{"id":1071,"date":"2025-01-26T21:41:31","date_gmt":"2025-01-27T02:41:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/?p=1071"},"modified":"2025-01-28T23:09:30","modified_gmt":"2025-01-29T04:09:30","slug":"the-changeling-game-chapter-97","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/the-changeling-game-chapter-97\/","title":{"rendered":"The Changeling Game, Chapter 97"},"content":{"rendered":"<style type=\"text\/css\">\np {\n  border-bottom: 0;\n  border-top: 0;\n  display: block;\n  padding-bottom: 0;\n  padding-top: 0;\n}\np.indented {\n  margin-bottom: 0;\n  margin-top: 0;\n  text-indent: 1em;\n}\np.indented-offset {\n  margin-bottom: 1em;\n  margin-top: 1em;\n  text-indent: 1em;\n}\np.block {\n  margin-bottom: 1em;\n  margin-top: 1em;\n  margin-left: 2em;\n  margin-right: 2em;\n}\np.center-block {\n  margin-bottom: 1em;\n  margin-top: 1em;\n  margin-left: 2em;\n  margin-right: 2em;\n  text-align: center;\n}\np.letter-block {\n  margin-bottom: 0;\n  margin-top: 1em;\n  margin-left: 2em;\n  margin-right: 2em;\n}\np.indent-block {\n  margin-bottom: 1em;\n  margin-top: 0;\n  margin-left: 2em;\n  margin-right: 2em;\n  text-indent: 1em;\n}\np.poetry {\n  margin-bottom: 1em;\n  margin-top: 1em;\n  margin-left: 3em;\n  margin-right: 2em;\n  text-indent: -2em;\n}\np.right {\n  margin-bottom: 1em;\n  margin-top: 1em;\n  text-align: right;\n}\nhr {\n  align-content: center;\n  width: 50%;\n  background: linear-gradient(to right, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%);\n  height: 3px;\n  margin-bottom: 1em;\n  margin-top: 1em;\n}\ntt {\n  font: 0.857em menlo, monaco, consolas, monospace;\n  margin: auto;\n}\nh2 {\ntext-align: center;\n}\nh2.chapterhead {\nmargin-bottom: 2em;\ntext-align: center;\n}\nh3 {\n  text-align: center;\n}\nh3.afterword {\n  margin-bottom: 1em;\n  text-decoration: underline;\n}\nh3.headline {\n  margin-bottom: 0;\n}\nh4 {\n  text-align: center;\n}\nh4.headline {\n  margin-top: 0;\n  margin-bottom: 1em;\n}\n.nowrap {\n  text-indent: 0;\n  display: inline-block;\n}\nli {\n  list-style-type: number;\n  padding-left: 1em;\n  margin-left: 0;\n  margin-bottom: 10px;\n}\na {\n  text-decoration: none;\n}\n<\/style>\n<p><b>Title:<\/b> The Changeling Game <small>(Formerly <i>Identity Theft<\/i>)<\/small><br \/>\n<b>Author:<\/b> Ardath Rekha<br \/>\n<b>Chapter:<\/b> 97\/98<br \/>\n<b>Fandom:<\/b> <i>Pitch Black<\/i> (2000); <i>The Chronicles of Riddick<\/i> (2004); <i>The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury<\/i> (2004)<br \/>\n<b>Rating:<\/b> X<br \/>\n<b>Warnings:<\/b> Adult themes, controversial subject matter, harsh language, strong sexual content<br \/>\n<b>Category:<\/b> Het<br \/>\n<b>Pairing:<\/b> Riddick\/Jack<br \/>\n<b>Summary:<\/b> Jack B. Badd gets married, and goes to war.<br \/>\n<b>Disclaimer:<\/b> The characters and events of <i>Pitch Black,<\/i> <i>The Chronicles of Riddick,<\/i> and <i>The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury<\/i> are not mine, but belong to Universal Studios.  I just <i>wish<\/i> I were in charge of their fates.  No money is being made off of this.  I\u2019m writing strictly for love of the story.<br \/>\n<b>Feedback:<\/b> Absolutely, the more the better!  Shred me, whip me, beat me, make me feel grammatical! I post \u201crough,\u201d so I can always use the help. \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n<input type='hidden' bg_collapse_expand='6a654c8d1935b9073024352' value='6a654c8d1935b9073024352'><input type='hidden' id='bg-show-more-text-6a654c8d1935b9073024352' value='Long post is long. Click to read the story.'><input type='hidden' id='bg-show-less-text-6a654c8d1935b9073024352' value='Hide the story again.'><button id='bg-showmore-action-6a654c8d1935b9073024352' class='bg-showmore-plg-button bg-green-button  '   style=\" color:#D9ECFB;\">Long post is long. Click to read the story.<\/button><div id='bg-showmore-hidden-6a654c8d1935b9073024352' >  <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"chapterhead\">97.<br \/>\n    <u>The Rise of Dame Riddick<\/u><\/h2>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cIt\u2019s okay,\u201d Kyra told Jack as they sat by the stream, watching Elodie play. \u201cI understand. He was yours first, anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Somehow that just made Jack feel even more guilty.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cYou understand, huh?\u201d Jack asked. \u201cI\u2019m not sure <i>I<\/i> do yet. I\u2019m getting <i>married<\/i> in the morning and part of me is <span class=\"nowrap\">like\u2026<\/span> what the hell just happened here?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Kyra laughed and shook her head. \u201cIt\u2019s not that complicated. He\u2019s like <i>me.<\/i> Mostly stays away from connections to other people, but when one <span class=\"nowrap\">forms\u2026<\/span> it\u2019s <i>everything.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Jack had to admit that made sense. <span class=\"nowrap\">\u201cStill\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI\u2019m <i>not<\/i> upset, Jack. I barely knew him. Most of what I thought I knew came from you, <span class=\"nowrap\">so\u2026\u201d<\/span> She shrugged. \u201cIt was more a bond with you than him. In reality, I only really knew him for about a day.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI\u2019m not all <i>that<\/i> far ahead of you, though. Realtime, not just thinking about him or imagining him, I\u2019ve known him for maybe two weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cLonger than you actually knew either of your other Great Crushes, though,\u201d Kyra pointed out, a wicked sparkle in her eyes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cHey! Not fair,\u201d Jack laughed. \u201cIt\u2019s <span class=\"nowrap\">just\u2026<\/span> all really fast.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cIt\u2019s been building for centuries.\u201d Kyra looked out across the woodland field. <\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">It was, Jack knew, a place that neither of them had ever been or imagined. But her new, extended senses had allowed her to bring them there, to the rustic cabin where Michael was hiding her mother and little sister. They stood on the other side of a threshold, unseen observers with no actual physicality, but it was comforting to see that Elodie was safe and well.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI remember Joren,\u201d Kyra continued after a reflective moment. \u201cHe talked, a <i>lot<\/i>, about the importance of doing great things for humanity. You ever notice how <i>great<\/i> things are hardly ever <i>good<\/i> things? He set this all in motion. And now here we are, four hundred-some-odd years later, and time\u2019s running out. <i>Everything\u2019s<\/i> fast now. Or, at least, out there it is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cAnd in here? How are you holding up?\u201d It was something she worried about, even if the <i>Apeiros<\/i> kept telling her that Kyra was safe and even beginning to thrive in their care.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI\u2019m a mind without a body,\u201d Kyra said with a smile. \u201cTime moves differently for me, maybe. I\u2019m not really sure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI\u2019m working on that,\u201d Jack sighed. \u201cGotta get the parameters just right to call up just the right <span class=\"nowrap\">\u2019verse\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cFor a <i>body?<\/i>\u201d Kyra might not really have one at the moment, but she could still raise an imaginary eyebrow. \u201cWhat are the parameters you\u2019re using?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cWell, it\u2019s gotta be you,\u201d Jack told her. \u201cI mean, one of your analogues in the U1 cluster, same genetics, same overall string vibrations, so you still have a connection to the Kirshbaum mojo. I couldn\u2019t access those until now, but now\u2026 I\u2019m looking for a stream where you are <i>physically<\/i> healthy, and roughly the same age you were when you died, but somehow don\u2019t have a four-shape or five-shape attached to your shell anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cSo me, but brain-dead?\u201d Kyra asked. \u201cGot it. Can I add a parameter?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cAbsolutely.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cA me who never went through the shit I did. Physically, I mean. I know all your schooling, and that book you love so much, talk about how virginity is a <i>social construct<\/i>, but I want mine the fuck back so I can \u2018lose\u2019 it on <i>my<\/i> terms. If you\u2019re shopping for a Kyra body out in the multiverse, find me one where that\u2019s true.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI think I can do that,\u201d Jack said after a moment\u2019s thought. It was a complicated order, but not impossible. Maybe a Kyra who had never actually left Earth? \u201cAre you asking the <i>Apeiros<\/i> for some selective editing of your memories?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cWe\u2019ve talked about it, yeah,\u201d Kyra said. \u201cI want to know what happened to me, but I don\u2019t want to remember it happening. It\u2019s funny, though. They say that kind of stuff spreads out into other memories, too\u2026 we\u2019ve been experimenting with how it would affect them. Haven\u2019t quite hit on the right combo yet, if you need me to still <span class=\"nowrap\">be\u2026<\/span> well, <i>me.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cDon\u2019t know I\u2019d want you to be anybody else,\u201d Jack told her, wishing that they could hug for real rather than just simulate it in the non-physical world of the mind.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Kyra must have caught the wish. \u201cOne day soon. There\u2019ll be nothing the two of us can\u2019t take down together.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">They\u2019d get to put that to the test soon, Jack was about to say, when she felt a mouth against the skin of her throat.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cGotta go,\u201d she told her sister. \u201cHe\u2019s waking up. I\u2019ll come back soon, I promise.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cEnjoy,\u201d Kyra said, a hint of wistfulness in her voice before she vanished. The cabin and Elodie faded away as well.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Jack opened her eyes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She was surrounded by darkness. Riddick\u2019s world. She could vaguely make out the vaulted ceiling of their bedroom above her. The Lord Marshal\u2019s bed chamber was luxurious, with a plush mattress and silky sheets\u2014apparently neither Riddick nor the man he\u2019d ousted had extended their asceticism to their sleeping arrangements\u2014but those sheets had been pushed to the side hours earlier. Riddick had been voracious in the wake of her hatching, maybe because he\u2019d perceived it instead as her near-death. It appeared his ardor was returning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">He was nuzzling her throat, his hands moving over her skin. She tilted her head back, giving him better access, and began stroking his shoulders and arms. His shields were still too strong for her to pick up much of what he was thinking and feeling, but she <i>was<\/i> picking up a sense that he needed to reassure himself, yet again, that she was unharmed and hadn\u2019t been taken from him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She could definitely help with that.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">It only took a few gentle nudges to get him to bring his mouth to hers. The hunger in his kiss was almost intimidating, but she could feel that same shadow of loss and grief behind it. He needed to know that she was safe, and safely <i>his<\/i>. That he hadn\u2019t lost everything and everyone.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Shifting her position a little, she reached down and guided him inside her, tangling her legs with his. He groaned into her mouth as he filled her. For a moment, he went still, buried in her and holding her close.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">He broke the kiss, lifting his head a little so she could see the mercury gleam of his eyes. <span class=\"nowrap\">\u201cJack\u2026<\/span> need you to promise <span class=\"nowrap\">me\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Uh <span class=\"nowrap\">oh\u2026<\/span><\/i> She kept her thought shielded from him, though, reaching up to stroke his cheek. \u201cPromise you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cPromise you\u2019ll <span class=\"nowrap\">stay\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">The future shattered around them, infinite tiny variations on things to come. For an instant, in one fragment, she glimpsed him holding her hand, pain and nascent grief in his face as he hovered above her. <i>\u201cFuck, Jack, why\u2019d it have to be <span class=\"nowrap\">you\u2026?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">It was a glimpse through the eye of the needle, she realized, her first glimpse of what might lie on the other side. If they threaded the needle successfully, managing to follow the one path that <i>could<\/i> have a future on the other side, that might be what waited for them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Can\u2019t look that far ahead,<\/i> she warned herself. <i>We\u2019re all dead if we don\u2019t thread the needle. Whatever\u2019s on the other side will be a better fate than that, any&#173;<span class=\"nowrap\">way\u2026<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">But Riddick was still waiting for her. For her promise. What promise could she safely give him, knowing what was to come?<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI\u2019ll always be with you,\u201d she murmured, and felt him flinch.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p class=\"indented\">It took a long time to soothe him, and she wasn\u2019t sure she really did. By the time they were spent, \u201cmorning\u201d had arrived on the <i>Basilica<\/i> and the sounds of activity in the corridor outside their rooms had begun to filter in. Riddick rose, hints of agitation still swirling around him, and disappeared into the massive bathroom for a few moments before emerging again, showered and dressed. He kissed her hungrily, gazing down at her with an expression that suggested he was struggling against the impulse to demand another promise from her, before his customary deadpan and smirk settled into place.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI\u2019m gonna go make sure everything\u2019s ready,\u201d he told her. \u201cDon\u2019t sleep in too long.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI\u2019ll get up,\u201d she laughed, hoping she didn\u2019t sound nervous, \u201csoon as I can remember how to walk.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">That got a genuine chuckle out of him. He was gone a moment later, his armor still piled on his desk in the outer room.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Well, at least he no longer feels like he has to have it on all the time, right?<\/i> She sat up in bed, groaning. \u201cLucy? You around?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>I am here, sister.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cIs he okay? He doesn\u2019t let me hear what he\u2019s thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>He believes you were in danger of death yesterday. It didn\u2019t help that he had only just experienced Kyra\u2019s death from her perspective, courtesy of my brother\u2019s minions.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cOh.\u201d That definitely explained his need to hold onto her so tightly. His need for promises. Maybe it even explained this wedding business\u2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Are you uncertain?<\/i> There was a hint of worry in Lucy\u2019s mental voice.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI <span class=\"nowrap\">dunno\u2014\u201d<\/span> Jack stopped herself, struggling not to laugh. \u201cI mean, I guess that means I <i>am<\/i> uncertain. You said that marrying him has no effect on the outcome of the war. Are you sure about that? He seems to need it a whole <i>lot.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She climbed out of bed as she talked to her sister, padding into the bathroom. She would shower, clear her head, maybe catch up with Vanessa, Poly, and Lola for a little <span class=\"nowrap\">while\u2014<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">There was something different about the rooms, she suddenly thought as she turned on the water for her shower head.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>I have studied the streams. Marrying him neither prevents nor ensures the successful \u201cthreading\u201d of the \u201cneedle,\u201d as you have taken to thinking of it. Bringing Kyra back supersedes it in every way.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cIt doesn\u2019t even affect <i>his<\/i> commitment to the plan?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>It does not.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cSo,\u201d Jack concluded after a moment as she washed her hair, \u201cI\u2019m not doing it for the whole multiverse-saving thing. I\u2019m doing it because he needs it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>This is where I grow concerned, little sister. What do <b>you<\/b> need?<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cShit. I don\u2019t know,\u201d Jack groaned, leaning her head back into the water stream to rinse her hair. \u201cA quiet life. Quiet<i>er.<\/i> I wanted to study sociology and linguistics at Khair Eddine University, maybe <span class=\"nowrap\">even\u2014\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She couldn\u2019t talk about that, couldn\u2019t think about that, didn\u2019t dare articulate it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><span class=\"nowrap\">\u201c\u2026teach<\/span> one or both of those subjects one day, myself,\u201d she continued after a pause spent soaping up. \u201cGo exploring. Find new people and new creatures and get to know them. Watch Elodie grow up and make sure she can do and be anything she wants. Talk to my cats. Be one of Toal\u2019s independent operatives. Run around the galaxy with Kyra. Rescue Riddick <i>back<\/i> after all the times he rescued me. None of it really fits together anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Is that last one what you\u2019re trying to do now?<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cMaybe. I don\u2019t know. I <i>love<\/i> <span class=\"nowrap\">him\u2026\u201d<\/span> She turned into the water stream again, rinsing off. \u201cIt just still feels really fast. But last night and this morning, I could also feel <span class=\"nowrap\">how\u2026<\/span> scared of losing me he is. I don\u2019t know what to do about that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Except for binding yourself to him in this way.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI guess.\u201d Jack reached for the water valve and stopped, frowning. \u201cI keep having this weird feeling that something\u2019s watching me. I mean, aside from you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>You <b>are<\/b> six-dimensional now,<\/i> Lucy reminded her. <i>You had noticed before that this ship is straddling two thresholds and exists in three \u2019verses. There was one you couldn\u2019t touch before now, but now you can.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">That was right; the activities of the last few days had pushed that to the side. Jack focused, concentrating on her strange new awarenesses, and put her hand into the stream of water still flowing from the shower. It was touching her, flowing in <span class=\"nowrap\">U1\u2026<\/span> but where else? She let her senses follow the <span class=\"nowrap\">water\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><span class=\"nowrap\">\u2026and,<\/span> with a delighted gasp, let her body follow.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">It was, and wasn\u2019t, the same room. She found herself hopping as she crossed the threshold, her feet coming down on wet, mossy turf that raised the ground level by a few inches. The walls of the shower room still surrounded her, <span class=\"nowrap\">but\u2014<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She was in a garden.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Around her, in a semi-orderly tangle, bushes and vines grew, blossoms adorning them. One bush rustled and a small head poked out, black eyes like shining beads peering at her. A mouse? Something buzzed past and she turned her head, focusing on a little bird, its plumage brilliant yellow, that passed fearlessly close to her and darted through the shower stream.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Other birds perched in the area, watching her with suspicion and looking with longing at the stream of water.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>What is this place?<\/i> Jack asked Lucy as she stepped aside. Immediately a dozen birds mobbed the artificial waterfall, flapping their wings as they bathed beneath it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>As I understand it, the Moribund attempted to make the <\/i>Tenth Crusade<i> straddle the entire U1 cluster, but he did not have the strength. He did, however, manage to connect the ship to both U1 and what I suppose you might call U1-a. His test of that connection was to release the plants and animals that had been stored for the ship\u2019s arrival at Delubrum, but only in U1-a. The entire ship is naturalized by <span class=\"nowrap\">them\u2026<\/span> but, again, only in this \u2019verse. As his minions grow more connected to him, they begin to be able to see it. Most of them take it as proof of the existence of their Underverse.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Jack left her shower running for the birds and ventured back into the large bathroom area. A huge hummock of vegetation marked the location of the statue she\u2019d evicted from U1. Some of its leaves were browning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cShit, when I moved the statues partly into Wonderland, I froze the plants growing on them here, didn\u2019t I?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>They will recover.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cAre all the ships in the Armada like this?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>The ones manufactured with the construction equipment that had been on board the <\/i>Tenth Crusade<i>, yes. The rest exist only in U1. If you do, indeed, need to hide children from those who were too enthused by Zhylaw\u2019s crusade against them, you could do so here.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Aside from the frostbite she\u2019d inadvertently inflicted on a few of the vines, the place seemed almost Edenic. \u201cIs there food here?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Many of the plants that were sown throughout the ship were intended for agriculture. And there are many of the original food synthesis machines here. My brother removed them from U1 altogether, once he wished his minions to become raiders who relied on the resources they plundered rather than things they could make for themselves. I have discussed this with him, and he has agreed to permit humans to occupy this \u2019verse. Human children, anyway.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cWhy couldn\u2019t I come here before?\u201d Jack focused for a moment, by the table she had claimed as her own, and pulled her towel and comb through from U1.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>It is part of the U1 cluster. A minor variant upon the world you know. To consciously navigate the variants within a universe\u2019s flow cluster, you must have a six-shape, not just a five-shape, or you will get lost. The way a handful of the Demons did, to their misfortune, when <b>they<\/b> were exposed to so-called Kirshbaum rays.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Jack nodded, setting the comb back down in U1 and walking over to the closet she had taken over. She could feel the subtle differences between the two versions of the \u2019verse, and was certain she could tell them apart and move between <span class=\"nowrap\">them\u2026<\/span> but if the Demons had only been two \u2019verses wide when they encountered the \u201cK-rays,\u201d they might have swiftly vanished from their originating \u2019verse and been unable to find their way back from one of its variants.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cThis is important, isn\u2019t it?\u201d she asked Lucy. \u201cBeing able to feel the different streams in the cluster. I\u2019m gonna need to make sure that the main U1 stream stays on the course that\u2019ll let us thread the needle.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Yes. And you will need to pay attention to which courses of action unravel the variants in the stream. And they are unraveling.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cAlready?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Since the day the first apeirochoron was made.  Whole branches of the cluster died that day, and most of the branches created since then have been increasingly limited in how they could form. Joren Kirshbaum stole infinity from the multiverse and locked it into a box.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cMore like Pandora\u2019s box than I realized,\u201d Jack muttered, drawing her chosen outfit from U1 <span class=\"nowrap\">to\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Fuck it. Eden it is.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She hadn\u2019t put names on many of the \u2019verses she had access to, but if the shoe fit\u2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">There were abundant signs that the plants and animals had adjusted their habits to deal with the way that things were moved around, and doors were opened and closed, in the suite. Jack was amused to realize that the mattress and sheets currently on the bed must have been looted in the centuries since; in Eden, the bedframe was empty and filled with a raspberry <span class=\"nowrap\">patch\u2026<\/span> and what appeared to be a small cherry tree.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">A few of the raspberries were ripe and hadn\u2019t yet been eaten by wildlife. They tasted wonderful.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI\u2019m gonna need to set aside some time to explore this whole place,\u201d she told Lucy. \u201cFind those food machines you men&#173;<span class=\"nowrap\">tioned\u2026<\/span> make sure they <span class=\"nowrap\">work\u2026<\/span> and make sure there are good places for any kids the Necros bring back to use as rooms. That are actually comfortable. Can\u2019t have them sleeping on raspberry patches.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Do not get too distracted by the children. The battle will soon be joined.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI know.\u201d She sighed. \u201cI need to get back to U1, don\u2019t I?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Perhaps not quite yet.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Come with me.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She could see Lucy, almost, her eyes catching glimpses of a shadow here, a leg there, the sparkle of eyes\u2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cOkay,\u201d Jack said, following her out of the suite.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cWeird,\u201d she heard Nichelle of the Ennead Kids say on the other side of the threshold. \u201cDid you just see that door open and close on its own?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cOh, like you don\u2019 already know we livin\u2019 on a haunted ship,\u201d Malik retorted with a snort.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Jack found herself struggling to contain <i>her<\/i> laughter, wondering if they might hear her across the threshold.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>You like them a great deal,<\/i> Lucy observed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cYou bet I do. Wish I\u2019d had friends like them when I was back in school in Settlement Point.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>You were very lonely then.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cYeah. I keep wishing I\u2019d just said <i>fuck it<\/i> to all the overcautious bullshit and brought Kyra back there with me. Maybe when MilitAIre caught me out, his plans for keeping me safe and my secrets hidden could\u2019ve included her. And then she\u2019d never have gotten hurt again. Let alone killed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Perhaps not. But then what would have drawn Riddick into battle against Zhylaw, to break his power? This war cannot be won without Riddick, because it cannot be won without the Necromongers and the Furyans standing together against the Demons of the Darkness.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI hate it when the best possible outcome is so fucking brutal,\u201d Jack muttered.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>When the war is won, all possible outcomes will be able to manifest again. Every possibility will play out in some \u2019verse. The sorrow will be balanced by the joy. For every \u2019verse where something has gone wrong, there will be another where it has gone right. The true nature of infinity will unfold again, there will always be one more \u2019verse where things can go a different way.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cThat what we\u2019re fighting for?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Part of it.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">It was an alluring thought. If she succeeded in threading the needle, following the one path that could break the power of the Kirshbaum dynasty and annihilate the substance used to make apeirochorons, wherever it was <span class=\"nowrap\">found\u2026<\/span> worlds could bloom again. Other possibilities could unfold. A girl named Audrey MacNamera could grow up somewhere peaceful, maybe follow a dream of scholarship to a beautiful new world and the arms <span class=\"nowrap\">of\u2014<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cThere is always one more \u2019verse,\u201d she whispered to herself. It was as close as she could come to a promise.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Lucy, she realized, was leading her toward the throne room.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cIs that what the afterlife really is?\u201d she found herself asking after a moment. \u201cOur four-shapes, or five- or six-shapes, disconnect from our shells and connect up with all the other \u2019verses we exist in? We get the chance to live out our days in other ways?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Perhaps. Or perhaps, in time, you become aware enough of those other lives that your consciousness moves past them to the shape that is formed by their totality, and you hatch into the next shape yet.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cIs that what happened to you and the other <i>Apeiros<\/i>?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Yes. And no. We are still bounded by shells. Most of us. Shirah surrendered her shell centuries ago and is carried in the shells of her children. They bear her name in turn. She does not feed on them the <span class=\"nowrap\">way\u2014<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Lucy stopped, and Jack could swear she saw a shiver pass over her sister\u2019s n-shape.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cThe way the Moribund pulls energy from the Necromongers?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Yes. <b>She<\/b> feeds her <b>children<\/b> power, instead, and strengthens them so that they can bear and wield it. Those who can wield the most are candidates to become the next Lord or Lady Shirah, and have their four-shapes merged with her six-shape to continue on with her forever.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cSo it\u2019s symbiotic instead of parasitic?\u201d Jack nodded. She remembered Lucy calling Michael a <i>lightbearer,<\/i> and the power he\u2019d blasted into her to save her life had felt strangely intimate. \u201cWhen the <i>Apeiros<\/i> aboard the <i>Scarlet Matador<\/i> died, what did she do to us? You said something, a while back, about seeding yourselves into others at death. Is that what she did?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Yes. And no. Her six-shape was trapped inside the apeirochoron. No part of herself could escape, except the <span class=\"nowrap\">\u2026\u201cesper\u201d\u2026<\/span> part that each of us has, that can use the wiring and communication system embedded in each box to reach out to each other and stay in contact. The part we used to make contact with you, when we felt you moving ships during your great battle. All that <b>she<\/b> could do was hatch you into your five-shapes by making the ship straddle two <span class=\"nowrap\">\u2019verses\u2026<\/span> and whisper into your minds a little at her end, hoping some of you would hear her and understand. As you and Kyra did. As the smallest of the others on board, Lailah, Abdul, and Farida, now do. Those three were still so close to their own hatchings that they are learning quickly. Had my sister been free of her box when she died, she could have seeded all of you with far more power than that.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">The throne room, as Jack followed Lucy into it, had been transformed. The writhing ugliness that she had seen when she\u2019d been brought before Riddick, with its spiked pillars and statues depicting suffering, was hidden beneath heaps of vegetation. Vines climbed from level to level, garlanding the formerly stark room with blossoms. Birds and insects flew between the flowers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cDoes the Moribund like how the ship looks on this side?\u201d Jack found herself gasping. \u201cBecause it\u2019s <i>beautiful.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>He does. And he is aware that you have paid him a compliment and <span class=\"nowrap\">is\u2026<\/span> disgruntled about it.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cSo that\u2019s really all there is to it?\u201d she heard Riddick asking. It pulled her away from her questions about the Moribund as she focused on him instead.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">He was sitting on the throne, his three top officers standing near him. Vaako, Toal, and Scales, she recalled. Toal looked like a younger and slimmer version of his father. All three men seemed to have relaxed around Riddick, some of the formality they\u2019d shown him previously falling away.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cThat\u2019s as much as any Lord Marshal has ever done or said, yes,\u201d Toal said, smiling. \u201cThere are no vows, either way, other than the promise to keep her as your own until Underverse Come.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cMy older brother was preparing to get married when the Armada arrived on Sunna Prime,\u201d Scales told the group, grinning. \u201cAfter seeing what he had to deal with, getting ready for that\u2014hall rentals! Meal tastings! Picking out <i>invitations<\/i> and arguing over which guests would sit where, ye <i>gods!<\/i>\u2014I am rather glad that it\u2019s so much simpler here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cSimpler, yeah,\u201d Riddick mused. \u201cBut is it strong enough?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cWhat man could ever take her from you?\u201d Vaako asked, frowning and cocking his head.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI can think of <i>three,<\/i>\u201d Riddick grumbled.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cWho?\u201d Toal bristled on his behalf.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cFirst,\u201d Riddick said after a moment, \u201cher father. John MacNamera. Doubt he\u2019d take kindly to his daughter bein\u2019 involved with someone like me. Second, her C.O.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Toal started, looking surprised.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cYeah,\u201d Riddick continued, nodding at Toal, \u201cshe has a C.O. His name is Michael. He\u2019s a \u2018Furyan Warrior\u2019 like me, too, and there\u2019s pretty much nothin\u2019 she wouldn\u2019t do for him if he asked, let alone commanded. And <span class=\"nowrap\">third\u2026<\/span> and this is the real <span class=\"nowrap\">kicker\u2026<\/span> if true love actually exists, then hers is named Ewan.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Vaako was the one who seemed most discomfited by that.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cHe ever comes knockin\u2019, she\u2019s probably <i>gone.<\/i>\u201d Riddick rubbed his temples for a moment before he continued. \u201cAin\u2019t nothin\u2019 I can do about any of \u2019em, either. Raise a hand against one of \u2019em and I lose her even faster. Girl\u2019s way too forgiving a lot of the time, but that\u2019d be beyond her limits. So if any of <i>you<\/i> were starting to think of ways to do me a favor, you put it out of your mind right now. She\u2019d know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Both Toal and Scales deflated a little in response. Jack felt some tension leave her body when they did.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Was he right?<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">If her father showed up, and demanded that she leave Riddick\u2019s bed, would she? If Michael showed up and told her that being Riddick\u2019s wife compromised her mission objectives, could he order her to break things off with him? And if <span class=\"nowrap\">Ewan\u2014<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She still couldn\u2019t <i>let<\/i> herself think about Ewan. Not here. Not now.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>I am going to thread the needle. I <b>have to<\/b> thread the needle. Everybody dies if I don\u2019t. That\u2019s my only mission. That\u2019s my only goal. The rest, all of it, is something that has to be gained or lost for that pur&#173;<span class=\"nowrap\">pose\u2026<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">But, she decided, it didn\u2019t have to be the only thing she did. As long as it didn\u2019t compromise that mission, she could be Dame Riddick, be the touchstone he needed. Even if it didn\u2019t help her mission, it would help <i><span class=\"nowrap\">him\u2026<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><span class=\"nowrap\">\u2026and<\/span> it was, she decided, what she <i>wanted<\/i> to do. She might have fallen in love with more than one man\u2014four, if she was being honest\u2014but he was the first she\u2019d ever felt that way about. And maybe, once he felt more secure about their connection, the wall between them would finally come down.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>So you are decided now,<\/i> Lucy said after a moment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">They were walking back to the suite, Jack realized. Exactly when she\u2019d left the throne room was hard to recall, because she had been so lost in thought.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cI am, yeah.\u201d She focused on the hallway, empty in U1, and isomorphed back into it, leaving Eden behind for the moment. \u201cSo let\u2019s go get ready for this wedding.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p class=\"indented\">The dress she\u2019d chosen was the most vibrant thing she could find, made of the same odd, scaled hide that most Necromonger clothing was constructed from but in vivid shades of blue and green instead of the black that almost all of them wore. Part of her was tempted to think of it as her \u201cmermaid dress,\u201d but she found herself shying away from that phrase. It belonged to another part of her life that she couldn\u2019t linger on now.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Lola, Vanessa, and Poly had all dressed up as well, shunning black for colors that subtly suggested their human status. The Ennead Kids, who had somehow taken the bits and pieces of discarded clothing and jewelry from the tables and assembled them into high-end versions of the outfits they\u2019d worn when she\u2019d first seen them, were eager to get things started. They preceded her into the throne room and started performing an <i>a cappella<\/i> wedding march as they entered the great hall.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><b><i>If you\u2019re really doing this,<\/i><\/b> the Moribund grumbled, <b><i>I suppose I will have to make my minions aware.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>I\u2019m really doing it. And what I said before is still true. You grew a beautiful garden on the other side of the threshold.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><b><i>I\u2019m sure the larvae you bring on board the ship will enjoy it,<\/i><\/b> he grumped. It was, she decided, as close to a thank-you for the compliment as she could expect from him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Riddick had risen to his feet and was standing in front of the throne. His three would-be Firsts had moved to stand at the sides of the dais. Courtiers were hurrying into the room from all directions, newly aware that something important was about to happen. From the corner of her eye, Jack spotted a familiar flutter of white on the upper level.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>The gang\u2019s all here. Let\u2019s get this done.<\/i> She gave Riddick her most dazzling smile\u2014and even her cousins had been forced to admit it was a good one\u2014and crossed the floor, climbing the steps to stand beside him and take his hand.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Antonio and the other Ennead Kids were making everyone clear a space in front of the throne.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cThis one\u2019s for <i>you<\/i>, Jack B. Badd!\u201d He called out as the crowd calmed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She could feel the shock throughout the room as the Ennead Kids began to perform. How long had it been since anything of the kind had happened in the <i>Basilica<\/i>? Had anything like it <i>ever<\/i> happened there?<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Nine voices wove together to build a stunning, vibrant tune as the group broke into coordinated dance moves, spinning and flipping without a single missed beat or sour note. Jack could feel Lucy\u2019s fascination, and even the Moribund himself observing with curiosity and reluctant admiration.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cJackie, don\u2019t you know,\u201d Antonio sang, \u201cyou\u2019re up in his <span class=\"nowrap\">soul\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">She knew the tune intimately, and knew they\u2019d chosen it on purpose. It went in a different direction, though\u2026 startling her as it painted an accurate picture of just what she was even doing on the <i>Basilica.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"center-block\">\u201cThread the needle, Jackie!<br \/>\nWe know you\u2019ll find the <span class=\"nowrap\">way\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Did you tell them about that?<\/i> she asked Lucy, stunned.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>I did. Surprise!<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><b><i>More of this would not be entirely amiss among my servants,<\/i><\/b> the Moribund grudgingly admitted.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">The song concluded with a flourish, the entire troupe bowing down before the throne, before her and Riddick. He looked positively energized as he stepped forward and addressed the room. Whatever misgivings <i>he<\/i> might have seemed to have been set aside.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cGot a few announcements to make to all of you,\u201d he told the room. \u201cFirst up, new instructions for all ships goin\u2019 out on raids from now on. You already know that nobody\u2019s bein\u2019 brought back as a \u2018breeder\u2019 anymore. Nobody\u2019s bein\u2019 cut out as \u2018useless,\u2019 either. Everyone\u2019s a convert except kids. But here\u2019s the new rule where babies an\u2019 kids are concerned. You bring \u2019em back. Alive. And once you do that, you bring \u2019em here. And you give \u2019em to <i>her.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">He pointed at Jack, smirking.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cWhat will she do with them?\u201d called out one of the lords, looking entirely too scandalized for someone wearing tiny skulls for decoration.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cAin\u2019t your concern,\u201d Riddick said, his grin widening dangerously. Maybe he was hoping that man, in particular, would raise a fuss and could be smacked down.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">The man seemed to know it, too, deflating.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cWho <i>is<\/i> she?\u201d someone else called from the crowd.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cGlad you asked,\u201d Riddick told them, taking her hand. \u201cI present to you: Dame Riddick. She will stand by my side from now \u2019til Underverse Come. And you are all to treat anything she says as comin\u2019 from <i>me.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">And apparently, that really was all there was to it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">The Ennead Kids began another song a moment later as various Lords and Dames of the Armada approached the throne to formally present themselves to Jack. Within a minute or two, Dame Vaako appeared at her side, putting an arm around her and introducing her to many of them, murmuring small asides to her about them as well. Riddick, after a weighing glance, allowed it, smiling and shaking his head. Jack focused on pairing names with faces and memorizing them, getting a sense of the minds behind each.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Those who had risen to the level of Lord or Dame, she realized, were the members of the Armada who needed less supervision and correction from the Quasi-Dead or the Moribund himself, naturally inclined to follow the path he had set before them. Those most inclined to resist his will were buried in the lower ranks, weighted down by telepathic soporifics. A very few among the highest-ranking, most of them older officers, could see a little way into Eden.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cHere <i>she<\/i> comes now,\u201d Riddick suddenly growled beside her. \u201cYou ready for this?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cGuess I\u2019d better be,\u201d Jack answered him, taking a deep breath.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Walking toward her, flanked by two guards, was a familiar figure dressed in white. Jack took in the white hair, the imperious posture, the elegant veil and white dress that her mother would have said was meant to upstage a bride at her wed&#173;<span class=\"nowrap\">ding\u2014<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Yeah, good luck with that.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><span class=\"nowrap\">\u2014and<\/span> the hidden darkness masked by her whiter-than-white outward appearance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Irena Kirshbaum, emissary of the Quintessa Corporation, approached the throne under guard and laden down by chains made of kirshbaumium. As their gazes met, Jack watched Irena\u2019s eyes fill with confused recognition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Game on,<\/i> Jack thought as the two of them locked eyes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">The woman\u2019s breath hitched. Then she squared her shoulders and stepped forward, offering her hand to Jack. This time, when they made contact, it was <i>she<\/i> who flinched, maybe sensing the dizzying number of \u2019verses that Jack was connected to.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">\u201cAereon of the \u2018Elemental race,\u2019\u201d Riddick drawled, his formal words undercut by the irony lacing his tone, \u201callow me to introduce my wife, Dame Riddick.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">It was all Jack could do to control the sudden urge to smirk as Irena Kirshbaum\u2019s eyes widened, just a little, with imperfectly concealed horror. Had she even realized who she\u2019d attempted to murder just the day before? Or that she had ensured the destruction of her family dynasty by doing so?<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">Instead, she gave \u201cAereon\u201d her sunniest and most guileless smile, pure innocence\u2014pure <i>theater<\/i> but who would ever know\u2014as if they were new friends meeting for the first time instead of the deadliest of enemies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\"><i>Game fucking <b>on<\/b>, Demon of the Darkness.<\/i><\/p>\n<p class=\"indented\">For a moment, she even felt the barest hint of the Moribund\u2019s gleeful approval.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"center-block\"><b>The story will continue in<br \/>\n<i>Song of Many \u2019Verses<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Title: The Changeling Game (Formerly Identity Theft) Author: Ardath Rekha Chapter: 97\/98 Fandom: Pitch Black (2000); The Chronicles of Riddick (2004); The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury (2004) Ra","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"bgseo_title":"\u201cThe Changeling Game\u201d 97: \u201cThe Rise of Dame Riddick\u201d","bgseo_description":"Jack B. Badd gets married, and goes to war.","bgseo_robots_index":"index","bgseo_robots_follow":"follow","footnotes":""},"categories":[9,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fan-fiction","category-the-changeling-game"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1071"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1071\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1115,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1071\/revisions\/1115"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}