Town on the Edge of Time

[Renita_Serafim]

In a vast wasteland of grey decayed land filled with blackened trees that had long since died walked a robed figure. She was clothed in a snow white robe that covered her from head to toe. She was clearly elven, or at least of elven descent. The youthful elf had jade green eyes, long silky white hair and a diagonal scar that ran down her forehead.

 

The elf had reached her destination. A town, a town unlike any other in all reality. It looked both ancient to the point of being primative in some regards, but ultra modern in others. Some buildings looked like they were made crudely out of rock, whereas others were made of well carved bricks with gas pipes working in and out of the houses. In the centre was a statue that some of it's occupants would be very familiar with. A Cavelier. A cloaked warrior whose race was undiscernable.

 

Meanwhile, in "Edge Town"'s only inn, a purple skinned Teir'Dal in silver platemail with short spikey hair and eyes both dark indigo sat at in the bar room at the well polished wooden barcounter that sat next to the wooden stairs that led to the rooms upstairs. The room was small, cosy, made of well carved bricks and which it's walls were adorned with golden braziers. It was filled with circular tables and stools made of the same material as the barcounter.

 

On one such stool next to the counter, the spikey haired Teir'Dal known simply as "Raika" sat next to a fellow Teir'Dal, a silky white haired Teir' whose skin was pale and whose eyes were a vivid green. The pale skinned elf wore a sleeveless black tunic, matching black leggings and a long flowing black cape.

 

"Maati, you said your name was? Where am I?", Raika asked curiously.

 

Everyone in the room save the pale skinned Dark Elf known as Maati Ammita stopped speaking and burst into hysterical laughter as they heard  Raika's question.

 

Maati held her right hand in the air and commanded loudly, "Silence!" Speaking quietly once more, Maati addressed the room. "Raika is new here, how is she supposed to know where she is?"

 

The room suddenly quietened down and Maati turned to face Raika again.

 

"What's so funny?", Raika asked.

 

"You'll understand once I explain everything to you.", Maati replied.

 

Raika nodded. "OK."

 

Maati cleared her throat. "You're in Edge Town. A town on the edge of time."

 

"The edge of time?! What does that mean?", Raika replied in shock.

 

"It means...", Maati explained. "...that it exists in all times and no times all at once. It exists in a time stream all it's own."

 

"And this means what, exactly?", Raika asked.

 

"Let me put it this way." , Maati replied. "Let's say you're a adventurer from the year that Al'Kabor established contact with Luclin, alright. You attempt to use the Wizard Spires to get from one end of the world to the other. Something goes horribly wrong, and you end up stranded in transit. You fall through the fabric of reality, and wind up on the outskirts of this floating island. All around you, you see grey sand swirling around you in a neverending whirlpool. You step into it, and it sweeps you away. Next you know, you've arrived on the day that Antonius Bayle 1st was born. That clear things up?"

 

Raika pauses for a moment, digesting the information. "So...you're saying....that this place, this island...exists in a realm outside of time? A place that follows it's own time stream and where you can come in and come back out potentially centuries before you left?"

 

Maati nodded. "That's right. And you could return to this realm from the point in time that you arrived potentially centuries before you arrived here the first time in this realm's time stream."

 

"That's crazy.", Raika replied quite bluntly.

 

"You're on a small, bleak looking floating island consisting of one town, a small farm, and a surrounding forest that is utterly dead. All of which is surrounded by a never ending whirlpool of grey sand that goes on forever.", Maati stated. "Does what I've just told you sound any less believable than all of that?"

 

"I guess not. It explains the eclectic design of this place. Both primative and highly advanced all at once."

 

Maati nodded. "Exactly. So you really have only three choices. Find somebody here who can wrench open the portal that brought you here before it fades from existance, usually takes about a day. Jump into the sands and take your chances. Or settle down here in Edge Town."

 

Suddenly, the white cloaked youth walked into the tavern confidently. She walked over to the barcounter and orders a small glass of bloodwine from the barcounter. She glanced over toward Maati with a familiar glance, as if she'd seen the elf before, but Maati simply looked confused.

 

"Have I seen you someplace before?", Maati asked.

 

The white haired elf chuckled softly. "No."

 

"It was just the way you looked at me.", Maati replied.

 

"Never mind.", the cloaked youth replied.

 

"Alright.", Maati said, turning back to Raika.

 

Raika looked back at Maati. "I have to return back home, I have to.  Do you know anyone here who can open the gate?"

 

"Several.", Maati answered. "But it won't be free. I hope you've got some coin on you."

Message Edited by Astralmage on 02-06-200602:26 PM

[Eriol]

Nice. Kind of like "The End of Time" and "Mirage" rolled into one. And if you get both of those references, you're as big a geek as I am.

[Renita_Serafim]

I've read enough about Chrono Trigger to know about the End of Time (not sure about the other reference), but in case you're wondering, Edge Town was inspired on Remote Town from Vandal Hearts.

And I will be writing more stories set in Edge Town shortly.

[Eriol]

Mirage was a town in FFV that was suspended in time except when the Cleft of Dimension was within the world. It would take a while to explain, but it "kind of" travelled through time. And the "pocket timeline" was pretty central to End of Time theories. Check out www.chronocompendium.com and you'll see how they've worked out entire internally-consistent theories around time pockets, end of time, travel, etc, etc, etc.Your place would have a home there. I especially liked how the "variance" in time worked BOTH ways, both TO the town, and FROM the town. In most of these stories, everybody appears linearly in the "pocket", whereas in yours, either can appear either place, which is somewhat unique (in my limited experience at least).

[Renita_Serafim]

I've always loved the idea of a place like Edge Town in a fantasy setting but not the idea that the dimension's time stream would be linear to your own. It didn't make sense that you could end up in your own world's past, then go back to Edge Town and have a 100% (let alone a 10%) chance of arriving there at a time period equal to the amount of time you'd spent back in your home world since arriving.

Message Edited by Astralmage on 02-07-200601:51 AM

[Renita_Serafim]

The outside of Edge Town's library was deceptive. From the outside, it looked about the size of your average town's library, but on the inside, the walls were lined with oak bookshelves containing more books than anyone was likely to see anywhere. Not a case of the library's inside being larger than it's outside, but because of the skillful way in which such a large amount of books had been stored in such a comparitively small building. There were three massive floors of bookshelves, seperated into huge allyways of smaller bookshelves from one end of each room to the other. The floors themselves were linked by spiral shaped stairs that intwined between each floor. The Edge Library doubled as a magical research facility with smaller rooms set aside on each floor for use as research laboratories, meaning that although most of Edge Town's mages prefered to conduct their research in their own houes or inn room's, there were always a few pracitioners of mage in the library at all times.

Sat behind the wooden counter to the right of the front door was a blonde haired, hazel eyed Koada'Dal in long cloth robes. "Greetings.", he said as Raika entered the building. "What can I help you with?"

"Yeah. I was told that I could find a "gate weaver" here.", Raika replied.

"I see. You need somebody to help you return home. I believe Elena Rosenkreuz is currently using one of the labs on the top floor. She'll be able to help you. Lab number 3-7", the Koada'Dal answered.

"Thanks.", Raika said with a gentle nod before she started to climb the spiral staircase.

Meanwhile, back in the inn. The white cloaked elf sat on a stool at the barcounter with her glass of bloodwine, talking with the brown haired bartender clothed in a brown leather tunic and leggings with a dirtied white apron.

"You want to rent a room, huh?", the bartender asked. "Your name?"

The elf paused for a moment. "Ketera.", she replied.

"Alright...", the bartender said. "...it's a gold per night."

Maati, whom was still sat near where "Ketera" was sitting, listened carefully as she drank from a glass of spring water.

In the small laboratory on the top floor of the Edge Library, covered in small shelves holding many miscillanious trinkets and which also had a small desk and chair on the right hand corner of the room and a large dirtied wooden table in the middle covered in vials and research papers, was a silver haired Ayr'Dal in a bright red robe bearing the insignia of the Court of Truth. She glanced towards the door from the table with deep blue eyes as she heard a gentle knock on the door. "Come in.", she said calmly as she continued to write down notes on pieces of stray parchment.

Raika entered the room, closing the door carefully behind her.

"Excuse me...", Raika said calmly. "...are you Elena Rosenkreuz?"

"That's correct.", Elena replied as she stopped jotting down notes to speak to her visitor.

"I was told you could reopen the gate that brought me to this place.", Raika continued.

"That I can. Which side of the island did you enter from?", Elena asked.

"West side."

"Ah.", Elena replied. "How long have you been here?"

"About four hours."

"Good.", Elena responded. "We have about a day before the magic that created the gateway expires completely. Gate weaving takes about half an hour usually. How much coin do you have?"

"1 platinum and 60 gold.

"Give me 50 gold and I'll call it even.", Elena said. "I don't like leaving people with no coin to spare when they return home. Especially considering that you might not end up exactly where you left."

What do you mean?", Raika asked, sounding quite worried.

"Even if I reopen the gateway you fell through when you came here, I still can't guarantee that the gate will be stable enough to return you to exactly where, and when, you arrived. You could end up days, weeks, months, even years before or after you left. It's not an exact science. This is the best I can offer you.", Elena explained.

"OK.", Raika said nervously. "50 gold it is. Thanks for helping me."

"Not a problem.", Elena replied with a soft smile.

Message Edited by Astralmage on 02-07-200602:59 AM

[Renita_Serafim]

Maati lay on her crimson red, silk bed on the left side of her small inn room, made from wood that looked like it was carved from the same dead trees that surrounded the entire island. The walls were painted black, the room lit by a golden chandelier hanging from the ceiling. There was one small bookcase made from the same charred wood as the bed on the right side of the room, packed with books from various eras of Norrathian history. The walls were covered in small charred wooden shelves with miscillanious items from across time. Maati Ammita's room could pass as a history exibit.

Maati lay on the mattress, deep in thought, dressed in her black sleeveless shirt, matching black leggings and her long black cape. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in!", Maati said in a voice sounded both tired and enthusiastic at the same time. Elena Rosenkreuz came in, carefully closing the door which handle resembled a wooden gnoll head quietly, wearing her ceremonial Court of Truth robe.

Maati sat up suddenly as Elena entered. "Elena! How are you?", she said with a gentle smile.

"I'm alright. Had a Teir'Dal come to me earlier asking me to help her return to her home time period.", Elena replied, sounding a little tired herself. "I agreed to do it in exchange for a small fee. I have about 15 hours to make good on the deal."

"Raika?", Maati inquired curiously.

"You know her?", Elena replied.

"I was the one who told her to inquire around the library."

Elena nodded. "I see. You're very kind. Lost travelers need people like you to look out for them."

"Not a problem. To be stranded from everything you once knew can be worse than anything to some people.", Maati replied.

"I can understand that. There have been people before who have found out too late that they only have a day to return home. It's heartrending to see their reaction when they're told", Elena said with a note of sadness in her voice.

"I'm going to feel a little guilty about leaving, actually.", Maati said with a grin. "Who's going to explain everything to all the wandering souls after I'm gone?"

"I wouldn't worry about it, Maati. I'm too busy to look out for every visitor who comes here, but I do what I can. And there will be others after you're gone.", Elena said reassuringly.

"I guess you're right...", Maati replied with a soft sigh. "I don't want to stay here forever. I have things I need to do back on Norrath. It had occured to me to inquire Raika about what time period she was traveling to, but I feel like staying here a little longer. It doesn't matter a great deal when I return to, I just don't wish to return to the last time period I was in. I have all the time in the world to rest up and relax here, so I can leave when I feel like it."

Message Edited by Astralmage on 02-08-200605:22 PM

[Renita_Serafim]

Thank you SOE for once again picking out a fanfic of mine to feature in EQ2 Players' Treasure Chest feature!

 

I'll have more chapters of this fic up shortly.

[Renita_Serafim]

Maati leant against one of the many pitch black, dead trees that surrounded the edge of the island as she watched, the edges of her cape that wern't held down by the tree blowing in the wind. Raika and Elena were stood before the edge of the island before the whirlpool of sand that raged endlessly around the landmass for all time.

Elena walked to the very edge of the island's west side holding a long, carved wooden staff. She pointed the staff toward the ground and began to draw a circle in the soil. After the circle, big enough to hold about 5 people, was drawn, Elena began to draw a pentagram star in the middle of the circle. She stepped back when she had draw her perfect magical circle and admired her handiwork for a second.

"Raika.", Elena said firmly. "As soon as the gateway is stable, you're to run through it straight away. Got that? It won't remain stable for long, you've got to use it while you can."

"Got it!", Raika said with resolve.

Elena nodded quickly. "Good. Now that we have that clear. I can begin."

"Sonorch Yawetaga, Sonorch Yawetaga, Sonorch Yawetaga...", Elena chanted calmly, almost as if in a trance as she carefully waved her staff left and right across the magic circle. The staff began to glow with bright silvery light as the pentagram crackled with electrical energy which surged upward into the sky.

Quietly, so as not to distract Elena from her incantation, Maati whispered to Raika, who was stood a few inches in front of her. "Good luck. I hope you return home safely."

"Thanks, Maati. That means a lot to me.", Raika repled with a soft smile as she looked over her shoulder at Maati. "If it wern't for you, I might not have found out how to get back in time."

Elena's chanting became louder and more frantic. "Sonorch Yawetaga, Sonorch Yawetaga, Sonorch Yawetaga!"

Suddenly, a pitch black hole burst open in front of the three elves over the pentagram, almost like a tear in a piece of parchment.

"Raika! Run, now!", Elena shouted as she stepped to the side of the circle to allow Raika access.

"Thanks again, Elena, Maati, for everything!", Raika said hastily before dashing into the gateway, fading out of sight as she entered the pitch black doorway.

Elena turned to Maati. "You know when she's headed, sure you don't wanna leave now?"

Maati shook her head gently. "Sure, I'd like to stay here a little while longer."

Maati's vivid green eyes flickered with an emerald glow for a split second, and she blinked suddenly as if her eyesight had gone fuzzy, only it hadn't.

"Something wrong, Maati?", Elena asked with note of concern in her voice.

"I felt something as Raika passed through the gateway.... Shrouded in torment's embrace, a whisper of a song of sorrow.", Maati replied calmly. "Don't fret about it, it was just a feeling. A thought. She'll be fine."

Message Edited by Astralmage on 02-11-200605:17 PM

[Renita_Serafim]

There was a very strong scent of incense as the blue robed human youth walked into the trinket store, her hazel hair short and neat, her eyes a golden yellow. On the charred wooden counter at the back of the room on each side were two golden incense burners. Shelf upon shelf of miscillanious trinkets lined the pitch black walls, the room to a newcomer would seem like one large anachronism.

"Greetings. What can I help you with?", the pale skinned, long black haired Teir'Dal said standing from behind the counter wearing a black silk suit, speaking in a heavily accented tone remenicent of somebody from Castle Mistmoore, his eyes a deep haunting indigo.

"I'm new here and I was told about this place at the local inn.", the young scholar replied.

"I see. I am Kaelin K'Ron, and this is my store. Sometimes, when a lost traveler arrives here and requires coin in order to pay for the service of a gate weaver, they will sell trinkets they don't need to me. Some I keep for my private collection, others I sell to interested buyers."

"I see. My name's Lolani. Could you show me some of your wares?", the scholar asked.

"Indeed. What sort of things would you be interested in?", Kaelin replied.

As Kaelin asked, the white haired Teir'Dal known by almost everyone in the town as Maati Ammita entered the room in her black caped attire.

Glancing at Maati for a moment, Kaelin responded, "Anything of historical or cultural value."

"Anything of historical or cultural value?", Maati asked curiously, walking toward the counter next to Lolani. "That could be said of everything in this room. Things from your era may not seem like they mean much in the grand scale of things, but here, they might be collectors items that sell for hundreds of platinum a piece."

Kaelin nodded to Maati, then turned back to face Lolani. "Tell me which era you are from and I might be able to find something here that would interest you."

"I'm from the year 5000 A.N.", Lolani replied.

"Ah. The fall of the Combine.", Kaelin commented. "You're timeline divergance neutral then."

"Timeline divergance neutral?", Lolani asked, sounding immensely confused. "What does that mean?"

"Let me explain.", Maati responded sagely. "Around the year 5390 A.N, Innoruuk does something that inadvertantly disrupts the barriers that the Rathe created to keep mortals and lesser gods out of the Planes of Power, and thus, mortals flood into the immortal realms. From the residents of the Plane of Knowledge, the mortals learn of Zebuxoruk and his secrets of divinity. Some sought to free Zebuxoruk from his imprisonment on the Plane of Time. They suceeded, however, Druzzil Ro stepped in before Zebuxoruk was able to share his knowledge with the mortal forces and reversed time back to a point before Zebuxoruk was freed. As a result, Druzzil inadvertantly tore Norrath's timestream in twain from that point onwards."

"I see...", Lolani replied, still sounding confused. "If time was reversed, wouldn't it simply continue to repeat in an endless loop as the mortals continued to repeat their actions over and over?"

"No.", Maati answered, shaking her head. "Think of it like the adventurers waking up from a dream and going on with their lives if the whole incident with Zebuxoruk had never happened in the first place, which for all intents and purposes, it hadn't."

Lolani nodded. "I understand. So what you mean by "time divergance neutral" is that I come from a point from before the split?"

"Exactly.", Maati nodded.

"So, Miss Lolani.", Kaelin said, facing Lolani. "Would you like to see something from before or after your time?"

"After, please. I'd like to see how things developed after I left.", Lolani replied.

Kaelin turned around to face a shelf behind the counter and began searching for something. "Developed, hmm? I might have just the thing."

Kaelin took a small leather pouch from off of the shelf and opened it up on the counter, a large amount of gold coins with a insignia of a blue sword inscribed on each one.

"Blades coins!", Maati exclaimed, examining the coins enthusiastically.

"Blades coins?", Lolani asked, finding the whole experience in the shop still rather confusing.

A silky jade green haired Koada'Dal with sky blue eyes walked into the room from a door to the left leading to the rest of the house wearing a frilly white maids outfit and small reading spectacles. Cheerfully, but scholarly at the same time, she replied "Coins carried by those allied with the Court of Blades."

"Sorry, almost forgot to introduce myself. I'm Jessica.", the maid continued, adjusting her spectacles.

"Nice to meet you.", Lolani replied. "Court of Blades?"

"In one of Norrath's two divergant time streams, the dervishes of the desert of Ro establish their own citadel called Maj'Dul on a plateau centered loosely in the middle of the region. At one time, it was ruled by a single ruler with smaller sects ran by their children. The sects of Blades, Truth and Coin. There came a time when the three sons of the ruler whom had just died could not agree on who inherited control of Maj'Dul, and thus each sect became a court that strived for dominance over the other two for control over the city. Each court had coins that one allied with it carried, coins that identified them as being followers of a particular court.", Jessica explained enthusiastically.

"Maj'Dul court coins sell for a lotta money here.", Maati responded sagely. "They're a temporal rarity since they are distict to only one particular era of history in only one of Norrath's divergant timelines. In fact, anything from the empire of Maj'Dul is considered immensely valuable since their culture is very distinctive, there isn't anything like it in any other time period."

Message Edited by Astralmage on 02-13-200606:24 AM

[Renita_Serafim]

Posting to draw attention to the fact that I've finished editing the chapter directly above now that I have the information regarding Maj'Dul's courts that I needed to write all of it.

[xbraindeadx]

More! More! Im loving it!

[Renita_Serafim]

Back in the Edge Town Inn, in a crimson red, leather armchair in the left corner of the room next to the stairs leading to the rooms upstairs, sat the white haired youth calling herself "Ketera". She was relaxed in ther armchair wearing her white cloak covering her from head to toe whilst she read through a bundle of documents written on fine parchment. Closer inspection of her left hand revealed it to be faintly clawlike with a slight purple tint to it.

Maati walked calmly through the front door and whispered something to the bartender, who then poured a glass of water for her from a jug on one of the shelves behind the counter. After paying the bartender a small handful of copper, Maati walked over to the empty wooden table next to Ketera's armchair and sat down on one of the stools facing her.

"You look new here.", Maati said to Ketera calmly.

"That's right. I'm new here.", Ketera replied, glancing at Maati through one eye whilst still reading through her documents with the other.

"D'you know what this place is?", Maati asked curiously.

Ketera nodded gently. "Yep. Town on the edge of time."

"Somebody else tell you?", Maati smirked. "That's strange. The people at this tavern can be so unhelpful, I'm guessing the bartender explained it, right?"

"No.", Ketera replied, shaking her head. "I knew before I arrived."

Maati looked a little startled, blinking in suprise. "You came here on purpose?! You must have been either very lucky or very skilled!"

"A little of both, most likely.", Ketera replied with a gentle smile.

"May I ask your name?", Maati asked cheerfully.

"Ketera."

Maati's look of shock returned immediately. "Ketera?"

"Something wrong?", Ketera replied curiously.

"That name, I've heard it before in my travels.", Maati commented.

Ketera smiled. "Consider the nature of this place. Is it any surprise?"

Maati caught a glimpse of a book poking out of Ketera's leather backpack on the floor. "Lyresmith Poetry Collection" was the title inscribed on the front.

"I guess not...", Maati answered. "So you're using this place to attempt to create a predestination paradox, hmm?"

Ketera chuckled. "In a sense, but I'm more of a postlady, if you get my meaning."

"Before...", Maati responded. "When you came in here earlier. You looked at me like you knew me and yet I've never met you before. Do you know me from when you came from?"

Ketera chuckled softly once more. "You could say that. But it's not in the best interests of either me or the one for whom I'm doing favours for me to divulge the details."

Maati smirked. "I understand."

[Ekuthh]

Interesting... reminds me vaugely of certain parts of the Elric of Melnibone saga by Michael Moorcock.

More please...

[Renita_Serafim]

In the small laboratory on the top floor of the Edge Library frequently used by Elena Rosenkreuz, covered in many small pitch black shelves holding various trinkets, Elena stood once more at the dirtied wooden table in the middle covered in vials and scattered research papers in her favourite red robe which bore the insignia of Maj'Dul's Court of Truth.

 

There was a sudden knock on the door. "Come in!", Elena said loudly as she scribbed down notes. Maati rushed into the room in the black caped attire for which she was famed, closing the door hastily behind her.

 

"Maati, you look exhausted. What's wrong?", Elena said with confusion in her tone.

 

"Have you met the white haired Ayr'Dal that arrived here shortly after Raika did? Scar on her forehead, has a claw for a left hand?", Maati asked curiously.

 

"I've seen her around, yeah. I haven't spoken to her though, why?", Elena replied.

 

"She calls herself "Ketera"."

 

"Ketera?!", Elena exclaimed in shock.

 

"She had a bundle of documents that she was reading through in the inn. Poking out of her backpack with a copy of Lyresmith's Poetry Collection, I spied another indentical looking bunch of papers.", Maati stated calmly, catching her breath.

 

"Did you get a chance to look at them at all?", Elena asked.

 

"No, I didn't ask. It only occured to me after she had gone up to her inn room.", Maati answered as her breathing became more steady.

 

"That those two bundles of papers were....?"

 

"...copies of the Ketera Manuscript.", Maati replied. "She called herself a "postlady". She admitted to trying to create a predestination paradox and that she was here of her own free will."

 

"Did she say what era she's from?", Elena asked.

 

"No. I haven't a clue. She didn't say. Although she did say that she knew me from when she had come from, but it wasn't in the best interests of her or the one for whom she's doing deliveries to give any details. I've never met her before, so all I can assume is that I meet her again at some point in my future when I return to Norrath."

 

"Do you suppose that we're through the looking glass?", Elena replied, her eyes widening.

 

"Exactly my point. I think that we're close to the source.", Maati answered sagely. "The first copy of the Ketera Manuscript appeared shortly after the first Rallosian War around 4600 A.N. From there, it's passed from owner to owner who saw it's contents as little more than fairy tale. Through the ages, a handful of copies were made which too faded into the shadows. Around 5372 A.N, a second copy, which is said to be an exact match in handwriting to the original, emerges. Some say that there is only one original to begin with and that the second is a myth, but conflicting sources point to the existance of two seperate originals on opposite sides of the world. Both documents appear out of nowhere, apparently written by the same author."

 

Elena paused for a moment, pondering. "If we are to assume that the "Ketera" that is currently staying here IS the author the the Ketera Manuscript, she must be intending to wait here until somebody here hires a gate weaver to take them back to the era that Ketera wants to travel to, and drop the manuscripts off."

 

"But there are two.", Maati responded. "Either she is planning on making a return trip here to drop off the second one in a different era, or she is going to give the document to somebody else travelling there and counting on the fact that the effect that she hopes to create has already happened or is about to happen in the era from which she has just came and that her document must logically reach it's intended recipient. My advice. Keep a close eye on anyone who pays you to gate weave until Ketera leaves the island. Also, take careful note of what eras people are travelling to, and listen out for people traveling to the ages of Blood and Turmoil. There are other gate weavers aside you that might create the portals that Ketera ends up using , so we have no guarantee of finding out how Ketera's endevours turn out, but we can at least try and get some answers."

 

Elena nodded. "I understand. Tell me, Maati. Have you ever read a Ketera Manuscript before, original or copy?

 

"No...", Maati replied, shaking her head. "...I've heard only whispers. Stories woven throughout time."

[Ekuthh]

*munches popcorn*

[Renita_Serafim]

Authors Note:

The chapter that used to be here was my attempt at explaining Maati's lack of knowledge of future events in ingame roleplay (since only SOE know what Norrath's future holds), but I felt that what I wrote detracted from the magic and timelessness of Edge Town. A more suitable explanation was given without me even realising it at first in my "Darkness and Light - Rise of the Dragons" fanfic that suggests that Maati knows what's going to happen for years to come, but simply doesn't mention it because the moment she gains a reputation as a prophet, she'll be pestered with followers begging her for answers. Which Maati doesn't want. For this reason, I'm removing the chapter that was here from the story to restore the timeless quality that Edge Town had previously

Message Edited by Astralmage on 02-23-200604:17 PM

[Renita_Serafim]

Sat within the Edge Town Inn's bar room at the well polished wooden barcounter were Ketera and an elderly looking, bald gnomish man with a long silky white beard and sky blue eyes wearing a long tattered robe that was a aquamarine shade.

 

"Is...is that the genuine article...?", the elderly gnome asked in sheer amazement. "The...Ketera Manuscript?!"

 

"Sure is.", Ketera replied cheerfully, holding a bundle of yellow parchment documents. "I happen to have two copies on me, in fact. One of them is a replica I made myself."

 

"...My Gate Weaver...She's sending me home in a few hours....Do you think you could sell me a copy before I go?", the man asked nervously.

 

"Sell?", Ketera chuckled. "I have an original. As long as I have that, I can make as many replicas as I need. I'm not going to withhold knowledge for the sake of extorting coin from people. I'll give you a copy for free. You're from 4750 A.N, right?"

 

"That's right."

 

"Thought so, just curious.", Ketera replied sagely whilst she reaching around in her leather backpack which was next to her on the bar counter. After a moment of searching, she pulled an identical bundle of documents from the backpack and handed them to the old man.

 

"Th..Thank you.", the old man replied happily. "I am...e..eternally grateful."

Message Edited by Astralmage on 02-22-200608:27 AM

[dano]

truley excellent

[VampTou]

---

Ekuth wrote:

*munches popcorn*

---

Ekuth!? Stop muching popcorn and start working on the continuation of your story! I wanna read, you know? :smileyvery-happy:That said, great story Astralmage! Sheesh, I have been around these forums for 2-3 days only and I have already found a number of great posts like this one. How do you guys do it? That is the curse of me, a great reader, not able to write :smileysad:Looking forward to seeing more and more... and more continuations and new stories :smileyhappy:

[Ekuthh]

Hey, we writers have to eat, too!

If you check, you'll find the next chapter up.

And keep going on this, Astral- I'm enjoying it immensely.  You need to do a cohesive story that ties in all of Maati's adventures.

[Renita_Serafim]

The next chapter is taking a little time to work out, since I need to know precisely how I'm going to handle Ketera's departure from Edge Town. I'm also debating if the story of the Ketera Tree mentioned in the alternate universe Requiem story belongs here or in another tale.

In regards to a cohesive biography of Maati Ammita, since she was born in what might or might not be a divergant version of Geburia's future, the complete story of Maati will likely be revealed alongside the ongoing Geburia storyline.

Message Edited by Astralmage on 03-19-200604:29 AM

[Ekuthh]

Cool.  Looking forward to it.  Let me know how my storyline strikes you and if you have any suggestions.

[Renita_Serafim]

Posting to let everyone know that I've worked out what I'm doing with the next chapter of the story and I'll have it posted sometime tommorow. What I've worked out will let me play around with another fun lil' idea I've had for Edge Town since the start.

[Renita_Serafim]

On the second floor of the Edge Town library, lit only by a singe gold brazier on the wall beside the stairs, Elena and Maati sat at a small oak table in the one illuminated area of the room. Although there wasn't strictly such a thing as day or night in Edge Town, there was a time of day that the residents tended to treat as night.

 

"How many days now since she arrived?", Elena asked inquisitively.

 

"It's been over a week.", Maati replied, now wearing a casual silk, black dress.

 

"And Ketera hasn't done a thing?"

 

"Well....", Maati responded. "....I notice that after the first couple of days, Ketera only seems to have one manuscript on her person, but perhaps she just has it well hidden."

 

"So you think maybe-", Elena began to reply when a huge flash of light came from the first floor. "What was that?! I thought everybody else had left!"

 

"Let's check it out!", Maati replied enthusiastically, leaping out of her chair and dashing down the stairs.

 

On the side of the middle row of bookcases on the first floor appeared to be a tall, glowing gateway radiating mistly blue light. As Elena and Maati made their way down the stairs, they caught a glimpse of a white haired figure passing through the gateway.

 

"Ketera!", Maati exclaimed, dashing towards the gate.

 

"What is that thing?", Elena asked as she stood alongside Maati at the gateway.

 

"Only one way to find out.", Maati answered with a confident grin.

 

Elena nodded silently as they both ran swiftly through the glowing passageway.

 

Before them was the inside of a tower with an infinitely tall, ornate gold staircase spiraling up the polished obsidian walls which matched the floors. At several points up the stairs was a gold rimmed wooden door with a numerical value inscribed above it on the metal framing.

 

"Wow!", Maati shouted with glee. "I didn't think this place even existed!"

 

"It's the...the Tower of Ages...!", Elena replied.

 

There was a sudden sound of hastened footsteps further up the stairs as Elena and Maati's voices echoed through the tower.

 

"She must have opened the gateway, but how?", Maati pondered, staring upwards at the source of the sound.

 

The sound of a door opening and slamming loudly could be heard from above.

 

"Aaand, there goes our chance of finding out where she's going.", Elena said with exasperation as the door slammed upstairs. "How did she know which door to pick?"

 

"Isn't it obvious?", Maati smiled knowingly as she turned to face Elena. "She doesn't know how to discern which time period each of these doors lead to any more than the two of us do. She simply knew that the one she chose was the one she needed to use."

 

Elena's eyes widened as a look of realisation washed over her. "You mean....she left herself a note in her own past...telling her which door she needed to use?"

 

"Exactly." Maati nodded sagely as she answered, glancing at the glowing blue gateway behind her on the wall. "Which was also how she knew the incantation she needed to open the gateway."

[Kassabba]

.....and then????

[Renita_Serafim]

Sorry, I like to write my chapters in "cut a way" style where it's the important details that get shown, and the part where everyone walks away to where ever is left to the imagination. When the next chapter is ready, I'll have likely skipped ahead by a few hours to show Maati and Elena exploring the Tower of Ages and learning how it works.

[Renita_Serafim]

Authors Note:

Taking a break from the ongoing story with this chapter to allow Maati to stop and explain the complexities of chronomancy. This is all in effect speculation, as no amount of "Time Travel in EQ2" threads on History and Lore have persuaded a lore dev to post an explanation on how it's supposed to work. I've taken what chronomancy lore has been given and attempted to fill in the gaps myself, with a little artistic license added in for the sake of a good story. And yes, I've been "borrowing" (/em has shifty eyes.) from the Chrono Compendium link that Eriol posted earlier in the thread.

 

Maati and Elena stood beside each other, leaning against the wall that was a far ways up from the floor of the Tower of Ages, next to a doorway that was labeled with a numerical value. When one stares up further, they will notice that the "tower appears branch off into another surrounding tower through an ornate gold bridge made of the same material as the stairs.

"Why do you suppose that there's a bridge branching off from the tower up there?", Elena asked as she catched her breath, breathing heavily from the long walk up to the point that herself and Maati were at now.

"Alternate timelines?", Maati mused, breathing quite heavily herself.

"Druzzil's work?", Elena replied.

"Yeah.", Maati answered.

"Ah.", Elena nodded. "Makes sense. Which instance?"

"What do you mean, which instance?", Maati asked, curiously.

"There were two.", Elena answered sagely. "She altered the timeline once when she opened a gateway between her relative present and Takish Hiz just before it fell. She altered it again when she reversed the events leading up to Zebuxoruk's liberation."

Maati nodded in understanding, staring upwards at the bridge. "If you assume that the doors down at the bottom lead to the earliest possible points in history, then those bridges up there should lead to the timelines where Druzzil did and didn't open a gateway into the future. Look really, really close up there, and you'll notice another bridge further up. That'll branch off into the tower leading into the timeline where the gods departed good and proper."

"So you're saying that every time someone attempts to alter the past, another "tower" is created? But shouldn't that happen every single time that somebody travels into their relative past via the Edge Town?", Elena asked curiously.

"No.", Maati shook her head. "Predestination. Those travelers end up in the past through a domino effect of events throughout their lives. They haven't actually altered anything as they were living in their own pasts before they even arrived in the first place. Alternate timelines are created through deliberate attempts to tamper with the fabric of time through magic. You can't change history simply by reacting to events in your own past, you have to touch the essence of time itself before you can alter anything. Something that only Druzzil Ro is known to have ever done."

"But...assuming that you could theoretically counter an event in your own past?", Elena asked. "Assuming that you used your own knowledge of the future to force things to play out differently? What would happen then?"

"It's impossible." Maati answered. "Nobody has ever managed to do it, ever. But I imagine that if you could force the flow of time to alter, that you would vanish from the time flow as it had existed before the change, and you would continue to exist only in the new timeline that you had created."

"It would continue to exist? The old timeline, I mean?", Elena replied.

"Perhaps.", Maati mused, staring up at the bridge as she pondered Elena's question. "Perhaps it would exist as a seperate timeline in the same way as Druzzil's creations. Or perhaps the unique nature of the time divergance would cause the old material to be shunted into nothingness, a place not unlike the Void itself?"

"Who knows?", Maati shrugged.

Message Edited by Astralmage on 04-12-2006 01:40 PM

[Renita_Serafim]

I'll admit, I'm close to the point in the story now when I imagined Maati leaving the Edge Town and arriving in the Age of Destiny.

However, the Edge Town, the Tower of Ages, the Ruined World (Maati's homeland, a version of Norrath a few decades into the future where almost nothing lives and the world is a decayed wasteland) and the Dark Space (Waste Paper Basket for negated timelines) are featuring indirectly in in-game roleplay and directly in open RP threads on unofficial forums.

If people are interested, I can begin posting the Edge Town relevant material from the open RP threads here as Town on the Edge of Time chapters. I'd appriciate it if people would post here with their thoughts so I know what direction to take.

[Ekuthh]

I, for one, would love to read the other work relating to this. :smileyhappy: