(Fic Outline) Crossing the streams
Well, this is extremely self-indulgent.
I slid out of the Yogscast fandom in... 2015ish? Leaving 200K+ words of interlocked fanfic timelines in my wake. Which I decided to re-read in early December, under a nostalgic impulse. (Thanks, random A03 comment that reminded me of its existence :P)
The problem there, you see, is that I hadn't actually finished all the stories I'd had ideas for when I disengaged from the fandom.
So.
So.
I have amused myself by writing out this: the story outline (in the bullet points and random dialogue way I do these) of where I planned to take all my timelines / series. Because what's the point of the trousers of time if you can't occasionally grab 'em by the ankles and smash them together.
Do I plan to actually *write* a decade-out-of-date, self-indulgent sequel fanfic of my own fanfic? Not currently. Might it happen? No idea.
But I had fun with it :D
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Title: Crossing the streams (AO3 link) Setting: Yogscast Entocanon (all my various series of Yogfic from literally a decade ago). Warnings: Injury; body horror; character death; all the usual. Summary: Lalna and Nano are hiding things from each other, and unwilling to address those same parts of themselves. Now they've been unceremoniously dragged into a world where history has gone awry; magic is dead; and familiar figures walk unfamiliar paths. There is something very, very wrong here - and if they want to get home, they're going to have to face it all. Genre / characters: Gen; ensemble cast overall. Part 1: Background Part 2: Plot
--- Part 1: Background ---
In the normal timeline:
- Several years after the events of ‘Endergame’.
- the Blackrock crew are pretty stable. Rythian is a mage again, researching / using the new version of magic (after Endergame reset it), but he's a lot less isolated than he used to be, since the castle is now much more of a community than it was.
- Nano has appeared. Most of the Survival Games series has happened in this time - particularly the ones that involve her. She is… something like Ridge, but a new one, and not fully sure how to be that. She doesn’t seem to need the Game sacrifices to power her, but she’s got a lot less power (for now). She also has chosen to keep a lot of her ‘other side’ locked away from herself (Ridge helps with this, although does warn her she can’t deny that part of her or it will find its own way back).
- This has resulted in echoes and hallucinations that manifest as creepy Flux stuff.
(Note that ‘Flux Buddies’ as a series had only recently started when I finished Endergame, so I didn’t know where they were going with that. I also didn’t end up watching that much of it myself, so this is all based on the original ideas I'd had / what I remember.)
- Nano’s themes are: Purple (vivid, amethyst, aggressively alive, verging into infestation body horror; not the violet-black dissolving nothing of the End); hyphae-like connections / patterns; ‘childish’ spikes in emotions (while she seems like a young adult in her human side, her godling side is still very new).
- Lalna and Nano have been doing 'Flux Buddies' for a while. Lalna has gotten involved because a) magic changed and he's genuinely curious, and b) frankly because he has some un-handled technology trauma from - y’know - the everything, plus that time an eldritch dragon ate off his power-gloved hand, in a dimension where you can’t pass out. So focusing on some only slightly-unnerving, nature-y themed magic with this new person - who doesn’t know anything about all of the End stuff - is rather a relief.
- Would it be a good idea to perhaps unpack some of what happened? Yes. Is he going to do so? No.
Some nice repression you have there. Be a shame if someone were to doom it through narrative.
Meanwhile, in the other leg:
(Note that the split point for these timelines was whether Israphel decided to pay any attention to / troll the original duo at the start of SoI.)
- If he does = normal world, Xephos ends up being the Hero / Unexpected Variable that sets everything down the path we’ve seen. He’s eighteen buckets of trauma in a fancy jacket, sure, but meeting all those characters, getting pulled into the War of the Sands and derailing the whole Fate of that, led to him developing into the guy we know. Lots of connections with lots of people, and for an empty man with no memories, that shaped who he became.
After the War, the pair wander around a bit more, but Xephos in particular has an extremely hard time with the aftermath and being seen as a hero. Eventually they start actively trying to get somewhere where no one knows about them, and head off across the sea to the Wilds; picking up Lalna on the way (he's looking to lie low after the Tekkit War debacle). Story happens as usual.
- If Israphel decided not to fuck with them = Voltz/Yoglabs timeline. Zephos is still a random variable in the world, but it doesn't do anything if the duo just sort of… wander off in the other direction and don’t interact with the plot. Israphel’s plans work, the War of the Sands is faster / bigger, and ends up with Israphel managing to bind himself inextricably with the very root of magic itself.
- At that point, with The Worst Guy literally on the doorstep of apotheosis, Ridge had to act. And in a more direct way than just introducing one tiny random actor into the mix. (He ‘doesn’t interfere’; remember; for whatever that means.) Unfortunately, the only way to do that now is to quite literally rip magic itself out of the world, and it needs to be done fast (also: opposed, cos Israphel wasn’t exactly a passive actor here). It worked, but it caused severe damage to the world and to Ridge himself - damage that he couldn’t fix from inside the problem. He no longer had access to the Game either, so can't recharge himself in the same way.
- The world trundles on, without magic, but with mad science and industry rising to take its place. Big companies form (being much more massive, capitalistic mad science juggernauts than the <name>.Incs of like, three people from the other timeline). Sipsco is one of these, but collapses after a disastrous attempt to colonize the Wild coast; Sips and Sjiin bolt into the wastelands.
- Zephos and Honeydew generally adventure around, but it’s a very different world. Before magic died, the world rapidly became more hostile / suspicious / terrifying as Israphel’s nonsense occurred, so they didn't exactly make many friends. Something went horribly wrong for the dwarves as a whole, leaving Honeydew without any chance to make amends for his banishment (and being one of the few survivors). The pair are more isolated and a lot more co-dependent; even when they joined one of the mad science companies (the previous ‘Labs’) and met Lalna there. The three later left together in a very destructive way. There’s a lot of wasteland due to war / magical fallout / etc, to go hide in. They run into Sips & Sjiin and Voltz happens - and by this point, Ridge has started to pay attention to them. The group is messing around with things that he can’t fully touch, and that’s interesting to him; although they don’t realise he’s not human.
- The Bomb happens. Red Matter exposure starts affecting Ridge, and his burgeoning bitterness at being reduced to ‘this’ after sacrificing himself starts getting much worse. Zephos becomes a focus of it - he ‘failed’ to do anything useful back then, and he’s tangled up in this stuff now. This Ridge hasn’t had any of the Survival Games stories happen - so the whole ‘you have got too close to this band of good-hearted idiots and it’s bleeding into you’ situation hasn’t played out.
- Ridge essentially starts using Zephos as a vessel / filter for his own power. Both because Ridge wants somebody to research fixing him, and because running it through Zephos a) manages to filter out some of the corruption that’s happening; not fully, but enough to be useful; b) it doesn’t instantly implode him like it would most people.
Something something Unexpected Variable something something Not From Around Here something something.
- Yoglabs happens. With the usual minecraft-world handwaving of how this can occur - although at least in this instance, one of the team is running in a weird version of creative mode at all times. Which is driving him insane, deeply fucking up his ability to see anyone else as a person (with one specific caveat), and generally causing many Unpleasant Things. Also he can track you down if he has your name, and within a certain proximity to the Labs themselves, can just fully teleport people around if he has your name. (/tp <name>)
So, it's not going fantastically well in this timeline.
And it's about to get... complicated.
--- Part 2: The Plot ---
I haven't any idea where chapters would go. Wherever they fitted.)
- Lalna generally trying to avoid thinking too hard about how the world has changed, and how he’s feeling somewhat… left behind? Listless. Restless, doesn’t actually want to be responsible for yet another disaster yet can't shake the feeling that it's inevitable that he will do so, eventually. There's just something wrong with him, deep inside; it's only ever a matter of time. Even Rythian seems to have managed to change. Xephos is concerned about him, but Lalna doesn't think it's something he could really understand.
- He's not telling Nano about this. In some ways, it’s nice she doesn’t know much about what happened / she wasn’t there, so even the bits they’ve talked about are distanced. He's constantly tinkering with his prosthetic arm; never satisfied with it, but also kind of shying away from trying anything he might actually want to do. Nano knows there’s something wrong, but she’s also trying not to let on to him that her Flux-y hallucinations etc are getting worse. Excellent communication skills, all round.
- Survival Games interaction with Team Demigod. Nano talking to Ridge about how she’s handling her whole situation; and choices generally. Talking about magic. Talking about the differences between them. Warning from Ridge that she can’t push aside her nature for ever - it is her, and it will come through. Nature vs. nurture, but what does that mean for things like them.
- Meanwhile, in Yoglabs. In economic / mad science metrics, everything is going well; government doesn’t interrupt the Labs, they have basically free reign. But in terms of ‘fix the demigod’; not so much. Current situation shown by following Zephos. In particular, showing that this-world Honeydew seems much more wary/placid, and dumber, than the one we’re used to. Zephos gets exasperated with him, but also he’s pretty much the only one he actually likes.
- An idea has been developed. If ‘Fix Ridge from Here’ doesn’t work, then they will seek somewhere else. Have made a machine to punch a portal through to another timeline - although it uses a massive amount of resources, damages the Labs, AND causes instability in the world itself. Aiming for something like Ridge, although less powerful. (Portal room is the red matter room from ‘All That Matters’, since apparently that's where they do the things that really puts physics through the wringer.)
- It works, and targets Nano. The Flux Buddies are out & about, not dealing with their problems or telling each other about them - and then the world is punctured like a needle-stick and she starts getting dragged into a portal. This goes about as well for Lalna’s mental state as you might imagine, and his constantly-tinkered arm fails as he’s trying to pull her out, so both go through.
- The portal wasn’t designed for two. Nano’s panicking, Flux is thrashing like a wild thing, Lalna’s panicking and not supposed to be there. On the other end, systems are overloading, Weird Shit is occurring. This all results in dumping them both out early / not in the labs. Furious Zephos sending people out to FIND IT.
- Brief scene with Zoey & Rythian at a safehouse, surprised by all the alarms happening from whatever the Labs just did. Zoey gets that half-stare she sometimes does and says a hunt party is being sent out to search for… something important. They have to find it first. Rythian hates those hunches, but a) she's usually right, and b) he trusts her.
- The pair land somewhere near(ish) the Labs / city, with no idea what has happened. Nano realising first that something is very, very wrong with the world. Very hard / exhausting to do any magic. (Will turn out Lalna can only do Flux magic if he’s near her.) Trying to find out what is going on / where they are. Nano does a bit of magic and people are horrified.
- Local alarm triggered in response. Rythian is following the Labs team that is closest and sabotages some of them, but there is a small group too far ahead to overtake. Mooks going after Nano & Lalna, Rythian drops in, in his dramatic way, takes out most enemies. Nano does some magic at the last one while Lalna e.g. brains them with a chair (or similar). Rythian is Shooketh by seeing unfamiliar magic; Lalna by seeing an unfamiliar Rythian. Everyone confused, but need to flee together.
- Rythian is very suspicious, so takes them to somewhere off the main safehouses. Demanding answers, receiving confusion. He has never met any Lalna, and is very wary about how he knows his name. Lalna comparing him to the man he knows (considerably more athletic than his Rythian has ever been; eye colour is still dark, etc); starts listing names of other friends back home. As soon as he mentions Xephos, Rythian has him pinned to the wall with a knife at his throat, which is when Zoey and Min arrive. Lalna struggling, pulling down Rythian’s mask - his ‘M’ face scars are revealed, which is what throws aside any possibility of this being the usual Rythian. Zoey is instantly fine with the idea of them being from another timeline, because some Zoey things are universal. Everybody eventually calms down (“Okay. Fine. Say I believe this, and you’re from… somewhere else. Why the fuck are you here now?”) and move to somewhere more secure.
- Later. Zephos is interrogating the mooks that interacted with the rebels. Rythian, they know about (although not his name), and Zephos really wants him dead. Head cam footage is put up on screen - gasp from Honeydew as there is a fairly good shot of Lalna’s face. (“He’s back!” <- does not know what happened to their Lalna.) Zephos incredulous. It’s fake. It’s hacked. Losing his temper, accusing the mook of lying to him - rips the man’s helmet off in a way that armour should not move, grabs either side of his face, slams his forehead into his and screams SHOW ME. Man spasming, clawing at the grip, starts begging (“SHUT UP.”) Goes silent. Zephos seeing the memory, realising the footage is accurate. Drops the man, his eyes bloody side-to-side, weakly breathing, non-responsive. (“Clean this up.”) Honeydew staring at the mook, weird twitch on his face, then follows Zephos as he storms out. (“Zeph - he’s back! That’s great!” “...apparently so.”). Zephos dismisses him and heads for the computer core.
- Flashback of Voltz!Lalna trying to leave Yoglabs, and Zephos finding out about it. Back to current, to reveal Lalna has been long-fused in with the computer systems of the Labs, by Zephos. Demanding if he knows anything about this; Lalna claims no. Finds it very funny though. (Could never keep myself out of trouble <- typed on a screen, since he can’t speak anymore). Zephos sighing - gotta clear this up. He knows a name now at least and tries to summon this other Lalna, but he can’t. He can’t focus on him, perhaps because Voltz!Lalna is there as well? Angry.
- Honeydew is having a bad time. Seeing Lalna has triggered a load of flashbacks / memories he’d ‘forgotten’. Frantically packing and unpacking bags. Pulling bits of Lalna’s old stuff out of his chaotic storage - ‘making his room ready’. Zephos is frustrated, but indulges him for a while. Then presses his fingers to the panel at the back of the dwarf’s head, and he goes blank. Zephos sends him back to ‘have a nice jaffa’, and he wanders off. Some Ridge mocking in hallucination / echo (“How much of your little pet is even left in there?” “Shut up.”).
- Back at the rebels, and Zoey has made everyone sit down and try to have clear conversations. It hasn’t helped that much. Rythian is willing to acknowledge that they seem to think their story is true. He keeps staring at Nano and her flux marks. Whatever is going on, the Labs wants them, and that isn’t good. They can get them out on a boat in a few days, then they’re the Wild’s problem. Lalna argues that they’ve got to get back home. Is shown evidence of what the Labs does; what Zephos does, and he can’t believe it (it must be a misunderstanding...?).
- Night Thoughts. Lalna dwelling on his friends. Weird guilty thought - does he want to go back? No one here knows anything about him. Even this Rythian is hostile, but not really personally so. He could… stay. But also the idea of Xephos being a monster here sits so bafflingly wrong…
- Nano also having Night Thoughts. The portal came straight for her. Nothing that’s been said makes any sense for that. Flux stuff has been very quiet since they got there; worried by that. Unsettled by how Rythian has been staring at her markings; he’s very hard to read. Sinks down into sleep - and wakes up as closer to her full self. Memories come back, moment of confusion, and realising she has stepped out of her body (which is completely covered in purple flux). The world looks wrong. There are huge, raw wounds like bloody black lightning everywhere, a space in the fabric of it all where something is missing. And there’s a direction to it. She follows it (clipping through the world).
- The landscape is dreamlike and all fucked up with the marks of torn-out magic, and there’s an ominous red haze to it too. She tries not to touch any of it. The Labs is dominating everything, rotten and twisted and chained to itself; there’s something deeply wrong in the centre and there’s Attention sweeping out like a lighthouse. She basically stealths around it. Finds something strange - a space that seems to be a pocket of calm in this nightmare space. Calm but almost… frozen. Encysted. She manages to get through the barrier, carefully opening a space, and finds Voltz!Honeydew there.
- In this view, he’s clearly been messed with. She can see the shape of him, but it feels like bits of him have been closed, or locked off, separated; again and again and again. It’s not the Honeydew she knows, but she can’t just leave him like this. (“We don’t interfere.” “Liar!”) A little dot of purple, beading on her fingertip, so utterly alien to the washed-out, torn up space around her. Touches it to the back of his head, where it starts to spread like timelapse hyphae, connecting, breaking apart barriers, re-linking torn spaces.
- Realises this has taken too long. More movement in the world, and the Attention is widening. Sudden spike of urgency back at her body, and she heads back in panic. Accidentally trips through a few of the torn spaces, which burn, as she runs.
- Earlier. Rythian cannot sleep. Keeps thinking about what he’s seen Nano do. He has to know. He has to know. Goes to where they are staying; Min is leaning against the wall outside. (“Don’t be creepy, Ryth. It’s not a good look on you.”) Bit of whispered argument / discussion; broken by a panicked sound from inside. They both go in - finding Lalna shaking Nano, who is a) unconscious, b) covered in a complete cocoon of shimmering, viscous purple. The patterns on his face / side are shifting too, flowing up his arm.
- Rythian goes to shove Lalna aside, he resists; they argue about who knows what they’re doing. Rythian being very dismissive in a way that infuriates Lalna (because apparently rage, hatred or murderous intent he can handle from that face, but dismissing him? Absolutely not). Lalna shoves him back, harder than he meant to, and the magic goes with it. Rythian is hurled into the wall, purple spreading across his chest like a stain and he’s choking / Lalna’s panicking even more, Min’s got her weapons out - and Nano sits bolt upright, back in her body. The Flux around her and Lalna fades out; the magic tendrils on Rythian’s chest retreat and he collapses. Zoey sticks her head around the door, wanting to know what is happening. Nano: “I found Honeydew. And I might have… done something really silly.”
- Awkward morning. Zoey aggressively making coffee, Nano trying to explain what happened (it’s all dreamlike and fading; not helped by her not being fully aware of that side of herself when conscious; and Lalna having no idea about it). Rythian hasn’t spoken. He’s barely moved after Zoey dumped him bodily in a chair, and he won’t look at Nano. Min being tactical about it, even if she doesn’t understand what’s happening. (“Did anyone see you?” Did you see anything useful; can you do it again etc).
- Rythian stands up abruptly, asks Lalna to follow him (“...please.”) and leaves. Zoey assures Nano he’s not got his stabby face on. Lalna does follow, still feeling guilty about magically throttling him. Head into a different room, close door, and time for Emotion conversation. (“You said you knew me. Or - another me. Who still… who never…”) Lalna confirms again that while the Rythian he knows has been technically a few different types of mage (and, kinda cursed), he never lost magic - and then he realises that this Rythian is visibly forcing back tears. Awkward conversation continues, as Rythian admits he thought he’d come to terms with losing magic, that he would never be the same (and it had almost killed him, so many times). How even the memories of the feel of it were wrong, unreal, somehow. He’d been suspicious of Nano’s tricks earlier (phrasing of the ‘sufficiently advanced technology’ bit, close enough to Lalna’s ‘The End’ words to be unnerving), then he’d hit him with it - and for a moment it was all real again. He could remember, as if all those fragments of blurred impossibility suddenly lined up and he could remember… And then it stopped, and it’s almost worse. Lalna admits he can’t do magic here without being in close proximity to Nano.
- (“I’m… not really used to this level of honestly when we’re not trying to kill each other.” “What the fuck is wrong with your Rythian?” “...me, I think.”)
- Rythian is particularly worried about what the Labs would do with Nano. More than even before. If she’s a source of magic… (Could they want to fix it? <- thinking of Xephos. Answer: No. If that place wants to fix something, it’s nothing good.). They have to get them out of here. Rythian musing about getting them to Lomadia, and Lalna realises it’s the same one. (“Blonde? -nod- Owls? -nod- Slightly terrifying?” “Oh for fucks sake.”)
- Honeydew waking up. Really waking up, for the first time in… a long time. Nano has fixed a lot of the damage that Zephos’ constant fiddling with his mind had done. It’s not a good time. Remembering the sort of things he’s seen / done / permitted (quite a lot of horror). Finds his axe, packs a bag and leaves (no one tries to stop him, because the staff are used to just letting the dwarf roam around; he doesn’t go anywhere). It’s clear that System!Lalna opens the final door for him. He’s following Nano (the Flux left in him is seeking her again).
- Bit of time passing; Zoey / Min / etc needing to go do rebel things. Rythian spending a lot of time Brooding On The Roof / avoiding Nano (but also not going far away) / not telling anyone that there are weird purple veins starting to trace up his neck from where the magic hit. Nano and Lalna discussing what’s happened (sort of. Nano still doesn’t understand how she did the sleepwalking; they put it down to having magic when no one else does). Nano wants to go home. Lalna doesn’t agree fast enough (does he want to be here? Not really. Does he want to be there? Also not really), and she manages to get him to admit some of his thoughts on that.
- Honeydew turns up. Rythian attacks him (surprised at how competent he is at fighting), and at some point is close enough to see the little purple lines / flecks in his eyes (and promptly stops being able to breathe until he disengages). Gets Zoey to set up a shielded room (blocking Labs tracking chips) and puts Honeydew in it; gets Lalna to bring Nano there (Rythian fiddling with / tightening his mask more than before, but Lalna doesn’t really notice).
((This whole story outline is people having awkward meetings in grotty safehouses))
((Then again 75% of Endergame was Poor Communication In Eldritch Caves, so…))
- Honeydew single-focused on Nano until he can thank her. She gingerly pats him, and it’s like a string has been cut - like he can actually see other people again. Lalna is immediately tackled into a massive - and extremely awkward - hug, while the dwarf has a meltdown on him. A bit later when everything has calmed, Nano awkwardly apologizes for whatever she did in drawing him there. He’s not having it (“I wanted t’leave for years. Part o’ me, anyway. Needed the push.”). He knows Lalna isn’t his Lalna (“Really hoped it was; yer the spitting image. More tattoos, maybe.”) but he doesn’t know what happened to him. Zephos wouldn’t tell him; which means it wasn’t good.
- Rythian (etc) are a lot warier. If he knew what the Labs were doing, he’s as guilty as the rest of them. Honeydew says it wasn’t always like that; admits he turned a blind eye to some of the weird in the beginning, then denial, then… something else. Couldn’t see it - couldn’t keep it if he did. Says he knows who Rythian is (“You’re that one he really hates.”); Zoey is missing hardware; Min’s a traitor. Rythian demanding to know what Honeydew wants. He wants to get Zephos out. Stop him; stop everything. Because there’s something deep in there that’s so much worse than him.
- And then the lights go out. The city has gone into full lockdown mode.
- Zephos has realised Honeydew is missing, and he can’t sense him. That shouldn’t be possible. Find him. FIND HIM. Searching the room desperately, screaming orders at some mooks - and they all freeze. Ridge appears, walking down the corridor dragging red-rimmed shadows in his wake. He looks worse than when seen before in Yoglabs stuff - like he’s a veneer on himself, occasionally cracking and reforming. Mocking as Zephos continues to search. ("Not getting distracted, are we?") Zephos snapping back, which results in Menacing (everything you are / have / ever done is because of me; and I can take it back so, so easily, etc). Zephos frantically saying this is the only thing he asks for; keeping him safe. During the Menacing, Ridge notices traceries of Nano’s power still clinging to the shell of this place. He can’t touch it / phases through it, but Zephos can (although it recoils from him). Resolves to study it. (“Looks like our interests still align. Find them both.”)
- For the rebels, this lockdown is a problem. There’s no way they can get a boat out in this; they’re stuck here. But maybe they can use the situation a different way. With the attentions of the Labs outside, searching for the newcomers AND Honeydew, maybe it’s not looking inwards enough. Honeydew reports how unstable the place is - especially after the portal experiment, which caused quite a lot of damage even when it went well. It could be vulnerable. Maybe set the portal off again - send Nano & Lalna home (or more importantly: away) - and fuck up the system so it blows up. It’s centrally controlled - if you didn’t actually care about balancing anything, you can do it from one place (Zephos doesn’t like to give control to anyone else).
- This plan is objectively insane. However. (re-use of Honeydew’s ‘just wing it’ comment from Endergame, but from Lalna.) Is it a suicide mission? Probably - but Rythian suggests a way out. He has two Enderpearls, and they do work. It’s Ender rather than magic; that never stopped functioning (did become rarer). If you hold one and throw it, it teleports you. If you throw it into a forcefield it doesn’t break but stays linked to you anyway - so when the field turns off and the pearl breaks, it will teleport you. (Has he done this before? Yes. Once. Not over as far a distance, but it’s possible that distance doesn’t matter in this case.)
- Lalna is trying not to be intensely weirded out by how fondly this Rythian talks about the Ender stuff in general. But then again, he didn't sink through an End portal, inch by horrified inch, as somebody watched it happen...
- Min points out that the power is out, and forcefields need a lot of it. Rythian says it doesn’t have to be large - and points out that Zoey has a small forcefield generator built in, that runs on her power. She could hold the pearls, be far away, and get them out after a time / signal. She is not pleased with this suggestion (“No. No! I’m coming with you.”). Min says she is not going back inside that place (“I told you; I die on my own terms, and no one else’s.”). Honeydew is pretty quiet about it. He wants to get to Zephos, ideally when there is no chance of him stopping the Lab imploding - and force him to leave.
- As they argue, Lalna raises his artificial arm and points out he might be able to do something by combining the two sets of tech. Rythian snaps that if Zoey hasn’t been able to disconnect that system from herself before, he certainly won’t. (“And how are you going to make sense of this mad science bullshit?”)
- Lalna does eventually stop laughing.
- Eventually.
- It takes a bit of time. Figuring out the unfamiliar tech (but not… that unfamiliar), combining things etc. Nano sitting on the table watching at some point, seeing Lalna dart around in a sort of gleeful mania. It’s not something she’s seen before. Sure, he’s interested in magic, finding new things to tinker with, working out how stuff fits together, but this is something else. He seems… in focus, almost, like some part of him finally present. Like she's really seeing him. Eventually he’s stripped his own prosthetic down to barely anything, a metal skeleton with gripping fingers; and created a forcefield box with his power cell, while giving Zoey a still-functioning arm. With a grapple in it now. (And any other addition needed for story reasons later; e.g. a few points of undeclared load.)
- Infiltration mission! Create a distraction and head to the Labs, Honeydew leading the way. Everyone in lab disguises, which works better for some than others (Zoey & Honeydew = in armour, Lalna = lab coat and face covering, long glove; Nano = as much mask as can be fitted over her Flux; Rythian in lab coat, high necked shirt, mask.) Get in fairly easily - security to stop people getting inside has indeed been reduced. Want to find the portal control room.
- Possible Lab bits: Rythian finding a captured Enderman and having emotions about it. Zoey’s internal map is out of date. Lalna trying not to oggle through every door they go past; eavesdrop every conversation / not butt in (fails).
- Infiltration mission goes wrong! Something has been set up around the traces of flux Nano left behind, and has been activated. Nano freaks out; starts to scream (not so ‘nano’ sounds now) in a way that begins to cause damage to the surroundings; Flux going mental. Lalna having trouble controlling his arm; Honeydew frozen, Rythian can’t breathe. It's all drawing attention. Nano drops through a puddle of Flux into the floor. Lalna pulls Rythian’s mask down and realises the purple has spread all the way up his neck, which is writhing. Zoey seems to be replying to things Lalna hasn’t said; knows that security is coming; Lalna yells at her to go. She grabs Honeydew, he hauls Rythian up (Flux arm taking the weight like nothing) and they run. He can feel several heartbeats thundering down his arm, Rythian’s own panic and another one that somehow he knows is Nano’s. Remembers the times she’s had night terrors, when he talked her down and tried to ignore the weird Flux effect happening (new magic is weird, right?), and tries to mutter similar things. Seems to be helping. Zoey boots open a door, hauling off a wall vent and posts Honeydew inside, climbing after him. Rythian is breathing again, tightening his grip on Lalna’s shoulders. (“...how…? What did you…” “Wouldn’t actually be the weirdest purple thing I’ve seen on your neck.” Hauling him towards Zoey’s waiting hands. Half laugh. “What - is wrong - with your - ”
- “Rythian.” His eyes go wide as the sentence is finished, but not by him, and he’s torn out of Lalna’s grip. Slams into the wall, wall starts to buckle and Zoey yells for him. Lalna slams the hatch on her, hearing Honeydew bellow as they both fall back into the vent, and lunges back for Rythian - half a moment too late as the wall shatters into fragments and dust and he’s yanked backwards; before freezing in the air, pinned in place like he’s chained there.
- “Ryth-i-an.” Voice again, almost sing-song, like it’s tasting the word - and Lalna knows that voice. Never heard it sound like that before though, with smooth, predatory tones, and he turns to see a tall figure walking through the dust, the air swirling oddly around him. (“It’s about time we were introduced, friend.” <- at ‘friend’, Rythian twitches and groans, a horrible spasm running through his frozen form.)
- Lalna steps between them. (“Xeph. Please.” <- mirror of Xephos getting between Rythian and Lalna in ‘The End’). Zephos stops advancing for a moment and stares at him. He doesn’t look shocked, but there’s definitely something there. (“You really do look like him.” “Please let him go.” “And why should I do that, Lalna? Do you know how much trouble this wildling trash has caused me? How long I’ve waited to learn his - tightening fist, creaking - goddamn - tightening, and Rythian makes an awful noise - name?”)
- Lalna gambles on: “Because I can help you. But I'll need him, and so do you.”
- Zephos laughing. It’s a strange sound, a double-layered laugh not entirely his own. (“You? I’ve had copies made before. You’re just a spare. A miscalculation. What possible use have I got for a one-armed, dilute facsimile of - ?”
- And now it’s Lalna’s turn to laugh. It’s not a happy noise, but it winds up out of his chest like an absolution and he brags about who he is; all the things he's done Moved an Enderportal; twice. Created such weapons, on a whim. Fought back an apocalypse at your side. Punched a hole in the world to get my friend back. Lost my arm down the gullet of the Queen of the End, minutes before we killed her and rode the wave of a breaking world back to our own. Shattered the walls between science and thaumaturgy because I wanted to; because I could. And if your Lalna was half the genius I am, then that - points at Rythian - is the best bloody mage you will ever find here, too. You want the impossible? Then step back and let us work. Friend.
- Zephos is listening. Eyes narrowed, but… interested. Drops Rythian, binds him to the floor with a collar of bent rebar from the wall. Don’t go anywhere. (“You. Follow me.”) Lalna doesn’t exactly have a choice.
- In the vents, Zoey and Honeydew plan to start freeing prisoners / experiments to cause chaos.
- Nano has sunk down through the floor / clipped back into Honeydew’s old room. There’s a lot of weird machinery there, surrounding the trace she left, and she starts tearing it apart. Realising she’s not alone - there’s a seething red-black darkness nearby, the spluttering edges of gold flame constantly spitting and dying within. (“Now, now. Shall we put our polite faces on? I’d hate to make a poor first impression.”)
- She knows that voice. Nano pulls herself back together (becoming less of a sort of purple storm in vaguely humanoid shape), managing to look mostly human. The space opposite her resolves somewhat as well, peeling back into itself, still trailing bloody shadows.
- “Ridge. You look terrible.” <- he’s weirdly delighted by this. (“Ohh, you have me at a disadvantage, little maelstrom. Here I was, thinking I was all left out of the one-sided reunions.”)
- Quite a lot of demigod verbal fencing. Ridge can’t touch her, but he’s fascinated by what she seems to be. (“You’re infecting them. I’ve never done it like that.” Will they come to you, if you call? Will they fight for you? Will they die for you?) There’s a deeply unsettling hunger about him. Nano’s trying not to say too much, but figures out that his power is split between him and Zephos; whatever is being cycled through Zephos, Ridge can't use.
- She disconnects herself from the Flux fragment in the machine (which crumbles to grey ash and fades to nothingness), and starts backing away. Ridge becoming angrier, losing his shape a bit; threatening that she is going to help him; that this world owes him. Nano points out she’s not from around here, remember? - and bolts, heading back the way she came.
- She re-emerges through the floor and finds Rythian bound down by wreckage, struggling. (“I can help. Probably. I’m really trying not to make it worse, okay?”) Security are around the corner, not wanting to get near to someone / thing of Zephos’ interest, but they’re going to notice her soon. Panics when she hears someone approaching; apologies again and grabs Rythian, pulling them both back down through the floor, flux-clipping away.
- Lalna and Zephos are having coffee. It is insanely normal. They’re in a canteen (everyone else found ways to discreetly flee). Deeply unsettling. There are parts of this Zephos that remind Lalna so strongly of his friend (little mannerisms, turns of phrase), and parts that really really don’t. Xephos has always been such a constant - a mystery, half the time, sure; cagey as hell about some things and an almost-embarrassingly open book about others, but always - always… (What, Lalna? If you can’t say it to yourself, who can you admit it to? He’s better. Even before you found out about the ‘hero’ stuff - which he’s so sheepish about; he’s saved the world and he’s awkward about it for fucksake - he’s always been… better. Can be a mother-hen, sure; somehow has less actual tact than Honeydew when he’s carefully trying to make sure you’re not starting another apocalypse in your basement; and the ‘biscuit factory’ was always the most ridiculous veneer if I’d actually stopped to think about it for more than two guilty seconds…) Compared to the man in front of him; wearing that same face - yet lit up with a malevolent delight when Rythian cried out. As he casually began to crucify him in the air. All the things he’d been told; all the things a little part of him held so, so firmly to the idea must be misunderstanding. Somehow. Somehow.
- How can you be worse than me?
- Zephos is curious. (“Why did you bring us here?” “I didn’t. You are a mistake.”). Asking about Nano. (“She’s my friend.” “Why?” “...because she doesn’t know who I am.” / “She’s a monster, you know.” “At this point, who isn’t?”) Assumes that Lalna’s Flux patterns are inflicted on him too (which isn’t… entirely wrong. But they’re not deliberate). Risks mentioning Ridge - Lalna doesn’t know who he’s talking about. Zephos realises it’s genuine. (“Let’s keep it that way.”)
- (He does; but he doesn’t know he does. The sealing of Survival Games memories - and even the space they are in - has been done by a Ridge who isn’t damaged.)
- Zephos has no idea where Nano is. She’s not showing up on any of the feeds. Lalna admits he thinks he’d know if she had left. Plus she wants to go home. (“And you?” “I’m… not sure.”) Zephos stands up and offers his hand. Lalna didn't realise he was familiar with what Xephos' hands look like, but this is so different - smoothed out, none of the callouses or scars. He takes it, watching his flux patterns retreat from the touch, even as he reaches out, and Zephos grins a moment before they both vanish again.
- Nano and Rythian dumped out into a dark corridor. He shoves himself away from her and is immediately sick. She backs away, apologizing again. Doesn’t know why the flux doesn’t affect Lalna like that (“You’ve always known what you were doing.” “I’m - not - your - fucking - Rythian!”) He rounds on her, twitching and furious and she starts backing down the corridor. Every time she touches him, he can remember, and it’s like being torn apart again and again and again. He feels like he’s going insane. (“If you can’t give it me back then at least take it away. Please! <- voice giving out, livid purple crawling up his neck, outlining the ‘M’ scarring in gleaming webbing). Lunges past her, staggering into the room beyond, half-collapsing onto a console, drooling Flux and choking. It’s spreading further, down his arms, up his face.
- (“You’re infecting them.”)
- Nano grabs him and he screams - and she steps out of herself again. Can see the two of them frozen, and the flux webbed out through them both. The surrounding world is like it was when she went wandering earlier - an odd red hue over everything, covered in deep rends, and now she can see they run through Rythian too. It’s like he’s a shattered thing, but the gaps between his fragments are half-scarrred over, pushed back into place with… other things. Rebuilt links, sewn back across the chasms of his scattered soul with the thread of a thousand other connections. Flickers of concept and memory echo as she touches them (the shift of feathers in the wind; pain; bloody minded determination; the gleam of over-bright green eyes, etc). But the purple glisten of the flux is pushing at the cracks, digging in, trying to follow pathways that don’t - can’t - exist anymore. Breaking him apart again.
- (“Come back to me.” Resisting. Fix it. Flow again. “We can’t. This isn’t ours to fix.”)
- the Flux is resisting. A stubbornness she knows so well. “You’re me. I… know that. I know we’re a bit scrambled up; I’m working on it. But I don’t want to hurt him, and you’re me too, so…”. Eventually it does pull back. Mostly. A bit won’t, staying settled in the original purple starburst over his heart; and she doesn’t push it. Steps back into herself - and lets go.
- Awkward staring. Shrug. “Best I can do?”
- Rythian straightens up - and the console under his fingers lights up. More, and more, spreading around the room, which is a lot bigger than either of them had realised. Wires, screens, scrolling reams of information, and in the centre is a pillar of twisting metal - with Voltz!Lalna embedded into it. (“...this explains a lot.”)
- Zephos and Lalna appear in the portal room. Zephos wondering why he’s doing this. (Do you miss him?) He’s cloned Lalna often enough (not recently - the tissue is too poisoned with nanotech to get a clear sample now), and they’ve always been… disappointing. Never quite right; never with that impulsive mania he remembered. Often wondered if he’d been too hasty in what he did - but the real Lalna is so thoroughly enmeshed in the facility, there’s so little of him left to work with now.
- Yet this one is staring at the portal room; the readouts, the technology, everything, with that so-familiar mad cogwork twisting behind his eyes. Zephos is watching him, waiting for something. (“What do you think? What would you do with this?”) (“It’s incredible.”) He wants to peel it open, he wants to see how it works - and he’s not lying. He really does. Perhaps…
- Lalna almost feels high. Maybe it was the teleporting. Maybe it’s everything around him. This is all insane. He knows what this place does. He’s been told; he’s seen it. He can’t be thinking about…
- Nano. She has to go home. Maybe he deserves this place, but she doesn’t. Asks if Zephos could send her back.
- No. It doesn’t go in reverse. It targeted her, not directions. There is no way back.
- Lalna trying not to panic. Entertaining the idea of maybe staying, even this black-mirror half truth he was hanging on the precipice of here, was very different to the idea he that had to. The idea there was a choice, even if he had no idea how he’d make it, had allowed everything to be almost… fun. Not fun-fun, not by any honest sense of the word, but something that was ultimately more of a… game. Not fully real. (Remembering other times he's hit this kind of wall - reactor alarms screaming, with Sjin bleeding out his feet; as Rythian slipped just too far into that oil-sheen wrongness of the End portal; as he plunged forward towards that same fate; as the Queen cut into him, twice...)
- “Having second thoughts?” “Never been good at those.” Not in time, anyway.
- They should have run.
- Zephos tries to teleport Rythian there - and he can’t. He’s got an extremely vague feel of him, he knows he’s somewhere, but it’s like trying to see through purple fog. Grabs Lalna’s arm again and watches the flux swirl away from his hand. One godtouch can’t overlap with another. Laughing. Resigned. Alas, the main use for Lalna now is going to be as bait. ("I'm sorry, friend. But none of this is about you."
- Back in the basement with other Lalna. <He’s looking for you.> There are no cameras in here. Lalna can’t directly disobey Zephos, but he can do things around the edges. Like open doors. Rythian realises he must be why he and Zoey were able to escape in the past. He feels something grasp for him, but it slides off the knot in his chest.
- What does this Lalna want? An end to this. Everything can burn, if he can do it. Glitching a bit with too many questions. Also a lot of alarms are going off - chaos starting in various places, as experiments get loose / escape.
- Lab-wide announcement of Lalna Being Imperiled. It’s a trap. Nano is going anyway, Rythian following. Obviously Honeydew & Zoey are going too.
- Everyone into the trap! (of course)
- Menace. Ridge turns up. Extra menace.
- Honeydew standing up to Ridge, for Zephos. Threatening him with the axe. Ridge is furious, Zephos trying to placate him / Honeydew. Ridge grasps his arm, causing pain / special effects, and Honeydew throws the axe (“Leave him alone.”). Ridge pauses it in the air, it lighting up gold/black and sends it back. (“I am so very bored of you.)
- Honeydew crumples, dying; Zephos yanks the axe out, but he can’t fix the wound. Ridge won’t let it work.
- Zephos goes mental.
- Ridge!Power-off. Lalna getting grabbed from whatever Situation he’s in while this is happening. Any other staff have fled; room being torn apart. Nano ‘bubbling’ them all, but can’t do much more than that. Room flickering between where they are normally and the portal room (since the red matter is in the roof of that room; Zephos trying to get Ridge impaled on it; can’t teleport him alone, but can AoE it). He’s not winning, but he’s not instantly losing either. Nano’s bubble disrupted by red matter bits getting thrown around / shattered.
- Ridge starts winning, although he is clearly coming apart under the effort. Finally rips his power back out of Zephos (“Goodbye, Zephos. I don’t think I’ll miss you, after all.”); bloody cracks opening along Z’s body as he’s crawling towards Honeydew. Ridge reforming, and he’s not complete but it’s the most power he’s had for a long time. Starts drawing Nano’s Flux towards him (it’s running through the cracks in the world, and she can see how they all end/start with him). She’s fighting back, Rythian & Zoey trying to hold on to her as Ridge advances; not even remotely human now, with altered Flux marks starting to curl up his face (different to Nano’s - angular, vicious designs that look nothing like hers). Nano’s visibly her full self, her magic pulling back out of everyone else to protect / fight.
- Lalna beside the console. No Flux; his prosthetic already destroyed - he has nothing. He can’t get into the system past Zephos’ safeguards. Doesn’t have time. Slamming hand on console. Beep. It lights up (“I’m… in?”). Screen scrolling, and he realises he understands the instructions, although more by vibes than anything else. Portal can be activated - and set to target the biggest thing there.
- What happens if you try to pull someone into a dimension they’re already part of? Let’s fucking find out.
- If you're going to cause a disaster, do it for the right reasons.
- Portal starts up, everything shaking and starting to break. It pulls Ridge towards it but he hasn’t gone in; raising a hand towards Lalna (this is where I die). Shape rises behind Ridge, and Zephos brings Honeydew’s bloody axe round like a garotte, hauling them both backwards and into the vortex.
- Dramatic special effects for effectively throwing both primary antagonists into a feedback loop black hole.
- Portal machinery collapses, leaving a brilliant tear in the world hanging there in its place.
- A bit of time to check if everybody is alive. And then a lot of alarms start going off (Reactor critical, safeties disengaged etc etc). Lalna’s console informs him that the surrounding forcefields will ‘contain it’, and says they need to leave. Goodbye. Then shuts off). ("Let’s say there’s something wrong with our Lalna" from Rythian, since Lalna didn’t actually meet his double / know what any of that was about).
- Nano has been staring at the portal space, and realises it’s widening, as if pixels are peeling off into it. (“This is bad.”). She’s exhausted, barely showing any flux; doesn’t know if she can get her and Lalna away in time. There has to be something they can do, but…
- Another flash within, dark against the empty brilliance and holding an open shape, and two figures crash through it, landing as if they’ve jumped. A moment of horror as the first - so familiar; tall, thin - one straightens up, but then Lalna sees the blue metallic gleam of a sword gripped in one hand, and a torch in the other. Impossibly low-tech against the background of this place; yet held unwavering, like a declaration. Bellowing from beside him (“Lalna, yer mad bastard, where the bloody hell have you gallivanted of to this time?”) Then a different voice, just behind that one, as two more shapes materialize; one darkly clad, half-masked; the other with bejewelled sunglasses crammed on top of piled red hair. (“You’re going to start with the yelling?”) Behind them, there’s a slice of somewhere else visible, as if superimposed on the world. Other figures can be seen back there.
- Everybody sees each other. Lalna yelling to get away from the rift. Honeydew shouting that they brought a professional for that. The Rythians are just staring at each other. Nano grabbing Lalna’s arm, a faraway look in her eyes; Flux sparking there. They need to leave. Now.
- Hadn’t expected this. What about the hole in the world? Nano insisting. (“It’ll be okay. This is one of those ‘believe me but don’t ask’ things.”). Lalna looking at Rythian, who is still staring at his doppelganger. (“I… think we’re being rescued.” "I can see that."). Zoeys wave at each other. (“Need a lift?” “No, we’ve got a teleporter box!” “Okay!”).
- Huge explosion somewhere, and Rythian gasps - as he and Zoey vanish, in a twin vwip and two trails of broken black-violet.
- Running to the others, grabbed and hauled through. Moment of threshold confusion, and then they’re hitting the floor in Lalna’s old castle basement. Xephos grabs him, part in a hug, part holding him down, looking away. (“He says it’s better if we don’t try and watch this.”) Something happens behind them, in one long, very weird moment, and then the world resolves itself again. There’s a swish next to them, and Lalna catches a glimpse of gold-and-black brocade as someone strides past. A voice, felt almost more than heard. He’s going to want a little chat about this; later. Then he’s gone - and suddenly unimportant, sliding from Lalna’s attention like oil on water, as reality hits. They’re back. (“Yeah, well. Some ruddy idiot left a whole load of portal technology just gathering dust in his basement.”)
- Epilogue: Normal world. It’s been a few days and Zoey has aggressively thrown a party at Blackrock. Someone has pinned another sign under the ‘welcome home’ banner saying ‘that was so much easier than last time (and another saying: Don’t do it AGAIN; underlined)’. Nano watching Lalna. He's wearing one of his old prosthetics and starting to fiddle with it while drinking, but like he's been struck by an idea rather than because he's uncomfortable with it this time. Suddenly everything gains a slow-down shimmer, and Ridge sits down beside her. He has a ridiculously colourful drink, with a little black-and-gold umbrella in it. Bits of it are moving.
- Demigod discussion of events. Used Lalna’s old portal tech (slightly... tweaked) to try and track where they had gone; trail was too thin to follow until the machine was activated again. He hasn’t altered anyone’s memories much - just obfuscating a few details. (“As much as it might pain my ego to say it; I hardly think I was the interesting part of this.”)
- Will they ever remember? Enough. If they need to.
- Wondering what happened there, that didn’t happen here. (“Glad it didn’t. Sounds terribly boring.”) Noting that Nano seems more connected within herself. No need to rush things, but it’s good to see her more settled. Flux patterns are back, but are calmer, and move more lazily under her skin than frantic shifting. Ridge gives her a gift - the scar in the world from sealing the rift, made into a necklace. It's a gold, faintly non-euclidean squiggle, which turns purple when she touches it. (“What is it?” “A reminder.” “Don’t you want it?” “I have plenty. Not my first rodeo.” Runs finger along the strange golden brocade of his coat; the complex intertwining of strange, glimmering patterns...) He vanishes, and the world speeds back up.
- Lalna and Nano discussion. He knows there’s something he’s forgetting - but trusts her when she says she’s sure it’ll come to him; if he needs it. Checking she’s okay. Checking he’s okay (re: coming home / feeling less like it’s just something deeply about him that must always end in disaster etc). It’s a ‘Yes’ that covers a lot. Nano saying they should go back to Lalna’s castle for a bit - he can sort out his arm how he wants, and they can fix it up. They’ve been doing… her thing, for a while. She’d like to know more about his. Gives him the necklace (although most of the weird of it she can tell he can’t see) - since… y’know, waves at his arm, where his own Flux patterns used to be.
(other bits? Tie up any appropriate loose ends)
- Epilogue: other leg. It’s been over a year. There was a lot to do after Min finally smashed the pearls (when the Labs started falling apart, as by that point they clearly either weren’t able to give her a signal, or that was the signal). The Labs outer forcefield did indeed stay intact, containing the resulting explosions, and so their first action was to make very sure that the outer power sources kept running. Then evacuate the city. Actual cooperation between everyone, Labs staff included, because no one wanted to be there when it fell / imploded.
- Other rebel groups took out other Sites, since there was no coordination to the Labs anymore. It wasn't just losing the leadership - something had changed. Even people trying to take it back over didn’t seem to have the drive to do so anymore. Rebels able to coordinate properly for the first time in ages - and as it progresses, Rythian realises there isn’t really a him-shaped space here anymore. He and Zoey are heading back to the Wilds, and it’s so much easier a trip this time. (Having an amazonian cyborg along with you will do that.) Worried about what they’ll find. He has sent a communication, but there’s only so much he dares put in even those coded channels.
- Seeing an Enderman in the distance as they’re getting closer; sheltering from sea spray. Zoey says it’s kinda creepy - a lot of people think they’re an omen. Rythian agrees with the omen part; but he’s not sure if he knows which way.
- Arriving, and Rythian is amazed to see the ramshackle port looks good. (“What, you thought it’d all fall over without you here? Ego, Ryth; pfft.”) Disembark, and he’s trying to get his bearings when there’s running footsteps, quite a lot of yelling, and Lomadia hits him in a sprinting hug, before shaking him violently, then being horrified at his scars; then hugging him again. (“Nothing for years, and then ‘Oh, yeah, fyi I’m on the way back; don’t wait up.’ You absolute bastard. What happened to your face?” etc).
- Others there too - the Hatlads, clamouring as usual, plus a few more he doesn’t know (in the background: “I’m Zoey and I really want to see a massive owl.”) - and then someone else, standing half behind the rest. It’s Nano; but clearly not the same one. Looks younger; different markings; owl feathers woven into her hair. Lomadia brings her round to introduce her, hand extended. Rythian freezes, then it’s like something in his chest tugs him forwards, swinging his hand into hers -
- and the world lights up again. Feels power unfurl under his heart - but not painfully now; not displaced or desperate. Something from here. Something very old, and completely new, all at once. He manages not to fall down, although mostly because Lomadia catches his shoulder, wincing. (“Oh damn, I didn’t think it’d be immediate, it took a good while for - ” Background, Smiffy bellowing: “Five seconds! His eyes went fucking purple; Ross you owe me money you pessimistic bastard!”)
- (“Yeah, he talks now. It’s exactly as aggravating as you expect.”)
- Nano apologising, Rythian assuring her it’s okay. (Lomadia: “I’m not complaining, but you are a lot less freaked out than I thought you were going to be.” “I’ve had… some practice.” “Oooh you should try fire first; fire is great.” “Shut up, Smiff.”
- Magic. It's little more than a seed right now, going to need growing, tending, learning the new shape of it… but it feels right.
- The close of one thing, and the start of something else.
- Because in some ways, an end is always a beginning.
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