Rumors of Reincarnation (CC, Khivar/Mature) Pt.92 12/22[WIP]

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Re: Rumors of Reincarnation (CC, Khivar/Mature) Pt.90 8/22/09

Post by paper »

Wow! Thanks for the tremendous welcome, Janetfl. I feel bad that I haven't worked harder to type up that big box of chapters I have hand-written. Every time I see it on the shelf, I turn and run the other way. I wonder if that is how Serena feels? Now that the weather has turned positively frigid, maybe I can get to them?

Now, how about checking in on THE RED DRAGON?

Watch your step. Don’t trip over any banned words or funky names populating our everyday language this year.

91 - Time . . . and time again

In the middle of the night, I go walking in my sleep.
From the mountains of faith, to a river so deep
I must be looking for something, something sacred I lost
But the river is wide and it’s too hard to cross

And even though I know the river is wide I walk down every evening & I stand on the shore
And I try to cross to the opposite side so I can find what I am looking for

In the middle of the night, I go walking in my sleep
Through the valley of fear to a river so deep
And I’ve been searching for something taken out of my soul
Something I would never lose, something somebody stole

I don’t know why I go walking at night but now I’m tired & I don’t want to walk anymore
I hope it doesn’t take the rest of my life to find what I’ve been looking for

In the middle of the night, I go walking in my sleep
Through the jungle of doubt to a river so deep
I know I’m searching for something, something so undefined
That it can only be seen by the eyes of the blind . . . in the middle of the night

I’m not sure about life after this; God knows I’ve never been a spiritual man
Baptized by the fire, I wade into the river that runs to the Promised Land

In the middle of the night, I go walking in my sleep
Through the desert of truth to a river so deep
We all end in the ocean; we all start in the streams
We’re all carried along by the river of dreams . . . in the middle of the night

The River of Dreams by Billy Joel




The room is dark except for the glow of the brilliant red moon emanating from the small crack where the window covering brushes against the wall. An intermittent rustling sound breaks the stillness as the weary Dragon employs his desperate search to find a comfortable position and a little precious rest after another long & grueling day.

* * * * *

‘As I lie here and ponder my future, a thousand thoughts are running through my slightly delirious mind. Plans for the take-over recycle through my consciousness in rapid succession, tumbling over everyday concerns and melding seamlessly, until they are all jumbled up together and indistinguishable from utter gibberish.

Sleep will not come.

Taking over another planet is a monumental task. The minutia of essential details I ponder each day is mind boggling. I am starting to feel like a zhombie from the pressure and strains. Hah! The shocked looks I get from people in the hallways and on the streets are starting to get to me.

I know I look like a crazy man, lately.

I’m acting like one, also.

I feel so “out of synch”. I need something to keep me grounded in reality. If only I could stop time and take a staycation from this Haydeez. Maybe I should get up & go for a swim. Some exercise might relax me and dispel some of these useless negative perceptions causing all this angziety. I need something to take my mind off the fact that there is now more for me than just Antar and the Whirligig Galaxy. There is an entire Universe out there for me to conquer.

An Emperor’s work is never done.

Time exists in multiple subsets. It is a well know fact on Antar. Sometimes it comes in very handy, when you can bounce back and forth to change the outcome of your plans. Not many Antarians have ever experienced this time-altered state. It is a useful skill to have on your side, especially when you plan to invade a Kingdom. Even more advantageous when you invade from the inside without causing so much as a ripple.

Zan sure never saw me coming for his throne!

General TruDat had this skill. The maverick Time-dodger used it to my advantage many times. Too bad he died when the rebels blew that building blew up. Time-dodgers are not infallible. When they are not actively using their skill, they are just as susceptible as anyone else. I should know.

Zan doesn’t have this game-changing skill. Never did. Unfortunately, neither do I. There were probably only a handful of people alive at any one time that possessed it. Many of the Time-dodgers belonged to religious orders, feeling that the skill was a gift from the goddess. That’s doubtful, seeing as how they are all now extinct. I had them all eliminated as soon as Tove and I could come up with quiet ways to accomplish it. It wasn’t hard. Even time-dodgers can’t outwit my Seers. I never really liked them. It is hard to trust someone who can go back and change things after the fact. I don’t want anyone to have an unfair advantage, unless it’s me!

Controlling time is a desirable tool. The Bhrillig used to have a handy device that could cause time to dilate like it does when it’s closer to the center of the Universe. Nicholas had one in his arsenal. He used it to root out the Royal Four when he attacked them in Roz’s Well. Then the fool misplaced it. It’s just as well. It isn’t an exact science and it was never easy to avoid the pitfalls it threw in your path.

The problem with time dilation is that it only stretches so far. Then timelines become entangled to such a point that it blurs the spacial temporal barriers until it is impossible to determine which subset you are currently experiencing. In order to affect a certain timeline, one has to be very precise in one’s maneuverings. It is easy to get lost when time-dodging. You could find yourself in a completely different experience in another dimension if you are not careful. It can be a very dangerous instrument to employ.

I’m sure I won’t need any such fancy devices to conquer the Terrans. Those gutter-monkeys will be so confused and overwrought by my diversionary tactics that they will be easily subdued. I will swoop in & transform their world with an economic meltdown from Wall Street to Main Street. They will probably even be grateful to me for saving them from their lives of utter mediocrity.

Ugh! I find their imperfections so distasteful.

If I could just let go of these useless jitters! I trust that everything is copacetic at this point in time. Everyone is learning their part with ease and aplomb. Tove has drilled them all mercilessly. I know that I can rely on my people to play their roles to perfection. Actors, politicians, warriors, and pawns. All are ready to hit the ground running. Plans are complete. Supplies have been assembled. The only thing missing right now is our rebellious transport. And it is driving me crazy. I’d pray for patience if I believed in that bunk!

I realize that Serena is working furiously to make everything right. She is testing the equipment, overseeing the ship-building and even educating the masses about what will be their new home. Perhaps if the sniveling dolt would remain on-task, she could get things done faster. She knows that the wormhole is her first priority. She comes up with all these infuriating excuses about formula variables and misalignment of gravitons. One has to wonder if all the stress is shrinking her brain. The planet’s orbit is once again approaching the sun & everything is heating up. This has all gone on so long that people are starting to wonder if we are really going to Terran at all.

I won’t wait much longer.

I can’t.

Not only is this planet deteriorating fast, but my troops are becoming more and more antsy with the dawn of each light cycle. Practical jokes and nights in the pubs can only distract them for so long. I’ve opened my harem to the officers to keep them content. Goddess knows that I have not taken any pleasure there in a good long while.



. . . I am saving myself.



For her. . .



. . . I hope she is worth it.










I know she will be.’




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Kavar Khivar A Despot's work is never done.
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Rumors of Reincarnation (CC, Khivar/Mature) Pt.92 12/22/09

Post by paper »

Sorry for the long absence. I have been doing more writing and I think the chapters will come much faster now.

Thanks so much to Janetfl for your wonderful feedback. I'm going to try my best to make Kavar a little nastier so you don't like him so much. :D

Today’s song is “Taking Care of Business” by Bachman-Turner Overdrive



92 - Packing the Essentials

You get up every morning from your alarm-clock's warning
Take the 8:15 into the city
There's a whistle up above and people pushin', people shovin'
And the girls who try to look pretty

And if your train's on time you can get to work by nine
And start your slaving job to get your pay
If you ever get annoyed, look at me I'm self-employed
I love to work at nothing all day

And I'll be...

Taking care of business every day
Taking care of business every way
I've been taking care of business, it's all mine
Taking care of business and working overtime
Work out!



He’s been waiting all morning. Kavar leans forward as he paces back and forth with his hands clasped behind him. On his face is an intense mix of frustration and concentration. Finally, Tove marches in, extends the obligatory salute and then stands smartly at attention waiting for his Emperor to acknowledge him.

“Is it done?”

“No, Sire. My troops battered down the gate and scoured the place. Personnel, data, and equipment -- all gone. The only things left at the Monastery are a few squatters taking advantage of the cooler location.”

“I was sure they were hiding the old bat there. Where in the Whirled can she be? We’ve been searching forever. It’s like she’s disappeared into some black hole or something! We know she didn’t die in that Tsunami that hit Czhyna. Could they have gotten her out somehow? Maybe she really did get on that kroozer with the Cerians & left for Atlanteez.” Kavar laughs at his own joke, even though he has a bad feeling in the pit of his gut. He suddenly quiets, stands rigidly and looks commandingly at Tove: “Scour the planet for those Wfitches! I want them found and I want the entire Order of Zofya exterminated along with the Dowager, before we leave!”

Tove bows low and returns to his task.

+ + + +

Kavar has ordered that evacuation procedures be stepped up even further to beat the deadline for mass extinction. The turbulent red sun now grows whiter and more compact under the force of its own tremendous gravity since the unexpected and tragic loss of so much of its fuel. The process for it to go “supernova” is speeding up. Here on Antar, each long light cycle grows hotter than the last as the crispy planet orbits nearer to the sun. Streets are deserted because of the heat and there isn’t much reason to leave the safety of your home because the shops are all empty anyway. The entire planet is under what is called ‘Military Law’ right now and if you are caught outside during the hottest part of the day, you are considered ‘out of mind’ and placed under arrest ‘for your own protection.’ Then you are thrown into the dungeon where the temperature is just slightly less than outside under the hot sun. At least you get scraps to eat. For some, this is better than what they have been enduring.

People see you having fun just a-lying in the sun
Tell them that you like it this way
It's the work that we avoid and we're all self-employed
We love to work at nothing all day

And we'll be...
Taking care of business every day
Taking care of business every way
I've been taking care of business, it's all mine
Taking care of business and working overtime

Take good care of my business when I'm away, every day whoo!


Construction crews are busier than ever. The grueling pace is taking its toll on everyone involved. New ships are in constant production and older ships are also being retrofitted if they are suitable for interstellar travel. Scarce supplies have been hoarded for the trip in guarded safe houses and plans are slowly coming to fruition.

Serena and her teams have put together an immense number of tubes that allow for suspended animation on the ship so there won’t be so many mouths to feed on the long journey.

As ships are finished, lots are drawn among inhabitants to fill the available stasis chambers on the transport vessels. Khivar isn’t overly concerned about which civilians make it to their new home. His military is taking up a large number of the spots on each vessel. He has also ordered Serena’s new drill to be installed on one of the ships. He is sure that it will come in handy on Terran for one thing or another.

Serena is having a modicum of success with the wormhole, but it will take the ships much longer to arrive on their new home so they are leaving now. The weapons lockers are full. Provisions have been loaded. Goodbyes have been said.

The first ships left in the middle of the night without fanfare. Ahead of schedule. When the news hit the Vid-Screens, there was rioting in the streets. At this point, any civilian without military training will do just about anything to get a spot on one of the many private transports also flowing out of the galaxy. Some will try to follow the path of the speedier Military ships as far as they can, to Terran. Some will follow the ships which left looking for Atlanteez. Many will look for the first inhabitable planet they can find and try to make a life there.

Even more will remain here on Antar and quietly wait for the end. The aged. The feeble and infirm. The poor. The children, who have lost their parents to one of the many calamities and also those who have been abandoned by their kin.

They will remain and pass on to the next plane of existence and hope that the passing won’t be too incredibly painful. The military will hand out packets to anyone who asks, which will allow an individual to depart quickly and painlessly in their sleep if they wish to control their own fates. There will be prayer and rituals and families will get together and hold hands to face the journey together as a clan.

Then there are the scoffing disbelievers and Naysayers, who believe they can exist underground and have managed to pool their funds to buy just enough dragonz kin to reinforce their lair. Still more feel that the planet will balance itself out and they are taking their chances on that hope alone. No one can predict with exact certainty that Antar will not survive the orbit irregularities. They will gamble with their very lives and hope that luck is on their side.

+ + + + +

“Pass the rabbit food. I’m starving.”

“Funny girl!”

Serena passes the bowl of sprouts to Joovee who wrinkles her nose and fills her plate with the closest thing they have to fresh vegetables right now. As the two girls share the meal they discuss their favorite departed Monarch. She’d sent the Dowager Queen through the wormhole earlier, right under Khivar’s nose. The sprightly old woman insisted she would survive the journey and it seemed less risky than trying to sneak her onto one of the ships as was the original plan. Serena had packed her in a special Dragonz kin suit that would absorb some of the impact and keep her in one piece. The Dowager has always had healing powers but they are diminishing as she ages.

“I hope that Queen Cera got to Terran ok. I hear that it can be a pretty rough trip.”

“Yeah. But she should be all right. Larek went through right in front of her. He’ll make sure she doesn’t get hurt. He’s been pretty great so far.”

“He’s a real friend. Where were they set down?”

“She asked for a remote location on Terran with plenty of bustling activity to cover their tracks. That’s what I promised her. I think the place I’m sending her is called ‘Why Keekee’. She is used to living on an island and it should remind her of Czhyna since it is on a remote chain of islands within a large ocean. I’m hiding a good amount of the black ice in that area also. The islands were originally formed by volcanic activity so they are rife with material that looks similar. I’ve been dropping large amounts right on top of their black fields and no one will be able to tell the difference without the proper equipment.

Khivar has chosen an area in New Mexico to deposit “his” major stores of black ice. He wants it centrally located so it is handy when he is ready to attack Zan. I’ve also placed a large amount just off-shore in the deepest local trench, closer to his probable base of operations.”

“Will he be living close to Zan?”

“No one knows where Zan is now. But we do know that he used to live in a place called ‘Roz’s Well’. Or ‘Roswell’. So that’s where Kavar wants to start out. Geography was never my strong suit, but I managed to find the city on one of the internet maps in the data stream. The country that Zan grew up in is called the United States and the unit that Roswell is located in is called ‘Georgia’.”

“What’s a ‘Georgia’?”

“I have no clue! But Roswell is pretty close to the edge of the country. There is a large body of water which borders the state called the Atlantis Ocean. Kavar will probably locate his base along the water. You know how he likes the raging surf. I think it reminds him of his moods!”

The girls share a laugh. It feels good to let off a little steam since the long hours and grueling work conditions usually offer little reprieve.

“Well. Back to the old grind, womyn! We don’t want Kavar to catch us sloughing off or we’ll both be eviscerated PDQ.”

“You know it, Ser. See you later”.


Taking care of business
Taking care of business
Taking care of business

Taking care of business everyday
Taking care of business every way
Taking care of business, It’s all mine
Taking care of business and working overtime
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Kavar Khivar A Despot's work is never done.
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