Recorded by Sophia Lionhartt,
Of the events which took place on the 19th day of Radia, after midnight, into another early, dark morning; year of Pinnikle: 1,229.

Tryn had prodded Lofi to tell us something new, and I couldn't believe there would be anything worth knowing other than the fact we could finally see our parents. I looked at Fin. I could tell he was about to whip out some quick remark, but he kept silent. Lofi stood, and his familiar wisped back into his staff. He gave insight about humans (what my parents were), and about nix (what people who live in Pinnikle are called).

The wizard said these things: "Long ago, there was a day this world began. Pinnikle was made to spark wonder, and humans have written things they call 'fairy tales' from hearing whispers of this place. They hear of Pinnikle, and make up stories of things that could only happen here.

"Humans are like nix, only a little more... withheld. You see: when a nix has a simple-mind, it is evident to all. Whether they are laden with apathy, or pride, or perversions: they do not hide these things.

"Humans, on the other hand, cover up their misgivings. They may think terrible things of one another, or forego one another's value with gross perversions, but most of those things only happen within their minds. With humans: only once something is given enough thought, does it become an action. With nix: thoughts are not separate from action: if they feel something, it comes out; and if they think something, words come out."

"Hah!" Leon laughed, "There can be no such things!"

"There are..." Fin said, "Our parents were human."

"And often I think, but I keep words to myself," I said. "Except for just then..."

Fin kept the conversation from diverging: "Lofi... What's your point?"

"It's this:" He replied, "There is a great luminary above all things, even above Fear. He imbues every nix, and human alike, with gifts to give to the world. When you look to your loved ones in the skies, you notice they are fulfilled where they are. They would miss you, but they do not need to, because they are with the great luminary."

"That's a lot to swallow, old wizard!" Leon laughed in disbelief.

"And is it difficult to believe that you've just spoken your thoughts, without ability to withhold them; and presently laugh and shrug, denying unbelief, because you've felt it?"

"Oh..." said the king. "I suppose you're right."

"Precisely," said the wizard. "What I tell you is the truth. And the reason is this: you need not look to dead ones, but to one who makes life. He does, so that you may live the very best days imaginable. Your parents, Sophia and Finnegan Lionhartt, lived their very best lives: all they wanted was to give everything they had, and they ultimately did that, when they sacrificed themselves to save you. Not only was their sacrifice for you, but it was for all the children of Pinnikle: Children have not had bad dreams since your parents perturbed Fear from attacking in such a foul manner!"

Leon must have thought he ought to say nothing, because that is what he did. I thought carefully about what the wizard said, and I did not know what to say either. I ventured a question, but to Tryn, who had instigated the conversation: "Why do we need to know these things, at such a time as this?"

"May I answer her, Lofi?" She asked, and he nodded.

"Your parents will always be proud of you, Liohartts," she said. "And great king, you will always carry the adoration of your loved ones. But feeling that someone is proud of you, or feeling adoration, is actually much more amazing than you may think. The great Luminary put those good feelings into existence. Every good thing comes from him. So, that very pride, and that very adoration that you feel from your loved ones, actually first comes from the great luminary. He gave you those people as gifts: to love and be loved by. But the love you feel from them actually has an origin in Him.

"In the same way that terror and anger have origins in Fear, love has its origin in the great Luminary. And just as the hourglass produced a dim reflection of the fallen Lionhartts (your parents, Sophie and Fin), the love you feel from anyone (even from me) is actually a reflection of the love and adoration the great luminary has for you."

Leon began to lose tears as he understood. "This, 'great Luminary,' as you say: He is made up of everything that is good in the world, and He made Pinnikle to be a reflection of His splendor, majesty, whimsy, and everything else?" Leon asked. And he could not help asking another question: "Why has this great Luminary given us gifts that end?"

"They were never meant to end. Fear has made the world his own," said Tryn. "At least, he's begun to. You would not think it, but Fear was a creature who was also made by the great Luminary. He was made for a very wonderful purpose: to alert others of danger with a startling sensation, and to make darkness beautiful. A shadow is a beautiful thing, after all: It is the shade from the trees, and even contrast that makes the world beautiful. Darkness is what makes us seen in the sky, and could also be the sign of a lone cloud as it casts a shadow on the ground. It can be a fun thing too: like when your shadow grows long at sunset, or when you make shadow puppets in the night.

"But Fear quickly grew jealous. At the point of his conception, he was strung behind Jack. Fear wanted to be more than just a shadow, so he stole something very precious from Time himself, who stands before you... The dark man became jealous, and the lesson is this: Jealousy is very easily confused with love."

Jack cleared his throat to announce he had something to say as well: "Leon, you asked a very good question: Why does the great Luminary give gifts that end? Trinity, you explained well, that Fear did not distinguish jealousy from love. But that is not the answer to your question, king Leon. The answer, shortly: It is my fault that the good things you know in this world end.

"Among all things made that end: I have pondered that question much longer than most (if not all), and I've come to one conclusion. Though, it is less a conclusion, and more a memory. At my beginning: there were no planets, nor creatures to inhabit them. There were stars like Trynity and Lumin off in the distance, but I did not know them. Before me, there was a threshold, and at my back there was a dark man. You see: Fear and I began to exist within the very same moment. And then there was hope - wonderful, and glimmering hope..."

Jack paused, and Leon clarified: "Yes, but... in your story, hope - your threshold - was destroyed."

"It was destroyed, because I did not walk through," Jack retorted.

"But the dark man did not allow you to walk through your threshold!" Leon recalled sharply, remembering Jack's story.

"Yes, yes, it does seem that way," admitted Jack. "You see, Fear did not coerce me to be in his grasp. At first, he was only curious, just as I was, about those glimmering orbs in the threshold. I believe Fear would have had his own threshold to walk through. It would have led to the same place, but he was not yet ready to pass through. Fear was given a test by the great Luminary: He only needed to be patient, then a threshold would have opened up for him to go into. But jealousy is an enemy of patience. With a coveting heart, Fear dismantled my threshold, because he did not yet have his own. The dark creature quickly took pleasure in taking the good things before me, one by one, until there were none left. I chose to remain in his grasp, and the rest is quite literally history.

"There are only two other details. When I came into existence, I wore the precious box. I was supposed to be able to choose which things should not exist. And before tearing apart my threshold, Fear stole it from me. He took it from my shoulders, and discovered its purpose when he put the very first glimmering orb of hope inside of it. And after Fear tore down my threshold (and all the hopeful things I was meant to do), when life was made in this plane: Fear walked away, in search of other thresholds to tear away. He has become increasingly covetous, because he did not embrace the beautiful purpose he was made for. It was then, at the beginning of all things, when he got the name we know him by."

"Wooow..." I said, long and awkward. I recounted the facts I understood: "Let me get this straight: There's a 'great Luminary'. These 'thresholds' represent hope, and lead to lives we are meant to live. Jack, when you - Time himself - had your threshold dismantled by Fear, it was your choice. And the box... with all the things that don't exist. It's your box."

"Precisely," he said. "I'm afraid it is my fault you are stuck looking forward to things that end,". The sandman looked down shamefully as he said the words.

I did not understand why he had concluded such a thing. The question I had burned to ask Jack came back to mind, and I asked him, before being cut off: "Jack, what were the things Fear stole from your threshold, before he tore it down? What would have happened if you had passed through?"

"Inside, there were wondrous, never-ending lives of all who would ever exist. And there were many billions upon billions of nix, humans, and other living things. I was intended to be the keeper and rejoicer over all their moments, endlessly. All who would have lived beyond my threshold would not age. Theirs were immortal lives, in perfection. They would come to me when they wanted to reflect upon their eternity, and I would show them anything they wanted to see.

"You see: all creatures that were intended to exist were only meant to know and relish in goodness; and I was meant to see it all, because I am Time himself. Though, I'm afraid Fear did, indeed, steal my eternity; thus yours, and all the gifts I would have offered you with it...". He was very sullen, and ashamed, as he said the words.

"But you didn't know!" I said.

"Yes, well... That is not the truth," said Jack. "What I left out of my story is this: The great luminary spoke to me through the threshold. The voice called, even before I inspected the memories I could have lived on the inside. He told me wonderful things of my purpose. But after that, Fear whispered in my ear. He told me that he would make me great in this world, and I did like the notion of that. I didn't see the difference. All I needed to do was let him tear down my threshold. It was a lie, though. As my story goes: I let him take every last glimmering thing from inside. It hurt me to the core, but I let him do it, because I believed him. For I felt an obscure fear of missing out on what could have been. Then, Fear left me, and it should not have been that way. None of this should have been.

"I did not live up to my intended purpose. Then a thing happened, which I had not expected. The great luminary gave me a second chance. All of the things that had been inside my threshold were put in motion around me. Fear has stolen my eternity, but now we both would live in a world that was not so perfect; though it can offer much hope. Now, Fear prowls about this plane of existence, tearing away cherished things from all who live here. It is because they are not kept safe in the land which was through my threshold; and because Fear is driven by jealousy. Wherever there is hope, he will be jealous of it, because he believes this place belongs to him.

"I believe another threshold may appear one day for me, and this time I will march through it. When I do, all things will be made as they were supposed to be. Until then, you live within a history recorded by me. I am incomplete in this plane, and because of it: you are too - that is, until you leave to be with the great luminary.

"So it is not those who are dead who should give you good hope; but it is hope of all new things which should spur you forward. The day hope becomes a memory, there will be a great reunion. It will be better than seeing your parents once more, dear Lionhartts; and better than seeing your loved ones, good king. It will be better, dear ones. You will see. I hope, with good confidence, you will see. But before that day, I must take back my box. After that day, everything fallen from this place will go inside, where it will never exist again. There will only be goodness."

Now I knew things I had not known before. Time himself was the first to fall (perhaps second to Fear); and we all live within him... That was something I did not expect to be true. And Pinnikle is a magical place, from which humans are inspired. That was a very strange discovery as well. I had never heard the word "human" before Lofi explained what they were, but I knew my mother and father had come from a different kind of land.

I am a human, along with my brother, raised among nix. Does that make us nix? Perhaps it does not. Humans hold a certain composure, which nix do not. We are capable of thought without expressive actions and words, and of covering up our feelings. But that does not seem very good. I would imagine that over-thinking and bearing many feelings leads to cruder actions.

It seems the nix have not always felt bad things. It could be that Fear had trouble finding them in Pinnikle, or perhaps he was joyfully occupied to make a mess of humans in their villages of Calgary, Yosemite, or Lakeside (the only human places I know of, from mother and father). And maybe humans live in more places than those, but I do not know. What I do know is this: Fear has made his way to Pinnikle, and he preys upon us in a way he cannot prey upon humans.

He takes advantage of nix when they become enraged or terrified, because they cannot control their feelings. He harvests the darkness from those very feelings - a vicious cycle.

It may be that the most peculiar thing which happens in Pinnikle is this: The nix do not sense the wonder of this world, because this beauty is all they have known. They have become familiar with it. Furthermore: they do not enjoy capers, which this land is rampant with. Perhaps, if we were complete, as in Jack's threshold: neither would nix ever become bored of wondrous things, nor would they be short tempered with one another. They would seek to understand, instead of speaking crude and simple things. Conceivably: Nix would not shy away from capers, and would live endless journeys with the great Luminary.

I think it's possible, being a human in Pinnikle: I can give gifts to this world of whimsey, wonder, and will. Meanwhile, other humans will never see sights like stars dancing over Plummet Valley, nor will they ever feel the rush of spectating constellations as they banish ravagers of darkness.

Truly, I understood many things, which I had not even known before. But there was not time to think about it all quite yet. I wished I could take a moment to think, not even about the new things; but only to unwind from the battle I had recently witnessed. It was at that moment that I wondered what we were going to do about the nix, who were still fast asleep inside the wrecked tavern.