Jade slowly stirred, managing to feel the surface she was laying on. It wasn't the stone of the Book Chamber, but much softer. In fact, it felt remarkably like a mattress made of clouds, and was that a pillow her head laid on? Silk sheets over her body? ...she was feeling a lot more silk than she normally did...
She let out a loud groan as she squinted her eyes shut, feeling a serious headache that got worse if the lightest bit of light got in her eyes. Her hand went to her forehead as she winced in pain. "My head..." she groaned out, her thoughts working through the pain unable to process that her voice sounded...off.
Hands were suddenly there, two fingers on each gently massaging her temples to ease her pain. More hands gently wrapped the fingers of one hand around a glass of water, her other around two pills she recognized as aspirin. She quickly popped the pills and drank, then accepted a cup of something that steamed and smelled heavenly. She mumbled thanks as she drank, the flavor both familiar and strange as she sat up and felt the silk sheets slide off her body.
As her eyes opened, she stared at the blue hands with crimson claw-like nails grasping the mug of coffee she'd just drunk from. She blinked a few times as her mind processed what she was seeing. Glancing to the side, she saw three Shadow Khan bowing low to her, waiting for orders. Shifting her arms, she saw the hands holding the coffee move, confirming they were indeed her hands, even if the delicate shape was quite a bit different than what it was when she woke up. Glancing down her body, all the skin she could see was also blue...
...and two definitive points of evidence that her body had drastically altered relative to her awareness since she lost consciousness. Those hadn't even begun to grow in yet, and they certainly wouldn't have been blue...even if she had been hoping they'd be as big as Viper's someday, as they appeared from her angle now.
She started to open her mouth, trying to shape a query or demand for information...and two more Shadow Khan appeared, holding a full length mirror between them. Seeing her reflection, Jade moved to stand up and found herself literally floating out of the bed to stand before the mirror.
Her skin was the same bright blue of the Shadow Khan. Her black hair was long and flowing, long enough that she could easily comb it in such a way to wear only it and still be completely decent. Her body definitely wasn't that of a child anymore, she looked at least 18 if not older. On the back of her right hand was the Harmony Seal...and on the back of her left hand was the mark from the front of the Magic Tome she'd considered tattooing herself from once, but with what looked like a Harmony Seal around it, though not in a configuration she knew. She was overall slim-bodied...except where she was especially curvy. "...wow," she murmured in amazement. "Puberty is going to be kind to me..." Her mind snapped back to what had actually happened. "But the Book-"
A Shadow Khan moved up beside her, holding up a silver platter on which sat her Super Moose wristwatch, a parchment fragment, and her half of the pendant she had made to share with Hsi Wu. It was now on a silver chain as opposed to common thread. Taking the fragment, she read the text written there. And Jade Chan became a wily force in maintaining the Balance, aligned with Good...
"Your Majesty," a voice interrupted her musing, one familiar yet different that caused her to spin. She immediately recognized Captain Black bowing there with eyes closed...even if his skin was blue, and he had a wild mane of silver hair that hung all the way down his back between his large, leathery wings...and he was shirtless.
"What are you doing in here?" she demanded angrily...though oddly she found no urge to cover herself. That felt really strange...
"I have finished my report to Dread Lord Hsi Wu," Captain Black responded readily. "I came to pay my respects to the Queen of the Shadow Khan before my departure." He lifted his head. "Will the Dread Lord have the company of his Mistress today?" he asked teasingly.
"I'm not his Mistress!" Jade snapped back automatically, in much the same tone she always denied Hsi Wu being her boyfriend...and causing Captain Black to chuckle indulgently the same way most adults had reacted to that as he left. She turned her back to the mirror as she went to see what options she had for clothing. Whether she had shame now or not, she was not going to leave her bedchamber naked until she knew what was going on.
While she saw she had a wide selection of outfits, two immediately leapt out at her, one in purple and dark blue and the other in gold. The blue and purple outfit looked like royal robes, but it was cut to show a great deal of cleavage all the way down to just above her belly button, and sheer to be almost but not quite see through as it hung down below her waist with a slit to show her legs if she wanted. "...I can't tell if this is supposed to be Dark Queen or Morticia Addams," she murmured to herself as she pushed it aside to look at the one in gold. "...or Princess or slave girl..." she murmured in wonder as she looked from all sides at what was plainly the 'slave girl' outfit from Return of the Jedi. An impish grin crossed her face, one that looked almost malevolent with her glowing crimson eyes and razor sharp teeth. "Well, if I'm supposed to be his 'Mistress'..."
It didn't take long for Jade to change into her chosen outfit, after which she made a conscious effort to actually walk to the door rather than float, enjoying the way her stride was naturally swaying and seductive, very much how Viper walked around Jackie. Thoughts of them made her think about the fact that this was a different timeline, a different world...but the Harmony Seal was still there. She could get help from Hsi Wu with all of this...once she got this 'Mistress' nonsense sorted out. Opening the door, she climbed the stairs up and found herself exiting out a shadowed alcove into an open chamber at the top of a tower.
As she stepped out, her eyes widened as she caught sight of who she instinctively knew was Hsi Wu...though she'd have doubted it if she didn't see the Harmony Seal on the back of his own right hand. He sprawled on his throne, staring across the tower at a screen that endlessly read out data regarding his kingdom and some distant construction. Rather than the wizened form he'd had before, he was now tall and broad-shouldered, with chiseled, angular features and a body that rippled with muscle and raw, unconstrained power. His hair was long and luxuriant, crowned by his antennae blades. It was as though someone had seamlessly blended a gargoyle with a dark elf. Though Jade didn't know it, having never seen the individual, he bore a striking resemblance to the gargoyle Goliath.
"...Hsi?" she finally managed to gasp out, slowly stepping out from the shadows.
A tension she hadn't noticed left Hsi Wu as a smile graced his face and his entire body relaxed. "At least you don't recognize me like this, Jade-" he started to say, a growling rumble adding a pleasing timbre to his voice, only for his jaw to drop and his eyes pop as he caught sight of her...and the outfit she - as her older relatives would say - wasn't wearing. "...uh..." he continued dumbly.
Jade found a grin crossing her face once again as she sauntered towards Hsi Wu. "Oh, was this not your idea?" she asked teasingly as she ran her hands along her barely clad body. "Cause it certainly looks like it'd be your taste from what I saw of your internet usage."
"I told you I didn't know what those sites were!" Hsi snapped out, his cheeks flushed.
"You say that now," Jade purred, teasingly dragging one nail along his arm and across his chest, "but you didn't seem to mind the way those girls were screaming..."
Hsi's eyes started to widen in panic...only to narrow as a grin suddenly crossed his face. He stood up, towering over Jade as he grinned down at her. "I could make you scream, if you like," he offered, the timbre of his voice shooting straight down her spine.
Jade stepped back rapidly. "Whoa there!" she gasped out, her cheeks flushed. "There's still a twelve year old brain in here, whatever the body looks like."
"Then act like it," Hsi countered teasingly.
All three fillies were falling over each other and laughing as the window closed. "Well, they look like they got their happy ending!" Scootaloo joked gaily.
"Poor Jade!" Sweetie gasped out. "It's going to be rough on her adjusting to all that."
"Entertaining to watch, though!" Apple Bloom joked.
"So...do we really need to change things back?" Scootaloo asked curiously. "Cause...it kinda looks like everybody's getting their happily ever after."
"Ah don't see a reason ta go tryin' ta fix things...yet," Apple Bloom allowed.
"In that case, let's get out there!" Sweetie declared. "Unless we're already out there?" She turned to the Book. No window opened. "Come on!" With that, she turned and galloped towards the edge of the chamber.
"Wait up!" the others called out as they pursued...only to freeze as Sweetie let out a shriek of terror.
Sweetie Belle had started to cross into the area superimposed with a white space...and her body was starting to fade. The part of her still inside the chamber was solid, but her front half was half-transparent. Scootaloo quickly grabbed her by the tail and pulled her back into the chamber, and she returned to normal. All three stared at the precipice in fear.
Uh-oh. They don't exist in this timeline.
Also, wooooooow, Jade.
Excellent chapter, my only annoyance is the Crusaders can't go see Uncle and are trapped there. But yeah, unless they see a reason to change things back, keep this new reality or at least the good parts while certain demon sorcerers get stripped of their powers.
.......................all I can say after reading this is.......Hsi and Jade just went through one HELL of a damn growth spurt! Too bad they missed out the "fun" of being a teenager.
If anything, if things go back to normal, this gives them an idea of what they would look like when they "grow up" and officially become a couple.
Damn you master of cliffhangers!
8447541
Think you mean wow Hsi....GOLIATH? Dang...now that's an upgrade.
I know, right? You'd think that there would be some sort of...
catch... Well now, isn't THIS an interesting moral dilemma...
Dang. So the CMC doesn't exist in this timeline and if they want their place in the universe then they pretty much have to destroy the current timeline and everyone's happiness.
8447564
True that.
Take All My Yeses! This was great! I love it! Quick question were you inspired by my comments in the first chapter of the alternate future arc and the chapter before when you made this? If so then I am forever at your disposal if you keep making chapters like this.
Captain Black (post reversion, assuming main cast kept their memories): "But, but... I had hair. Great hair."
ROFL Curiosity got the best of him, I guess.
So now the CMCs must make the ultimate choice (one that would make Celestia proud) whether they choose to let this timeline exist and them rot in the chamber unnoticed from the outside world... or restore the original timeline and try to build their future toward happy ends with their own hooves.
actually a more aprose title would be empress of the shadow khan instead of queen. Though it's just personal taste I think it rolls better off the tongue and considering there are different kinds of shadow kahn....To queen sort of implies she only commands one type of kahn and if she really is drawing power from the lord of the kahn she should be able to command the other types as well. Though she would have to have knowledge of the other types so..... *shrug*
ah there we go that's the reason they will have to fix the timeline Valmont didn't take into account the filly's.
Sad that there's now three less things to be happy about if that's the faded silver lining so far. Let's hope Jade and Hsi Khan get past their impishness and mayhaps find another alternative.
Simples missing page was fillys
Nice chapter.
PS is that me or other people too would like to see pictures of the pair of them?
8447751
I certainly would.
Bloody hell...
I can already hear Jackie screaming when the timeline is restored, and Jade ends up keeping the "Queen of the Shadow Khan" powers.
Might want to memorize that new seal. You know, just in case you ever want to bind the Shadow Khan into your servitude and NOT become corrupted into an evil witch.
Oh my. I can already hear him complaining about the time line being restored.
Captain Black: "Jackie, I had hair! Long beautiful hair! Shining, gleaming, steaming, flaxen, waxen… it was shoulder length of longer. Like how Jesus wore it and I adored it."
Jackie Chan: "Are you done paraphrasing the Cowsills?"
Captain Black: "I don't know Jackie. Have you lost your mystical monkey powers?"
Jackie Chan: "No…"
Captain Black: "Mary loved her son, so why don't my mother love me? It's because I'm bald isn't it. There are no words for the beauty, the splendor, the wonder of my hair. I want it long. I want it straight. I want it…"
Jackie Chan: "I'll talk to Uncle again."
So Hsi has been deaged to his teenage years, just like the other Jackie Chan fan fictions Tats has written. Excellent. I always thought that was rather clever and I am glad it made its way into this fic.
Yes. I bet you weren't expecting Jade to look like Carrie Fisher from Return of the Jedi this morning.
I'm calling bullshit on that. He's a millennia old demon sorcerer. There's no way he didn't know what those sites were after navigating to them.
I honestly don't know if I want Jade to remain aged up or not when the timeline is restored to some semblance of what it once was. On the one hand, this banter is adorable. On the other… I kind of want to see Jade and Hsi grow into these bodies (and this level of flirting) over the next few story arcs. Like Hsi starts noticing he's getting physically younger as Jade gets older, and this continues on until Jade hits 18 and they are both physically that old. Like the Harmony seal is ensuring they have a long and harmonious relationship.
Thank you Scootaloo for voicing what all of the readers have been saying for the past two chapters. Now for the other shoe to drop.
And there it is.
8447541
That's one possibility. The other is the second they step outside of the domain of the book their histories are written into the tapestry of history. We won't know which case is true until the theory is stress tested.
In either case this gives more credence to the idea Valmont knows those three are there. And more than anything else, he is fair. Life may not be fair, however he is. And he knows what the fillies are going through is beyond unjust and unfair.
Gee wilickers. I wonder what those could be.
It's pretty universally accepted that Goliath is the sexiest gargoyle in media.
I figured it'd be something like this new timeline rejecting them. That said, I hope there's some other reason to change things back to make the fillies not seem selfish.
Funny thing, when I was still writing my Superman PWNY fic, I was going to have Celestia clip off some of her tail and give it to Luthor as a wig that would permanently attach itself to his scalp.
Lex Luthor with pale rainbow colored wavy locks of hair.
Ahh, man, so that's the catch. Dang.
Oh boy. So here comes the choice.
HO-LEE SHITE. Well then yes, looks like just about everyone's gotten their happily ever afters, while the CMC's fate is currently yet to be seen. As 8447829 pointed out, it's likely that they either don't exist in the timeline now, or their decision here is going to affect how they get woven in. Given that Valmont did have some appreciation for them, my guess is that if only his writings in the book had been followed, they would have had a definite place somewhere, but with the addition of Jade's writing, my assumption is that that caused a counterpoint somewhere that will affect their place, whether it's good or bad for one side or the other. This is going to be innnnnnnnnnnteresting...
And uh... did one of my counters just change?
Chapter One Hundred Forty-Nine
"Bad Day"
Chapter Count: 0
Total Count: 40
"He's Not My Boyfriend!"/"I'm not his Mistress!"
Chapter Count: 0/1
Total Count: 44/1
...ouch...
Restore the timeline, with one minor change: The fight with Wong at the temple not happen, thus keeping the nice demons on this side of the portal, Bai not hurt, and Valmont not ascended.
In other words: Backstep, without needing to pilot a crazy sphere. (Seven Days was a fun show).
... Things just got serious. As for what I'd do in their situation? I'd go ahead and bring back the original timeline, and try and build the happy endings myself. It wouldn't be easy, obviously. After all, without the Panku Box...
8447724
You are most definitely worthy of the name Sans.
Dang, they got a reverse 'It's a Wonderful Life' on their hands. The world and everyone they know are happy- but there's no place for them in this timeline.
I'm definitely glad you gave Jade her title as Queen of the Shadow Khan. I liked that episode a lot, even if she was this close to losing herself.
At least now, she's definitely better than before; might even expect fanart.
That being said, in the case of our little heroines, looks like there's actually trouble in Paradise after all.
I suddenly remember the king of the Shadow Khan and wonder if he'll make an appearance in the future...
...okay, didn't see all of that coming for Jade and Hsi Wu, and definitely didn't expect the bad thing for the Crusaders. Felt like I should've expected the latter, though.
Two explanations are possible for this, I think. A, the girls are somehow immune to the book's ability to rewrite history, making it impossible for them to exist in a timeline that the book helped create, or B, they are now somehow tied to the book itself, and cannot go too far from it without their personal timelines unraveling into non-existence.
Worse, if the book is used to correct history, it'll still be a timeline the book helped create. so either way they're effectively stuck.
Hmm... The Bound Goddesses of Time.. Heh.
And now the crusaders have to choose between their own existence and this apparently happy timeline. Interesting...
Please tell me the guy who does art for the demon sorcerer's in their human form is working on these new versions of Jade and Hsi......but mostly Jade.
Edit: Huh. I just found this pre00.deviantart.net/2f63/th/pre/i/2015/304/4/8/jade_s_curse__queen_shadow_kahn_by_inspector97-d55o6yf.jpg
8447744
Maybe Valmont has the page so he can counter write whatever the CMC write. People keep saying they have to choose between this happy time line and their existence, but that's bogus because they're by the book and can write whatever they want in it, unless they're stopped by missing pieces. Maybe Valmont trapped them in there to force them to see if they approve of his world. That's probably why he was worried (last chapter or so) it might get undone.
8448283
That's...basically what the Queenly dress would make her look like.
8448283
There is also this piece which was requested by Tats for one of his JCA fan fics a while ago.
https://tiq27.deviantart.com/art/Jade-Wu-and-Hsi-Wow-328444262
Gives some insight into Hsi's new form.
Read back to were the meet him in chamber a page falls out unnoticed by all hence he doesn't realize there trapped>>8448398
8448449 I saw that. He requested it?! Cool.
8447919
And without all the pain and other issues that come with it (Time gremlins, looping, becoming the pope, ending the world way to many times to count).
..I'm strangely reminded of an episode of "fairy odd parents" where timmy wished he was never born an was shown how all the lives around him would have been better somehow.
cept, this is less funny an more sad
Chapter One Hundred Forty Nine
"Aiyah!"
Chapter Count: 0
Total Count: 47
"One More Thing!"
Chapter Count: 0
Total Count: 82
Also, to further the Star Wars reference, Anyone else notice that Jade could now pass herself off as a Chiss?
I had a similar idea to this for a Sonic fic (yes, boo hiss, I know). Sat AM/Archie comics continuity. Sonic finds a genie lamp and uses it, the genie even says if he doesn't likwe the wish he'll reverse it in 24 hours.
So Sonic wishes that Robotnik had never taken over Mobotropolis, and all of his friends had a chance to live normal, happy lives.
In short, it works. In the altered timeline, Robotnik and Snively died in a freak accident shortly after the end of the Overlander war., before he could steal the robotisciser or stage his coup d'etat. As a result he's mouned as a hero. Sally lives with King Acorn in the palace, learning princessing, Bunny is still Scarlet o'Hare and in posession of all her limbs, Rotor still lives in his homeland, Tails and Antoine both go to the same fancy school Sonic, or as he's now known, Maurice, goes to.
This is because his Uncle Chuck is the Minister for Science and one of the King's closest advisors, and his robotisciser is used for it's original purpose to provide cybernetic replacement limnbs and organs for Mobians injured in the Overlander war. Amadeus Prower is Minister of War, as Tails has both his parents. Everything is peaceful and happy, and Sonic lives in his Uncle's mansion with servants and luxury.
The only problem is Sonic doesn't fit in. His Uncle Chuck has no time to spend with him, his super speed powers mean he can't take part in sports, his short attention span means he's no use academically, and Sally doesn't even know him anymore, as their paths diverged when she went into full time princess training and he was enrolled in school. His in-time line self has become a bad boy and something of a bully out of frustration at not being able to fit in, and his smart aleck personality,
Tails is still a genius, and brought forward several grades, but because he's never been in life threatening danger, he's never disciovered his chaos power of two tailed flight. His two tails have made him a target for Sonic's smart remarks, and he's afraid of/dislikes Sonic. Antoine flourished in an environment of zero danger where fancy manners count, and is captain of the fencing team, and student president who does his best to clamp down on Sonic's antics wherever possible.
So, at the end of the 24 hours, what does Sonic choose? Does he get the old, post apocalyptic world back, where he's a hero and a champion and in a relationship with Sally, or does he keep the new reality where everyone except him is happier and safe?
this............ ( eyes turn blue )
Implying that Jade totally would if she knew exactly what was going on?
With the entire timeline changed, it's entirely possible the three fillies are dead, or they were rejected.
I'm betting on the former. They were valuable, someone must have hunted them down. They would've never met Uncle. Etc.
This may be a happy ending for those they know, but it's not entirely.
Even if the alterations are better than the original, it has to be changed back. It has to go the way it was supposed to.
8448102
The problem isnt that simple. Valmont changed something that happened BEFORE the fillies arrived. He stopped the Demons being sealed and added himself.
Because he did that, everything changed after that point. It's a case of either the fillies were killed because they were never found by Uncle, or they never arrived because the timeline rejected them.
Lords above, I slept in too long. Now let's see what the next.... Jade gets a new tattoo that'll most likely carry over into the Restored Timeline? Nice. That just leaves The Untwist of... Yup, the white space overlap is a place they can't exist in. Called it the moment it was mentioned.
...and according to the comments, not many others did. Does that make this an actual Twist? Have I become a Sufficiently Paranoid Reader? I'm not sure anymore.
Now THAT was rather unexpected! Hmmm...I wonder what would actually happen if they DID leave. Would they become like Ghosts, or...?