Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the stuff from LoK.
Authors notes: I wanted to envision a happy ending for our characters. Granted- they have to fight to get to it... but don't we all? In this fic I'm going to address issues like these- Why must Janos Audron stay dead- for what purpose was his heart meant- and who exactly are the Hylden? But all in good time. ;-)
This fic jumps from time period to time period. Part of it takes off somewhat right after the end of Soul Reaver 2. The three main time periods are going to be 1.) about 1600 years before the fall of the pillars, 2.) 500 years before the fall of the pillars- where we left Raziel after SR2, and 3.) 2000 years after the fall of the pillars- the approximate time period that Raziel and Kain left at the end of SR1.
Note- I've divided time into two categories based on the pillars destruction.
B. C. - Before the Corruption
A. C. - After the Corruption
I've divided the state of the world into three categories, based on the state of its collapse.
The Living World - Nosgoth at the beginning of its existence.
The Sickened World - Nosgoth after the birth of Kain.
The Dying World- Nosgoth after the fall of Raziel.
*Syvia walks out into the white space of a waiting fan fic and smiles at the readers*
Hey everyone. Good to see all of you are still reading, and still interested. *sighs* My muse accosted me some time ago after my throes of agony about the bleak ending of Soul Reaver 2. Don't get me wrong- I loved the ending, but I have to wonder; is Nosgoth ever going to be saved? So I started thinking how it would be possible to bring the world back to the thriving blue and green sphere that it used to be. I think I've found a way. The journey is long, and will include many interesting people and events before it is over. *smiles* Would you like to come with me?
*Snaps fingers. Syvia disappears. Mist rolls across the white space. It clears slowly...*
Prologue
The Beginning and the End
Nosgoth ~ ? ~ ?
They stood there in the light of the four candles, still as statues. One of them toyed with a ceremonial knife. One pale hand was clasped around the handle, as the other traced light circles on the blade.
"Blood," the owner of those hands mused. "The beginning, as well as the end."
"A drop is all that is needed," another said. The second voice was respectful, but a bit impatient. That fact did not go unnoticed by the first speaker.
"You seem as presumptuous as you ever were," the other murmured, highly amused.
"Ah, but the trait is seen as impudence in the young." Laughter followed that statement.
"As if you were ever young."
A pregnant silence followed.
"We all were once..." the second voice said. "Young. Innocent... for however brief a time it may have been."
The first voice grew sorrowful. "Indeed. Of all things lost, I believe I miss my innocence the most." There was a sigh and the glint of candlelight reflected by metal.
A single drop of blood fell through the silent air, shining red-black as gravity pulled it into the basin.
The Memory Pool was an impressive thing. Three feet high and two in diameter, it was a simple stone pillar rising from the floor of the cavern around it. Carvings wound round the edge of the bowl and down the Pool's stem, curving inward and back out in the shape of a goblet. The carvings continued out over the floor and up the walls, meeting again in the center of the ceiling.
They were carvings of plants and animals; humans and vampires. Everything beautiful and ugly of the world was depicted in that small room. There were battles and scenes of peace. Creatures recognizable and indefinable locked in the most passionate embraces of love and hate. There were all manner of contrasts depicted in the carvings. And, on either side of the entryway, detailed engravings of demons and angels.
The inside of the bowl was smooth, dark, depthless. It seemed that one could almost fall into the midnight blackness of the Memory Pool.
The teardrop of onyx-encased ruby fell into the center of the water, creating ripples across the mirror-surface of the basin. The water clouded, turning greyish-white. The surface rippled again and a scene appeared in the Pool.
"The Passing Ceremony," the first voice breathed. "It begins there."