Minecraft Forums

>Docking...Docked.

>Deactivating....

>Antitheft measures online

*...*

*finds the tour group*

*receives a communications device*

*Sorry I'm late. Did I miss anything?*

((I meant I was expecting a response to what Eric had said Serpent, but I guess you're not doing one yet? Anyway, engie, Hank responded to you.))
Its not that we aren't affected by it Kalare,
Its that since we make our home outside of any given universe or cluster, entities such as Paradox Space and its kind cannot touch us as thoroughly.
We're simply out of their range of effect when it comes to generating alternate timelines.
Working in Paradox Space is still difficult.
I've gotten shunted into doomed timelines before while working there.
It is not easy to travel between timelines in such a situation.
There was some speculating that it was possible for an individual to accidentally bind themselves back into the power of a plot-entity...
But I'm not sure I believe that.
Although I don't know everything, so it might very well be the case.
Stop.
Yes Sanford?
Did you say, other alpha timeline?
And what if he did?
Deimos and Sanford look at each other.
Um... Eric?
There isn't a second alpha timeline.
Oh dear...
Yep. The main one got wiped clean off the face of the timeline as far as we could see.
We couldn't find the timeline like you'd asked...
I figured, how did you discover that the alpha timeline had been overwritten?
The green sun wasn't created by Rose and Dave.
It was someone else, from a completely different session.
Hmm...
That's bad...
Eric stands up and looks at serpent and Kalare.
I'm sorry, we seem to have a bit of a problem.
I might be a bit antsy for the rest of our conversation, but don't worry, I won't walk out on you two.
Do you have any further questions?

It is Thursday! The holy day where I can finally stop slacking off and something happens!

hmmm... not re/\lly.

i've re/\lized something. if i w/\nt to he/\l others, i should he/\l myself first.

Hey, they infracted me for self-censoring my swear! And gorilla is self-censoring too... The mods are really cracking down. I guess this marks the end. Except in Pesterchum.

What did you expect? The moderation on this forum is a huge pile of defecation.

Once again, I believe that the Employer is Bill. If not him, Binary.

Anyhow, on the matter of swearing, this crackdown is another reason for a new forum.

—

Why did I feel to do so? Despite not actually hearing it, I wanted to know exactly what the action sounded like. Thus, I have the spell itself, with a documented sound associated with it. However, it was probably so I could vent the instability to do this.

And, at that, I give the Hazel Wand a flick. Absolutely nothing occurs. To the eye, that is. I immediately look around the area, before turning back to the tour. Then, I accept a pressurized mask.

—

Wait... the alpha timeline was overwritten? That... is not the best thing to occur. Regardless, I only have questions that are inadequate for the current moment.

The destruction of an alpha timeline is absolutely horrible, from what I can gather.

—

Several hours later, in the research room, I stand, peering over the table containing the vast majority of the artifacts, samples, and notes I recovered. Currently, I stand over a chunk of ancient, warped stone with a Thaumometer. I place the thing down after staring through it for several seconds. That is literally everything. The Primordial Pearl seems to be a cause for concern, however. Such matter would be better put to the creation of digging instruments, or perhaps gigantic furnaces. The inscriptions recovered from the pillars, nonetheless, remain the most valuable thing so far. From them, it is quite evident how I could improve defenses (and also learn a thing, or eight, about creating liches). Hah. An unfurled scroll lies upon the table as well, displaying something... eldritch. A botched hexagonal pattern upon the parchment, lined with the occasional mark. Thaumaturgical symbols, as well as an odd picture of an eye scrawled upon the surface in what was likely the hand of the lich. This is definitely research. However, it is rather odd research. Along with the usual hexagonal grid, the page is coated with runes and symbols quite clearly denoting some form of ritual.

—


I glance back up at Navela as she speaks.

Luckily.
Yes. It is quite the statement to say that you have not been desensitized through this ordeal. I don't think I can say the same for myself. Regardless, it doesn't matter. Especially not in a reality where all else is doomed to fail.

Quote from The_Serpent»

hmmm... not re/\lly.

i've re/\lized something. if i w/\nt to he/\l others, i should he/\l myself first.

Hey, they infracted me for self-censoring my swear! And gorilla is self-censoring too... The mods are really cracking down. I guess this marks the end. Except in Pesterchum.

Quote from engie_ninja»

What did you expect? The moderation on this forum is a huge pile of defecation.

I don't understand the rules here. They're hurting the people who DO want to keep their text clean(ish), while not really caring about people who leave their unsavory text intact? What the [EXPLETIVE DELETED] is the POINT of that exercise?
/null

Blue turns down the mask.

Ah, the earpiece will be fine. I'm not so much surviving in a vacuum than I am making a personal pseudo-atmosphere.

Blue listens intently to H3, jotting something on her tablet with a stylus.

Why did you decide it wasn't worth it to pressurize the entire ship? Or provide artificial gravity, for that matter.
Surely, that must be rather demoralizing for the crew, no?

-Two Weeks Ago-

Step 1: [Redacted]

[Redacted]

Step 2: [Redacted]

[Redacted]

And so it goes for another eight steps. Rather anticlimactic, if I do say so myself.

==Anachron==
Lothyrabot dons the mask.

Thank you. Now, where shall we tour first?
Scann1ng... Data upl0ad3d t0 f1l3 "Pr0j3ct Starstr1ke."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lothyra is pondering something.

Soon the fighting will start again. I must tell them. Bender, you can stay at the station. Maybe talk to HAL.
Nah. I just dig up some dirt on Midna. I'll come.
*Mutters to herself* This won't be good...
What did you say?
Nothing.
They leave the station, reenter, blah blah blah they're in earshot of everybody.

Guys... there's something I have to tell you. Something I've been keeping secret. I think its time to tell you my life story. Let me begin. Let us start from the beginning.

I was born in a treetop village much like humans think all elves live in. This is not true. However, I only found out about my Sburban kin recently. But we'll discuss that later. So, I was born in a village that despised any post-medieval technology, considering heresy against magic and something for, "Those filthy Yogscast and their money-grubbing corporations," as was said more recently. You may not know this, but Minecraftia elves have a very long maturation period. A century. Hell, I'm the equivalent of somebody just turned 18 in human terms, but I'm 104. But I digress. When I was young, my parents noticed I was one of the smart kids and put me on this magic regimen. I had no aptitude for magic. It seemed that technology had claimed me from birth. I hated my homeschooling, and always tried to find ways to circumvent it. I'd take walks, and secretly jot down notes about the world, like a little naturalist.

She displays a look of happy nostalgia and melancholy, as if she wished she could return to that time.

One day, I decided to wander into a place known as the Crater of Ghosts. It was forbidden of any elf to go into that place, and many of the sages spoke of it as, "a cursed place where remnants of the past come to life." I ignored them. In there, I found what appeared to be the ruins of a technologically advanced city that had been blasted into oblivion. In one particularly blasted area, I found a large brain and a computer terminal, with connector cables emerging from the later. They had been miraculously delivered from the doom that befell this city and preserved for God knows how long. I of course had no idea what the computer terminals or the cables did, but I decided to experiment. I put the cables on the brain, and all of a sudden, they glowed and the computer's display booted up. I think the grey matter contained psionic energy that was powering the computer. Anyway, the computer terminal displayed a large orange eye. It started screaming, then looked around and wondered where he was. I told him he was in a land called Minecraftia, and that I was a member of a proud elven village. He claimed he had no idea who he was. All he knew was that he was a brain, and that by plugging him into the "computer," I had freed him from stasis. However, I think he was meant as a storage device for scientific data, for then he offered to teach me the ways of technology. a wizened, old man. He claimed to be a "Sage of Science." He saw my plight and offered to teach me in the ways of technology. For decades, I'd spend hours of the day at that place, learning about the laws of physics. I quickly began to be learned in may fields. However, eventually my mind began to strain. Then it happened...

She looks very troubled.

(I'll continue this in a later post.))

STORYEDIT: Yeah I had to change things.

Midna looks at the man.

... Maniac? Wait, how do I know you? Where am I!?

Relax.... Here, now you remember everything. Now, let me explain.

Midna suddenly remembered everything that happened when encountering Maniac. Maniac explained everything, timelines, the Nether, dimensions, everything. Maniac explained that in the timeline he met Midna, his powers to travel were not removed. He explained and explained and explained.

10 minutes later, Midna's world was rocked.

Why am I here?

The deal. I gave you an army if you did something for me.

... And that is?

Be my friend. It gets lonely down here.

... What about my adventure?

Time is moving much slower there. You have plenty of time!

And so, the friendship was formed. Maniac showed her around the Nether. Eventually, it was time to say goodbye.

You'll wake up soon after you came here. I'll call you if I ever need you. You will not remember anything until you come back.

Sounds good. Goodbye Maniac.

After Midna left, a Pigman came to Maniac.

Juht! Fyok yerzk xeyat Terean!

A Godmodder? Survey the area. I want coverage!

((engie, since you stopped responding to Hank, I'm going to assume that the scene ended there))
Godcraft:
Wilson hears a knock on the door of his potion shop. ((your turn talist!))
Hello?
I was told that this was the best place to get potions without a month-long trek across the Trifecta.


The Preston Cole:
Eric nods to Kalare and Astria.
Feel free to ask me any questions you may have later.
Both of you are now my friends, charges, and to an extent, employees, so if you ever need anything, let me know.
I will do my best to keep you safe.
I've lost too many people already.
Sanford nods.
Speaking of keeping people safe, you need to sleep Eric.
I suppose you're right at that Sanford...
Very well then.
I will see you all in whatever constitutes 'the morning'.
Eric walks back to below-decks.
Deimos lets loose a long, slow whistle.
That man knows how to keep his cool.
If he didn't know how, I doubt we would be here.
True that, true that...

Eric settled back into his bed.
Maybe...
Maybe I can find SOMETHING...
Or at least...
Put my mind to rest.
Dream shift

Wilson's dream wanders back to the previous scene. He is looking from the shelf again into the wooden room. The familiar smell of smoke is back. In addition, there was a sudden pounding at the door. It was rythmic, and the door finally opened. Wilson woke with a start to the sound of Hank knocking at the door. Well, at least he isn't deaf. His vision was terribly blurry and he couldn't see very far. He must have grown more resilient to the after effects of The Grid. Or maybe it was that he hadn't pushed himself so hard this time. He stumbled over to the door and pulled the lever to open it. He looked up at the fuzzy blob who had visited.

Ah, uh, hello there... umm... I'm sorry, I can't see very well... who are you? I have things to sell if you want them, (OOC: except you can't buy anything right now because you cannot charge during intermission...) unless you're here for something else.

BTW, I just finished my storypost.

((talist, you do realize that charging's practically useless by this point though, right? But okay, I don't think I intended to ACTUALLY buy them, but I'm going to buy them in-character as Hank, will that work since it won't really change his in-game stats?))
Oh, hi...
I didn't realize I'd be talking to a fox...
Meh, stranger things have happened.
Yeah, I'm here to buy some potions.
Do you mind if I come in?

Eric was asleep.
He knew this because it was the first dream.
The first out of many.
Also, the dream delving didn't hurt.

This was when it had all started...
Where the descent began.
The battle raged on.
A truce had been made with the universe eaters not long ago.
The Dark Carnival cult was more important right now.
They put everything at stake.
The entire multiverse.
Eric flew forward, cutting a cultist in half,
Take that you son of a...
X, your garbage one liners do not help me concentrate!
Sorry.
Eric mouthed into his comm link;
Sophia, do you have a lock on group 2? Piono's trying to put forward another drive to try and open a few cracks in their lines.
No, Zytha got them.
Darv'it. Why won't those guys follow orders?!
To be fair, they don't have much reason to.
We weren't the ones who started the war!
We don't honestly know that Eric.
Eric sighs. Fine, I suppose you're right.
But the fate of entire multiverse is at stake here.
The one they live in.
Static cuts in, followed by a high, whirring voice. Zytha, the universe eater assigned to Eric's group.
I apologize for not staying put, but they were charging another blast and aiming it at our support squadrons.
How did they get a clear shot?
Group 745 went down to a wave from the central event.
This just keeps getting worse and worse.
Okay, thank you then Zytha.
A series of explosions rattles the battle'field'
Reinforcements are here.
He's finally here!
He?
Yes, engie, we're acquaintances.
Huh. How about that.
I know a guy who knows a gal who knows the guy who runs the Mainframe.
X, its comments like that that are the reason we usually don't let you on the comms system.
Be helpful for once.
I'm sorry if I can't scan the battlefield, but Eric's currently using me to kill clowns.
A loud explosion is heard from the comm link.
Piono, are you okay?
Son of a----
A bulge of paradox energy begins to appear in the sphere of death at the center of the melded worlds that make the scene for this epic battle.
Piono!
Piono!
That can't be good.
-----ge-----m-ve------Get out of there now! I'll try to ho---------
Eric?
Yes X?
I think its time to leave.
I think I agree with that sentiment.
Sophia, get your squad out of there.
Eric turns to the number of warriors with him, Yugo, gets us some portals up and out, we don't want to be here still when that thing hits us!
Zytha, could you do me a favor and try to save some of piono's group? If they're comms are cutting out, they're in trouble.
On it.
Eric waited until his soldiers and jumped through the portal to safety, holding off the handful of cultists who tried to jump them, then jumped through last.
Sophia was there.
So was her squad.
Piono's group was too...
Wait.
Only part of it.
Over the comms; I'm sorry Eric, I got there too late.
No...

Lothyra: I was only 9 years old. I loved Shrek so much, I had all the movies and merchandise. (this was a joke, not a retcon.) about 75 years old. I was having a very hard time learning anything new. That was natural. A mind can only store so much knowledge. However, I had recently mastered biology, and wanted to apply my new learning. So I began to experiment with augmentations. I first used genetic engineering to cure "risk genes" that would put me and my future offspring at risk of various diseases. Then I started improving myself. I remapped my brain to be able to store all the knowledge I could ever need, much like a Vetan elf. I reinforced my bones with nanomaterials, and increased my muscle density. I sped up my nervous system to have faster reflexes (I was one of those unlucky children who wasn't given the fabled dexterity of the Minecraftian elves. I remodeled myself so as to have a very well-proportioned face and torso, increased my metabolism so as to always be energetic and never gain significant amounts of fat, and even installed a cybernetic implant to give me complete control over my reproductive cycles. I had gone made with the power over my body given to me by science. Then I began to fall.

(This was when she turned 100).

Lothyra: First came lust, as I traveled the world and indulged in pleasures with science there to alleviate the consequences.

(Yeah I had to retcon that. 0_0.)

Lothyra: Then came pride, as I believed that I had conquered nature itself. Finally, I set my sights on power, secretly building a large underground base from which I could further my insidious plans. I would have become truly evil if it had'n been for this war... I was working in my base when my village was attacked by a small portion of the Crockercorp Fleet. For you see, by now it was the Homestuck Invasion. I saw them marching along, and in my pride decided to fire on them. Believing it to be the main installation of my weapon systems, they leveled my lifelong home. a mysterious glitch. Not The Glitch. Just a man-shaped piece of faulty code. I couldn't see his true appearance; it was hidden beneath a veil of glitchniness. He, and his army, razed my village. I was mourning over the destruction when I truly realized what I had become. A transhumanoid freak, and what is known to writers as a "Mary Sue." Then a mysterious voice spoke to me. It said that I was to take part in a great destiny that would involve fighting a man known as "The Godmodder." I was mourning over the destruction when I truly realized what I had become. A transhumanoid freak, and what is known to writers as a "Mary Sue." I quickly headed back to the Crater of Ghosts to gather my thoughts and part with my mentor. While piecing together everything I had uncovered about these ruins, I realized in horror that this highly-advanced city was built by and inhabited by elves! They had been wiped out in some sort of cataclysm, forgot about technology, and turned medieval fantasy. I decided to face my destiny, and commited my self to change. Through some means that I will elaborate later, I found myself in the Futurama universe, enlisted the aid of the Swarm, and came back here, quietly observing the patterns and researching the history of the Godmodder before revealing myself in the Massive Battle of the Armies. And the rest is history. Now you know what I am.

STORYEDIT: Did some major edits, as well as adding some foreshadowing.

Edit2: Fixed some things.

Edit3: Fixed the formatting.

Sadly, I do not have any more colors for breaks, so I'll have to make due.


~~~

@Lothyra:

Would you mind... showing me this 'Crater of Ghosts,' assuming it is currently within this realm of existence?


—

I watch Eric leave.

I suppose now would be an adequate time to sleep. Unfortunately, this ship is not exactly specialized for my sleeping itself. Especially with all the psychic emanations coursing through it.

I do not currently have any obligation to leave the observatory. Despite the fact that sleep would likely be extremely beneficial to me.

—

Several hours later, in a deep subterranean level of the fortress, I ignite a candle with my mind. Immediately, the room is illuminated with a dim light. A rather large amount of chalk markings on the ground become evident. I levitate the candle into the air, observing the ritual space, and cross-referencing it with my memory. It seems to be correct. Now, for the moment of experimentation. I grab a bottle of some odd, viscous liquid from a nearby shelf, and pour it across the surface of the ritual ground, forming two straight lines intersecting in some form of x. Then, I replace the bottle on the nearest shelf, and draw the Hazel Wand, striding to the design upon the ground. With a flick of my wand, the candle overhead soars into the wall, disappearing in a flash of grey light. Finally, I mutter an incantation, but not before pulling out what appears to be a polished disc, clearly sliced down the middle with a glowing gold scratch.

Et erubescant ex sphaeris vitae eruditio.

And, with that, I arc the Hazel Wand downwards. In a flash of light, the liquid bursts into green flames. My mind, however, drifts elsewhere.

~~~

Several hours later, I open(?) my eyes.
This is almost assuredly not Grayhold.
I stand in what appears to be the hallway of an apartment, standing just before a door. A hallway composed entirely of things colored various shades of green. Where in the world...?
I look out a nearby window. My vision is entirely dominated by the same color, still; I appear to be in a monochromatic city of green. As such, I look in an upward direction. From there, my position in reality is made painfully evident. Upwards, a rather large majority of the sky is obscured by a rather large planet. I peer through the very corners of the window, attempting to get a better view of the sky. Faintly, I can see another moon in the distance, a gray one, quite clearly emanating psionic energy from some sort of shattered ward, from the appearance itself, and I know of the presence of another behind the planet. I turn away from the window, avoiding the sight of what I know to be there. A necropolis of floating tombs, and slain abominations. Vetas. But, perhaps I should focus on my... appointment. I look at the door, and take a step forward, with the intention of drawing the attention of any behind willing to answ-

You knocked?

@Erelye

Yes. But now the war is going on. Later, after it is over.

Deimos yawns loudly and stretches.
Speaking of sleep, I need some more.
G'night everyone.
Deimos...
Deimos rolls his eyes, pulls a packet of cigarettes out of his pocket, and hands it to Sanford, who chucks it off the edge of the ship.
Not sure why I try any more.
Neither am I.
Whatever.
Deimos heads back down belowdecks.
Sanford turns to Kalare.
So, what was it you wanted to ask Eric?

The battle had been continuing for several more hours, and there had been no sign of piono.
Then the Author had shown up.
Eric rushed into the meeting room aboard the Mainframe.
The previous flagship had been taken out when a bunch of Dimentio's paradox duplicates had teamed up, and engie had volunteered reluctantly to allow his own ship to be the head quarters until the battle was over.
No one felt comfortable with the arrangement, but desperate times meant desperate measures.
Waiting in front of Eric was the Author.
Eric. You can't keep dwelling on these dreams like this.
For the love of...
You do this every time!
The dream falls out of focus.
Eric and the Author are floating in a blank void.
Yes. I do.
I may not be omniscient, but I know enough to know that this is not healthy.
I need... I need to go over some things.
No you don't.
You need to stop obsessing.
You made a mistake.
That is okay.
My mistake created the OP King.
Further mistakes allowed him to become as destructive as
Only because I wrote it that way!
And that's just another in a massive line of mistakes!
How long do you intend to hide from your young charges your past... issues?
As long as I need to.
That is too long.
How would you know? You're just a character from a book.
And the third most powerful sentient being in the multiverse.
Third? I though you were second.
No, another series, someone from a universe with your book series wrote a fanfic that managed to generate a character stronger than me.
That's not the point!
You are distressed Eric.
You were the one who changed the subject.
I KNOW!
I... know.
I'm sorry...
I just, want to see if I can find something, somewhere in these dreams that might help.
Very well.
I will allow you to continue.
But only this once.
The dream shifts back to where it had left off.
Eric, I am sorry.
Sorry?
Sorry for what?
The OP King escaped me.
The bonds are still in place aren't they?
Yes, but we are in the middle of a paradox war.
Eric turns around and bolts out.
You thinking what I'm thinking?
Yes. That was the biggest bulge all battle, not even Dimentio's created bursts that big.
This is a bad idea.
The author was standing in front of Eric again.
Let me go help him!
No.
This battle will play out on its own.
Getting yourself killed will not protect anyone.
If all else fails, the Narrative may allow me to intercede directly, in fact, almost certainly.
The death of the multiverse is not something that the Narrative would allow.
Fine. We'll wait.
I am sorry.
But there is no longer anything we can do.

JOHN: oh, so i guess we can add another point to the list of evil things that you've caused.
JOHN: or the list of evil things that you've indirectly caused.
JOHN: hmm. you really are a bad guy, huh?
I serve bad people, yes. However, my actions are meant only to further the timeline, and that in itself is not bad. I feel that morality should be reserved for another topic, however. So yes, indeed, the Employer arrived and ravaged the trolls, forcing them to leave behind their Ultimate Reward. Their story will be continued another time. For now, I will ask that you continue your own.
JOHN: okay then. well, after me and rose screwed around on our planets, dave entered!
JOHN: he ended up playing after all, heh heh.


JOHN: as i said earlier, he lost his copies of the game and had to get them from his bro. i am pretty sure the shenanigans involved caused him to hate puppets! good thing, too. i told him those things were no good! i warned him!
You warned him about stares.
JOHN: huh? there weren't much stairs involved...
No. You warned him about stares. As in, the act of a set of eyes staring at someone else. The stare of a particular puppet Mr. Strider owns can prove deadly, sharp, and cunning. That of my ectobiological father.
JOHN: lil' cal?? i remember you told me he was your father through some weird circumstance...
JOHN: i never liked cal. and the fact that you are sort of related to him... bluh.
JOHN: i REALLY don't want to think about that.
JOHN: so what happened next is that dave's bro pretty much saved him and let him enter the medium, if what dave has told me is correct.
JOHN: there were a lot of those bombs falling around his house too, and there was a huge one headed straight for him! so dave's bro sliced the thing in half!


JOHN: now that i know that the thing dave's bro sliced was a bomb and wasn't a meteor... how did it react to getting sliced in half, anyway? you said none of them had detonated yet, but that was back when rose entered...
This one was not the first to detonate, either. In fact, none of them were really the "first" to detonate... But we shall get to that later, when your session's chain is complete. It is true that slicing one of these bombs in half could cause potential anomalies. However, this was not the case for the bomb of the Knight. In fact, its payload was meant to only be fully activated upon being sliced in half. So really, although it bought the Knight some time, it would ultimately have a deadlier effect in the long run.
JOHN: wow, ok. i'm still not sure what these bombs are supposed to do besides explode, but we'll get to that.
JOHN: so when dave entered his land, which is where we are now, he prototyped his kernelsprite with lil cal.
JOHN: i don't really see what purpose that served, but i thought it was an okay choice at the time. until something happened.


JOHN: calsprite went insane!! dave said it was almost like he became possessed by something... he cowered in a corner and told me and rose to get over there as quick as we could. we weren't sure if you could even kill sprites, but cal was seriously screwing up the landscape and damaging dave's house, so we decided we had to at least try.
JOHN: some of the trolls reverse-engineered a rocket pack for me, so i flew up to dave's house and took rose along with me. she hadn't alchemized much, but i had. and after we had convinced dave to stop hiding, we all killed calsprite.
JOHN: but only, however, thanks to the power of the other sprites we had. cal was forced out of dave's kernelsprite and was, i guess, appearified away.
JOHN: and i never saw him again after that. i wonder where he is now.
Oh, I took care of that. Cal was in my custody for a time. Eventually he was used elsewhere, in another universe, to fuel a Calamity. But it isn't that important. Not to your story, anyway. And I take that, while this event was going on, another happened under your nose. (And by the way, this definitely should not have happened in the alpha timeline, if you were wondering.)
JOHN: uh... oh, right! so while we were preoccupied with calsprite, it turned out that jade, who had helped dave into the medium, was trying to get our attention.



JOHN: she was pretty much the only person awake on the dream moons. while she was on prospit, she had visions of something terrifying in the clouds of skaia. she told us that something was going wrong on the other planet, derse. it turned out that something had happened that wasn't supposed to.
JOHN: karkat, although our conversations were limited, told me about what happened, along with jade: the archagent of derse, jack noir, had stolen the black queen's ring! he now had the powers of all our prototyped kernelsprites, which gave him a set of nasty tentacles, a massive sword, flight, and the power of super deadly red stuff! although derse wasn't destroyed, it was shaken up.
Although it may not seem like this, Jack's usurp of the Black Queen's throne was meant to happen. It was part of the alpha timeline, and his ensuing rampage marks the reason why your session, even in the alpha timeline, was doomed to fail.
JOHN: oh, great. you're telling me that even if everything went as it should have, we would STILL be stuck here?!
Yes, although for not nearly as long. The key to escape in the alpha timeline, in fact, is the same here: the Scratch. But I will, again, tell you about that later. So, continue. We have covered several important events already, and there are going to be several more to cover.
JOHN: alright. so, after jack went crazy, we pretty much played the game.
JOHN: the trolls still talked to us along the way, though very sporadically. through them, we began to figure out how bad it was that jack had the ring, and how they couldn't really talk to us through our glitchy turbulence.
JOHN: that didn't stop being a thing, by the way. it's really annoying! it made navigating and building a chore, messing up things like imp spawnpoints and random floating trees and stuff.
JOHN: they sort of implied that they had their own problems on their end, like things to fight even after they had beaten their game. they didn't talk about it much, though.
Yes, they indeed had their own problems. Those will be talked about later, though. In the alpha timeline, the trolls should have become much more talkative to you. You all would formulate a plan to escape your session due to circumstances revealed later.
JOHN: i guess i figured as much. so yeah. i pretty much wandered around my planet and rose's planet too. i snooped around her place while she was away alchemizing more gear, and i ended up finding a secret passage with a transportalizer!
JOHN: karkat would later tell me i had ended up in the veil.


JOHN: inside of the place was this weird terminal. it looked like the logo for the game, but it had three squares instead of four. i quickly figured out that using it, i could see in three different... universes, i guess. there was mine, there was another version of earth, and then there was something... different.


JOHN: it was this weird blocky planet. when i initially turned saw the viewport, it was showing some sort of meteor heading towards it. funny how that place got a meteor and we didn't... so i guess that turned out to be godcraft. and since i saw the meteor, that was how i knew to warn its players.
JOHN: i really don't know what minecraft is, but i guess i adjusted quickly? anyway, that comes later, so i'll skip it. i messed around with the terminal a bit more and didn't do much productive stuff.
JOHN: i have a feeling that something else was supposed to be there, though...
In the alpha timeline, an ectobiology lab should have been established there. Using it, you would have paradoxically created yourself, your three friends, and the four guardians of all of you. They would have been sent back in time via the Reckoning. However, since the Reckoning never happened, ectobiology could not have begun. Therefore, you should, in essence, not exist.
JOHN: ...whoa. that's pretty deep. and i guess another reason why this timeline is full of crap!
JOHN: the trolls kept contacting us, and dave alchemized some stuff. but it was at this point that jack's rampage took off.


JOHN: i saw it all through my terminal... he flew to skaia and into the battlefield. the war between prospit and derse kept going on since prototypings weren't glitched out, i guess.
JOHN: there was a rebellion formed a guy holding a red flag, and people from both armies flocked to him. i guess they were going to attack the black king, but they didn't need to. in two swipes, jack destroyed his scepter, robbing him of his powers, and decapitated him.
JOHN: from what the trolls told me, that should have been our job. we needed to kill the black king to win the game. but now that jack had, all was pretty much lost.
JOHN: then, he took out the entire army the guy had assembled. literally ALL of them just DIED. it was a bloodbath! and the only guy he spared was the leader of the rebellion. i still don't know why jack did that. i guess only he knows.
JOHN: and then he used the super deadly red stuff i mentioned earlier.
Ah, yes. The Red Miles. The most devastating attack given to the wielder of the Black Queen's Ring, perhaps meant to symbolize the unstoppable reach of a queen on a chessboard.
JOHN: er, sort of a dumb name, but okay. jack used a bunch of that and tore into the other armies. then this little droll guy came up to him. i don't know how, but he got the white king's scepter and handed it over to jack!
JOHN: i am pretty sure this is what would have started the reckoning. but then something happened.
JOHN: one of the red miles veered off...


JOHN: ...and sliced the scepter in half!!
JOHN: jack looked really shocked, and then handed the broken pieces of the scepter to his little droll guy. there was no sound from my terminal, but if i had to guess, he told him to fix the mess. he then flew away and left, the miles still terrorizing skaia!
JOHN: then he went to prospit and started using the red miles there, too. he cut off the chain connecting prospit's moon to the rest of the planet, and the moon fell towards skaia! it was only thanks to jade's dreamself that i survived... but she died.
Such a tragic loss. The loss of the Witch's dreamself would ultimately result in her real self's near-death back on Earth, her dreambot exploding and expelling her from the tower of her home. Only the First Guardian of Earth would save her.
JOHN: oh yeah! becquerel! i had forgotten about him! he had to have saved jade, because she was obviously alive after this. er, her real self, at least.
JOHN: then jack and bro fought on the beat mesa that we are standing on. not exactly sure what happened there, but i guess it was a draw.
JOHN: my dreamself woke up once jade saved me. and then i got the white queen's ring! also i found liv tyler, a bunny who is totally awesome. dave and rose ascended up their gates...
JOHN: and that was pretty much that.
Well done, Heir. The removal of the Reckoning from your session would indeed be, as we have already stated, crucial to the sustained failure of your session. By removing the Reckoning, none of the players of the game could have been born, and no important items could have been dropped to Earth, since Skaia's defense portals were never activated. Also owing its nonexistence to the removal of Skaia's defense portals are the Exiles. They are mostly irrelevant now.
Now that you have finished telling the first half of your session, and we are at a nice ending point, I believe it is time that we move a session westward and talk about the plight of the trolls, in the distant land of Alternia.


I trust that you understand, Heir. I feel it is best that I take up the narration for the time being. After all, I viewed every moment of the trolls' game. And you did not. You could have, given your terminal in the Veil. But perhaps the thought never occurred to you. So again, I hope you understand. Now, let us begin.

The life of Alternia was not very different than it was in the alpha timeline. Its race was plagued by war, and they sought to conquer the stars. The Condesce, Empress of Alternia, was called away on an off-world mission, unlike in the alpha timeline. This is the main difference, because it ties into the Employer's plans. He used me, my master, and the Condesce, to launch an assault on GodCraft.

JOHN: what? why??

My Employer has plans of his own. He wants GodCraft's power for his own. And my colleagues and I were the perfect people to help him achieve it. The fact that the Condesce was not steering events on Alternia changed its history somewhat, so I influenced it back on track. Ultimately, the twelve trolls who talked to you ended up playing their own session of the game, which to them is called Sgrub.

They played it, and they won. Their species was warlike enough, violent enough, and determined enough to play the game to completion, unlike their predecessors. There was another team of trolls who had played it before then, under different circumstances. I will not get into them, as they are irrelevant in this timeline.

As we have covered, the trolls were denied their Ultimate Reward, which would normally be full access to the universe they had created: yours. The Employer arrived and destroyed their Reward, forcing the team of already weakened trolls to flee to the Veil for refuge. The battle against the Black King had left them scarred, and only through a legion of robots could they seek escape.

So there they waited, and it was only through the transmissions of your terminal that they tracked you down in your own session. They contacted you and your friends numerous times throughout your adventure, mostly early on in your life and session. However, they had great difficulty contacting you later on in your journey. They could still see what was happening, yet they could not interact with it. And from what they saw, they deduced there was something terribly wrong with your session. Something deeper than the demon that surely would have spelled their demise in the alpha.

The trolls contacted you sparingly, attempting to warn you of your plight. This, I'm sure you know. However, it was rare for one to contact any given person more than once. Encounters were quick and brief. And when they saw that not much else could be done to save your session through the window of a chat client, they sought elsewhere. And I decided to fill the void they left behind.

You could have had a great companion, Heir. But instead, you got me.




JOHN: hmm. having the trolls talk to me throughout my entire adventure would've been a little weird...but i think it would've been nice to have some help from others who played the game!
JOHN: not that you're not helpful. i mean, you are a little cryptic, but at least you offer solid advice.
I try.
JOHN: so anyway, what else did these trolls do while in their secret hideout?
Quite a lot, actually.

While the trolls were busy conjuring up another method to save themselves, my Employer was hatching a plan of his own. He decided to open up a rift in their Incipisphere, designed to let in any number of intruders. From the rift came a fearsome army from another universe, harbingers of Chaos itself. These Daemons, hand-picked from the Employer, were given one command: spread their Chaos throughout the trolls' world as much as possible.

The trolls, of course, didn't know any of this at the time. But once they went to sleep, that changed relatively quickly. The terrors' first stop on the list was Derse. The trolls were caught quite unaware by this sudden massacre, and almost all of their dreamselves died. Once the army killed them, they set their gaze on ransacking and destroying the planetoid. And they succeeded. Derse was devastated from the Daemons' onslaught. But deep inside the planet's core, one dream self was still alive. And although the planet may have been destroyed, killing the dreamself within, there was one thing to note.

The body was resting on a Quest Crypt. So when Derse was no more, the Maid came out of the wreckage.


The Daemons were understandably frightened to see that the trolls now had a master of Time on their side. They now had an advantage against their foes. As the rift opened deeper and deeper into the trolls' session, eventually landing inside their hideout in the Veil, the Maid regrouped with her fellow trolls and drove the invaders out of their session and managed to close the rift. The battle was intense, but in the end, there were only a few Daemons left roaming around the outskirts of the session.

The trolls now understood how vulnerable they truly were with one like the Employer hounding after them. So, they understood that they needed a plan now, more than ever.

So in the end, I supposed you could call it serendipitous when our Thief started getting messages from a certain someone.

And no, it's not me.

---

But who, then??? Looks like you're going to have to find out tomorrow. I pulled an all-nighter working on this, and yet I still didn't get as much done as I had hoped. Enjoy this in the meantime. A delay of Act 4 is possible, and I will tell you if it will happen by the end of tomorrow.

They landed in the micro-world.
Dimentio had fallen.
The battle had still been on in full force when suddenly the paradox sphere had surged, and then imploded.
At the center of it was piono, the afterimage of the OP king, dimentio's corpse, and the chaos heart.
Eric rushed over to piono.
He pulled up the limp body, still alive, good.
Piono's eyes flickered open.
They flashed from red to blue then back.
Lightning fast.
Must be a trick of the light...
Come on, we gotta get him out of here!
It safe?
Yeah. Piono's out cold, but it looks like he got dimentio, also, I think the OP king won't be a problem anymore.
Eric...?
Piono! You're okay, we've got you.
Where were you?
Piono's head falls again.
Come on! Come on! He needs help!
I'm coming Eric!
Dude, the fight's over. Won't he just respawn?
After whatever happened here...
Eric looked over at the still-fading image left of the OP king...
I want to be on the safe side.