Date: Sat, 16 Oct 1999 12:56:03 CDT From: Matt Blah <kaiser_cain@hotmail.com> Subject: The Book - 4 Key-doke, let's try this again, eh folks? If you've ever been to the Nifty Archive before, you should already know the rules and can skip on down to the asteriks (*)... Usual legal stuff applies.... If you're underage (17-) don't read, if it's illegal where you are (bad!), don't read, if you aren't into this kinda stuff (close-minded), why are you here? The preceding statements do not concur with my own personal opinion. If you honestly know what you want in life, go for it, no matter how old you are. If you're curious, experiment a bit, you'll never be truly happy if you don't. =P * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Hey, you know what? I forgot to post my e-mail address with my last portion.. LOL My bad!! I know the spelling and grammar of the last section were kinda jumbled, so I'm going to do my best to do this portion P-E-R-F-E-K-T-L-Y!! Whoops! Oh well, what was I thinking? Perfectly? Yeah, that's _real_ likely_.... Okay, now I'm rambling... I got a good response anyways.. (go figure) so here's the next portion!! Whoops, one more thing, I found that it's kinda hard to understand where paragraphs and stuff end, so now I'm double spacing them, and multi spacing the section where there's a scene shift. Okey doke, that should help, on to the story! -------- The Book -------- Chapter 5 : Prelude to Disaster Judas huddled around Matt's slack body for a good 30 seconds before he realized that he could do something about it. With a muttered curse and a palm to the forehead, Judas bent over the limp body of Matt and spread out his hands. He Reached deep within himself for that little spark of Healing he knew he had. Judas had been tested at age 5 for all potential Powers and was discovered to have a spark of each, although his specialty was far and away Tapping the ambient energy. This put Judas in the near unique position of being able to fuel his Healing with his Tapped power, giving him the capabilities a Savant Healer on Apprentice level power. He gently Reached outward, once his Healing "spark" was in hand, and called forth the raw power of Nature. His hands encircled his tiny amulet, made of Judas' prime Harmony stone, Aquamarine, which began to glow ever so softly. He Channeled the power through his focus, tempering it and making it his own, and drawing the power back from the focus into his hands, which began to glow a verdant light. He placed his hands upon Matt's wound, and solidified the power into a green weave, and slowly Willed the strands into Matt's wound, repairing all the damage that had been done. After what felt like an eternity, Judas sighed, and withdrew his hands, for now all that remained of the injury was a light scar. He swayed, dizzy with exertion, and fell upon his hands and knees, breathing heavily. He Tapped back into the stream of energy and took the force into himself. He rose, feeling refreshed, and picked up the still unconscious Matt, and walked stiffly over to where Draecon still waited patiently. Cursing with the straps, Judas finally managed to get Matt secure on the wyvern's back, and then mounted himself. Judas then spurred Draecon lightly into the sky, back to High Tower, and a much-needed rest. Matt woke with a soft groan, clutching his side, which ached.. not at all... :What the?: he thought, rising slowly and finding himself back in his room. He looked down and rolled up his tunic so he could see his... perfectly Healed belly. Scratching his head, Matt looked around, as if not believing that he was alright and safe back at High Tower. "Awake, are you?" the voice came from the doorway, and was thick with weariness. Matt turned with a start to see Judas standing there, looking very haggard indeed. "J-judas! A-are we really alr-right?" he stuttered out, relieved to see his friend in tact. Judas gave a soft sardonic laugh before answering, "Yes, we are, and I don't know who's more surprised about that fact, you or me." Judas walked into the room and sat next to the bewildered Matt. "So.. what happened?" "We got them, both of them," Judas said simply, "You got that foreigner with the runecaster, but--well, you know what happened then better than I do. Well, after you fell, I wiped out Ardanas and her construct..." Judas stopped there "I-I'm sorry," whispered Matt awkwardly, knowing that Ardanas' "construct" was Draconir reanimated. Judas put on a happy face, "Don't worry about it, it wasn't your fault, and the bitch who did it is repenting to him right now. After they were out of the picture, I just Healed you and brought you back." Matt sighed and leaned back, "And we have to go back to work, right?" Judas laughed, "Nope, we've got us some off time!" at Matt's incredulous look, he laughed again, "The Masters were so impressed that we took out a renegade Necromancer they're giving us some off time to 'recuperate!'" Matt clapped his hands together and said, in a little school girl's tone, "Oh goody! Let's go play Beggar's Reel!" Judas chuckles softly and gently <chucked> Matt on the chin, "Well, little lady, I think you'd better get some sleep before we get to enjoy our free time." Matt promptly began snoring. Judas pretended to tuck him in, but went and got a glass of ice cold water. "Freeze!" Matt hollered as Judas reentered the room, "What do you think you're doing?" Judas just grinned wickedly... "NO!! JUDAS!! I'M A WOUNDED MAN!!! PLE--" the water splashed on Matt and the entire bed. "ARRRGGGHHH!!!!!" he screamed, lunging out of bed and chasing after Judas, who was howling with laughter. Tobias walked in on his master and Matt in a very unusual position. Matt was straddling Judas, and pinning his arms behind his back. Judas was laughing uproarously, for the still-soaked Matt was tickling him mercilessly. "No!! Please!! Mercy!!" laughed Judas and he writhed about trying to escape. "Mercy?!" retorted Matt, "Where was your mercy this morning, heathen?!" Matt tickled Judas some more. Tobias stared for a moment, not quite believing what his eyes were seeing. Then he self-consiously cleared his throat very softly. In Tobias' hand was a letter, Sealed by the Masters with turquoise wax, a matter of some urgency. Matt looked up and saw Tobias standing in the doorway. Matt blushed a deep scarlet and let Judas off, who promptly tackled him. "Ah ha!! That will be your final mistake!" he chortled malevolently, starting to tickle Matt. Matt managed to point at Tobias after a moment of struggling and Judas looked up. "Oh! Tobias! Is it time for your... lesson...?" Judas' eye's wandered down to where the letter was, and got a weary look on his face. "No, Master," said Tobias hesitantly, "The Masters say that your offtime must wait, for there is pressing matter in the lands of the Elves." Judas swore an invective and got off of Matt and walked to where Tobias was. He snatched the letter away, opened it, and read the contents, cursing all the while. "Coming with, Matt?" Judas asked, folding the letter back up and heading for some supplies. "Hmm, I don't know..." began Matt, "After all, I'm still recovering from a wound, and I'm all wet for some reason..." "What, didn't your parents potty train you?" jibed Judas, running off. The pillow hit Judas squarely on the back of the head. Judas surveyed the landscape with disbelief. The lands of the Elves was generally a beautiful land, full of lush valleys with eternally blooming flowers. What lay before Judas and Matt, however, could only be described as a wasteland. There was no foliage whatsoever, and the earth had been transmuted from a rich dark soil to a thin red sand. Judas bent down and picked up a handful of the substance, quickly Scanning it for any tampering. The eeriest part was that the transmutation stopped just short of where Judas and Matt stood. Matt just looked at the land and cursed softly. "Where are the Elves?" asked Matt, not seeing any over the entire expanse. "They've been evacuated to a nearby colony," muttered Judas absently. He then dropped the handful back onto the earth and pulled out a small jar. This he filled with more of the sand, and corked it very carefully. Judas then placed the jar back into his cloak and pulled out another which he filled with the rich dark earth. "We need to take this to the Alchemists..." "Why?" asked Matt, "Isn't it obvious what happened here? Another Necromancer stole the vitality of this place!" "No," said Judas shortly, "That would leave signs, signs you or I could detect. There is no hint at all of any traditional Magick that I know of." "But a nontraditional variety?" prompted Matt, reading between the lines. Judas started to answer, but then stopped short. "I honestly can't tell you what it was," he finally said, "But there is a very strong trace of some sort of energy here. I could feel it 3 leagues ago." Matt was silent for a moment, taking this in, then spoke up, "I can feel it too, but not very strongly." "That's because Tapping isn't your Primary," Judas said, still preoccupied. "Anyways, Alchemy is beyond both of us, and that's what I'm guessing this is a result of. The only problem is this great of a change must have taken a very powerful potion." Matt was silent once more, then bent down and picked up a double handful of sand. "Whoever did this better be able to undo it..." was all he said, but the tone was cold, and spoke of a great inner rage. Judas placed a hand upon Matt's shoulder. "We don't have to put it back that way," he comforted, "With the Weather Sorcerers working with the Geomancers, we can have this place back to par in..." "What?! 2 eons?!" Matt interrupted angrily. "And what will we do with the Elves that one called this place home?! Where will they go?! Will you just let them starve?!" Judas' expression hardened, "Well, if you want it back so badly, then why are you delaying our return? The sooner we find the origin of this the sooner we can remedy this!" Matt looked as if he would reply to this, but then took a deep sigh and clenched his fists. "You're right, let's get going." Matt and Judas mounted Draecon and began the flight back home. Back at High Tower Matt and Judas were no closer to an answer than before. The Alchemists were utterly baffled, and could not even offer a hypothesis as to what had caused the devastation. "What we are looking at, my friends, is not of any origin that we know of." That was Professor Sortiledge, the head of the Alchemy Department at High Tower. "Is there any cure at all?" asked Matt, picking up a vial of opaque liquid. "Don't touch that!" he snapped, "No, not that we can discern thus far. If you can give us some time, I believe there is something in the Tomes that concerns this type of happening." "We don't know how much time we have," explained Judas. He quickly outlined the happenings at the home of Draconir and the foreign man with Ardanas. The Professor stared blankly for a moment, then reached over to where a Runecaster lay to the side. "This wouldn't be that instrument, would it?" he asked, holding it up. It was roughly 6" long on one side, and about 4" on the other. There were various triggers and carvings in the object, and it was made of a shiny black substance that seemed almost like Obsidian, though it weighed far too little to be. There was a hole on one end, which seemed to serve no particular purpose. Judas' eyes glinted, "Put that down!" he said harshly, "You're going to hurt someone!" "How?" asked the Professor, looking down the unusual hole. Matt snatched it away, and threw it to the side. "That thing almost killed me, it shoots lightning and fire!" he snarled. "It's just a Runecaster!" exclaimed the Professor incredulously, "You need a Runecaster to activate it!" "No, you don't," corrected Matt curtly, "That man used no Power of his own, he just pressed something on it, and the lightning cracked, and fire hit me in the chest." The Professor continued to stare blankly. "Forget it," swore Judas, "There will be no more instances with this device." He raised his hands and Reached for Fire. He released it with a roar of flame that completely melted the substance. "Examine that!" he scoffed, whirling about and leaving the Laboratory. Matt turned to the Professor, "Please, just do whatever it takes to find out what happened to the Elven lands, and how to fix it." Matt then turned and followed after Judas. Judas sat in his quarters, brooding on a crack in the wall. He hated not being able to do something about the situation. Ever since he had been little things had just fallen from the sky for him. His Powers manifested early, and at the tender age of 6 he had moved to High Tower for his formal training. He learned quickly, impressing the Masters with his genius and patience. By age 13 he went on his Quest and was a full-fledged Keeper of the Peace. He had never wanted for wealth, or security, but now all he knew was crashing down around him. Judas had feelings, feelings he didn't understand. Even at age 12 he had heard the other boys whispering about the goings-on between man and maid, but he himself had never had a conversation on It. As curious as other boys, he had snuck a look at the changing rooms of the girls, but what he had seen there had only confused him. He could not understand what boys were so obsessed about. Then there was Matt.... Judas turned his thoughts from Matt with... was it reluctance? Almost in fear he repudiated the image that Matt's name called to mind. Judas was always quite isolated, and indeed, feared, by the other children for his rank and Power. Back then he would simply dismiss it, rationalizing that the other children were insignificant, and that he didn't need anybody. Now, however, he had a friend, a good friend, and it scared him. He had always equated friendship with weakness, and had indeed seen instances where a particular target was seemingly overlooked, only to have all he held dear be taken away. Now Judas had a friend, a good friend, a friend he would rather die than lose, and it scared him to death, especially since the last person he had let into his life had been Draconir, and Draconir had wound up dead. Judas swore, and tried to force his thoughts back to the task at hand. :This is no time to indulge in self-pity: he scolded himself, as he had often done as of late, :I must focus: He took a deep breath, and reached over for the pills of Wisp Weed, which helped him sleep. He downed the bitter pellets with a gulp of water, and laid back in bed waiting for it to take effect. Matt lay in bed, glaring at the ceiling of his bed, and trying to force himself to fall asleep. He could not believe what was happening, first with Ardanas, then with the Elven lands. Crises such as these had not plagued Faerun since its founding over 3000 years ago. Matt dearly hoped that two such events happening almost simultaneously was not a portent. Matt had had enough of misfortune for any lifetime. Abandoned by his poor parents at age 6, he had been on his own for nearly all of his life. The only memories of his parents he still had left were of their tearful departure, as they left him for what they had thought was the better. He still didn't understand what circumstances could have provoked his own parents to abandon their own son and think it was for the better. As he always did when he brooded, Matt began to tear up. The next year of his life was a blur of stealing food and money and running from the Peacekeepers. Then, at the age of 7, he was captured, which turned out to be the greatest thing to ever happen to him. He was tested, a routine test done for all under the age of 10, and it was then that they discovered that their little fugitive had a mothering strong Power over the Runes and Glyphs. Within a week he was placed in High Tower, where, to everyone's further delight, he had turned out to have an affinity for learning, as well as an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. In 4 years, the shortest Apprenticeship in history, Matt had gone on his quest, and had been captured, and forgotten. The 4 years he had spent in captivity were a haze of torture and forced labor. Every night he prayed to die, and every night the uncaring skies deemed it unwise to answer. When Judas had appeared Matt had wept with happiness, and it was then Matt realized that he... Matt shoved that thought out of his head with revulsion. He didn't understand Judas, that was all he knew, nor did he understand the way he felt about Judas. Matt sighed, and rolled onto his side. Matt had never had a very active lovelife, for from age 10 to 14 he had been so immersed in his studies he never really cared to examine what the "It" was that all the other Apprentices always talked about. He had never even felt a desire to know what "It" was, for he never saw girls as his contemporaries did. :Oh, quit moping,: he told himself sternly, :There are certainly more pressing matters.: Matt heaved a sigh, and reached for his Wisp Weed tablets. He downed them with a grimace and a lot of sweet water. He settled back, and waited for the tablets to take effect. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * "Where am I?" asked Matt, looking around. His room had vanished, to be replaced with chamber that looked oddly familiar, although he just couldn't place it. His vision, however, was obscured by a fog that seemed to fill the room. "Matt?" it was Judas. Matt peered through the gloom to see his friend, and waved his hand when he saw Judas stumbling about in the hazy mist. "Judas? What are you doing here?" asked Matt. "Where is 'here?'" chuckled Judas softly. "Hmmm, I don't know actually," chortled Matt, "Oh, that's right, I must be dreaming!" Judas gave Matt an odd look, "You mean _I'm_ dreaming." "I don't know, honestly," said Matt, scratching his head, "So what are we supposed to do now?" The two looked at each other, then without warning burst into laughter at the same time. Judas doubled over gulping for air and Matt came over to support him. "Wha-what's so fu-funny?" gasped Matt. "You tell me! You laughed first!" wheezed Judas between laughs. There was a flash of not-quite-light, and the two suddenly sobered. Judas abruptly straightened, and Matt took his hand off his shoulder. Judas leaned forward... Matt leaned forward... Their lips touched, and a jolt of electricity ran down both their spines. Judas' hand rose up to land upon Matts cheek, and Matt reciprocated the action. Then the two pulled away quickly, as if they had just touched a glowing ember. Both flushed, and neither spoke for a moment... a _very_ awkward moment. Finally, Judas spoke up, "What just happened?" "I don't know," admitted Matt, "But..." "But what?" prodded Judas. "Aw, what the hell," cursed Matt, "It's just a dream anyways!" Matt grabbed Judas by the face and planted another kiss on the lips. "Mmmmph!!" was all Judas managed. He struggled for a moment, then :Why not?: and returned the kiss as passionately as Matt had given it. The two remained with their lips locked for a moment, then pulled away, this time more slowly, with more than a little reluctance. Then, almost as one, the two looked over to where the bed sat invitingly. They looked back at each other, and as if reading the other's mind, blushed a deep scarlet at the exact same time. Matt recovered first, being the more forward of the two, and took Judas' hand and led him to the bed. The two lay down, side by side, and slowly...... * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * "Damnit! What the hell was that?!" cursed Judas, rising with a jolt. He sat there for a moment, collecting his thoughts. That was when he realized that he was very... *ahem*... excited. He flushed, and looked around frantically. Seeing no one, he relaxed, and slowly laid back. That was when the dream came back to him. He remembered the kiss with Matt, and remembered how they almost did something much more than that. He flushed again, though not with embarassment. He wished he hadn't woken up... :What am I thinking?: But the more he played it over in his head the more he realized that he indeed wanted to do "It" with Matt. This time he flushed with embarassment, and tried to push those disturbing thoughts out of his head. That didn't stop him from holding the pillow a little closer as he went to sleep, though... "Blessed Havens!!" cried Matt as he woke with a startled jump. He sat there for a moment, trying to rearrange his scrambled thoughts. He looked down and saw that indeed his body had produced the desired reaction... Matt flushed and covered himself before he realized that he was alone in his room. He reached over to where he kept a glass of sweet water and downed it in a gulp. Matt ran his hand through his short hair and began to think aloud. "What an odd dream..." but even as he uttered the words he realized how much he enjoyed the dream... He chuckled softly and laid back, hoping for another dream as... pleasant as the first... /<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\ Judas shook the creature again, and bared his teeth in a vulpine sneer. "I want some answers, buddy, and I'm afraid you're the only one here who can help me with them." "The Necronomicon!!" it hissed, "All you need to know is in inside it!" "Not good enough!!" retorted Judas, shaking the creature again, "I think I'd better keep you around.. unless you can think of a reason I shouldn't?" The creature writhed and tried to escape. Judas sighed and tightened his grasp, virtually cutting off all air to the creature. The thing's eyes bugged out and he pointed behind Judas. "You don't really think I'm going to fall for that, do you?" he scoffed. It continued pointing, and Judas finally heaved a sigh, and knocked out the creature with a harsh blow to the head. He then rose slowly, and looked behind him, to see... "Oh shit!!!" Judas dove next to Matt's limp body, seeing the crimson stain on his shirt. Judas ripped off the shirt in his haste, to see... A bloody chest, with no wound... "What the fuck?!" he cursed, shaking Matt slightly, "What are you trying to do?! Scare me to death?!" Matt slowly came to, and blinked at Judas groggily. "Oh, hey, Judas," he murmured, then fell asleep. "Aw hell..." muttered Judas, placing Matt back on the pavement carefully. Judas rose back to his feet, and looked around... The creature was gone... "Aw HELL!!" he cursed, seeing no traces of the thing. Judas heave-hoed and threw Matt onto his couch. Judas had carried Matt all the way back to Judas' home, a whole 1/2 block away... After a little difficulty with the door, Judas finally managed to get all of Matt's much larger mass into his home and tossed him in an unelegant lump onto the comfy couch. Matt <<whuffed!>> but didn't wake up... Judas growled softly, and went to where he had locked away the Necronomicon, figuring that the Book was his only chance at understading what was going on... Judas climbed the stairs, groaning at each step... his leg was sore from his kick, and he was pretty sure that the little feat surprised him more than the creature. He walked stiff-legged to his room, and pulled out the drawer, where the Necronomicon lay, just as he had placed it some months ago. He hauled it out with another groan, and walked slowly back to the living room, where Matt still lay asleep. He opened the book, and flipped past the three.. disturbing pictures, to where the text began. Everything there was written in an archaic language bearing little resemblance to anything Judas was familiar with. He swore, and pounded the Book with his hand. The letters began to glow very softly... Judas looked down again, and saw that the Book had been rewritten, in English, or perhaps his eyes had adapted to understand the language. Judas couldn't quite tell, but honestly couldn't care less at that point. Judas began reading aloud in a whisper... "I am Judas, Guardian of the Rift, protector of the innocent," he stopped there, "Judas?" shrugging a bit, he continued. "The current date is unimportant, as time will not be understood for some millenia," he read on, "The important fact is that nearing the 2nd millenium, on the Christian calendar, the Rift will close, and the two realities will Merge." Judas sat back, stunned. "As the Merge nears, I shall take a form of a young man, in order to circumvent any disaster," now Judas' eyes grew wide, "I will, as does everybody else, co-exist in the two realities. I have arranged for an assistant, by the name of Matthias, to accompany me." Judas looked at Matt, sleeping peacefully on the couch, and blushed slightly for doing so. "The 1st reality, which will be known as 'Earth,' is likely to be very technological, and the second, which shall be known as 'Terra,' will be quite arcane. My plan is to manage the Merge with as little chaos as possible, and to this end I have directed my servant, Marcas, to retrain me in 'Earth.'" Judas' mind raced back to his dreams, with the adrogynous figure... :Marcas?: "The predicament is that as I reincarnate myself in the human body, my Powers will be diminished, and all my training obsolete. I am uncertain what will happen to my memory, but I am not taking any chances, and am recording everything I have learned and experienced here within." Judas flipped the page. "If you are reading this novel, then You are I, and I am You. We are Judas, Gatekeeper, and this is our past..." As Judas flipped through the pages, nothing held any recognition for him. There were tales of battles between demons and gods, stories of love and loss, adventures and crusades. Nothing held any significance to him, and nothing helped with the problem at hand. Finally, completely fed up with the Book, he tossed it aside... --the book floated there, unmoving... As Judas stared at it in startlement, the Book slowly opened, and flipped to a seemingly random page within. The Book then slowly lowered itself back onto Judas' lap, and Judas began to read the page presented him. "The Merge..." he read aloud. "The Merge shall be heralded by the lessening of the Rift, which will cause very visible effects. The first to watch for is the 'shared body' effect, where actions done to a body in one reality shall affect the respective body in the other reality. The second will be a 'changeover,' where one consciousness will shift into the other reality. The third shall be a 'crossover,' where the bodies of one individual shall shift planes, as well as the consciousness." Judas' mind flicked back to the creature he had tackled, and to the man they had met outside the theater. "The fourth and final herald shall be the transmutation of great expanses of land, as the two realities seek to find a neutral plane to Merge upon. After this herald, prepare for the Merge, for it will be at hand." Judas shook his head. Then with a startled yelp, he felt a hand fall upon his shoulder. Judas whirled about, the Book discarded, and crouched, ready to fight or flee. "Judas? What are you doing?" it was Matt. Judas heaved a sigh of relief, and fell back on the chair he had leapt out of. "Matt, I think I know what's going on..." he began. "I don't believe it!!" Matt began to pace. "I don't know what to say..." pleaded Judas, "But really, what other explanation can there be?!" "I won't believe it!!" hissed Matt, red with effort to contain... anger? terror? Judas couldn't tell. "Don't you see? The man at the theater, he had a changeover, and that creature that attacked us crossed!" "So what, the realities will Merge?!" _now_ Judas could tell that Matt was frightened. "I don't know--" --there was a moment of disorientation... Judas clutched his head, and felt his nausea rising. His vision grew gray... "Judas!! Judas!!!" Matt was shaking Judas by the shoulders. Judas blinked, and life seemed to come back into his eyes. Matt wrapped his arms around Judas, and clung to him tightly. "Wha..?" managed Judas. "You were out for like an hour, you idiot!" sobbed Matt, "I thought something had happened to you!" "I-" Judas shook his head, "What happened?" "Why don't you tell me?" snapped Matt, his head still buried in Judas' shoulder. "I don't know!" admitted Judas, "One second I'm trying not to barf, and the next you're shaking me around!" "I don't--" The Necronomicon rose up, and flew to Judas' arms. Judas caught the Book, and it began to flip again, back to the page on Merging. "The fourth and final herald shall be the transmutation of great expanses of land, as the two realities seek to find a neutral plane to Merge upon. After this herald, prepare for the Merge, for it will be at hand." the line glowed softly. Judas looked at it, not understanding. "It must have happened!" exclaimed Matt, with sudden understanding. "The Book is trying to tell us that somewhere, a transmutation occured!" "Is that what blacked me out?" "I'd bet money on it," Matt said with grim satisfaction, "Now what are we supposed to do about it?" Judas placed his finger on the page, "After this herald, prepare for the Merge, for it will be at hand." he read. "But we don't even know how to prepare for the Merge!!" The two of them froze, for they both heard a sound-- --where no sound should be... /<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\/<>\ Thus ends Chapter 5.. uhhh... section 4.. whoops! Forgot to fix it! Oh well Well, check it out, starting to have "IT!!" in the story (don't even ask what "IT!!" is, or I'll hunt you down, J/K =P ) If you've ever read this story before, you can go (and don't forget the rules!) On the other hand, if you haven't read this story before, you should go read the other parts! LOL If you absolutely hated the story, please write and tell me what I'm doing wrong, I promise I won't be offended, after all, this is only my first attempt at writing (plausible excuse, woohoo!) so I know I've got a lot of learning to do! =) If you L-O-V-E-D it, then I L-O-V-E you!! LOL well, if you did like it, feel free (but not obligated) to write to me and lemme know. If you're sorta lukewarm about it, please write and lemme know how to get you to L-O-V-E it ;-) If you have any questions, go ahead and write me, I love talking to people via e-mail, and I always have time for questions =) I'm outy, Matt (No, not from the story, I'm Matt IRL, Judas in the story)