"Nine, lower this time, like a death knell," Manu observed as he counted the ringing from within the lighthouse beam room. The Tower began to break apart, splitting under the sonorous assault of the chimes. The professor’s form paced thoughtfully, circling a marble pedestal in the center of the room. Picking a spot on the other side of the stone pedestal, he grasped at the guard rail that bordered the swaying form. Prof. Taslim’s eyes traced over the object mounted on top of the pedestal intently. Within the ornate gold footings, embedded in the marble pillar, was a clear blue sapphire of tremendous proportions. "I wonder how it works?" He asked to no one in particular.

Cynthia and Jasmine walked opposite the professor, as if drunk from the bell’s deafening sound, to steady themselves along the guard rail also, the only handhold in the room. Prof. Taslim’s eyes moved up to the ceiling where a light from outside the lighthouse was being sucked in through the domed ceiling and funneled straight into the sapphire in their midst. Part of the walls fell away as they were rocked with the echoes of the chimes of the building.

"Star bright, star light.." Ed stumbled up the last steps of the lighthouse moments later, right on the deep note of the tenth knell. Yassov and Cameron had gone ahead of him.

"Not so fast healer! I get to make my wish first!" Manu interrupted his enemy.

Ed fell to the floor as the tower continued to rock precariously. He crawled towards the only semi-stable form in the room. "Hang on, guys!" He yelled to his companions. "There’s still two rings left to go Grab the hand rail!"

Cameron and Yassov reached the pedestal as the eleventh toll wreaked havoc on the remaining structure of the Tower of Dreams.

The professor’s third eye opened slowly as he watched Ed’s protrate body struggling to move forward, the healer’s arms reaching for help. The third eye quickly enlarged; pulsating red veins had broken in the cornea.

Manu flung his head back and screamed the desire of his heart echoing it thoughout the tower: "I want to be a god above all the other gods!"

"Ravana, you’ve chosen again!" Ed exclaimed, scrambling to his feet to grab the hand rail as the last toll sounded with only seconds to spare.

"It’s too late!" Manu laughed hysterically as he watched the ceiling flood with an incandescent glow as it powered up for the final surge. The twelth and final toll had sounded causing the surge to cascade down through the ceiling towards the sapphire, etching its path in the seekers retinas as it traveled in front of them, a waterfall of immense power. The sapphire magnified the light and reflected it out, exploding a final shock wave through the reality of the Tower of Dreams. The dream reality crashed in on itself as the wedding cake tower collapsed and plunged them all into Manu’s chosen reality. The doorway to the physical world had been breached.

Manu was unleashed upon Boston in a fury of eons spent suffering. He had broken through the portal which had denied him his rightful place in the world for millenia. He ran through it gleefully, clasping Cynthia’s wrist to his side, leaving the rest of the group behind. He stopped abruptly once he reached the other side of the passageway between realities.

"It’s Government Center!" Manu surveyed the brick common area that stretched a block wide. He turned to locate the secret door on the side of the subway entrance from which he had entered this new world he planned to vanquish. "Now, that’s transportation!" He laughed as he turned to make his getaway.

The rest of the group stumbled out of the dimensional doorway shortly thereafter. Ed scanned the plaza, running around the T-station aperture, as he looked for his target. He spotted the figures of the professor dimly lit by the city lights. The professor, Cynthia, and Jasmine were all dressed in Indian attire, flew over the heads of people celebrating a night of cheer strolling along the walkways blanketed with snow.

"Ravana," Ed called after them. "Ravana, bring back my Sita!"

"Brrr!" Cameron rushed up behind him and into the yellow-hued lights of the T-station. He rubbed his shoulders briskly and gawked at Ed. "By the blessed Ganges, it’s cold! You know you’re blue, Ed? Why on earth are we dressed like this?"

Yassov came puffing along last. He stopped short at the sight of their brightly colored robes, jewels, golden anklets, and bare feet on the icy bricks. Yassov’s eyes finally traced their way up to Ed’s face, which was shaded in the loveliest pastel blue. Yassov expressed his thoughts, in a laugh that sputtered childishly out of his mouth.

"Lord Vishnu, I presume?" Yassov bent over to bow as he chuckled, his praying hands dipping furiously in front of him. "What does that make me?"

"Faithful Hanuman," Ed smiled an impish grin as Yassov began to grow hair. "Seek out Ravana and find where he has taken my Sita."

"Oh no!" Yassov wagged his pudgy fingers in a negative fashion. "I never agreed to be a monkey!"

"Son of Vayu, the Wind-god, fly away! You must fullfill your role." Ed dismissed Yassov’s objections with a royal wave.

As the hair continued to grow inch by inch, covering all but the nubb of his face, Yassov threw up his hands in surrender but still stubbornly demanded an explanation. "The time streams, right? That was why you insisted we stretch one out of place."

Ed nodded. "You, as a historian, should know better than the others."

"Vishnu, Hanumal? Rava who?" Cameron looked from one to the other.

"Vishnu: a hindu blue god that is the preserver of the world. Hanuman: a god-like monkey king. Ravana: the demon who defied Rama, the incarnation of Vishnu. It’s the story of the Ramayana all over again." Yassov spoke, eager to expand on his historical expertise. "In the legend, Ravana stole Sita away from Rama, an incarnation of Vishnu, and took her away to make her his bride. Ravana defied the gods by wanting to overthrow them and making himself the most powerful deity in existence, through the use of the wishes other gods have already granted him. This offends Rama who, as Lord Vishnu, is bound to uphold righteousness and the rightful order of the gods. That is Rama’s righteous duty, otherwise called dharma. Ravana’s actions finally stir Rama, Lord Vishnu, to action and he sends Hanuman to seek out Sita, his beloved wife, to be able to confront the demon Ravana. It is a story of gods."

"Gods? It’s Manu’s wish: a god above all the other gods. He’s made us gods." Cameron smiled realizing the possibilities.

"That’s ‘gods,’ with a small ‘g’," Ed assented. "By taking Cynthia and making the wish I thought he would make, Manu has triggered events recorded in time streams long ago. He made Ravana’s wish of so many millenia ago. He’s granted the same opportunity as Ravana and the same karma. "

Cameron turned hopeful eyes towards Yassov: "Who wins in the Ramayana?"

"Rama, the incarnation of Vishnu." Yassov rubbed his monkey hands together confidently.

Ed sighed. "If only it were that simple. In the Ramayana, Sita (Cynthia in this case) refused to give in to Ravana’s desire to possess her. Sita had the advantage that she knew she was a goddess and claimed her free will. Cynthia, I’m afraid, is loosing the battle with Manu. She is confused. If she capitulates and joins forces with him -- the world itself is at stake.

Manu may not fully remember the time of the Ramayana; it is in our interest to try to remind him and it will demoralize him. The one thing Manu should not know is this: his wish will be granted his wish if the one random element of the time stream flows in his direction. Namely, Cynthia’s free will is the one thing even gods can not determine, merely influence. If Cynthia abdicates her soul to Manu, he will have the power of the Verve in full force, with none of the wisdom of self-control."

Cameron’s back slumped at the news.

Bracing his furry monkey shoulders to do his best, Yassov crouched down to run after his quarry.

"We must all do our righteous duty, our dharma," Yassov said bravely before he left. "Ed, give me your ring. I will use it to identify myself as Cynthia’s friend. Wait for me, under the kettle." Yassov pointed to the landmark steaming tea kettle advertisment hung at the side of the eatery. "I’ll come back as soon as I have news."

Yassov signaled his agreemnent by scampering along the cold Boston streets in the direction Manu, Cynthia, and Jasmine had last been seen traveling. The crowd parted for him, as they had for Manu, shocked at the improper behavior of some of the citizens of one of the oldest, most conservative cities in America. The episode would have made the news, had Manu’s magic not already seeped into the air, falling from the trail of his flying figure like the soft flurries of snow to which Bostonians are accustomed. The sorcery fell on the populace, deadening their sense of wonder, poisoning their minds, and generating a sense of confusion among them. Many stopped to shake their heads, in an attemp to remember their identities and the destination of their travels on such a snowy night. The streets grew quieter and quieter as Manu’s influence muzzled the individual expression of each soul in the city. Some of the stronger ones went home, if they could remember their address. Others sought another destination; a location they had heard resounding in their heads as an urgent command, a call to arms.

Yassov’s furry figure hid within the mass of Christmas lights strung on the trees in the Boston Commons. He had jumped carefully from one limb to another, thankful for the season’s propitious camouflage, following Manu as the professor had made his way through the park. The luminous display lit up the park’s pathways to Yassov’s delight while the golden sparkles obstructed the view of his shadowy form within. From this vantage point, Yassov watched as Prof. Taslim’s figure disappeared into the State House. Soon afterwards, a stream of citizens reached the State House and ascended the flight of steps to the impressive building. As each new foot fell on the bottom stair, a long, thin sword would materialized itself within the hand of one of Manu’s new converts. Two horns would break through each scalp and twist themselves into a crooked existence, marking the human being a thought-controlled slave of Manu. Yassov watched from the safety of the tree, debating the wisdom of entering the building Manu had so quickly shrouded with sorcery.

After some time, Yassov took in his breath and bounded to the left of the building, over the large bars and up to a window, where he tried to force his way in. After several failed attempts, he found a window he could open. Letting himself in, he hurried to establish the whereabouts of Manu and his company. He wandered the corridors, dodging the knife-wielding faithful, finally turning and making his way to the governor’s office. It was the likeliest place to find Manu at work and sure enough, as Yassov leaned against the heavy door, he heard their voices coming from within.

"I’ve been thinking, Manu" Jasmine’s muffled voice came through the door. "Once your sovereignity has been established within this reality, I’d like Ed for myself."

"What?" Manu’s eyes brooded on Jasmine as he heard her talk unrequested for the first time. Manu extended his feet, resting them on the governor’s crouched form, as the governor of the state of Massachusetts willingly took on his new role as Manu’s footrest. They had found him in an after hours office Christmas party which Manu had rudely comandeered.

"Wasn’t it I that told you how beautiful Cynthia was?" Jasmine stepped back intimidated by Manu’s glowering stare.

Manu began to tighten the leash on Jasmine’s mind when he dropped his feet to the floor, sitting straight up in his chair.

"Wait a minute, somethings not right!" Manu muttered to himself. "Why am I still fleeing from Ed? He can’t stop me anymore. I’m supposed to be a god! He said: ‘Anything that you desire...’ And now, you" he pointed an accusing finger at Jasmine, "you dare to talk when I have not allowed you to."

Jasmine shrank away, crowding herself into a corner in fright.

"What are those things on your head?" Manu got up to inspect the white knobs beginning to protrude from Jasmine’s head. His city-groomed fingers reached up to touch the horns that were growing larger by the minute. His finger shrank back from his discovery. He shouted in dismay: "They’re horns!"

He looked down at the governor whose head also began to sport the offending needles. Manu reached up timidly to his scalp, fearing what he knew was already there.

"Aaaargh!" Manu spat out his disgust. "That damn healer thinks this will unnerve me, that’s all. It has to be him, see! His beloved Cynthia has none."

Cynthia didn’t reply, she sat contentedly in one of the leather visitor’s chairs, her brain fogged over by Manu’s interference. The bemused smile of a retarded person crossed her lips, uncertain, as her eyes searched out her master’s approval.

Manu began to pace the large, tastefully decorated office.

"Am I a god or aren’t I? Why can’t I get rid of these horns?" Manu cursed the apparitions. "There has to be a reason. Does anyone have any ideas?"

Cynthia turned her sympathetic brown eyes on Manu’s predicament and analyzed the situation.

"Maybe we’re dreaming?" Cynthia volunteered.

"That’s it! The healer has slammed us into a dream!" Manu fretted, visibly shaken at the thought.

Panic began to show in a damp perspiration on his brow. "He’s running the clock down so I won’t get free. Oh no! Oh my! How can I tell if my wish has come true? Am I a god or merely dreaming that I am a god?"

"Gods are immortal," Cynthia pointed out. "If we are dreaming than none of us can be killed. If we are awake then you are a god and only you can not be hurt."

"So, I have to figure out what reality I’m in," Manu finished her analysis. He held out his hand and a larged, jewel-studded knife appeared in his fist. Jasmine closed her eyes, awaiting the blow that would determine Manu’s reality. She opened them, startled, when she heard the knife drop as Manu cursed the air around him and hugged his forearm to his chest. Blood was dripping from the wound.

"The good news is I’m free," Manu grimaced as he wiped the slight cut clean. "The bad news is I’m not a god. The healer can create many an illusion, even your deaths if I’d chosen to kill one of you, but he would never be able to control my own perception."

"So, we are truly in Boston," Cynthia said softly to herself.

"Yes," Manu confirmed. "And, I still haven’t been granted my wish. The healer lied."

"No, I don’t believe that," Cynthia shook her head unwilling to hear Manu’s appraisal of Ed.

"What is going on?" Manu walked over to Cynthia and shook her forcibly by the shoulder. "You’re mine you hear? You’re not to think of the healer with any nostalgic feelings of affection."

Manu reinforced his command with a sound mental whipping that stung instantaneous tears of submission into Cynthia’s eyes.

"Healers don’t lie," Jasmine echoed Cynthia’s objection and quickly added, "there is a reason you haven’t received the granting of your wish yet."

Manu turned his head menacingly in her direction. "And what is that?"

"Your wish must depend on some force that even gods can’t control. In which case you have been granted the conditions necessary to obtain the wish but that random element is obstructing its completion. That is the way of all sorcery. You get everything you desire within the limits of magic."

"Magic has no limits!" Manu began to argue but remembered that Jasmine, was a very powerful sorceress in her own right. He amended: "What are some of the limits that could delay the completion of my wish?"

Jasmine looked meaningfully in Cynthia’s direction. "I will tell you if you promise me the healer. You can try to torture the information from me, but every minute you waste with me is a minute more for the healer. You are vulnerable again -- you are human like the rest of us."

Manu’s third eye opened like a hazard light, warning Jasmine to stop flirting with danger. Realizing her statements were true, he conceeded the battle without grace. Somehow, she had stored more of her private will than the rest of his subjects. Keeping her aligned to him was exhausting.

"Jasmine, this better not be some power game because I’ll fry you to a crisp in Boston’s first display of sati, the widow’s burning. Now, what is it?"

Jasmine nodded towards Cynthia: "Not with her in the room."

With a snap of his fingers, Manu instructed the governor to take Cynthia to the room across the hall and wait for him there. When they had left, Manu turned, his arms crossed demandingly across his chest.

Jasmine smiled triumphantly. "My lord, Manu," she softened her manipulation slightly, "do you remember a man named Ravana?"

"Ravana..." Manu stroked his beard in thought. "That’s what Ed called me when I made my wish."

"He yelled it to you again as we fled Government Center," Jasmine reminded him. "He demanded that you bring back Sita."

"I heard him shouting but I couldn’t make out what he said."

"I heard." Jasmine nodded wisely. "Cynthia is Sita -- the wife of Rama, an incarnation Lakshmi."

"The goddess?" Manu’s hand dropped to the desk, supporting him in his shock.

"Remember the Ramayana?" Jasmine nodded gravely.

"Oh, no. It can’t be true," Manu’s legs buckled underneath him as he sagged against the desk, unsure of his next move. He remembered the tale of the Ramayana from his own youth in India. "I made them gods by my wish! It wasn’t supposed to work that way!"

"True, we are bound by the roles now as you have weaved the time streams -- but -- you still have the same chance to possess Sita, Cynthia I mean."

"I can control her mind, but she will never let me into her heart," Manu looked terrified at Jasmine’s revelations. "He will anihilate me, like he did before. He probably has the Brahma-Astra as before."

"He will try -- that is certain," Jasmine agreed. "You have little time to convince Cynthia to let you into her heart. You have to woo her successfully, this time."

"That’s why you wanted Ed," Manu finally understood. "You are fullfilling your role as Surpanakha."

"I am devoted to your service," Jasmine bowed low this time, her horns touching her praying hands as she surrender to the time weavings.

Yassov had just barely made it into the room Manu had designated for Cynthia, when the governor walked into the corridor with his charge. Walking across the stone floor, he held Cynthia by the forearm as he steered her into the other room. Closing the door, he stood outside guarding her for Manu.

She sat down on the nearest chair awaiting Manu’s next command.

Yassov’s hairy, monkey form popped out from underneath desk, where he had chosen to hide. His appearance caused Cynthia to smile and she beckoned him with her finger as she made "tsking" noises, hoping to tempt him into approaching her. Yassov leapt quickly onto her shoulder, dropping Ed’s ring onto her lap, before placing his hand over her mouth.

Cynthia gently pried Yassov’s smooth fingers from her face and smiled. She turned the ring over and examined it. It had a flat lapis lazul stone flattened on its broad, gold surface. She had seen this ring before, she thought, but she couldn’t recall where.

"Where did you get this?" She asked the monkey, playfully.

"Shhh!" Yassov’s tiny brown digit came to his lips. "I’m a friend, don’t you recognize the ring?"

Her eyebrow shot up as she smoothed the wayward auburn tressle from her face. She questioned the monkey: "A friend? You’re a monkey, for heaven’s sake. Monkeys don’t talk."

"I’m Hanuman, actually Yassov" Yassov beseeched her to remember. "Please remember, in ancient India all manner of creature spoke."

Cynthia laughed softly at the odd daydream she was experiencing.

"Rama, is coming to save you," Hanuman’s monkey cheeks kept swinging nervously from side to side, expecting an interruption at any moment.

"Rama?"

"Your husband of old. Don’t you remember?"

Cynthia smiled again at the absurdity of her dream. She corrected the monkey: "I’m not married."

"No! No!" The monkey jumped hysterically as it tried to make its point. "Not now! Rama is Ed Bishop now. He’s coming to save you."

At the mention of Ed’s name, Cynthia’s weak smile twisted insecurely.

"See it’s his ring," Yassov was encouraged by Cynthia’s reaction. "He sent me forward to warn you not to give up hope. He will come after you."

"He doesn’t love me," Cynthia sighed, remembering the healer. "He won’t come after me -- it’s not within his karma to help me. He as much as said it."

"He loves you, Cynthia!" Yassov couldn’t believe the words coming from her mouth. "You two have a love that spans space and time. Don’t you feel it?"

Cynthia’s eyes misted at the sentiment and the truth she felt reflected within it. However, her mind held onto her anger.

"Even if he told you he was coming, he probably won’t. He’s not good at keeping promises, you know." She said.

"Errr!" The monkey growled, its tiny teeth beared in frustration. "I’ve never met such a bull-headed stubborn young lady like yourself! I’m telling you he’ll be here."

"What for? Manu treats me well -- most of the time. He can be cruel, sometimes, but he has never refused to help me."

"Manu is Ravana -- a demon!" Yassov shouted astounded at Cynthia’s justifications. "You are not like him! Don’t play the victim, Cynthia. Rise up! Remember the Ramayana!"

The governor opened the door abruptly at Yassov’s shouts and saw the intruder monkey on Cynthia’s lap.

"Grab him!" The governor told Cynthia as he ran to help her. Yassov jumped off Cynthia and in between the governor’s legs escaping capture by the merest of seconds. Manu was coming out of the office suite, across the way, when the monkey made its mad dash down the hallway. Seeing the disruption, Manu ran in relieved to see Cynthia safe. Summoning the minnions mentally, he left the chase of the monkey to others. Manu took Cynthia into the governor’s office, leaving Jasmine and the governor outside to guard his door.

Hanuman, the monkey, was almost out of the State house when one of the faithful lifted him by the scruff of his neck, leaving his fleeing feet dangling. The man was smoking a cigar, just outside the door, when the little creature had run into him. Laughing at his luck, the janitor of the building, began to tease the helpless monkey in his grasps. With one hand he took the cigar from his mouth, and with the other held the monkey firmly against the wall. He lit up the monkey’s tail as he watched, amused, the look of terror cross the monkey’s face. He was laughing when he felt the monkey’s teeth sink into his lard-like hands and chew out a chunk of flesh. Dropping Hanuman in pain, the monkey fled the State house as the fire raced up his pelt. Every tree the monkey landed in, shot through with fire at the wind-god’s outrage that anyone should treat his son in that manner. Pretty soon, the commons were alight with a wild, magical fire that no fireman could put out. And Hanuman, himself, was free of harm kept cool by his father’s chilling winds. When the monkey caught up with Ed with the news of Cynthia’s whereabouts, he’d already stamped the singes from his tiny tail.

Cynthia was flattered by Manu’s affectionate attentions. She wondered if she had misjudged him. There was still a reason she didn’t quite trust him, she thought, striving to grasp a memory, but the images of her sister’s death had been clouded from her mind.

Manu lifted the wine glass to his lips as they both sat on the floor indian-style.

"Cynthia, I don’t know if you understand the effect you have on a man," Manu charmed her. "I would give up the world, if I could just have your love."

Manu flicked his wrist and from behind it, Sunshine appeared and flew straight to her mistress. "Remember, my gift? It was just a token of what you could have, if you would just trust me." His third eye opened and soon Cynthia found herself laced with extravagent jewelry and luxurious clothing. Her sari glittered with fine golden embroidery which matched the intricate crown on her head. "I don’t wish to force myself on you. I love you. Won’t you give yourself to me freely?"

Cynthia placed her head on his lap and let him stroke her hair. "I"d do anything for you, Manu."

"But you don’t trust me," Manu put the glass down and bent over to kiss her willing lips. "I need your trust."

Cynthia squirmed under his request. It wasn’t within her nature to trust, that she knew instinctively. "Make love to me for now," she tried to placate his desire.

Manu’s fingers gripped her hair and yanked it sharply away from her scalp. Cynthia reached up, yelping at Manu’s sudden change of heart.

"You’re hurting me," Cynthia cried trying to stop him from pulling.

He let her hair go as her head banged against his knees. Manu tried not to let the anger seep into his voice. "Darling, I’m sorry!" Manu begged her forgiveness. "It’s just that you make me so angry sometimes!"

"Why?" Cynthia wiped the tear of confusing from her cheek. "What did I do?"

"You won’t let me in. Don’t you know how much that hurts me? I love you so much and you are so cold to me!"

Cynthia’s mind whirled in confusion. "It’s not you!" She tried to explain. "I’m just not a trusting person."

"But why, Cynthia? Don’t you want to share a love with me to the end of time? Do you still cherish the thought of Ed?"

"Oh, no!" Cynthia made haste to deny it. "He’s not for me. It isn’t that -- I’ve just been hurt a lot that’s all."

"Oh, my fragile flower," Manu’s voice softened in compassion. "I don’t know what’s happened to you in the past, but I can assure you the future is much different. Let go of the past. Forget the past. There’s nothing good to remember there. Share yourself with me and we can banish the evils of yesterday forever."

Cynthia sat to his side, unable to look him in the face for shame at her own weakness. "I wish I could," she said simply.

"I know what you need," Manu reached over, grasping her hands in his. "You need someone to protect you. You need someone to make a promise to never hurt you. If I promise to love you forever, protecting you forever, will you promise to share yourself with me?"

Cynthia looked into Manu’s eyes and asked in surprise. "Are you asking me to marry you?"

"Am I? Is that enough to prove my love?" Manu saw by Cynthia’s hopeful expression that he had found the key to her faith. "I’ll find a justice of the peace, right this minute. There’s bound to be one here."

Cynthia smiled shyly at her fiancee and signaled her acceptance. With Manu, she was certain she could finally release the burden of her loneliness. For him, she was willing to let go of her instinctual mistrust. He had promised to love her and never hurt her. He had promised to always protect her. He would marry her. She didn’t feel the love but she thought it was a fair bargain. Afterall, he had promised more than Ed had ever promised her. And so far, as well as Cynthia could remember, Manu had kept his promises.

She let him kiss her and he jumped up eager to have the Governor summon a justice of the peace to his office.

Outside the State House, the sirens of the city fire department echoed through the streets as they made their way around the burning trees within the commons. They battled with the icy fire hydrants, connecting the hoses up before they realized that the fire was not spreading. It remained within the boundaries of the park, lighting up the trees better than the christmas bulbs had done earlier. The firemen had congregated near the State House, where the witness thought-slaves of Manu had told them the fire had begun. The chief issued orders through a bull horn as the firemen ran about doing the duties assigned to each of them. As the spray of water hit the flames enveloping the closest tree, not even a hiss of submission issued from the fire. Immersed in the drama, the citizens watched as the firemen tried to fight the magical inferno.

Into this scene, Ed, Yassov and Cameron appeared, on the other side of the street that intersected perpendicularly the State House.

"Good distraction," Ed commented at Yassov.

"Sure beats having to fight our way in," Cameron admitted as he re-sheathed his sword.

"Don’t like shedding blood anyway," Ed admitted. "It would have been hard to stay ‘within character.’ The new reality melds itself to us -- the main influencers of destiny."

"Rama wouldn’t have had such qualms," Yassov scowled, also sheathing his sword. "Non-violence wasn’t an Indian tradition ‘til later."

"Shh..." Ed commanded, his eyes closing as he concentrated. An eyelid crafted itself into Ed’s brow. As Yassov and Cameron watched, the eyelid stretched itself open to reveal the clearest intelligent blue eye they had ever seen. Along with this apparition, Ed’s clothing changed into the yellow and black uniform of a fire fighter. Cameron and Yassov looked at each other, realizing they were now also equally camouflaged.

"Perfect opportunity," Ed hinted at them. "And Yassov..."

"Yeah?"

"Every lesson is different. There is only one rule: change exists. If it weren’t so, Manu wouldn’t have a chance to change this reality."

Yassov shrugged as Ed led them forward, through the many spiked heads of Manu’s thought-slaves. If questioned, they told the confused citizens they were there to evacuate the citizenry from the State House from the danger of the nearby fire. The panic spread as Manu’s troops raced out of the building, as the basic survival instinct overrode the belief system implanted by Manu.

Ed and his companions crept through the corridors, Yassov finally taking the lead through the hallways as he tried to make his way back to the Governor’s office. They turned the last corner finally, only to lay their sights on Jasmine, guarding the entrance.

"Jasmine!" Yassov exclaimed happily, before Ed’s hand could muffle the sound. It was too late, Jasmine’s attention had shifted to them, her one arched eyebrow flattening as she banged her fists against the closed door of the Governor’s office.

"Manu! Manu! They’re here! The healer and his friends! Send for help!"
Jasmine shouted as she did her duty and then turned back to face the challengers. Reaching down, she grasped the hilt of her sword and unsheathed it.

"Get back!" Ed pushed Yassov behind him as he stepped forward, his yellow jacket falling to floor as he raised his sword up to meet Jasmine’s advance.

"Don’t hurt her!" Yassov screamed, unawares of Jasmine’s role in the drama. Yassov reached out for the yellow fabric of Ed’s robe as it stuck out of his fireman’s overalls. He yanked Ed back causing him to loose his balance and fall backwards dropping his sword.

Jasmine came upon them swiftly, her two hands upraised grasping her sword firmly in preparation for a death blow. The sword came down and struck the marble below, missing Ed’s figure by inches as he rolled aside. She raised her arms to execute another blow, but the clang of metal on metal informed her she had missed again. Cameron had intercepted her blow with a defensive parlay. Turning her attention on him, she lept to his left and thrust forward searching out his torso. This time she did not miss.

Behind Jasmine, the Governor had returned with a justice of the peace in tow. Seeing the fracas going on yards in front of him, he banged at the door and yelled to be let in. The door was cracked open at the sound of the governor’s return and then the two men were hastily brought in and the door bolted.

Cameron slumped to the floor, the wound in his side pouring blood as he dropped his sword in shock. A pleased smile crossed Jasmine’s lips as she raised her sword one last time to let it fall on her victim.

"Ieeee!" Jasmine screamed as Yassov slid his sword into her back. She whirled around confused, finally slamming into the ground as the pain of her injury overwhelmed her.

Yassov stood tearfully at her side. She looked up at him in contempt and spit.

"Finish me off, but you won’t win! Manu has probably taken Cynthia as his bride this very moment."

Yassov knelt next to her and stroked back the hair from her face. Ed touched his arm in sympathy. "If it’s true, she’s right. We have to go!"
Yassov, Ed and the wounded Cameron walked to the door. Together they rammed the door trying to force it open. They burst through the door, just as the justice of the peace was asking Cynthia’s consent to the marriage.

Cynthia looked up, the fogg still hanging heavily in her mind. Manu had clouded the noises in the hallway from her thoughts so she wouldn’t know Ed was near. The crash of the door as it splinted into pieces, caused her to turn around.

Ed and Yassov stood only. Cameron had sunk to the ground in exhaustion.

"Cynthia, my Sita, don’t give yourself to this man! Don’t you remember all he’s done to you?" Ed gasped.

Cynthia turned to Manu who yanked her attention back to him. "The liar has returned. Don’t listen to him. What has he ever done to help you?"

Cynthia turned back to Ed: "It’s true. I don’t know how, but I get the sense you’ve failed me when I needed help. Manu has protected me. He cherishes me. I want to marry him."

"What about love? Cynthia listen to me! Remember our love!" Ed insisted, his sword held ready to meet the opposition.

Manu swung his head commanding the Governor to attack. The burly man stepped forward to meet sword with sword.

Cynthia turned her back to Ed and looped her arm around Manu’s who sneered at Ed.

"Make your decision then!" Ed retreated as the Governor advanced. "Just before you do -- take one last look at me."

Cynthia turned grudginly in Ed’s direction.

Ed’s fire department overall’s melted as the healer’s third eye worked its magic. A prince of India dressed in a saffron robe and jewels stood before Cynthia as the Governor reached back his sword for a forward thrust.

"Remember the Ramayana!" Rama shouted in agony as the sword blade invaded his belly.

At the point where the sword met Ed, the robe darkened like a flame creeping along a white piece of paper. The red stain grayed the entire robe as the color swept up and over Ed’s bowed head. In his hands the sword melted into the beads of a rosary.

Cynthia’s hand clasped at her open mouth as she stared at the humble figure.

"Do you take this man as your lawfully wedded husband?" The justice of the peace inquired again.

"I do...remember," Cynthia marveled at Sr. Mary’s form as it fell to its knees as if in prayer. The Governor removed the knife getting ready to thrust it again. In that instant, the image of Sr. Mary’s dying image released into Cynthia’s consciousness as she made the leap of understanding into her many lives. Her brown eyes focused on the rosary glinting in the flourescent lights of the office building, and searched out the larger pattern in it. Her consciousness glided through her lives reaching for the power that lay within the Fundido. "Stop!" She commanded as her essence reached out physically to stay the Governor’s hand. The Governor turned questioningly.

"You lied to me, Manu!" Cynthia turned on her would-be husband. "You killed Sr. Mary!"

"I didn’t do it!" Manu denied the truth. "It was the professor who took her in the first place. I was the one bringing her back to you when she died."

"I understand that now," Cynthia admitted to Manu. "It was her karma to die when she did."

"You forgive me!" Manu stood shocked at her dismissal of his guilt.

"Even in reality, there are illusions, Manu." Cynthia said, her face pulsating a glow of saintliness. "In this case, they are ‘delusions.’ Listen to the truth behind your quest for power: Manu, you are a child of the Verve, denied your rightful heritage of magic. I am the father that begot you and never claimed you, the sage of Sheba. Your mother, Scintilla," she pointed to Ed’s bent figure, "again tries to stop the bequethal of your inheritance."

"Yes, yes..." Manu’s dismay disappeared as he tried to steer Cynthia’s rebellious mind back into submission. "I am due the powers of a god."

Cynthia laughed, the soft laughter of a mother whose child has done a foolish thing in all good sincerity. "Only the sons of gods are due powers due to a god! I was a sage, not a god!"

Manu’s embarrassment was evident in the way he bit his lips and twisted his fingers together. Instead, he said: "Join with me father, cast upon me my inheritance."

A wedding canopy of roses appeared in front of them.

"Walk with me under the blessed wedding canopy to join our essences." Cynthia took Manu’s hands in hers and walked him into the canopy.

Her essence shone brightly, as it permeated the physical cells of her body and blasted through them causing an explosion of blinding golden light. The group within the room watched as the burst of light faded and the mass of roses fell away from the canopy, revealing one of the Tower’s many arches.

The fire outside evaporated as the timeline shifted with the definition of the random elements. A new reality was created as Cynthia’s choice crystallized. The Indian attire, the swords, the horns: all disappeared. Even the wounds inflicted closed.

Ed stood, his form solid again in his favorite jeans and minty green sweater. He hugged her. He held her head in his hands gingerly as he searched her eyes for understanding finally letting out a pleased whisper: "You remember."

"I am your wife, the goddess Lakshmi," Cynthia nodded. "No one can fool me into doing something I don’t want to do."

"You stubborn little bitch," Ed laughed as they walked out. Leaving a dazed Governor wondering what he had had to drink before he’d begun to hallucinate.

The other gods and goddesses, who had completed their lessons successfully in the Tower of Dreams, remained to repair the fissures in the third dimension Manu had created as Ravana. The time line was restitched permitting the State House and the city’s inhabitants to return to normal. They would never know the strange and wonderful event which had occurred in Boston. Only the few who had awakened when Manu had been tricked back into the Tower (and who had achieved the seventh level) knew the truth. Dream and reality are one; everything the heart desires manifests itself for our benefit.

THE END