on the wrong side of the chasm, with no way forward. Quite a headache.

  Creatures had almost entirely stopped coming out of the dome. It could be that they'd simply run out, given that they'd been pouring here at ridiculous rates since the very first real humming, forever ago. Or it could be that the world outside was truly gone, and this trickle was just the slower remnants that had managed to get inside the ball's outer layer before the catastrophe. Either way, the being would soon be utterly alone, in a way that went beyond anything it had ever experienced.

  On the flip side, there was essence around here to see clearly now, and for any creature to get to this point, they must be smart enough to avoid falling into the very obvious endless pit of death. So it was far more likely that the world collapsed on top of them all, before it came to that lonely point.

  'Essence around'... what a misleading way to think about the situation!

  While the sides - where they all stood - felt simply rich and deceptively calm, with no hummings in sight... up ahead there was a literal maelstrom of essence above and inside the chasm. Twirling bundles of deadly currents, so wild that the being doubted it could control them now, cut through it. Those floating rocks, now clearly visible, and just as clearly totally absurd, kept smacking against each other with the kind of strength that could pulverize a group of bisons in one hit.

  It was all so big and so bright, that the being could look down into the void and actually see what lay in wait. And when it did look...

  ...

  All in all, it would have been easier to jump one's way through back then, even in total blindness.

  Feeling vexed, the being leaned back entirely, resting its head against the bizarrely comfortable substance.

  This was one of the biggest of those crystalline growths around, those it had seen from afar its first time here. They were far and away the furthest jutting structures, so much so that if the being truly looked, it wouldn't be surprised to find one longer than the thing the little light had tried to build. Even this one was already close enough, if not entirely there. But what did it matter, even if it found one twice as long, or even trice, when far more than that would still not be enough?

  The being rolled onto its side and caressed the surface it laid on: a strange, mushy texture like nothing else. But it was pleasant.

  ... it should have just commanded the currents to carry its body past the chasm, when it could. It might even have made the trip alive!

  But it was useless to pine over what could have been, when there was nothing to learn from it. The being didn't have much time left, and it should rather think of an actionable solution.

  Feeding distractedly - though it didn't need to do so anymore, the activity was still pleasant - it rolled again to lay belly down, and pulled out a spike to doodle lazily.

  Maybe it could try to redo the little light's... thing? But no, there was no way to do that. The being wouldn't even know where to begin. It was better served looking for another crystalline outcropping.

  Or maybe it could try to find traces of the dark one and follow its path?

  One look over its shoulder at the horrible maelstrom of rock and death...

  Also a bad idea. The dark one must have its mysterious ways forward, unique to it. Or maybe it took advantage of the caged thingy that, for obvious reasons, the being couldn't use.

  ...

  Really? That was all? After all its focus and insistence on versatility, it couldn't come up with more than two pitiful ideas?

  No, that couldn't be it. Surely there was something...

  Maybe it could try to improve its grasp on the principle? Surely if it could manifest a whisper and do those same absurd things the knight could, that would make all the difference. And it had been one of its greatest objectives since forever, especially after the gift from the little light. This was even the perfect environment!

  However... since the little light had died, the spiral inside had become weak and sluggish.

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  Worst of all, as it had feared and a quick test had confirmed, its control over the essence was interfering. Almost like that stuff sweeping inside took every cranny, leaving no space for anything else.

  With time and calm, surely it could crack the riddle. But there was no time! It was imminent! The being needed a way past the chasm, and it needed one now! not to waste even more chasing almost-things!

  Once again, so close to a real improvement in many things, yet always the barest amount out of reach!

  In a fit of frustration, the being stopped doodling and slammed the spike in its hand hard into the ground, eliciting a puff of essence.

  ...

  ... What?

  That shouldn't happen should it?

  There was a whole lot of essence around now, yes, but only living creatures could...

  It took another look back over its shoulder, and realized that the edge was a bit further than it remembered. And the being was absolutely sure that it had not moved from its starting position. Not that much, at least. Which meant...

  Which meant that the crystalline structure was growing, and growing in the direction of the rift!

  One quick check with its newest powers- something that it absolutely should have done before climbing on top of this in hindsight, no matter how untouchable it felt - confirmed its suspicious: whatever this thing was exactly, it was more creature than rock. Which, in turn, meant...

  ...

  The being couldn't help but roll around in excitement and hug the ground in gratitude.

  This was probably a bad idea. A really bad idea. But it beat whatever absurdity it would come up with otherwise, hands down. The hummings would come back soon and get out of control in no time. The dark one might be fleeing to some unreachable place this very moment.

  Maybe it would be a huge downgrade in every area, and the being would first need to find a bigger, hopefully faster growing crystal. But it was either this, or wandering around lost.

  Also... once it was past, its strength could be easily recovered by transforming with the owl's gem, couldn't it?

  Feeling vindicated once again about the rightness of its passions, the being kicked up its legs and jumped upright in one fluid motion, raising its hand in triumph.

  It was always better to collect stuff and keep it around!

  The few creatures nearby made way as the being slowly sauntered over probably the biggest crystalline outcropping around the entire chasm. Much bigger than the little light's bridge, and growing fast enough that it might just achieve something before they all died. Still far its from the objective, but with the being's guidance...

  Alas, there was one small problem: even if this was not exactly a living creature, and it didn't think or feel or anything similar, so there should be no reason to feel bad, the being was still a peaceful thing at its core, and wouldn't ever attack unprovoked.

  If a creature did provoke it, on the other hand...

  It walked up to the very end and sat down, dangling its legs over the edge. It sure hoped no crystalline outcropping would poke it aggressively, while it enjoyed a nice view over the horrible chasm of painful death opening up everywhere beneath!

  ... Fortunately its legs were just gently pushed forward. Far from an attack.

  Next, it tried to gently tease the creature, using its control to guide its actions and prodding with a spike at a bulbous-

  A sharp rock erupted from the surface directly under the being's feet. Too slow and small to hurt a creature as dexterous and smart as it, but that could have seriously scraped one of the weaker ones around. This was a serious offense!

  And so it was that the strangest battle in its memory began, with the being plunging spikes down into the rock and doing absolutely no damage to the crystalline thing as a whole, while the latter reacted with its own spikes of rock at such a slow pace that it wouldn't have hurt even before it became the frog.

  Alas, after a few moments spent dancing like this, a tiny humming slipped in to remind that this was not the time to play around. So the being lay down and just forced its control onto the 'creature'.

  As expected, it had no singular gem, but rather a spread out collection of things that approximated one, which might have complicated things a little, for a lesser mind. The being, smart that it was, bypassed all that and simply grabbed for the thing's filaments directly and did what felt right.

  The tendrils entered its arms and quickly made their way deeper, offering possibilities that the being tried to guide along, to find a balance between its current form and the crystal. But it was hard.

  Its mind was suddenly so... sluggish. It had suspected that its mental faculties would take a... a plunge. But this was...

  This might have been a mistake…