A cacophony of noise echoes throughout the darkness as the mannequins dance around the dilapidated ground. Some twirl and whirl while others bend and creak. It was as if they longed to express themselves in some way, shape or form. Though, as an outsider looking in, I could only describe it as fanatic and unnerving. Atop it all, the Peddler’s chant fills the air,


    For the world that forgot, for the world that remembered. Split between existences, I shall gather the unknown and known once more. Opening the void between the stars, I shall drag down Concept itself into the material world.


    A distorted, guttural laughter escapes him as the flailing limbs clatter around aimlessly. Unsure what to do, I approach the Peddler and ask,


    “What’s even happening here?”


    A tint sparkles from his soulless, hollow eyes as he sits down on the sand.


    “So, willing to talk now? If you must know, then please take a seat.”


    He pats the loose sand. Shrugging, I sit down and glare at him.


    “Hmm, where to start…”


    Gazing at the ceiling, he taps the sand childishly and hums a nonsensical tune. Somehow, like a sewing needle, his hums thread into the chaotic melody surrounding us.


    “Do you get it now?”


    He asks me as if noticing this odd enlightenment I received.


    “Through chaos, we attract the unknown. Through magic, we make the unknown known. In Between that line, is the order of the world. Where the deities live! At least in theory…”


    I mope a bit and feel my stomach rumble. Silently listening to his ramblings, I stare off at the still grains of sand.


    “But–”


    “No buts, just listen.”


    I flinch, kick some sand aside and curl my knees close. Noises fill the air like quivering threads. One sound weaves together with another, then another and another. All together, they Congeal and intertwine, morphing into a harmonic sea of senseless noise.


    “Aren’t you curious as to what might happen?”


    He asks as he gets up from the ground and heads over to the ball of light. Its bulbous form rests like an egg atop a nest. Tha-dump… Tha-dump… a soft beating rhythm echoes above the chaos, pulsating like a beating heart. The choir of noises starts to mellow out as each heartbeat reverbs throughout the darkness. Once more, the Peddler starts chanting non coherent nonsense. Slowly, the egg elevates from the nest, stretching towards the sky. Like a lighthouse on the coast, it pillars towards the ceiling. Lights blink in and out, darting between the barrier of the abyss.


    Gather around, dearest stars!


    The peddler’s words echo into the darkness as the stars bend around the egg. Like a spindling cocoon, thin lines wrap around the orb as it floats upward. The abyss starts to cower as a brilliant radiance illuminates the settlement once more. Suddenly, shadowy, inky tendrils extend outward, wrapping around the light.


    “Oh, how absolutely fascinating!”


    An unnerving laughter escapes the peddler’s lips as tendrils drag the ball into the elongation of mannequins. Tha-dump… A pulse shakes up the tower as limbs rain from above. Tha-dump… another pulse echoes throughout the darkness as rubble falls from the ceiling. Tha-dump! A cacophony of noises follow as inky tendrils stitch together the many limbs around. Grotesque wings extend into the surrounding abyss as a deafening shriek fills the air.


    Suddenly the rubble around us starts to float as its voice raises another shrilling pitch. I glance over to the Peddler staring in awe at his creation.


    “I can’t believe it worked! the God of Distortion is finally brought down!”


    With his arms high, he lets out a guttural laugh as the ground beneath us fractures apart. Steadying myself, I blink twice as another world flashes before my eyes.


    “Where am I…?”


    My voice echoes outward as my vision splits into two. Stumbling on my feet, I glance around as one presence towers into the sky. The God of Distortion flaps its grotesque wings, splitting the timelines once more. As fictions flash through my eyes, my hands grasp at the quivering threads floating around. Suddenly, the world around me deteriorates as I fall onto some grass.


    I look up at the towering being of chaos and take a deep breath. The scent of ash and brimstone rushes down my throat as golden flames scorch into my eye.


    “Ahhh!”


    A shriek escapes through my lips as snaking, sulphuric flames wrap around my arms, scorching away my flesh. At the sight of this, I flinch as that reality escapes from my eyes. Collapsing on the ground, I drop my sword as a phantom pain runs throughout my arms.


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    “What the hell was that?”


    I spit out the smoke in my lungs and look around with hazy eyes. A glint catches my attention as I lock on to the sword on the ground,


    “Wait, I don’t use a sword!?”


    At this realization, a sickening sense of deja vu twists at my stomach. Cowering, I feel the earth rising beneath my feet.


    “I’m back?”


    I try to stand up on the dilapidated ground with wobbly legs. A splitting migraine shakes up my head as I glance over to the Peddler. Immense disappointment fills his face as his grin flips upside down.


    “You’re telling me that across all the nearest timelines, I’m still just an offshoot!?”


    I look at him as he searches around his bag. The backdrop around him constantly distorts as he pulls out a small music box. Winding it, a melancholic tune fills the air, undistorted and pure.


    “Hmm…”


    He ponders as I prop myself up with my quarterstaff. Closing my eyes, I listen to the unique melody of shifting worlds. Sometimes, a scorching wind rubs against my face. Other times, a frigid wind howls, carrying icy shards that cut and scratch at my skin.


    Wind…


    With a deep inhale, I feel my selves sink into the abyssal sea. As the migraines fade away, I listen to my soft heartbeat as forces swirl around me. Raising my quivering palm into the shifting realities, a familiar cane knob appears in my hand, forming into existence.


    Envelop me, o’fleeting wind.


    Harrow the forgotten land


    scatter its unending dust.


    The words appear behind my eyes, rippling the abyssal sea. The chaotic cacophony of noises dull, almost vanishing away as my heartbeat begins to slow.


    Svza if spml,


    bujlhzlk if aptl pazlsm.


    H ipyao vm aol luk.


    Jumbled text flows around me as a stabbing migraine digs its way into my skull. With a deep breath, my perspective of the world starts to slow down once more. With hazy eyes, I bear the nonsensical distortions melting my mind as we all grasp at the cane.


    Gather the lzjhwpun light


    Weave the bulukpun darkness


    Into spindles of yltltiyhujl


    The boundary of reality deteriorates into nonsensical symbols gathering around me. Gazing at this nonsense, a sickening feeling of Nausea twists my mind as the world starts to flicker in and out. The fine line between consciousness and unconsciousness… These words bounce around my head as the desolate land inside my mind slowly unfolds beneath my feet.


    Mvynla, remember


    Huk forget vujl tvyl.


    Aol line vm wlyzwljapcl,


    ilfvuk aol endless hifzz.


    Iba dpaopu reach,


    vm aol ispurpun olhya.


    Blood trickles down my nose as I forget the weight of my body. Floating around, the lines that make up the world gather into my palm. Colorless petals form into existence as a field of glass flowers sprout below my feet. Timelines refract off the flowers as I float off the ground.


    The God of Distortion shrieks in response as its wings change into indescribable constructs. Two limbs extend and hold in front of the glowing orb. Everything starts to distort as a ball of energy forms between its palms. Taking in a deep breath, the lines start to weave themselves together as I exhale and push forward.


    Our attacks collide, destroying and recreating the surrounding environment. Lightning shoots off the collision which promptly streaks the ground to glass. Peering at the chaotic energy, I catch a glimpse of infinity. my eyes dribble out blood which boils and freezes away.


    “Haaah!”


    Closing my eyes, I cry out loud and stomp forward. Chaotic nonsensical sounds crackle and pop. Possibilities start to narrow as the God of Distortion starts to crumble. With one last shriek, its voice calls into the unknown. As the energy collides against its mass, its form shatters like a broken mirror.


    Clank! The grinding halt of the music box clicks in my ear as I fall into the darkness below. Thoughts race in my mind, meshing together into a feeling of hollowness in my chest.


    “...So this is how it ends?...”


    The thought of death bounces around my head as I try to listen to my heart. Where did it go? Fear, panic, confusion, anger, dejection… How many words do you need to realize something is wrong?


    I blink twice as I lay on some kind of ground. I attempt to get up, but my arms would not budge. Locked in my shell, I stare off into the darkness. Once more, time slips from my hands with each passing breath. Was this breath mine? What even am I? Question after question entertains me as I hear a noise in the distance


    Tap… Tap… Tap…


    A glowing moon shines in the surrounding darkness as two stars blink into life. The cold sand beneath my hands starts to melt.


    “You are quite the troublesome lad”


    A scratchy, but familiar voice latches onto my eardrums. Was it the old man? With a clank, followed by a whir, I feel threads spindle together. A sigh escapes the being’s lips as A thump pounds against my chest.


    Tha-dump… Tha-dump…


    Gasp! My eyelids shoot open to a distorted melody in the air. Soft and mellow, yet unnervingly distinct to the low mechanical hum in the air. Getting up, my eyes catch a campfire nearby. Cautiously stepping over the shaded rubble, I limp over to the light. A lonesome figure sits next by the flames, knees tucked close as if lost in thought. Beside the figure, a distorted music box sings its song, as if calling into the darkness. Taking a seat nearby, a comfortable warmth flushes my cold limbs alive.


    “Ah…”


    Defeat and exhaustion lingers in his voice as he winds up the music box once more. Click, click, pop! It cries, yielding against the tension. Letting go of the key, the music starts to play once more. Its haunting melody wheezes out, floating atop the crackles and pops of the campfire. Glass flowers glint off the campfire light which refracted a timeless void. As the gears wind to a shrilling halt, I close my eyes and listen to my heartbeat.


    Tha-dump… Tha-dump…


    …


    is this heartbeat mine?