Over And Around was completed in a week after my birthday during a frozen winter week home from school. The atmosphere really helped this one.

i. Descent

A new era of madness unfolds.

ii. Sneeze

In a single night, the man known as Nightmare was seized by the Terror. However, Tereban made the executive decision to not send Nightmare to the Windy Summit, since the Windy Summit only wanted Nightmare in order to explore different dimensions. To Tereban however, the purpose of being able explore different worlds was trivial. Clearly, his purpose was much more than that. Nightmare was Tereban’s ticket to freedom. Emeroch just stood and gawked at mass of Tereban’s soldiers. The soldiers themselves were not mortal men, but enslaved spirits with the appearance of men, meant to follow the command of the one that possessed the Ivory Music Box. They were a total of 53 different spirits, supposedly brought from the second dimension that ever existed, a counterpart to the dimension of Cuja. This was the dimension of Graghgorra, a strange name to be sure, but it was what the Greater Powers referred to it as. Yes, the Windy Summit would have no clue as to how to use this man. As Tereban and his minions celebrated, a strange phenomenon was occurring outside of the castle. Many of the villagers had mysteriously fallen ill in both Ocsania and Rasoe. Many of the villagers sought the Royal Family’s help, since news had not reached that the ancient Royal Family that was descended from a lord named Ryan fell ages ago. As mentioned before, Castle Norfell had been abandoned long before the members of Cuja began using it as a base of operations. There was a reason for this, as citizens of Unkardia barely lived on the lunar plane. The lunar plane was the invisible field that allowed anything and everything to exist. However, due to an unfortunate “incident”, this plane had begun to fade around a certain area of earth, particularly around Unkardia. This in turn caused many of the people of Unkardia to perceive the world around them differently. To them, Unkardia was full of vicious beasts and awful monsters. One the things they did see however, was the Castle Norfell of the past, full of kind subjects and ruled by Ryan, the only lord that was ever kind to the land.

The entire land of Unkardia begins to suffer from illness. Due to the lack of technology, no one knows how to avoid the plague. Roanin manages to avoid the sickness, and instead feels compelled to wander the woods where he first met Nightmare. The news eventually reaches the wayward boy that his mother Opehla has died. Somehow, Roanin does not feel remorse. There is something he must do.

iii. Over And Around

On that eve, the Kingdom of Lavu celebrated both the birth of the heir to the sixth position of the Windy Summit, and the new year. The Windy Summit made the executive decision to be rather lenient regarding the celebrations. They weren’t big baddies when everyone was looking, after all. The year 1300 was here. Despite the joy and euphoria that would take place on that day, the ever slow movement of the calendar year affected the lands overseas quite differently. Though technically part of the Earth, they were also different. In between the two lands, the land of the Royal Family and the Kingdom of Lavu, there was a large divide. The land of the Royal Family resided on the large island of Unkardia, while the Kingdom of Lavu, while being on what was referred to as the “Main Continent”, or Mist, was known as the Chaoslands overseas. In between the two continents was the ever blighted Putrid Sea, an ocean only the valiant and brave would ever traverse. The crossing also came with side effects, ones that were unknown to the men in Zeffon. Unbeknownst to many, the world had begun to loop.

A seductive hum began to fill the air. The Mandras were beginning to sing again. This irritated Roanin to no end. Upon finding one of the tiny creatures, Roanin began to beat it to death with a heavy stick.

iv. Lovely

Suddenly, the people began to moan and writhe in the streets. Doctors began to analyze the sudden flow of patients and discover the presence of an unknown parasite that they dub “Gondii Maledicta”. A second wave of biological warfare is used, causing infected victims to effectively seek out healthy individuals and kill them. The streets are soon filled with murderous, brain dead civilians. In the eyes of the government, the “rebellion” has been crushed. Darkness began to fall, and the Dwellers began to rise from the Putrid Sea. The Dwellers themselves are in constant pain, being what they are. They are incredibly malevolent beings as well, killing any human that they come across. Of course, they don't harm any sort of woodland creature. Whether it's a rodent such as a squirrel or a small humanoid Mandra, these creatures are safe. After all, it was a human being that caused the suffering of the Dwellers, in an event that happened so very long ago. The Dwellers would then began to wander around Unkardia, looking for human flesh, possessed by both the innocent, the mortified, and the slime of humanity. Yet, the Dwellers were still unconscious of their actions. The Dwellers themselves wandered to avoid the presence of beasts that were after them. These beasts were scared of other beasts, which were in turn frightened of other monsters. This process continued to a point of infinity, until the process repeated. Thus, a loop of an infinite amount of monsters that could only see their prey was in effect, having been born of the void that is the Putrid Sea an infinite number of times.

Darkness begins to fall, and the Dwellers begin to rise from the dead tree stumps. The Dwellers themselves are in constant pain, being what they are. They are incredibly malevolent beings as well, killing any human that they come across. Of course, they don't harm any sort of woodland creature. Whether it's a rodent such as a squirrel or a small humanoid Mandra, these creatures are safe. After all, it was a human being that caused the suffering of the Dwellers, in an event that happened so very long ago...

v. Another Psychotic Thing

Without warning, the infected civilians, now out of inflicted people to destroy, began to attack the presidential palace. The people responsible for the attack begin to find themselves on the wrong side of a zombie invasion. Huddled in their offices, the various politicians are weeded out and destroyed. The leaders of the Windy Summit are nowhere to be seen, however. Once the victims had been thoroughly exterminated, the parasite suddenly and unexplainably terminated its hosts, causing everyone to fall to the ground dead. Oh, how the so-called mighty fall. Everything was going as planned. At the time, another strange thing happened. The Earth that had been the home of so many moved to being an artificial creation for some inexplicable reason. It was incredibly strange, but this gave the sudden rise to a new empire that appeared out of nowhere. This is the empire of Exeräise, the isle that had inhabited no man until that very moment. From the slate grey sands of the beaches to the grassy fields higher up, there rose a great amount of people, as if they had just spawned there. Among them, there was their leader, known simply as “Creator”. Houses are constructed out of the small forests that reside in the middle of island and soon, a small town is formed in a day.

Sanity will abruptly stop for those who evoke it.
Trusting what you shall see shall be your downfall also.
Do not doubt that for a second.
I, for one, shall forever dwell in my hydragënumion of the beasts that dwell
For darkness is my ally.

The next day, a farmer near Roanin's residence visited the house, only to find the door ajar. Under normal circumstances, the farmer would have just left for home, but he needed help from Rowland regarding his son, who was deathly ill. The large number of flies going in and out of the gap that the open door created made him uneasy as well. With a deep breath, the man pushed the door open, and was just as quickly knocked unconscious. A watchman would come to the house later in the evening, only to find it a raging inferno.

The one who uses the Inferno shall be the one who knows the least. Fear them like you would fear the other three, with special care regarding the handroteim of thine own world.

vi. Oath

The plague begins to spread, even across the sea. A certain man views this as an “unwelcome over-and-around” and vows to put a stop to it. He then has his military make an oath to destroy the perpetrators of this plague before it destroys everything his people has worked for. This man, named Vagard Tekraona, is the leader of his people on the relatively unknown Fourth Continent. Soon, an invasion force has landed in Exeräise to use the sovereign country as a hub for their military operations. Despite Vagard’s tales of the plague, Creator, the leader of Exeräise is not amused. It becomes clear to the people of the village of Rasoe that a dark menace was trying to add to the daily losses and trauma caused by the plague. An oath is taken in order to create a sense of unity. There would be no tolerance for anyone of this sort during these trying times. Anyone who cares to cause trouble will be put in jail for their insolence. The day after, Roanin arose from death in Castle Norfell, much to the chagrin of a certain individual. A strange person stood in the middle of the room. Roanin crawled towards the specter using his arms as his legs were broken. The specter held out its hand, Roanin embraced it, and soon his soul was purged of the torment plaguing it. Soon Roanin was afloat, moving towards the dawn as a spirit, on to the next world. “If this is death,” thought Roanin, “I’m definitely not afraid of it…”

It becomes clear to the people of the village of Sanders that a dark menace was trying to add to the daily losses and trauma caused by the plague. An oath is taken in order to create a sense of unity. There would be no tolerance for anyone of this sort during these trying times. Anyone who cares to cause trouble will be put in jail for their insolence.

vii. Archer Revenge

On day, a man only known as Ross embarked on a journey from Ghel, on Morningsilver Island in Vagard’s country, to Exeräise in order to communicate an urgent message to the military there: the prophecy of their demise. Knowing full well of the dangers that lie ahead, he did it for the sake of his people, leaving his son and his wife behind to fend for themselves. Despite this act of heroism, other people warned him of the Ghost Ship, belonging to the late Archer Revenge, the man who made the first society on the barren Earth. Ross simply scoffed at their warnings and continued onward. One night on the sea, Ross dreamt of the riches he supposedly found in an old jungle ruin known in his dream as “Dragös”. So wrapped up in this fantasy dream, he was unaware that his ship was being stalked by another one, one as old as the oldest civilizations on Earth. Suddenly, cannonfire broke the silence, and Ross’ ship was no more. When his son heard the news, he was traumatized. Being a sailor himself, he decided to try and find his father. He left his mother Sarah behind and began to sail off into the distance. Although the son felt good about what he would find, he couldn’t help but feel uneasy. The existence of a ghost ship to him was unlikely. It was probably a rouge vessel from Exeräise. Nevertheless, he decided to stay on his toes. That night, a fog covered the blackness of the sea, causing for a sense of uneasiness. Then he saw it. It was the Archer Revenge. Despite the crew’s best efforts, they were quickly destroyed by the phantom vessel. The son survived and began to sink into the sea after the rubble he hung onto became waterlogged, but then a rope came from a mystery ship. He grabbed it, was hauled aboard, and entered the ship’s cabin where a young woman was lying on a bed, shivering. The girl woke up to see the weary face of a man. The face was not weary with age, but with cuts, bruises, and scars. The man wore an eye-patch, and had broken lips. The girl made an effort to scream, but no sound came out.

"Feeling better?" the man whispered.

The girl sat up and looked around. They were on a ship.

"Who are you? Where are we going? How did you...?"

"Don't talk. He'll hear you."

The reference to Creator got the girl's attention. Clearly this was an ally, since the enemy was far away. At least it seemed that way.

"Where's...?"

"Unkardia's way behind us. We should make landfall on Anne any day now."

"Oh... I don't feel so good..."

"You've been through... a lot, shall we say. What you just went through is not your average, everyday ordeal. It's probably natural to feel a little nauseous. You should get some sleep."

"Who are you?" inquired the girl a second time.

"Just a random sailor."

The girl made the effort to speak, but decided not to. He probably had a very good reason to hide his identity. The girl decided to get some rest, just as the "sailor" had recommended. She did feel a little sleepy anyway. After retiring to the cabin on the small boat they were on, the girl found a bed. It took no more than a minute before she was sleeping soundly.

"Wake up!"

The girl sprang to her feet, ready for anything. Unfortunately for her sense of anticipation, this was a dream. Looking around, the girl found she was on a very small imaginary island above the clouds. Another girl that looked just like her was talking to her.

"Remember who you are."

"But I know who I am. I know my name and everything about myself."

"You do now."

"What do you mean?"

The mirror image simply smiled and paced slightly. "Destiny shapes you. But it must be you who shapes destiny."

"Stop speaking in riddles. What are you saying? Am I going to lose my memory?"

"Be prepared to do so. That's been your downfall for the past 513 times."

Though the girl had no comprehension of the past 513 realities that she had been involved with, a nagging, subconscious part of herself convinced the girl that this dream self was speaking the truth.

"This has happened 513 times? How can I prevent this "downfall" you speak of?"

"Well, you couldn't have prevented it in the past. I wasn't sharp enough to deduce how to do so back then. But through each consecutive trial, I found out a long time ago that your resistance to the downfall keeps increasing. It's only now that you're able to resist the memory wipe."

"So... why bother telling me?"

"Creator won't be merciful when he finds out that his system is failing bit by bit. He's relying on the same system to keep you at bay every time you reach that point in time. If he finds out that you simply can biologically resist induced amnesia, he'll resort to his other, more ghastly methods. To avoid a downfall, just keep this information hidden from him."

"You sound very experienced."

"Don't flatter yourself. You know I am you."

The dream figure paced a little bit more. "There's something else I need to tell you..."

"What is it?"

It was too late. The dream had faded. The girl was coming back to the distorted lunar plane that was reality. Soon, it was nighttime. A slight vibration caused a glass to fall from a nearby cabinet and shatter. There was an ominous feeling in the air, no doubt about that. The man who the girl had previously met was standing on the deck with a telescope, looking into the gloom over the water.

"What do you see?"

The girl jumped to her feet and exited the cabin. There was very little to see, given the copious amounts of fog over the water. The man was trembling.

"This may be the end of me..." he whispered to himself.

"What do you see?!"

"Oh my lord... Cannon fire!"

The girl looked through the ominous fog. There was nothing to be seen.

"I will tell you once we reach the island. I'm sorry I've been keeping this information from you, but you probably know why."

The man remained silent for the rest of the voyage. Reve couldn’t be entirely certain what was going on. She had forgotten a majority of the events that had occurred, and felt as though she was in another place. Birds flew through the night sky and a noise echoed from the isle for which they were bound. This seemed to make the man uneasy, but it was welcoming to Reve. She remembered that she had been to this place called Anne for a while now, but there was no sense of time in this memory.

I am One.
I am All Sixteen before the Mark.

The girl woke up to see the weary face of an man. The face was not weary with age, but with cuts, bruises, and scars. The man wore an eye-patch, and had broken lips. The girl made an effort to scream, but no sound came out. That was probably how it should be.

"Feeling better?" the man whispered.

The girl sat up and looked around. They were on a ship.

"Who are you? Where are we going? How did you...?"

"Don't talk. He'll hear you."

The reference to Creator got the girl's attention. Clearly this was an ally, since the enemy was far away. Or so it seemed.

"Where's...?"

"Unkardia's waaay behind us. We should make landfall on Anne any day now."

"Oh... I don't feel so good..."

"You've been through... a lot, shall we say. What you just went through is not your average, everyday ordeal. It's probably natural to feel a little nauseous. You should get some sleep."

"Who are you?" inquired the girl a second time.

"Just a random sailor."

The girl made the effort to speak, but decided not to. He probably had a very good reason to hide his identity. The girl decided to get some rest, just as the "sailor" had recommended. She did feel a little sleepy anyway. After retiring to the cabin on the small boat they were on, the girl found a bed. It took no more than a minute before she was sleeping soundly.

...

"Wake up!"

The girl sprang to her feet, ready for anything. Wait... This was a dream. Looking around, the girl found she was on a very small imaginary island above the clouds. Another girl that looked just like her was talking to her.

"Remember who you are."

"Ummm... OK?"

"Take me seriously."

"But I know who I am. I know my name and everything about myself."

"You do now."

"What do you mean?"

The mirror image simply smiled and paced slightly. "Destiny shapes you. But it must be you who shapes destiny."

"Stop speaking in riddles. What are you saying? Am I going to lose my memory?"

"Be prepared to do so. That's been your downfall for the past 513 times."

Though the girl had no comprehension of the past 513 realities that she had been involved with, a nagging, subconscious part of herself convinced the girl that this dream self was speaking the truth.

"This has happened 513 times? How can I prevent this "downfall" you speak of?"

"Well, you couldn't have prevented it in the past. I wasn't sharp enough to deduce how to do so back then. But through each consecutive trial, I found out a long time ago that your resistance to the downfall keeps increasing. It's only now that you're able to resist the memory wipe."

"So... why bother telling me?"

"Creator won't be merciful when he finds out that his system is failing bit by bit. He's relying on the same system to keep you at bay every time you reach that point in time. If he finds out that you simply can biologically resist induced amnesia, he'll resort to his other, more ghastly methods. To avoid a downfall, just keep this information hidden from him."

"You sound very experienced."

"Don't flatter yourself. You know I am you."

The dream self paced a little bit more. "There's something else I need to tell you..."

"What is it?"

It was too late. The dream had faded. The girl was coming back to reality.

...

"Wake up!"

The girl sat up. It was nighttime. A slight vibration caused a glass to fall from a nearby cabinet and shatter. There was an ominous feeling in the air, no doubt about that. The man who the girl had previously met was standing on the deck with a telescope, looking into the gloom over the water.

"What do you see?"

The girl jumped to her feet and exited the cabin. There was very little to see, given the copious amounts of fog over the water. The man was trembling.

"This may be the end of me..." he whispered to himself.

"What do you see?!"

"Oh my lord..."

"Give me that!"

Snatching the telescope, the girl gazed into the darkness. It was getting close to dawn, and soon this fog would disappear. But it was clear something wasn't right.

"Reve..."

"How did you know my name?!"

The man was pointing in the opposite direction. Reve looked through the lens and spotted flashes.

"Cannonfire!"

A quick shot impacted the side of the ship, sending splinters flying. The small vessel was already damaged extensively due to the shot. Reve looked in the direction of the enemy fire and then noticed a welcome, familiar orb breaking through the clouds. Within an instant, the fog lifted, revealing nothing but blue ocean water. The sun had risen.

"Thank the heavens above!" said Reve with a great deal of enthusiasm.

"Indeed," said the man. "That was a close call. I'm glad the sun rose when it did. Its light always banishes ghost ships. Always."

"But... How did you know my name?" inquired Reve.

The man looked to the west. The isle of Anne could be seen on the horizon.

"I will tell you once we reach the island. I'm sorry I've been keeping this information from you, but you probably know why."

"It's all right."

"I'm Tereban, by the way."

"Pleased to meet you."