Issue 27: Battle Scars
Chronos had frozen them in amber. We
had to find a way. No matter the cost to myself.—Eliza Murphy
I see why we were taken here first.
This was what Varn Ayeer was trapped in. The people within the watery expanse
of planets. Each was covered by the Amber. Both pristine and polluted all at
once.—Lorain Lanis
Many planets along the Path of Ancients
made their way into this construct. The Water wasn’t water. It was a barrier.
One I had to figure out. Even before we got to the heart of the matter. What
Chronos took.— Sleeping In Starlight: Arcane
Insights Into Convergence (Vol 1)
Olaru Xana (Outer Shell)
Tri-System of Eden
April 20th, 2116
I
sucked in a breath. The water didn’t budge. No matter how many times I punched.
The wound on my thigh was nearly healed. My knuckles were split and bruised. The barrier showed no cracks. I raised my
fist to try one more salvo. My eyes watered from the strain. I knew I was
throwing everything I had into this.
Why wouldn’t it move?!
Doc’s voice hit on my private
channel, <<I don’t think force is
the answer. I get the feeling you are taking out more on that barrier than you
realize.>>
I blinked rapidly. I lowered my
fist.
I had been throwing all my physical
might at it. How did Chronos get in here?
White said, <<I’ll be frank, you had to have something safe to punch. You keep
things bottled up so much. So we let you cut loose.>>
I buried my face in my hands, “Then
what is required?” Had everyone known I was chasing at windmills?
Doc sighed, knowing my worries, <<No, the fleet has been recording
different frequencies every time you hit the surface. We needed that to figure
out where Chronos breached the protective layer. I know you worry but that barrier
was made specifically to survive the end of Reality. Based on the readings this
thing dates back to before the creation of our Universe.>>
I
knelt upon the crystal cover of the barrier. Watching the pristine waters flow
around the slumbering planets. On the Amber casings below, I could make out
markings.
To protect the past, I grant you safe
passage through the waters of….
White
croaked out, >>Elysium.<<
I
stated the obvious, “So every holy book and myth has a piece of the puzzle?”
Her
tiger form materialized. She sat down heavily next to me.
The
terror was plain to see.
She
said, “Why would the Weave and the Highest allow Chronos to take the Word?”
She
paced. Nervous energy flowed from each paw pad. I asked, “Are you sure that
Chronos can even understand this Word?” She stopped dead in her tracks. Then
buried that massive head of hers into my chest. “That gives me hope.”
Black
nudged me with his other paw, “You see sister? Not all is as it appears. Even
our memories.” Dexter said, “I wonder what was hidden from you both. We have
seen the Fall….”
I
responded, “A fall. Not THE fall.”
An
image rose from the depths.
Noah
thumped his staff against the barrier, “You must find a way.”
I
pressed my face to the hardened surface. It sang.
I
recoiled from the sheer beauty within the refrain. Not in horror but from the
overwhelming sense of peace.
<<Doc,
did your mom happen to leave notes?>>
The
other question: How did Chronos breach this. The music alone would have melted
his brain. I smacked my forehead. “The embryo within Nyx.”
Noah
wrapped the top of my head with his staff. Very gently.
“You’re
learning.”
Hidan
landed next to me. Unfurled his wings and sang. Images rippled across the
surface. I didn’t have the words to describe it. My hand pushed through the
surface and the water poured into my mouth as the rest of me was sucked in. Doc’s
yellow light dived in after.
The
water flowed into my lungs. There was no pain. Just us and the music.
Doc
took my hand. My heart soared. Then I felt it. A discordant note. Faint but it
kept scrabbling in the background. I followed it to a planet covered in great
spheres. They reached up beyond the atmosphere. Covered in amber. A section of
the wall was revealed.
The
words rearranged themselves.
“These
are the planets we were able to save. It is up to our descendants to follow the
Path of Truth. See with eyes unclouded.”
Timat
said, “We will protect these memories. Unity will not have them. For they are
divine.” I rolled my shoulders, “Glad I'll have something to remember.” Even
with the memory shrouding of Uplift Protocol, that too was a broken image of
Unity’s design, some knowledge wasn’t meant for us. I pressed my palm to the
doorway. It pulled us in.
Inside
was a marble walkway. Golden statues on both sides. The words weren’t translated.
Figures were encased in stasis. The amber sang them into a deep slumber. Unlike
the perverted version the Keepers used. Micheal Brookes’ reports had given us a
special kind of insight into that living nightmare. I jerked to a halt. The
face within the amber was Humanoid.
Doc
rested a palm on the stasis field.
“No
tricks. We share the same genome.”
I
peered beyond the status field. He was wearing similar robes to Noah!
A
small white sphere floated towards us. “Greetings. I am 2-7 Niner. Arcane repository
matrix for this facility. We welcomed the honored Arbiter and the Lady of the
Isles. Follow, please.” The water warmed. My fingers tingled. It flowed over
us. An iris opened. Within were two oval chairs. Niner circled them. The
infinity symbol blinked to life on the screen before us.
The words flowed into my brain:
“In the beginning there was balance….”
The Requilary of Worlds
Creation Cycle (Foundation)
Ouroborous of Life
Tarkanan Urraden bowed. The
selection process had been vigorous. But now he commanded the Shard of Typha’s
illumination. To safeguard it from harm was the greatest honor. Behind him, V’lar
Ayeer grinned. They had been raised within the sight of the Three. Each man had
been blessed with gray eyes of the Highest. A rare color gifted to Typherians.
Noah’s deep blue
eyes twinkled, “I see. Well, I bid you good tidings Shardbearers of Typha.”
Behind the middle-aged human were
the winged ones. Hi’dan and his scholars. The three clans of Angels. Charged by
the Weave and Highest to maintain the peace and order of the worlds around
them. All flowed equally through the Ouroborous of Life. Regenerating their
populations with new growth and births.
It
was perfect.
*****
Lucifer strode towards the main
Library. The watchful eyes of the Three stared down. As if to offer council.
What did he need of it? It was perplexing. Father had created him and his
brothers first. Why did he lavish such attention on these frail mortal upstarts?
The J’kua, Typherians, Litari, Bardaxians, the list was enormous. His most
prized pet was Humanity and the Markav. So pious. So trusting.
Even above the Bardaxians and their
simple notions of goodness. All of them were flawed. Father persisted with the
Tapestry. But was it the right path? The True path? He accessed the Codex. The
words flowed over his eyes.
The
divine host protects the lines of magic. Never cross those lines.
Lucifer paced.
Curiosity bloomed. What would happen….
A hand brushed his shoulder. The
Twin Rulers of the Sky.
The female was clothed in white
robes. Her face was humanoid. Three golden eyes trailed over his face. A silent
regard. Worry bled at the edges. The other swathed in black robes. The golden
armor underneath proclaimed his role. Brother Protector to his Sister. They in
turn guided the mortals.
Many pairs had been birthed before
the rabble of mortality.
Always two. A male and a female.
Each carried the spark. Lucifer
mustered a kindly smile, “What can I do for you today?”
How he wanted to bury his sword into
those lesser chests.
Why had Father imbued them with the
divine? Pathetic.
*****
The image paused. White phased
outside of me and sat directly on the floor. Her arms locked around her legs. A
rare moment within her human form. I rose from the seat and pulled her into a
sisterly embrace. “I know that look.”
Her true memories were uncoiled. She
sobbed openly. Doc joined us.
Niner added gently, “You think the
Highest cruel for hiding these events?”
White croaked, “No. I do not wish to
remember. I asked to forget.”
The Piper’s cry remained burned upon
her soul. He had never hurt her. He had tried to push her out of the way. To
prevent the corrupted blade from finding its mark. It had missed that day.
Buried itself within his flesh before it hit hers.
Dooming his spirit to stains it wasn’t
meant to bear.
The Jupiter Rising
Crew Wing
Piper rocked slowly.
The
chair was worn. Wooden. Just how he liked it.
White and Black were finally waking
up. His vigil was coming to an end. The shard within him flickered. It wasn’t the
same as what Eliza carried. But it was vital nonetheless. The days of Slumber
were fading. The Lions of Creation would roar their defiance. Ichabod’s
whiskers quivered against his chin. <<Bardax
never lost the pulse of the Creator.>>
Piper ran an index finger over the
top of Ichabod’s head. “But we are not alone. We were never alone.” No matter
how much the Fallen wished it so. Unity included. Every one bore the spark of
creation. Every light no matter how great or small provided the warmth to
endure. The Truth rang with the clarion call of the Dawn.
*****
The relay of the codex stopped.
Niner floated toward me, “The rest will be revealed after Convergence. White
has what she needs to unlock Black’s memories of the Fall.”
My thoughts keyed onto the aspect of Twins.
“For every cycle, there are a set of
Twins dubbed the Rulers of the Sky?”
Niner replied, “Yes. But few remember
their role. Or how many cycles since Creation that they have lived through.”
Doc exclaimed softly, “Di’axi and
his family.”
Niner made a series of tones, “Indeed.”
An outline of the Ouroborous of Life
blinked into existence before us. Twin Silver Circles entwined forever. With
three golden eyes at the topmost corner. White pointed, “Their souls are reborn
into each cycle.” I narrowed my gaze, “Are my brother and….”
Doc
nodded, “All of us. We were there. In another form. In another life.”
Niner
said, “Eden is the rebirth of the Original Cycle of Creation. Old souls flow to
it as intended. Only Bardax, Humanity, and those you call Icath kept the flame
of the Shards alive to re-seed Eden properly. Of those touched by the gift of
Morality. Eternal life breeds complications. Complacency. To value life? One
must live it. This was why later creations age. Even if you extend your life,
no one is eternal. Save for the Creator.”
I
asked, “But what of the Markav?”
Niner
responded sorrowfully, “Even they succumbed to the Corruption. The False Uplift
Protocol. You saw it in your dealings with the Muthra. Your mother’s woes
against her people. Thoth’s madness still thrives. Even as Arthon and others combat it. Proctor Gansys and Sul will need your help.”
Doc
frowned, “Then why am I in stasis?”
Niner
circled Lorain. The matrix core intoned, “Your role requires it. You carry a
shard as well. One that the Highest holds dear. “ Doc paced. Her distress was
apparent.
I
took her into my arms. “We need to take a page from Bardax. Have faith.”
Even
when all other lights went out.
I
added, “To us? 1000 years is an eternity. For the Creator? Not even a blink. It’s
quite daunting to even ponder. Like my Swiss cheese brain? Let’s take one
moment at a time.”
She
laughed. The sound was brittle yet a spark of good humor rose above it.
*****
Father Brookes stared into the
expanse of the Dreaming. The sky darkened. One blood-red Star manifested. Unity
was on the move. Heading towards Eden. When the Golden Eyes of the Divine filled
Eliza, the Convergence would be upon them all.
He knelt and prayed. His mother
joined him on the hillside.
Bel watched. Uncertainty played
across her features.
She was not ready.
Issue 26: Here
The Dexter Chronicles Unmasked: Here