For now, I have to do it. I have to take my own advice. None of us here are powerful enough to act against a planet tearing itself apart. None save perhaps Kinzul, if she didn’t need to maintain the Worldstorm, and had months, years, maybe decades to reabsorb her dragonforce. Glancing at my wife, my eyes wet, she confirms what I fear, both of us believe she doesn’t live out the year. Just like Terrorzin. Prophecies of both of their deaths—wait. Prophecies. It keeps coming back to prophecies. Fricklefrack. I’m a time traveler.

Closing my eyes, stilling my breathing, I reach out to the non. I dive into the lack of the flow of time. I slip into the moment between moments, the space between spaces. Could I pull a trope? Could I set it up so that the prophecy technically is fulfilled, or at least looks like it is, while coming back in time from some point far, far in the future, when I’m massively much more powerful? If this is the prime timeline, we’re destined to succeed. Aren’t we?

I—I know I died, but I feel like, like it must be inevitable that we succeed somehow, isn’t it? Lu had feelings about more beyond this. There’s more she’s hiding. I can’t—glp, I can’t let that all be for nothing. I guess we table the idea for now. If Kinzul—I rub my eyes fiercely—perishes, and her body disappears or something, maybe I succeeded at this. This half-baked plan. I have an infinite lifespan, right?

There’s no way I’d ever give up, is there? Give up on Kinzul? If I live for eternity, there has to be some solution somewhere, that bends the rules of fate, right? Lil would say there goes Reggie, trying to break the rules again. Heh. Yeah, yeah there goes me, trying to break the rules again. And I will keep trying. Forever.

Loosing my grip on the lack of the flow of time, I slip back to reality, and allow gravity to bring me to my son’s snoot. Somehow Reggie, somehow. Do whatever it takes. Take every moment of every reality, for as long as eternity, and always keep trying. Always. Keep living, keep living as if there’ll never be an end in sight, and work to make that a reality. Live without heeding the warnings the way you normally would. Live without them, and keep your hands on the reins, on the loom of fate.

I’ve been told, or accused, of being alone at the loom of fate before. The Sisters are watching the threads of destiny like Atropos, Clotho, and Lachesis? The Moirai? Then they’d better watch me. Because I’m going to dance on those threads, even if it looks like they all come to an end. It’s cocky, but I won’t let myself ever end, because that would mean giving up, and letting all the past hurts happen. I’ll live, with or without their warnings, somehow. Even if I die. Yes I know how stupid that sounds.

There’s a round of chuckling across my mental wavelengths, and I wear a grim grin in response. Alright. No more time for fooling around, or feeling bad. If Rayileklia is ending, we need plans in place. I won’t let a planet getting destroyed take my loved ones from me.

There’s a round of confusion from everyone, and my wife starts, “Beloved, what could you possibly mean by that? It sounds an impossible paradox.”

I know I’m going to sound cocky, but my response is, “Hey, I’m the Hero of the Order of the Onyx Dawn, right? An archmage Aliased Schism, with the Latent, Nothing? And your Void Dragon Honoris Causa. Impossible is half of what I do, and we’ve got quite a number of Paradoxes right here. I’m going to need to help Littlebit’s research.”

The assembled Paradox Dormir and Paradox Vivant either grin or roll their eyes at my calling them out. Everyone shuffles back as my Honoris Causa expands. It was showy, and it’ll cost me a bit, but there’s a lot of new faces around here. New faces, and old, that aren’t yet on psychic networks, that could use reassurances that their Schism isn’t giving up on them. Now, how do you suppose we go on living, if parts of a planet are destroyed? Move to another part, of course. Evacuate. Maybe all of Rayileklia won’t be destroyed, maybe just the northern hemisphere, or something. If all else fails, evacuate the whole damn world.

Starting off as friendly as I can, I request, “Littlebit, any luck so far with that ‘Twixt portal research?”

The adorable, vivacious, intelligent goblin woman perks up, her emerald cheeks wide and tinged with a blush of pride as she realizes immediately what I mean. Her response surprises me, “I’ve been hitting a wall, because I’ve been getting a lot of feedback, signals that overwhelm my sensors and gadgets, stuff that’d blow the most amped up circuits and speakers. But uh, you think you can keep this trick running for a while? Like you did on our way from Jeegoobotstan?”

My smile fights its way across my face. We can do this. We’ll save everyone. No matter what it takes, or what it costs me. I glance to Luni and Kinzul, their lips part as both of their jaws drop ever so slightly, as they realize what I’m saying, and what I’m going to do. Despite what I’d promised them only this morning. Yet neither of them wants to stop me now. I’ll always, always do whatever it takes, if I have it in me. Right now? I have about as much in me as I’ve ever had before.

The snorting and laughter across my telepathic wavelengths has me rolling my eyes, but I loose a half chuckle through a snort as I shake my head. Turning to Kinzul, I plead, “Can you get word out, my love? That at the drop of a hat, everyone, everyone needs to be ready to make it to Mount Verdimenn if the word goes out. Calmly, orderly. Take care not to harm each other. I don’t expect it immediately, or even within the next few days, but we should have scouts watching the northwestern area towards where Stormspire was. If—if there’s a Night of All Burn, here, the size I imagine possible, I want everyone to be ready to flee, and evacuate down here, and I’ll try to get everyone from here, to somewhere safe. If Littlebit’s ‘Twixt research pans out. If not? I’ll think of something crazy at the time, I guess.”

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Shiz chuckles and rests a hand on my shoulder, winking at me. I like the big guy. I’m glad the thunderer siblings joined us. Yui is propping up Yuri nearby, and she looks suitably impressed despite the slight anger tinging her features. I understand. My favor got her brother hurt. Even if she doesn’t hold it against me, she has every right to process her anger at me for it.

Speaking of my favor, “Has anyone gotten Induul’s sitrep? Or seen him at all since he got back?”

The shuffling, the quiet, and hemming and hawing is all the answer I need, at least until a Draconiac I don’t know comments, “Our The-Green left through the aerie, when the flight was sieging us from above. I—I saw him leave, I swear, but I didn’t see him return.”

My eyes widen in shock as I cast a glance towards Kinzul who furrows her brow. She shakes her head, denying that Induul is dead. I know about her Administration Latent, a lot more about it than I’m supposed to. If she says Induul isn’t dead, then he isn’t dead. What the hell is going on with him? I know he’s battling his addiction withdrawal right now, but to leave during a siege? After showing up, also during the siege?

Glancing at Illy, I can see her trying to process the same questions. He’s her teammate, her subordinate. They’ve known each other for a very long time by my standards. Yet she offers me only a frown as she shakes her head, not able to answer the questions either. Yui looks pissed as hell about the news when she realizes what my glances to Kinzul and Illy mean, that The Green is alive, but flaking out. I can’t say I blame her, whether she’s upset at me, or Indy.

Leezahna begs my attention off to the side for a moment, and I acquiesce, letting her take the opportunity to speak first. She starts, “Schism, I—I—I’m, I’m sorry, about, about our fight. I—“

Thinking I’m being supportive, I hover a hand near her shoulder, which makes her flinch as I interrupt, “Think nothing of it, I’m sorry too.”

She shakes her head and frowns at me, taking half a step away from my hand as she continues, “You didn’t let me finish. I was going to breathe. I was charging up, like you said. I—I could have hurt people. Killed them. Thank you. For stopping me.”

Well crap. Hell’s bells. How do I respond to that? I attempt, “Oh, I’m, I’m sorry for interrupting. I um, I’m glad I stopped you too. Look, we both know socially I’m an idiot, and you have certain expectations that I probably can’t meet in the conversation department. I’m glad you’re here with us Leezahna. You’re important. I’m proud to have you on our side, and, and—.”

Leezahna reaches up to my hovering hand, and clasps the very tip of my fingers, in order to curtsy. I am so intensely uncomfortable with the gesture. Which I’m pretty sure is why Leezahna just started grinning after our eyes broke contact. Touchè Leezahna, touchè. She’s still trembling at our contact. I hate that I’ve traumatized her, but—but I don’t see another way I could have handled it, that ended with her staying in Mount Solace, alive. I know how awful that sounds. I didn’t trust her or her family in those moments.

Leezahna stares at my cheek for several moments after she returns to standing. Her eyes tell me she’s contemplating something. Her brow furrowing, and various twitches tell me she decided against whatever she was considering. She spins on her heel in a haughty manner, and catches herself doing it. Leeza proceeds to walk back to her dwelling while rubbing the back of her head embarrassedly. We’ll finish all the psychic networks over the course of the night, she doesn’t need to spend every minute at my side.

A lovely missile rams into my side and lifts, situating itself, herself, along my torso, so my arm rests draped over her shoulders. I can’t help smiling as Teuila asks, “You okay my Airhead? What’d the Princess want?”

Drawing a ragged breath, I wear a wry half-grin while shaking my head ruefully, “She was sincere Te. She apologized, or, well, thanked me for stopping her from hurting anyone. I’m proud of her.”

The expression drawn across Teuila’s features is one of surprised respect. She nods appreciatively, responding, “That sounds like good news. So you trust her now? With all our fancy Can’Z’aas magic stuff?”

Gnawing on my lip and furrowing my brow, I’m not sure I’d go so far as to say with all of our things, but I don’t want Leeza to possibly overhear me saying that, since I want her to feel trusted and supported. Quickly, I answer, “That’s about the half of it, yeah. Everyone here in the Onyx Dawn, or tangential to it, seems to be on a good path, each of them, whatever their journeys are. Farzee and Veril, Leeza here, even Zayzi according to Ixey. And obviously anyone who accepted our mercy. We’ve got Pidge, Trixxie, Yui, Yuri, Shiz, Zelshiz, Atter, some really great people who know a path to peace exists. One beyond the Ice of Rage.”

Offering a neutral, slightly dubious expression, tinted with a hint of worry, Te asks, “Are we just going to hope for the best for now? I don’t want you trying to do some stupid big sacrifice play hoping to hold a whole world together. I don’t—please don’t do that Airhead. Please?”

Casting my gaze aside and downwards, I’m not sure if I can make a firm promise on that, but I answer, “For now, we’ll just play it by ear. Maybe we’re wrong, maybe that wasn’t the Sisters’ warning. Maybe Alpacker’s crap didn’t go below Subterannea or whatever they call it here again, the ‘Neath, yeah, the ‘Neath. In Stormspire, we didn’t see any signs of those mite-hulk-adjacents like in the Gap near the kobolds’ warrens.”

Frowning for a while, Teuila brightens up a bit as she agrees, “Oh, true. I bet they’re all over down there in the ‘Neath. Yeesh, we’d have a Miracle Oak situation again on top of everything else, wouldn’t we? They’d be fleeing the lava maybe.”

Nodding in agreement, I catch Te’s lips with mine momentarily. We close our eyes and rest our foreheads together. I’ll do everything in my power to never abandon her, them, any of them. If the world is coming apart at the seams, I’ll find solutions. I’d best get working with Littlebit. We’ll go on living, researching, planning, as we would have without the warnings. Just a bit more aware of our invested time is all.

It seems I have a few more people that need me to check in with them first though, before I can get started on that, and set things up to finish over the course of the night. Farzhis is rubbing her arm ferociously, and virtually vibrating, continually backing away from Veril, looking ashamed with her gaze cast downwards. Crapsnackle pops. Poor Farzhis, poor Veril. Let’s see if we can do anything to help, yeah?