The tapestry lay before her, in all its glory, a million threads twined and woven together in ways that could only be read by a few such as herself. She ignored it. Deep in thought, Yumina considered what lay before her. The failure of the last reality. Beliel's mocking words. Sankria. Herself. Her eyes fluttered briefly, then snapped open, locked in concentration. A single finger reached out to stroke a tiny, insignificant, yet familiar thread. Everything vanished in a flash of white. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The Gates Of Time An Improfanfic created by Lady Brick Part Seven – Chaos Reflected This Part by Lady Brick ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Beliel sat alone in a chamber of his own creation. Perhaps 'chamber' was not the most accurate of words... this was not any sort of room in the traditional sense. A small pocket of space, with waning and waxing bands of ever shifting colors, chaos as seen in its physical form, forming a shell of sorts around the area. It was a room sealed off from the realm his brother controlled, one that he hoped the Lord of Darkness knew nothing about. True, he was his brother's ally. For now. But he was the Master of Lies, a thief, trickster, and a backstabber if there ever was one. He prepared for every eventuality. Including stealing whatever power he could get his hands on that could bring him any sort of advantage, be it against his enemies or allies. Almost absently, he pulled a small vial stained with red from a pocket inside his tunic. He unsealed it, waved a hand over it, murmuring a few words in a language that no other being save his brother remembered. A small bit of chaos detached itself from the wall, swirling into the vial. Beliel brought the vial to his lips, and closed his eyes. He could taste the purity in her blood, tainted as it had become. Discarding the vial, Beliel settled into a more comfortable position. His brother had always had a much firmer grasp of the flow of time than he had. Though unable to see the tapestry like the chosen servants of fate, he had been able to sense definitive paths in the current timeline that the Weaver was operating in, who could be of use to his cause. The Master of Lies smiled slightly as what appeared to be a shimmering piece of fabric materialized before his inner sight. He would no longer need to rely on his brother's limited sight. True, the power of Yumina's blood was limited. He could not make out individual threads, and even the overall design was an effort to see. Had Yumina agreed to become his lover, he could have gained much more power from her. His smile twitched, remembering her harsh words, and then he pushed it out of his mind, focusing on the tapestry. He couldn't see individual lives, but they had never matted much to him anyway. His focus lay in darkness, chaos. And he could see its presence much more clearly than any weaver would ever be able to. Beliel began to laugh. The tapestry still shone, but there were dark wisps of what appeared to be fog hovering over large parts of it. They strained against invisible barriers, trying to overtake the tapestry, envelop it, drench it in darkness. And bit by bit, they crept forward. Beliel waved a hand, letting the image vanish. That bitch certainly had her work cut out for her. He would be there, when she fell along with Sankria. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The tavern was tiny, dirty, and crammed full of people. The only pub in the small village of Arleton, it lay along one of the major roads in the kingdom, receiving numerous travelers from all stations of life. This night was no exception. Farmers, peasants, and road-worn mingled with soldiers, noblemen, and even one or two priests. There were a few regulars there, one of these a farmer well known for his bawdy humor when he became inebriated, which was quite often. He was the center of attention that night, telling of the many beautiful women he had encountered in his younger days (though assuring all that none were quite as lovely as his current wife.) Someone mockingly asked him if she truly was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. That was when the trouble began. "Unfortunately not," the farmer drawled, taking another gulp from his tankard. His face was bright red, and glinted with sweat. "That honor would hafta go to Queen Jauria." "But she's dead!" yelled some drunk half-wit from the crowd. "She wasn't always," the farmer replied wisely, between gulps. "I saw her when I was in the main city, at the market, years ago. This was even before her old father died. She was like a light movin' down the streets." Alcohol, it seemed, served to amplify his poetic spirit, if not his common sense. "Even still a virgin at that point, supposedly." "Supposedly?" "There were rumors about that brother of hers, wazzisname?" "Pholian?" someone offered. "I think that's it. When he got exiled are whatever, some people said it was because he had attacked his sister, wanted her to have his child to keep the family line goin'. Personally, I don't blame... I woulda loved to have done the same thing with her. Just grabbed her right there in the street and show her that us that work for a livin' can offer someone like her somthin' too." This comment brought cheers from a large portion of the crowd. The farmer grinned and was about to order another drink when a hand clapped down on his shoulder. He looked up to see a grim face looking down at him, clothed in the uniform of the Palace Guard. "I recommend you watch what you say," the man rumbled. The farmer studied the guard for a moment, and then spat at him. He turned back towards the bar to claim his latest drink. The guard was stunned for a moment. A hesitant hand drifted toward his sword, then stopped. There would be no point in attacking a man who was obviously very drunk and blabbering. "All I have to say is that you should learn to treat those better than you with respect or you'll find yourself in a great deal of trouble someday," the guard said to the man. He then turned to walk away. The farmer's fist suddenly clenched. He turned slowly. "Are you tryin' to say that you're better then me?" His speech was heavily slurred. He wavered slightly as he stood and took a step forwards. A sudden figure draped in the robes of the Order of Light stepped between the two men. A hood, mysteriously filled with thick shadows, concealed the person's face. "I don't think you are in the proper condition for this conflict right now," the figure said in a low, almost raspy voice. The farmer took one look into the hood, blinked blearily, and nearly collapsed. The robed figure caught him neatly, supporting him with one arm. "I'm sorry for your troubles," the figure said to the guard, who looked somewhat startled. "I'll see that this man gets home safely and does no more harm." "Um, sure," the guard said, scratching his head. He watched the two figures leave, somewhat bemused, not realizing how close he had come to losing his life. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The farmer was inebriated to the point that he didn't notice the Light initiate lead him quickly through the streets and straight to his doorstep without so much as asking the location. A pale hand knocked on the door. It was opened a moment later by a young girl of about eight. "Hi sweetie," the farmer mumbled. "You should be in bed." He stumbled in past the small girl. She looked at him with tired eyes, then looked back towards the doorway, which was now empty. She glanced outside for the mysterious person, but they had vanished. Shrugging a bit, she closed the door. She was just glad her father was home safely. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Yumina watched quietly as Joy closed the door, her father safe inside. She hoped the dreams that she had given the man about his execution that wouldn't happen now would convince him that his daughter was more important then his nightly visits to the tavern. She hoped that this would at least begin to repay Joy for what she had done to her. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ King Numair was sitting on his throne when Thom entered with the documents he had picked up at the Temple of Light. The King smiled at his old friend. "How was the journey?" "Swift," the palace guard replied, handing the king a sheaf of papers. "Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to see Prince Daric. He was in examinations with the high priest." Numair waved his hand. "That is fine. I'm sure my son wouldn't have been happy if he thought I was checking up on him." Thom nodded, looking somewhat distracted. "Is something wrong?" Thom looked at the King, his eyes a bit troubled. "I stopped in a tavern last night. There was a man there, who spoke of Queen Jauria." "It is good that the people still remember her." King Numair's smile was wistful, and more than a bit sorrowful. "She was wise, as her farther the king before her. And I pray that Daric and Averny will rule with that same wisdom one day." "But that wasn't all, my King. He also spoke of Pholian." The King's face hardened. "I am surprised there are still those who remember him," he murmured, stroking his beard. "My father-in-law assumed that the whole horrible business would be forgotten once that... monster was banished. Did this man speak of..." Thom nodded. Numair gave a soft sigh. "It is a shame that her memory is dishonored in such a way." "What is past is past." "Yes I know." Closing his eyes, he could still see a beautiful figure, joy etched on her face as she danced with a grace that no other could ever possess. "It is a shame that such things cannot be undone. But once something like that has happened, there is nothing that can be done about it." ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The tapestry was forgotten. Yumina watched the single, minute thread that was Joy's life. She watched her grow older, working on the farm with her mother and father, a more cheerful, hardy version of the pale shadow that had wandered the countryside with her widow mother. She adopted a stray dog she found at the market, began falling in and out of love with several of the boys her age in the village. She was discovered by a traveling priest to have some proficiency in magic, and sent to the Temple of the Shining One to begin her training as a Light initiate. She studied for several years, and fought bravely but was struck down in the terrible battle between Fire and Light, a battle in which the crown princes were tragically killed. A battle which Yumina did nothing to prevent. Somehow, what would be considered another failure didn't bother her. Indeed, she felt better than she had in a while. It had been too painful for her to realize the damage she had done to the poor girl, to see the broken doll left in the wake of her actions, the pain in her mother's eyes. Somewhere, she had forgotten that each life she touched could not be so casually disregarded. To do so would be to become that which she detested. To know that in one timeline, Joy had the happy life she deserved did much good to Yumina's heart. Feeling more settled now, Yumina turned her attention back to the tapestry, a thoughtful frown crossing her features. It seemed that using Ilysa led to nothing but dead ends, and she had already found that exerting her will directly on any possible outside force was a grave mistake. Perhaps it was time to try something new... ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Beliel frowned. The tapestry shimmered in his vision, much the same as it had done before. Yet the darkness, that delightful, encroaching darkness had somehow been halted, even pushed back slightly. And his brother had said nothing about it. Odd. The Master of Lies sighed and banished the image. Whatever Yumina had done, it was subtle, but effective. It didn't matter. She would join him, or she *would* fall. He would make sure of it. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Author's Notes, or "Where I Explain Why I Wrote What I Wrote For Possibly Even Longer Than I Did In The Starter." Yes, this part was short. And yes, it was a bit different. I think after Stuart's two wonderful parts, a short breather and reevaluation was acceptable, and in my opinion, possibly necessary. Not to mention that I've been writing a massive English paper at the same time ^_^;; So that is my excuse for any errors or such that slipped by. So far, the story hasn't strayed very far from the central characters in the starter. This isn't really a bad thing, considering how few parts have been written, but I'm afraid if it were to continue, the story would stagnate and readers would lose interest. So I decided to pop in some new stuff. The queen's brother, Pholian just started as part of the explanation of Stuart's description of how Joy's father died, but... as the one who was the original heir to the throne before his sister, he makes an interesting possible villain-running-the-show or person-framed-as- villain. And if Yumina can't work out stuff with the brother's, who's to say she won't step back a generation? Take what you want from it. The cosmic thing has become an important part of the story, with Beliel and all, but I hope it won't overshadow the events in Sankria. I tried to move some things forward in that part of the story as well. To answer a question I was asked, the timeline is whatever current course of events Yumina is working with, while the tapestry is sort of a picture of all possible timelines together. And I think this part establishes the effect that one timeline can have over the whole tapestry... Anyway, send any comments or whatever to Lady_Brick@yahoo.com Hope that no one had too much of a problem with how I took things.