Random Wanderings

[Dirk Random]

The man known as Dirk Random wandered the streets of Rhydin with idle purpose. He wandered as he always did, to see what there was to see. And what he saw was that though much had changed, and much remained the same.

He did not know why he had been sent back here again, after so many years. It was Ygorl's will that he be here now, at this time, so he did not question it. He looked out now from a face more lined from long years, not the smooth-faced lad he had been upon his first visit.

He could feel the divine power swirling deep within him, seeking an outlet. But the rules were different here. He could no longer channel the power into predictable spells; unleashing Ygorl's divine energies in this place would be unpredictable and uncontrollable, wild magic of the highest order. So Dirk kept it contained, letting it simmer just below the surface, distracting himself from its tempting call with an ever-shifting attention upon passing thoughts.

He frowned to himself. Was Ygorl even recognized as a god here? He had forgotten. In some realms, Ygorl was known only as a Slaad Lord. The truth, of course, was that the slaad was merely an incarnation, a finite manifestation of an infinite being. However, worship of him was rare even in realms where his divinity was taken as fact, and the tenets of orthodox Ygorlism could be quite demanding, especially since they were different for every priest.

Dirk glanced down for a moment and marveled. With every footfall, he saw a fractured web of quantum possibilities forking outward from the cobblestones. Left or right? Forward or stand still? Kind or cruel? A choice in every moment, all leading to an inevitable future. An infinity of possible outcomes, from the predictable, to the unlikely, to the outrageous. Only one could become real, while all of the others faded away, possibly continuing their existence in an alternate reality.

Which made him wonder, what if he wasn't the real Dirk? What if he was only an alternate reality of a probability that had just bypassed the real Dirk? That was a disconcerting thought, and it made him pause in his walkabout, tilting his chin to consider it more deeply.

If he was an alternate Dirk, then did it not stand to reason that the real Dirk was in fact just an alternate version of himself? If that were true, then there was no real original at all, and they were all just alternates. So there was really no reason to be insecure.

Satisfied with this, he moved on.

It was just a couple of blocks later when he began to feel the tingle of the divine energies within him, as they began to swell of their own accord.

"Oh dear," he said aloud to himself. "So soon?"

Ygorl's voice answered him, coming from his own thoughts. Or perhaps he merely imagined the voice, and he was really just talking to himself. Either way, talking to one's personal divinity was always something of an honor, and not to be dismissed.

Yes, the voice said. It is time to move on.

"But I haven't yet found any reason for bringing me back here."

Sorry. Sometimes there aren't reasons. Some places are just waystations. Somewhere to stop for a time, and rest.

"Oh. I was supposed to be resting? I mucked that up a bit then."

It happens. But regardless, it is now time to go.

"What if I want to stay just a bit longer? I rather enjoy some aspects of this realm, and I was just hitting it off with this cute fairy lady..."

Tough cookies. You're going.

"There is no bargain, for here, what is, is what must be."

Don't quote Frith to me.

"Sorry."

Look, are you ready, or not?

Dirk sighed a long-suffering sigh. "I suppose." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in preparation, then cracked one eye again. "Can I ask a question?"

If you must.

"Will I ever return here again?"

The bodiless voice inside his mind was quiet for a moment, then said simply, Maybe.

And all at once the swelling power erupted outwards, latching onto the fabric between dimensions and snarling it, tearing it open, such that a swirling vortex opened right in front of Dirk, who was instantly sucked inside without preamble. The vortex persisted only a moment more, before the dimensions got themselves ordered again and straightened things out, sealing the tear, and leaving an empty spot on the street and not a trace of the man who had stood there just moments before.

And so the wanderings began anew, in a far and different place.