First to Return

Scarred slate armour. The leader removed their helmet to thunderous applause. Just outside of the human guests view, The New Cornerstones readied themselves for a fight. After they realised who had broken into their garden, Lore joined in the clapping.
“ACE!” They ran over to them, wrapping them in a death grip of a hug. The cracks in Ace’s armour deepened as Lore’s cybernetic arm gripped tighter. “Everyone, may I introduce Piper’s older siblings. You’re just in time for dinner.” Lore leant in closer and whispered in Ace’s ear. “Play along you’re on Earth in the twenty first century.” Ace nodded. Lore led the group in an awkward bow.
After a brief huddle, the clones joined the table. Thankfully, Char hadn’t been understating how much food she had prepared so there was plenty to go around. After devouring their burger, Ace gestured towards the house. Lore led the way.
“What is your game?” Ace shouted in a whisper. “You send us on a mission then never respond to our emergency signals. We were in Soluss space for nearly a year before you got us back. And then we find you’re partying on Earth.” Ace nearly threw their helmet.
“I got you back? We never got your distress calls.” Lore frantically scrolled through their Breacher logs. “A few days after you left, everyone disappeared. Char, Brian and I, we are all that’s left of The Alliance’s Time Team. I’ve been trying to find everyone else.” Ace could see the relief on their face. “We’ve had almost no leads as to where you’d gone. We’ve been searching but, nothing…”
“So, you didn’t bring us back?” Lore shook their head.
“We’ve only really just got back from an adventure of our own. Most of the universe nearly went extinct.” Lore checked their Breacher. “Damn. It’s been that long already?” Ace stared at them. “We never stopped searching. After Varkral, we had an idea of where you might have gone but…” Their heart was almost beating out of their chest.
“What or who’s Varkral?”
“He was one of the Lores from the council. He wasn’t from this universe.” Lore gasped and began scanning Ace. “While you were in Soluss space, did you happen to bring anything back with you?”
“Curves found a crystal. She wanted to give it to Destiny. She wouldn’t shut up about it.” Lore ran past Ace and back into the garden. They excused themselves as they began running their Breacher along Curves’ belt. The guests got ready for another magic trick.
“Perfect. May I?” Lore pointed to a satchel on her belt. Confused, Curves just went with it and opened the pocket. Inside, nestled in a bed of crystalline shavings, a finely cut, purple crystal. Lore scooped out some of the shavings and held them to their Breacher. Excited, they jumped on the spot before pulling Char into the house. Opposite, Mr. Price gave a disappointed sigh and returned to his food.
“This confirms everything.” Lore poured the shavings into Char’s hands. “These crystal shards are not from this universe, just like Varkral. The other Lores, the other clones, they are all in different universes. I was right.” They couldn’t stop smiling.
“So…” Char had no idea what to do with this information.
“So, I think we can find a way to cross the barriers between universes, we can potentially reunite the council. Bring everyone home.”
“What if they don’t want to leave? Like Varkral?”
“Then they don’t have to but what if their like our clones? What if they’re trapped and waiting on us to save them?” Lore gave their best puppy dog eyes.
“At least wait till the party’s over before you try anything.” Lore’s eyes lit up. “Promise me.” They nodded.
“So who’s the kid?” Ace pointed over at Pwy’he.
“You don’t recognise him?” Char chuckled.
“How about now?” Lore opened their phone’s photo album revealing a pixelated image of Pwy’he with his hair grown out.
“Pwy’he?” Ace whispered under his breath. “What are they doing here? And why are you calling them Piper?”
“Pwy’he is your brother.” Char’s eyes darted from the party to Lore at lightspeed. “He’s our son. We call him Piper so the humans don’t get suspicious. It’s better than the alternative trust me.” Lore shook their head, eyes wide open.
“Hold on, Brother?” Char was almost speechless.
“So I grew up getting leadership advice from your kid? Now you mention it, the stories do sound familiar. That cheeky git.”
“Brother?” Char muttered.
“Oh. I thought you knew. The clones are technically our children too. Their genetic template came from us.” Lore pointed their finger between them. Char’s confusion melted into borderline anger.
“And you’ve known this since…?” Her face began to redden as she slowly lost control of her emotions.
“It wasn’t the right time. But now is. I’m sorry.” Lore held their hand to Char’s face. Putting her hand on theirs, she saw the past.
She was in their kitchen at the first safe house they stayed in. Tay had been interviewing them in the other room, she now stood alone with Lore. The two of them smiled as Tay reintroduced herself. She told them not to tell mum. Satisfied, Char returned to the present.
“Alright.” She shook her head. “Sometimes, I wish we never said yes to The Cornerstones. These powers have me on edge.”
“I’ve always said I’ll take them from you if you want me to. Same as Pwy’he.” Lore held her hand in their own.
“Cornerstones?” Ace re-entered the conversation. “I thought they were just a bedtime story Tolan made up.”
“It’s a long story. We met the creators of reality, they retired, we were given their abilities.” Lore paused. “Not that long actually.”
“I know you’d do anything for me in a heartbeat. I’ve just got to learn how to supress the paranoia thinking about the past causes.” Lore kissed Char’s cheek before the three of them re-joined the party. Before leaving the house, Lore tapped their Breacher and unleashed the stored Destiny. As soon as she saw Curves, she bolted. Between them, they nearly destroyed the outdoor dining table as they ran into each other’s embrace. Lore gave Curves a subtle wink as they took their place back at Pwy’he’s side. In Lore’s opinion party had been a resounding success despite the unexpected guests, even more so than they expected; The clones sudden reappearance was the beginning of something bigger, they just had to figure it out. Rift to Nowhere.