"There is nothing wrong with Tybalt, Mr. De'Foul, and you are facing much worse than detention if you attack now," Ephebe snapped in her best teacher voice. "Go and check on him yourself if you don't believe me."
She snapped her fingers and an aschen appeared. "Return the borrowed items, and quickly borrow something else for me. A card. You know which one."
"Let the Sandwalkers rest. All of them." He adds. "I've brought my brother back with your help I can go home now."
Anwars stands back and listens quietly. He understood what was going to have to happen.
Ephebe sighed. "Okay, your call. You can explain it to Ryo and the kids if it ever comes up. I'd recommend explaining from a distance. If they know you could have brought her back and didn't....well, I wouldn't expect them to take it very well."
"Wait a minute here....I feel like you're saying something more than what it sounds like you're saying. Okay, that describes every conversation with you I think. Maybe you weren't as cryptic with Ephebe after I...left...." Andromeda said, giving Lysander a suspicious glare.
Ephebe pinched the bridge of her nose, a sure sign of stress. "Please tell me that you aren't being dramatic and there isn't some sort of grand immortality cancellation plan you're going to implement now. Because that really would be just too much, 'Sander. And you know you can't go back into the past. Because then none of this would have happened and I can only rewrite so much. I can't change the factors that caused my existence."
"I can't really hide anything can I?"
"I just ask myself what the most dramatic thing to happen would be and it's usually right," she said sarcastically. "Is it really so much to ask that some good come out of this? Really? A world, two races, my brother...over and over again......a lot of sacrifices went into making today happen. Too many of them were personal. I can't bring back Ianthe. I can't bring back the dragons. I can't bring back the Hunters. Thought I had a shot to save a few of them. Because if the cousins and I are all that's left....it's a crappy way to win a war that should never have been fought. And I can't bring back Jiminy either. The version from this universe is nice enough, but it's not the same. It doesn't make the loss go away. And now you want to leave too? It's too much, 'Sander. I may be a paradox engine, but I'm not a machine. At least have the good grace to just explain clearly for once in your life."
"He's out of balance with everything else. To put it differently, he's been living on borrowed time and it's time to pay up." Anwar says quietly.
"It's not like I can stop you. But I'm not going to help. I'm not the person for that job. You know who is and you likely know where to find him," she said, shoulders slumped in defeat. "Just for once, wouldn't it make a nice change if saving the universe didn't mean someone has to die? If just once, everyone lives...."
"You could have helped me save them before you left, you know. It would have worked. After all of the terrible things I've done....it would have been nice."
"We'll talk after this."
"Ephebe, sometimes things just go badly even when you're making them better. I hate knowing that, but immortality is terrible. I don't know how angels and the like handle it."
dave peters out and disperses the magic and says "so.... what the f*++ just happened...."
"We'll talk after this."
"Ephebe, sometimes things just go badly even when you're making them better. I hate knowing that, but immortality is terrible. I don't know how angels and the like handle it."
"I guess I'll find out, won't I? Or I've already found out. My life is complicated like that, and you don't understand as much about me as you think you do. But somewhere between condemning worlds and policing hell, I try as hard as I can to make amends. To fix things. And I'm not giving up. You're making it harder for gods only know what reason, but I'm not giving up. There are other ways. And I will find them. I have to," she said, her voice quavering as she fought back tears.
She stepped back. "You were a lousy teacher, Lysander. But thank you for trying. And for saving my children. For that alone, I forgive you everything else. If you end up in my corner of the afterlife, I'll leave standing orders with the aschen to not torment your soul or trade it to anyone else."
dave peters out and disperses the magic and says "so.... what the f$*+ just happened...."
"It's probably best to just file this under 'I hate time travel'. The actual explanation would take too long. To sum up, Time built a thing to change Time so that Time could both kill Balance and bring it back. The other girl over there that looks like me is that thing. So Balance is back, Balance's Champion is back, no idea if he's staying or not, and I'm back. Which will probably make for an awkward family meeting, but nothing you need to worry about. Ask your Patron if you want more details, but I doubt anyone outside of maybe Balance and Death and TIme actually understand what the hell is going on right now. But don't worry....your friend should be fine. The ritual just took a tiny bit of energy. Like a nap should totally set things right," she said with an awkward smile as she tried to stay out of the way of the obviously difficult goodbyes. She hadn't really had much of a relationship with Lysander...mostly jumping in fear, that sort of thing. She'd already been fading or faded when that clearly turned around. And was kind of hoping that she wasn't as awkward at goodbyes as her other self, but had the sinking feeling that she probably was.
Everything was happening very fast for Jasper. First the new guy, then time shifts in which he stayed mostly the same, save for the fact that his outfit changed about once per second, his suit from early, the tattered one, a super hero suit with the mark CM he could've sworn he'd never had, ending on This as they're warped back to the present.
While other people discuss the fragile temporal anomalies and who and who not to bring back from the dead, Jasper is apparently so lost that he simply finds it easier to pay attention to his outfit instead.
"I'm not sure if this is the yellow phase I went through before or if it's from one I haven't had yet. I kinda like it." He muses to no one in particular, having returned to a more personable size, still an inch taller than the tallest other person there, by choice of course.
"why would... no why to like all of that, why would you need to kill someone/thing if you knew you were going to bring him back, and when both the action of killing and saving were just as valid points to call your "present" unless I've very much misunderstood what the hell is going on with how Time works.... Why did you need Tybalt's energy but not, for example, mine, if you'd explained earlier I'd have helped out....You're "back" implying this is your home timeline, why were you not an acceptable one to do what she did.... where did all those other yous go.... uuuugh I've been at this for less than a day and it already makes no sense" he says shape shifting himself to the more fleshy form he felt more comfortable in, with accents of light blue scales dusting across his form.
"why would... no why to like all of that, why would you need to kill someone/thing if you knew you were going to bring him back, and when both the action of killing and saving were just as valid points to call your "present" unless I've very much misunderstood what the hell is going on with how Time works.... Why did you need Tybalt's energy but not, for example, mine, if you'd explained earlier I'd have helped out....You're "back" implying this is your home timeline, why were you not an acceptable one to do what she did.... where did all those other yous go.... uuuugh I've been at this for less than a day and it already makes no sense" he says shape shifting himself to the more fleshy form he felt more comfortable in, with accents of light blue scales dusting across his form.
"I couldn't do it for two reasons. One, I was dead up until a little bit ago. Two, I'm not a paradox engine. She is. It's...look, it's a complicated thing, okay? And as far as I know, she sent her little demons to ask everyone. If they didn't ask you, you must have been inaccessible for some reason. Maybe in some kind of conflict? You strike me as the kind of person who gets in fights a lot. And as for why....the hell if I know. All of the Patrons wanted Balance gone, and Kronos got elected to do the job, with some assistance from Death. There was some reason, something that had to happen that could only happen if things were out of balance....but it's not like they actually tell us anything. You may as well get used to that. Anyways, instead of Balance staying dead, Kronos split him...er....herself into two distinct personalities in order to bring Balance back. So now Kronos is weaker than before and no, I have no clue as to why. All of the other mes were a distraction to keep the Patrons from seeing what was going on until it was too late to stop it. Also the first version of Kronos didn't want to change and was resisting it, but of course the second version had to change to exist and she already existed, so it had to happen....look, I'm the Champion of Time and I still get a headache trying to understand all of this stuff. Short version, time travel is bad, okay."
"surprisingly the time travel aspects are some of the least confusing parts of this story to me... I think that means one of us is critically misunderstanding something, and I'm big enough to say it's probably me.... I want to object to your assessment of me because I don't like the implications, but I can't because it's accurate... I do end up in a lot of fights... and was in one against some kind of demon lord at a point that from my referance frame was this morning"
"surprisingly the time travel aspects are some of the least confusing parts of this story to me... I think that means one of us is critically misunderstanding something, and I'm big enough to say it's probably me.... I want to object to your assessment of me because I don't like the implications, but I can't because it's accurate... I do end up in a lot of fights... and was in one against some kind of demon lord at a point that from my referance frame was this morning"
"A demon lord? Well, that's interesting. Do you know which one? Might be someone she knows," she said, nodding towards Ephebe. "Professional interest and all that. Although, honestly, it gets pretty confusing. Between the constant infighting in hell and the way she keeps hopping around from universe to universe, it constantly changes and I really don't know how she even keeps track. I spent a few months sharing her brain when I was a ghost, so I got a pretty good look at her memories, and let me tell you, I do not envy her that particular responsibility. Being a demon lord is a lot of work even if your minions are honestly kind of cute and lovable providing you give them coffee regularly."
"Nice suit, by the way," she added to Jasper. "I really like the color."
After sitting for what seems like an eternity, following the ebbs and flows of emotion from his wife over their bond, he feels...
::What is...? Are you alright!?::
She stepped back. "You were a lousy teacher, Lysander. But thank you for trying. And for saving my children. For that alone, I forgive you everything else. If you end up in my corner of the afterlife, I'll leave standing orders with the aschen to not torment your soul or trade it to anyone else."
"The chances of you seeing me in the afterlife are very slim. My time in this life is pretty unbalanced. There's a good chance... Well, no mourning, got it? It's bad for the training." He says rather bluntly. "Just.. break the news to the little ones gently. Getting them worked up over nothing is bad."
"Also, you were a terrible student. Keep working on that or I'll fail you from beyond the grave."
She stepped back. "You were a lousy teacher, Lysander. But thank you for trying. And for saving my children. For that alone, I forgive you everything else. If you end up in my corner of the afterlife, I'll leave standing orders with the aschen to not torment your soul or trade it to anyone else.""The chances of you seeing me in the afterlife are very slim. My time in this life is pretty unbalanced. There's a good chance... Well, no mourning, got it? It's bad for the training." He says rather bluntly. "Just.. break the news to the little ones gently. Getting them worked up over nothing is bad."
"Also, you were a terrible student. Keep working on that or I'll fail you from beyond the grave."
"Idiot," she shot back, hastily wiping tears from her eyes as she turned away.
After sitting for what seems like an eternity, following the ebbs and flows of emotion from his wife over their bond, he feels...
::What is...? Are you alright!?::
::You need to be here.::
Quickly appears, ready for battle...looks around, recognizing most of the folks here...twice...and looks confused
"What happened here?"
Quickly appears, ready for battle...looks around, recognizing most of the folks here...twice...and looks confused
"What happened here?"
She hugged him. "Balance is back, I'm not going to be champion of time anymore because I'm actually something a wee bit scarier, there's probably going to be a fuss about that, Andromeda is staying and she's going to be champion of time...the family meeting is going to be awkward, and Lysander is dying. Everything else is details and takes too long to explain right now." She sniffled, trying but not succeeding at keeping the tears from leaking out of her eyes.
"That's odd. I didn't think he could." He bows to Lysander
"I'm glad Balance is back. Maybe the others will settle down. Wait, you're not going to be champion anymore...how is...the only way..."
"That's odd. I didn't think he could." He bows to Lysander
"I'm glad Balance is back. Maybe the others will settle down. Wait, you're not going to be champion anymore...how is...the only way..."
"I'm a special case. And those rules don't apply to champions of time anyways. One point is the same as all points to Kronos."
Looks relieved
"For a moment there I thought you were telling me you were dying."
Lysander and Anwar take the moment to slip away, trying to spare the others the sight of Lysander's impending departure.
Looks relieved
"For a moment there I thought you were telling me you were dying."
She snorted. "More the other direction, dear."
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"Wait the angry dude is dying and the tiny teacher.. Uh I mean Mr uhh.. Mr.... Black...something? Sorry... You're a champion?"
She snorted. "More the other direction, dear."Looks relieved
"For a moment there I thought you were telling me you were dying."
He gets his mischevious glimmer in his eye.
"I guess erring on the side of death is an occupational hazard, Love. I'm beyond happy to be wrong this time. Which one is this?" He asks, indicating her twin.
To Dave
"Blackscales, Mr. De'Foul. I am the Champion of Death."
"Ah, sorry Mr Blackscales. I'm kinda new at this, I'm the champion of Pride"
She snorted. "More the other direction, dear."Looks relieved
"For a moment there I thought you were telling me you were dying."
He gets his mischevious glimmer in his eye.
"I guess erring on the side of death is an occupational hazard, Love. I'm beyond happy to be wrong this time. Which one is this?" He asks, indicating her twin.
To Dave
"Blackscales, Mr. De'Foul. I am the Champion of Death."
"You remember when we first met? She was the ghost that was er...sharing brain space with me back then. She's agreed to go by our middle name to avoid confusion. So I'm still Ephebe and she's Andromeda. She's the one who was originally from this timeline. So James and Taron's actual sister. And I'm guessing they'll be noticing the return of their sibling bond any moment now."
"Hey," she said with an awkward wave.
"Ahh. Nice to meet you, Andromeda. I'm sure you'll fit right in. Out of the ordinary seems to be status quo for Sunwakes."
Jasper claps his quartet of hands together in two sets, the top going up to his chin and shoulder and the bottom out at an angle, both in the stance of being endeared by flattery.
"Oh, why thank you. It's nice to know that there's another of me with good taste somewhen."
He shifts his stance and with a quick motion, Andromeda has on something similar to this , battle damage being visibly gone, but she feels no less fatigued. Just cleaner.
"Something from me to you."
He turns to Dave, his upper body moving independently from his lower. "Sorry about throwing a dragon at you and everything. Boss' orders, ya know?"
He looks down and back up.
"Speaking of that, I'm not really sure what to do now. Having choices is sort of... new."
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To the other 2 champions (freedom and pride)
"Welcome to the chaos. I hope your patrons briefed you on what you can expect."
He looks back to the retreating Lysander and his brother
::Is there anything I should offer to do for him? This seems...unnecessary.::
Jasper claps his quartet of hands together in two sets, the top going up to his chin and shoulder and the bottom out at an angle, both in the stance of being endeared by flattery.
"Oh, why thank you. It's nice to know that there's another of me with good taste somewhen."
He shifts his stance and with a quick motion, Andromeda has on something similar to this , battle damage being visibly gone, but she feels no less fatigued. Just cleaner.
"Something from me to you."
He turns to Dave, his upper body moving independently from his lower. "Sorry about throwing a dragon at you and everything. Boss' orders, ya know?"
He looks down and back up.
"Speaking of that, I'm not really sure what to do now. Having choices is sort of... new."
She looked down at the dress. "Huh. Kinda reminds me of a costume I had once for a ballet recital. Well, at least it should make it even easier to tell me and Ephebe apart," she said with a shrug. "Thanks."
"You can come home with us if you want. We live in a school for magical kids. It's crazy, but probably a good place to regroup if you need to figure things out. Up to you. You could go anywhere really."
To the other 2 champions (freedom and pride)
"Welcome to the chaos. I hope your patrons briefed you on what you can expect."
He looks back to the retreating Lysander and his brother
::Is there anything I should offer to do for him? This seems...unnecessary.::
::I don't know. I think he's saying goodbye to his brother. Or something. You know what Lysander is like. Never give a straight answer if a cryptic one will do. He seemed to be acting like this was going to take care of itself so, I don't really know. I guess it wouldn't hurt to check on them?::
To the other 2 champions (freedom and pride)
"Welcome to the chaos. I hope your patrons briefed you on what you can expect."
He looks back to the retreating Lysander and his brother
::Is there anything I should offer to do for him? This seems...unnecessary.::
"Not really... Like at all... Pride seemed really distractable"
Jasper claps his quartet of hands together in two sets, the top going up to his chin and shoulder and the bottom out at an angle, both in the stance of being endeared by flattery.
"Oh, why thank you. It's nice to know that there's another of me with good taste somewhen."
He shifts his stance and with a quick motion, Andromeda has on something similar to this , battle damage being visibly gone, but she feels no less fatigued. Just cleaner.
"Something from me to you."
He turns to Dave, his upper body moving independently from his lower. "Sorry about throwing a dragon at you and everything. Boss' orders, ya know?"
He looks down and back up.
"Speaking of that, I'm not really sure what to do now. Having choices is sort of... new."
"no harm done really.. But uh.. What do you mean 'having choices is new" he says with the voice of someone who can guess the answer and wants to be wrong.
::I don't know. I think he's saying goodbye to his brother. Or something. You know what Lysander is like. Never give a straight answer if a cryptic one will do. He seemed to be acting like this was going to take care of itself so, I don't really know. I guess it wouldn't hurt to check on them?::To the other 2 champions (freedom and pride)
"Welcome to the chaos. I hope your patrons briefed you on what you can expect."
He looks back to the retreating Lysander and his brother
::Is there anything I should offer to do for him? This seems...unnecessary.::
He nods, and gives Ephebe a quick "I'm glad you're ok" hug n kiss, and walks toward where Anwar and Lysander disappeared to.
Jasper nods when she thanks him for the dress.
"No problem. I've always believed that there's no point in wearing clothes if they aren't nice."
He shakes his head some as he desummons the large hammer next to him.
"The griffon that talked to me was somewhat less than helpful, but with the offer I wasn't going to say no."
Turning back to Dave he's about to answer when one of the Aschen approach him with an oddly shaped glass bottle with a stopper in it. He accepts it with the face of someone receiving a bad sweater from their grandmother in that they hate what they're being given, but they have to take it politely.
He promptly turns around and chucks the bottle into the air away from the group, adopting a pitcher's stance with the throwing arms and gathering an orb of energy that he shoots at it promptly afterwards. They meet at the bottle's zenith and it shatters into a a snow fine scatter of sparkles that are picked up and carried by the desert winds to join the rest of the sand there, indistinguishable from the rest.
"Does that and the word Djinn answer the question?"
Dave looks sheepish "ah, my condolences.. If you need anyone to show you around the school..?" He offers.