1:4:3 Republic (Part 3)

They were alone in a black void. Char and Brian were nowhere to be seen; they knew that they weren’t on The Razor but apart from that, they had no clue where they were. The void was of an acceptable temperature and the gravity was relaxing but both were alien to them. Lore closed their eyes and unsurprisingly, nothing changed.
“Okay… I’m going to sit down before I fall.” They spoke to themselves. “A good idea.” They continued the conversation. “Strangely comfortable. I was hoping it wouldn’t be damp. Now, where are we?” They looked around the expanse. “Empty area… No lights… Dry, comfy floor… Hmm.” They pressed their hands against the floor and bounced themselves before shaking their head. “Okay.” Their eye was slowly adjusting to the lack of light but that did little to illuminate their whereabouts. Time passed. They weren’t sure how much but time certainly passed and it didn’t pass in silence. They spent all of their time there talking either to themselves or to the hypothetical being hidden in the darkness. “So I was thinking, I talk to myself enough, should I give myself another name so it’s more like a conversation?” They thought on it. “Perhaps not. Char might get jealous… And it’s kind of weird to talk to someone who doesn’t exist.”
“I don’t know how, but I forgot you can talk.” It spoke from nowhere yet everywhere.
“Hello!” Lore’s spirit and voice seemed unaffected by the time they had spent alone.
“I was waiting for an opening but I didn’t want to interrupt you.” It started walking towards Lore. “Hello.” The figure that was approaching them looked familiar yet they had no idea who it was. It was tall, towering over Lore and its face and clothes had an almost timeless appeal to them. It was both handsome and pretty, strong yet soft; its face was young yet careworn, as if it had no idea whether it was supposed to be ancient or brand new, existing in an aesthetically appealing middle ground. There was a pale green glow about it. “Before you ask, you’ve not moved. In fact, I’m surprised you didn’t clip the wall as you sat down.” Lore tapped at the space behind them, feeling the same wooden icon that they had touched to trigger whatever was going on. “And once I’m finished with you, I’ll put you back exactly where and when I found you, as if you never left.”
“Who are you?” Lore pressed their hand against the wall again and used it to help themselves up.
“I think you know.” It looked back at the wall.
“Time? How can you be here?” Lore moved in towards it and started examining it. “Char said Cornerstones couldn’t visit the mortal plane.”
“Sad to say that there is a lot that she doesn’t know. It’s not that we can’t visit your plane, more that we probably shouldn’t. We’re thinking, feeling beings like you. There’s every risk that if we stay too long, we’d end up either getting drunk on power or adopt a small cult of favourite beings.” It shrugged. “We’re allowed our Paragons and that’s really supposed to be it as far as mortal interaction goes.”
“So why are you talking to me? We’ve never met… I don’t think?” Lore didn’t seem too sure of themselves.
It sat down on the floor, inviting Lore to join it. “You’re the third Lore I’ve met… At least from your point of view of time; the one they call The First, your creator Emm and you.” It shook its head. “Incredible the differences you can find between three of the same person.” It smiled. “I came to The First when they created the first time loop and earned that name. I couldn’t have an unknown quantity manipulating time to such an extent but they had drive and an idea so I allowed it to play out. Then your creator called for me.”
“They called for a god?” Lore was sceptical.
“They called to me when they were at an impasse. They were new to the cycle but they weren’t sure where they fit in.”

A spectral image of Time and Emm appeared next to them.
“Please, Time, Char told me that you were supposed to be real and I could use some guidance. These people, they claim to be me but they are so set in their ways.”
“They are indeed.” Time rested a hand on their shoulder. “There is something about you that is different but it’s not quite ready yet.”
Emm recoiled. “What?”
“Sorry, you called me?” Time smiled. “But you’re not quite the you I want just yet. Nearly but no.”
“Why do you keep saying that?” Emm looked around to see if they could see who it was talking about.
“You have an idea that none of the others have had, not even The Originator and with it, you have a choice. Follow your mind or follow theirs. Both equally valid possibilities but both lead to very different outcomes. Should you make the right choice, and it won’t be a popular one, your cycle will be the last.”
“I know what I must do.” Emm stood. They removed an empty syringe from their pocket and withdrew a blood sample before Time.
“Good luck, Creator.” Time and Emm faded away.

“They made the choice to clone themselves that day. That clone was you and you are the Lore I was waiting for.” Time touched Lore’s chest. Their amulet glowed. “The symbol of three: Past, present and future. A badge of office; one rarely used but a tool of The Cornerstones nonetheless.”
Lore ran their fingers over the sigil. “Badge of office… The Paragons?”
Time nodded. “I chose you and your ilk long ago but only now do I think that I made the right choice. Before you ask, you’ve been a Paragon since your first cell grew but you won’t be made a Paragon until much later.”
“Why are you telling me this?” Lore politely tried to move its hand away from them.
“As a Cornerstone, I am limited to how many Paragons I can have but the rules are yet to be written regarding multiple variants of that Paragon existing in the same time zone. You are my Paragon but you can share your power with your other variants. Make them your Reapers, share your light. Only then will the Tether work.” It smiled as it stood. “Share the light.” The pale green surrounding it expanded until it lit the entire room and it was gone. Char and Brian were now visible and time had resumed.“They’re all part of The Temporal Sciences Guild’s standard practice handbook, listed as groups Inquisitors could disguise yourself as if found on mission.” Brian answered a question Lore half asked nearly an eternity ago.
Lore sprang to their feet and made for the door before either Brian or Char could comment. They turned back to Char and Brian after patting down their bag. “Do either of you have that book?” Char was about to ask the obvious question when she felt the book they were asking about in her bag.
“Creation Myths of the Cosmos. Volume Fifty-Two: The Cornerstones of Reality.” Char held the book aloft. “What about it?” She lowered the book, confused as to why it was needed.
Lore Breached over to her and took it. They immediately started skimming the texts until they found the chapter devoted to The Reapers. “Nothing… Why would it tell me about The Reapers when there’s nothing about how they’re created in here?” Lore read and re-read the chapter again but still couldn’t find the answer they were looking for. “And why do we need them?” They were getting progressively more and more worked up.
Char was hesitant at first but realised it was for the best so rested herself on Lore’s shoulder. “Slow down, start from the beginning. Who told you about what?”
Char’s look of concern surprised them; they hadn’t realised they were so tense or so sweaty. Lore took a deep breath before beginning. “When I touched the symbol, Time’s symbol, I was taken somewhere. It was like being here but at the same time, here felt so far away. Time spoke to me and it told me that the only way to make it work was to ‘share the light’.”
“Make what work?” Char asked.
Brian’s eyes virtually exploded. “I think we better get a move on.” Brian tapped at his wristband. “I think they’re still here but we’ll see.” He led the charge back to the corridor then ran ahead to the foyer. “Wait here a moment.” He burst through the doors to the council chambers leaving in his wake a very confused Char and a slightly less confused but still mildly perplexed Lore.
“Is he okay?” Char raised her eyebrow.
“I don’t think he’s ever been okay… Something big is going on and they aren’t telling us a thing.” Lore’s face stiffened.