《The Anomaly》


 Chapter 1: The Creation Of Time

    AUTHOR''S NOTE


    Hello everyone. This is a concept I''ve been playing around with for awhile. I hope you enjoy it.


    Though, this is my second fiction here and will be updated less frequently and haphazardly as I will be focused upon my primary fiction, Renewal Eternal.</a>


    <hr />


    In all probability, something should have happened in all of existence. But, improbably nothing did. Nature, the supreme force in all of existence, roamed the many barren pathways of existence prodding and poking as it attempted to begin what had been decreed so very long ago.


    For millennia upon millennia, it continued its task without any quantifiable progress. It searched farther and farther upon the pathways of existence until it came to the very end. Despondent, it gave up hope. Every pathway was barren. With its task failed, it turned to hibernation, waiting with little hope for the day when one of the pathways lit with life.


    That day did not come for a long time.


    A small fire burst alight in a neglected branch of existence long since abandoned by all who had come before. The fire spread, coursing through the avenues and pathways opened to it by nature long ago. Like a beacon, nature turned its many heads towards the long forgotten pathway and thrust itself into the pathway, stoking the fire until it became a roaring flame.


    The pathway spread, overflowing with life force, as it left the pathway of existence. Entering the void, the life-force of the pathway dimmed even as nature stoked it with every fiber of its being.


    It pushed and pushed. The life-force slowly spread until it could spread no farther. Exhausted, nature let go of the pathway as it, once again, began to hibernate, waiting for the day when the pathway would stabilize into a plane of existence.


    Time passed. Unknown millenia. Perhaps millions. Maybe even trillions before something happened.


    Like the flickering flame of a lighter, a plane of existence began to coalesce into existence. As it was new, all that greeted this new plane was emptiness. However, in the deep pockets of the plane, matter began to congeal together as nature dictated.


    To the plane¡¯s timeframe, this occurrence took mere moments; but, if time was viewed linearly, it took well over one-million years for this simple occurrence. At first, these balls of matter streaked through the empty plane unhindered by any obstacles. Though, as time passed, some of these balls of matter, although infrequently, struck each other resulting in the creation of universes, galaxies, stars, planets, and one single being.


    In a space between two universes¡­


    BOOOM!


    Two huge balls of molten rock passed each other in the dark expanse of the plane. Stars were far distant beings only seen as dim pinpricks of light. Crunch! A scraping of metallic rock could be heard¡­well, it would have been heard, if there was any sound in space. But, as silence remains supreme, all that could be seen by any observer who watched this magical event, would have been two gigantic rocks scrape against each other, rubbing their sides against each other with monstrous force.


    Cliff-like walls fell away from the balls of molten rock as they passed each other in the emptiness of the plane. While matter, free-floating in the void, usually disperses as it is pulled by gravity, this matter did nothing of the sort. It acted against nature and, in doing so, created something even the infinite probability of the universe could not account for.


    ~


    I awoke in the same way a cat opens its eyes after taking a long nap. Slowly, unsure of my surroundings, and all too resistant of the eventual outcome. At this point, I was nothing more than spatial dust; however, my awareness stretched beyond my limited physical capabilities.


    Like a sponge squeezing up water, I sucked in all the matter around me. I knew how I came to be; not the exact occurrences, mind you. But, I had some vague idea. For, you see, time bent an angle for me. While not completely flexible like it was for the plane I was born into, I had some idea what happened before and what would come.


    Therefore, I knew I was, well, there was no other word for it, an accident. Nature did not intend for me to occur, but, I did anyway. Time passed. Thousands upon thousands of years within that desolate corner of the plane as I pulled matter towards me.


    Due to my nature as an anomaly within this whole plane, I was neither restricted by its laws nor given the benefits granted to its material and immaterial inhabitants. Life and death-these were concepts I understood not at all; through my awareness, I could sense flickers of both in the vast universes; but, to me, they were as if one accidently turned the lights on for a split-second before quickly turning them off. The life and death of planets and stars; I understood somewhat more of. Their lives were like a burning coal. They burned brightly for quite some time until they either flickered and died or turned into something unusual¡­


    Something like me in fact.


    Something that sucked in all matter around them just as I did; I sent out my presence to these beings that were so much like me; however, I realized quickly that these creatures lacked a conscious.


    Unlike myself who gathered matter to form a physical presence, these creatures gathered mattered for no discernable purpose I could see. They would be interesting to study to find out their purpose; but, they were numerous. I peeked into the future and saw the end result of one of these creatures and immediately lost interest.


    They don¡¯t do anything except eat matter. There was no purpose, no higher calling. They just ate and ate for eternity. When they grew large enough, they would begin to destroy stars, then planets, then complete galaxies, before they moved onto universes. This would continue until there was nothing left in this plane except me.


    While my body was made of matter, my consciousness, however, was pure energy. It would last past the sands of time even passed when all the universes disappeared and, once again, the plane was empty. Well, except for me.


    Disappointed, I turned away from the creatures and ignored their presence.


    As time passed, I gathered in more matter until I had a stable, organic body. This was a harder process that one might think. I was between two universes with a limited supply of matter at hand. If I transported, an easy feat for me, I would have lost significant amounts of the matter I already gathered making it that much longer of a process. Neither could I have transported at the beginning of my existence, I foresaw that if I did so, I would have spun into an infinite transportation loop as I lacked the matter to fully stabilize myself within an area that was a part of nature¡¯s laws. While I was not a part of nature, I could still be affected by it.


    My current location, within the void between universes, was apt for my physical growth in that respect. Nature only had a light touch on this area. But, as I continued to grow and stabilize my physical form, this grew to be less and less of a benefit.


    Oddly, I began to long to leave my haven within the two universes. More and more, I began to watch the progress of life within the universes. I saw what they saw, I felt what they felt, and I wanted what they wanted. No longer did I feel closer to the planets and stars.


    They were cold beings; lifeless and remote. These flickering candles within the universes were the true marvel of the plane. I, an anomaly, thought they were more marvelous than I. For the nanosecond they lived, they burned brighter than the stars.


    When my physical body finally became complete, I transported to a galaxy where one of the planets had life on it. Four planets in total surrounded twin stars in this piece of space rather close to the center of this particular universe.


    I had to shrink my body to fit within this particular galaxy. It was too large to fit not only on the planet, the most distant from the stars, but the galaxy itself. As I transported, I shrunk my body to that of a humanoid. They appeared to be a common form of intelligent life within the universes. While they were not the only one, they were the most prevalent and, in my own semi-prescient understanding, those best at flourishing within the plane.


    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    This particular planet was a small, red and blue orb, affected by its proximity to two large stars and a high density ozone layer protecting it from the same proximity. I looked at the planet for a time; I¡¯m not exactly sure how much time but time enough for a few circuits of the planets around the stars to occur.


    Instantly, I transported to the planet¡¯s surface, intending to watch the sentient beings on this planet closely. They intrigued me in a way I had not felt before. Not even when I was confronted with the black holes that would, one day, consume everything within the plane.


    Landing feet first on the dusty surface, I walked to the nearest village as I changed myself to look more like the sentient life-forms that lived here. The village was rather progressive for this part of the plane. This was one of the newer universes and so its sentient beings were, by far, less advanced than their brethren.


    Wooden palisades lined the gravel roadside as humanoids in tan-leather manned them, bored¡­was that the expression I had seen from afar? Curious to see it closely now. It is much more defined than I thought. Boredom was not just an emotion but an expressive¡­


    what was it¡­distaste. Yes, that was it. A distaste for their current state of the being.


    These humanoids were currently dissatisfied with their state. Interested, I walked up to them. Language was no barrier as I had been watching for many of their years and knew their language probably better than they did themselves.


    ¡°Hello.¡± I said, a smile forming on my lips reflexively. I had seen it often enough. It was considered polite in most of the universes.


    ¡°Eh.¡± One of the humanoids said as he looked down from his post. ¡°Whadya want?¡±


    I blinked in surprise. ¡°I wanted to talk. Why else would I walk up to you?¡±


    The humanoid tilted his head at me as if he found me odd. ¡°Hey Jacomb.¡± The humanoid called to his brethren on the palisade. The other humanoid walked over lazily, holding his sword to his side as if it was more a walking stick than an instrument of war.


    ¡°Look at this one. What d¡¯ya make of him?¡±


    Jacomb turned to look at me. His bored expression never changed as he looked me up and down.


    As he turned back to the humanoid on the wall, his expression turned irritated. ¡°What do you want me to see Arl? He¡¯s just a normal bloke.  A little tall. Doesn¡¯t look to have a bandit¡¯s look about him.¡±


    Arl somewhat chagrined by Jacomb¡¯s response, turned red and shrugged, attempting to be nonchalant. I stood there, looking up at these two humanoids. I had been right to come here. They were, by far, more interesting than the intricacies of space. Just in this conversation, there had been so much occurring that I feel I can analyze it forever.


    The guards beckoned me through as they returned to their posts-boredom, once again, dominating their faces.


    As I entered the village, I was greeted by a sight that was both amusing and absurd. A small market, lined by a cobbled path and a variety of erected wooden buildings, bustled with the morning crowds who passed below a tall, marble platform where a humanoid male stood, his chest bare to the world, whipping himself bloody.


    He was ignored whole-heartedly by the crowds below even as he shouted above the din. ¡°Repent! Repent, I tell you! Repent for your sins!¡±


    I walked up to him. This was new. I had seen self-mutilation before; it was a common occurrence in the universes. Nature, after all, gave some consequences to the sentient. But self-mutilation for the benefit of other beings, that was new.


    ¡°Tell me,¡± I sad looking up at the humanoid. ¡°Why do you whip yourself?¡± The humanoid looked down at me, a condescending look on his old and gnarled face. ¡°To make you see the errors of your ways.¡±


    ¡°What have I done in error?¡± I asked as I tilted my head, mimicking Arl¡¯s expression from earlier. The humanoid snorted derisively. ¡°As if you don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°But I don¡¯t.¡± I said pleasantly. I could have just warped time to figure out what he was alluding to; however, it seemed imprudent to disassociate myself from the narrative as I listened to this humanoid. The experience would be lost in exchange for the information gained. I wanted both. Without the experience, the information would be nothing to me.


    The man sighed, his bruised and battered body, tensing as he squatted on the marble platform. ¡°You are a part of the problem and you don¡¯t even know it?¡±


    ¡°What problem?¡± I said calmly. He was clearly irritated with me but he answered all the same. ¡°You practice idolatry-something forbidden by the scriptures.¡±


    ¡°And why is that forbidden?¡± I ask. While I had studied these beings, I never paid much attention to their religion. It never really seemed all that important as there was little information to be gleamed from ideas I knew to be based in falsehoods.


    The humanoid blanched. His face went stark white as he moved his head closer to me and hissed, ¡°Are you insane? He might hear!¡±


    I drew my eyebrows together, confused. ¡°Who is He?¡± ¡°He is Gantuk, the Supreme Lord of Creation! He who rules all! Surely, you must have heard of him¡­unless you worship his sister.¡±


    I could only chuckle at that outburst. Gods, he was speaking of Gods. They might exist. I had never actually searched for one as they were just individuals in trillions of sentient beings. Even here, on this planet, I had not looked carefully for one. After all, they weren¡¯t my interest. I only cared about those who experienced the process of life and death. Not some aloof semi-immortal beings who kept themselves apart from the rest of the planetary beings.


    Let me make this clear. If Gods existed, and it was entirely plausible they did, comparatively to mortal sentient beings, they were like stars. They burned brightly for a time but as everything else, except me, they were a part of nature. In time, they would die.


    ¡°I worship neither.¡± I said shrugging. The humanoid¡¯s face, which I thought was as pale as it could get, became almost transparent with apoplexy. ¡°They will smite you down for your insolence!¡± He spit at me. ¡°All must serve them as they have created us they command our very beings! Your sins have tarnished your soul! Your insolence has made your death final!¡±


    I was becoming annoyed by all these threats, pointless as they were. The humanoid raised his hands into the air and a cloud, darkly condensed with rain, formed quickly, more quickly than nature allowed, overhead. I looked up, interested. I hadn¡¯t seen anything like this on this planet yet. In other universes, magic existed; but it was rather non-existent in this one. ¡°My lord, I beg of you, show your wrath to this man who refuses to serve you!¡±


    The humanoid threw down his hands and a lightning bolt surged down from the sky striking me directly on the forehead before traveling straight down my body and dissipating onto the ground. I only felt a slight tingle at the charged energy. After all, I was made from spacial matter, most, much tougher than one could find on a planetary surface.


    I was becoming annoyed. I had sensed a presence on the other side of the lightning-bolt as it released from the sky. There was someone on the other-side who had purposefully sent that lightning-bolt at me. It had been rather rude of him to smite someone just because they weren¡¯t believers in him or his sister. Perhaps, it was time for me to visit a God.


    Searching for the presence, I transported, catching a last glimpse of the surprised humanoid¡¯s face.

 Chapter 2: A God On A HIll

    AUTHOR''S NOTE


    Literally, I thought I would not have this chapter out for a few weeks. But, it happened.


    Btw, this story might get zonky soon.


    As before  I will work more on my other fic Renewal Eternal</a>


    <hr />


    I opened my eyes the second the transport had completed, feeling slightly queasy. I don¡¯t know why but transportation always jumbled my insides. There were a few theories that I found probable. It could be due to the turbulence of converting my mind, which is pure energy, to a state of matter; this might cause some uncomfortability when I complete the transportation.


    Another, perhaps more plausible theory, is that my use of transportation is directly against nature¡¯s laws thus, as nature tries to reject the transportation process, I become uncomfortable due to nature willfully opposing my action.


    But, that was neither here nor there. As of this moment, I was in a new and interesting situation; therefore, my attention was directed solely on the present. Blinking my eyes once, I took in my surroundings.


    I stood on a small hill, the grass shorn short. Apple and orange trees rose from the ground in a pre-arranged fashion as they directly outlined the wide, marble path leading up to a marble building with wide steps and yawning openings. The building, held up by wide columns, stood alone on the hill like it was a God itself; judging, analyzing, cold and distant as it was.


    Instantly, I felt the building was one of the more abhorrent pieces of nature. It was the reason I turned from the planets and stars. It had no feeling. No understanding. No mortal being would have built a structure like this. This spoke too much of disdain for the many for the sake of one. A structure like this would have only been built by one who spent too much of his time remaining remote and superior to all others in his vicinity. I had seen kings and emperors with such a demeanor but they had been held in check by their counterparts; Gods, I could see, felt they had no counterparts and thus, flexed their power mercilessly.


    As I walked up the marble path towards the goliath of a building in-front of me, a small wind caressed my body and the twin suns beat down on my back. But, silence remained. The birds did not sing. The crickets did not chirp. The wind did not sigh.


    All remained silent, too fearful of the being or beings within the marble construct.


    Ducking under an arch, I entered the building and was met by darkness. The constructs of mortals were lacking here.


    There were a few bits of furniture but it seemed as if the lush couches and elaborate paintings were more for the austerity of building rather than the pleasure of the beings who inhabited it.


    Stretching out my awareness, I found a presence in a room at the end of the awning foyer. My footsteps echoing in the hall, I walked slowly, announcing my presence, as I headed towards the room. The presence moved quickly. Not as quickly as I could-not nearly so.


    However, I was not here to fight the God. Merely, I wished to explain some things to him. If he did not listen, he would just have to live with the consequences.


    Even before I moved a dozen steps, the God stood in foyer, his face a mixture of incredulity and anger. He was a humanoid. While modeled on the people who served him, he was several feet taller, more refined in the limbs and face, and a golden hue shone from his skin as if molten gold flowed through his body.


    ¡°Who are you? Did my sister send you?¡± The God asked coldly. He had recovered from his surprise and stood, arms crossed, in front of the back room in flowing white robes.


    This reaction was not unexpected. At the moment, I looked no differently that one of his subjects. Tan skin, black hair shorn short, muddy brown eyes.


    In fact, my appearance was so bland, so common among the humanoids, that it was unlikely the God even remembered that he smote me recently.


    Although, I wasn¡¯t too sure how that worked. The priest might have just had a link to the God¡¯s power which allowed him to use it; therefore, the God could have been unawares. Or, the God could have directed the lighting himself at the humanoid male¡¯s word towards me.


    But, in either case, the God, most likely, had not directed his full attention towards the situation; much like one would while batting a fly out of your face.


    ¡°Your sister? No she did not send me.¡± I said as I found a rather plump purple couch as sat in it. I had never actually sat before. In the void between universes, there was no seat, no bed, no comfort; just the coldness and dark one would find where there was nothing.


    It was odd. That was all I could say. As I sat, I sank into the plush cotton, relieving a tension I didn¡¯t even know I had in my backside. ¡®This is rather nice¡¯. I murmured as I gripped the armrests, trying to maximize my comfort.


    ¡°Then who sent you? You are an emissary, are you not?¡± The God said, a low growl in his voice. He had, I saw, noticed my surprise as I sat in his chair and he was beginning to adopt the same peculiar expression that I was becoming used to as I interacted with other sentient beings.


    ¡°Of a sort.¡± I said, feigning disinterest as I looked around the room. This was a great time to observe a God¡¯s mentality. What would he be like? From this current confrontation, I could tell, it was not pleasant. But, there was room for experimentation. How would one who knew none were superior to him react when he finally met someone who was? Expanding upon that, how would I? Were there any superior to me?


    As I pondered this conundrum, even bending time to see my future, the God, Gantuk, said in a more reserved tone. ¡°Then who sent you? One of the Emperors? I know his emissary¡¯s well. It must be one of the lesser Kings.¡±


    He left the last statement hand in the air like a question. The God was starting to hesitate in his brashness as he studied me further. He saw no fear, no love, and no hate in my eyes as I looked back. All he saw was curiosity and, I felt, this unnerved him.


    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    ¡°No, no King or Emperor sent me.¡± I said.


    The God¡¯s face, once again, flashed with fury, but then he hesitated. ¡°Did you come by yourself? This place is blinded from mortals eyes unless marked by me or one of my priests.¡±


    I sat up in the chair reluctantly. It made a protesting groan as I moved, as if, it too were saddened that I would soon have to leave its comforting embrace.


    ¡°No priest gave me your mark. I think you would have seen such a mark as soon as I entered your territory.¡±


    ¡°You are a God?¡± Gantuk asked hoarsely as his face became more luminescent. ¡°How?¡± He took an unconscious step back, his face contorting with fear.


    ¡°The Aspects did not dictate another God on this planet other than my sister or I.¡±


    ¡®The Aspects¡¯? I thought confused. Then it came to me. He was speaking of the various aspects of nature. Nature, in many of the universes, had physical forms that encapsulated minuscule amounts of its true embodied form. In this way, nature could more effectively govern the plane.


    As I had not been intend by nor was I apart of nature, the ¡®Aspects¡¯ as the God called them and I rarely interacted. I had never strayed from my void until now and the ¡®Aspects¡¯ had always remained in the deep corners of universes, planning, developing, and growing the plane.


    It hit me then that I had been rather foolish not to inspect Gods in the past. Individuals, they may be. But they were important individuals in the order of things. As I bent time, I saw the truth of things. Gods were not just part of the flimsy religions of mortal sentient beings. They were the governors of planets for nature who did not have the ability to overlook every planet in existence. In shock, as I looked back on the creation of the Gods, I saw that the ¡®Aspects¡¯ of nature created Gods based upon my development.


    Gods were not apart nor were they separate from nature. If the natural order had occurred as planned, Gods would never have existed. This plane did not allow for semi-immortal or even immortal beings. I¡¯m not exactly sure how nature did it as I only saw glimpses and flashes of what occurred, but Gods were formed with the combination of a soul and spacial matter.


    ¡°Aspects.¡± I said as I looked back at the God. ¡°No, they have not ordained that I come here. We mostly avoid each other. Bad memories. You understand. Right?¡±


    Gantuk blanched. ¡°Who are you?¡± The question came out in a whisper as the God¡¯s strong voice, affected by his emotion, constricted in his throat.


    ¡°Just a being who likes to travel. And you,¡± I said, narrowing my eyes, ¡°have annoyed me.¡±


    ¡°How have I done that?¡± Gantuk said flabbergasted.


    ¡°Do you not remember the lighting?¡± I said as I pointed a single finger up towards the sky.


    Gantuk looked up into the sky and paled as a dark cloud, ten times the size he sent at me, clouded over the deep blue. ¡°I did not know you were on my insignificant planet, my lord!¡± Gantuk said as his knees thumped to the ground as he saw this his power could not hope to match my own.


    He seemed to finally have realized that I was the being he had sent the lightning-bolt at. Although, there had been more than a little prodding on my part.


    I could not help but think this God was rather thick.


    ¡°If I did,¡± Gantuk continued, ¡°I surely would not have deigned to strike the lords person with my touch.¡±


    ¡°That is not what I am concerned with Gantuk.¡± I said softly.


    ¡°What is then, my lord?¡± Gantuk said as he lowered his head, awaiting his fate.


    ¡°It is your misuse of power. Here, you were absolute, only held in check by your sister. Who, I would say, was more your ally than anything else.¡±


    I walked slowly forward as the dark cloud above rumbled with my anger.


    ¡°These beings you so callously abuse are more special that you could ever know. If you knew them, you would know this palace you have constructed for your solitude, seemingly above the maelstrom below, is nothing to them except a place of fear. You neither govern nor rule; you are worse than the corrupt or the cowardly. You are the indifferent.¡±


    I said this coldly without a hint of remorse as  I continued to advance upon the cowering wreck of a God.


    ¡°Please, spare me!¡± Gantuk shouted. ¡°The ¡®Aspects¡¯, for so long, have ignored my solar system and I had free reign to do as I pleased. I disrupted what was to be. I repent! Please, forgive me my lord, friend of the ¡®Aspects¡¯!¡±


    I smiled. It was a bizarre expression. Not one any mortal with a mortal¡¯s lifespan could make. It spoke of millennia¡¯s of experience and understanding.


    ¡°I am no friend to the ¡®Aspects¡¯ but I think I will do them this favor.¡± I said as I flicked my fingers downward. A lightning-bolt arched down from the cloud above and smashed into the open-aired foyer, striking the God and blasting the room in a pearly, white light.


    For a long minute, the room was bathed in the light. Slowly, the light faded and in its place, a rabbit sat, huddled on its four legs. I felt a sudden wave of nausea and keeled over, retching onto the marble floor below. For quite some time, I knelt, catching my breath.


    This had never happened before but I immediately understood the reason. I had modified something of nature. Unlike Gantuk¡¯s lighting which killed, my lighting altered a creation of nature. I had never gone so directly against an act of nature before. It hurt. It really, really hurt.


    As I stood, I wiped the sick from my mouth and picked up the rabbit that was Gantuk. The ¡®Aspect¡¯ of this Universe, I thought, would very much like to speak to this God who had ignored his duties. But, that was not my purpose. It might be what I say to the ¡®Aspect¡¯ when I greet him but, in truth, I just thought it would be interesting.


    Closing my eyes, I once again, transported; however, this time, I carried the Rabbit God, Gantuk.