With the pod put safely back in storage, Flash went for a walk. He felt that he needed to clear his head.
He was very fond of the mother ship, which had carried him so far, and through situations that he thought would be the end of him. It was now an empty vessel, devoid of personal belongings, and he had no plan to return to it again. Why would he? There was nowhere he wanted to go. He didn’t remember where the ship came from. Deep inside, he remembered. The way an adult remembers their first step. It’s in there, and began a lifelong journey of steps, like the ones Flash took now. His inner child walked with him, remembering only the cave, and then waking up to spectacular colors and fresh air that surrounded and filled him. Flash’s prehistory was preserved, rather cryptically, on the cave walls. The drawings and paintings withstood time, and the destruction of the planet. There was no urgency to revisit them or understand them. They were safe, and they just were. This moment was all there was. This was the only moment that existed anywhere. It was not the most important, it was all. Flash kept walking. Not to get anywhere, but just to be. He kept putting one foot in front of the other, aware of the beauty beneath him. A patch of diamonds reflected the universe back to him through their facets. Another step, and those joyous lights were replaced by others. He would never see them in the same way again. It wasn’t sad that the diamonds gave way to garnets, and garnets to rubies. They came in and went out of his field of vision the way the sumptuous air entered and exited his lungs. Their only purpose was this moment.
With a clear head, Flash came face to face with a sheer cliff that rose abruptly from the flat ground. He turned to see that he was not alone. The black and white whale calf hung silently in the air.
Tears welled up from deep in his core, and streamed down his cheeks. He was not sad. Not afraid. He was just here in this moment. The calf nuzzled Flash’s shoulder, almost knocking him to the ground. Instinctively, he reached up and scratched the whale’s face. He had thought he was alone. This playful presence reminded him that he was part of it all. He was one spark reflected by a diamond amidst a sea of jewels, his only purpose to shine that sliver of light for a brief moment, whether or not anyone saw it.
Flash found himself at the base of a steep blue cliff, the top of which was the cobalt plateau. He saw no way to climb it, so he turned around and headed back across the plain. He remembered the day he floated up into the sky. It took no effort at all. Once again, he stretched his arms out, closed his eyes, and tilted his head back. The light was bright red through his closed lids, and hot on his skin. He wasn’t trying to fly, or levitate, he was just recalling that feeling on that extraordinary day, while fully experiencing this one. A feeling of gratitude filled him, and it felt almost like floating. Floating high above the painting of his life, and the cast of characters that assisted and accompanied him along the way. The view was incredible, even though his eyes were closed. To one side, he could see the wooly mammoth and saber toothed tiger, surrounded by a ring of giant mammoths who waved lettuce leaves from the ends of their dancing prehensile trunks. Off to the side of them, the mer creature also waved vegetation up to him, gazing up through huge, unblinking eyes. Next to him, an enormous octopus unfurled its tentacles. Whales swam through his field of vision, blocking his view from time to time. An enormous yellow whale passed by, and in its wake, Flash could see still more friends gathering and waving up to him. Archy grinned and patted his suit, and was engulfed in a cloud of dust. The king and queen were there. Aino and Jewely unfurled their wings and rose up from the plain along with a flock of robins and Bucket, who cradled the sphere inside him. Another whale slid into view with Mad and Luuu on its back, laughing and waving. Flash‘s parents and brothers were there, smiling. The shepherd of the stars also looked up, squinting in the bright light. Many others were visible, completing the picture of his life. He carried them all inside of him. His heart seemed to swell and he realized that every one of them was indispensable in getting him here now. He felt like his heart would burst. Placing his hand upon his chest, he felt the child he had been, and still was.
He had been walking with his eyes closed for some time. He felt the firm, flat crystal surface beneath his feet.
When he opened his eyes again, he saw a landscape far below him. The view was one of floating, but he felt a solid surface beneath him. He had found the invisible bridge. He was not afraid, yet he had a decision to make. No, he didn’t. Like he had done in the cave, he just kept walking straight ahead.


Even here, he was not alone.

The black and white whale calf with migrating spots accompanied him silently, and Flash was glad for the company. When, at last, he reached the other side, he stepped back onto visible ground, and the baby whale, playful as ever, did an arial somersault. Flash laughed, and asked What should we do now?