Rift to Nowhere

Issues with Overpopulation. The house had only been designed for three but now it was expected to house Lore, Char, Pwy’he and their clone detachment. Their guests now gone, Lore could bring about a solution to their problem. In orbit of Io, The Destiny waited. Bringing the clones with them, they Breached aboard.
“Here we are. Just like old times.” Lore waved at the garage around them. Destiny sighed.
“Really? I was hoping to get some alone time with Curves.” She pointed to her finger. The purple crystal shone against the darkened metal band Destiny had created for it.
“Congratulations.” Lore smiled, thinking for a moment. “Well, there’s more than one room free. The ship’s yours, sleep anywhere but mine and Char’s room.” Destiny and Curves feigned sadness while most of the other clones scuttled up the stairs. Magpie remained still, scanning a nearby shelf before grabbing a sheet and creating a makeshift hammock in the garage.
“Don’t do anything stupid.” Lore waggled their finger sarcastically at Destiny and Curves before disappearing in a flash of light.
The next day seemed to take forever to come. Hours passed and Lore paced in their room, running over their research to ensure they had everything ready for later. Then it hit them, the missing ingredient. Lore knocked twice then entered.
“Bloody hell Lore!” Curves drew the cover over herself and Destiny. Lore stood there unflinching.
“I know you’ve only got a game under there.” Destiny giggled removing her top hat token.
“What do you want?” Curves slid into her slippers and edged Lore towards the door.
“Your satchel. I need the shavings from that crystal.” Before they had finished, Curves was forcing the bag into their hands.
“Go. Now. Please.” Destiny’s laughter escaped the background as Curves pushed Lore from their room.
“Night girls.” And with that, they were gone.
Back in their room, Lore ran their fingers through the shards. A smile crept across their face until they felt the stare of their wife.
“What are you doing up?” Char sounded too alert for someone who had just woken up.
“I could ask you the same…”
“Bad dream.” Char said reluctantly. Lore knew only too well. They leant over and wrapped her in a warm hug.
“I couldn’t sleep either. But the clones got me thinking. I think it’s going to work this time.”
“Why’s that?”
“This time, instead of trying to go somewhere we’ve got no idea about, we’ve got a solid link to wherever the clones went.” They let the shards slip through their fingers. “I’m going to text Space. We’ll need the help.” They sent their message and set their phone down on their bedside cabinet. As it hit the wood, it rang out. “That was fast. We’re in business.”
“Try get some sleep then. Big day.” Lore nodded. As Char’s head hit the pillow, they put their finger to her temple and they both for once slept soundly. After living Char’s recurring nightmare for her, Lore knew the other piece they had overlooked. Despite both of them sleeping like logs, Char was still absent when they awoke. A magical smell filled the hallways as Lore ventured towards the kitchen.
“Could I tempt you with a cup of hot Earl Gray?” Char held up the Teapot. Lore may as well have teleported as they ran towards Char, beaming grin plastered on their face. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
“Thank you. Sleep well?” Lore added their own milk and sugar.
“I did. I don’t know how you did it but thank you.” Char kissed their forehead as she poured the tea.
Lore sipped at their tea apprehensively. “Whatever happened to that arm cannon Syd gave you?” The teapot slammed to the counter top.
“Why?” Her tone dropped from friendly to adverse in a heartbeat.
“I’ve only ever seen it in action once but… I think we could use it to open the rift. It can certainly deliver more power than your pistol.” Char’s face drained. “I can find a way around it if you want but, it would help.” Lore sipped again at their tea.
Char nodded, sitting with them in silence. There was a knock at the door. As usual, Pwy’he was already answering it. Two hulking blue figures entered, the first scooped Pwy’he onto their shoulders. Since seeing them last, much to Durien’s displeasure, Sukal had grown a beard. They had both aged well given the near ten year gap.
“You’ve not aged a day… Well, you have.” He tickled Pwy’he before returning him to the ground. “So what’s so important?”
“Some of our old colleagues have returned. We were right, they’ve somehow found their ways to other universes. Now I think we’ve got our way to prove that theory.” Lore held up Curve’s satchel. Durien looked at them confused.
“This small pouch.” Lore grinned. “This bag contains scrapings of a crystal not native to our universe. Hopefully there should be enough for us to create a solid link back to its home universe.”
“That’s a lot of faith to put into a rock.” Durien crossed his arms.
“Together, we should be able to make it into a magnet of sorts. We reassemble the crystal then together we create a hole in space and time. The rift uses the crystal to stabilise and bob’s your uncle, we’ve got a tunnel to another universe.”
“If you say so…” They both sounded sceptical.
They assembled in the back garden. Lore and Pwy’he poured the shards onto a spare paper plate from the party. Char emerged from the house with a large cylinder obscured by a towel. She placed it down on the table then dragged her eyes from it.
“You promise you know what you’re doing?” She was obviously nervous.
“Promise.” Lore pulled her in, speaking in a whisper. “If not, we’ve got the ultimate failsafe.” They smiled pointing to her.
“So, let’s get started.” Cold blue energy radiated from every pore of Space’s body. The shards coalesced into a single stone.
“Ready?” Lore held out their hand. Blue and gold wrapped around their arms becoming Time. Time grabbed Char’s Rejuvenation Cannon and affixed it to their arm. Curves’ reforged crystal hung in the air as Time took aim. Time froze and they fired. Visions of Destruction.