Interlude: Timeless

Neo sat behind the counter at the bar, drinking a mug full of Kupo Wine. The moogles were a weird bunch of animals, but they sure had good taste. Although Raven-Chan would most definitely disagree. "The most disgusting stuff ever brewed," if Neo remembered correctly. Neo had agreed to watch the bar for a while. The waitresses were doing most of the work, though.

The crowd in the bar was starting to die down. A few patrons were scattered among the tables, talking and laughing over their drinks. Neo was watching a man and his wife seated at one table; it was unusual to bring your wife to a pub. They looked like they were arguing. Suddenly the woman jumped up from the table and screamed "It’s over!" She threw her wine at him and stormed toward the door.

“DON’T yell at me like that!” the man roared, and stood up to pursue her. The woman turned and gave him the finger. This brought a wave of laughter from the other customers, who had all turned to watch the unfolding spectacle. The man picked up his mug and pulled back to throw it at his wife. As he released the mug, Neo waved his hand through the air. There was a deep “SSSeeeww” sound as time itself was slowed. His abilities as a chronomancer came in handy in more places than just the heat of battle. The mug was now moving only a few millimeters a second.

Neo calmly hopped over the counter and walked over to the mug. He plucked it out of the air, turned it around, and gave it a gentle push. It continued its flight, but now it was flying back to the enraged man, still in the motions of throwing it.

Neo went back to his spot behind the bar, took a sip of the Kupo Wine, and with another wave of his hand, sped time back up to its normal flow.

The mug exploded on the man’s face. He fell to the ground screaming. His (most likely ex-)wife walked out of the pub, unconcerned. Neo watched as some of the patrons went to help the man.

A sharp pain shot through Neo’s arm. He gasped and sat the glass of wine down on the counter. “It’s starting,” he thought. He rose from his seat and exited the pub.

“I knew it would be tonight. But I won’t die yet.” Neo thought as he walked away from the pub. Raising a hand to his forehead, he mumbled a few words in a language unknown except for a unique few. In a brilliant flash of light, Neo disappeared.

He reappeared in a spot nearly halfway across the world. To most it was unknown, but he knew its name. Kadeo un Chronots: Village of the Chronomancers. It had been nearly 500 years since his last visit to his hometown. Nothing had changed. As he headed for the town’s center, he noticed the way that time seemed to be less...overwhelming than it was in the outside world. Children were watching stones fly in ways that would seem impossible unless you knew the secret: another child was slowing time, and moving the rocks himself. Similar feats were happening throughout the village.

Neo saw his destination. The Elder’s house. It was a large round structure. As he approached its door, he was thinking of the main difference between his hometown and the world that he had found outside. Here, nearly everyone could Trance. It was even expected. But outside, those who had this ability were persecuted. Killed for fear that they would enslave the “normal, law-abiding” people. As if Trancing automatically made you a felon.

Neo entered the Elder’s house. The one room inside was dark, lit only by a candle in the center. Heavy curtains blocked light from entering through the doorway.

“State your name,” the Elder rasped.

“Japhwin Teun Izril,” Neo said. He had never divulged his given name to anyone, not even Raven-Chan. Neo was an alias he had used since the day he first left the village.

The Elder rose from his seat on the ground. “Welcome home.”

“ I must undertake the Ritual of Renewing,” Neo said.

The Elder smiled. “Your five-hundredth year already? Time is passing me like I had not realized.”

“Four hundred ninety-nine, actually,” Neo said. “But when I slowed time today, I felt a sharp pain a few moments later. I had been feeling uneasy lately, and I figured that my time would come soon.”

The Elder placed a bony hand on Neo’s shoulder. “Yes. Your chronomantic powers are nearly gone. You may undertake the Ritual. But first, tell me, what have you discovered on your travels outside our village? You are the first to leave, after all.”

Neo stood tall, proud of his accomplishment. “I have discovered, firstly, that we are the only beings I have encountered who can manipulate time. And also, very few outsiders can Trance.”

That took the Elder by surprise. "No Trance, eh? That is interesting. If you’re ready, come this way."

Neo followed the Elder to the center of the room. The Elder hobbled over to one of the walls and picked up a staff that was leaning against it. Neo could barely see it in the candlelight. The elder approached Neo, and placed the staff on the floor. Then, out of his pocket, he took a stone that sparkled from a thousand facets.

The Elder handed Neo the jewel. "I think...you know how to proceed?"

Neo nodded. He grasped the jewel between his open palms. As he concentrated, the energy from the jewel began to flow into him. His eyes, normally solid black, were beginning to glow red. "I’m Trancing!" he gasped. He had only Tranced three times since he left the village. Once to prove to Raven-Chan that he could, and two times during battle. He had forced himself to resist the Trance other times because a chronomancer’s Trance is terrible to be around if you do not have chronomantic powers. The temporal energy flowing from a Tranced chronomancer will interfere with the natural rhythms of living creatures, and Neo had not wanted to harm any innocent people.

The Elder’s words snapped Neo back from his memories. "Let it happen. It will ease the return of your power."

Neo stopped his instinctive fighting of the Trance. His ears grew back to a point, and his teeth converted into fangs. The ends of his fingers sprouted long claws, and his body took on a gaunt, nightmarish shape. Quite the opposite of Raven-Chan’s graceful bird form.

The Ritual was finished. The stone fell from Neo’s hands. The Elder looked deep into Neo’s red, glowing eyes. "I sense that you have a great destiny ahead of you. But it is not here. Return to your normal form. I have a gift for you before you leave."

Neo’s body reformed its regular shape. The Elder bent over slowly and picked up the staff he had placed on the floor. "This is yours."

Neo took it slowly from the Elder. "...I don’t know what to say. Thank you!" It was the Elder’s own staff. Solid silver with a large thick "C" shape on the end. Inside the "C" was a large, purple, perfectly round gem.

The Elder smiled. "It will aid you on you journey. Now, you made a promise to someone, didn’t you?"

Neo thought for a moment, unsure of what the Elder meant. Then he remembered. "I told Raven that I would meet him after I took care of something."

"Then you should keep that promise. I know your teleport spell only links you to this village. I’ll send you to your friends." The Elder grasped Neo’s hand. "Good luck."

There was a blinding flash, and then Neo found himself on a boat, in the rain.

"Where am I now?" he thought. He decided to look around.

He couldn’t find anyone onboard. He came to the captain’s room and opened the door. Raven was lying there on the bed with a girl Neo didn’t recognize.

"Looks like Raven made a friend," Neo whispered to himself. He closed the door gently and continued exploring. He found a place below deck that he liked, sat down in a corner, and drifted off to sleep.