Breaking the Cycle

This collection contains the full version of the first of the three Books of Lore:

Breaking the Cycle

These stories follow a similar plot to the original text and should be considered as an expansion or unabridged version. They seek to further plot points explored in the abridged text while also expanding on the universe and characters seen. Unlike the original texts, these re-writes are not confined to the same limitations and as such take longer to write and edit. Enjoy.

Titling system works as follows:
1:1:1 Lore
(1):1:1 - (Book one)
1:(1):1 - (Arc one)
1:1:(1) - (Chapter one)

1:1:1 Lore

Image: 
Damp. They weren’t quite sure where they were but it was most certainly damp. For that matter, they weren’t quite sure who they were either. A...

1:1:10 Silus (Part 1)

Limping. Char too had now sustained a minor injury to her lower back although she was certainly playing up its affects. She smiled as she finally...

1:1:10 Silus (Part 2)

The lift doors parted and the sound washed in. It was like their trip to medical but a thousand times worse. While there had been a lot of different...

1:1:11 Lists

Scrolling. The tablet finally loaded and displayed a series of objectives. The list wasn’t as long as they had been expecting, certainly not long...

1:1:12 Destiny

Beckoning. She held the doorway open with her body. “Come on, I know it’s only six rooms but I think you’re going to like what you see. And if you’re...

1:1:2 Home

Ringing. Bright lights. Neon hums. Tinnitus blaring. A cacophony of sensory information drowned Lore until the encroaching blackness engulfed them...

1:1:3 Dreaming (Part 1)

Silence. For a moment, there was only darkness but then, slowly, light. They could see but they couldn’t quite focus. Not too far away, they could...
Cherry

1:1:3 Dreaming (Part 2)

“Just checking their pupils reactivity. You can never be too safe.” Walsh darted the pen from one side of their vision to the other. Lore’s lungs...

1:1:4 Brian

Cold. It wasn’t unpleasant but it was a little chillier than they remembered it being. Their room was dark and slumped in the chair in the corner, a...

1:1:5 Disarray (Part 1)

Sound. The plaster was starting to come away from the walls and the creaking of the wooden beams was devolving to a dying shriek. They had moments to...

1:1:5 Disarray (Part 2)

The countdown began. Despite their limited memory, they knew that they had never run so fast before. Their bare feet slapped against the unyielding...

1:1:6 Memories

Silence. A single tear rolled down her cheek. She still had her hand in her pocket, reluctant to unhand the cube, fumbling with it, unsure of what to...

1:1:7 Clarity (Part 1)

Blinking. It took a while for their eyes to adjust but it was all the more confusing when they did. Replacing the bathroom they were originally sat...

1:1:7 Clarity (Part 2)

Lore returned to Loren’s body. He was addressing the group but his mumbling made it sound as if he were talking to himself. “If I take the Tempora...

1:1:8 Context (Part 1)

Pain. Lore had a splitting headache as three years of their own memories settled in their head. They had already felt queasy but activating the...

1:1:8 Context (Part 2)

“It is now.” Lore lifted their hands, letting their shackles fall to the floor. One of their arms was considerably thinner than the other. It was...

1:1:9 Beginnings (Part 1)

Thud. Char had not long finished her sentence as Lore fell. It was as if they had waited so as not to be rude. Char looked down at the pile of fabric...

1:1:9 Beginnings (Part 2)

Lore found their way to the living room and Char, casually fiddling with their sleeve and Breacher, trying to find a way to keep their sleeve tight...

1:2:1 Illia (Part 1)

Yawning. Char hadn’t even left the bridge but it was obvious she was more tired than she had let on. Staggering in her sightlessness, she retired to...

1:2:1 Illia (Part 2)

Destiny was suspiciously quiet. Lore looked over to Char, they were both braced. Char nodded and Lore activated the drive. And then they were there...

1:2:2 Re-Introductions

Sweetness. The air was fresh and smooth. Although it was chilled, it did little to lower the body temperature as it swirled around them. The native...

1:2:3 Missing (Part 1)

Stairs. It wasn’t the quantity, more rather the steepness and harshness of the chosen medium. Each step was ever so slightly taller than Lore was...

1:2:3 Missing (Part 2)

“What do you think you’re doing?” Undulia looked ready to hit her. The alarm continued blaring. She shouted over to Lore to make sure they couldn’t...

1:2:4 Underground (Part 1)

Chilled. The air that whipped around them as they were dragged into the undercity was cold. It wasn’t unpleasant but it was enough to warrant a light...

1:2:4 Underground (Part 2)

Lore awoke, gasping for air, terrified for a brief moment. They jumped from the bed, ripping the duvet from around Char exposing her to the cold of...

1:2:4 Underground (Part 3)

The room was similarly decorated to Tolan’s other lab but this one was much larger. It had a small waiting area, an empty receptionists desk and an...

1:2:5 Middlethem (Part 1)

Noise. Dissident humans surrounded them, squeezing by as they went about their day. Magpie led the way back to the main chamber. They were only a few...

1:2:5 Middlethem (Part 2)

Magpie was allowed into the room to collect Lore and Char. His eyesight perfect for a pitch black extraction. Once the doors had been closed behind...

1:2:6 Deeper (Part 1)

Shelves. The room was entirely filled with shelves. That was to be expected, after all it was a store room but what they hadn’t expected was the...

1:2:6 Deeper (Part 2)

Magpie had been standing guard for nearly fifteen minutes and was beginning to get impatient. While the area wasn’t one frequented by many, he was...

1:2:7 Indexing (Part 1)

Thunk. The door closed and locked itself. Destiny followed Tolan out of the clone’s quarters and into their back office. The room was stacked floor...

1:2:7 Indexing (Part 2)

The database was beginning to load, one item at a time. The computer’s fans whirred as it switched from a near idle state to having to do something...

1:2:8 Scouting (Part 1)

Brightness. The clones had never been allowed into Celreagaire but especially not since Magpie decided to swipe Tolan’s keys three years ago. Their...

1:2:8 Scouting (Part 2)

Ace didn’t speak but rather showed exactly what it would do. They activated the board; it silently raised itself from the ground to a cruising...

1:2:9 Sanctuary (Part 1)

Buzzing. There was a faint hiss coming from the panel. “Present identification.” A synthetic voice croaked from the intercom. Ace held the card to...

1:2:9 Sanctuary (Part 2)

They were led to a building at the base of the transmitter. It loomed above them. While the clones knew that Sanctuary Point was a military...

1:2:9 Sanctuary (Part 3)

“Now isn’t that interesting.” The commander turned from her computer to Ace and Midpoint. “We’ve just had a complete computer failure in the airlock...

1:2:10 Undulia (Part 1)

Rapping. Ace’s fingers hit the table one at a time in sequence as they waited for Lore to stop pacing and deliver the plan. They checked their tablet...

1:2:10 Undulia (Part 2)

“Thank you.” Lore waited for Rhu’Anui to take a seat. “The conglomeration has shown that, despite your differences, despite or perhaps because of...

1:2:10 Undulia (Part 3)

The sound of the shattering echoed across the tundra, stirring the snow. Lore and Char sped towards the staging area but out of the corner of their...

1:2:10 Undulia (Part 4)

“Let’s go the long way.” Char was already scanning the astrometric charts. “Look, if we maintain our current headings, we can make a stop on Faresis...

1:2:10 Undulia (Part 5)

The Destiny settled in orbit of Faresis. Lore was a more proficient pilot than they or Char had thought although Char had stepped in a few times to...

1:2:10 Undulia (Part 6)

Six hours had passed since her incarceration. She sat in solitary silence, still stunned by what she had seen. A figure of pure energy melted her...

1:3:1 Rexel (Part 1)

Space. Their short stint on Illia had felt like longer but Destiny’s chronometers confirmed that only just over two days had passed. The Rexel system...

1:3:1 Rexel (Part 2)

“Bloody hel!” Magpie threw his medkit to Char. “Scalpel’s in the first pocket. I think Ace has the trauma kits.” “What’s going on?” Midpoint’s helmet...

1:3:2 Runaways

Staring. Despite the crowds, despite the fog, their eyes were unflinching. Like a deer in headlights, they froze. Lore and Char made their way over...

1:3:3 Issues

Sighing. “So here’s the problem. While Granddad was out getting things ready, he left my Mum and Dad in charge. They died so we had to start...

1:3:4 Alliances

Breathe. That’s all Char could think of as she watched Lore frantically explain their thought process to them. She and Blue stood with the clones,...

1:3:5 Syndicate (Part 1)

Coughing. A split second timing failure sent a needle into Lore’s lungs. A mouthful of Rexel’s smog was extracted and vented behind them. The clones...

1:3:5 Syndicate (Part 2)

Storm was an understatement. They may have been speaking a language Lore was fluent in but they had no hope of understanding any of the noise that...

1:3:6 Stolen (Part 1)

Alone. Char sat in the office waiting for her turn. She had not long seen Lore disappear into the lift and was waiting for The Three Armed Rexian to...

1:3:6 Stolen (Part 2)

When The Three Armed Rexian appeared, Syd made it abundantly clear that Char was not welcome in her office anymore. Cannon on arm, she entered the...

1:3:7 Inspection (Part 1)

Enamoured. Destiny watched as Curve practiced, both of them partially intentionally, partially unintentionally ignoring the beeping of the ships...

1:3:7 Inspection (Part 2)

The overground section of the facility was nearly three kilometres long and two wide; surrounded entirely by a thick wire mesh. There were bright...

1:3:7 Inspection (Part 3)

“I’m not liking this one bit.” Magpie couldn’t stop looking over his shoulders. “They’re all staring at us.” “They’re probably getting used to the...

1:3:8 Retrieval (Part 1)

Annoyance. She had only just arrived and she was already in cuffs. “Honestly didn’t expect to actually meet Lore’s alien whore.” Reid scoffed. “What...

1:3:8 Retrieval (Part 2)

Reid didn’t even need the cuffs anymore. Lore sat there, paralysed, just watching as a river of viscous, metallic fluid pooled on the floor by where...

1:3:8 Retrieval (Part 3)

Reid snaked her way through the maintenance tunnels. Crait was waiting at the junction ahead. “I understand we have guests.” They tried to maintain...

1:3:8 Retrieval (Part 4)

They had prepared for a riot but found themselves instead woefully underprepared for the calm and still. All of the extra gear strapped to and inside...

1:3:9 Ascension (Part 1)

Damp. She had no idea what was going on or where she was but she was most certainly damp. Her ears were ringing, her vision blurred beyond...

1:3:9 Ascension (Part 2)

Finding the taxi was a godssend. It cut their journey time significantly as they pulled up to the docks. They had been docked there for a while but...

1:3:9 Ascension (Part 3)

They were immediately hit by the stench of urine. Stale urine. Mauve reassured them that most of the smell wasn’t from the indentureds but actually...

1:3:10 Blue (Part 1)

Silence. It was as if the vacuum of space had penetrated their hull; not a breath, not a sound, nothing. Char stood on the bridge, unblinking, unable...

1:3:10 Blue (Part 2)

Sirens blared painting the whole bridge red around them. Crait just stood there, smiling, the storm all around them; every warning sign Simplicity...

1:3:10 Blue (Part 3)

“How do we actually get in anyway?” Lore looked at Char’s map. “There isn’t even a door.” “That’s the problem. We try and Breach in, the chronometric...

1:3:10 Blue (Part 4)

Lore looked to Char, she looked back. Without talking they managed to devise a strategy that worked for the both of them. A quick nod was seemingly...

1:3:10 Blue (Part 5)

Lore still hadn’t opened their eyes. After Crait’s attack, them becoming whatever The Paragon was and their short journey through space, they could...

1:3:10 Blue (Part 6)

“Sir we’ve got company. Protectorate ships on sensors leaving Rexel’s One, Three, Four and Six.” Jo’Tastia’T split her main screen to show the...

1:4:1 Cambridge (Part 1)

Soaking. It was as if neither of them had ever used a water based shower. Both Sky and Blue left the bathrooms dripping wet with only a sodden towel...

1:4:1 Cambridge (Part 2)

Inside the cube was strangely, exactly what Lore had expected. They were in a room about two metres by two metres; a door and a button being the only...

1:4:1 Cambridge (Part 3)

They had such a wide range of options open to them. A seemingly infinite number of room configurations appeared before them. Although initially, it...

1:4:1 Cambridge (Part 4)

They stood by the door, fabricated basket in hand, waiting for Char and the siblings to finish getting ready. Char joined them with her own basket...

1:4:1 Cambridge (Part 5)

Char was stunned with how quickly and deftly Lore had been able to bend the truth. “Yeah, thanks for inviting us over, it’s been a tough few days and...

1:4:1 Cambridge (Part 6)

“Three mugs.” She retorted. “You’re not supposed to be here…” They sat opposite Lore, in front of their mug and stared. They lifted the mug to take a...

1:4:2 Tarthesis (Part 1)

Quiet. In the nearly hour and a half since they had left the canteen, neither Sky nor Blue had left or even attempted to communicate with anyone...

1:4:2 Tarthesis (Part 2)

Lore waited with Char on the cargo bay ramp. They were so tense but were fighting themselves not to show it. Eventually, Sky joined them. The path...

1:4:2 Tarthesis (Part 3)

Back on the main street, they again took inventory of their available shops. “Chemist or General store it is I think?” Char’s eyes darted between the...

1:4:2 Tarthesis (Part 5)

A ship blared overhead as it came into land on a newly designated landing pad, just outside of town. The four cones were nearly blown into next week...

1:4:2 Tarthesis (Part 6)

A voice blared over the various speakers dotted around Treenam; it was muffled and distorted by static and nearly impossible to decipher but it was...

1:4:2 Tarthesis (Part 7)

The white flash of their materialisation caught the locals off guard. The rabble and ruckus died down in an instant. They had only been gone a couple...

1:4:2 Tarthesis (Part 8)

There was a huge commotion outside. As they left the town hall, they saw waves of civilians being corralled towards the police station and barracks...

1:4:2 Tarthesis (Part 9)

The evacuations were all going to plan; across the planet, the ships were filling and they were almost all ready to depart. Thanks to Destiny acting...

1:4:3 Republic (Part 1)

Treacle. The gravity in The Occam’s Razor’s hangar bay was much heavier than The Destiny’s making every step uncomfortably difficult yet only Lore...

1:4:3 Republic (Part 2)

They returned to the foyer, Brian looked around at the other doors. “Where first I wonder?” He smiled to himself. “Save the best for last I think so...

1:4:3 Republic (Part 3)

They were alone in a black void. Char and Brian were nowhere to be seen; they knew that they weren’t on The Razor but apart from that, they had no...

1:4:3 Republic (Part 4)

The last few metres to the foyer were longer than they should have been. Lore didn’t know why but their body just didn’t want to move. Every step was...

1:4:3 Republic (Part 5)

The First parted the doors, their arms flung wide and their face somewhere in an awkward rift between anger and neutrality. They marched at Lore,...

1:4:4 Cyenzeit (Part 1)

Spinning. Char was still in awe. Apart from the sign with the settlement’s name, English had become a secondary language, with every other sign...

1:4:4 Cyenzeit (Part 2)

A lot had changed for them since The Three Year Month; there was a confidence about Luscillus that had not been present the last time Lore...

1:4:4 Cyenzeit (Part 3)

“Okay then, lets get to business.” Allana kicked a chest open and withdrew a harness. “You left us these on your last visit. I reckon they’re for now...

1:4:4 Cyenzeit (Part 4)

The New Quatarrian sun, despite being artificial, emulated the original almost perfectly and Lore still wasn’t a fan; it didn’t help that they had a...

1:4:5 Negotiations (Part 1)

Warm. Going from the comfortable cool of their flat to the humid and extreme warmth of Dekk Rekkarvik was an unpleasant experience, as if stepping...

1:4:5 Negotiations (Part 2)

They had been expecting the bar to be quiet but not as quiet as it was. Apart from the Barkeep, there was virtually no one there. Lore checked the...

1:4:5 Negotiations (Part 3)

The vision ended. “I think we both know what that was.” Lore spoke coldly. Crait sat there. Eyes wide open, mouth firmly shut. “What did you do to...

1:4:5 Negotiations (Part 4)

They weren’t quite sure how long Lore and Char had been gone but they were enjoying spending their down time on The Vengeance. After running a few...

1:4:5 Negotiations (Part 5)

The clone that summoned them was waiting outside of The Vengeance. She straightened out her armour when she saw Ace approach but relaxed slightly...

1:4:5 Negotiations (Part 6)

Ace took their cup back to the fabricator and refilled it. They scanned the menu before ordering a second cup of water. Carefully, they made their...

1:4:5 Negotiations (Part 7)

Midpoint made his way towards the back of the room. There were four tables, each with a single, helmeted clone, sat by themselves. He scanned the...

1:4:6 Johned (Part 1)

Silence. After the brief briefing, Emm didn’t say another word. They just walked sightly ahead of them as they led Lore and Char back through the...

1:4:6 Johned (Part 2)

Lore waited until it was just them and Char in the War room. They didn’t speak as they turned the holo-projector back on. “Lore, why are we still...

1:4:6 Johned (Part 3)

“We can’t wait.” Lore’s tone was flatter than usual. “If we do, that is what we’ll be waiting for.” The clones were still paralysed by the event that...

1:4:7 Solutions (Part 1)

Blinking. The suns burnt high in the sky and without the nebula to block them out, they were blinding to the unprepared. There was scaffolding...

1:4:7 Solutions (Part 2)

They found the kitchenette’s fabricator and ordered two cups of tea with a small pitcher of milk and a saucer of sugar. They grabbed one of the two...

1:4:7 Solutions (Part 3)

The towers of The Slingshot loomed overhead. The First put themselves between The Slingshot and their party before checking to make sure they were...

1:4:7 Solutions (Part 4)

Outside of The Slingshot, Char initiated a second scan. A map of the entire facility and the surrounding areas appeared. The wireframe finished...

1:4:8 Doubles (Part 1)

Confusion. Lore and Char kept a respectable distance from the two but found it harder than they had expected. “Where are they going?” Lore and Char...

1:4:8 Doubles (Part 2)

It was so much nicer indoors. The air was cooler and less humid, the ground didn’t feel quite so hard and the sun was nowhere to be seen. Lore tapped...

1:4:8 Doubles (Part 3)

Lore turned the corner, it looked as though they hadn’t even bothered. The entire building’s orbital corridor was seemingly designed to look as...

1:4:8 Doubles (Part 4)

Same place, a different time. Char exhaled the weight of a potential future and some of the dusts that came with her from it. “Bloody hel. How did...

1:4:9 Reclamation (Part 1)

Turbulent. The KADS had deposited them in high orbit above the Johned base but the nebula’s gasses had made the journey anything but smooth. The...

1:4:9 Reclamation (Part 2)

The frenzied soldier carved a swathe through its own army; its once allies tried everything to put it down but each attempt only seemed to anger it...

1:4:9 Reclamation (Part 3)

Meanwhile, Ace pressed on, Aloe and the rest of their unit not too far behind. There had been very little in the way of resistance as they travelled...

1:4:9 Reclamation (Part 4)

Finally, they had reached The Slingshot; the doors weren’t even locked. Ace tried to pull them open but found their efforts met with resistance. They...

1:4:10 Crait (Part 1)

Silence. She hadn’t spoken since. For that matter, she hadn’t woken up since either. She slept the sleep of the dead. Sam had tried everything to...