I am not Tammy. I do not own most of the Characters in this Fanfiction. I am too lazy to think of anything witty. It is hard. I run out of brain power…sometimes…like now…I suppose I shall have to settle for this drawling, short sentence, passive voice. How drab of me.
Everyone! Read my new story! Turn from Shadow if you haven't already! If you didn't like chapter one, try chapter two, it's a lot more along the lines of Prov Sm. Second chapter is really angst, actually. Just try please!
Oh, and a note on the appearances of Discord and Violence, I reread The Realms of the Gods and found out that a description of them was mentioned. However, call me crazy, or arrogant, or whatever, but I like mine better, so I'm not going to change it. You all will have to deal with it, sorry, but too bad. Besides, there are all kinds of things I could say to justify my descriptions and how they might be able to look different. But I'm not going to list them unless one of you all wants me to; so there.
Reviews! I love them SOOOOOO!
Ivory Nightshade, I know, he was going to be, but the whole scene got too long. So I had to split things up. He's not in this either but I'm doing a double post so he's in the next one! I love him dearly.
I like paragraphs, as I said before. When it's all in one chunk, my eyes go swirly and eyes get confused. And fourteen people got me on their favorites yes! I'm so happy too, I don't take those lightly! I'm so proud of Prov Sm. And yes there was a lot of moping in the last one…and insanity…and thoughts of suicide…I think that's kind of weird because I never really think much about those sorts of things myself. Although I've often had those randomly occurring times when you wonder is any of this really happening? Yeah, I actually get those a lot, they freak me out. Thank you so much for the review! Review again please!
Colleen/WalkInDreams Yes, about the darkness-phobia. It's not so much a darkness phobia as an unable to see/understand/sense phobia and it's never happened to her before, because her sens have never been cut off like that before, so how could she have known about? I sort of put it in at the last minute, I was typing and that's what came out. Hopefully this chapter clears it up a bit, or makes it more realistic or whatever. If it doesn't, say something in a review, and I will think about how to make it fit better. I am planning on editing everything after I'm finished, to make it flow better, but there won't be much changed except for awkward parts, non-matching info, and grammar/spelling stuff. Same ol' Prov Sm, just slightly smoother. It won't be till I'm finished that I do this though, I have enough trouble trying to type everything new up without trying to fix past mistakes too. Thanks for the input and the review! Review again please! I love hearing from you guys!
Allisarte YES, I KNOW IT'S BAD! Although I think I'm getting better at fixing them, they are still tyrannically jumping out to bite me everywhere! I don't hate you, it bothers me often when I read other peoples stuff and it's riddled with mistakes…I'm a hypocrite I suppose. I'll try but like always I can't promise anything, so much stuff escapes me because I know what it's supposed to be so my mind just skips over it. Thanks for the review! Hopefully this is better I looked over it more than the last few, tell me please.
Feifiefofum No! I remember when I got grounded from the computer last year… it was awful. I wasn't doing my homework. But I'm doing it this year, I learned my lesson. There is NO chance this compy is going to be taken this year, no sir! I feel for you man, and thanks for sneaking in a review. I wish you could point out my horrendous mistakes also. And yup, Provy got a long line last time. Review when you get the chance please, hope you enjoy it.
Daine's Twin Apple, Apfel. Oh my god, this is such a coincidence it's not even funny. It's like…Friggin' craziness. It's absolute insanity. But cool none the less. Thanks for the German lesson. And I read Just Winging It, I love it, not many people write about Shinko and Roald. I could wish the chapters were longer but hey, I always want the chapters longer. They could be 10,000 words each and I'd still want them longer. Thanks for reviewing!
Nativewildmage Thanks for reviewing again! I hope you like these two! More Gainel in chapter 20.
Ace Rynn Knight, I thought you were Year-round, because they start a lot earlier in the year than Traditional scheduled schools. And man, I've been to south-Sacramento, or through it rather, I feel for you. AWFUL smells round them cows. Nearly killed me, I swear. Cows as far as the eye can see with no end in sight. My nose wanted to commit suicide, I think. Luckily the rest of me wouldn't let it. It could probably have been worse though, I don't have a very good sense of smell.
Thanks, I love it when people appreciate my in-depth character analysis sort-of-deals. I feel all warm and fizzy inside. Yes, warm and fizzy, not fuzzy, I don't like the fuzz; but I like the fizz; comes from drinking too much soda. I tried to keep Lynn and Rikash realistic and as Daine/Numair like as I could. I want this story to be like a continuation of the books; but better if I have my way; not sure if I'm succeeding but I'm trying. Nothing can surpass the original series, but I hope this is at least worthy of it.
And I think I'm as bad or worse then you about speaking conversations aloud. Because I make jokes…and laugh at them…that's just pathetic. My most hilarious ones are Rikash nit-picking Gainel and Gainel petting piqued. Or at least I think they're hilarious. I'm trying to think of a situation where I can actually use them in the fic though.
Providence Smiles
By LGR
Part III: The Gate of Chaos
Breaking free of Discord's mind control, Lynn's senses immediately reverted to normal, but the sudden phobia that had sent adrenalin and fear coursing through her would not dissipate. She continued her mindless scramble, with neither the doorway back to cognizant perception nor to the light, within view.
Fumbling and screaming her way through the blackness, she tripped over something, her own feat she realized later, and fell crashing into a ground that felt like granite, cut with such precision it had the texture of smooth glass.
It was hard, cold, and unforgiving as she slammed into the ground, the force of it, despite her automatic response of slapping the ground from two and a half years of Shang training from Eda Bell, knocking the wind out of her as her knee hit first. The hard surface didn't give in the least, and she felt the first stabs of awareness at the edge of her brain as her knee split and she felt blood running down her leg and seconds later her body told her that it HURT.
Her hip also fell hard, and she knew it was bruised. Her palms stung fiercely from where they struck the unforgiving floor. She'd been flung so swiftly from her running, that even with her falling position as it was, her head had still swung forward like a rock from a sling, to catch her jaw on that hard surface. It too, was bruised.
For a moment she lay there, taking deep breathes as her mind cleared and her fear finally dissipated. Lynn began to calm, as the feelings of the cold ground, the pain in her knee, jaw and hands, and her shortness of breathe, cut through her numbness and hysteria, giving her mind something to latch onto that was real, and of that physical world that the blackness obscured from her sight.
Her powers freed, she could now sense the properties of this dark realm that was a part of Chaos, easing her hysteria into a semblance of tranquility. But though her eyes had automatically shifted through every kind of eye that had ever existed on any animal, none could penetrate that darkness. It was as if light didn't exist there.
I really freaked out, she thought, that's never happened to me before.
She knew that what she had experienced was some hidden phobia. Some fear of the darkness that she'd never had till this point, but then again this was the first time she'd ever been completely cut off from visible sensation, without her shape shifting or sensing powers to help illuminate her way.
It was this darkness; it was so complete and alien. There were no shadows or flickering of any movement. It felt like a solid veil, separating her from her body, which she couldn't see. It was smothering her. And even now, she was having trouble breathing because of it. This quickness of breathe was making her light-headed, or was it the darkness doing that?
Not being able to see herself, made her wonder whether her body really existed, had ever existed…
Of course it did and still does, you ninny, she told herself, it hurts too much not to, don't let this darkness get to you. How would Gainel feel if you just gave up because of a little shade in front of your eyes? For shame! She told herself.
Shame, she was feeling it now. And not only for letting have the inky surroundings got the better of her, but for going insane. It didn't speak well for Lynn's mental stability that she had done so. What if it meant everything else she'd ever done or felt or seen was different then what she'd perceived? Some figment of an unstable psyche? What if Gainel wasn't…
You're not insane! Stop being an idiot! Her mind told her. For some reason it had the voice of Rikash. He often told her she was stupid, whether she deserved it or not. She thought she deserved it right now.
She fought to control her shape shifting powers to heal her knee, and jaw; her palms were beginning to feel better naturally. But she was so tired, after all that had happened that day: Freaking out multiple times, being thrown about, knocked-out, and not having any rest or food; she just wanted to crawl into a bed and sleep.
Likely the main thing that kept her from sleeping on that floor, was that it was God's-awfully uncomfortable. She'd wake-up feeling worse than before she'd slept. And besides, there was work to be done: saving Gianel, for one thing, getting out of this place for another.
So, gathering the dregs of her strength, she healed her busted knee and dampened the pain in her jaw. She immediately felt slightly better, although that was off-set by the lessoning of her remaining energy. And with the pain of her knee gone, she found that her throat was burning like fire. She'd screamed herself raw while in Discord's hold. She decided to chance the energy loss to heal her throat and vocal chords enough to get rid of the pain. They were still damaged, but at least every intake of breathe or swallow of saliva didn't make her wince.
Tiredness fought with stress and the need to stay alert. Adrenalin was still coursing through her, although that was beginning to diffuse into her system, leaving her more drained than ever. The battle of the two seemed even, until she called up an Image of Gainel and she was ready for more. Though she was as exhausted as she'd ever been, a new wave of strength came to her and she pulled herself up from the glass-smooth floor and stood up.
The lack of a horizon, or a standing object, or even any object at all, interfered with her balance. She leaned back and forth while trying to stand straight. She decided it was the best she could hope for, considering the situation. Having her balance slightly off was the least of her problems
She used her senses again, shifting through all the blackness until she felt a tinge of difference.
There, there was her way out of this place.
Hobbling toward it, Lynn zoned out. She walked forward automatically, the rest of her too tired to think properly.
She should have left her throat alone, she thought in between nods of sleepiness, it would have left her more energy, and the pain would have kept her awake. She stumbled more and more, and it got harder to keep her head up.
The darkness made her think of night. Night was when human's slept. Her mind wanted her to sleep, but at the same time, it knew it was an unnatural darkness and still feared it. She was tired and stressed, so she didn't realized she was out of the dark until it flashed bright as the sun in her eyes. She would have yelped, but her throat still wasn't functioning properly enough, so it came out as a barely audible gasp.
The light seemed bright to her eyes, but it was actually extremely dim and flickering, like torchlight. And as her eyes adjusted to it, her body and mind relaxed muscles she hadn't realized she'd been tensing until that moment.
It was the Gate of Chaos, rising up in its twining copper and iron glory, its metal glinting in the firelight from tall, ten-foot high lamps, on either side of the gate, of matching copper and iron cages with glass to protect the oil-fed flames from any wind. Around these lighted lamps, were small clouds of giant white moths with ghostly, light-blue false-eyes; a small trail of glittering, white dust falling off their paper-like wings.
It was an Island of glowing land inside the darkness. Surrounding an area of about fifty feet in diameter, was something that looked like a solid dome of blac kfog ; the dark billowed out in twisting curlicues of smoke, drifting lazily into the circle of glowing firelight, becoming opaque, and then disappearing all together.
The ground turned from glass or marble to hard earth as soon as the light reached it. The dirt looked purple where the lamps' light was diffused, and there were dried leaves strewn across it, despite the fact there were no trees in the clearing. And it was still deathly cold, and she shivered in the chill air, though her clothes were for autumn, they weren't near thick enough to block that piercing arctic air. Lynn spied frost playing across the ground as clinging to the dried leaves, gate, and lamp posts. Her breath matched the billowing darkness with its swirling white mistiness.
There was a slight vibration, audible even to her tired senses, and strange woops and soft wails were coming from the dark clouds. These sounds had not been present whilst she had been within. But as she moved away, they stopped suddenly. Turning back, the echoes hit her with full intensity once again. Then facing the gate for a second time, they were again mysteriously absent.
Strange, she thought, but didn't dare thing about it; she had more important things to do. Stepping up to the gate, she came right up to its iron and glowing copper latch.
This was the Gate of Chaos; shouldn't Discord or Violence be here? She wondered.
Dare she touch it? Could she get out this way? She reached her hands to its shining latch, inching it forward, her breathing coming quickly. She was going to touch the Gate of Chaos. She was going to do it. Her finger was mere centimeters form the latch when she spied a closed, dead-bolt-lock with two key holes, attached to the latch that she hadn't seen before. Pulling on the dead-bolt, she groaned.
It was locked.
How could she have thought it would be that easy? Sighing, she walked in a circle pacing, trying to think of what she could do to escape, and coming up with no answers.
Finally, she sat down dejected in the purple hued dirt, hugging her legs close to her; she gazed up at the glowing moths fluttering around the lamps. They looked serene within this place of Chaos; they seemed out of place, but she was glad of their presence.
All she could think of was to somehow manage to phase-shift out of here. It might be easier with the gate there, she hoped, though she wasn't really sure how the portal worked, and her guess had no evidence to back it up. For all she knew it might be harder with the gate there…
She sighed but decided it was her last chance. And for some reason there was no one and nothing there to distract her. It was as good a time as any to practice; it could only help her situation.
Breathing deeply in a rhythmic fashion, she reached out with her senses. Her parents and brother would have said she was meditating, but she felt the word implied actually looking within one's self, to see magic or focus ones mind; she just wanted to See. To See her realm through all of this realm, and she had to change her vision, refocus her senses.
She'd yet to be able to so this in the living realms. To actually see the fabric of the universe, its many layers piled within and without each other in an endless, intertwining infinity. And now as she focused she almost had it, she was farther than she ever was before.
There, it was there.
I'm coming Gainel, love.
She was doing it. Standing up, she phased and walked into the other universe—
A metallic ringing, like the sound of a million gongs and cymbals being pounded at once, ricocheted between her ears. Lynn gasped and was flung back into the ground.
Opening her eyes, she saw the iron and copper Gate of Chaos vibrating violently, making double and triple images of itself. The shaking felt like the most powerful and destructive earthquake she'd ever experienced multiplied ten-fold.
And then as suddenly as it started, it stopped.
She was still in Chaos.
Lynn collapsed back onto the ground and wanted to cry. Staring up into that dome of billowing blackness, she half expected to see stars twinkling, but there were none, only a stray white-silver moth, as it fluttered starkly against the black backdrop. Silver dust sprinkled off it's wings as she watched, depressed and feeling as low as ever; lower even.
She finally used the last of her strength and her body demanded rest; trying to deny sleep's call was futile. Lynn closed her eyes, thinking, Maybe Gainel will visit me as I dream, but then she realized he wasn't there. He couldn't visit her. She was alone. He was alone. They would likely never be together, ever again.
Exhaustion fogged her mind and she wasn't able to think any longer as she drifted to sleep.
And holding the scales of the Universe was Providence, watching anxiously as The Balance swung back and forth between Victory and Utter Defeat…
