Ascension - A Race Against Time

[Thaelasan]

Ansgar awoke, groggy. He noticed with satisfaction that he had an electric blanket shrouding him now. It made it hard to get out of bed.

He really just wanted to sleep. He then looked across from him.

The bed was empty.

"Tyler?" he asked, confused. He got out of the bed, only to note that he - too - was wearing medical clothing. Then again, it didn't really bother him much. He stepped out of the medical bay, his body becoming pure energy. Yet to the naked eye he looked like his average self.

He headed back to his room first and grabbed a change of clothes. Tyler had crafted him military uniforms from multiple countries and then placed casual clothes on top of them. He had wanted him to stop being so formal.

But Ansgar couldn't help it. Years of wearing these tight suits and pants had made Ansgar unable to feel comfortable in casual wear.

He pulled them on and buttoned them. It was then that he noticed.

THESE WERE THE SAME CLOTHES HIS FUTURE SELF HAD WORN.

He stood for a moment, stark still. How was that possible? How could Tyler have known what they looked like? Or if he didn't, how did Vanguard get them without having known Tyler? They weren't from any other system, as far as Ansgar knew. He and Tyler had made them themselves.

Had Vanguard lied about knowing Tyler? But why would he?

Regardless, he finished putting them on and headed out the door, searching for Tyler and Nikki along the hallways. When he finally found Tyler, he grinned.

"Eyyyy." he said softly. "Your chest feeling better? I can't imagine the pain you must have felt when you did that."

Tyler began to fade away, breaking apart. As Ansgar reached for him, he found that he could not grasp him. Strangely, it didn't feel foreign or unusual that this would happen.

Nikki too. When Ansgar found her, she shattered in front of him, like glass.

The entire world began to fall apart.

Soon, just Vanguard and Ansgar were standing there, staring at each other.

"So you're going to be in my dreams now?" Ansgar asked.

"I will always be here, in your subconscious. I will be watching." Vanguard replied, turning. "You should probably wake up now."

 

----

 

Ansgar awoke. Sure enough, the electric blanket was on him. It felt warm and enticing.

He looked across from him.

There was Tyler.

Ansgar felt like crying. He didn't realize how bad it had felt when the man across from him had almost died. Tyler wasn't like a friend to him now - he was like a true brother. The age difference wasn't too much that that couldn't be possible.

"Yo!" Ansgar waved. That's all he could say now.

[Astrodeath311]

Tyler turned, hearing the boy for which he conducted his silent vigil speak. He sounded odd, unlike his usual self; upbeat and happy to shaded and downcast. It was unnatural how this change had occurred. He sighed, stealing away the blanket, Melding into something more appropriate for the day; official-looking clothes that he himself had worn during his graduation back on Passer. Of course they weren't the exact pair. He'd lost those long ago. After that, he created a curtain so the boy could change. Why had he chosen that particular set?

"You okay? You sound...different." Tyler sounded indifferent, but that was not the true way he had felt. Nearly dying had radically changed his outlook on life. Sometimes he wished he had died there, other times he was glad he didn't. Most of the time he simply didn't care. Tyler had hoped that Ansgar could have helped with that, but he was not sure if such a subject was appropriate at the time.

"We need to leave the planet, Ansgar." He sighed. "It's falling apart. Matt's losing his connection with the shadows all around."

 

This planet had housed them faithfully for the time they spent on it; the Sprytes had been good caretakers and gracious hosts. Cooked so many meals for them and done so many things without so much as a complaint. And they would die now, alone, as the core of the planet erupted. The Seer could probably do something about it, but she was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Vikare. In their hour of need, they were being left alone.

 

Ah well, they would be stronger for it. At least he hoped.

[padfoot]

Roxy swung around the corner and hung from the doorjamb of Tyler and Ansgar's room. She heard what he had said about leaving the planet, "Oh, So you guys already know about our little situation", she said, her face dark. This sucked. She finally found a place that she could call home. A place that wasn't a prison to her or her powers. She even found people to share her life with. Now it was all falling apart, Literately. Where was the Seer at a time like this. She usually appeared when no one needed her, where was she when something was actually happening? Since they couldn't sit around here and wait for her, they needed to move. She looked at Tyler, "Can anyone else survive in space?", she asked. If she was the only one they were going to have a problem. She was struggling to keep gravity nulled underneath herself. She didn't think she could carry everyone into orbit and sustain life support. If it wasn't for the beating her future self gave her, she would be able to stabilize the planet herself. But she couldn't, she wasn't strong enough. This was suppose to be her job, this whole god a space thing, but she couldn't do it.

 

Roxy shook her head, they couldn't worry about that now . Her hair was slowing becoming a muddy yellow, showing the others that she was afraid. LAr had done so much for them and there was nothing they could do to save it. She thought for a moment and a realization came to mind, "Has anyone seen Nikki?", she asked. Since Matt ran to her to tell her what was going on and it seemed that Tyler did the same for Ansgar. Where was her metal bending friend? The yellow in her hair was growing brighter. She wasn't killed by her alternate self, was she? There was no way she was going to even think about that possibility. Unfortunately, there were more important things to worry about.

[Clown_of_God]

I couldn't recall the last time I felt like this, my body trembling so much it had become an effort to keep myself stabilized. With every jitter, another section of my home world eroded into nothing. My focus was on preventing one of these jitters from hitting the Citadel and wiping out the young godlings.

Where was I going? What was I going to do? Tell them, 'hey, it's nothing to fret, my powers are just going rampant.' No, that was not something they needed to hear so soon after completing their final test. Leaning against a tree, I slid down until I was sitting flat and wrapped my arms across my chest. If only the Creationist had given me a direct answer. If I was granted permission to leave, I could find a way to relieve this built up energy, to relinquish all the pressure that had built up over the ages, possibly tame my ability once again. Yet, I didn't want to attempt to leave only to find I am trapped here still.

"Vikare, go to the godlings and get as many of the inhabitants as you can off. If anything, I will hold off until everyone is away from here. Then... !?

My eyes snapped open as a vision washed over me and I immediately looked to the sky. She'd been swayed. Now, things were going to be problematic.

 

------

 

Nikki rocketed through the sky, making a hard and powerful impact just shy of where her siblings had gathered. Below her, the ground rose up into a tidal wave of various materials and exploded outward. Once she was visible to the others, one could see how battered she was. A stream of blood, dripped from a limp right arm as the other was clenched tightly at her side. Blood coated the side of her head and she had to keep her eye closed to prevent any of the warm liquid from seeping into where it didn't belong. However, the other eye scanned the land wildly until it locked onto what it seemed to be looking for, her gaze turning furious as she stared menacingly at Ansgar.

With her clenched hand, she jabbed a finger at him, sending rocks and spikes of metal his eye. Marching over to him, as she closed the distance her good arm drew back behind her. Once she was close, she lashed out with a wave of various materials.

"You killed them! You killed them all, even me!"

Nikki swung a metal reinforced kick at him that was far stronger than it had ever been in the past. Before, such a kick would've probably been bearable, but with her ascension and rage fueling her, this kick would've felt like a megaton god boulder being slammed into his arms or ribs (debating on whether he blocked or not).

"You just went on some kind of rampage and just started killing... everyone! I don't care if I love you... I don't care if you love me! These are supposed to be our friends, our family, and I will not let that chance happen here!"

Dashing forward, Nikki dropped down into a crouch then swung forward and upward, using the ground beneath her to propel her even further. After landing, with her good hand she wiped away the blood that was covering her other eye and that's when it became noticeable. Rather than her happy green or steel gray eyes, they had transitioned to a rusty red that stood out from her gray hair.

[voltage]

Matt had followed and listened intently until nikki came down and went right for ansgar. He waited until she was wiping the blood from her eyes and he was carried closer to her "nikki it was an alternate time line, we were all told either ourselves or someone else did something that was part of the test, they wanted us to become like them be corrupted by what could be. Nikki you know us, don't you? from what you have seen of us do you think we will just start killing? please nikki remember us, remember us for us not for what happened in a different time line." Matt looked over at roxy and nodded "i can survive in space its vast darkness which i use to help breathe when i am out of air i take air from a different shadow and bring it to one in front of me. but for now we have another problem, Nikki is going to try and kill at least one of us."

[Thaelasan]

Ansgar cocked his head slightly, then scratched the back of his head and sighed.

"Yeah, I feel a bit different. We both do, I bet." he said, smiling. "I mean, we absorbed pretty much all of our timelines into one. I remember dying... a lot. I remember killing too. It wasn't a big deal for me in the other timelines but does the blood stay on my hands here?"

As though to be an answer, Nikki appeared. She hovered above them, wounded heavily. Ansgar's eyes widened, shocked.

"NIKKI!" he called, concerned. He dashed forward, only to be assaulted by metal and fury as Nikki screamed at him.

"Killing them?!" Ansgar shouted, confused. "Why would you think I would do that here!?"

She came toward him. He sighed, slightly relieved. Had she calmed down?

Then he saw the murder in her eyes. Quickly, he drew his blade.

That's when he noticed it. He had Vanguard's swords in his hands - the swords which had killed so many. The blade was elongated and electrified. One was pure energy, the other was bronze. He split them into two, sighing.

"I won't hurt you." he swore, knocking the metal away with a wave of electricity from his pure energy sword. He polarized the metal, causing it to pull to a center of magnetization and fall to the ground - harmless.

He then allowed her to kick him. He flew backward, then slid, feeling absolutely nothing. His pure energy form had no nerves to feel pain. Just like he had said before, he would one day feel nothing at all. But he felt emotions.

Fear. Pain. Sorrow. Happiness. Shock.

He felt them all, coursing through him like electric blood in wired veins. He looked down at his chest.

His chest was gone. Electricity was replacing and covering up the hole where she had hit him. Instead of going with the kick he had allowed it to destroy part of his form and then had replaced it.

"You can't kill me like this and you know it." he stated firmly, blades at his side. "And I can't kill you because electricity doesn't hurt metal. Our powers negate and compliment each other. I didn't kill you."

He held the swords loosely, bringing to mind the memories of thousands of other Ansgars. In other timelines, he had caused her death in some way. She wasn't wrong - but she was wrong about one thing. He had felt something. He had been terribly distraught. In any timeline where she died, he had been unable to forgive himself and had turned to solitude.

Before he could continue further, a large hand was placed on his shoulder.

"Enough, new gods." Vikare said gruffly. He stepped over to Nikki, unarmed. He crossed his arms in front of her, disappointed.

"Can you truly not see that he is not the Ansgar which is capable of what the others have done? You have been blinded." Vikare said sadly, shaking his head. "The Seer also showed me your other selves, all of you. I died to you many times when you went insane. I was unable to stop you. Yet, this Ansgar, this Nikki, this Matt... I trust. You won't turn on us for reasons unknown. I feel it. I feel honor and integrity. Yet you would throw it away for fears of the unknown?"

He turned to all of them, frowning.

"Now you have seen your other selves. You know what you've done. But what if you didn't know? How would you treat each other? You are you. Not your other selves. You beat your other selves to be here. You've conquered your darknesses and evils. Stop allowing them to cloud your vision."

He then turned back to the direction he came.

"The planet falls. After millennium, it falls like all others. It is no longer needed. You must now all leave this planet to go to the true world of the gods, the one you could not walk in as mortals. We do not have time for petty battles and feuds. We only have time to survive. Do you not agree?"

[Clown_of_God]

Nikki clenched her fist as Ansgar began to just seemingly blow her off, her teeth began to grind when Vikare had stepped in to try and further convey the situation. The ground beneath her feet cracked as she dashed forward, a heavy fist impaling itself into the minotaur's gut. One of the first things she had noted when she Ascended was her strength was far more overwhelming than it had been before. Unlike before, the minotaur would definitely feel this impact. It'd be the equivalent of a man getting hit by a car.

To further convey her point to the beast, as she spun around she hooked him in the side of the jaw with a spinning high kick. That had sent him flying into the forest below. Now, her eyes locked back onto Ansgar and she charged him again, but rather than attacking she jabbed her hand through his energized form. Creating a device around him, she then proceeded to ground herself by planting several various cords from her back into the ground.

"You wish to remain energized, I suggest you don't move around too much. This is the same method one of my forms used to kill you before."

Looking up at him, Nikki had a stern look on her face as she stared into Ansgar's eyes. Her rusted red eyes shifted about, as if trying to find some kind of deficiency with her opposite.

"I should kill you now before you make us suffer even more in the future, but I guess you're needed in the war and frankly..."

Looking away, Nikki pulled her hand out from his energized body, making sure there was still a connection between him and the grounding line. Again, she wiped the blood that was falling into her eye and sighed before completely releasing him. What material she had used pulled back to her body and meshed with the clothing she was wearing, whether by turning into a bracelet or a necklace or actually weaving into her clothes, Nikki now bore the material she had trapped Ansgar with.

"If you sway or falter, I will not hesitate, so expect me to keep a close eye on you. Also, don't try to do anything, this material was developed by one of my forms that led the Rebellion... against you. You created a monarchy while I stood by your side and then you tried to kill me. Roxy was caught by surprise, but you wanted her gone first cause she was your toughest opponent, then you went after Matt, aided by Tyler (who was supporting him at the time) you took him down rather easily, then you betrayed Tyler as well. Finally, while I was resting one night, you figured I wouldn't be able to negate you and you tried to take my life then. It didn't work. In other variants, you just went mad and started going on a rampage and we either all died or you trapped us."

Spinning on her heel, Nikki looked Ansgar dead in the eye for a brief moment before sticking her tongue out and crossing her good arm across her chest. This should also have been the time Vikare had returned.

"Forgive me, Vikare, I hope didn't overdo it. I just... needed you out of the way."

[padfoot]

Roxy needed to sit down. Both from the shock of whats happening and from her actually exaustion. She only got to lay down for about sixteen seconds before Matt showed up. The exhaustion from days of fighting herself were not letting up anytime soon. She didn't understand why the others were so spry after their fights. Roxy had to take a break from reversing her gravity, which was weird becasue she tended to reverse gravity in her sleep.

 

She didn't say much when Nikki appeared to wail on Ansgar and Vikare. Again, she didn't really see why anyone had the energy for any of these shenanigans. She did perk up when Nikki mentioned that they had killed her. That fact, as strange as it found, made her feel a little better. Her future self had told her that Ansgar blew up Nikki and She killed Matt. Now she learned that Ansgar and Nikki went on a love fueled killing spree. She smiled, "I'm honored that you guys felt the need to kill me first", she said, "But now this means that none of you will ever catch me off guard".

 

Looking at all of her friends in one place, she was getting a sense of dread. They all had these strange auras around them. Powerful auras. Maybe...maybe Roxy still wasn't a god yet. They were all looking much better than Roxy, physically wise. Nikki created a damn metal tsunami as soon as she got there and her skull was spewing blood. They had all killed their alternate selves. Roxy had only sealed her in a parallel universe. Maybe that meant that she was still Phangite. The yellow in her hair began to brighten further. She had failed. That's why she was so wiped after her fight. She never ascended. Roxy pushed her doubts to the back of her mind. There were more important things to worry about.

[voltage]

Matt had walked back to Roxy as he noticed her hair change to yellow which was a new color. He didn't know what it meant but she seemed more tired then the rest. He was hurting a lot but he didn't have to rest after basic things. Matt sat by her gritting his teeth as his leg hurt him, he noticed that Roxy's aura was the same. He looked down and sighed before putting his unbroken hand on her shoulder "it'll be ok Roxy, i don't know what that color means but you ok? please don't break my hand." He was waiting for the love birds to stop fighting so resting seemed a good way to do it.

[Astrodeath311]

The Great Star shone down on the decaying world. Tyler had located himself near a window, absorbing all the sunlight he needed. He was wide awake, of course, and he could always get power from either the ground or space. Nikki had burst in and attacked Ansgar, with Tyler debating whether to jump in or not. He ended up deciding against it. There was no reason to make enemies when they all needed each other. The stone against his back was uncomfortable, but the sunlight warming it made him unlikely to move. He sighed.

 

Tyler focused on Roxy. Her hair had turned yellow; something he'd never seen before in the six months they'd all been together. It was odd, there was also an aura around each of the gods, but Roxy's was absent. He turned his head to the two bickering gods.

"Let us stop this mindless bickering, Nikki, Ansgar. There's no reason for it. What happened in an alternate timeline will not happen here, I assure you." Tyler turned his head back to Roxy.

"Something went wrong with your Ascension, did it not, Roxy? You've not changed from the last time we've seen you."

He sighed. If the girl had not ascended, then that would spell trouble for the rest of the gods. Her powers were by far the most powerful. She had the capability of wiping entire armies away with a flick of her wrist.

 

 

It would be disastrous if they could not rely on the gravity bender while retaking the Throne of the Gods.

[Clown_of_God]

When Tyler had said something about Roxy not ascending, Nikki's head snapped back with a slight tilt and she quickly rushed over to her friend. In a flash, her entire demeanor had changed, even her eyes had returned to their bright gray color. Without even hesitating, Nikki grabbed Roxy's hands and cupped them in her own, looking the other girl in the eyes with desperation and worry.

"Is it true? You must have beaten the crap out of your other self, right? I mean, you're like the strongest one of us here."

Smiling encouragingly, Nikki released one of her hands and wiped at the blood that was getting in her eye again. It was actually rather surprising to her that such a wound didn't seem like such a bother. Of course, she couldn't quite recall how she had received it, Nikki only knew that when she came to her battle had shifted to a separate area.

Grabbing Roxy by the shoulders, Nikki pulled her friend into a tight hug (despite the lack of a response) to show her support. Nikki made sure none of the blood from her wounds got on the girl as she pulled her closer and closer.

"I'm sure the Seer could fix this, like turn back time or something so you can beat her for good. Erase your other self from existence and absorb her... or something like that. Don't fret too much about it."

[padfoot]

Roxy was immediately uncomfortable when the attention of the room shifted to her. Of course it did. Her goddamn hair was broadcasting her feelings to everyone. Yellow as a tricky one though. Ever since escaping Phang she didn't really feel fear since all of her fear was based on that comet. Once she left it behind, all of her fear and doubt remained too. Now that she was doubting herself and scared of the unknown future, her yellow had bled back into her life.

 

Roxy rubbed her face to avoid looking at the others for a moment. Everyone noticed that she hadn't ascended at once, it was time to come out with it, "Yeah. I didn't kill her", she admitted, "I mean, we blew up a solar system, punched a hole in space, fought in every position in the universe at once, and trapped her in a parallel universe but no. I did not kill her". She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Matt. She bit her lip, "Fear. Yellow is fear and doubt", she muttered the explanation, "But didn't the Seer say that if we were to die, then we failed. Well I'm still here and my copy is still out there somewhere soooooo....I only half won?"

 

When Nikki came over to comfort her she sighed, "Actually....I don't think I actually landed a single good hit on her" she admitted, less than proud. It was true that her own gifts were crazy strong but that's a two way street. Her future self was all sorts of powerful and way more experienced than she was. If it wasn't for that lucky break with the leaking dimension, she would me dead outside the citadel right now.

 

She hugged Nikki back, glad that someone was touching her. She shifted to avoid flaring up the pain in her broken arm or leg. Her hair, now almost completely sky blue, suddenly flushed back to gold at the mention of beating Roxy Sr. She shook her head a little too quickly, "No no no no. There is no way I'm going to be able to fight her again and walk away", she said, her voice wavering slightly, "If none of you noticed, while the rest of you have been getting stronger these past few months, My powers have plateaued and my fight with myself proved I'm not strong enough to ascend." she pulled back Nikki and held her at arm's length. At this close a proximity, she could feel her body humming with newly obtained god juice. She flinched when she felt a chunk of Lar break off and fling off into space, "I'm not sure the Seer can help us anymore", she inquired, "I mean, look around. Our home is breaking apart and the Seer has yet to show herself." She fell silent. She couldn't believe that this time yesterday they were all enjoying dinner together. Now they were dealing with a cosmic crisis and trying to escape from a dying world.

[Astrodeath311]

Tyler sighed, his body sliding down to the ground while grinding on the rock behind him. If they did not have a Roxy, then that would complicate things.

"I'm sure it will all turn out in the end. Roxy, none of us can help you get stronger. But that does not mean we are not available to talk to or anything." He shook his head, his cheeks lighting up as he realized the implications of what he just said. He put his head in his hands, then looked at the girl.

"We're here. Don't be afraid to talk to us, and don't you dare doubt yourself. We were all created for a reason. Of that you can be sure." There was nothing else he could say.

 

 

[voltage]

Matt hobbled to get up with the help of shadows trying not to show his pain and mix of fear shock and concentration. He put a hand on Roxy's good shoulder lightly. He nodded after Tyler and herself spoke. Matt had many emotions going through him. He decided that it had to be because of something different maybe the older Roxy cheated or maybe it was because they went at it brute force. He looked at Roxy and sighed "Roxy it's true that your power may ave stopped growing for now but don't doubt yourself. Think about it this way if you have to fight someone where you know you can't beat them with your strength what is your biggest weapon? I am sure we can all help think of ways to help you strategize quickly and keep your mind getting more powerful. If you can not beat someone with brute strength you need to be quick minded, think on your toes and put them in situations where even though they are much stronger they can't do much to hurt you." Matt smiled at her assuringly "We all believe in you, i mean you mean a lot to all of us i'm sure. Home is where the people you care for are, though this place is disintegrating as long as we stick together we may be able to find our new home. I mean come on roxy you know it changes nothing, ascended or not no one will be left behind, we won't change how we feel about you because you couldn't beat your older self. Honestly like Nikki had said your the strongest here thus your test would have to be by far the hardest."

[Astrodeath311]

[she's not the strongest anymore... Hehe.]

[Thaelasan]

Ansgar felt truly betrayed for a moment. He stared at Nikki as she not only beat Vikare backward as if he was nothing but she also shoved her hand into his form.

"A grounding conduit, eh?" he whispered softly after a moment. "You really don't trust me anymore...."

After all that he'd been through, and all the he had done in the past two days, Ansgar finally felt it all hit him. Nikki didn't trust him anymore. The one he thought would never turn on him now carried a method with which to end his life at any given moment.

"Then.. I guess my life is quite literally in your hands, dear." Ansgar said softly, turning. Vikare walked up, silent. He nodded at Nikki as though to say he accepted her apology. He then stepped off, Ansgar following in his wake. He had nothing more to say to Nikki after that. All he wanted now was to hug someone. He pulled Volt off his shoulder...

Volt?

"Who are you guys?!" Ansgar realized, stopping suddenly.

There was no longer only one Volt. At some point, Volt had divided into multiple Sparks, all of them floating around him. He had failed to notice that due to all the thoughts running in his mind. But now he could clearly see them. They were floating around him, orbiting him like planets. They were dancing in the air, flickering when they touched. They were his own, personal battery.

"Eh?" he asked, confused. Finally, one of them landed on his hand, a familiar smile on its little face.

"Volt has friends now!" Volt said happily, jumping up and down. "They are all good! Volt likes them!"

"Is that so?" Ansgar said, getting back in step with Vikare. "Well then.. I'll have to think of some names for them.."

 

(( There are now eight sparks floating around Ansgar, unless Zakku wants me to do something else to get the rest of them. They add to his Ascended look because they are always floating around him. When they touch, they generate energy which he can use to influence his abilities. ))

[Astrodeath311]

"The boy is fragile, Nikki. Surely you should have known that." Tyler said, disappointed. He got up from the ground to chase after Ansgar, make sure he didn't do anything rash. They hadn't gone far, and thankfully Ansgar was following Vikare. He looked down at the ground then at Ansgar. Tyler walked up to the boy, grasping him firmly in his arms.

"She's only looking out for herself, you know. That doesn't mean what she did was out of line. If anything, I should be the one to be placing restrictions on you. You're like my younger brother, you know. I gotta keep you in line." He let the boy go, stepping in front of him.

"Hell, I could even be your father." Tyler let out a hearty chuckle at that; he wouldn't be a father. He leaned himself against the wall, looking at Ansgar. Vikare had been largely ignored for this conversation, at least so far. The minotaur deserved no attention at this moment, it was not his feelings that were crushed into the dirt.

[Thaelasan]

Ansgar smiled weakly as he was embraced.

"Thank you. Tyler, I really needed that you know." he said, returning it slightly. As the man backed off, Ansgar turned to Nikki and held out his arms.

"Weeeelllllllllllllllll...?" he asked, gesturing. "Cooooomeeee ooooonnnn...."

Realizing the tension between them, he put his arms by his sides, sighing.

"Nah, it wouldn't that easy, aye?" he said, turning back to Tyler and Vikare. "Come on. Let's keep moving."

Edited May 18, 2014 by Thaelasan

[Clown_of_God]

Nikki looked around as Roxy mentioned the planet was falling apart. Sure enough, bits and pieces of it were beginning to disappear. When Ansgar requested a hug from her, before he doubled back on his own words, Nikki just glared at him for a moment before crouching down and placing her bad hand on the ground.

"Get ready for a rough ride. When we're clear, I'll need sparky to give it a little juice, but I'll be sure we're travelling comfortably."

Before anyone could even ask what it was she was about to do, everyone was encased within a giant metal structure. A brief pause, Nikki felt a rumble from the outside and let out a sigh. Suddenly, everyone was in a free fall.

"Roxy, I know you're tired, but could you put a gravitational vacuum around everyone? Otherwise, when we hit bottom, we're gonna hit real hard and it's not gonna feel very pleasant."

Nikki manifested seats for everyone, complete with pads and everything, and began to strap them in just before they hit bottom. Whether Roxy was able to succeed in the task requested of her, there was a powerful lurch as the pod they were suddenly switched directions and the speed had intensified. They were no longer free falling and Nikki adjusted the structures exterior so that they could only pick up more speed. Both to succeed breaking through the atmosphere and getting a good depth into space.

 

------

 

When the round had traveled a good distance and Nikki felt like it was a good moment, she began her work on the object everyone had been placed in. It elongated and widened, rooms began to be formed, even electronic display pads and controls were being formed throughout the construct until finally a giant ship had been made from what it had previously been. Even a functioning engine was awaiting a jump start so they could begin their travels.

Where the group had been previously, had been formed into an extravagant lounge type room. A circle of seats resided in the center, a row of windows lined the walls and the view of space had been revealed to the rest of the group.

Nikki looked at Ansgar and stuck her tongue out at him, then motioned with her thumb at the display that hung in the center.

"All she needs is a kick start. Of course, you're welcome to leave and travel on your own... if you even know what it is we gotta do now. Is... everyone else the same? Did... Did your home worlds get destroyed during the final test?"

[padfoot]

Roxy remained in her seat but threw out her good arm. Everyone was attracted back to the ground as Roxy created her own gravitational field. She lowered her hand and nodded to Nikki, 'That should hold. Fields are pretty easy for me to generate now-a-days", she said, her composure not reflecting her claim. Her hair was beginning to lose it's color to a dull gray. She managed to reverse gravity for the entire craft to make it escape the atmosphere easier. After her task was done, she slumped back into the chair and fell into unconsciousness.

 

Time passed, Roxy just didn't know how much. Her head bobbed to one side and, Like someone who fell asleep on a bus, Roxy jerked violently awake. She was now in a grand ship that she assumed that Nikki designed while she had been asleep. The only problem was that everything that wasn't nailed down was floating free in the cabin. She dropped to the floor and restored gravity with a flick of her wrist. Her wrist? She wiggled her fingers on what she thought was her bad arm. Dull pain shot from her hand and she sighed. Nope, she wasn't asleep long enough. Her left leg was killing her too and she had to lean on the chair that came clattering back down from the ceiling. At least she wasn't as beat as she was back on Lar. She gasped. She could not feel the pull of the planet anymore. Her hair flashed to blue as a wave of grief crashed over her. They were both gone, Phang and Lar. Now she was back to living on spaceships. Roxy shrunk the chair she was leaning on so about the size of a grape and stuck it in her pocket, "I'm going to get some air", she said ironically, "No one bother me". She said that last part almost exclusively to Matt. Most everyone else knew the importance of privacy already. She smiled sadly to answer Nikki's question and then vanished.

 

Roxy placed the chair on the flat roof of the ship.. She locked the chair to the metal surface so it didn't fly off and crashed her ass into the seat. It was so quiet out here and no one below could bother her. That also meant that they couldn't warn her if something was going wrong but that didn't bother her. She could handle anything out here, she was in her element after all. She leaned back her head and closed her eyes. She was getting a warm, fluttering in the pit of her stomach and her heart was beating harder against her spine. She was absorbing the cosmic radiation that would otherwise kill a normal person. Well, kill them or give them super powers. She had heard of both happening. This was new for her and she loved it. She noticed that all the other Gods used some kind of outside force to fuel their abilities. Roxy had one too, it was just in greater quantities than the others. That would explain why she liked leaving the atmosphere so much when she was stressed or wanted to train. Now her body was working to heal the green bruises and internal injuries that remained from her fight.

[voltage]

Matt was still jerked around when everything accelerated and then he saw roxy pass out. When gravity shifted and he floated he was a little freaked out not liking just free floating but he let out a groan as he came back down face first to the floor. He saw the flash of blue in Roxy's hair and could only guess what that meant as he felt the last shadow from where Lar was disappear.He sighed and nodded " Don't worry roxy i understand you need your space i'm sure the others know too. Yes Nikki my first home planet i accidentally destroyed i don't know how. My second home planet still exists i believe and lar..well lar collapsed on itself." He looked down before re seating himself on one of the chairs.

[Clown_of_God]

Once everyone had cleared the planet, I felt myself feel a little relieved. At least they wouldn't be in danger of what was about to happen. Placing a hand on the ground, I tried to push myself up only for that section to deteriorate below me, causing me to fall over once more. Again, I placed my hand on the ground, but it wasn't for balance and I made no attempt to stand again. Rather, I was holding and checking the lines of those that were left here. Tethered to this world for all eternity. They didn't deserve to die and it wasn't even close to being their time either. So, as soon as I got a grasp on their existence, my hand clenched and they vanished from this world.

First, I sent the Sprytes, who had been loyal to the gods for generations, aboard Nikki's ship so they might continue their service. Next, the guardians of each sector were sent to appropriate lands with new duties and new objectives. No longer would they have to be restricted or bound by oaths long since expired. Finally, the rarities of this world, from plants to beasts alike, I sent them to a barren world where man could not touch them. They would grow and prosper until one day, they might be able to roam the multiverse once again.

As I laid there, my face brushing against the ground, I thought about why this had to happen and why it hadn't appeared in my visions. Was it from the sudden shift in the future? Had the seal finally broke from the pressure? Or was it from my lack of self-control and the poor governing of my own abilities? The Creationist had said it was because I had been restraining my powers that this was happening. Now, the world that was supposed to be the godlings home... was dying because of me.

Finally, I stood from my spot and looked out at the world, watching as everything began to erode and turn to ash. It was barren now, a dead world that I had reaped. Looking up at the sky, I decided it was time to test my luck.

With my hands outstretched, I focused for a moment and as they flashed open, my hands came together with a clap and the scenery around me changed. It was both satisfying and heart wrenching upon my discovery. No longer was I tethered to that world, free to travel through space and time once again. Yet, here I stood, in an alternate reality where even the gods were feral and the world was collapsing on itself. This is where I would begin and this is where this dimension would meet its end.

My body shifted and my eyes began to glow, I felt the warmth of the energy that exuded from my body, pouring out like a waterfall until the very planet I stood on began to erode away. I could finally relinquish my powers, release them at their fullest until I was no longer about to burst. Yet, it had to be at the cost of this dimensions existence. There was no other option, even the innocents who resided here would need to fall, but there was something I could do... One kindness I could deliver to those who didn't deserve such a fate.

While my energy poured out of me and the very ground beneath my feet disappeared, I pulled on the lines of those who would benefit our cause and pulled them into the godlings dimension.

When time finally collapsed... I remained in this now barren dimension, staring at the results of my own feats. Nothing remained and I had become the reaper to millions and millions of souls. Yet, it was something that needed to be done.

[Thaelasan]

Ansgar cracked his knuckles, pleased.

"I can give it MORE than a kick start, frauline." Ansgar said, stepping over to the console with a smile. "Prepare yourselves."

He placed a hand on it. All eight of his Sparks danced upon his arm, channeling their energy and colliding. Power surged through him, creating electricity that swirled about him like a vortex. Finally, when he reached a good amount, he blasted it into the console. He continued to do this for a while, putting a thumbs-up to everyone else.

"I'll power it for a while so we get a bit of extra acceleration. We just need a pilot now." Ansgar said.

 

[padfoot]

Roxy appeared inside one of the many rooms that Nikki had created for them all. She was feeling so much better now that her radiation bath was done. Sure her cloths contained a heightened amount of background radiation but all the others were gods. It would take more than a little bit of radiation to kill them. Her body would break down it in a few hours anyway. Now was the time to get settled in her temporary home. She unzipped her thigh purse and shoved her arm in to her elbow. She dug out her old room and resized them all accordingly. She couldn't fit her training gear for the ceiling was too low to comfortably house her bed and leave room for walking. She was forced to arrange her room like a regular, boring bedroom, with all the furniture on the floor. When she got done she checked herself in her mirror and limped to meet up with everyone else.

 

She walked into the room with a slight limp, followed by the smell of hot metal and barbecue. A scent she had grown used to and often found comfort in the smell of space on her cloths. She took a seat in one of the comfortable chairs that Nikki had formed for them. She laughed a little too under exaggeratedly when Ansgar got the ship moving, "What are we going, Like, 800 cosmiKnots?", she asked, already knowing that was a slight understatement.

 

In an instant she was standing next to Ansgar and looking over the readings that were flashing across the screens. Her years on ships meant that she was familiar with the basic's of spaceship upkeep. Stuff like internal pressure, oxygen levels, gyroscopic stability, and where the cup holders were easy to locate. Things like flying a ship were about of her control. She looked back at Nikki, "Oi! Why did you get Sparkles to putt-putt us along through space when you know that yours truly can generate wormholes?", she asked, enjoying giving Ansgar a hard time, "I can get us where we are going in no time. Considering you know where it is, of course." She was feeling much better and was eager to get back into the game. Just becasue she wasn't ascended, doesn't mean that she wanted to sit back why the others helped.

[Clown_of_God]

Nikki smiled for a brief moment before looking down at the ground, a wave of depression crossing over her face. With Roxy's powers, they could go anywhere in the universe, but they had no where to call home anymore.

"Well... where do we go from here? None of our original home planets exist anymore and... none of us knows where the Throne of the Gods is. Without the Seer or some kind of guidance, we can't really do much."

Looking back up, Nikki had a smile on her face, but there were now tears rolling down her eyes. She had thought about her home world, how during her clash with her future self, she had destroyed the place that had raised her. Pulling the metal from the core of the planet had been difficult, but it resulted in an imbalance and eventually the core had a meltdown and the planet essentially imploded.

Had Roxy been there, maybe they could have saved it, but Nikki was in desperation and needed something to kill her other. Needless to say it worked, but Nikki had to watch her own world self-destruct and turn into space debris before her very eyes.

"All I had in mind was... maybe we could just have some time to try and figure things out. Float through space until we can think of something to do. It's funny, though, how we're supposed to be gods and we don't even know what it is we're supposed to do or where to go..."

Suddenly, Nikki began to think of something. From all the books she had read there was a common place they might have been able to start their search. It might be a longshot, but it was a dream of Nikki's to at least visit this place once. Staring at the others, her smile brightened ever so slightly, but tears still rolled down her cheeks.

"Let's check Earth."