To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part V

To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part V

The magician didn´t stir as Niko lifted her tear-stained face up at him beseechingly. 
"I don´t understand! Why didn´t you stop her, if you are so powerful? Or why don´t you do it now?" 

"You are upset," he retorted calmly, "which is only natural after what you have witnessed. And you have guessed correctly - the current state of things does not suit me. This is precisely the reason why I have brought you here. I will explain as soon as you have had a chance to calm down." 

Niko looked down at his hands, still enclosing her wrists like manacles. He released them immediately, though. She forced herself to let go of the image of her own unconscious body, her last desperate scream. 

Balance and harmony. 

Slowly the images faded into nothingness, banned for the time being from her conscious mind. I will still have to deal with them later, or they will come back to haunt me when I least expect them. 

The look he gave her then held a faint trace of approval as he saw the determination return to her eyes. He didn´t move, but the surrounding space blurred again, and they were back in Ariel´s house. Niko recognized the familiar surroundings instantly, the voluminous cushions on the floor and the old-fashioned candles on top of the even more old-fashioned wooden table. She still felt a little dizzy and so she marveled at the graceful movements of the magician, who circled the narrow table and sank down unto one of the cushions in one fluid motion. As he saw that she just stood there unmoving, he motioned to her to do the same. 

"And now I will explain." The simple statement had an air of cold finality about it. Niko just nodded. It couldn´t possibly get worse than it already was. 

"Very well then. I will start with your question. You have asked me why I did not erase the change myself. The reasons for this are many and complicated, but just two of them are of crucial importance." He paused and laid his hands in front of him on the table, palms down. 

"You must understand that, although I possess superior powers and I am not of human origin in the usual sense of the word, my physical body is still human, and I depend on this body most of the time. This also means that I cannot free myself entirely of all the instincts and feelings tied to a physical existence, in this case that of a human body. On the other hand, my gifts are too many and too powerful to ignore, so I felt compelled to put them to some use at an early point in my existence. In this instance, it might have been fortunate that I was ´born´ on Xanadu, because I first looked to its inhabitants for inspiration. It was here that I took the decision of becoming a guardian of those principles upon which this society is based. This is why, within the Circle of Thought, I am known as the Guardian." 

"Balance and harmony..." she murmured, suddenly beginning to understand. 

He grinned for the first time. "Something like that, yes." he agreed, still grinning. "A worthy goal, as you will surely agree, but impossible to reach, even for me. 
You see, despite my powers I still have a rather old-fashioned - and human - idea of ethics, which is why I am not always willing to take the necessary steps to assure that complete balance is achieved. In order to achieve that I would have had to help the Queen prevent the decline of her empire, something I am not willing to do although it would mean that a certain balance is maintained. Instead of doing so, I will allow the shift in the balance of power to take place, and the League of Planets will be the main power in this galaxy for a long period of time." 

"But the League doesn´t even exist in this timeline!" Niko protested. 

"Exactly. The change in the timeline was one event I could not foresee, because of the nature of the artifact that was employed to bring it about. Had I seen it coming, I would have stopped it in time without having to use my powers in order to do so." 

"Does that mean you can foresee the future?" she inquired. 

"No. The future is nothing but the sum of possible paths emerging from one given point in time. I can see those paths and estimate the probability with which they are likely to occur. Once an event has taken place, it becomes the reality of the universe in question. Sometimes, this reality can be altered by such means as the one used by the Queen, mostly with a very unpredictable outcome. Very rarely, there are events which have a very great probability of happening in every timeline in each of the alternate universes, but this is not one of those." 

"But if every timeline exists in a universe of its own, why bother and try changing this particular one? Your powers should enable you to choose whichever existence you like." 

"Not really. Beings of this universe, including me, can only exist in the universe of their origin. Besides, not every possible reality has a universe of its own. But let us get back to the reasons for my behaviour in this particular case. 
As I have already told you, I can foresee the set of outcomes of each particular event I choose to concentrate on. What I can not do, however, is to foresee the possible consequences of events I am involved in. More exactly, events I have caused by using certain of my powers. Therefore, I know you have a chance of succeeding, whereas I cannot foresee the consequences of my active involvement in the matter. This is the main reason why you must do it. Alone." Niko swallowed. "You said there were two reasons. Which is the second one?" 

"The second reason involves my personal safety and is therefore less important. Given my role as a guardian, however, my death at this point would result in a lack of protection for the League, which shouldn´t be a desirable consequence from your point of view." The look in her eyes indicated that she didn´t understand. 

"Let´s just say that excessive use of my powers would attract certain things of probably equal abilities, and I am not sure that I am prepared to handle them just now. Especially as they wouldn´t stop with me." 

Niko grimaced. Heavens, I'm not sure that I want him to go into detail on that one. Those things sound nasty enough as it is. Still, with that void of power surrounding him, I'm not sure I can imagine something that could take him. Nevertheless, it must be true. Someone like him doesn't have to resort to lying. 

"All right," she said aloud. "I believe you, and I will do what is necessary. But I still don't know where to find the artifact, and how to use it when I find it." To her surprise, he didn't look satisfied with her announcement. If such a thing was possible, his look had turned even more earnest than before. 

"I have to make sure that you understand what will happen." he said. "As time continues to flow here, it does the same in the other timeline, although that one is not real at the moment. You have only a limited amount of time to find the artifact and use it, and when you do, you will find yourself confined in the Queen's palace along with the rest of your team. Your chances of escaping will be almost nonexistent, and I will not be able to employ my powers to help you." He could see the color slowly drain away from her face, but kept on talking. "And if you don't find the artifact in the given time and still decide to use it, you will go back to an existence as one of the Queen's most precious Slaverlords, as the psychic energy of your other self will have already been captured in a psychocrystal." 

Niko forced herself to swallow. Her throat felt dry all of a sudden, and the sounds came out in a whisper, as she asked "So this is a suicide mission, isn't it? Either way." 

The Guardian regarded her thoughtfully. "No, it is not. You are powerful as well in your own way, and the possibility of your escape exists. You can remain here in Xanadu, where you will be safe from the threat of the Empire, but if you do, humanity will slowly perish, and so will I probably, should I endeavor to save it. Or," here he paused meaningfully, "you can go in search of the artifact and confront the Queen in her own home, where your chances of escaping are rather small. It is your choice." 

"Think so?" she asked sarcastically, already knowing that there was only one way to take if she wanted to be able to keep some semblance of self-respect. "Well, your manipulation techniques are not subtle, but I will acknowledge that they weren't required to be, in this particular case. How much time do I have?" 

"Two days. And I will accompany you." 

"I thought you had to watch from a safe distance?" As soon as the question was out, she wanted to bite her tongue. She knew what his reasons were, and she understood that they were legitimate. 

I don't believe for a moment that a being of his powers would allow his actions to be governed by fear. He had the courtesy to pretend he hadn't heard her question. 

"We leave in half an hour. I will provide the needed equipment. Try to meditate until then - it will do you good." 

She nodded, recognizing the useful advice for what it was, despite the arrogant tone in which it was given. She wouldn't underestimate him again if she could help it. 

With that thought in mind, she went off in search for Ariel to say goodbye. 

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• To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time
• To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part II
• To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part III
• To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part IV
• To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part V
• To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part VI
• To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part VII
• To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part VII
• To the Last Syllable of Recorded Time - Part IX

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