I stood next to the Travel Node in the first room of Labyrinth past Al’s Dungeon at the bottom of the Bermuda Triangle and waited. A moment later a portal opened before me into a room set in the style of a hunting lodge, complete with a lit fireplace and two chairs sitting opposite each other, Bri sitting in one. I stepped through the portal next to the chair opposite Bri. The only thing missing was the smell of a cigar and the setting would have been perfect.

“Please, Adam, have a seat,” Bri said.

“Thank you Bri, how are you today?”

“Much better, thank you. Thank you for taking care of the ring,” she said with a nod.

“You’re quite welcome.”

“If I might ask, why are you here?” Bri asked.

“First, to let you know that the ring is gone, though Apoyln could return, not really sure on that. As a Lesser Deity of Hades though, I think he’s not going to be traveling into the Labyrinth and trying to make another ring anytime soon.

“Oh, I’m sure he will try. Now that I know he’s in Hades though, I can make sure to be more diligent in watching for him. Thank you for the information.”

“You’re quite welcome,” I said then asked, “I do have a question?”

“Yes?”

“What were you like back before the other Realms were cut off from you?”

“What do you mean?”

“I was informed by someone, that you were linked to every Realm in existence. Through those links, people were able to travel back and forth between those realms and other realms. What were some of the differences back then?

“Are you asking about the differences in people and creatures or are you asking about the minutia concerning levels and such?” she asked.

“Structural differences, I’d like to know how everything worked back then.”

“Honestly, I don’t know,” she said. “I have memories from that time, but I was not as I am now. I was much more…limited”

“Limited? How so?”

“For one I know that the levels my monsters are allowed to achieve were nowhere near 5,000. Nothing was that high”

“So, the level cap was different, that makes sense. But you say you were limited?”

“Yes, and No. First, I am still connected to multiple Realms. Back then there were just more. I don’t know how to explain it any other way. When I came into existence as I am now, some of the Realms were just cut off. Second, I was limited because back then we could not have had the discussion we are now. I existed and I had rules. Rules that have not changed but I didn’t have coherent thoughts as I do now to even understand the concept of what a rule was.”

“You weren’t completely sentient? I asked.

“No, I wasn’t. I remember making sure there was treasure if monsters were killed and creating new monsters as necessary because those were the rules I had to follow. By the way, the rules that governed me were true for both adventurers and my monsters. If my monsters defeated adventurers they grew in strength as well. As my monsters grew, so did I. After the change some of my monsters became so powerful that my fundamental makeup had to adapt, and my avatar, me, came into existence. One day I didn’t exist, the next I did, fully sentient with complete control over the Labyrinth as well as an intimate understanding of how everything worked. I don’t “remember” anything before that moment, but I have memory flashes from that time. Just glimpses of memories I don’t understand. I know that my highest-level monster was a Legendary Red Dragon that was Level 1,000.

“Where is the red dragon now?” I asked

“Selmack? Selmack has taken advantage of the recent change to experience level maximums and is currently level 5,005 and working through various dungeons I am still connected to. Those that contain monsters at levels that will help him progress quickly,” she said.

“Wait, I thought you had creatures that I would find challenging the last time we talked?”

“Adam, you have heard of bluffs, have you not?”

I laughed, “Seriously? Fine, getting back on topic. So, you wanted the ring destroyed because every XP you are gaining across the multitude realms you are still connected to is feeding your level progression currently, What level are you now?”

“Currently, they are ticking up faster than I can keep track of. I am sure I outpaced the level you were at during your last visit. As compared to you and those like you, I am less. As compared to every other being in every other Realm I’m connected to I am higher by hundreds of magnitude.”

“What do you know of beings like me?” I asked.

“I’ve only ever encountered one before. I know that to attack you would be pointless. Not like it wasn’t the last time you visited, but it would be even more pointless now. I also know that you are more powerful than any divine that has ever entered the Labyrinth.”

“How do you know that?” I asked.

“Because demon lords and the like have entered various levels from other layers, and I can now easily scan them. Also, a few Neophytes have entered, and I can scan and analyze them as well. I cannot analyze you.

“That is interesting,” I said pausing for a moment before asking, “If I might ask, is my daughter in any of the Realms you are connected to?”

“I do not think so. Remember though, I can only sense things within myself. I know that she is not within me. Also, remember that I have never actually met your daughter.

“I didn’t think so either, I think she is outside your current network of Realms.”

“How would that even be possible?” Bri asked.

“I have ideas, but before I can see to them I need to check on a few other things. You will let me know if you come across my daughter Pandora?” I asked.

“Of course,” she said

“Thank you, also please don’t remove your teleportation ban, I’ m going to try to port out just to see if I can.”

“Very well. If you are able you will be one of very few who can.”

“If I can, I promise not to abuse the privilege which means if I do port to you unannounced it will be for an important reason.

“Of course, Adam, now off with you,” Bri said with a smile, waving for me to go.

I winked and teleported to my estate in New Mexico with no effort whatsoever. I connected to Thor and the nanites and found Adaline standing on the Balcony looking out over Alamogordo off to the west. I walked upstairs to the balcony door and stepped out. Adaline was gazing out over the city and desert to the west, but her eyes were unfocused. I walked up to the rail she was holding onto and leaned out waiting for her to come back to this moment. It was a little while but finally, she brushed a tear from her cheek and turned to look at me.

“What did you do to me?” she asked.

“In gaming terms, it’s called power-leveling,” I said with a grin

“Don’t they also call it cheating?” Adaline asked.

“They do.”

“How did you cheat to give me this much power?”

“I didn’t cheat. I took away something from someone that was using a curse they created to cheat. I stole the curse effects.

“That sounds complicated,” Adaline said.

“It would be normally. For me, not so much.”

“Also, what are Divinity points? I have them now, I don’t even know what the number I have represents but I have a lot of them.”

“Divinity Points are used by Gods to fuel their divine powers and interventions. They earn them by having followers and other activities. They are also used to increase a Gods power level among the other Gods, as far as I can tell.”

“How?”

I explained to Adaline how Anthrax had turned Hades into a Divinity Point farm based on a Pyramid Scheme, which also required me to explain to her what a pyramid scheme was.

“So, what your saying is that you diverted the XP and DP to us, right up until Anthrax was reborn. The amount of XP and DP we got was a very small percentage of everything you killed in Hades.”

“Remember, not my fault, that Aushree bitch tried to kill me, and the curse became an aspect of the chaos I had absorbed. As I spread, those killed by me got the Curse of the Undying. I did tell you it was 1.5% of the XP and DP of every creature for eight Cosmos right?”

“Yes, I remember that”

“Thinking back, it was more likely closer to 16 Cosmos.”

“That’s insane Adam.”

“I know. I was wondering though, what level are you right now?

“156,256,759”

“Damn that’s nice, how many DP did you get?” I asked.

“10,456,795. I still don’t know what I can use those for,” Adaline said.

“Nothing at the moment but if you do take on the role of a divine, let’s just say you’ll be way ahead of the power curve,” I said

“What about you? How many DP do you have?” she asked.

“9,554 more than you, I earned them before the curse got underway.”

“So, do we become divine now?”

“I would suggest not. At least until we talk to everyone else. I do have something I want to try on you though.”

“What’s that?”

“I once had a Fundamental Ability called ‘I have always been, I will always be’ That ability made it impossible for changes in the timeline to affect me. I want to try to give that to you.”

“Can you do that?”

“I think so, but I’m not sure.”

“Are you planning to change the timeline?”

“Planning is a strong word. Let’s say that I am considering the possibility that someone might come along and try to undo everything I’ve done.

“How exactly are you going to do it?

“One of my new abilities states I can determine how Chaos affects others, I’m going to expose you to Chaos and direct how it affects you.”

“I’m willing! Let’s try this. If this works, are you going to do the same to the others?” Adaline asked.

“Yes, that way I know all of you are relatively safe, no matter what happens to me,” I said as I reached out and touched her. I focused my will and wished to add the Fundamental Ability “I Have Always Been, I Will Always Be” to Adaline.

Arcanum Numen Ability Chaos Personified has been detected.

Arcanum Numen of Fortune Identity Confirmed.

Do you wish to add the Time-Based Ability “I Have Always Been, I Will Always Be to Adaline, Yes or No?

I chose “Yes.” Immediately white light enveloped Adaline and I watched as she shimmered for a second then resolidified.

Adaline’s eyes glazed over for a second as she declared, “It worked,” as a prompt appeared in my vision.

The Time-Based Ability “I Have Always Been, I Will Always Be” has been added to Adaline. As the Arcanum Numen, you may of course make changes derived from other primal sources. Be Warned, utilizing primal energies other than Chaos may draw the attention of the rulers of those primal energies.

Since I knew there was no Arcanum Numen of Time, it was obviously one of those primal energies that didn’t have a boss I had to worry about, unless there was something more powerful than an Arcanus Numina? Why did I have to jinx myself with that question? Though if I’m being honest with myself I knew that if I was still bound by the system in some fashion, something else is more powerful than me. I’d worry about that later. It was time to get everyone else safe

“Thor, have everyone portal over here quick. I have some changes I need to make.”

“You’ve got it, Adam.”

A moment later, everyone that I cared about or that I’d converted to my cause stood in my living room, Mom, Dad, Adaline, Amanda, Abi, Desirae, and Clarence. As they each appeared I added their new Fundamental ability to them.

“What is this ‘I Have Always Been, I Will Always Be ability,” Abi asked as I finished up with Clarence.

“It does exactly what it says. Now if someone tries to change things by going back in time, it’s not going to matter, I started to explain as a very young girl popped into existence among us looking directly at me.

“ “Fortune, A word please?” the little girl said in a voice that carried more intelligence and wisdom than normal for a girl her age as she turned and walked out onto the balcony without another word.

“Who is that?” my mom asked

“Yeah, who is that Adam?” Abi asked.

“How the hell should I know,” I said as I walked toward the balcony and looked at the child. “Let me go ask,” I finished as I thought, I sure as shit jinxed myself. I walked out on the Balcony and stopped facing the young girl, woman, whatever.

“Don’t let appearances fool you Fortune, I may look like a child, but I have been around the block quite a few times,” she said.

“And you are?” I asked.

“I am Chronos.”

“I was informed that there were no holders of the Arcanus Numen of Time,” I said.

“There aren’t. Knowing your life and everything you’ve learned and everything you’ve read, I have four words for you, Earth by David Brin.”

“Earth by David Brin?” I mused as many aspects from the book came to light as that might pertain to time.

“I see by the look of realization in your mind that you truly do have a perfect memory.”

“Are you saying that you are the mind created by the stratum of temporal links between, wait what would they be between, unless there truly are fixed points in space-time, which was presented in Dr. Who? But that makes no sense”

“You are close, but like many sentient species throughout eternity you think only of yourselves when trying to comprehend something on a galactic or higher scale. Therefore, you are both correct and incorrect. There are fixed points in space-time that serve as anchors. They are not dependent on the actions of sentient beings of any sort. Fixed points in space-time are connected to the beginnings and endings of universes, Cosmos, realms, etcetera” she said.

“Did the fracturing of my cosmos cause issues for you?”

“No. Your Cosmos was not part of the Tapestry of Eternity. I feel that is about to change now though.”

“So why are you here?” I asked.

“Not going to ask, interesting. As for the question you did ask, to convey a warning. As the Arcanus Numen of Fortune and Chaos Personified you are the only Arcanus Numen that can utilize time as you have. All others are bound by rules that govern all, including you. The individuals you have gifted come from your Cosmos, well except for Abi, but she is a special case,” she said pausing for a moment, “Where was I? Oh yes. They all come from your cosmos. As of this moment, they are part of the Tapestry of Eternity, and this Realm has been added as of this moment. Here and now have become a fixed point in space-time.”

“What does that mean exactly?” I asked.

“It means that those with the ability you have granted, including yourself, are on a list of people I must keep track of. It means that Chronos is now aware of you because you are literally on my mind.”

“That doesn’t sound like a warning,” I said.

“The warning is that you should not utilize your ability to gift abilities to gift Time specific abilities. Doing so may cause issues,” she said

“What kind of issue?”

“If the Tapestry unravels, I unravel. If I unravel…what is space without time?” Chronos asked.

“A single moment that goes on forever?” I asked.

“I see you understand a little. Another outcome could be that all of Time could happen in an instant. To be clear, as an Arcanus Numen of Fortune you may use time as you wish, and those effects should be manageable. When you gift abilities based on time to others the Tapestry could be damaged beyond anyone’s ability to repair. The tapestry can absorb minor changes that an individual may cause. It has a much harder time absorbing changes from multiple sources. Too many cut or frayed threads at once and as they say from your time, shit will go sideways.”

“I understand,” I said. “I will be more careful from this point on”

“See that you do. I have spent enough time here. Good day,” she said as she faded from view, disappearing from my senses completely.

I turned and walked back into the living room where everyone was talking politely. Adaline walked over and said, “And?”

“And I have to be more careful using the power I have,” I said

“I meant, ‘And’ Who was that?” Adaline asked.

“That was Chronos.”

“Wait, that little girl was the God of Time?” Desirae asked.

“Probably not the same person as the God from your world. She would probably be his, or her, boss,” I said, then paused. Chronos wasn’t the god’s boss, it was an entity that had come into being due to the structure of the fixed points in space-time that were connected to all the other fixed points. I’d missed the hint and the question. The question I hadn’t asked was “‘What connected all those points?” That hint was the fact that Chronos had visited me.

My mind went through every possible scenario until I figured it out, which arguably didn’t take that long. Those fixed points across space-time were connected by Primal Chaos, that’s the only thing that could be connecting them that could touch every other fixed space-time point. The second hint had been the book she’d mentioned. Earth, by David Brin.

In the book, Earth, a singularity had been created and dropped into the Earth creating channels that had created a structure much like that of a brain. That structure had sprouted a consciousness that had not known what it was until it connected to the world wide web, much like myself and Thor, though I was sentient before that happened.

If the book was the hint, then Chronos had formed from those connections because the medium those connections stayed in contact through now housed her mind. Why hadn’t she taken on the role as the Arcanus Numen of Fortune, she should have been able to, unless the fixed points…The fixed points were aspects of Order, something she could not change but that could be changed.

That gave me another thought, if this entire setup was somehow in a holographic, or quantum supercomputer and I was in some type of Matrix, the thought had crossed my mind, then Chronos would be the Ghost in the Machine. I hadn’t discounted the idea as implausible, I just hadn’t found a way to test it yet, unless true death was the door, which I would never know until I died.

I put those thoughts to the back of my mind and turned back to my family and friends, “We have a lot to discuss. Thor if you wouldn’t mind setting a place with food and drinks I think we should all have a seat, it’s time to figure out where we go from here.”