User blog:Addfire/In The Beginning

World: 0156050

Ghosty leaned back in his chair. He was sitting in a mess hall, talking over lunch with a new friend of his, HAWAIIANpikachu. HAWAIIAN was a blonde-haired genius with a serious a addiction to coffee and an Australian accent. He'd taken his first Plunge a year ago, and was Granted with the power to reason out illogical situations. It had first surfaced while being attacked by a Bard with the Grant to turn into a stone golem. HAWAIIAN asked how the Minstrel could move without muscles, as it was entirely made out of stone, and the golem lost the ability to move.

"So... Playful can... Control shadows?" Ghosty was trying to remember all the major players.

"Yeah, specifically her shadow," HAWAIIAN corrected. "She can manipulate it and turn it solid, so you can be stabbed to death with something intangible. Don't ever spar with her, she doesn't have a 'nonlethal' setting."

"Wow, you're an endless bag of exposition, aren't you? Well then, Mister I've-Been-Here-Longer-Than-You, what's the deal with Sondz and Yami? In that order."

"Oh, Sondz is an interesting one. I can't recall exactly how his Grant works, but he'll take a bottle, break it, and then fling the shards at you, with infallible accuracy. Actually, it's kind of like what Rubik had."

"Rubik?" Ghosty hadn't heard this name mentioned before.

"Oh yeah. Rubik had been around for a while. His ability was to control any fired projectile... He actually handicapped himself by using a bow and arrow instead of a gun. The point was, he was an amazing sniper. But he was found dead a couple months ago, killed by some Bard. Rocket's body — oh, yeah, Rocket was Granted with flight — was found two worlds over. Those two were good friends. It was sad, really, what happened. None of 'em deserved it."

"That's... Depressing. So what about Yami?"

HAWAIIAN's eyes twinkled. "Our Glorious Leader? Oh, she fascinates me. No one's ever seen her use her ability in public, she's naturally that great of a fighter. But she definitely has a terrifying ability, because Yami's also our head interrogator. She can crack someone's mind like an egg, if the two are in a room together."

Ghosty shivered. "Damn," he joked, attempting to lighten the mood. "Who knew that Yami Riku could be so fucking scary?"

Desert appeared out of nowhere behind HAWAIIAN, mouthing Language with a smile.

"Jesus riding a unicycle!" Ghosty yelped, falling out of his seat while HAWAIIAN laughed.

"So," he grunted, pulling himself off the floor. "What's your deal? How'd you get to be in such a high position?"

"Oh, my Grant is an interesting one," Desert obviously had been waiting for Ghosty to ask. "I can see into people's pasts."

HAWAIIAN went into fits over the horror-filled look on Ghosty's face. "Don't worry, friend. Desert only goes through your entire life once. And while fighting, all he looks for is your fighting style, so he knows what you're most likely going to do."

"I'm not a stalker, I swear!" Joked Desert. "Although those striped pajamas that you wore were adorable."

Ghosty rolled his eyes. "Real funny," he grumbled. "So um... What about this whole multiverse thing? Kinda hard to get used to that..."

"Oh, you'll love this," Desert said. "It's like... You know what, Jm's the best at telling this story. JM! GET OVER HERE!"

The demonic figure flew over the crowd of new recruits, flapping his wings. Twenty yards away, they could already hear his voice in their head. ''I am coming. You want me to talk about... The beginning?''

"Yes, please..." Asked Ghosty.

Very well.

World: 0156050

''At first, there was an infinite number of worlds, but only two were unique among them, and each were Granted with powerful abilities. Preservation kept things that should be were they were, and made sure that nothing ended forever. Change kept all things in flux, keeping the worlds from become dormant and ending that which was nessecary. The two worked together to keep it all in balance.''

''Then, there was a third unique individual found, a third person capable of Plunging. Their name was lost to time, but the introduction of a third threw it all into chaos. The careful balance had been destroyed. It could not have been prevented.''

''In a desperate attempt to save at least some of the worlds, Change used his power to destroy certain worlds. He obliterated as few as possible, but just enough so that every remaining world would have someone unique on them. Someone to be Granted.''

In effect, he cut infinity in half.

''He had saved as much as he could. But his methods caused Preservation to grow malignant towards him. It became clear to her that Change was a threat. They both changed, founding their own organization with their own view of how the worlds should be run.''

''Preservation became Stagnation, and created the Coalition, a group of peacekeepers. But while they keep the peace, nothing new happens. Change became Degeneracy, and created the Bards, whose music is the end of all things.''

Stagnation and Degeneracy are both long dead, but the Coalition and the Bards still wage their war.

''And the third, who went unnamed? They killed them self after seeing what their arrival had brought.''

Ghosty frowned. "Doesn't exactly sound like we're the good guys, then."

We are better than the alternative.

World: Prime

Sondz was wandering, not sure where to go. His yellow jacket pulled tight around him and a carefully-crafted smile that claimed his feelings only extended to a bland joy smeared across his face, he walked through the streets of utopia.

His thoughts were cast back to when he first joined the Coalition, ready to save the multiverse from the big bad Bards. He was naive then. Unknowing. He hadn't even realized his Grant.

Then he killed Rubik. It had been an accident, the two partying on top of a roof. Sondz was drunk. Rubik, joking around, had shoved Sondz, and Sondz' returning punch threw Rubik off a roof.

Then, Sondz felt a new power in him light up. He could control projectiles. And in exactly the same method Rubik could. He had started to realize what his Grant was, but needed to be sure.

Luckily, Rocket had been there on the roof, looking on his horror as one of his friends pushed another one of his friends off the roof.

Soon Sondz was able to fly.

No one suspected him, even looked at him, while he played the part of grieving friend oh so very well. Desert didn't even bother checking for the culprit among his own team, and always stayed true to his promise of never checking someone's past twice.

Sondz met Spicy. The two were practically joined at the hip, Sondz in a whirlwind romance that he never wanted to end. Thoughts about proposing to Spicy, maybe even settling down with him were racing through his kind the night he found Spicy in bed with Eclipsa.

Sondz left in tears.

Then a Minstrel approached him. A bald man with a yellow goatee, who explained to Sondz that a mole in the Coalition would help the Bards so much. Sondz didn't even stop to think about his options before accepting the man who would soon become his henchman's deal.

For it to succeed, though, Sondz had to pretend to be friends with Spicy again. Help him run that inane training camp. Even encourage the love that had been stolen from him.

Maybe Sondz had felt a little guilty after revealing secret info on Ulithemuli's location and then watching the funeral procession of the then-leader of the Coalition. But he'd definitely gotten over it by the time he orchestrated FirePyre's death, and was honestly dismayed when Eclipsa survived his attack.

But he wasn't sure how to strike the Coalition now...

Chengsha appeared next to him. "Hey there Sondz!"

"Gah!" Sondz was honestly surprised, but then again you never expected Cheng.

"Nah, put away whatever weapon you've got... Spicy wanted me to give you this." With a flourish, she produced an envelope.

Sondz snatched it from her hands and inspected the pastel compartment with his name written on the front. Then he tore it open, reading its contents.

"A... Wedding? Spicy and Eclipsa are getting... Married?" Anger burned in his stomach. He didn't show it.

"Yep! And anyone who is anyone is gonna be there, so... Are you gonna be?"

"Of course!" Sondz said with a grin he didn't feel.

An idea struck him.

"Everyone's gonna be there?"

"Yeah, even the greenie! I can't wait, I'm so excited! And you must be super happy for Spicy, right?"

"Yeah, of course!"

"Well, I have to get going, more letters to deliver... But a wedding!"

Chengsha performed the actions nessecary to Plunge into another world, and then was gone.

Sondz took out his phone, and dialed a number.

"I got some new information, I want your best stealth ops, assassins, whatever. There's gonna be a wedding, and practically everyone important from the Coalition will be there. It's gonna be at 541313, and... Yeah, of course I know the time!"

Sondz walked away, talking animatedly into the phone.

End of Chapter 3