The tourists, the indigenous, the moral degenerates, the pretentious wanker philosophers, the long suffering artistes, the quiet hide-away freaks, the inept intellectuals, the loud bacchus spirited yobs, the perfect life housewife, the family man ham, the sick, the dying, every breathing, eating, fucking, shitting individual across the planet experienced infinite time and ceased to exist. Including the archaeologists.

 When the time loop hit the planet no one had noticed, much in the same way no one would notice someone being beaten to death.

 Afraid to be involved, evolved through ignorance until every little individual progenaic life form carries every little ontological error that has recapitulated towards social blindness, sociopathic blindness.

 Bernice Summerfield could see it, she couldn't do anything but feel it.

 In her sadness she saw how infinite time was forced into one single dry moment, thats all anyone on this planet got. One. Moment. In Time. *They* had done this - eradicated the planet's culture, its history, art and people. All for their crusade. Couldn't *they* see they had become like the Gods they wanted to defeat - thats was probably their intention. And no one would have noticed that the Dinel was beaten to death because it would never have had existed.

 Those thoughts only came to Bernice well after the time loop held Dinel. When it actually happened, she had *that* dream.

 [Extract from the diary of Professor Bernice Summerfield.]

 I had that dream again, only this time it was different. It was so odd that it happened at the moment the time loop was activated, I guess it was because of all those years I had been outside time. Anyway I thought I'd write it down again, noting the difference.

 I found myself in New York, at the base of the Chrysler Building. Very Freudian. New York was the phallocentric capital of Earth, the city of pricks. I could at least be satisfied that the grand silver art deco tower of the architects' projection of inferiority was far more stylish than the Empire State. Chrysler was hunk/supermodel/Richard Prekodravac gorgeous whereas the Empire State was brutish Troglodyte.

 And again I was completely naked.

 It didn't bother me. I loved it and everyone in the metropolis loved what I was doing. They were all covered underneath coats and scarves, but I didn't feel the cold. I was more concerned that not everyone was looking at me. I wanted everyone to be looking at me.

 I jumped in the air as I ran down the street, to the applause and admiration of the onlookers. I had a ball and even a few of the crowd thought they'd join in, only the police came and arrested them for indecent exposure. Then the officers waved at me and told me to continue on.

 And of course I did. Until I made it to my destination, a fabric store. The door was open for me by the staff, as they were expecting me. I noticed the shope storefront: a sign announced

 The incredible Bendy Bernice!
2pm here every Thursday!
How Warhol!

 That white haired freak. God love them.

 When I went into the shop I started to panic as I wasn't completely sure where to go, just like every other time I had this dream. Only this time I managed to find what I was looking for.

 The velvet section.

 What can one say about velvet that hasn't already been said?

 The area was lined with rows and rows of velvet fabric, lucious greens, royal blues and purple. Oh how much I adored purple velvet. Rolls of velvet sprung up from the carpeted floors like bushes. And then with no other thought in my mind I dived right into the fabric. Everything fell around me into a complete mess but I swam in the velvet fabric, enjoying the sensuality of every fibre. My whole body tingled as I gently ran blue velvet across my face, then using the cloth as a blindfold. I ran some green velvet over my breast gentling wrapping it, then another piece over my belly, but I saved the purple for last. I piled a neat square into the palm of my hand, squeezed the fabric letting the gentle fuzziness tickle slightly. And then running the purple fabric down the inside of my leg and let it brush against my pubic hair. My whole body quivered, I was in ecstacy.

 [Extract Ends]

 Miles looked at the grey matter covering his hands the gooey organic blobs of brain... he looked back at Natalie, blinking a few times to clear his blurred vision. His crying was an automatic response, conscious of it he stopped, but he tried to cry, he thought he owed her that. The tears were not there. Fuck it. Fuck it right? Miles felt being pulled out onto the fire escape.

 "Get back down there and wait," Benny barked before going back inside.

 Miles made his way down the ladder, flicking the gunk from his hands onto the railing. Then half way down he fell off, sliding to the ground. He screamed out in pain. the drop shattered through hollow body.

 Miles didn't care. He didn't feel. He didn't think. Murder was just a thing he had done. See it. Want it. Take it. Feel nothing. As the rain fell the water washed the last part of Miles that was human.

 action and response

 action

 When the Time Loop hit Dinel

 response

 Miles dreamt this:

 scritch

 scritch scritch
scritch
scritch
scratch

 everything out

 Miles felt the darkness. Both kinds of darkness.

 First he felt the ordinary kind, the kind that came and went with every night. Big. Black. Dull. The dark he had seen every day.

 Then he felt the second kind scritch scritch scritch...

 or over sky jury
your half skat funeral with four schedule hour
f'sake furtive soiree
rough dusk sooth freefall
thrust clear zero rush and ask for slaughter
for all equip with eight
frustrate
free whether allied earful
84 laksa
elf hate honourate
nail ego hero fool
polka add e93
all is salient on denil in denial

 scratching from deep with in
something restructuring the thing that called itself miles and man and archaeologist
calling upon its heaven with all its hell
this was the second kind of darkness
true darkness
monster darkness

 Benny pulled the trenchcoat over Natalie's head. It was Benny thought, the expected thing to do, what she had to do to stop herself from vomiting. She looked around the room half expecting that someone might have been there, but couldn't bring herself to say a few words.Benny backed out, back onto the fire escape and sat down over the edge whilst letting the rain fall down.

 "It's just as imagined it. Dull. Lifeless. Who knew this was where the long march to domination would begin."

 Delbarre imagined his immortality growing from this planet and reaching out and covering stars. "Angel!"

 "Yes Bruv?"

 "I want you to check out Gino to see if anyone has tried to pawn the artefacts off onto him. If he has them make any deal you want, then kill him. If doesn't have them, kill him anyway, we don't need another competitor in my way."

 Angel Delbarre left his brother alone to view his empire of one. Delbarre could see the whole planet in flames as the power that would be his become whole. The artefacts.

 "Summerfield I know you're out there."

 When the time loop hit Dinel, Delbarre's imagination dreamt nothing.

 Lybrylla was responsible for Huignar's initiation into the Council. His joy when he was brought into the Halls of Infinity had always disagreed with her. That was why when she had finished his training, Lybrylla had left him as cold as she was and she resented that as well.

 Lybrylla had realised that the respect and admiration for what the Cursed had done, was only that, she felt no loyalty to the Council or to any one individual, especially Huignar. His self satisfying smugness bored her, and that was really all she felt boredom.

 The only thing she did enjoy was broken on the floor. What was left of her after the Council had taken away everything of her din'lity was killing the not-Din'l. With the Council's failure after losing the first totem and not discovering the missing second totem, killing the archeologist they employed on the dig gave her pleasure. Even if the female not-Din'l had a broken neck.

 And when the time loop hit Dinel, Lybrylla like all of the Din'l on the planet were not affected.

 Just that. Be. Emile was struggling and suffering, she couldn't hate him for it. But she couldn't stop feeling it. Tears rushed then stoped, hitting like a punch. Emile. She brushed away the tears. She stopped. The water from the rain dripping off her fingers. She flicked away the excess water. Tears punched at her again and she brushed down her waterlogged hair with both her hands. The rain still fell.

 Some not-Din'l called it a totem. They also called it evil.

 What was it that called itself it without the other?

 The Din'l called it part of a pair.

 What was it that called itself it when it felt the loops of time activate its ancient code?

 It called itself awake.

 Inside traced the infinite time within the loop and sensed the other two components. With the last two parts Inside could form the Trin'l and the Gods would be one step closer.

 to be continued...