A Forward-Facing Foreword: Or, A Warning, of Sorts.

First of all, it is with all humility and deepest admiration that I acknowledge that the setting and most of the characters that appear in this fan fiction are not mine. I am merely borrowing them, and bow deeply before all the authors (especially Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman) who have created them and worked with them legitimately. Wizards of the Coast (and TSR, may it rest in peace) receive my kudos as well. I hope my scribblings do not offend.

Now, I think I really ought to explain what I am doing here.

The story that follows is to some degree a self-insertion. Thalia Deryn (one of the few characters appearing here that I have the dubious honour of owning) is entirely her own, but I would be lying if I didn't admit that some of her reactions and characteristics are modelled after my own. I know stories of this ilk seem to garner an extra helping of derision. I can only promise that while Thalia began as me, she seems to have evolved into an antonymous and different character in the writing. We'll see how un-lame I can make that.

Since this story contains characters that most definitely did not appear in the original novels and short stories, it can't really be considered a work on canonical fan fiction. That being said, while I mess with the timeline (particularly at the beginning), I do not change any of the key events that take place in the stories until the very end. The story takes place during the Legends trilogy. With the notable exception of an extra three months or so at the beginning, nothing truly changes in terms of the original narrative storyline until the end of the third book (Test of the Twins). I am changing the outcome, but leaving the journey largely intact.

Having said that, I do not consider plot events to be sacrosanct and inviolate. If I do want to change something, I will. My primary concern in terms of the preservation of Dragonlance canon has been to keep the characters as true to themselves and acting as "in character" as I possibly can. Feedback on the quality of my representations of the characters, especially the authenticity of their reactions, is particularly appreciated.

Now, a brief word on exactly what I am doing here:

The story begins about a quarter to the third of the way through Legends: Time of the Twins. It opens with Dalamar reporting Raistlin's plans to go back in time and seek godhood to the Conclave, displaying the five bloody marks Raistlin's fingertips burned into his flesh as a punishment for his treachery. This, however, is where my first major change to the story takes place: Raistlin is not ready to leave for the past just yet. This report takes place approximately three months before that; also, by extension, about three months before Caramon, Tas , and Bupu show up at the Tower of Wayreth. This has the dual effect of putting Dalamar in an extra-dangerous situation (he's been found out, and Raist is still in the immediate picture), and gives the Conclave a little longer to figure things out and try something else. Both of these effects serve my purposes nicely. I hope that clears up any of the immediate timeline confusion.

Occasionally, I am using Weis and Hickman's actual text to anchor my own. Everything that is directly quoted (or changed very, very little) appears in italics. Cuts are indicated by ...

One more thing: while this is in no way a songfic, it has a specific soundtrack. I regularly pull lyrics to use as epigraphs or even to serve as an intertext. I've used everything from musical theatre to death metal. The resulting soundtrack CDs are...fabulous. )

I think that's all that needs to be immediately addressed. If anything else needs to be cleared up in the future, here's where the explanatory notes will be.

I had a blast writing this. It was far more work that I intended, but so much fun. Ah the hours I could have been writing papers. I hope you have even a smidge as much fun reading it as I did writing it. Enjoy. May Lunitari smile on you and guide your minds.