Just a Ripple in Time

                              by Jonathon Pierce

The sun was setting behind the great castle. Its rays of orange light could not permeate the dark interior of the turret. Finding no entrance to the turret, the Quische landed in the courtyard.

The courtyard had decayed through years of neglect. Passages led to the North and South, while dark stairs descended to the East. The group split up to cover all the exits.

Campuria and the Quische walked slowly down the stairs. The landing was dark, so the Quische turned into a small lantern. The stairs ended at a hallway filled with decorative paintings and sculpture. The paintings depicted scenes of pain and death; nevertheless, they were still great objects of art.

"I didn't know that Enad was an admirer of Les Strange." She noted as she touched one of his works. After observing the various artifacts, Campuria descended into the dungeon.

The dungeon was dank and dreary. Its walls seemed to absorb all light. The gloom obscured all features of the dungeon. The penumbra, however, could not hide the outline of a cell door. Campuria reached out and touched the door. A faint moan came from the next room. The moaning became louder and louder. Bravely, she opened the door...

Iffley walked through the courtyard into a bright room at the North. A giant, golden throne glistened in the light of torches, hung high above. Upon closer examination, the throne seemed to exhibit a golden haze. A small inscription, printed in Latin, hung over the throne; it said:

Quicquam Pensi Habebat

Feeling the presence of another being, Iffley turned sharply around. A shape began to form in front of him. The figure was unmistakable; it was a Nymph.

"You must be Enad." She said and began to sing her song of destruction...

Jonathon took the path to the South. It abruptly ended at a cemetary. Seeing nothing of interest, he turned to leave. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw three newly dug graves. Fresh dirt lay piled near the tombstones, which read: T. G. Taft, Adena, and Jonathon Pierce.

Skeletal hands reached up from the dirt and shoved Jonathon into the last grave...

The moment Campuria opened the door, the Moaning stopped. Chained to the far wall was a man. Unlike most men, however, his identical twin was attached to his head, wrist, and abdomen. With great compassion, Campuria unchained the pair.

"I am Ambercrombie," Said the twin on Campuria's left (who is actua1ly the twin on the right), "and this is Fitch.”

"My name is Campuria, and this is the Quische." She said while pointing to the lantern.

"This lady is obviously derranged.” Ambercrombie gesticulated.

"In English, please. You know I can't understand big words!" Fitch said to Ambercrombie. Campuria understood Fitch's dilemma, for the Siamese Twins shared only one brain and heart. Ambercrombie, being on the right, would natural1y be more intelligent; yet, Fitch would be more imaginative. She shook hands with them.

Fitch, suddenly, replied, "Someone quite close to you is near death.” With these words, Ambercrombie led the way to the scene Fitch had seen...

The Nymph recoiled in horror: She felt the power of her mistress die.

"You are not Enad!" She screamed, "My mistress has died at the hands of Enad."

"I can help you." Iffley said and he transported them away...

Jonathon could not fight Death anymore. The dirt began to pile higher and higher on top of him. Finally, he could not breathe any longer; Enad had won...

Campuria and the Twins arrived at the cemetary. She recoiled in terror at the sight of the graves: a wreath of black roses adorned the tombstones marked Jonathon and Adena. She had arrived too late. She began a frantic search for the Book, but it could not be found...

Iffley and the Nymph appeared at the shore of the Pool of Rememberance. Iffley touched the Waters as he had seen before. The Waters parted leaving a path to the center of the Pool.

"I must do this alone." He said as he descended into the pool. Upon reaching the exact center, the Waters rushed over him, surrounding him in a swirl of images. The images in the Pool combined to form this scene:

Adena clutched her Amulet as the Swolsks began to chase her. She stumbled and fell. In a moment, she was engulfed, leaving no trace of her existance. Enad calmly stooped over and picked up the Amulet. He then laughed evilishly.

The Pool clouded once more:

Jonathon fought fiercely to overcome the weight of the dirt. It pressed closer and closer, until, finally, he could stuggle no longer.

Iffley raised his Sceptre and a surge of Power was sent throughout the Earth. The Pool sent the entire Earth back through time.

The image of the Pool changed dramatically: Adena now, instead of dying, had captured Enad; the Sworshk factory began production again; the Nymph, finding no one at the castle, returned to Furanose; Jonathon Pierce and company returned back to the Province. The Pool only changed the events of time, not the memories it had created.

The Pool of Remembrance, losing all of its energy, dried up quickly. Iffley, after sending the Sceptre back to Jonathon, quietly died with a smile on his face. He, too, now knew the price of Compassion...