8FOLD: Red Hart # 6, "For All Mean Well"

[Tom Russell]

  EIGHTFOLD PROUDLY PRESENTS MR. TOM RUSSELL'S
               HISTORY OF THE

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 ##         [8F-129] ACT SIX [PW-07]
               FOR ALL MEAN WELL


               ~-<>-~

THE ARGUMENT.
Earth's champions hatch a plan to stop the death-moon Awides that
hinges on the use of the "god-in-the-box", the contained Eight-Force
of the murdered god Octonion. They wait on the return of Red Hart to
carry out the plan, hopefully before Awides reaches Earth. But Red
Hart has been defeated by Narok, the King of Dragons. Sedenion-- who
still does not know that he is secretly the Red Hart's nemesis, the
Never-Lord-- considers himself a fool for freeing Narok. But in
speaking with the dragon, Sedenion becomes convinced that he himself,
not Red Hart, is the hero long-prophesized, and that he alone can
overcome all the various dooms set upon the universe if he can but
claim his father's Eight-Force. Prevented from physically setting foot
upon the Earth by an enchantment of Red Hart's, he sends in a dream
his slly Nox, the beautiful Queen of Night, to offer Vanessa Morrison
her heart's desire-- a way back into outer space-- in return for
stealing the god-in-the-box.

               ~-<>-~

Dramatis Personae.

SEDENION, god of sixteenth-dimensional algebra,
     secretly the dread NEVER-LORD

    Allies of the Never-Lord:
NAROK, the King of Dragons, Destroyer of Heavens
NOX, the gorgeous Queen of Night

RED HART, the Prince of All Forests

    Allies of Red Hart:
JULIE ANN JUSTICE, leader of the Seven Wonders
BLUE BOXER, leader of the Daylighters
VANESSA MORRISON, called Van, ex-patriot of Earth
     now stranded

               ~-<>-~

SCENE I. The Lighthouse.
[Enter BLUE BOXER, dancing jubilantly. Enter JULIE ANN JUSTICE.]

JULIE ANN
Either you have good news, or we're under attack by the Living Tarantella.

BLUE BOXER [he stops dancing]
Is that a thing?

JULIE ANN
Folk dancing, my only weakness. Good news?

BLUE BOXER
Um, well, we spotted Awides around Jupiter, and with his speed and
depending on which theory we're working from, he'll be in range to
kill everything on Earth at some point in the next twelve to sixteen
hours.

JULIE ANN
That's dancing news over in the Daylighters?

BLUE BOXER
I haven't got to that part yet. We're now able to trace his
trajectory. And thanks to preliminary analysis of the god-in-the-box,
we're able to identify the energy signature of this Octonion.

JULIE ANN
Who died.

BLUE BOXER
Who died, but left a trail as the Plus-One high-tailed it this way.
That trail and the path Awides is following, perfect match. Ergo, he's
following the god-in-the-box.

JULIE ANN
I'm still failing to see how this news is even remotely boogie-worthy.

BLUE BOXER
We can use the box to lure him away from Earth. Or rather, Red Hart
can, whenever he comes back.

JULIE ANN
Well, let's just hope it's in the next few hours.

[Exeunt.]


SCENE II. Deep Space.
[Enter, drifting through space, battered and unconscious, RED HART.
Exit RED HART.]

SCENE III. Outside the Dark Sleep.
[Enter SEDENION.]

SEDENION
I see the battle's done, and dragon's won.
Twin hearts still beat, but weakly. All's now lost.
Why did you free the beast, Sedenion?
It made such sense then. Now I see the cost,
And wonder what and why I thought it right.
But how was I to know the prince would fall?
I put my trust in him and all his might.
I tried to help. I thought. I've doomed us all.
My father thought he helped when moon he woke.
Oh, meaning well means naught for all mean well.
E'en Never-Lord did "noble" ends invoke.
At least he's dead, for near as I can tell,
I still for reasons strange dark powers hold.
I thought to use them well but was too bold.

[Enter an aspect of NAROK.]

NAROK
I greet thee, Never-Lord. My task's near done.
For though thy nephew lives, he won't ere long.

SEDENION
Thy greeting I return, great dragon-king.
I see my brother's son did damage you.

NAROK
A scratch, and only that. The whelp got worse.
E'en Narok needs must rest and lick his wounds.
I then shall speed to finish off the prince.

SEDENION
Then rest and lick you here, at my Dark Sleep.
I bid you welcome, Narok. Be my guest.

NAROK [laughing]
O, what a funny little god you are!
As if thy citadel can contain me
When this whole tiny universe does bulge
And warp around my sheer magnificence.
Though I admire thy elegant new form.
Tis small, so small my eyes must squint to see,
The smallest one you've ever wormed inside.
And yet so full of power. Sixteen planes?

SEDENION [aside]
He thinks the Never-Lord's inside me now.

NAROK
What doth you mumble now?

SEDENION
                          Thy pardon, king.
Yes, sixteen dimensions this puppet pulls.
Through them he speaks the tongue of creation.

NAROK
Such wonders had we not in time ere time.
And yet I smell a power greater still.

SEDENION
No; none be better than Sedenion.

NAROK
It stinks of eight.

SEDENION
                    I know its name. But eight
Is half of sixteen, half of power mine.

NAROK
Tis true, as far as gods and Naturals go.
But Never-Lord is negation, inverse.
You divide Life, and splintered fractions make.
While three be more than two, it yet is true
That third is less than half, and truer still,
One-eighth is more than sixteen under one.
In Never's hands is sixteen half of eight.
And now, I find to finish nephew thine.

[Exit NAROK.]

SEDENION
He'd speak it true, if I was Never-Lord.
But though I'm not, I would be stronger still
If I did wield my father's powers eight.
Much more than match for Narok Dragon-King,
Who did himself lay low the Forest Prince.
So, more than Hart I'd be. And more than moon.
Perhaps the equal to the coming flood!
Yes! Yes! The ancients speak of "last true hope"
Behind the seven seals. I thought it him;
I thought Red Hart the hero that we need.
But when I broke the sacred seals, somehow
I gained domain o'er powers dark and bleak.
And now I see the reason! Not to aid
The prince, but him surpass. To save us all.
'Twas not Red Hart I freed, nor Never-Lord,
But great Sedenion, our last true hope!
Once armed with powers sixteen, dark, and eight
This universe I'll save, decreed by fate!

[Exit SEDENION in a flash of light. A moment later, he returns as he went.]

SEDENION
I thought to go to Earth to nimbly pluck
>From them my father's stolen force of eight.
But Earth rebuffed my leap. I sense Red Hart,
Before he went to meet the dragon-king,
Did shield that world from Never-Lord's dread hate.
I'm not the one he thinks, but neither Shades
Nor great Sedenion can touch the Earth,
Nor grasp by godly hands the prize I need.
But yet I see a way, for possible
Is anything in dreams. And so, to sleep.

[SEDENION sleeps. From his body comes forth a ghostly glimpse of NOX,
who exits in flight.]


SCENE IV. The Lighthouse, infirmary.
[VAN, alone, asleep. Enter, descending, a vision of NOX, awakening VAN.]

VAN
Wowza. Who're you?

NOX
I am the night itself, your stars and dreams,
Your dream of stars. I'm she who nicks and knocks.

VAN
You are gorgeous. Did I just say that out loud? I'm sorry. I'm
actually pretty super-hetero, absolute zero on Kinsey, but looking at
you, I might be nudging up to a two or a three. Or, hell, a six. But
damn. You... you're... please... let me touch you. I don't know why
I'm acting like this.

NOX
Because I'm what you want. I'm boundless space.
The one and only place where you are free.
Where you are you. I am the thing you lost.

VAN [desperately]
I'd give anything for it. To be in space again. To be myself again. To
choose who I am.

NOX
Then bring to Nox the box that holds the eight.

VAN
But where are you?

NOX
A place that's called Dark Sleep. But touch the box,
And think of Nox, and 'cross all space you'll leap.
But give me that, and I'll return the stars.

VAN
But they need it, don't they? To save the world from Awides? I heard
them. They said they were going to use it... somehow...

NOX
I see a way the box might save their Earth.
The only way the deathless moon might die.
It shall in turn put box beyond your reach.
And thus deny thyself my tender touch.
Which do you want the more, their lives or yours?

VAN
Wait... wait...!

[Exit NOX, ascending. Enter JULIE ANN JUSTICE.]

JULIE ANN
Van, are you alright? I heard you shouting...

VAN
Yeah, super-lady, I'm fine. Just, just had a dream.

JULIE ANN
Okay. Just wanted to check up on you.

VAN
How about you? How goes saving the world?

JULIE ANN
So far, not so good, but that's usually the way. Let me know if you
need anything.

VAN
Thanks, but I can take care of myself.

[Exit JULIE ANN JUSTICE.]

VAN
I know what I need.

[Exit VAN.]

COPYRIGHT (C) 2014 TOM RUSSELL.