Originally posted on DA, These were written as disjointed short stories, in nonlinear order. Here I've placed them chronologically.

A Mediocre Conjunction

The crack thundered through the castle. The lightning storm outside had raged all night, as it had done for thousands of years. But this particular clash was different. It made the very stone in which the castle was encased tremble, the floors vibrate, and it woke ever resident within, from the frailest podling slave, to the Skeksis Emperor himself.

After years of rather boring peace, sudden scares had become farfetched fiction to the Skeksis. Nothing had harmed them; nothing had attacked them, for decades. So the jolt that ran through their bodies when the noise woke them from their sleep almost killed them.

Silence sang through the castle next. The split world held its breath. SkekSil, the Chamberlain, had frozen, a whimper trapped in his throat as he lay beneath shabby blankets, eyes wide and blurred. SkekUng the General reacted very different; he let out an near intelligible bellow somewhere else in the castle – something along the lines of 'who made that noise' and promising to end the cause. SkekEkt and SkekAyuk were, of course, screaming. Just a little. All other parties were mostly too bemused and startled to make any noise.

But something was wrong. Yes, they all felt it.

That didn't stop them taking the time to dress and adorn themselves. Whatever it was could wait. The Garthim hadn't come to alert them, so the danger couldn't have been too close. In a frantic shuffle, they all made their way to the Crystal Chamber from their respective quarters.

SkekUng found himself moving into the same hallway as SkekTek, who was hobbling along slower than usual. His more mutilated body meant that getting up took longer. He hadn't had time. The General bore a snarl his way, needing to take out his frustration on something.SkekTek huffed, rather violently, but neither uttered a word. They moved along, and SkekZok, appearing by all standards as someone who hadn't been startled awake at all, no sir, joined their walk.

Then, the Crystal sang. The noise, like a soft screech, called to them through the castle. SkekZok's head lifted. SkekTek and SkekUng exchanged an open-jaw gawk.

"The Crystal –"

SkekSil, who had been smoothing out his sleeve per request of the insightful SkekEkt, pivoted his elongated head towards the noise. He, the latter and SkekAyuk had met up on their way to the chamber, too. SkekAyuk lifted his shoulders in a bewildered shrug, and they quickened their pace the best they could.

But neither group made it there first. The other six, including the Emperor himself, had made it there before them, and where hovering in the tunnels and staring at something near the shaft below the Crystal.

The purple gem gleamed, quietly, in the stale air and heat. SkekUng pushed his way through, SkekSil and SkekEkt peered around SkekAyok's bulky frame.

All beaks parted, and a wave of shock swept through the twelve.

A figure was lying on the stone floor, face down, just barely getting to their knees. Another lay on its back, shivering. A third on its side, curled into a trembling ball. A fourth, furthest away and blocked by the crystal, already on its feet.

The Skeksis watched, almost horrified, as the first figure they'd seen drew itself up. It stood, groggy and clumsy, and lifted its arms. Four of them, two smaller than the other pair. Green-blue body, silvery beak, lean, thin and moving as smoothly as a stream.

Another skeksis stood before them, or at least, the image of what they'd been upon their emersion. On the cusp of adulthood. The youth blinked, eyes unfocused, and then suddenly his eyelids snapped open. His whole body jarred like he'd been slapped awake.

"Wha...?"

Twelve faces stared back at him, alarmed. The alarm shifted, slowly, and darkened into something else.

The youth looked down at himself, his feet, his hands, his body. His hands clamped against his cheeks in alarm; the other pair rising in fright. "...!" A muffled gasp escaped him.

A soft cream hand reached out and seized a wrist. An UrRu, tall and lean and strong, had dragged itself to his side, slow shock melting onto his face. His hair was long and curled at the tips, just like his own straggly locks.

Pale eyes met his own, and the UrRu murmured something, sounding...lost.

The Crystal sang once more. It broke the spell, shattered the shock. The boy slammed all four hands over his ears, cringing and ducking away from the noise. The other two had gotten to their feet. But the twelve originals had no time to get a good look at them.

The first UrRu moved, pulling at his counterpart as a clash of lightning crept through the hallways. The Skeksis moved towards them in a wave, bewildered but angry murmurs ascending into yells and shouts.

The youth stumbled after the UrRu, allowing himself to be led away. The other two had already fled into the empty halls. One of them sped ahead, the other stumbled, hands pawing at the floor as if he were –

"Stop them!"

"GARTHIM!"

A click. A scurry. Something big, black, and glazed in the dim purple light blocked their way. The Crystal shrieked, it didn't sing, the noise was horrible and everyone present cringed and ducked. The Garthim reached, and in a flurry of black the Skeksis youth felt his counterpart's grip tear away. One moment he was there, then he'd been knocked away.

Where was he?

Where am...

A shriek rippled from the hall where the other two had already fled. The other young Skeksis. He was screaming. His counterpart lay on his knees, hands clutching the ground, pupil-less eyes watching nothing. His head panned across the chamber.

"How can this be?" A crackly voice chimed, loud and affronted.

"How did they find us?"

"They cannot have contact – how can it have happened again?"

His legs gave out. Legs. Arms. He knew these words but he didn't know anything else.

Then, instinct, as confused and angry as all the rest, took over. With a hiss, he lunged at the Garthim. He was battered away.

Pain. Pain was new. He wasn't ready for it. A unison of growls and odd raspy noises came next, a response to his escapade. He lay on the floor, shivering, as his mind tried to grasp what was happening. He could sense others, other beings, coming closer.

Then, he felt something. Warm and shaky, a hand touching his face. He opened his eyes. The other skeksis youth – his counterpart – lay beside him, blank eyes wide and brow furrowing.

"You..." A voice, low and soft, murmured.

The young skeksis tilted its head.

"...You?"

He lifted his hand. The other followed. Their fingers bobbed together, curious. The other couldn't see. He was blind. The word echoed through the blue-green one's mind, familiar, as if it had already known.

I know you, it said. You aren't me, but part of me knew the full you.

Something cold, crooked and sharp seized his shoulder. Towering over them, shrouded in darkness, were others. He saw beaks, he saw a flurry of magnificent but decaying clothing, and he heard a bombardment of hisses and snarls. Horror ran through his skin, making it crawl. The UrRu lifted his head, listening to the awful noises.

Another hand gripped his arm and he was hoisted up. A yelp, frightened, tore from his beak. He struggle but could get free. Whatever motive, whatever intention – perhaps the original Skeksis themselves didn't know exactly – wasn't good. Loathing had swarmed over intelligent thought. Memories they didn't want.

They wanted it to end, and to pretend it hadn't happened.

Miles away, the old mystics were waking up, and sensing the change. They could feel it.

The youth would have probably died, and maybe the elders would regret it – perhaps they'd lament that there could have been opportunity, a change in the way of things. But that wouldn't happen.

The UrRu, heavy brow wrinkling, stood up to his full height, a diamond among coal, and lunged. His longer arms wrapped around the other youth and with a powerful –and unexpected – yank, he'd snatched him away from the furious grasp of the elders.

SkekUng tumbled back, caught off guard and thus thrown off balance. He collided terribly with SkekZok and the Emperor – SkekSil ducked away, stooping behind the muddle, eyes fixed on the pair.

The UrRu, clearly sightless but moving quickly, dashed between SkekOk and SkekShod. His tail struck against the former and sent him sprawling, too.

He was practically carrying the young Skeksis, though both could barely walk let alone carry one another. Nevertheless, they shuffled into the dark hall and vanished from sight.

SkekSil's eyes narrowed.

"Mmm-mmm-mmm..."