When the Sun blinked, Earth cried. Earth cried like she had never cried before. She cried because she feared for her life, and all the eons she spent fostering it. Without the sun, all her life would surely be lost. No meteorite, nor extraterrestrial life, nor anthropogenic pollution could cause the damage that the somnolence of the Sun begot on Earth's lives. Though it was only a blink, and not the deep sleep that's promised billions of years from now, Earth cried, and not one of those angry apes would have guessed that this was the way their reign was going to end.
In her Crying, Earth weeped so wholly that every tear stored in her atmosphere fell to her face. Every cumulus and stratus seen across her skies began to pour. From what seemed even to be blue skies, rain began to pour. Though there was no gentle snow or rough hail at all, each of the seven continents felt an even shower of rain. Every inch of Earth's face was wetted by her tears.
In her Crying, Earth wailed so terribly that every bird and insect feared to take flight. Her gusts shook every leaf and bit at every unsheltered animal. She shrieked with miserable force such that hurricanes and tornadoes had formed unsparingly across her body. Earth's pain was heard by all more loudly than most cared to listen.
In her Crying, Earth shook so violently that she upset every pore and scar on her skin. Her trees shook, her volcanoes erupted, and her humans screamed. The Mariana grew twice its size and the Grand was half filled in with dirt. Nearly every geological facet on her skin was changed in some way. Earth is unrecognizable now compared to how she once stood.
When Earth's sadness began, some thought of it as a blessed event. Of course, this may be because not everyone followed the news. Some people could not be bothered by others' troubles, or by their floods, hurricanes and avalanches. For some, it had been months since they had seen rain fall, and the quakes soothed their bones as they slept. The same can't be said for most, of course.
Ash was lucky in this regard.
The Crying started while Ash was asleep. They were awakened that day by a tremor. It was the first day in weeks that they didn't oversleep, and they felt refreshed. Ash felt refreshed not only because they had slept for a normal amount of time, but because the first thing they heard as they awoke was the rhythmic pitter patter of rain on their window. Ash loves the rain.
Rainy weather is the only time they have an excuse to wear their favorite coat and go outside. Ash likes going outside, but it's also hard for them to do anything without a reason, and rain is always a reason for them to go outside. Ash likes the way rain feels on their hair, and the way that it seems like there is no one else around, because everyone is hiding away where it's dry and warm. And so, in Earth's lament, Ash decides to take a walk. Where else to walk, Ash expects, but to visit their favorite Tree.
Ash puts on their full-length trench coat with stylish zippers that don't zip, ties their best walking shoes to their feet, and leaves through the front door of their house. When passing through a local park, Ash sits on a shaded bench and listens to the rain and wind for a while. It is inspiring to behold such a great sorrow, Ash thinks to themselves, and they cry silently for another while.
Ash continues their journey until they begin to feel pangs in their knees and ankles, at which point they rest against a nearby shaded rock to help warm their joints. They love the rain, but spending too much time in the brisk winds always brings great pains and aches. Two hours have passed by the time they reach the Tree beside the blessed roadside, and they immediately forget all their troubles.
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"Ash," says the tree, "I've been expecting you. It is so nice to see you on this miserable day."
"O, beautiful Tree," Ash replies, "how majestic you are in the rain. The wind compliments your vibrant leaves in the most dazzling ways. So fulfilling it is to witness you in all your greatness. And what a great day it is."
"How can you say such a thing? This day cannot be worse. Can you not tell how much pain Gaia is suffering today?"
"I do know how horribly she is suffering, but this is no new pain. Earth has been haunted by this pain for nearly a century. It's only natural that she releases her pain in such a violent way. But this is no time to lament. It is not too late to heal our Mother, and reverse the suffering that people have inflicted on her."
The tree, shocked, replied thus to the human, "You speak of such great deeds, but how selfish you live your life. Let us consider the lives you've taken even just to make the trek here. The worm who took this wet weather as an opportunity to find a mate on the surface, and was pressed to death under your weight and is to never love again. And, think for a moment of the ladybug who will forever be doomed to never see the smile of her gentlemanbug again, for no greater reason than you deciding to rest against a rock.
"What right do you have over their lives? You, who would not swat even a mosquito. You, who cries when hearing the crunch of a snail's shell in the dark. Why should your ambition be allowed when you cannot see the harm you do before your very eyes.
"Your ambition is greater than your vision. So much greater that you are wholly unaware of the harm you regularly cause. You claim you want to save the world, you want all living things to live in harmony, to have peace between themselves. Who's going to save us from you, and your reckless abandon? How far will you stride before the price outweighs the prize?"
Without a moment's pause, Ash retorts with a fiery anger, "What of you? You who can't so much as get a drink of water yourself. You would die of dehydration in a week if it weren't for my people! What of you? A coward, who wouldn't even lower a branch an inch for better sun, for fear of changing path of the ants who love to journey across and eat your leaves. How would these ants bring you the nutrients that you need under your roots if not from the roadkill that my people supply you?"
"It's your people who wish to uproot me! Do you not see this paint sprayed on my bark? I am marked for death- this truly must be my end! What justice is there in that?"
"Don't be so melodramatic, they're just trimming your branches. You know how bad mistletoe spreads around here."
Ash pauses for a moment, listening to the rain fall onto the leaves of their favorite Tree and watching as they shuffle softly in the wind. "Moving forward... Living..." they begin, "It will always be a tragedy, but I can't stop trying now. I'm always going to keep trying, even if I know it's not what you wanted for me."
A frog croaks nearby and Ash watches it jump between puddles. "When your leaves fell, no one recognized me. I thought I was left alone in that flame."
Ash looks up at the sky and notices as it turns a darker shade of gray. "I won't forget what you taught me, all those nights I cried into your roots. You kept me alive longer than anyone thought I would last. I am eternally grateful for that, but I can't live with your apathy anymore."
Ash turned, left, and never turned back.
Earth cried for many weeks. By the time her tears dried up, it was too late for more than half the human population. This was when volcanic ash started to fall as Earth slipped into a deep depression. Ash had to leave their home when it was returned to being a wetland. They never saw their favorite Tree again, but they know that he lived.
