11-26-2012, 10:53 PM
The deep, incessant rumbling had been getting on her nerves for days, but Rhea forced a smile nonetheless as she drifted up the stairs towards the ledge in the golden dimension of Ouroborous where Mender Silos stood. She didn't trust him, not at all --
(Smart move,) Whiskers concurred.
-- but he was pretty much their only source of information at this point.
With a loud crack, felt more than heard, another fragment of reality shifted and tumbled away. Rhea -- and she assumed, everyone else -- felt the by-now-common yank deep within that had no physical aspect to it but somehow hurt all the same. She winced and wobbled momentarily.
'Spacetime destructurization', the Portal Corp. scientists called it. Also, 'forced dimensional disruption' and 'continuum closure'. All phrases that basically meant they had no clue, but needed a convenient label. They were frantically devising ways to counteract whatever it was, but nobody knew what was causing it in the first place or even how it was happening. For that matter, nobody knew what exactly was happening -- they hung labels on it, but those were meaningless. And the only people who seemed to be able to perceive it directly were those with powers, with gifts beyond those of normal men.
Which, Rhea reflected ruefully, certainly threw a wrench into the gadgeteers claims that they were just normal folks, it was their toys that were special.
The rumbling continued.
DJ Zero had been one of the first approached, of course -- not by the FBSA, or by Portal Corp., but by his guests, the people directly affected by... whatever was happening. "It's an attack," he had told them sadly. "One that even I can't protect against. All I can promise is that the music will play and the drinks will flow for as long as I am able to keep Pocket D alive in this continuum."
(Don't forget, he offered to take you with when he's forced out,) Whiskers reminded her.
"Shush, fuzzbutt," Rhea whispered fondly. "He'll be full as it is, we don't need to add to the crush."
(It's a pocket dimension, silly,) the cat pointed out, with a mental bump of his furry head against her cheek. (He can take as many as he wants.)
Rhea nodded but let it go. This... was her home. If it -- what? Vanished? Imploded? -- she wasn't sure if she wanted to keep on going without it.
She reached the top of the stairs and stopped. Mender Silos was there, staring out at the deceptively close horizon of the Ouroborous pocket dimension. Even with his back turned to her, Rhea could see how tired he was.
"Any news?" she said softly. He turned, already shaking his head.
"Nothing's changed," he said. "I..." he trailed off, and cleared his throat. "I estimate another few days at most before everything is... gone."
The soldier that Rhea had been trained to be stood up and took control, and so she didn't break down into tears. "I understand," she said. "Are you going to evacuate?" How many people can you take with, she didn't add.
"Where to?" Silos replied, gesturing. "The very timestream I'm here to protect is vanishing. I know the stories about me, Rheabeth Samuels. I know they say I can see everyone's past, present, and future all at once." He nodded sadly. "I will tell you something: what they say is true." He leaned forward slightly. "And I did not see this."
"So you've given up."
Rhea turned at the new voice and smiled at Terrence Knight as he finished the climb.
"This is not something you can punch until it goes away, Terrence," Silos said. "Believe me, if I knew where to direct your reality-shattering fist, I would tell you."
"Lisa's helping at the hospital," Terrence said to Rhea, visibly ignoring Silos. "I'm going to meet up with some of the crew in a few, see if we can't do something. You should come with." He scratched at his head. "I guess Cyberman found this old portal-thing, buried down under the city and shielded somehow so nobody ever noticed it, and I guess Sylia and Lora and Valles and some of the others think maybe they can do... something... with it to stop whatever this is."
Another crack, another fragment gone. Silos visibly twitched, Rhea let out an involuntary gasp, and Terr winced just a little.
"I know the place you speak of, Terrence," Silos said. "It will not stop what is happening."
"Yeah? I'll tell 'em you said that," Terrence replied. "Won't be the first time we've proven you wrong."
Rhea laughed a little at that, despite her bleak mood, and settled on Terr's shoulder for the trek back downstairs. Sure, she could fly, but this was more fun.
"You can't stop it," Silos repeated. And then, more quietly, "But you might just be able to get yourselves out. Good luck, heroes."
--sofaspud
--"Listening to your kid is the audio equivalent of a Salvador Dali painting, Spud." --OpMegs
(Smart move,) Whiskers concurred.
-- but he was pretty much their only source of information at this point.
With a loud crack, felt more than heard, another fragment of reality shifted and tumbled away. Rhea -- and she assumed, everyone else -- felt the by-now-common yank deep within that had no physical aspect to it but somehow hurt all the same. She winced and wobbled momentarily.
'Spacetime destructurization', the Portal Corp. scientists called it. Also, 'forced dimensional disruption' and 'continuum closure'. All phrases that basically meant they had no clue, but needed a convenient label. They were frantically devising ways to counteract whatever it was, but nobody knew what was causing it in the first place or even how it was happening. For that matter, nobody knew what exactly was happening -- they hung labels on it, but those were meaningless. And the only people who seemed to be able to perceive it directly were those with powers, with gifts beyond those of normal men.
Which, Rhea reflected ruefully, certainly threw a wrench into the gadgeteers claims that they were just normal folks, it was their toys that were special.
The rumbling continued.
DJ Zero had been one of the first approached, of course -- not by the FBSA, or by Portal Corp., but by his guests, the people directly affected by... whatever was happening. "It's an attack," he had told them sadly. "One that even I can't protect against. All I can promise is that the music will play and the drinks will flow for as long as I am able to keep Pocket D alive in this continuum."
(Don't forget, he offered to take you with when he's forced out,) Whiskers reminded her.
"Shush, fuzzbutt," Rhea whispered fondly. "He'll be full as it is, we don't need to add to the crush."
(It's a pocket dimension, silly,) the cat pointed out, with a mental bump of his furry head against her cheek. (He can take as many as he wants.)
Rhea nodded but let it go. This... was her home. If it -- what? Vanished? Imploded? -- she wasn't sure if she wanted to keep on going without it.
She reached the top of the stairs and stopped. Mender Silos was there, staring out at the deceptively close horizon of the Ouroborous pocket dimension. Even with his back turned to her, Rhea could see how tired he was.
"Any news?" she said softly. He turned, already shaking his head.
"Nothing's changed," he said. "I..." he trailed off, and cleared his throat. "I estimate another few days at most before everything is... gone."
The soldier that Rhea had been trained to be stood up and took control, and so she didn't break down into tears. "I understand," she said. "Are you going to evacuate?" How many people can you take with, she didn't add.
"Where to?" Silos replied, gesturing. "The very timestream I'm here to protect is vanishing. I know the stories about me, Rheabeth Samuels. I know they say I can see everyone's past, present, and future all at once." He nodded sadly. "I will tell you something: what they say is true." He leaned forward slightly. "And I did not see this."
"So you've given up."
Rhea turned at the new voice and smiled at Terrence Knight as he finished the climb.
"This is not something you can punch until it goes away, Terrence," Silos said. "Believe me, if I knew where to direct your reality-shattering fist, I would tell you."
"Lisa's helping at the hospital," Terrence said to Rhea, visibly ignoring Silos. "I'm going to meet up with some of the crew in a few, see if we can't do something. You should come with." He scratched at his head. "I guess Cyberman found this old portal-thing, buried down under the city and shielded somehow so nobody ever noticed it, and I guess Sylia and Lora and Valles and some of the others think maybe they can do... something... with it to stop whatever this is."
Another crack, another fragment gone. Silos visibly twitched, Rhea let out an involuntary gasp, and Terr winced just a little.
"I know the place you speak of, Terrence," Silos said. "It will not stop what is happening."
"Yeah? I'll tell 'em you said that," Terrence replied. "Won't be the first time we've proven you wrong."
Rhea laughed a little at that, despite her bleak mood, and settled on Terr's shoulder for the trek back downstairs. Sure, she could fly, but this was more fun.
"You can't stop it," Silos repeated. And then, more quietly, "But you might just be able to get yourselves out. Good luck, heroes."
--sofaspud
--"Listening to your kid is the audio equivalent of a Salvador Dali painting, Spud." --OpMegs