In the beginning, there was Man.

Then, came Fire. At first, Man regarded Fire cautiously, shying away from her because he was not accustomed to the bright lights, the heat, and the crackling sounds she produced. Man's eyes burned as he stared at Fire's beauty and she blinded him. He tried to reach out to touch her and feel her warmth, but Fire licked and bit at his fingers until he could feel no more. Soon, all Man could hear was the sharp cracks, which frightened him and sent him dashing away to a cold, dark place to nurse his eyes and hands.

Eventually, Man healed and he nearly forgot the pain Fire had caused him. He found himself gazing at Fire from afar, once again admiring her beauty. Day by day, Man moved ever slowly towards Fire, until at last they were reunited. Man forgave Fire and soon they lived together. Man learned how he could use Fire to do many things. It was then that Man invented the first weapon, by sharpening poles in her belly. Fire grew angry as Man continued using her without ever once thanking her for her help. Soon, Fire grew bitter.

Man was too involved with the creation of his weapons, his toys of destruction, to realize that Fire was once again preparing to turn on him. He continued to greedily use Fire for his own ends. She lost all her subtle beauty as Man engorged her, letting her smoke rise ever blacker and thicker. When Man finally realized that Fire was out of his control, it was already too late. She leapt at him, once again burning his flesh and blinding him with her light. Man shrieked in terror, cringing until the ordeal was over.

And, as suddenly as it had begun, it was done. Fire was dead.

Man buried Fire and soon forgot the feeling of her warmth, the joy of her glow, and the beautiful melody of sparks she sang to him.

Darkness arrived, and along with him came Cold.

Darkness blinded Man in a very different way than Fire had. Instead of the white flashes that had made him see streaks and spots that blocked his vision, Darkness just swallowed up everything until Man could no longer see anything at all. Darkness frightened Man and he ran, tripping, stumbling, and falling, trying to find a place he was safe from him. But Darkness penetrated every place Man tried to hide in.

Cold found him, as well, and in her whispering words told Man the story of how Darkness had once been married to Fire. She quietly asked Man if he could remember the shadows Fire had cast. She explained that Darkness had been there all along, and that he had been jealous of Man and Fire's infatuation with him. By mistreating and angering Fire, Man had, in turn, awakened Darkness' wrath. Man understood and apologized to Darkness, who subsided enough for Man to see once again.

Man could see that, like Fire, Cold was very beautiful. Her glistening curves and gentle white slopes intrigued Man, and he ventured out onto her landscape. However, he immediately felt Cold's sharp teeth as she bit him. She slapped his face and swallowed his feet into her drifts, confused him with her winds, and pierced him with daggers of ice. Man rued her treachery and swore his revenge. Cold screamed in his face, her words coming from all sides as the wind. Man slipped, lost his bearings, and lay there for a long time, until Cold began to calm down.

Sluggishly, her voice hushed and was reduced to the whisper that she had first spoken to Man with. Her ice melted and disappeared, and soon Man could see something he had never seen before. It was unusual in both colour and shape.

Man had discovered the first Plant.

Not long after, Plants began appearing everywhere Man looked. And where there were no Plants, there was Earth. The Plants whispered in tiny voices that reminded Man of Cold, and he regarded them warily. Earth was different. She spoke to Man kindly, assuring him that all was well. She told him that because he had survived the trials of Fire, Darkness, and Cold, that she would reward him with the company of Animals.

As the first Animals appeared, Man studied them and their habits. Once again Man became enchanted with the wonders of this new discovery, and forgot the pain of the past. He watched, mesmerized, as Animals began eating Plants. He shortly followed suit, and the Animals and Man lived in harmony.

Then, Man witnessed something he never could have dreamed. An Animal began eating other Animals. This was the first Carnivore, Wolf. Man was unafraid of Wolf, even though his coat was black as Darkness, his teeth were sharp as Cold, and his eyes glinted with the auburn of Fire's light. Wolf taught Man to hunt, to make a den, and to bathe in the newly created rivers that Cold had bled as she faded away.

It was then that Man finally began implementing the weapons he had made using Fire.

He carelessly trampled the Plants and slaughtered Animals in a horrendous misuse of Wolf's lessons. Earth grew irritated with Man, but decided that, instead of punishing him as the ones who had come before her had, she would overpower him. She made some of the Plants grow taller, stretching towards the Sun until they blocked it from view and called them Trees. She made Animals that were clever enough to outsmart Man, Fox and Coyote. She made Animals that were agile and quick enough to escape him, Squirrel and Cat. She made Animals strong enough to defeat him, Bear and Boar. She made Animals that he could hunt, Deer and Duck. She made Animals that would befriend Man, Dog and Hawk. Wolf remained as the wise Guardian of all creatures.

Earth had created the first Forest, and from that sprang the Jungle and Grasslands. Cold begged Earth for places she could own, and Earth granted her the Mountains and the Tundra. In homage to Fire, Earth created the Desert, and finally, she made a home for Darkness called a Cave. Earth created Animals and Plants to live in every place. Man was soon outnumbered and bewildered by the new arrivals.

Man became humbled and scratched out a meager existence in the Dust. However, as true to his nature, he moved on to digging in Dirt, then to molding Clay, and then, unexpectedly, he began carving Rock. Man made more tools from Rock, and worked on gradually larger Rocks. Eventually, Man created a Wall.

And from that Wall, Man created the Labyrinth.

He made Floors of Rock and more Walls, and sealed them together so that no Plants could speak to him anymore. Man smothered the Earth and buried her alive with Rocks. The walls made it difficult for Cold to enter, and only her fingers slowly crept in, the rest of her unforgiving body made to stand outside as she watched man build his greatest creation. Only Darkness was allowed inside, because the Rocks were reminiscent of his home, the Cave. Darkness was enraptured with Man's Labyrinth, and the two formed a delicate friendship.

Man built his house of Rock in the center of the Labyrinth. He lived in the house, mocking Cold, scorning Earth, conversing with Darkness, and secretly mourning Fire. The time had long passed that Animals spoke Man's language. They had begun speaking their own languages when Man had built his first Wall, and by this point, all Animals spoke different languages. Outside the Labyrinth, the wild Jungle and harsh Mountains had degraded to discourse and chaos. The Plants and Trees had simply gone silent, grieving for their mother Earth. Man had no knowledge of this, and Darkness did not feel the need to tell him.

Darkness and Man worked tirelessly within the Labyrinth to rebirth their lost beloved, Fire. Eventually, they succeeded. Man used Fire to create once again, but this time, he created torches and braziers to house her. Fire was delighted and danced joyfully and endlessly on, and Darkness danced with her.

Man had aged by this point, and had gained some wisdom. He set his mind to work and invented Mathematics and Writing. He studied and learned facts and figures, letters and sentences, until at last Man invented Time.

Time had not existed previously. Things just were. Time was an invention of Man, and it was invented for his convenience, and his alone. He took the science of Mathematics and warped it, until it gave birth to something new: The science of Mechanics. Man first used Mechanics to create Clocks and other timepieces. He created a great Calendar using his cogs and springs.

Soon, he created weapons. Fire saw him do this and tried to warn him. To her horror, she realized that Man could no longer hear her. Man had forgotten that he was not the only one who could talk, and because of that, he refused to hear any other voice besides his own. Darkness and Fire wept as Man was absorbed into the work of Mechanics.

Man had also forgotten his hard-earned friendship with Darkness, and made the decision to leave the safe haven of his Rock Labyrinth. He ventured out into the world outside, but found it far too wild and chaotic. He set out to find a remote place where he could play with his metal toys, and in doing so, created the first City.

Man's City was large, imposing, and metal. Once again, he crushed Earth under his boot heels as he built his Mechanical monstrosities taller. Everything in his City was run by his Clockwork and gears. There were large gears in the Sky, and they blocked the Sun's light from Man's view. He thought little of it, and just lit a large furnace in the center of the City. Fire and Darkness thrived alongside Man once more, or so they thought. Soon, they realized that they were simply his slaves.

By creating the City, Man had tamed Fire and softened Darkness.

Many of Man's imaginary "years" had passed, and he grew bored of the place he had created. He yearned for more. Man left his City to find something to do. That's when man finally noticed the Sky. He lay on his back and stared at it for hours, until he finally realized what he had left to do. And so, Man began building the Great Staircase to the Sky.

It took him decades, centuries, millennia even, but Man finally finished his Great Staircase. At the top, he found a Door. Without hesitating, he opened it and stepped over the threshold. Man fell through the Doorway and tumbled down a seemingly bottomless pit. He plummeted for as long a time as it had taken him to build the Staircase in the first place. But then, just when he had given up hope, Man saw something. He gratefully headed towards it, but by the time he had realized what it was he was seeing, it was far, far too late. Man met his Worst Fear at the bottom of the pit.

And thus, did Man play his part in creating Hell.