Awesome Land VI: Dawn of a New Era

[Monika]

Darkness. Absolute darkness. A dark room in a dark palace on a dark island. It was from here that Santiago Oscura, the Ninja King, watched the inaugural events in Awesome Land on his scrying orb. "So, they’ve finally gotten a new emperor, have they?" He chuckled dryly, lifting himself from his dark throne. "And this one seems intent on restoring the country to peace...I don’t buy it. Amelia!" he called out into the darkness. "Amelia!"

"I’m right here, Father." The voice of what could only be an exasperated teenage girl made itself known from the darkness. "Right in front of you."

"Nice try, Amelia, but I saw and heard you walk in. You entered the room at a volume of approximately 0.0001 decibels at a velocity of 16.3 gigaverals per second." Santiago glared at his daughter disapprovingly, and although she could not see his eyes, she could feel the stare sending shivers down her spine. "You will have to do much better if you ever hope to become a Ninja Grandmaster."

"Hmph." Amelia scowled back at her father but, unable to see if it had the desired effect, she gave up after a few seconds. "Whatever. Did you call me in here to berate me for my stealth skills, or did you actually need me for something?"

"I’m giving you an assignment," he answered. "Are you familiar with the country of Awesome Land?" It was a rhetorical question; every member of the Ninja Royal Family was expected to be knowledgeable about all nations on Earth, plus several on other planets.

"Ugh, duh." She rolled her eyes and huffed. "Awesome Land was a series of loosely connected villages until their unification by Leon Veralice. He ruled as emperor for almost a decade before being dethroned in a war, younger sister took over, had another war, six months and three days of peace, blah blah blah."

Santiago frowned. "And are you aware that they now have a new ruler? Emperor Awesome, as he is called."

"What?!" Amelia shouted incredulously. "That wasn’t in the history book! When did that happen?"

"Approximately two minutes ago."

"And just how was I supposed to know that, Father? Something that literally just happened?” she whined.

"Do not make excuses for your failings, Amelia," Santiago warned. "I will not tolerate it. In any case, the goal of Emperor Awesome is to restore peace to the country, but I do not trust him to do it. Awesome Land has been at the center of one disaster or another for thousands of years. This most recent fiasco involving the Black Nova threatened not only their country, but the entire universe. The Senate and I have determined that we can no longer leave the country to its own devices, regardless of what this new Emperor of theirs claims he will do."

"Uh-huh. That’s great and everything, but what do you want me to do about it, huh?"

"If the Emperor is as proactive as he made himself seem in his speech, then he will be looking for new employees to help run the empire. You are to infiltrate the country, become his new Chancellor, and ensure that no more world-ending shenanigans occur."

"Whaaaat?!" Amelia took her best guess at where her father was and managed to grab his shoulders. Shaking him furiously, she yelled, "You can’t be serious! You’re kicking me out of the country?! Whyyyyy!?"

"Let go of me, Amelia," Santiago demanded. His command went unheeded as his daughter moved in closer, burying her face in his chest. "I am not 'kicking you out'. Did I not just say that this is an assignment?" He sighed, awkwardly patting her on the head in a half-hearted attempt to reassure her.

"Don’t lie to me!" she screeched, her voice unpleasantly loud, even through her father’s shirt. "You’re sending me away forever on this impossible mission! You want me gone so that James can take over as the next Ninja King unopposed!" With a last sniff, she pulled herself away from her father and accusingly pointed in his general direction. "It's because he has the eyes, isn’t it? He gets to be Ninja King because he has the eyes and I don’t!"

"Amelia, you know that’s-"

“Oh, I know alright, Father," she spat. "But it doesn’t matter. I’ll do this assignment for you, just like the good little daughter I am. Where’s the light?"

"A ninja should be able to see through darkness," came Santiago’s reply.

"See, perhaps, but get dressed? They don't teach that in even the highest level hensōjutsu class. You should get the curriculum changed at the Central Ninjaversity System."

With what may have been a groan of annoyance, the lights in the room finally came on, illuminating it enough to reveal...barely anything. At one end of the room there was a large golden throne, presumably where Santiago was sitting. Or had been sitting moments ago, anyway. At the other end of the room was a large mirror placed next to a single entrance. The most 'decorative' thing about the room was the set of beige tatami mats neatly arranged on the floor.

Casually approaching the mirror, Amelia stared at her reflection intensely. "Straight black hair, black eyes, flat chest, traditional ninja garb made from knitted darkness...Hmm. Can’t go infiltrating anywhere looking like this." She cocked her head to the side, examining her reflection from every angle imaginable. "Chancellor, Chancellor...That's like an office job, right?” she asked. "So, I should probably have...blond hair." She ran a few fingers through her hair and smiled as its color shifted at her touch. "And it should be tied in a bun." And so she tied her hair into a bun. "And I need blue eyes, too!" She closed her eyes for a few moments, opening them to reveal their new sparkling blue color. "Office job means a suit jacket and skirt, probably black, some heels, some red lipstick, and a little chest enhancement!" In a matter of seconds, Amelia looked exactly like a typical businesswoman and was almost unrecognizable. "Hmm...Not quite done yet. I need...a pair of glasses!" With a snap of her fingers, a pair of stylish spectacles appeared on her face, completing the disguise. "So?" She turned to the seemingly empty chair at the other end of the room. "How do I look?"

"Like a female corporate executive," Santiago replied. "I assume that's what you were going for."

"That’s right!" Amelia beamed. "I’m a shoo-in for this new Chancellor position. You just wait, Old Man! When I become Chancellor, and their new ruler dies or quits or suffers the horrible fate that they all do, I'll be crowned as the next Empress of Awesome Land! One way or another, I’m going to have my own country. And then-" She slid her finger across her throat. "-I’m coming after you!"

"You do that," Santiago yawned. He received these types of threats from his daughter on a regular basis, so they had lost any actual meaning. "Good luck."

"Won't need it!" With that, she spun on her heel and made her way to the door.

"Hold it, Amelia. Aren’t you forgetting something?"

"Ugh!" She turned back around and knelt in front of the apparently-empty throne. Whether you were a caretaker at his garden or a member of his family, if you met with the Ninja King, you were obligated to end the meeting by reciting the official Shadow Land motto. Bowing her head and crossing her right arm over her chest, she grudgingly said the words, "To hide in the shadows, even where there are none. That is the way of the ninja."

"Very well. You are dismissed."

"I better be," she muttered. With an over-the-top sigh, she made her way back toward the entrance, but not before leaving Santiago with a farewell message. "Mark my words, Father," she growled. "Your days are numbered." And she was gone.
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At the conclusion of his speech, Emperor Awesome had all of the Guardians escort the populace back to their respective districts. One Guardian in particular, however, lingered around outside the tower, hesitantly placing his fist over the massive doors.

"If you're going to come up, Alastor," Emperor Awesome called from above, "then come up. There is work to be done, and I cannot have my first day on the job marred by your dawdling."

"R-right," Alastor mumbled. "Sorry." The doors opened of their own accord with a loud creaking noise. Alastor stepped inside and approached the elevator, making the agonizingly long journey to the top of the Second Imperial Tower.

When the Guardian made it to the balcony, Emperor Awesome did not turn to him. His eyes were instead fixed upon the empire, examining every inch of it. A preliminary assessment of just how much damage control he had to do. After a few minutes of tense silence, the emperor spoke. "You are actually just the person I wanted to see, Alastor."

"A-am I?" Alastor froze, not sure what to make of the statement.

"Yes. Under Aurora's rule, you were the Guardian tasked with the development of technology, correct?"

"Yes, sir," Alastor tentatively answered. "Generators using Power Crystal technology, robotic armor, and, um, the superweapon that destroyed Super Land are some of my inventions." He coughed nervously.

"Good. Then I have two tasks for you. The first is the development of a robotic army. The war six months ago took out a significant number of our troops, and much of our current forces have been replaced by the minions of the Immortal of Darkness, who has been relieved of his position as Minister of Homeland Security."

Alastor let out a sigh of relief.

"I imagine that he has already found out about the news, so his minions no longer hold any allegiance to our nation. Not that they ever did." After a few moments of silence, Emperor Awesome said, "The second task you are being charged with is the development of a space program."

"A...space program, sir?"

"Yes. The Black Nova disaster has made me realize just how ill-prepared we are to deal with extraterrestrial threats. If we are to take a more proactive approach to the defense of this country, then we will need a space program."

"Well, while I would love to help, sir, aerospace engineering is not my-"

"I don't care," Emperor Awesome growled. "Get it done. The last thing Aurora did as Grand Imperatrix was grant asylum to a bunch of space ninja. Ask them for help if you need to. They should be around here in Dynasty City."

Alastor nodded. "Speaking of Aurora, sir, that's actually why I stayed around here after everyone left. I was, ah, wondering if we could maybe...form a search party for her?"

The emperor's response was swift and curt. "Absolutely not."

It went about as well as Alastor had anticipated. "Well, may I ask why not, sir?"

"Step into my office, Alastor." Emperor Awesome walked past Alastor into his personal quarters, the Guardian hesitantly following. Pointing to his desk, upon which stood hundreds of thousands of papers, Emperor Awesome asked, "Do you know what those are?" He didn't wait for a response. "Our country's financial reports. I'll spare you the arduous task of reading them and instead summarize their contents: We're almost bankrupt. We are spending more money than we're bringing in. The previous two predecessors had rather strict border control, so we have no tourism revenue. Almost all of the businesses belong to the empire, so no one here is concerned with making the best products or services. Exportation earns us nothing. Half of the revenue we do earn is apparently still being sent to Leon for 'severance fees' or some such nonsense. I just told you that we hardly have any troops to spare, and you want me to spend our limited resources on a search party!?"

"Well, Emperor Awesome, it would be a volunteer search party. I could-"

"NO!" The emperor brandished his scepter and forcefully tapped Alastor on the chest. "Aurora made her decision to leave the empire. You, and anyone else for that matter, are forbidden from searching for her. Now, get to work, Alastor. Robots and space program."

"Understood, sir." Alastor sighed and, with a final bow, stepped back onto the tower elevator. Before the doors closed, he offered a piece of advice. "Even if you do not look for Aurora, you would do well to learn from her." The emperor scowled at him, but he continued. "She recognized the importance of having a solid team and a trusted advisor. You will send yourself to an early grave if you try to do all of that-" he pointed at the paperwork on Emperor Awesome's desk. "-or all of this-" He spread his arms out to indicate the entirety of the empire. "-on your own." The elevator doors closed, and Alastor descended to the bottom floor.

"Hmph." Emperor Awesome mulled over Alastor's words as he sat down at his desk and stared at the ever-growing mountain of financial reports, damage reports, contracts, and other paperwork pertinent to the administration of an empire of Awesome Land's size. "Perhaps another person is what I need. Someone who is to me as I was to Aurora..."
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As Alastor stepped outside of the Second Imperial Tower, all too eager to be away from it, he noticed a young, smartly dressed blonde woman who seemed to be of the opposite mindset. The woman was walking unnaturally quickly and gracefully toward him considering she was in a pair of high heels.

"Hey, you're Alastor, right? One of the Guardians around here?" she asked.

"Ah, y-yes," he stammered, caught off guard. He spent most of his time in the laboratory so, Guardian or not, it was strange for him to be addressed by name. "How do you-"

"That's the Second Imperial Tower, right?" She pointed toward the massive building that stood just a few yards away. "Emperor in there?"

"Yes, he-"

"Is he hiring right now?"

"Well, he might be, but-"

"Alright! Thanks much!" Just as quickly as she appeared did she move toward the tower. Before entering, she waved at Alastor and said, "My name's Emily, by the way! If I get the job, maybe I'll see you around sometime, k?" Then she disappeared.

"Um...Good luck?" Alastor replied, though she was already gone by the time he managed to formulate the reply. "I...I don't even..." He sighed. "Time to get to work."

[Monika]

"And so, it is said that in times of great strife and turmoil, Seraphina showed herself to her people and guided them to prosperity." A bald, wizened old man snapped a large tome shut and stepped down from his podium. "That concludes today's sermon. Any questions?"

The people who sat in the pews before him - all six of them - shifted uncomfortably in their seats.

The old man gave a long, drawn out sigh. It had been getting worse and worse every day. Membership at the Church of Awesome, of which he was the leader, had been steadily decreasing for several years now, but recent events saw the membership plummet to all-time lows. As far as attendance was concerned, today was actually a good day for them.

One woman in the pews tentatively raised her hand. "Reverend Archibald," she said. "If Seraphina is supposed to reveal herself to her followers, why has she not done so yet? I've come to church three times a week for the past decade and always study the scriptures, but I've never seen her."

"Good question, Ms. Gordon!" Pleased to have some actual interaction, Archibald jumped back up to his podium and opened the book again. "If you will refer to the Book of Estia, Chapter 5, Verse 3: Cities grew and kingdoms flourished, and as the people prospered they lost sight of their goddess. But those who faced great trials had their eyes opened and saw Seraphina, and she bestowed upon them great wealth, and the people in their cities and kingdoms grew envious."

"Hah!" Another person in the audience, an older gentleman, stood up and pointed at Archibald. "Great trials, huh? Just how 'great' do these trials have to be? You know, my entire neighborhood was burned down during that festival Aurora threw. All I have left are the clothes on my back. I just barely escaped with my life!" he shouted.

"Some weren't even that lucky!" An older woman spoke up. Tears rolled down her face as she choked out the next few words "I lost all three of my children when she set the city on fire! All of them!" She was bawling now, and hid her face in the shoulder of the man sitting next to her.

"Mr. Greyham, Mrs. Dylan, I am deeply sorry for both of your losses. Truly I am," Archibald rasped. "But please, you have to understand! As long as you keep the faith-"

"Keep the faith? Are you fizzing serious?" The man who was serving as Mrs. Dylan's pillow shot the reverend a terrifying look. "People are dying and losing their families! Our own empress quit because she realized how much of a hopeless crapsack this place is! And you want us to keep the faith? I'm starting to think that this whole religion is a bunch of nonsense! That this Seraphina doesn't even exist!"

The other members of the audience all murmured in agreement, but Archibald was quick in his attempts to allay their concerns. "I assure you, Seraphina does exist! She fashioned this world and everything in it with her own two hands. She is very, very real!"

"Well if she is," the man growled, "and she allows this stuff to happen to us, then she's a goddess I don't want to worship."

Everyone in the pews clapped enthusiastically, their applause surprisingly loud since there were only six of them. When the clapping died down, the man stood up and walked out of the chapel, the other five attendants following behind him.

"Uuugggggghhhh..." Archibald sprawled out on the church floor and stared up at the ceiling. "It's hopeless. Sooooo hooooopeleeeess. Faith is at a record low. No one believes anymore."

A girl dressed in a long white dress (who had been quietly sitting in a seat behind the large pipe organ in the back of the chapel, obscured from view) walked over to the reverend and lightly kicked him. "Oh, don't be so dramatic, Grampa Archie. Here, come on." She offered her hand to the old man, who reluctantly took it and stood up. "You've just got to keep the faith, right? They'll come around, as long as you believe."

Archibald gave the girl a doubtful look. "I don't know, Arabella. I just don't know." He sighed. "How do you do it? Stay around here, tending to your priestess duties, when everyone around you has given up on Seraphina?"

"Well, being a barista at Omnistar Coffee doesn't pay all that well, so I kind of need to keep my job here. I'll stick around as long as it pays the bills." She gave him a warm smile, but he didn't seem all that comforted by the response. "It was a joke, Gramps. Come on!" Arabella dragged him over to the altar and dropped to her knees. "Wasn't it you who taught me that 'when the times become their darkest, that is when you pray the hardest'?" Archibald nodded weakly and got down on his knees as well. "So, are you gonna lead the prayer, or should I?"

"Ah, I am too weak, Arabella. Start us off, please."

"Alright!" Arabella bowed her head, closed her eyes, clasped her hands tightly and said, "Dear Heavenly Mother, the people of Awesome Land have begun to lose their faith. They begin to question your existence and question our religion. Times are tough for all of us here and many of them have lost all they hold dear, so I understand their doubt, and I hope that you understand as well. I ask that you not only forgive them, Seraphina, but also help lead them to the right path. If you are up there listening, and I know you are, please show us a sign so that we may restore the faith throughout our great nation."

When Arabella and Archibald both opened their eyes and lifted their heads, they were just a tad bit shocked to find a man clad in a shining white gown descend through the roof and onto the altar.

"A touching prayer," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Um...Who are you?" Arabella asked. Archibald's mouth opened as if he wanted to ask the same thing, but no sound came out.

"My name is Antitheon," the man answered. "And I am an angel."

[Calefrun]

As the crowd gathered around the Second Imperial Tower was being dispersed, one woman stayed where she was. Leaning with her back against a wall, she stood with her arms folded and her eyes fixated on the spot where the new emperor had stood while delivering his speech minutes earlier. She wore a black jacket with a hood that obscured most of her face, though the parts that were visible gave her the appearance of a woman in her early twenties. In truth, she had recently turned thirty, but certain magic prevented her body from aging as quickly as that of a normal human.

This woman, whose name was Kayla Efrun, smirked and muttered, "No more magic or threats to the populace? Either Emperor Awesome has forgotten what nation he just became ruler of, or he thinks extremely highly of his own abilities. Still, this makes my job a little more... difficult. Guess I'd better go ahead and start sniffing around the city." She closed her eyes and concentrated, focusing on detecting any technomagic in the nearby area. This was less of a spell than an innate ability she possessed, so she probably didn't need to worry about the new Emperor coming after her with a Scroll of Science. Probably.

Not having had any luck finding what she was looking for (not that she was expecting to; it was never that easy), she decided that it was time to move on. She jammed her hands into her pockets, walked away from the wall, and rejoined the crowd that was still shuffling away from the tower.

[Mizagium]

Rick Thunder

A sharp screech split the land as an actual, honest-to-Seraphina pterodactyl flew over the land. Not a pseudo-dragon-capital-P-Pterodactly, but a real, dinosaur-pterodactyl. This one couldn’t talk, not to most people, but seated atop its scaly form was the only man who could. The dinosaur’s name was Petra, and the man was known far and…narrow as…

Rick Thunder. The Dinomancer!

“This looks like a good place,” Rick observed, flicking an unlit cigarette into the air. “This is where I will carve a new legend into the bones of history.” He stood and popped his collar. “Or whatever, man. Stay in the air, Petra, I might need you later!”

And with that, he swan-dove into the best night of your life – until he slammed into an invisible barrier in the air. Petra screeched something far off, but Rick didn’t have time to react. The barrier, in addition to invisible, was slick, like soapy tile, and he slid down. Alllllll the way down, landing on his rump on the outside of Awesome Land, beyond the magical barrier.

“Man, no glass bubble is going to keep me from my legend!” He snapped his sunglasses off, whipped his jacket off and proceeded to street fight the barrier.


The Mambutoo O'Malleys

Sarah Mambutoo O’Malley clenched her eyes shut, drowning out “A Political History of Really Cool Land, 27th Edition Twice Revised Volume 4” with soothing darkness. She marked the page with a scrap of paper (no dog-earring for her) and stepped away from the chest-high pile of hardbound books whose dust jackets had disappeared ages ago. The world beyond the tall windows of the Royal Library had acquired a smooth orange glow.

She could not help but grin. An entire day had come and gone without any craziness. Nothing had blown up. Or been stabbed. Or stab-sploded. She had spent the day reading alone. Sure, it was all history and politics, but it had been happily done.

Her stomach gurgled. She hadn’t eaten all day. Content with her progress, she navigated the labyrinthine library rows to the unassuming wooden door, one of many like it along the corridor that ran the length of the palace. The Thundercougarfalconbirds would leave the stacks of books as she had left them, as per her instructions. When she had first begun her self-taught lessons, the ninjas had cleaned up after her, causing her to spend most of the next day relocating her books. Now they had reached an understanding. As long as she didn’t make too much of a mess, they would leave her books alone, which was why she no longer brought food into the library.

The way her footsteps echoed reminded her of how empty the palace had been recently. With her parents off on a diplomatic envoy, and Johnny and Cassandra on their respective…whatever, it really had just been her holding down the fort, until Aunt Julia, but even then Sarah’s studies kept her apart.

“Maybe I should go on my own adventure,” she thought aloud. “It’s been a while since I left this place, really. I could get Knox to go with me.” That made her grin and giggle. Her and Knox off on their own for who knows how long…And he could just do his time warp thing and make it so it seems like they never left.

She was in the middle of planning what kind of adventure they would have when she stepped into the parlor—and noticed a small gathering of people she couldn’t immediately recognize. Well, not exactly. Her parents became visible, quickly, waving sheepishly. Other faces crystallized. Nobles. Diplomats. Foreign ambassadors.

Oh no. This was a party. She was still wearing her lounge clothes, surrounded by others dressed in furs, fabrics, and silks so expensive that, all combined, could fund a small city-state. For a long second, everyone eyed her curiously—and then she was being spirited away, Aunt Julia’s firm hands guiding her up the stairs.

“My apologies, dear,” she spoke in low, apologetic tones. “The party just kind of happened. I was going to get you a little later; you usually read longer.”

“Thank you,” Sarah replied, once she regained her senses. They were at her room.

“Now go on, my dear. Go change into something fabulous and make those stuffy old fools feel, well, foolish for snickering.”

“They were snickering?” she blanched.

“Go on.” Julia shoved her inside and pulled the door.

Once inside, Sarah began sifting dejectedly through her wardrobe. She really only had a few outfits now that Stella had torn (literally) through her closet recently. And even those outfits consisted chiefly of what she would consider ‘lazy clothes’. Luckily, she did manage to locate something suitable, an elegant ball gown, done in the colors of Really Cool Land: gold and green. Julia was waiting for her when she reappeared.

“Marvelous,” she beamed.

The gathered dignitaries were all waiting with applause for the princess to make her official entrance to the party. Her previous embarrassment forgotten, Sarah descended the stairs as gracefully as she was able and joined her parents’ side. Francine gave her a quick, tight hug.

“Good to see you again, Sarah.”

“Hey, mom. How was the trip?”

“Oh, just wonderful. It’s a wonder more people don’t go to Incrediland.”

“Yeah.” Sarah snatched a glass of champagne from a waiter. “Where is that located, again?”

“Oh, it’s just south of…” Sarah didn’t catch the end of her mother’s description as she mumbled into her own glass. Sarah started to say something when she spied someone else, someone she hadn’t expected to see.

“Johnny!” There he was, looking a bit embarrassed in a simple tuxedo. Everyone first turned to see Sarah, then Johnny, affording them the full view of the princess hiking up her dress to dash across the room and embrace him. “Where have you been, idiot?”

He pulled away and shrugged. “Oh you know. Around.”

“You aren’t shifting,” she noticed. “You look like you again.”

“I feel like me again.” Then he frowned and said, “Have you seen Cassandra yet?”

She knew that was coming. “No, I…yes?” She’d happened to glance out at the balcony in time to see a spacefold open up and two women step out. They spoke briefly, laughed, and one hopped back into the fold, which closed up. The other turned and she saw who it was. “Go on, Johnny. She’s waiting.”

So he went. Sarah sighed and drifted back into the party, nibbling on finger food and sipping champagne, casting furtive glances outside at Johnny and Cassandra until they moved out of sight. Eventually her feet began to hurt, so she found a couch to recline on in a very un-princess-like fashion, but no one seemed to notice.

“I must say, I’m a bit disappointed.” King Randolph seemed to appear at her side, despite his girth. “The palace is in one piece, we’re not at war, and there’s no giant monster rampaging through the countryside.” He fixed a light smile. “Who are you and what have you done with my daughter?”

Sarah laughed a little. “You’d be surprised. We had a concert earlier.”

“Who?”

“No idea. Two guys who wandered in. Oh, and I killed a guy,” she added with a sip. “Totally unrelated.”

“Uh huh. In any case, that seems more like you.” He sniggered and munched on a quiche. “You know, you’re looking more and more like your mother every day. When I think of you, I still imagine the impulsive girl who like to run through the woods with Johnny and Cassy.”

“Dad…”

“No, no. I don’t plan on crying right now. But I mean…gah, I really am terrible at this, but—you’re going to a fine queen one day.” He squeezed her shoulder and smiled down at her.

“Thanks, dad.” She put a hand on his. “I think I’m starting to get the hang of actually being a princess.”

“In your own time,” he soothed. “Your mother didn’t take to it until, well, I don’t suppose she ever really did.”

“Really?”

“Oh, she was always better at talking to people than I was—still is—but all the formalities she was never a fan of. But she learned how to fake it,” he conceded. “And now she’s better at it than I am.”

“So there’s hope for me, yet,” Sarah quipped.

“More than that, I think.”

-

Meanwhile, on the balcony…

“Hey,” Johnny said quietly.

“Hey,” Cassandra replied.

“So uh. We’re back.”

“Yep.” They both leaned against the balcony railing, the distance between them feeling wider than the ocean. “Look, Johnny I – “

“I’m sorry, Cassy.” He looked at her straight on. “Really. I was a jerk and – “

“Johnny.”

“ – I was just all confused because of my shifting thing and – “

“Johnny.”

“ – Look, it’s no excuse but – “

“Johnny!” He stopped talking suddenly to find she had turned to face him as well, a serious frown upon her face. “I don’t think this is going to work anymore.”

He blinked a few times, no comprehending. “What…what’s not?”

“This.” She indicated the space between them. “Us. I just…I don’t think I can do it anymore, Johnny. I’m sorry.” She seemed to start saying something else, gave and turned to go, but he caught her arm.

“Please don’t go…”

-

Down on the palace grounds…

Two tall, regal women strode across the damp lawn, shoes having long been abandoned. One carried two pair, one in each hand, swinging slowly as she went. The other carried a glass with an amber-colored drink and moved a little less steadily.

“Are you sure about this?” The one with the shoes, Francine Mambutoo O’Malley, asked cautiously.

“Gotta do it, Franny.” Julia Wankershim sipped her drink. Her distinct Southern accent had slipped, revealing to be a construction, and not her true voice. “Gotta do it.”

They walked in silence in the darkness until they arrived at the royal cemetery. Generations of the royal family passed by their feet, whispering softly at the edge of consciousness. Finally they arrived at the most recent section, which contained only three grave markers. Two they ignored, and the third they stopped in front of. Geraldine Wankershim.

“Hello, mother,” Julia spat, slipping back into her accent. “Though you’d hang on until I returned. Guess you weren’t as strong as I thought.”

“Julie…”

“Hush, Frannie. I need this.” She started to drink again, stopped. “No, mother, I didn’t find her. I didn’t find your precious favorite daughter. I told you, didn’t I? Allie ran off with that fool boy Karzem and she wasn’t coming back and she wouldn’t be found unless she wanted to.” She swirled her glass around in her hand before asking of her sister, “What did she say?”

“Julie, I don’t think…”

“What. Did. She. Say.”

“She asked about Allie and if she was coming back.”

Julia considered that for a moment, then splashed her drink over the headstone and stalked away., leaving Francine in the night.

-

Somewhere close by, a young boy with black hair and a bow from the future covered the last bit of distance to the Really Cool Land Royal Palace. Excitement washed over him and he briefly lost control. Not a lot, but enough that he lost altitude and crashed onto the very same balcony that Johnny and Cassandra were about to have a serious relationship talk.

Xeltyr Mambutoo O’Malley grinned like a fool as he picked himself up off the floor. “Oh, uh. Hey mom and dad. Fancy meeting you here.”

Johnny and Cassandra shared a look.

The Monstrosity

Captain Uggo absently kept the wheel steady and surveyed his new crew. Three German pirates. A smattering of Octopi (and a mech) and a good bit of freed slaves. Not a bad crew, he mused, especially one for finding the legendary lost treasure of Space Rodger, the greatest Space Pirate in all of Space.

“Aye, crew, set sail for…er…that way!” He pointed vaguely to the left and the ship’s AI responded placidly, listing lazily to the left. “Our first clue lies in the nest solar system on the planet Boundless!”

The Council

Knox cleared his throat in the awkward silence that followed Artemis’ announcement. “Ah, Artemis, perhaps you shouldn’t, ah…just suddenly…”

“Which one is Zais?” Ollie asked. A handful of Immortals pointed at him. “Ah ok. Darkness right? Guess I’ll oppose him, being light and all.” She hopped up onto the table and made a finger-gun with light gathering for a blast.

The Immortal of Air jumped up beside her, readying his bow. “I’m Katniss!” he declared.

But their shots impacted a solid, invisible wall as Gallen Kah said. “Aren’t we acting a bit hastily? Has anyone simply tried asking Zais to knock it off?”

Karzem snickered.

“Well?” he asked again. “Have we?”

[Myrdraxxis]

"Not even once." Zais declared happily. The declaration from Artemis hadn't seemed to effect the Immortal in any way, in fact, he was reclining back in his chair, feet propped up. "To be honest I'm a little surprised that its taking this long for someone to step up to oppose me."

He paused. "I mean, there was the Time Keeper, but he's dead now." Zais waved his hand absently.

"Let's not do anything hasty." Roewk stood, his voice tense. "There is no need for violence."

"That's what it usually boils down to Woody." Zais replied with a chuckle. Roewk shot the other Immortal a glare. Noores was still bobbing his head to the music only he could hear, apparently not paying attention. Yet when Roewk looked closer he noticed that his companion's eyes were intense, scanning the room. Noores was ready for anything it seemed.

"Friends, consider for a moment." Roewk continued. "Noores and I have just come from investigating a matter that could have far reaching consequences if we displace the balance of Darkness-"

He was interrupted by Zais snorting and sitting up in his chair. "No, no, I'm curious." He looked directly at Artemis. "Just what do you think you could possibly do to me, hmm?"



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Leske wasn't having a very good day. He hadn't even meant to end up in this mad-house of a country. Hell, he hadn't even meant to end up on this planet. Yet somehow here he was.

Not for the first time he cursed his diminished abilities.

Leske was mulling around in the crowds of people still mostly gathered around the Tower, where Awesome Land's newest ruler had made his announcement. A part of Leske was curious about what drove Emperor Awesome to ban all unregulated magic, but mostly he just wanted to get the hell out of here.

When he'd first begun venturing out across the multiverse on his own, Magnus had pulled him aside and given him some pointers.

'One: Always act like you know what you're doing. Makes the locals easier to deal with.

Two: Don't lick door-knobs. It's illegal on other planets.

Three: Keep a journal or something. Keeping track of time and space in your head will drive you bonkers

Four: If you ever come across a kid who calls himself Izzy, turn around and run.

Five: If you ever find yourself in a place called Awesome Land, leave. Just leave. Don't talk to anyone. Don't touch anything. It's probably best if you don't think too loudly either.

Well here he was. It certainly took a while to find this place. Leske had started believing that Magnus just made the place up to screw with him.

So far he wasn't too impressed. Or concerned. It looked like a harmless enough country. The locals seemed dumb as rocks though. He couldn't leave, anyway. Not yet. He might have missed the planet he was trying to get to, but if his scans were right, he was still in the right dimension. Just...the wrong world.

"Progress, I suppose." He mused out loud. Leske looked at the sky and scanned again, the biometric computers in his eyes glowing green.


"Yep. Need to go to space." 

Does this place even have a space program? 

He supposed he could just try world-jumping again, and hoping that  he got closer this time. But that last jump had drained him, and his CPU was still a bit messed up from it. The electronics in his head always got a bit wonky when he tried using magic. Yet another drawback. A familiar sense of frustration and anger boiled up inside him, but Leske pushed it back down with well practiced discipline. 


Soon. If everything worked out like he was hoping, soon he wouldn't have to put up with this existence any longer. 

"You're glaring at the sky, you know." a cheerful, female voice said in his ear. Leske didn't react, just sighed and glanced away. "Just saying~ Makes you look kinda crazy." 

And then there was the voice in his head. 

Hopefully he could get rid of that too. 

"Now that's just mean." the voice, somehow, pouted.

"Not that I don't appreciate your company, Codex" Leske muttered quietly, "But sharing my skull with you isn't exactly the highlight of my week."

"Well having to stuff myself into all this tech isn't my idea of fun either, you know. This processing system barely works with my aetheric interface."

"Won't be for much longer." Leske promised. "We just need to get to Dosari."  
 

[Sariel of Tevet]

Heimrall took out her headphones and draped them over the back of her neck and sat forward.

"For one thing, I could always just take more nudes of you and put them on the awesome-net again. You know how powerful that thing is. It basically IS darkness."

She sat back and slouched down into her chair, relaxed, and proud of her outburst, but then sprung back up to add an aside.

"Oh! So. This one time. I liked this boy named Malcolm. And. So Becky, my BFFFFFFFF, liked him too. But. Like. Only because I liked him first. And so. Malcolm never got my note that I tried passing him in class one day because that douchebag teacher Mr. Branstein saw it and took it up, but like, he didn't see the one that Becks had passed to Malcolm, because Suzie was in charge of it and she's a super good note passer. She's super sneaky. Like, this one time in art class. They have these long tables with like backs on them so you can't see under them from the front of class. And like...she was dating this boy Dylan, and so one day in class she totes had her hands under the table with him an.......ok so anyway. Like. Becks. And Malcolm. Like Malcolm got her note first and the bitch starts dating Malcolm even though I liked him first! And My mom told me. That, I shouldn't let it ruin a friendship. Because it was just a phase. And so. She stopped liking Malcolm after fourth block the next week, and then I totally got to date Malcolm. So like, maybe you are just going through a phase or something? And you can like...stop being evil now."

She went to sit back down into her seat, but raised by up and became very serious.

"But, if your phase, includes stealing Malcolm from me. I. Will. Fucking. Cut you, bitch. And then put more nudes of you on the awesome-net. K?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rustling of sails against the wind comforted Captain Albert Alexander. It had been quite a long time since he had been at sea, and watching his sails sway back and forth as The Sea Slater pushed a path through the ground outside the city helped him dream of the sea again, his one true love. He close his eyes at the helm and began to dream of his mistress. His wispy mustache began to straighten out, enticed by the waves in his mind.

His dream, however was soon interrupted as The Sea Slater breached itself into some sort of invisible dome. The vessel shook and his land sea legs kept him balanced enough not to fall over from waking.

"My words!"

The captain stroked his mustache ends, both of them simultaneously, and they curled back out again.

"It seems like some sort of...invisible glacier? No matter!"

He pulled a decaying walrus tusk from his navy coat and tapped it against the barrier. He tried to press his hand against the wall, but it phased straight through. Captain Albert Alexander chuckled a nautical laugh to himself.

"That never gets old. Good thing that walrus taught me how to get through the arctic glaciers."

The traveling barber shop quartet, emerged from below deck after being shaken up from the crash.

There once was a wall
The Captain stood tall
He phased the barrier and sailed through

The minstrels looked up and saw a man and his dinosaur, fist fighting the barrier.

A man he soon spied
Who had a dinosaur by
And helped the duo get through.

Captain Albert Alexander shook his head.

"You know you four aren't supposed to sing about things that haven't happened yet! Ah, but I supposed by now you know me too well."

He walked back to the helm and called out to the two outside of his ship.

"Ahoy, laddy! You two climb aboard, I'll be heading into the city now."

[Calefrun]

As Kayla continued to wade through the crowd, she suddenly began to sense something. Two somethings, actually. Neither was what she was looking for, yet they both seemed incredibly familiar.

"What the hell?" One of the auras was very close to her current position, so she decided to investigate that one first. She forced her way across the street, gently pushing aside everyone that was in her way. It wasn't until she was almost upon the blonde-bearded man that she finally saw him. "Master Leske?!?" Even though she had stopped being his apprentice years ago, Kayla had never really stopped thinking of Leske as her master. He was, after all, the one who had taught her just about everything she knew about exploring the multiverse. Getting closer, she could see that he was wearing his typical grey long-coat.

"It is you! It's been what, five years since I last saw you? What brings you to Awesome Land, Master?" While waiting for a response, she concentrated on locating the other aura she had detected, but could no longer sense it. Strange... she thought, who could that have been? Or... what?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Aboard the Monstrosity, Albert Kluge gave the Captain a nervous look. "Is there somewhere near Boundless where we could get Gabe some medical attention? I'm not sure how long he'll last in his current condition."

[Monika]

Amelia walked up to the doors of the Second Imperial Tower and gently knocked. Surprisingly, the doors yielded to her touch, like they were inviting her inside. Cautiously, she stepped inside. The first floor of the tower seemed to be some sort of theater, with a stage at the far end, seats arranged in front of it, and differently colored popped balloons strewn about haphazardly.

"Looks like someone had a party in here," Amelia noted. "And it was quite some time ago. Hope I don't get stuck on clean-up duty."

"No, that's my job..." A middle-aged woman dressed in a Victorian era maid outfit approached Amelia and extended her hand. "Name's Leslie. I'm one of the servants here."

"Emily." Amelia returned the handshake. "Emily Robertson."

"Nice to meet ya, Emily." Leslie rubbed her head sheepishly, laughing. "You kind of caught me at a bad time. That mess has been here since some balloon dragon thing they had for the festival a while back. It's my job to clean up, but I figured I could take a break while Aurora was away." She sighed. "Ah, but now that we have a new emperor, break's over. Fun while it lasted, though. Oh, but I'm guessing you came here on some business matters? You are wearing that suit and glasses, after all!" She gave a deep, hearty chuckle, highly amused by this 'joke' of hers. "How can I help ya?"

"Could you escort me to the emperor, please?" Amelia asked. "I would like to apply for a job here."

In an instant, the wide grin on Leslie's face was turned upside-down. She frowned at Amelia, not out of anger but out of confusion. "You seem like a bright enough girl, what with the glasses and suit and all, so you must be new around here, Emily. That's the only possible explanation. I don't know what kind of image Awesome Land is showing through the media, but..." She leaned in uncomfortably close to Emily and whispered in her ear. "It's a terrible, terrible place to be. Monsters and wars and superpowered freaks traveling in and out on a daily basis." She moved away from Amelia and bowed her head. "I even lost 6 maid friends to Crider's pet Kraken, rest their souls." With another heavy sigh, she motioned her right hand over her chest in an X-shape, the symbol of Seraphina.

"I am deeply sorry for your loss," Amelia replied, "but I believe that I am capable of handling myself."

Just as quickly as her happy, upbeat demeanor change into a sorrowful one did it revert back. "Bwahahahahaha! I like you, kid! Got a lot of moxie! Follow me." Leslie led Amelia into one of the elevators and pressed a few buttons, taking the two of them all the way up to the throne room.

"Emperor Awesome, we've got a new job seeker!" Leslie guided Amelia up to Emperor Awesome's desk, where he was furiously scribbling on various sheets of paper, stacking them in a basket on the floor when he had finished writing. After a few seconds of not being acknowledged, Leslie bowed to the emperor, and then turned to Amelia, shrugging her shoulders. "Good luck, Emily. If you get the job, last longer than my friends, will ya?"

Amelia nodded and watched as Leslie disappeared back into the elevator, and she briefly wondered if her father had sent her on a suicide mission.

After a few more minutes of writing on papers, during which he barely made a dent in the monumental stack on his desk, Emperor Awesome gently pushed them to the side so he could clearly see the girl in front of him. "So, you want a job. Is this correct?"

"Correct, Your Majesty," Amelia replied.

Emperor Awesome waved his hand dismissively. "'Emperor' will do, thank you. What kind of job are you looking for?"

"Something in the vein of personal assistant." Amelia reached inside her suit jacket and removed a folded up sheet of paper. She unfolded it neatly, making it look like it had never been folded at all, and handed it to the emperor. "The transition stage for any ruler is always difficult, so I thought you might need an assistant to help you through it. As you can see on my résumé, I'm more than qualified for the job." She moved over to Emperor Awesome's side and pointed out various notes and bullet points on the paper. "I'm highly motivated and driven, very organized, fluent in four languages including legalese, skilled negotiator and diplomat..."

Emperor Awesome stared at the paper for a while before muttering, "It's completely creaseless."

Amelia beamed, never having been complimented on her folding skills before. "And a master of origami, too! So, what do you say? Can Emily Robertson be of service to you, Emperor Awesome?"

"Can you fight?" he asked.

"What?" The question had caught her off guard. Amelia had prepared almost everything she needed for this constructed persona of hers, except for an answer to that particular question. She could fight, of course, being a trained ninja master, but how much of that training could she reveal without blowing her cover?

"I will not lie to you, Ms. Robertson." Emperor Awesome took a closer look at the resume before saying, "It says here that you are from Incrediland. I do not know what happens there on a daily basis, but I can tell you with absolute certainty that the goings-on here in Awesome Land are much, much more ridiculous. As someone who would be my assistant, you would need to know how to handle yourself in battle. There is a one hundred percent chance that you will end up fighting someone during your tenure, and there is a very real risk of death for all employees of the empire. I need to know if you are okay with this."

"Hmm..." Amelia pursed her lips in concentration, thinking carefully about how to answer. "Well, I'm familiar with a couple martial arts styles, and I know my way around some throwing weapons. Buuut, with my stellar diplomacy skills, I should be able to defuse any situation before it escalates to that point!"

"Hah. Well said, Ms. Robertson." Emperor Awesome opened up his desk drawer, pulled out a golden Awesome Land badge, and tossed it to Amelia.

"Shiny," she remarked, pinning it to her jacket.

"That badge will allow you free passage through the barrier that surrounds the country, as well as allow you to communicate with me at any time. Just click it twice and you should be able to send me a message."

"Awesome. So, when do I start?"

"Immediately." The emperor removed something else from his drawer. This time it was a handful of small, laminated pieces of paper with fancily written text on them. Handing them to Amelia, he explained, "One of the first things any ruler must do is introduce himself to his neighbors. Those are invitations to dinner here at the tower. As your first mission, I would like you to give those to the King and Queen of Really Cool Land, as well as to the prince, princess, and other members of their family."

"Roger that!" Amelia eagerly stuffed the invitations inside her suit. "I'll have these invitations delivered in no time!"

"See to it that you do. When you return, we can discuss your salary and next mission."

"I won't let you down!" She gave the emperor a salute and bounced over to the elevator. She was just about to press the buttons and descend to the bottom floor when Emperor Awesome called out to her.

"Wait! I have one more request for you."

"Sure thing, Boss. What can I do?"

"I recently instated a country-wide ban on magic. I can't fault my employees for using it as long as its usage relates to their jobs, of course, but if you see anyone else using any strange, unnatural abilities...or if you see anyone who even looks strange, let me know, please."

Amelia nodded. "Got it! All weirdos will be reported to you upon sight!"

"Excellent. You may take your leave now."

And so, Amelia let the elevator doors close as she was zipped down to the bottom floor. When the doors opened again, she saw Leslie halfheartedly sweeping a pile of deflated balloons into a dustpan.

Leslie flashed a huge grin and looked at Amelia expectantly. "So, did you get the job?"

"Sure did! You're looking at Emperor Awesome's new personal assistant!"

"Bwahahahahaha!" Leslie let her broom fall to the floor as she rushed over to Amelia, embracing her tightly. "Good luck, Emily. You sure are gonna need it!"

With those reassuring words, Amelia was released from the embrace and gave the maid a wave goodbye. Once she had exited the tower, she ninja-dashed her way through the streets and all the way to the end of Awesome Land that connected to Really Cool Land, noticing a couple people who would probably fit Emperor Awesome's definition of 'strange'. One didn't seem too strange. A relatively normal sailor, perhaps, except for the fact that he was being followed around by a barber shop quartet. The other was a tad bit out of the ordinary, apparently hellbent on punching through the invisible barrier surrounding the country.

"Um..." She considered asking what the two were doing, but instead decided to carry out her mission exactly as the emperor requested. She clicked her badge two times and spoke into it. "Emperor Awesome? Hey, it's Emily."

"Oh dear." Amelia was greeted by a heavy sigh. "Please, Ms. Robertson. Tell me that you haven't already run into trouble."

"No, no. It's nothing like that. It's just, um, there are two people who are apparently trying to get through the barrier. Near the border to Really Cool Land. One of them's got a ship."

For a brief while, no sound came from Amelia's badge, and she was concerned that it might have broken. After an awkward silence, however, finally came a response. "Get out of the area, Ms. Robertson," Emperor Awesome said. There was a slight hint of direness in his tone. "Quickly. Continue your first mission."

"Understood!" And so Amelia continued ninja-dashing her way to Really Cool Land, slightly annoyed that she wasn't going to see how Emperor Awesome was going to react to the invaders.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And apparently, he was going to react very violently. Emperor Awesome ascended to the observatory of the Second Imperial Tower and looked through the telescope labeled 'Really Cool Land'. Sure enough, he saw the two people Amelia had described, both of them close to breaking through the barrier.

"Absolutely not. I will not allow this. Not on my first day as the emperor." Emperor Awesome lifted his scepter into the air and shouted, "All threats to us, both inside and outside of the empire, shall be destroyed without hesitation. That is what I said, and that is what shall be done!"

Back at the border, the invisible barrier manifested two massive invisible arms and viciously smacked Rick Thunder and Captain Albert Alexander.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"And so I saw him dancing outside in a burger costume and said 'I can't just let him throw his life away for a dead end gig like this!' And so I approached him and offered him a job at the empire." Leon didn't mind being so rudely ignored by Sarah, as the moment she had departed, a dozen other women in sparkling jewelry and fancy dresses had shown up in her stead. Never one to miss out on a party, he had magicked himself into his finest suit and taken the opportunity to chat up the guests.

"Oh, you're sooooo generous, Leon," one of the women said sultrily. The other women giggled in agreement.

"Oh, you flatter me, ladies. But just imagine my surprise when I found out that he was actually the Prince of Really Cool Land in disguise! I was shocked, and felt kind of betrayed, too!" Leon hung his head down in mock sorrow.

"You must have felt so embarrassed!" One of the ladies consolingly caressed him on the back.

"That prince is just no good!" another chimed in. "Always going across the land on these silly adventures, poorly representing the royal family..."

A third woman rushed into the room from outside. "Oh my goodness! I was just eavesdropping on the prince from the balcony, and he was talking to that girl of his - what's her name? - well, anyway, some boy just crashed onto the balcony and called them 'mom' and 'dad'! Can you believe it?"

"Disgraceful." All of the women shook their head in distaste. "The two have a child and they're not even married! Hmph."

"Now, now, ladies. Johnny has his flaws but-" Leon was about to defend his BFF when he was interrupted by a vibrating from his pants. "Excuse me for a moment. I have to take this." Stepping out of the room, he took a smartphone-like device out of his pocket, watching amusedly as it spat out a few sheets of notebook paper. "Ha, no one has sent me a dimension fax in years. Let's see what we've got here..." He took the papers in his hands and quickly scanned the contents. "From Sarina. Northyros...Death mammoths...mansions...Random World...Hmm." With a smile, Leon shoved the phone and papers into his pocket and went back into the room with all the ladies, resuming conversation as if he had never left.

Meanwhile, Amelia had made it to the main entrance of the palace. "49.6 seconds. Not a bad time since I'm wearing heels," she said. She noticed that there were quite a number of people hanging around the palace grounds and going inside. All of them were dressed in rather extravagant clothing. "Well...Looks like I've accidentally crashed a party. All these people around are going to make it hard to find the king and queen." She shrugged. "Ah, well. Can't find them if I don't start looking." And so she began wandering around, looking for any sign of the royal family.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Artemis shot the Immortal of Order a fierce look, her expression saying something along the lines of 'Fool. I have already assessed the probability of success of simply asking Zais to stop. Don't you think I would have tried it if it were a valid option?' Looks can say a lot of words. Turning back to Zais, she calmly stated, "The plan is simple. First, we dismantle all of the forces you have across the various dimensions. I will have no trouble finding them using my power over Space. Then, we find a suitable candidate for your position. One who is not criminally insane. Knox has already done well in guiding the spirit of Light to its new bearer." She pointed at Ollie. "I do not doubt that we should be able to do the same for Darkness. Finally, we kill you."

Scern laughed nervously. In the short time he had known Artemis, he noticed that she was never one to beat around the bush, but this level of directness surprised him. "Well, I'm in. I'll do whatever I need to stay on the Council."

Galro did not respond, preoccupied with wondering whether the Immortal of Fire had any fluids to drink.

"Galro?" Scern asked, waving his hand in front of Galro's face.

"Hmm?" The Immortal of Water blinked a few times before saying, "Yeah, sure. Kill Zais. Whatever." He stood up from the table and walked toward the library's exit. "I'll be back," he muttered. "I'm thirsty."

[Myrdraxxis]

"Well you certainly have thought this through haven't you?" Zais chuckled again. It was starting to creep Roewk out how at ease the Immortal of Darkness was considering that Artemis was talking (rather bluntly) about killing him. And had apparently roped two other Immortals into it. "I have to ask, is this revenge for killing your little friend?" Zais raised an eyebrow at Artemis. "Or is it because you're the new Emperor's pet Immortal?"

If Zais was trying to defend himself here, Roewk wasn't seeing it.

"So I have to ask, Artemis." Zais folded his arms behind his head. "You can sense where my orces are, but so what? What makes you think you can do anything about it?"


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The sudden sound of someone calling his name snapped Leske out of his thoughts instantly. There were only two people who called him 'master'. And he hadn't seen either of them in a very long time. Something akin to joy welled up inside him. He turned to see a woman running up to him.

For a minute he was shocked that she looked barely different from when he'd seen her last. A bit older, but still young-looking. 'It hasn't been very long since she saw me last.' he realized. "Kayla!" Leske smiled (for what felt like the first time in a long time). "It's been..." she said five years didn't she? It had certainly been longer than that for Leske. At least a century. "A long time." he finished. Maybe he'd find a way to break it to her later.

"Fancy meeting you here. What are the odds we'd both end up here at the same time?" He frowned and looked around. "And where's Cale?" Without his sister around to reign him in, the boy could be...trouble.

[Mizagium]

Rick Thunder

Rick Thunder took the barrier-slaps on the chin LIKE A REAL MAN and rolled with the punches. And by that, I mean he literally rolled. He even launched himself into the air and spun sideways. "Not cool, bro," he said as he got to his feet and dusted himself off. Not a single speck of dust dared to stain his perfectly bleach-white T-shirt. Thinking quickly, Rick lit a cigarette and spent a few moment arranging it in just the right position of coolness before dodge-rolling towards his folded leather jacket. When he got back to his feet in the same roll, he was wearing said jacket - and also his sunglasses again.

Evading the barrier hands, he wall-ran up the barrier and DID A BACKFLIP, lading aboard the Sea Slater, right nest to Captain Albert Alexander, looking as if he he hadn't just DONE A BACKFLIP. "So, what are you like some kind of cereal mascot or something?"

The Mambutoo O'Malleys

"Hey, mom and dad."

Johnny and Cassandra reacted about as well as they could have in that moment. Despite being faced with their future-baby after almost breaking up, considering the kinds of adventures they'd had in the last year or so, this barely registered as mildly interesting. Cassandra put her face in her hands and tried to steady her breathing while Johnny crossed his arms and sized up his future-son.

"So. Time travel?"

"Ah, yeah." Xeltyr grinned sheepishly as he picked himself up.

"Apocalyptic future?"

"Why else would I come back?" The face he made said he was uncomfortable answering the question.

"A good question." Johnny instinctively reached for one of his myriad powers, specifically that of Time, and let whatever time-sense he had developed wrap around Xeltyr. Ever since fully awakening to his powers, the energies and uses had some more than naturally to him. Of course he could try to detect temporal-displacement particles from someone who had time traveled. Why shouldn't he? There wasn't a good answer to that question. Whatever it was he sought, he didn't find. He couldn't read Xelytr. Whatever future, whenever future, he had come from...he couldn't tell.

Before he could press the issue, Cassandra spoke up. "So...son, right? Are you...are you sure?"

Looking more than a little hurt, he said, "Of course. You gave me your bow." He thrust his bow forward. Cassandra's mouth dropped and a hand went automatically to her own. Even Johnny could see that they were exactly the same. Suddenly, Xeltyr rushed forward and threw his arms around his mother. To both her and Johnny's surprise, she returned the embrace, more than a little confused. Happy. But...confused.

"What...are you doing here?"

"What is going on here?" Sarah and Randolph Mambutoo O'Malley appeared suddenly on the balcony, looking worriedly from Johnny to Cassandra to the teen boy she was hugging.

"Aunt Sarah!" Xeltyr broke away from Cassandra to beam at his aunt. "Where's uncle Knox?"

Sarah turned beet red while her father, brother, and potential future sister-in-law all started snickering. "Nope. I'm out." She threw up her hands and walked back inside, possibly looking for Leon.

"Johnny," his father said slowly. "What IS going on here?"

"Apparently," Johnny said with a shrug. "This is my and Cassandra's son from the future."

"Uh huh." Randoph stroked his chin. "I believe you, mind. I would just very much like to hear this entire tale before I go and get your mother...and grandmother." He grinned again. "Well. I'm a grandfather. You know, I had always thought you'd be the first one to give us grandkids. Not meaning any offense, but you two always were a bit..."

"Dad!" Johnny was red now, too. Cassandra had buried her head in her hands again.

"Reckless, is all I meant."

Before anyone could speak again, something shot past them all and smashed into the floor near Cassandra's feet, throwing up bits of marble and raising a small cloud of dust. Johnny had two swords in hand before he even realized he had reached for the Infinite Sword Plain: Enumasam and Flamberge, a katana of darkness and a wavy blade of fire. Cassandra recovered and readied her bow, summoning light arrows.

"Sorry no sorry!" A male voice shouted. "I'm only after him!" Something else zoomed towards them, this one bigger and well, a person. He slammed into Xeltyr and they toppled off the balcony into the hedge maze below.

"Why do we have a hedge maze?" Johnny deadpanned.

Randolph shrugged. "I read it in a book once."

The Monstrosity

Uggo considered the young man with a wry twist of his mouth - not that anyone could see it. "Oh, I suppose. Station Granbelle is at one of the Langrangian points around Boundless. We'll stop there and resupply with food and whatnot. Drop off passengers who don't want to be here any longer and all that."

He adjusted the course for Granbelle station. The ship entered hyperwarpspace, which manifested as a pretty rainbow display around them. "We'll just be another ten minutes or so. Make sure he doesn't die on my deck. I just had it waxed."


The Council

Knox felt a strange conflict of emotions. One the one hand, he completely agreed with everything Artemis had said, from the empire dismantling to the...well, not the murder exactly;he supposed it would be more of an execution than anything, but still...

"I'll agree to that," Vespi declared. "I want him out of Random...Brave New World. He marched in there and just took an entire continent not too long ago. It's a wonder, too. He picked a dimension that nullifies at least 40% of our abilities. If not for that, I imagine he would have taken the entire world."

Gallen Kah spoke. "I must confess, he's also stirred up trouble in Cardinalos, a world that has traditionally been my domain. While it hasn't progressed quite so far, I have heard tell that he's engrained himself deep with Northyric politics."

Ollie continued to make finger-guns at Zais, but didn't shoot anything.

Karzem remained silent, tapping a finger on the edge of his throne/chair thoughtfully. Was this it? Was this the watershed moment he'd been dreading for so long? The Immortals had always been a disorganized lot, with their towers and schemes across the universe. But now. If the Immortal of Darkness wasn't about to get away with imperialism, how long until they turned their sights on him and his? His plans weren't coming together like they should have by now. Only three of the Keystones were located. And sitting directly across the table from him, sat his opposite, the Immortal of Order.

He had to agree with the man. Zais' imperialism threatened his own. He had considered an alliance long before, but...Chaos doesn't play well with others. Opposing an action he himself committed wasn't what caused his conflict. What unsettled him was that, for the first time he could remember, he couldn't predict how events were going to play out.

Best to side with the majority then...or say nothing at all.

"Well..." Knox said slowly. "Thirteen Immortals against one, Zais. No matter how powerful you are...I can't imagine being able to defend against all of us."

Karzem raised an eyebrow. He had always taken the new Time Keeper for a coward, but this...was this a declaration?

"Looks like," Karzem said airily. "You're outvoted, Zais."

[Monika]

"An...angel?" The power of speech had finally returned to Archibald, and he gave Antitheon the most incredulous look he could muster. "I've been studying the scriptures for over half a century, and never have they ever mentioned angels!"

"I dunno, Gramps," Arabella said, staring up at the so-called angel in awe and admiration. "He did appear at the end of our prayer. And look at him. He's beautiful! He's practically glowing!" She pointed out the dim blue light that surrounded Antitheon. "I've read about angels in other religions, and if anyone were to look like one, it's him."

"Bah, you teenage girls. Just the other day when that Zayden fellow came to visit, people were calling him an angel too!" Archibald frowned at his apprentice, silently wondering whether hiring a teenager as a priestess was a good idea.

"I'm just saying, Grampa, that he descended through the roof onto our altar right as we asked for a sign. Maybe we shouldn't be so quick to discredit him." She looked over to the old man, who showed no signs of accepting the idea, and suggested, "Well, maybe we should give him a chance to prove his claim, since you're not willing to take him on faith." She hung on the last word for a moment, causing Archibald's frown to deepen.

Antitheon's mouth curled into an almost unnoticeable smile. "Oh, I do not mind demonstrating my angelic powers to either of you. Tell me, Arabella, what do you think an angel should do?"

"Oh!" Arabella blushed slightly; hearing her name come out of the mouth of a purported angel was deeply satisfying. "Well, um, you already know my name without anyone telling it to you, so that's a start."

"Mother gifted me with the power of Knowledge," Antitheon answered.

"Bunch of parlor tricks, probably. Must've looked at your name tag."

"My priestess uniform doesn't have a name tag, Gramps." Arabella rolled her eyes and addressed Antitheon again. "Well, I guess an angel would...bring people to salvation, maybe? Fight demons? Spread the message of Seraphina?"

Antitheon flinched. "Please, do not say Mother's name out loud. If you must refer to Her, say 'Her Divinity' or something similar," he lightly chided. "But if those are the standards of proof I must meet for you to accept me as an angel, then I shall be happy to oblige. Negation: Darkness." The aura around Antitheon shifted from pale blue to a dark purple. "Each of you, grab an end of my sleeves. Please do so gently."

Arabella delicately grabbed the sleeve on Antitheon's right side and, after much hesitation, Archibald acquiesced and did the same on the left. A minuscule ring of light appeared at the top of Antitheon's head, followed by a slightly larger one around his head. More and more rings appeared around the trio, each one larger than the previous, until their entire torso's were surrounded by a hemisphere of light. Then the effect repeated itself in the opposite direction, with the rings of light becoming progressively smaller, until finally they were covered by a complete sphere of bright light. The sphere exploded, scattering beams of light everywhere, revealing that the three were no longer standing in the chapel...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Clyde sat in the center of his permanent home, the Fallen Paradise. Of course, there wasn't anything paradisal about it. It was a massive, inescapable hole in the ground with one method of access (teleportation) and two denizens (himself and Carter). The sadness of Clyde's predicament was not lost on him. He was a giant masked demon forever bound to the hell he had created. Sometimes he tried to make the most of his situation by playing games with Carter, and occasionally he got the odd visitor, but neither of those things happened today. Instead, Clyde stared dejectedly at a television screen chained to the wall, one of the few fixtures he had in the place. The TV kept him informed of matters related to Super Land, his birthplace, but oftentimes the news just added to his depression.

"Ah," Clyde sighed. "It's nice to see Super Land back in the skies after all this time. But it is an empty feeling, you know?" He was talking to Carter, or at least at him, but did not turn to address him directly. "My home is back where it belongs, but I can't go back there. And even if I could, there's nothing waiting for me. Raphael finally succumbed to those injuries he sustained fighting off the Wind Orb thieves, and all my friends and family died when the country crashed into Awesome Land." He sighed again, this time more loudly. "This loneliness...It's just the worst."

"Perhaps, then, you should turn to the goddess for help." The rays of light that had scattered from the chapel concatenated into a sphere in the middle of the Fallen Paradise before disappearing and revealing Antitheon, Arabella, and Archibald.

"What in blue blazes?" Archibald squinted when he appeared in the realm, struggling to adjust his eyes to the Paradise's trademark inverted light.

"That was awesome! I've never teleported before! But...where are we?" Arabella asked, looking around the area and pausing when her eyes fell upon Clyde. Her mouth opened to say something, but all she could utter was a slight shriek.

"This is the Fallen Paradise, young lady." Clyde's attention had finally been pulled from the television. "It isn't too often we get visitors here. But now it's my turn to ask the questions. Who are you?"

Being the only one not affected by the Fallen Paradise or the demon that resided there, Antitheon was the one to answer. "I am Antitheon, an angel sent by the goddess to spread Her word. These two are members of the church whom I have brought with me so that they may witness the work of an angel firsthand."

"Riiiiight." Clyde regarded Antitheon curiously. He didn't look too different from an ordinary human. He was floating above the ground instead of standing, but Clyde had seen beings with far more ridiculous powers in his day. "Well, I suppose the next logical question is why are you here?"

"Did I not already tell you? I am spreading my Mother's message," Antitheon replied. "You said you were lonely, correct?"

"Yeah, and?"

"This is why you need to submit to the will of Seraphina." The slight smile left Antitheon's face; he found that his saying Seraphina's name was only slightly less painful than others doing so. "Those who submit to the goddess can never be alone, because She is always with them."

"Hah!" Clyde scoffed. "I gave up on religion a while ago. My home, Super Land, was a theocracy. If I was able to turn my back on religion after over thirty years of indoctrination up there, what makes you think you can convert me down here?" He lifted a large, demonic claw to the pendant strung around his neck. "The only thing I've submitted to are demonic powers."

"And that has gotten you so far, hasn't it?" The hint of condescension that had always been present in Antitheon's tone was turned up a notch. "Perhaps if your faith had been stronger then, you wouldn't find yourself trapped here now without family, friends, or anyone who truly cares about you."

The remark hit home for Clyde, and he rose to his full height - at least thirty feet. "Look, I didn't ask to be lectured by some robed freak who calls himself an angel. In all the religious I've ever read, no beings like you are ever mentioned. Now, get the hell out of my Paradise before I get angry."

"I came here to help you. I wanted to tell you that it is not too late to change your ways," Antitheon said, though his tone still suggested superiority rather than sympathy. "If you submit to the will of Seraphina right here and now, I can save you from this wretched, pathetic, miserable existence you've damned yourself to."

"GRR! YOU'VE DONE IT NOW!" Clyde balled his hand into a massive fist and brought it straight down toward Antitheon.

"Negation: Space." Clyde's fist phased through Antitheon's body, and the angel ended up floating through it, hovering over Clyde's arm.

"What the?" Clyde repeatedly pawed at Antitheon with each hand, but each attempt yielded the same result. His hands passed straight through Antitheon, leaving him unharmed. "Grrr...I don't know what kind of game you're trying to play here, 'Angel', but if you're gonna come down to my territory and insult me, then you'd better be prepared to fight like a man!"

"Negation: Darkness." Antitheon descended to the ground at Clyde's feet and looked up at him with an expression of pity. "I have disabled my intangibility, as you desire. I will reiterate, however, that I really only want to help you." Antitheon sighed and began to think. Unfortunately (and perhaps deliberately), he ended up saying his thoughts out loud. "Why did Mother bother creating such irrational, disgusting ingrates? Is this really how She and Uncle Delmerith cured their boredom? By making monsters like you?"

The expression on Clyde's face was the stuff nightmares are made of. A glare so vicious and so angry that not even the mask on his face could hide the murderous intent within. "I. Am going. To kill you." Clyde lifted his hand as high as he could once more and brought his claws across Antitheon's body.

With his intangibility inactive, Antitheon did not phase through the attack this time. Clyde's claws swept across his torso, leaving a few almost invisible marks across his robe and face. Of course, even this was too much for the angel. His theme song started reverberating from the walls of the Fallen Paradise as stared up into the giant demon's eyes. "You touched me, Clyde," he said. His voice was still as calm as ever and his expression was neutral, but something about the air between the two shifted. "I do not like being touched by you filthy creatures from Earth."

"And just who are you to stop me?!" Clyde yelled, slamming his other claw down toward Antitheon.

The angel warped a few feet into the air and Clyde's fist hit solid ground, sending shockwaves through the Fallen Paradise. Antitheon landed on Clyde's hand and started running the very long distance up his arm. By the time Antitheon had gotten up to his shoulder, Clyde tried to swat him with his other hand, but Antitheon warped above the strike right before the impact, letting the demon hit himself instead. He jumped onto Clyde's head and peered down into his eyes from above.

"Would you like to try hitting me again?" Antitheon asked. "Or are you smart enough to realize that I will dodge and you will end up beating your own skull?"

"I am going to kill you!" Clyde's eyes began to glow an unholy black, reaching an intensity that would have been blinding were the light any other color. The generation of the light created a loud, sanity-destroying buzzing sound, like that of a thousand flies joined together in chorus.

"You are going to shoot lasers at me? From your eyes? Allow me to help." Antitheon hovered down from the top of Clyde's head until he was at eye level with the demonic behemoth. "I am a much easier target now."

"COCKY BASTARD!" The maddening buzzing stopped and was replaced by a crack of thunder as a burst of dark light flew from Clyde's eyes toward Antitheon.

Antitheon was struck by the full force of the attack. He could have easily dodged it or turned intangible, but if that much pent up energy had missed him and struck the walls of the Fallen Paradise instead, it might have caused the entire place to collapse, which would ended poorly for the people that lied below. Not that it mattered any way. When the light faded and everyone was able to see again, it was clear that Antitheon was completely unscathed. In fact, he looked to be in even better shape than he was before; the few scratch marks on his robe and body had disappeared completely. After he had looked over himself to make sure his angelic form was in good condition, he glared at Clyde and asked, "Are you finished?"

Clyde didn't respond. He was panting heavily, that one attack having drained him of most of his energy. It had been a while since he'd been in a real fight, so he was far from being at his ideal level of strength. The thought briefly crossed his mind that he might not be able to defeat the angel at all, even in his prime.

"Very well." Antitheon curled a finger and thumb and flicked Clyde, sending him flying all the way to the other end of the Fallen Paradise, the impact causing some debris to fall from the ceiling.

Lying in a crumpled heap on the floor, Clyde mustered up enough strength to lift his head and say, "Just who...What are you?"

His voice still soft, Antitheon replied, "Mother's creatures truly are foolish, aren't they? I have said this once before. I am Antitheon. I am an angel. And, even though I had to punish you, I still want to help you."

"Help me? Ha...You just kicked my demon behind like it was nothing, and now I'm sitting here barely able to move. And when you and your missionaries leave, I'll still be stuck here, healing physically but wrecked emotionally...I think I've had enough of your help."

"As an angel, I have been blessed with knowledge of many things. I can help you leave this place, if you are willing to submit to the will of my Mother."

Clyde eyed Antitheon cautiously, but couldn't see any tells that suggested the angel was playing around. He seemed as genuine as he did before the battle. "Fine, Antitheon. I promise to return to my faith and submit to the will of Seraphina if you can get me out of here."

Antitheon winced. "Please. Once I help you, refer to Her only as 'Her Divinity' or 'the goddess'. It pains me when her name leaves the mouths of you Earth creatures."

"Hah. You really are something, you know that? I might actually start to believe that you're an angel." Clyde took a deep breath and slowly pushed himself into a more dignified position, sitting against the back wall of the Fallen Paradise. "Alright, you've got it. I promise to submit to the will of the goddess if you can get me out of here."

An imperceptible smirk found its way onto Antitheon's face again. "It is good to have you on Mother's side. Now, all you need to do is take off your mask."

An awkward silence followed.

"What?" Clyde touched a hand to the large mask that had become one with his face from the moment he had first taken on his demonic form. It was a white mask that only covered the top half of his face, like the kind you might see someone wear at a masquerade ball. Except more demonic. "Take off my mask? Even if I thought that would help, I don't know that I could. This thing has been stuck to my face forever."

"Please, Clyde. If you are going to submit to Mother's will, then you must believe in the words Her messenger says. Aside from punishing you, the slight flick I gave to your forehead should have loosened the mask enough for you to remove it."

Clyde sighed. "You're the boss." Lazily slinging his hands over his mask, he gave it a tug. It budged by about a centimeter, and hundreds of black wisps flew from the gap between the mask and his face. "What the? It's..." He pulled again, this time a little harder, but the mask didn't budge any more than it had the last time. "...resisting my pull." He continued yanking at the mask, but each time it barely relented, and more wisps of darkness flew from the centimeter wide gap.

"That is demon magic for you," Antitheon replied matter-of-factly. "Of course, a being with a strong enough will could easily overcome this little trial, but not all of us can possess such inner strength."

"Grr...Don't tell me I don't have a strong enough will!" Clyde snarled. "As a child, my greatest dream was to serve in Lord Raphael's army, and after spending countless days and nights training I did just that, becoming his top general in only twenty years!" Clyde gathered enough strength to stand up again, and stared down at Antitheon. "And when that wasn't enough, and I needed even more strength, I sought out this magic and became the powerful Demon King you see before you!" He pressed both hands against his face, digging his massive claws into the tiny gap between it and his mask. "And even now, I am going to rip this freaking mask off of my face. And do you know why? Because if I want something, then I GET IT!" With one final pull, Clyde tore the mask off and cast it to the ground. The black wisps that had been trying to keep it attached to his eyes swirled around him, and his body was enveloped in a vortex of demonic energy so intense that the entire Fallen Paradise began to tremble in fear. More rocks and debris crashed down from the walls and the ceiling. It was collapsing.

Antitheon floated over to Arabella and Archibald, both of whom were staring at the vortex with wide eyes. He reluctantly grabbed each one's hand and muttered "Negation: Earth", making them invulnerable to the falling rubble.

The vortex of energy began to shrink in size and lessen in intensity, until finally a being was visible through the thick layer of shadows.

"This...is incredible!" the being cried. Was it...Clyde? It had to be. There was no one else in that underground pit. But the thing that Antitheon wasn't the hulking behemoth of a demon that had just fought, nor was it the strange birdlike creature he had been born as. No, instead Clyde was now a humanoid, with long blond hair and red eyes. He was tall, but not freakishly tall - perhaps six and a half feet or so. His face was pale and very humanlike, bearing neither the beak of his birth form or the mask of his demon form. In fact, the only reminder that he had ever been a demon at all were the large horns sprouting from his head and the massive bat wings flapping at his back. Also he was shirtless, since demons don't wear shirts.

"Congratulations, Clyde," Antitheon said. "You have been saved and reborn by the grace of the goddess."

But the demon paid Antitheon no mind, too busy admiring his new form. "This power!" he said. "I feel like I can do anything! Nothing can stop me! Don't need this damn demon pendant anymore!" He snatched the pendant (which had shrunk with him) from his neck and cast it to the ground. His eyes fixed themselves on the very narrow opening at the top of the Fallen Paradise that he had once been too large to fit through. That, plus the strange demonic-spatial magic of the place, had kept him trapped there for far too long. "Hahahaha...HAHAHAHAHA!" He pointed at the hole in the ceiling like it was something that had intentionally wronged him. "Real world!" he yelled. "HERE I COME!" The demonic vortex around him grew again, and the fabric of space and time started to ripple. This didn't do anything to help the collapsing Paradise, but Clyde didn't care. He flapped his wings as hard as he could, flying upward and upward until finally he had shattered both the physical and spatial barriers that had once bound him to his own personal hell.

Antitheon called over to the last denizen of the Fallen Paradise, his voice just barely audible over the descending debris. "Carter, you are free to escape while the barriers separating this plane from the next are still weakened. Or you are free to take your chances and attempt to survive down here. I would prefer the latter, because Mother needs a place like this for Her restructuring of the world." The angel pointed at the pendant that Clyde had thrown away. "If you take that, you'll be the new master of this place, and are free to do with it as you see fit. One female demon has created a place similar, but that will not do for Mother's plans. That demon is motivated by profit. You, however, do not care for such things, do you?" With a slight smile, Antitheon summoned the sphere of light around himself and his two priests. The light faded and the trio vanished, leaving Carter to decide his fate.

[Calefrun]

"Oh..." As soon as Leske mentioned her brother's name, Kayla's expression darkened. Of course he wouldn't know. After all, the last time Leske had seen the twins was when they had just begun to explore the multiverse without their master's constant guidance.

"Cale... he..." She felt memories and emotions welling up inside of her, despite her efforts to supress both. She mentally cursed herself. It had been three years, but she still hadn't truly been able to move on from what had happened, nor had she ever truly been able to forgive herself. With tears in her eyes, she tried again to speak. "There was one world... we were trying to close a Rift..." She could almost smell the blood again as she pictured her twin brother standing in front of her, clothes tattered, blood pouring from what was left of one of his arms as he faced off with an enemy more powerful than any the two had encountered in the seven years prior.

Her brother was reckless. Ever since they were children, she had been doing her best to keep him out of trouble. Sometimes that proved to be too difficult a task, but even when he managed to get himself into a tight spot, she had always been the one to protect him. But once, just once, she did something stupid and reckless. She had always protected Cale, and yet it was only because of him that she was still alive. She pictured her brother, a blade protruding from his back, tumbling over a steep ledge to his demise.

With tears now streaming down her face, she managed to whisper, "Master... Cale is dead."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Al nodded and returned to the crew quarters, where his childhood friends Gaberiel Eberhart and Richard Fisher were lying in their hammocks. He leaned against a wooden column in the center of the room, and thought about something Captain Uggo had said.

"Drop off passengers who don't want to be here any longer and all that."

Certainly that applied to the refugees that had been saved from Cloud Land, but what about Al and his friends? Al had never wanted to be a pirate. He had set out to explore the galaxy, not plunder it. Richard (or Cozaltene, as he had been demanding that he be called), had been enjoying their misadventures so far, and had even gone so far as to say that he thought that their original assignment was boring. And Gabe? He wasn't presently able to express his opinion on the recent events. Al sighed, accepting that there was no way to tell what his future may hold.

[Sariel of Tevet]

Captain Albert Alexander was sent reeling from the strike.

Captain Albert Alexander

"Shut it!"

He casually strolled along the deck of The Sea Slater and retrieved his famous bi-corner hat, and placed it upon his sea worn head just as the newcomer did a gratuitous backflip ontp the ship.

"Aye. Once."

He pointed to his companions behind them.

"The Backdeck Boys over there suggested it. It didn't last too terribly long. Cereal kept cutting up the little matey's mouths. Who makes a cereal like that? Honestly. Name's Captain Albert Alexander."

[Monika]

Despite being surrounded by nicely dressed, well-mannered ladies, Leon couldn't help but notice his best friend forever march back inside, looking slightly embarrassed (and potentially exasperated). "Hey, Sarah!" he called out to her. "Excuse me, ladies, but I simply must talk to the princess."

"Oh, don't keep us waiting too long, Leon!" one woman said.

"Are you two friends, Leon? Didn't you kidnap her a while back?" asked another.

"It's more like I sent her on a well deserved vacation. Anyway, be right back!" Leon broke away from the group of women and walked up to the princess of Really Cool Land. "Sarah, did you hear the good news? Apparently Johnny has a kid, now! Since he and I are practically brothers, I get to be the uncle! Doesn't 'Uncle Leon' have a nice ring to it?" He grabbed her hands excitedly and started to jump up and down. "Oh, we should throw them a baby shower or something! I know the best event planner in the Shadow Realm..."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, on the palace grounds, Amelia had bothered enough people to find where the queen had gone off to.

"Oh, wow. A graveyard?" She took care to make a little extra noise while walking; they were, after all, in a very creepy place, and she didn't want to end up scaring the queen to death. Not that she had any problems with assassinations, of course. It's just that this particular mission didn't call for it.

"Excuse me. Queen Francine?" she asked tentatively. "I hope I haven't caught you at a bad time."
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Emperor Awesome noticed that the two would-be invaders paused, and took the opportunity to assess the situation.

"Well," he said to himself, pacing the floor, "on the one hand I could continue using the barrier and smash them into oblivion." He held his left hand up, as if the choice were actually resting upon it. "The potential threat would be dealt with, but the excessive violence might give off the wrong impression. On the other hand," he said, raising his right hand. "I can try to reason with them to see what business they have in my country...but the last thing we need is more empowered miscreants running amok. Hmm..." With a sigh, he tapped his scepter on the ground, manipulating the barrier so that sound could pass through it directly to his office. "I'll listen to what those two are trying to do, and then I'll react accordingly. That's the most reasonable decision I could make."
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"What makes me think I can do anything about your forces?" Artemis repeated. "Look around you. You sit in a library with a dozen of the strongest beings in both this dimension and others. You are powerful, Zais, but do not overestimate your abilities. As Knox said, you cannot defend yourself against all of us."

A few moments later, Galro appeared at the library entrance, casually wiping water from the corner of his mouth. "Sorry for the brief...excursion," he said, taking his original seat.

"To allay any concerns you may have, I can assure you that this is not about exacting personal vengeance. Nor am I doing this strictly on behalf of the new emperor. Do you remember those words I said to you shortly after the C.O.M.A.S. rally?" Artemis closed her eyes, scanning her mind for the exact phrase. "At the current rate of progression, Zais is expected to completely lose sanity within five years. By this point he will pose a significant threat to the public. Probability of a subsequent Immortal of Darkness being objectively worse is 7.5%. Conclusion: He should be replaced and a new Immortal of Darkness found immediately." She opened her eyes again and looked at him neutrally. "Those odds have not improved. Even if you hadn't killed William, or if Aurora Veralice were still on the imperial throne, this day would have come eventually. I will see to it that this mission is completed, and it seems like the other twelve agree. All that remains now is how you will react."

[Mizagium]

The Mambutoo O’Malleys

Sarah blew out all her breath in an exasperated sigh. Leon was certainly not the first (or even the hundredth) person she wanted to see right now, but she supposed, after glancing around, he was the only one here who would actually understand her situation. Or at least not thing she was a crazy person.

“Leon, if I told you there is a large amount of time travel involved, would you A. Think I was crazy? B. Get all excited about the prospect of time travel or C. Sigh and shake your head exasperatedly while muttering about giving your idiot boyfriend a kick in the gut for letting this happen?” She paused, blinked, and realized that got a little too personal way too quickly.

“Er. Um.”

-

Queen Francine was startled to find the young lady standing before her. She looked smartly dressed, but the way she had casually wandered onto palace grounds at this hour disturbed her. Where were the Thundercougerfalconbirds? Even before the thought fully formed, she noticed the shapes appearing out of the darkness.

“My apologies, my queen,” said an aging man with grayed hair and lines on his face, visible even in the night. He was Veritaz Thundercougerfalconbird, current head of the clan and master of the palace guard. Even the common soldiers and guardsmen looked up to him. “But she simply appeared out of…well, no matter.” Two of his ninjas had moved to seize Amelia by the arms. “We have her apprehended.”

“Do not take her away, just yet.” Francine tried to awkwardly put her shoes back on without stooping and grudgingly accepted a steading arm from Veritaz. “Stay close, Veritaz, but I would like to hear what she has to say.”

Veritaz made a sound that indicated exactly what he thought of that idea, but nodded anyway. “As you say.” He stepped back into the shadows, the two he had signaled remained, each with an arm on Amelia. She could tell where Veritaz was even though she could not see him. Of all the palace staff, Veritaz had been her first and longest friend. He was often the one to respond to requests from her.

“Now,” she began, assuming as queenly a posture she could manage while not glancing at her staggering sister. “Who are you, what are you doing in the royal cemetery, and how did you evade my ninjas?”

-

Xeltyr knew who had attacked him from the moment the crossbow bolt had hit the balcony. It was Adakias, one of Knox’s children; technically the eldest, but only through a quirk of his existence. They fell through the air together, struggling too much for Xeltyr to focus much on his wind magic, except to cushion their fall.

Whereas Xeltyr looked very much like a young Johnny, Adakais looked much like a older Knox. Adakais was easily in his late twenties. Maybe even thirty by now. If he was any indication, Knox would grow into a very handsome man.

“Let go of me, faker!” Despite his apparent age, Adakais was still just a kid, a little younger than Xeltyr himself.

“Let go of me,” Xeltyr countered and summoned his magic. It lifted him and spun them around until Adakais was flung off and sent crashing through the hedge maze. Xeltyr had his bow drawn and an arrow nocked before the other recovered.

“Ehecatl!” Adakais, some distance away, produced some metallic cards from somewhere within his sleeves, a weapon his father had taught him how to use.

“Stop calling me that!” Xeltyr loosed as many arrows as he could while crossing the distance.

“Haste.” Suddenly, Xeltyr lost track of his cousin – and then he was crashing to the ground, a sharp pain in his gut. Adakais had used his powers to speed up his own movements – and suckerpunch him.

“It’s me…Xeltyr…” he wheezed.

And then Adakais was standing over him. “There is no Xeltyr,” he snapped. The cards he produced were edged now. “There never was. You’re nothing but a parasite. I’m ending this!”

“STOP!”

Adakais froze mid-swing. Xeltyr froze in the act of pleading. The leaves around them froze while brushing past on a light breeze. Johnny, Cassandra, and King Francine (along with a squad of apologetic ninja) found the odd tableau, as well as two more mysterious figures, one female and pushing a second, unmoving form, in a wheelchair.

“Oh,” said the girl. “Hey, there, Uncle Johnny, Aunt Cassandra. Granpa. Um. I’m Anhura. This is Ahrima.” She indicated the unconscious form. “We’re, uh, Adakai’s siblings. Sorry for the trouble, but we really need to speak with you.”

Johnny was already squeezing his eyes shut and shaking his head. Cassandra groaning. Randolph merely blew out a short breath. “I bet I know whose kids you are.”

Rick Thunder

Rick scoffed. “If kids can’t handle the sharp-edged nature of sugary cereal, then they’ll never grow up to have a sweet hairdo or shades like these, amirite?” He held out a hand for Captain Albert Alexander to slap five.

“Come on, bro, don’t leave Rick Thunder twisting in the wind!”

The Council

Knox put a hand to his head feeling a sudden migraine coming. At first he thought it had something to do with this meeting, of the prospect of having to actually confront Zais and his massive shadow army. But the migraine progressed into a dull buzz that clouded his thoughts. IT put to mind a thousand voices whispering in his ear, just on the edge of hearing.

“Down with President Snow!” The Wind Immortal shouted, throwing his hands into the air, a bit too excitedly.

Ollie had crossed her arms and leaned forward. “I don’t like it. Any of it.” She ignored the looks she got and fixed her gaze on Artemis. “Especially you, miss I’m-the-boss. How do I know you’re not suddenly going to turn that computer brain of yours on me and determine that I’m not safe enough to keep around?”

“Ollie,” Vespi growled. “You’re new here, so let me explain it simply: Zais is dangerous. He’s spread his army across three dimensions, including this one, although he’s been largely driven out of here. He has no regard for life or – “

“Then why did no one stop him then?”

It really was a good question, and Vespi knew it. Zais had been allowed to essentially do as he pleased until he ran afoul of one of several self-designated hero types, and even then was only beaten just so.

“It doesn’t matter why not then,” she insisted. He body, a mass of living fire, was beginning to heat up and glow slightly. “What matters is now. That we do something now!”

“I must confess,” Bill Nye added, a little sadly. “I don’t enjoy it either, but there’s a much larger picture out there. That’s why we’re – you’re – here. He enjoyed a free reign due to our disorganization.”

Gallen Kah scoffed. “I have been trying for years to make such a thing happen and then these two…”

Bill ignored him. “But we are the Immortals, the bearers of the Fourteen Universal Elements, Keepers of Being, and Guardians of Existence.”

But that all did nothing for Ollie, who continued to glare at Artemis. “And what if I disagree, then? Are you going to throw me out as well?”

“No one’s throwing anyone else out,” Knox said tightly.

“So it’s alright if – “

“That is enough!” He slammed a fist onto the table harder than he intended. The whispering in his ears was almost enough to drown out the meeting. It’s coming. He’s here. He let his eyes fall upon every Immortal gathered there. “We’re here to keep watch over the world and prevent such abuse of power. That it was already occurring before the founding is an unfortunate…coincidence. Support us if you will – or stay out of our way!”

But Ollie shook her head. “No. You need me here. I can’t be the only one who disagrees.”

Karzem shifted in his seat, but said nothing.

Carter

Carter watched his former master, Clyde disappear with Antitheon, but before he could decide what to do next, he heard the distinct sound of stiletto heels clicking across the stone floor. A rather curvy woman in an impossibly low cut business suit (and not a bra to be seen), with hair apparently more of fire. It was like something out of a bard-boiled detective novel, except that she was clearly a demon. And he was in a kind of hell. So, really nothing like it at all.

“My, my. Are you and your wolves going to sit there all day while spacetime unravels around you?”

Fenris and Frigga nuzzled Carter, anxious to be free of this place. One of them dropped something into his lap. It was the pendant Clyde had been wearing. The pendant that contained his soul (and those of his wolves). He stared at it, then looked up at the Hot Demonic Lady.

“Yeah,” he said though a dry mouth. He hadn’t spoken in what felt like years. It might have even been decades. Time was weird in the Fallen Paradise. “We’re leaving. Care to show me out?”

She grinned, revealing rows of sharp teeth and opened a burning portal behind her. “I have something I think you’ll like to see.”

Carter hmphed but followed her through anyway, unknowingly exchanging one hell for another.

[Monika]

"Ah, so this is Knox's doing, is it?" Leon considered this for a moment and frowned. "I guess that means the kid is grown up, then? And will probably be returning to his own time period eventually. So no baby shower? That's kind of disappointing..." His mood quickly rebounded, and he gave Sarah as reassuring a smile as he could. "Well, you're certainly not crazy, Sarah, so that rules out Option A. And after having been on as many adventures as I have, very few things excite me anymore, so there goes B. Plus, the idea of time travel makes my head hurt, and lends itself to waaay too much abuse. So I guess all that leaves is C! I would sigh and shake my head while kicking my idiot boyfriend in the gut!"

"Oh, Leon, you have a boyfriend? I hope you haven't been leading us on!" One of the women he had been speaking to earlier walked by and pouted.

"What hope does that leave for us?" asked another one.

"Oooh, maybe he's bi! Wouldn't that be great? I've always wanted to have a ménage à trois with a handsome sorcerer before," said the third woman, sounding a bit too excited about the prospect. "Do you think Knox would want to join?"

"Oh, that would be great! Knox is very handsome too! Just imagine what-"

"Ladies," Leon sighed, only the slightest hint of annoyance in his voice. "I'm talking to Sarah right now. Option C, with the added caveat that Knox is not my boyfriend."

"Oh, that's a relief!" exclaimed the women in unison. "But kind of disappointing, too...You wouldn't still be interested in a-"

With a snap of his fingers, he warped the women to another part of the palace. Continuing as if nothing had happened, he said, "Of course, I might be biased. I'm not the biggest fan of Time Keepers. The last one took my empire from me. Remember the whole OMEGA RIDLEY fiasco?" Leon stared off into space and let nostalgia take over for a moment, though the expression on his face suggested that he wasn't reliving a particularly pleasant memory. Shaking his head, he said, "Then again, maybe I'm not biased, as you obviously aren't too pleased with this situation."
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Amelia's heart skipped a beat. Ohmigosh ohmigosh ohmigosh what do I do this was supposed to be a simple delivery mission but now I've been caught what if I blow my cover then Emperor Awesome will fire me or worse and I'll have to go back to Shadow Land and face my father and he'll be so disappointed and I might be banished and I'll never get to rule my own country!!! She closed her eyes for a moment to give herself the opportunity to tame her thoughts.

Alright, Amelia. Calm down. The queen's guards are just doing their job. No one will be in any trouble as long as you keep your cool. Just take a deep breath and calmly explain why you're here. The entire inner dialogue was over in a microsecond (her ninja speed apparently worked physically and mentally), so it was only a moment before she answered, "Wow, ninja palace guards? I certainly wasn't trying to avoid them. I honestly had no idea they were even here! I guess that means they're doing their jobs, right?" She laughed in an effort to break some of the tension. "My name is Emily Robertson. I'm the personal assistant to the new ruler of Awesome Land, Emperor Awesome. I think I'm supposed to bow after an introduction to royalty, but I'm a bit tied up here at the moment." Amelia looked to her left and right at the guards who held her arms and laughed again. "Anyway, the emperor is Aurora's successor. He wanted to properly introduce himself to his neighbors, so he asked me to come here to invite you and the rest of the Royal Family to dinner. Some people said they saw you walking in this direction, so I came here, too. I apologize for any trouble I might have caused!"
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Artemis returned Ollie's gaze, albeit with more neutrality than hostility. "I did not declare myself the boss. I merely took the initiative to gather everyone together. Now that everyone is here, they are free to voice their opinions. That is what a council is for." Her expression became more serious than normal, and she added, "But I assure you that I do not lie. My determinations are based only on facts. My 'computer brain', as you phrase it, would only find you unsafe to keep around if you were indeed unsafe to keep around. I certainly would not suggest your removal from the council for a simple disagreement."

"So, when do we start getting rid of Zais," Galro yawned. "I haven't slept since our concert, and I'd like to get this finished as soon as possible."

"We will proceed with the suggested course of action once our discourse is finished." Artemis gave Galro a stern glare before turning back to Ollie and saying, "If you are not convinced that most of the council agrees on this matter, then I will show you. Forgive me, everyone, but this is the most efficient method..." She drew in a deep breath and closed her eyes, channeling some of her more esoteric Space powers. "Telepathy!" she shouted. Her eyes took on a white glow, and she glanced briefly at each of the council members before turning her attention back to the Immortal of Light. "I will summarize for you the thoughts of each Immortal. Knox sees that dealing with Zais is necessary and agrees. 'Katniss' views Zais as President Snow, a fictional tyrant in a book series from another dimension, and agrees. Noores does not appreciate my giving orders - and he is welcome to speak up at any time - but agrees for the sake of having something to do. As she stated, Vespi wants Zais out of Brave New World, and agrees. Bill Nye agrees. Galro agrees. Scern agrees. Gallen Kah is hesitant to prescribe execution as the solution so quickly, but recognizes that Zais is a threat in Cardinalos. Roewk is neutral. Heimrall is willing to destroy his reputation online, but will kill him if he messes with Malcolm. Karzem finds that Zais threatens his own imperialistic ambitions, but believes that the council may eventually turn against him as well. His agreement is tentative. You already know my thoughts on the matter. And Zais does not care either way, because his forces are already advancing."

Artemis blinked a few times, her eyes resuming their normal, pale blue color. "Even if we take only the most unambiguous assenters, you are outnumbered, Ollie. As Knox has said, if you insist on remaining a part of this council, then you should support the actions the council agrees to take. Otherwise, you would be well advised not to get in our way, or else you may actually be deemed too unsafe to keep around." Those last words were said in such a neutral, emotionless tone that they sounded less like a threat and more like a declaration of fact. "So what will you do?"

[Mizagium]

The Queen

Another ruler of Awesome Land? Perhaps I should simply ignore this one and wait for the next. That ought to only take a few days. Francine had to stop to make sure she hadn't spoken aloud. To disguise the silence, she looked Amelia up and down. She didn't appear to be much more than what she claimed...and yet she had avoided detection by Veritaz. Even if she had just casually wandered in, some Thundercougarfalconbird should have caught her.

"Yes, well, I'm afraid you've caught us at an...interesting time." She motioned with her hands, ever so slightly, and two ninja appeared to escort Julia back to her room. "We - my husband, the King, and I - have just returned from a diplomatic mission to Incrediland and our nobles decided a party was in order." She grimaced back at the palace to show what she thought of that. "Perhaps you'd like to come in?"

Another motion, the barest of head nods, and the two ninja holding her released their grip and faded into the darkness, although never left.

The Council

Ollie hadn't realized she was grinding her teeth until she stopped. With a suspicious glance at Knox, she said, "I don't like you, Artemis. I wasn't really trying to hide it, but I'll go ahead and just say it then. In fact, I'm not sure I like any of you right now. But if this guy" she jabbed a thumb at Zais "is enough to make you jerks this all hot and bothered...well I guess that's something."

She leaned back without actually stating her position on the matter. She can read my mind. Let her figure it out herself.

"Are there any more objections?" Knox forced through his pounding head. He's coming. He's coming. He's coming. "And Zais?"

[Myrdraxxis]

"I refuse." Roewk said flatly. "This is not why I joined this council. Miss Artemis," He turned to the Immortal, "I accepted your offer to this COuncil because I have my own concerns about the state of our world and beyond. But I find your actions and your intentions questionable. I will not get in your way," He took a deep breath. "And I will not help you."

"But Roewk-" Noores said, finally paying attention,

"And should I find myself dissatisfied with this Council by the end of these events, I am leaving." Roewk declared.

Noores stared hard at him for a moment, but the Wood Immortal's expression betrayed nothing. Noores sighed.

"I'm in." He said. "Nothing better to do."

"Zais?" Roewk asked the Immortal of Darkness.

"Weeeeeell," Zais stretched. "This is all very interesting, and dear Spacy here is very sure of herself." He grinned at Artemis. "But as she telepathed just now, the entire time we've been here talking I've been massing forces."

Zais' face suddenly turned serious. "I knew this was coming someday." He said. "And frankly, it's about time." He started grinning again. "Don't think I'll just sit down and take it though, oho~ no that wouldn't be any fun at all." Zais stood. "So let's have a grand old time of it."

And then Zais exploded, an orb of all-consuming darkness expanding outward, corrupting and devouring as it went.

Noores swore and jumped away, as his chair was consumed.

Roewk did the same, if more stoically.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sindri nearly jumped in surprise when Zais suddenly appeared beside him. The shadow lieutenant blinked (a rather odd gesture for a man without any discernable features with which to blink), and said, "My Lrd? How did it go?"

"Just about as well as expected." Zais brushed some imaginary dirt off of his cloack. "That should keep those goody-two-shoes busy for a moment."

Zais strode out of the room and onto the balcony that looked over his entire fortress of Darkness.

Sindri was fairly sure that balcony hadn't been there the last time he was in this room, but decided not to question it.

Every single Shadow being (and even some married ones) in Awesome Land was gathered. Waiting. "Ladies and Gentlemen!" Zais spread his arms wide. "It's time to go to war once again!"

A cheer went up.

Sindri watched on, nervously. He had followed Zais through...well everything. From Isle Umbra to now. But this...Sindri knew what they were up against and he wasn't sure of their odds. Zais didn't seem to care, and that was part of the problem.

"He's almost completely gone, isn't he?" THe shadow sorcerer realized. It was finally happening.

"Your brethren from Random World, or whatever its called now, are arriving as we speak! It's time to do what we do best!" Zais continued.

He summoned his scythe and slammed it to the ground. Waves of darkness began to pour forth. "Consume!"

The army of Shadow beings roared their approval and began flooding out of the castle. The Shadow Fortress still hovered in Dynasty City.

And It was Dynasty City that they struck first.

Zais cackled at the sight, not noticing Sindri slip away.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Leske couldn't contain his shock. He stood for a moment, unable to respond. He did after a long minute, working his jaw several times to try and form words. "Dead?" it came out as almost a whisper.

Cale was dead?

"When? How?" he asked urgently. He never should have left them on their own! He had thought they were ready. To venture out and be Travelers in their own right.

Their chosen path was a dangerous one, sure, but Leske hadn't ever actually heard of another Traveler dying before. Granted, he hadn't heard from Ash, Desmond or Septimus in nearly a century, but still.

[Calefrun]

Kayla wiped her eyes, regaining her composure. She took a deep breath, then began, "It... it was three years ago. We were trying to close a Rift, but wound up getting involved in another conflict on the world where we found it. The name of the world was-" She stopped talking upon hearing a roaring, thunderous noise, and looked up to see Shadow descending upon the city. "That... can't be good."

[Sariel of Tevet]

Heimrall's social media feed started to explode with new posts.

"Uhh...guys..."

She clicked on a few windows to pull up a live feed of Zais' army marching on Dynasty City. She turned the phone and presented it for the council to see.

"We're going to do something about this...ri.....OMG!"

Heimrall dropped her phone and ran to the nearest window. She opened it, stood back, and took a teenage girl pose, complete with duck face and peace sign.

"Call the rocks!"

Dirt and rubble began to flood the room and swirl about, before settling along Heimrall's clothing to make a suit of super hardened, but lightweight stone.

I always feel much boulder in my armor. Hehehe. Boulder...

She ran and did some sort of peppy cheerleader jump thing onto the council table and posed again.

"Let's rock and roll.!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Captain Albert Alexander, no stranger to odd customs as he has sailed absolutely everywhere, slapped five to Rick Thunder.

"Speaking of.."

He looked up at the barrier that was no longer trying to slap them.

"I suppose we can journey into the city now."

The Sea Slater pushed forward through the barrier and made its way into the city.