Form and Function

He invents the most marvelous machines. They have gears and levers and buttons, some in vast profusion, others in ascetic simplicity. When he turns them on, lights flash and bells ring. Sometimes there are flames, smoke, or puffs of steam. Other times, there are marbles and dominoes that tumble and clash in complex, interwoven forms, setting themselves up for the next run even as they fall. In the end, however, each machine he makes does the same thing: it reaches up and turns itself off.

He appears confused if questioned. He says, "That's what all machines do, in the end."

Exhale

She sits in the ever-shifting border, a fixed point in the spiral dance of darkness and light. It is difficult to see her; we move too quickly. You might catch sight of her in the hesitation of breath completely expelled. When the moon and stars fade, but before the sun rises, that is her time. If you glimpse her in a sideways reflection on a windowpane, do not meet her eyes; her time is not for you.

Her secret is this: There is only one moment, one time and one place. It never moves and never ends.

Neither can she.

Just Not All That Impressive

"I was expecting, y'know, black robes and a scythe. Like, a skeleton and a horse and stuff?" Ria waved her hand vaguely.

"Sorry," said Entropy.

"Or, I mean, okay, death and chaos, so like colors and 'woah, crazy!' and bouncing around all over the place?"

"No," said Entropy. "It's just me."

"But you're so... gray." Ria examined him critically. "Aren't you the ultimate end? The heat-death of the universe? The final conqueror?"

"Yes." Entropy shrugged. "I don't really do much. I don't have to. I just... wait."

"Doesn't it get boring?"

Entropy considered this. "I don't know," he said at last.

The Void-Kraken's Mentor

Out here in the black, it can be hard to remember that the fundamental goal of the universe is not to end in cold and dead emptiness. That is what happens, of course, and that is what we are here to ensure comes to pass, but that is not the goal. A goal is a want. A goal is a need. And given enough of a chance, given sufficient initial energy, given the conditions and the timing and the place, everything wants and needs to burn.

The universe does not want to end. The universe wants to end in fire.