Chapter Four: Ripples In Time



"But...but...but HOW? Surely the radiation barrier would have ripped that scrawny little ship to shreads!" Tymen exclaimed.

"Hey! Watch who you're callin' scrawny!" BlackSheep spat, then after pausing a moment, awnsered him,

"When the Knn attacked and prepared for there assault from above, my mother hid this ship in a asteroid that fell into the atmosphere during the attack and buried itself in the sands. Since it was inactive at the time, it was not affected by the EMP. Though she, died, in the attack, she entrusted a dear friend of hers and mine with it's location. He, too, died in a Knn assault, but not before telling me it's location." She turned to face it.

"It may not look like much, but it's all I have to fight the Knn with."

"Aaah!" Asari yelped, as a medical droid tried to repair her arm. She was back in the safety of her lair, hidden in subspace.

"Darn that Tymen! He escaped my grasp again!" She hissed. Hanging her head in failure, she planned another possibility for stemming Tymen's plan to seize Symballen's Archon. And utimatley, wreck her revenge upon that same rabbit. She removed her cowl, nothing more than a black cloth strung over her face, obscuring her nose and mouth. And there was held her pain. Across her face, extending from her left cheek, across her thin lips, and ending at her chin. Though it had long since healed through and through, it was a reminder of the pain, a pain that she believed could only be quenched by one thing,

"I will kill you, Tymen..." The story was fresh in her mind, like a sore, every detail stored immaculatley in her mind. Yes, she remembered it all, and it started on that damp spring day, those ten years ago...



In the five years since the fall and the EMPs, Carrotous had only managed to rebuild itself a little. The twelve main cities held a very haughty, renassiance air, ruled through a system of nobilities. And the wastes, the great deserts that described the rest of the surface, was feudal, constant combat between clans and other clans, and clans and the terrorizing Knn. However it was, atleast a little, order. And order was something Asari had learned to hate. She had no home, no money. She was far too proud to beg, and but not too meek to steal. So, she wandered the streets and passages of Carrotous City. That was her lot in life, to suffer, forgotten. She remembered nothing of any family, friends. She was left to die by her parents at the foot of the Great Plateau. Her next ten years she spent scrambling up the thing, not being able to aford turbolifts. She learned to speak from other wanderers along the path up the plateau. In all logic, she should have died, implying some divine order aided her.

Asari hissed as she saw a royal transport wheel into the Carrotous City square. It was long, train like even in shape. It was drawn mostly by banckas, lizard like beasts of burden from the eastern wastes. And there were a few hover pads here and there, to help give it some lift. As much money as the royal house that owned the vehicle had, they probably couldn't afford many hoverpads, as functioning ones were worth there weight in platinum. A crowd of people gathered around the shining ship. Asari merely slunked back into the shadows. But she looked on.

A strong, gloved hand forced open a door to the right of the craft, the side which faced Asari. Out of that portal strode a very tall, well built looking rabbit. He had a beard that streched a foot down his chest and hair that fell to his waist, all white. He had high, pinched looking cheekbones and strutinizing red eyes. His clothing was fit for a Duke, which he probably was. Envy inundated through Asari.

Immediatley after the Duke filed out two pair of guards, covered in some maroon armor plates and wicked looking black helmets, with large swords and heavy repeater rifles at there side. Then out scurried a much smaller...weasel, she thought. He wishpered something into the Duke's ear, who responded with a slight nod and a stare at the crowd. Obviously, the Duke's mentat. Then, two more pair of guards filed out, ended by a black female rabbit with an elaborate headress and a long, flowing gown. The Duke's wife...one would hope.

The three officials, sandwiched in by there escort, moved to the side as a final two pair of guards walked out, and inbetween them was a final rabbit. His fur was utterly black, with light grey hair. But something else was diffrent. He bore not the scowl the others shared, but rather seemed disintrested. Asari guessed the boy was about sixteen. As the paraded, followed by yet another platoon of guards, into Carrotous Castle, Asari could not but notice how her eyes magnitated to the young one, the Duke's son. She continued to stare, until the entire family had dissapeared into the shadows of the palace. And then she mentally slapped herself,

"Just noble scum, forget it Asari." Without another thought, she slunk back into the shadows.



"Waaaait a minute, you guys are from the past?!" BlackSheep asked Tyio and Ducky, throughouly excited by the prospect.

"Well, uhm, yea..." Ducky murmured.

"Woohoo!" BlackSheep leaped into the air for joy, "then you guys must have all kinds of cool junk, from before the fall?"

"Not really, it was pretty much just an escape pod...in a manner of speaking." Tyio stated.

"Nonsense! You have got to have something..."

"All that's in it is a few blasters, my hacking probe, and the computer system." Ducky said.

"A computer system?" BlackSheep grinned as she made a little, 'yes' motion with her fist,"please, take me to it."

"Well, I guess we could... c'mon." Tyio motioned for her to come, and Tymen decided he might as well tag along.

"What could she want a computer for?" Tyio asked Tymen.

"Didn't you know? Learning has been banned to all except nobles, the information in that computer could be worth millions." Tyio paused, and thought about the dire consequences of such a law.

"Harsh..."

"Indeed."



Night had fallen over the city of Carrotous...City. The streets were vacant, but turmoil continued on, inside the Castle.

"With all due respect, my lord Emperor, but we can't just let thease gangs calling themselves clans continue to rage wars across the wastes." The Duke of the House Daroth complained to the Emperor of all Carrotous, Shay'Haloum the IX. The Emperorship had taken over the Kingship at the time of the dark's begginging, just for your information.

"I agree, so what do you propose we do about it? Ha?! There are atleast two hundred and fifty clans on Carrotous, each containing possibly ten thousand members! Our army isn't a tenth strong enough to fight just fifty of them!" The Emperor shouted back at the Duke, stroking his temple to suggest he had a headache.

"Indeed, alone, any one House or you're Yitivica warriors couldn't stand aginst them, but if we could unite twelve Houses..." The Duke contended to the Emperor, the others at the meeting deciding to stay well out of the argument.

"Oh shut up! You don't even get along with the House Nemriah, and they are you're closes neighbors!"

"My lord, you can't seriously let them continue there little wars across the wastes, can you?"

"Why not, they don't bother us, we don't bother them, thats the unsaid the agreement we've had for the past five years. You're the one who doesn't seem to get it, Duke!"

"My lord, all I want is to take out atleast the Konitar clan."

"The ones that killed you're parents? So that's what this is about eh? You're dismissed, Duke!"

"My lord..."

"You're DISMISSED!" The Duke slouched, and walked away, in defeat. The other officials got up from there chairs and moved to there own quarters, but the white robed one chased after the Duke.

"Dietem. Dietem!" She caught up to the frustrated ruler.

"You must calm down. This...petty quest for revenge may anger the Emperor to badly...and you wouldn't want that."

"The Emperor is getting too high and mighty, it's time I called in our forces."

"You're not actually going to try to overthrow the Emperor, are you?"

"Why not, our forces are stronger than his, we can win."

"It would be unwise to--"

"Silence, woman! I don't need advice from you, that's why I have a mentat. Now leave me!" As much as she would like to, Liema, the Duchess, could do nothing to stop the Duke. And so she walked away. Down the orange red marble hallways she encountered her son, who she was sure would be just itching to know what was going on.

"Mother, what is this, Father must be planning something, yes?" The black rabbit stated.

"I believe he is...if I were you I would have Orthian activate the perimeter shield around you're quarters, there may be a good deal of fighting soon." Though he would do so anyway, the Duke's son felt paticularly inclined my her mother's piercing blue eyes, a feature she could enhance when she wanted to be severe.

"Yes, mother." And he began to walk away.

"Oh, another thing..." Liema said.

"Yes?"

"Tymen, be careful."