[ASH] CSV #28: Four to Never Lap 4 - Time Flies

[Dave Van Domelen]

     Cover shows the back of a man's hand, splayed as though indicating the
number 5.  On the back of his hand is a starburst tattoo made of five golden
ankhs, and the letters F-I-V-E are inked upside down on his fingers, spelling
out the word if he balls his hand into a fist.  The text proclaims: THE
IMPOSSIBLE FIVE!

===========================================================================

.                    Blackbird & Countinghouse Presents:
 ( )                    CONCLAVE OF SUPER-VILLAINS                  ( )
  I             An Academy of Super-Heroes Universe Comic            I
  I                    copyright 2007 by Tony Pi                     I
                       edits by Dave Van Domelen
                      #28 - FOUR TO NEVER: Lap 4
                             "Time Flies"
===========================================================================

Active
 SULTRY        Zuri Angeline Croft         Weather Control
 CONFLICTO     Eugene Kwan                 Friction/Viscosity Control
 MYRIAD        Alpha Rho Fourteen          Shapeshifting
 GLYPH         Zephirah Reuben             Magical Sigils
 KALIBAN       Kaliban Kalibos             Monstrous Strength
 TIARA         Princess Ursula of Monaco   Master Thief
 BURNOUT       Trish Catrall/Tyra Dumont   Ash Elemental
 LIGHT ERRANT  Petra 'Irrlicht' Hollander  Wispform, Hypnosis
 LABYRINTHE    Yvan Viau                   Spatial Magic
 CARYATID      Claudette Viau              Magic

Inactive
 TERRASTAR     Polla Hectrix Termiddo      Earth Control
 CHALLENGER    Robert Coulter              Cybernetics
 SPIRAL        Anya Kirova                 Telekinetic Torque
 TRITON        Derek Murdock Radner        Gadgeteer/Electricity

============================================================================

[April 15, 2026 - Skyhaven Lab, Monaco Bay]

     Burnout glanced out the window at the sea through the windows of the
Skyhaven lab, her mood dark.  Triton had built Skyhaven well, anticipating
the eventuality that one day the airship might crash into land or ocean.  For
the foreseeable future, Skyhaven would remain anchored in Monaco Bay, but it
was on the surface, not under it.  Through the reinforced glass, she spotted
a few curious fish, and promptly turned them to ash.  If only she could have
done that to Anhydra!
     Though the fight was over, Glyph maintained truce with the so-called
heroes, determined to find out what was inside the mysterious sarcophagus ASH
had recovered.  Burnout had been against bringing it onboard.  For all they
knew, it could be a bomb.
     Hells, Fury from the Academy of Super-Heroes was a walking bomb.
     "I think I've found a way to open it," said Glyph, her scales rippling
as she smiled.  She had called the Green Knight, Fury, and Arc to the lab to
help with her plan.  "Rather clever device, actually.  Whoever designed this
sarcophagus anticipated all our powers, and built it to resist our paranormal
efforts.  However, they failed to anticipate the fact that we have two very
potent techno-mystical weapons at our disposal.  The AstroSpear and the
GeoMace."
     Ah.  Burnout nodded, starting to understand Glyph's plan.  The GeoMace
had been sealed in the dimensional fissure with TerraStar.  It was a
mystically-enhanced collapsiron weapon like the AstroSpear, built by the same
extradimensional culture.
     The Green Knight crossed his arms.  "Why would that work, when raw force
can't?"
     "Strength alone cannot open the sarcophagus.  Neither can my magic open
the device by itself," continued Glyph.  "However, if I inscribe glyphs of
sympathetic magic on the GeoMace and the AstroSpear, then the Green Knight
and Arc can strike the front and back of the sarcophagus with the weapons,
hitting at the same time, the force coupled *with* mystic resonance should
crack open the coffin like an egg."
     "And my role?" asked Fury.
     "Boosting Arc's strength, of course," said Burnout disdainfully,
anticipating Glyph's answer.  "You can give her as much kinetic energy as she
needs, quickly."
     "Let's do it," said Arc, offering her good hand to Fury.  Fury cupped
her hand over Arc's and concentrated, detonating controlled blasts into Arc's
palm.  Arc absorbed the kinetic energy, stockpiling it for the attempt.
     Glyph finished painting the sigils on the two weapons.  "Ready?"
     They were.
     On the count of three, The Green Knight swung the GeoMace and Arc the
AstroSpear, and struck the sarcophagus simultaneously.  An ear-piercing sound
echoed through the whole of Skyhaven as the sarcophagus shattered into a
hundred pieces, freeing a figure mummified in black bandages within, who
collapsed to the floor.
     "Friend or foe?" Burnout growled, and brought her power to bear on the
bandages, disintegrating them to a cloud of dust.  A naked young man, barely
conscious, looked up at them.  When he saw Fury, he smiled.  "Mom?"
     "Ch...Chris?" Fury whispered.
     Burnout could feel Fury's confusion and fear, even catching a glimpse of
recognition.  Wasn't Fury's kid only a couple years old?  But then again,
with time as fractured as it was, it could be her son after all.  There was a
resemblance between the two, and Triton had mentioned something about her kid
having time powers.  However, from what she recalled, those powers had
disappeared.  
     The man fainted.
     "Get him to the infirmary," Glyph said.  "If he is indeed your son,
Fury, then we're in more trouble than we think."

               *              *              *              *

[Skyhaven Bridge, Monaco Bay]

     "Chris Kelsey?" said Grind, after the Green Knight came on the bridge to
report the strange turn of events.  "Damn, I should have considered it
earlier.  A future version of a kid who has time powers."
     "You can't imagine how surprised Arin is," said the Green Knight.  "She
called Nancy Balzer in Milwaukee to make sure Chris was OK, and he was."
Nancy was the Anchor nurse who had adopted Chris back when his powers had
threatened him with an early demise, but Arin had regretfully let the
adoption stand even after Chris's powers had been mysteriously removed.
     "Excuse me, guys, but you better take a look at this," said Breaker,
monitoring the strange phenomena occurring around the world with Sultry.  "A
number of Marshals in the region have responded to the poison gas situation
in Dallas, but it's not going well.  They need back-up.  Boomer reports that
Cassandra's possible future scenarios aren't predicting any of this."
Cassandra was an old Academy burnout victim with precognitive powers, who had
returned in cybernetic form a couple of years ago.  She and Boomer had both
been part of an informal "Legion of Net.Heroes" group at the Academy, but
while it had since broken up, they kept in touch.
     Grind came over to check the message.  "They're not the only ones who
need help.  Send a message to the Academy...they're best equipped to
respond."  He glanced at a couple of other screens.  Students from ASIE, the
Academy's counterpart in the Eurasian Union, had been dispatched to assist
with the Panzers that had appeared in Poland.  The Otakuza, of all people,
were responding to the Mongol fleet approaching Japan.  Who knew what other
gateways in time had opened up?
     Jay Teller stared at one screen in particular.  "Um, Grind?  A really
big dinosaur just appeared in Venice."
     Damn.  They were just being stretched thin, and there were still the
problems of where their four teammates had disappeared to, and where the four
villains had gone.  "Teller, Drake, and Ymir, go," Grind instructed.  "Take a
Crab from the hangar."
     Sultry crossed her arms.  "You could ask first, Nose."
     Grind was about to reply when Oni and Fadeaway entered the bridge,
carrying a sample collector/analyzer filled with grey dust.  "Good news and
bad," Oni said.  "The dust from the Jardin doesn't seem to be organic, so
it's unlikely that our friends were disintegrated.  However, it does seem to
be made of the same substance that Matrioshka's shells were, after they fell
apart."
     "We think that Jen and the others were encased in one of those shells
that Ursula was trapped in," Fadeaway added, hope in her voice.  "Maybe they
were caught in transportation devices and teleported away.  What do you
think, Dan?"
     "Could be," Grind said, but he wasn't so sure.  The truth had to lie
with the man who claimed to be Chris Kelsey.  "Keep monitoring the situation.
I'm going to the infirmary to get some answers."

               *              *              *              *

[A cave deep in the Rock of Gibraltar]

     In a hidden cavern, the woman from the yacht awaited her teammates
patiently, walking the perimeter and admiring the scintillating nano-bloom
colonies that powered and protected their new headquarters.  Soon, the
central stalactite, crystal blue from the nano-bloom modification, pulsed
with golden rings of light, conjuring the four who had wreaked havoc in
Monaco and beyond.
     Chiaroscuro strode forth and bowed when he saw her.  "It is good to see
you again, Mistress..."
     She cut him off.  "Do not call me by that name.  I do not care for it,
not with *her* claiming it for herself.  From now on, you will call me Never,
nothing else."
     Anhydra chuckled.  "Never, never, play with fire.  It suits you."
     Chiaroscuro snarled.  "Cut the act, Ann."
     "Only if you drop the mask, bright stuff," Anhydra said.
     The mage waved a hand, and the shadows obscuring his face fell away,
revealing a handsome young man in his early twenties.
     Matrioshka said nothing, only walking around the cave examining the
nano-blooms.
     "I had Cronyx create them, following your specifications," Never said to
Matrioshka.
     Talos stomped around the cave.  "Where is my father?"
     "I'm sorry, Talos," said Never.  "The one you know is gone."
     Talos broke a stalagmite and made a stool for himself.  "Gone?"
     "All of them are gone, at least as we knew them," said Never.  "As I
expected, the heroes and anti-heroes of this time interfered with our one
chance to recreate our future...and now that you exist in this time, your
creator is unlikely to follow the same path he did in our history.  I'm
afraid we five are all that remain of the CSV of 2052, thanks to Timeslip."
     "If you hadn't told us to use kid-gloves with those old-timers, we would
still have that brat," said Chiaroscuro.
     "All in good time, Olivier," said Never.  "We need to be careful how we
tread."
     Matrioshka opened her hand, and a miniature Cronyx appeared to speak her
thoughts.  "Mater says that with our superior technology, we should be able
to take over the world within the year," reported the daemon.  "Why hold
back?"
     "Because we are only five," said Never.  "We five are well-prepared to
destroy ASH and CSV, but we alone cannot hold all that territory by
ourselves.  Remember how Antiochus VI tried in 2044, and how he lost
everything in the end?  We need chaos and minions to achieve what we did in
our time."
     Anhydra nodded in understanding.  "Radner's rule number eighty-six:
'Media, when manipulated right, can be a villain's most powerful ally.'  I
remember that from his autobiography."
     "Exactly.  I could have kidnapped the Four Keys and used them to free
you from temporal oblivion, but that would rob us of the opportunity to
strike fear in our enemies' hearts while inspiring potential allies to join
us," Never explained.  "The deaths have already marked us as true villains on
par with the most powerful teams in this time."
     Chiaroscuro grunted.  "I still say we should have killed more.  I could
have slain Scorch easily."
     "No need for overkill," Never said.  "There is a fine line between a
leader who kills strategically and a leader who kills for sport.  We need to
project the first image, not the latter, lest our potential recruits think
we'll also kill our own as casually.  The timestorms and the loss of their
team leaders will keep our enemies busy enough while we recruit the manpower
we need to stand against any threat."
     Anhydra seemed skeptical.  "Fearless leader, how do you propose we amass
an army in this backward age?"
     "There are already people who will rally to our cause," said Never.
"There are paranormal villains of the power level we need, held in four
high-security facilities during this time period: The Cavity in the Combine,
Prison Omega in the Eurasian Union, Five Elements Mountain in China, and The
Hecatomb in Khadam.  They are all itching for a taste of freedom.  We will
give it to them."
     Chiaroscuro stroked his chin.  "What makes you think they will rally to
our cause?" he asked.
     Never produced a wafer-thin symbol, five ankhs in a star pattern.  It
looked very much like a rub-on tattoo.  "We organize them into five-man
cells, and give them access to Matrioshka's teleportation technology.  Being
able to flee to a sanctuary will give them an edge over those who try to
recapture them."
     Matrioshka seemed to whisper into her Cronyx's ear.  The holographic
image nodded and danced in glee.  "Mater says it is a wonderful idea,
Mistress Never.  Once they are dependent, we would be able to monitor them
through the tattoos."
     Anhydra's dust-hair writhed in excitement.  "And control them when we
need to.  Brilliant."
     Never smiled.  "Glad you think so.  The world will belong to us.  The
CSV of 2052 is dead.  This world, this *time*, will come to fear _the
Impossible Five_."
     Talos nodded.  "Five's easier to count than 2052 anyway."

               *              *              *              *

[Skyhaven Infirmary]

     Burnout glanced at TerraStar's mindless body on one of the infirmary
beds.  If only she could separate one of the two minds trapped in her present
body, the other could easily enter the shell of that witch, riding the flesh
like a puppet.  The Tyra part of her missed the Mister Strings days.
     Grind's voice interrupted her reveries.  "His DNA proves it," he said,
reading the results off a computer display.  "Arin, that man is indeed
Christopher Kelsey, your son.  He is also, as far as I can tell, the man who
kidnapped your son last year."
     Fury still looked at her grown son in disbelief.  "How can it be?"
     "If he has time powers, Fury, then he must be the cause of the time
distortion in the first place," Glyph said.  "We can't trust this man."
     "He's coming to," Burnout observed.
     Chris Kelsey's eyes fluttered open.  "Where am I?  When am I?" he
managed.
     "You're on Skyhaven," said Glyph.  "I demand to know who you are and
what you and the others have done to Triton, or else I'll let Sultry have at
you."
     Chris winced.  "What's been happening?"
     "What hasn't been?" Conflicto rasped from his bed.  "Water.  I need
water!"
     Burnout grabbed the nearest cup of water and dashed it in Conflicto's
face.  Not exactly recommended medical procedure, but she didn't exactly
care.  The IV was taking care of his treatment anyway.
     "Thank you," Conflicto whispered.
     "Is that really you, Chris?" asked Arin.
     Chris nodded.  "One version, Mom.  Not how your Chris will turn out, but
that's a complicated story.  They call me Timeslip."
     "Timeslip, ironic as it sounds, we're running out of time," said Grind.
"Listen carefully.  Here's what has just happened."  Grind ran through the
events systematically and efficiently, recapping all the relevant points.
"We need to know who these people are, what those fissures in time are, and
why this is all happening."
     Timeslip coughed.  "It's my fault, I'm afraid.  You see, I had to come
back in time and change my own fate."  He paused, as if trying to put the
best spin on bad news.  "I came to the realization that if I was going to
start doing more with my time powers than just speed up or slow down time, if
I wanted to actually *travel* through time, I was going to start attracting
the attention of other time travelers.  I know about the Causality Wars, and
how wiping out someone's past was a common tactic in the opening phases of
that trans-temporal conflict...so I set out to become a closed loop.  I also
managed to save the city of Milwaukee from being cast adrift in a timeless
limbo in the process, but I wish I could say I was being the selfless hero.
I just saw it as the best time to convince myself to give up our powers to
me, and also change the timeline."
     He stopped, swallowing dryly, then continued.  "Of course, by averting
that tragedy and ensuring I'd never grow up to become a villain, I also
tipped over a bunch of other dominoes.  The whole 'It's A Wonderful Life'
effect, except instead of removing a good person from the timeline, I yanked
out a real jerk...me.  What I didn't anticipate was that my former colleagues
in the CSV in 2052 found a way to protect themselves from being erased or
altered.  One of them captured me, and tried to tap my power to restore
things back the way they were suppo...used to be.  I think you managed to
stop them, but now five of the deadliest villains from the future are loose
in your time."
     "Who are they?" asked Glyph.
     "Your legacy, gone wrong," Timeslip said.  "Matrioshka, one of
Rasputin's daughters.  Talos, a creation serving Q'Nos.  Chiaroscuro, Light
Errant's son.  Anhydra, Burnout's daughter."
     Burnout's jaw dropped.  "I wasn't aware I was even going to be a
mother.  I don't suppose I could get rid of her by getting my tubes tied?"
     Chris shook his head tiredly.  "No, they're in the same rootless loop I
am now.  They probably had to be careful not to kill you initially, when they
were still hoping to restore our timeline, but now all bets are off."
     "You said five.  Who's the fifth?" Grind asked.
     A pained expression flashed across Timeslip's face.  "I...I'm not sure.
I feel I ought to know, but I don't remember a face, a name, a power.  All I
can think of is the name, Never."
     "Do you know their weaknesses?" Burnout asked.
     Timeslip frowned.  "Again, my memory's...gone swiss cheese.  All I know
is that they're well trained to fight you.  We all were.  You were Basic
Level threats.  Be careful against them," Timeslip said.
     "Ya think?!" Conflicto shouted in a hoarse voice from across the room.
     "I'd hate to think what Advanced Level is," Burnout muttered.
     "What about the cracks in time?" asked Grind.  "How do we stop them?
And where are our people?"
     "I'm afraid your friends are lost in time," Timeslip said.  "They've
probably been sent to the past, where their very existence threatens
disruptions in the present.  That's why there are timequakes.  Until they
return, dead or alive, the disruptions will continue."
     "And how do we get them back?" Grind asked.
     "I don't know," Timeslip confessed.  "After what they did to me, my
power's virtually gone.  I can still feel that things are messed up, but I
can't do anything about it.  If your friends return, it might not even be in
your lifetime.  If they have a choice between coming back too early or too
late, they're smart enough to pick 'too late.'"
     Conflicto lay back down and covered his face with a pillow.  "Someone
tell Sultry.  Anyone but me.  I've died enough already."

               *              *              *              *

[August 23, AD 79 - Pompeii]

     Triton was surprised by where he and the others ended up.  The last
thing he remembered was the scarlet beam enveloping him, and when the light
cleared, he found himself standing in the middle of what appeared to be an
oval Roman amphitheatre, next to Solar Max, Jen Kleinvogel, and Aegis.  His
longtime foes...it was still hard to think of them as allies...seemed as
perplexed as he was.
     "We're not in Monaco anymore," he said to the others.  His AstroSpear
was gone, probably still stuck in the ground at the Jardin.
     They weren't alone.  Apparently, by the looks of the crowd screaming and
racing out of the amphitheatre, and the stunned looks on the combatants'
faces, they had interrupted a gladiatorial game.  Soon, the amphitheatre
cleared, leaving the four of them quite unsure of where or even *when* they
were.
     Aegis marched up to Triton.  "What did you do to us?"
     "Don't be hasty, Cas," said Jen Kleinvogel.  "We were trying to fix
time, and it seems we might have made things worse."
     Solar Max floated high into the air, before descending again.  "Worse
isn't the word for it.  By the looks of it, we're quite close to a volcano."
     "Crap."  Triton had an inkling where and when they were, and called up a
geography program installed in his helmet.  He used the armor's thrusters and
lifted himself high to confirm his suspicions.  He also scanned through all
the radio channels he expected to be used, but found nothing but the
electromagnetic roar an active volcano pumped out.  He came back down.  "We
traveled through time, all right.  We're in Pompeii, before the eruption of
Mount Vesuvius.  By my readings, that volcano's going to blow any day."
     Jen Kleinvogel's eyes widened.  "79 A.D.  How are we going to get back?"
     Solar Max put an armored hand gently on her shoulder.  "Don't worry,
Jen, we'll find a way.  Or else, our teams will."
     Aegis crossed his arms.  "If the volcano's about to explode, shouldn't
we do something to help?"
     Solar Max shook his head.  "If we *are* in the past, Aegis, anything we
do might change the future.  We've interfered enough already, simply by
disrupting this gladiatorial fight, although the impending destruction of the
area will probably lessen any effects we might be having if we take care.  I
hate to say this, but it may be for the best that the city's inhabitants go
to their fate under the volcano's ashes, as history meant it to be."
     Triton grunted, not at all agreeing with Solar Max.  He remembered the
Temporal Ethics class at the Academy, and hated what the teachers preached.
After all, if they weren't meant to change events, why invent time-travel in
the first place?  In fact, a few ideas came to him.  This was an opportunity
too good to waste.  There were many events that could be averted in the
future.  Of course, he would be very careful about how he approached it, but
he was certain he could save a few lives.  Like Peryton's.
     "We need to be very careful about what we do from here on," Solar Max
said.  "Jen, you can reconnoiter without being seen, so you're our best bet
for figuring out exactly when we are, and how close to the eruption time it
is.  Don't forget our comms are limited to short range mode, since we can't
exactly tap into the grid."
     "I'm on it," she said, and flew into the air, disappearing as her sheath
veiled her.
     "Triton, we should try to find a place where our presence is least
likely to make an impact on the past, like Antarctica or an uninhabited
island," continued Solar Max.
    "Great.  You want to exile us to the coldest and most desolate continent
on Earth," Triton mocked.  "Look, Zachary, it doesn't matter if we're in
Rome, Egypt, or Timbuktu.  All we need to do is to figure out a way to travel
back to where we started, and you can't do it without my genius."
     "How do you figure that?" Solar Max asked.  His tone told Derek that
he'd at least considered the problem himself, though.  Maybe even tried to
time travel himself once.
     "Any attempt to travel through time requires precision, or we might
overshoot our target," said Triton.  "Our only hope is to home in on
something like the AstroSpear, which will act as a beacon.  Only I know
enough about the weapon to ensure we don't end up in the Precambrian, 1281,
1939, 3689, or whenever," he said, throwing out a few random years that
popped into his head.  "Look, Zachary, there might be some residual
space-time anomalies floating around.  Could you scan for them from orbit?"
     "I'll give it a shot," Solar Max said, and flew straight up, his armor's
boosters leaving a trail of flame behind him to momentarily rival Vesuvius.
     "Might I speak to you a moment?" Triton said in a soft voice to Aegis.
     "I have nothing to say to you, killer," Aegis replied.
     "Really?  Because I have an idea on how we can save your brother,"
Triton said.
     "Save Pol?  You killed him in cold blood two years ago," Aegis said.  "I
still intend to see you executed for your crime, Triton."
     "Think about it, Aegis," Triton said.  "We are in the past.  I didn't
kill Pol two years ago, I *will* kill him nearly two *thousand* years from
now...but there are all sorts of things we can do to ensure that the same
tragedy doesn't happen in the future...provided we can get away from these
do-gooders and *lightly* tamper with the timeline."
     "What makes you think you can do it without destroying us all?"  Aegis
asked.
     "Because I'm me, and I layer contingency upon contingency," Triton
replied.  He opened a small compartment in his armor and showed Aegis what he
hid inside.  It was a tiny piece of plasm.
     "What is it?" Aegis asked.
     "A piece of Myriad, a seed with which we can grow a future and fool the
world," Triton said.  "Trust me.  I need not be your brother's killer, and we
could have Pollux back, along with Peryton.  Are you with me?  Because if you
are, we need to get away *now*."
     Aegis was torn, that was certain.  But Triton knew Aegis would never
pass up a chance to resurrect his beloved brother.
     "All right.  What do we do?" Aegis said at last.
     "Sheath us in your invisibility, and we find a place where we can scheme
in peace," Triton said.  "Don't worry.  I know enough tricks to keep them
from finding us.  When our preparations are done, you and I can travel back
to our proper time."
     "What about Solar Max and Kleinvogel?" Aegis asked.  "We can't strand
them here!"
     "If I know Zachary, he will turn the sun inside out to reunite with
Meteor," Triton said.  "They'll find their own way back."
     "Then let's go," said Aegis.
     Triton smiled behind his faceplate.  He made for a great Mephistopheles.

               *              *              *              *

     The Pompeiian messenger, hiding behind a steep tier of stone seats,
watched in fascination as the last of the two strangers flew into the air,
disappearing.  They spoke in a foreign tongue unknown to him, but there were
a few words he thought he recognized.  The words Rome and Egypt, for example,
or "astro".  What did it all mean?  Were they gods?  Two wore armor that
could only have been forged by the gods, that much was certain.  Yet, one
bore tokens of that Jewish cult, the Christians...who denied the existence of
any God but theirs.
     Faced with such wonders, he was convinced the road to immortality could
be found in the riddle of these magical men.  They spoke of Rome and Egypt,
so that was where he would find his destiny, if not for himself, then for his
bloodline.  He would leave Pompeii this very day for Rome, and begin his
search for the secret to life immortal there, then in Egypt.
     One day, the world would come to worship Remus Arcus Angelus and his
descendants.

               *              *              *              *

[April 15, 2026 - The edge of Lakshmi Planum, Venus]

     Light Errant, in the form of a will-o'-wisp, led Labyrinthe to a small
grove on the border of the vast grasslands west of the inhabited part of the
continent.  Labyrinthe seemed oblivious to the fact that he was even there,
staring blankly forward.
     Three other photonics awaited Light Errant and Labyrinthe in the grove.
Whiteout, his ultraviolet companion-puppet Oblivion, and the murderous
Mothflame.
     Light Errant turned back into the shape of a woman.  "Told you my powers
have grown," she smirked.  "Labyrinthe is completely under my control, and
won't remember a thing about his presence here today."
     The orange Mothflame snarled.  "So, he is to be the father of your
miracle child?"
     Light Errant chuckled.  "Oh, our son will be even greater than
Doublecross himself, commanding light and darkness with the blood of a Viau
mage.  This child will be the messiah of photonics, I promise you.  Our kind
will shape the destinies of Earth and Venus, in a way even our old master
never thought possible."  Her new ally on Earth, the woman who called herself
Never, told her what the future held.  For that information, she had been
quite willing to erase the woman's identity from Timeslip's mind.  "And it
all begins with a single kiss."
     Light Errant pulled Labyrinthe's head towards her, and kissed him.
     Light and darkness would never again be the same.

============================================================================

Next:

     "Four to Never" may be over, but "Timequake" is just beginning!  See ASH
#79 for the attempts to deal with the unleashed temporal chaos in "Divine
Wind"!  As for the four stranded in AD 79, their story will unfold soon
enough....

============================================================================

Author's Notes:

     Yes, there was a swiss-cheese tribute to Quantum Leap up there.

Editor's Notes:

     Tony graciously put me in as a co-writer in the header, but I decided
that this time my contributions were a bit more limited, so I tweaked it.  :)
My longest single stretch of text here was Timeslip's recounting of his plan
to seal off his old timeline, if you're curious.  Timeslip's quest to become
without beginning was laid out in the "Time and Space" arc of ASH, mostly in
ASH #64.
     At the moment, Tony's not sure if the Pompeii storyline will continue as
an arc in CSV, or as its own miniseries, hence the vague "Next" box.  How
much the Impossible Five are in the foreground for the next few months will
depend on Tony's schedule, though.  ASH is going to concentrate on dealing
with the consequences of the time fissures, distracted exactly as Never
intended.  

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