Memoirs of a RAFian

[redtailedsaffa]

For some reason I keep reading the first book a million times. I should take it back with me when I come after the holidays.

[Cloak]

Right, now back to the book . . . uh . . . what chapter were we on? Oh, right.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN:
Connecting . . . Connecting . . .

The two Realm Walkers looked on helplessly. Their capacity to free the others was pretty nil, but neither really enjoyed how little they could do.

They had already swept the entire forum, and flushed out the inert orbs. They easily destroyed them, but they were still helpless to help the others.

"We can't just sit here and do nothing!" Shadow roared, pacing agitatedly.

Cloak was standing moodily. "Shadow, we can't do anything without the risk of killing them."

"We have to risk something," Shadow countered, "otherwise they're dead either way."

Cloak noted Shadow's observation, and she was right. It was a question of dying slowly or quickly.

"Maybe there is a way," Cloak said, eyes widening with realization. "A way to get through."

"How?"

"When I was in the -- the augmented reality." Cloak said, voice breaking a bit, "I could hear you calling out to me."

"Really? I thought that that wasn't working," she replied.

"I . . ." Cloak said, turning away from her, and saying quietly, "I tried to ignore it."

"What?"

Cloak looked down, and closed his eyes. "The fake reality . . . it was so much what I wanted. All I ever desired. I didn't want to believe it was nothing but lies."

Shadow hesitated before asking, "What did you see?"

Cloak said nothing, but he opened his eyes and looked away from Shadow. It was clear he was ashamed and afraid to admit what he saw. Besides, ir was a rather personal question.

"Uncle . . . ?

"So," Cloak said, approaching Yarin. "Were you making tactile contact when you spoke, or just shouted at it?"

"Hint taken." Shadow said. "What I did was --"

[redtailedsaffa]

Cliffhanger chapter!

[Cloak]

Not really. And I know the book's pace seemed to slow down a great deal. But vear with me.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN:
A Mark of Progress

"Ugh," Cloak saud, irritably, "this is going to slowly."

"Patience, Uncle." Shadow offered.

"I know, but we haven't the luxury of being patient." Cloak said. "The Black Mercy might take millenia for their hosts to drain away. And th-- . . . those were Walkers."

Cloak hated saying things like that. Even if they were true, it sounded just plain speciesist, when he was an egalitarian at heart.

"But it did not always last that long. Sometimes it was weeks. The fact that they managed to stay reasonably well in tact this long . . ."

Shadow understood, and changed tact. "But we're doing the same thing that I did with you."

She was passing her hand over the hard, bone-like shell on the Black Mercy saplings, attempting to connect to Gaz. It wasn't working all that well.

"But we have a connection," Cloak thought aloud. "As uncle and neice, teacher and pupil."

Then he looked a his hand and saw his Mark embazoned there in blue. The Mark that blazed to life when they -- the RAFians --stood united. It seemed odd to picture a time where the Mark had not been a fixture in RAF.

"What is it, Uncle?"

Cloak was pleased with how quick on the uptake she was. He couldn't help but swell a little with pride at this.

"It'll probably be easier for me to get through to them," Cloak said, rather bluntly. "Via my Mark."

"Oh. Okay."

Cloak moved to place his Mark on the Black Mercy shell on Yarin. But before he could execute this plan, he stopped abruptly. He had Earthsighted something.

"Gateburst! What are they doing here?!" Cloak snarled. "How'd they find us again?"

"Who?" Shadow said. Then she Earthsighted the nuisance herself. "Oh."

[redtailedsaffa]

"They" being... the sidekicks, I'm guessing.

[Cloak]

Ravager and Mega-Maul? No.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN:
Unwelcomed Squatters

"How'd they find us? I moved the forum," Cloak grumbled.

"What's that that they're singing?" Shadow asked.

"This is quite the place"

"Full of grinning, trollish, Banned faces.
Hangin' out!"

"Feelin' fine!
Where everyone is a friend of mine!"

Cloak then Earthsighted Yorick gesturing grandly.

"Every Banned and troll gets to the point.
This day will live in infamy!
This blasted forum is history!"

Then they all, Banned and trolls laughed evilly. They were using the RAFians momentary incapacitation to squat in RAF!!!

Queen, Aloth, and Yorick sung:

"It's our forum now! It's our forum now!
It's a fact that you can't ignore.
Shut the windows, lock the doors!
It's our forum now!
Raise your mugs,
You trolls, Banned, and thugs.
Join the rabble-rousing crowd!
It's our forum now!"

Queen purred:

"All the coolest cats fit in so perfectly.
All evil Queens get due respect!"

"Love your work," a troll commented. He's backhanded by Queen. She continued:

"You'll firget your troubles, put your trust in me.
You had your fun, you've made your play."

All assembled elated:

"But every RAFian has his day!"

Then the trolls sang:

"It's our forum now! Down and dirty!
It's our forum now, me hearty!
What a place for breaking bread! --"

Cloak revealed himself in a very dramatic way, only being partially illuminated.

"You've had your fun." he said, voice of determined calm. "Now get the Veil out."

[Cloak]

I'm gonna try to sneak another chapter in before work.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN:
Notions and Beatdowns

"This is our forum now!" Queen snarled. "We took it from you losers fair and square!"

"'Fair and square'? The forum was virtually abandoned." Shadow said. Then she turned to her uncle. "Do we really have time for this? The others . . ."

"We cannot allow the Banned and trolls to squat here." Cloak said. Then he looked at his Mark, and a spark of an idea came to him.

"I know that look," Shadow said. "You have an idea."

"Notion, really," Cloak said, urgency in his voice. "Look, go to look after the others. If I'm right, all should be alright."

"And if you're wrong . . . ?"

Cloak didn't answer -- which was an answer in and of itself -- and he was about to address Queen, when he realized that she was in the middle of a viciously boring monologue.

"Are you done?" Cloak said, positively unimpressed.

"How dare you take --"

"Blah, blah, blah," Cloak saiud as Shadow took off to look after the others. "Get the Veil out of here. Or . . . you'll regret it."

"You don't to me in such a disrespectful way, boy!"

"'Boy'?" Cloak said, conversationally. "Queen, I'm at least a hundred and fifty of your years older than you."

Cloak strode forward, closing the distancem ignoring hisses and heckling of the trolls. "Queen, I will tell you again. Leave our home, leave RAF. You are no longer welcome here."

"You don't get to decide that!"

"I didn't." Cloak said. He was surprised that not a blow had flown yet. But he could feelt his Mark glowing blue. The Unity Energy was reaching the others, he was sure. "The mods did. But you didn't like that did you?"

"You don't know what you're talking about." she said.

"Why else endeavor so hard to either take or destroy RAF?" Cloak asked rhetorically. "Because you wanted revenge for us turning you away. For not doing exactly what you wanted." Cloak said tonelessly. "But now I tell you for the last time. Get. Out."

"Or else what?" she snarled.

Cloak snapped his fingers. The earth acted like a catapult, sending the Banned and their small contingent of trolls back to the Bannedlands.

Cloak turned, began to walk back to the others, saying, "I did warn you."

[redtailedsaffa]

Whoa. Calm down.

[Cloak]

Huh?

[DinosaurNothlit]

Finally got caught up again!  Great work, as always.  Loved the RAFian fairy tales especially. 

Just out of curiosity, will we get to see any of the other RAFians' fantasies?  I think it would be rather interesting to see what their 'perfect worlds' would look like.

[Cloak]

Nope -- sorry, Dino. I only know what mine would be. But even those worlds weren't really "perfect", you know.

'Nother chapter.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN:
Dangerous Decisions

Cloak was disappointed that the confrontation with the Banned had not whipped up enough Unity Energy to break the spell, the illusions of the perfect worlds the RAFians were enjoying. Cloak had no idea just what the worlds contained, but he knew the dangers. Fortunately, his RAFians friends were strong. Weaker beings would have withered and wasted away by now.

"There's no notable improvement," Shadow said, without even looking up from Saffa. "They're weakening."

"Gateburst," Cloak cursed lightly. "The notion failed. There's only one alternative now. I'll try to infuse my energy into my Mark and translated it into Unity Energy."

Shadow tore her gaze from the RAFians and gave her uncle a look that clearly said that she thought he took leave of his senses.

"It could work," Cloak said.

"And it could kill you." Shadow countered. "You could expend all of your energy during it."

"There isn't another option available to us." Cloak said.

"Uncle, you're being rash! They wouldn't want you to sacrifice yourself like that."

"Shadow, time is of the essence! We don't really have time to quibble --"

"Recall the other RAFians!" Shadow proclaimed. "Recall them! Then you'll have enough Unity Energy to break --"

The saplings undulated in a most unnerving fashion.

"We have to make haste then," Cloak said. Then he quickly went to communications and sent the message:

"Return to the forum. Repeat, return to the forum. Assistance required. Code: . . . Paradise Lost. Repeat: Return to the forum A-S-A-P."

The Cloak returned to the others, and saw the same unnerving undulation. His gut was sending him an urgent message, telling him to get a move on.

"Shadow," Cloak said, deadly serious, "time has nearly run out. I have to do something."

[Cloak]

Just one more chapter before bed.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN:
Extrication and Extermination

"Do what, exactly?" came a voice. "And what are those clingy things on Gaz and 'em?"

"Cerulean! You got the message?"

"Of course I did," he said genially.

"That was fast," Shadow commented.

"'Fast' is kinda my schtick." the speedster commented. "Now, what's going on?"

"Explanations later," Cloak said. "Unity Pulse the saplings pn their chests."

"Alrighty then," Cerulean said. The two tried to pick off the saplings -- but two was not enough. But they managed to slow the eleven's weakening.

"Not enough, not enough!" Cloak complained quietly.

"Perhaps we can change that then!" Dino said, with a triumphant roar.

More and more RAFians began to return, adding their share of Unity Energy to the others. Eventually, the "perfect worlds" the afflected RAFians enjoyed shattered.

They awoke, each with a overtly theatrical gasp and looked around. The Black Mercy saplings were dead, withered husks. They disintergrated into black ash, then nothingness.

"It's over!" Shadow cheered.

"Yes," Cloak said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. He wasn't so quick to give into celebration.

"What's wrong?" his neice inquired.

"The Black Mercy doesn't exist naturally in the realms," Cloak said.

Shadow nodded, seeing where he was headed with this. "Which means someone brought them here."

"Yes," Cloak said. "But that's not what really disturbs me."

"Then, what?"

"The Black Mercy is supposed to be extinct." Cloak said. "Yet, here were both seeds and saplings. And there's little doubt that Malice was behind there dispersal here."

[redtailedsaffa]

Two more chapters left - are we getting a confrontation?

[Cloak]

Nope. Windin' down. And the next book will be outside the normal continuity.

CHAPTER NINETEEN:
An Explanation is in Order

". . . and they require rest," Kelly was saying to Cloak in a fussy manner akin to Madam Pomfrey. "I'm sorry, but I can't permit anyone -- even you -- to rile them --"

"Kelky, they deserve to know what happened to them. No one can do that better than me right now." Cloak said, sidestepping her and entering the infirmary.

***

"So . . . none of it was real? None of it?" Underseen said.

"That is correct," Cloak said. "The Black Mercy pulls out your deepest desires, your most desperate ones, and fabricates a world based off it. There would be inconsistencies, of course."

"But where'd they come from?" Gaz asked pointedly.

Cloak stood up from the stool on which he sat so broodingly.

"The Black Mercy evolved, like many predators, after its prey had already existed. You Realm Dwellers are borne of matter, Realm Walkers are and were borne of energy. Parallax and its brethren were borne from emotion."

"And the Black Mercy?" Abby prompted.

"I do not know for sure," Cloak said, "but many believe they were borne from thought itself."

"Deep." Saffa commented. "Why didn't you tell us about these things before."

"Simple. I didn't see a reason to. They're weren't a threat."

"Weren't a -- what do you mean they weren't a threat!" Gaz exclaimed.

"Calm down, Gaz. I meant that they weren't. They were supposed to be extinct."

"Extinct?" Yarin asked.

"Yes, long before me, before my grandfather. Before Avatar, the first Master of the Six Elements."

Saffa blinked. "Then there's no way you could ever expected this to happen."

"And I didn't." Cloak confessed. "And it scares me."

[redtailedsaffa]

Saw the appearance of this new chapter only thanks to your sig... Why do I get a feeling incidents of this book will influence further ones? Aside from Shadow's return, of course.