Knowledge crowed in a misty voice, using the ancient signal to summon the other spirits. One by one they began to appear: Time, Space, Light, Darkness, Water, Fire, Earth, Growth, Emotion, Minerals, Weather, and Stone. The call was used only for severe emergencies, the kind that came every hundred centuries or so, but the spirits were always slow to arrive despite the urgent need. Finally Fate crawled out from her shadowy corner and dragged herself over to the clearing. The meeting could begin.
"I have come from . . . where I go during my time. . . . The Sacred Place," Knowledge began. "And I have sensed a presence . . . . what it is, I cannot tell, but it is strong. . . . Strong enough to defeat us as easily as Fate kills mortals. I predict that this . . . force will come in a decade or so. It is minimal time to prepare but we might be able to stop it while it is young. . . . Anything with that much power should not exist."
"Well, then why ever has it been created? Few spirits have been created that we have not needed. . . . And that was thousands of centuries ago. Growth and Fate should have learned by now," came Minerals's accusing voice.
"This wasn't of our doing! At least . . . not mine. I can only control when something is born, or created. . . . Not it's destiny. If there really is something that dangerous, I could have only created its weapons. But if it is like us, a spirit, it has no true form, and I can give it no weapons," Growth said.
"And I have not given any destiny for anything like that. . . . Why would I give anything such power?"
"I believe this . . . being is beyond anything of our control. We can only do so much. . . . But we have governed these places well for as long as any of us can remember. . . . I think we can overcome this." Despite his encouraging words, Knowledge was deeply worried. "But if we don't. . . . The world may end."
11 Years Later
"Finny! Are you okay?" An earthworm came crawling over as fast as he could to where a brown lump lay dry on the side of the road. "Finny!"
"I'm . . . I'm o-okay," Finny gasped, struggling back into the dirt. "Just . . . too much sun. I'll live."
"Too much sun?! Are you crazy?! ANY sun is practically lethal!"
Finny pulled herself up into a worm's best sitting position. "I'm not like most worms, Bea. I know that there's more to life than hiding underground. There's more to life than this."
"But not for US!"
"'Us' doesn't include me. . . . Let me try something. . . . To test my . . . potential." Finny slithered onto a rock and forced the sun's rays upon her. She felt a squirming sensation, and Bea gasped from below.
"Your colors. . . . You're rainbow."
"Am I? Good. I told you I wasn't normal. . . . But now for the real test." Finny summoned all her strength and fell writing to the ground in pain. But when the hit the ground, she wasn't a worm anymore--she was a blue-bird.