Chapter 8

Wake up.

Gareth Wilks groaned and rolled over.

Wake up, Gareth.

He groaned again and squinted at the glowing green numbers on his bedside table. It took a minute for him to focus. “For god’s sake, Olban! It’s five in the fu---”

It’s dawn! Dawn is the correct time to get up! We have a lot to do today.

Gareth collapsed back onto his back. “And you really think it’s going to work?”

Of course. One more day, and you can get up whenever you like. I won’t be stuck in the back of your mind here, you won’t be stuck in the back of mine when I’m home and everything will be right in both worlds. We’ll be free of each other.

“It’ll be a relief. You can be a right royal pain in the arse sometimes, you realise that?”

I know. And I’m not going to apologise for that. It was necessary.

“In spite of all that, though… I think I might miss you.”

The voice chuckled. Understandable. We have grown up together, after all. Just because we’re no longer joined at the brain doesn’t mean we’ll never see each other again. As long as you hold onto the ring, you’ll be free to cross over as yourself, just as I will.

“Hmm… I’m not too sure about that.” Gareth stretched and crawled out of bed before staggering over to the bathroom. “You know how I feel about your world.”

I know. But being there physically, you may see it in a different light, rather than just experiencing it through my senses. I’m curious to see how I feel about this one. It has helped me to understand a lot of things. It’s taught me how to gain access to previously undiscovered metals. Aluminium has some amazing properties.

“I know, and you never shut up about it. I’m still finding it hard to believe magic even exists. That your world isn’t just a vivid dream and you’re not just a fragment of my own consciousness.”

Please don’t start believing your shrink, now. We’re so close! We meet every night. I’ve shaken your hand, Gareth.

“While I was asleep, yes.”

Follow my instructions today, and I’ll prove my world’s real. That I’m real. If you like, we could really blow Doctor Connor’s mind by introducing me to him.

* * *

“So, how does it look?” Gareth crouched to study the design he’d been working on all week. An intricate pattern of interwoven threads of various metals, all inlaid into the floor of his cellar. A circle six feet in diameter, coated in a hard lacquer to protect it from damage. It’d taken a long time to gather all the materials together to make this… thing. The gold had cost him a fortune on its own.

It looks pretty good. It’s a shame I can’t feel it, but I think it’ll do the job.

“I still don’t understand what its job is.”

How many times have I explained it?

“I’ve lost count. But you know there’s no magic in this world.”

Wrong. It might be weak here compared to home, but it does exist.

“You’re rubbish at explaining things in layman’s terms.”

OK, think of it like this. When one of your satellite things beams down television pictures, why can’t anyone see them?

“We can!”

Only when you have the equipment to do so, not with your bare eyes and nothing else. The waves pass straight through you. You don’t even know they’re there. Think of this in a similar light. A receiver. A means to manifest physical objects from the dream realm, but only if they possess the other half of the equation.

“The rings?”

Exactly. As for magic to power it? I included that in the design. It should draw a small amount from many worlds where the magic’s stronger. The rings’ll also provide a little extra… oomph.

“So, what do I do now? It’ll take a while for the lacquer to set.”

Activate it.

“How?”

Walk around the perimeter until I tell you to stop, identify the copper indentation, should look like a small circle protruding from the outer one.

Gareth nodded. He was halfway ’round when he pointed. “That?”

Yes. One drop of your blood, but before you do that, set your camp bed up.

“My blood?”

I’m only asking you to prick your finger, not chop an arm off. It’ll prime the sigil. Allow it to recognise a human. It’ll also take a small amount of your energy to give it a kick start. That’s why you need to set up the camp bed first.

“My energy? You’re expecting me to give up my life force?”

Not in the way many of your fantasy authors like to describe it. It won’t take years off your life. Think of it as having taken a one-mile run. It’ll tire you, nothing more.

Gareth sighed. “Alright. I need to go up and get a needle first, then.”

Make sure you hold it in the flame of your gas hob until it glows.

“But that’ll burn me!”

If I could roll your eyes right now, you’d see nothing but the ceiling for the rest of the day. You don’t want an infection, do you? It’ll cool quickly enough won’t it? Hold it with your dish towel.

Gareth set up the camp bed, dashed upstairs to follow the other instructions and returned a few minutes later with the needle, held with the dish cloth. He tapped it with his finger.

See? It’s only warm, now.

A prick of his thumb, he placed it in the indent and staggered back, falling onto his backside in shock as the vitality drained from him. It was like a high speed lift going down, a sinking, no, plummeting sensation. A wave of dizziness followed as he scrambled backward away from the thing. “Bloody hell!”

Don’t worry, you

“You said a mile run! I don’t think I can even stand, right now.”

It was the equivalent, yes. But when was the last time you ran a mile in a second? Your body still has all its reserves. It’ll take a few minutes to access them, that’s all. Just… Let it settle. When it has, move the camp bed into the centre and get some sleep.

“I’ll need it!”

The indent began to glow and as the light increased in intensity, it spread, weaving its way down the metallic threads of the pattern, until, when it reached the centre, when the whole design was aglow, it flickered and the light, along with the design, vanished. In its place, nothing but the bare concrete floor of the cellar.

“What the hell? It cost me a bloody grand to get all those”

Calm down, Gareth.

“What do you mean calm down? It’s gone!”

Close your eyes and picture the design.

“What?”

Just do it.

“OK! OK!” Gareth did as he was told again. It took a few seconds for the image to form in his mind.

Nice clear picture?

“Of course! I did spend a week working on the thing!”

Good, then open your eyes.

When he did, it was back as if it’s never been gone. It looked exactly as it had before its activation. “Where did it go?”

It didn’t go anywhere. You knew what it looked like. You knew it was there. No-one else will. It’s hidden, that’s all. Cloaked, if you like.

“Why?”

Seriously? With your history? If someone came down here and saw that, it’d cause no end of trouble. They’d probably think you were a devil worshipper and obviously insane. Arcane symbols on the floor. Well, no, they’ll never see it. Only we can.

“Shit! I didn’t think of that!”

Well, I did. My design’s much less complex. It only has one function to perform.

“Why did it have to take so much? I can barely stand!”

That should end pretty quickly. I said it had to be activated. I suppose in terms you might understand, it had to establish a connection.

“What to?”

Mine, first of all. And using the magic from that, gain access to other worlds. It’s powered now. Permanently.

“Just as long as I don’t need to do that again.”

You won’t. I can sense your strength returning. Get the camp bed.

“What about the lacquer? It can’t’ve set, yet.”

The magic should’ve driven off all the volatiles. It’ll be dry. Touch it. It shouldn’t even feel tacky.

Gareth reach out and ran his hand across it, across the glassy smoothness.

Good. Now…

He nodded, fetched the bed, placed it in the circle and clambered aboard.

I’ll see you soon.

“See you, Olban.”

* * *

It began as it always did, with a sensation of weightlessness and movement. The cellar began to blur, to dissolve and before long, the final wisps of the physical world were gone, to be replaced by a void of pure white.

The sensation of floating movement continued until Gareth’s feet touched the ground and he began to walk. As he did so, a misty form coalesced beside him which slowly solidified.

He glanced to his right with a grin as Olban gained his physical form. That of a man in his mid-twenties, brown curly hair, a deep tan that indicated a large part of his life was spent in the open air. He was slightly taller than Gareth but much more muscular, wearing something Gareth had only seen in his world in old medieval history books at school. Tunic, tight woollen hose, a leather jerkin and crude leather boots.

“So, what are you going to do in my world, tomorrow?”

“Can’t you guess?”

“Try all our tasty treats? See if they still appeal using your own taste buds?”

“There’s more to life than food, Gareth. I’m far more hungry for knowledge. I’m severely hampered when I’m in the back of your skull. Trying to get you to pay attention to a book on metallurgy for more than five minutes at a time’s like trying to tame a bloody wild horse. I’ll go to your local library. There’s a hell of a lot I could learn, there.”

Gareth nodded. “I can’t help it if you’re into so much boring stuff!”

“You’ve seen magic in action. More than that, magic in your world, finally! You fell asleep during all my lessons. I suppose it doesn’t help that I could sense those things. You couldn’t.”

“Did you ask your boss about that? We share all our other senses. Taste, smell, sight, sound.”

He nodded. “There are many different forms of magic in my world. My father sold me to”

Gareth shuddered. “I still can’t believe you accept that? Slavery!”

“Apprenticeship! I’m not a slave.”

“But he sold”

“It’s just how business is conducted. I was bound by the agreement my parents made with Master Stell. He then conducted all the training I required. I did all the work he assigned for me. It’s not as if I slept there. I was free to return home at the end of the day. Besides, my apprenticeship ended two years ago. You know that. I’m still bound to him until I achieve master status myself, of course, but as a journeyman, I’ve got a hell of a lot more freedom than one of those bloody serfs.” It was Olban’s turn to shudder. “Can’t think of a worse life.”

“And that’s one of the things I hate about your world. Feudal society? Your world reeks, it’s filthy, your houses are”

“Blah, blah, blah, our houses are shit, cold and uncomfortable, no telly, no radio, no computer games or books, no hot and cold running champagne. Well, for most of them, no books.”

“No interesting books.”

“Your world’s spoiled you rotten. They interest me. They’re my bread and butter, after all. Maybe if you do pluck up the courage and travel across in physical form once in a while, you will find something that interests you. You may even find your own magical niche.”

Gareth snorted. “Yeah, right. Me, weaving metals together to”

“You did a fair job on the design, but there’s magic in everything. Working wood, perhaps? Hells, even basket weavers can imbue their work with a little extra something. Even the serfs know a little of their own magical lore. Most of theirs does revolve around granting a good harvest, admittedly.”

“Still a shocker, when you looked up how we progressed.”

Olban nodded. “I was just as surprised as you were. None of that, back home. Magic’s probably the answer as to why we’ve not suffered any…” He paused and froze in his steps.

“What?”

“Look over there! Come on.” Olban turned and strode purposefully at an angle to the direction they’d been heading.

Gareth squinted. In the distance, a figure. As they got closer, a naked woman and circling her, a… “Is that…?”

“A wolf? Looks like it. That doesn’t mean much, though.”

“True. Remember that time when we ran into the giraffe in the woods. Singing lullabies?”

Olban chuckled. “People have weird dreams.”

“Most people, y’mean?”

“You don’t think spending half your life in the back of someone else’s head’s a little strange?”

“I…” Gareth sighed. “Good point.”

As they continued to approach, the wolf halted its circling and padded towards them, sitting ten feet in front of the woman.

Gareth looked at Olban nervously. “What if it attacks?”

“Then you’ll have a rude awakening and I’ll be stuck in the back of your head for a few more hours, until you can get back to sleep again.”

They continued towards the beast, and God, what an animal. “I always thought the more wolfy looking dogs, like German Shepherds and Huskies were the best looking ones. It’s… God, it’s a beauty, isn’t it?”

Why, thank you. One does one’s best.

Gareth stared and both of them increased their pace. “So, not just any old wolf.” He looked beyond it to the woman. More details had become evident. The slumped shoulders. The glassy stare. “What’s wrong with her? She hasn’t moved since we saw her and that look…” He shuddered. “Lights on, no-one at home.”

Her mind has been taken. She attempted to disrupt the balance. I couldn’t allow that.

“Disrupt… What balance? Who took her mind? How could anyone take someone else’s mind?”

We all have a purpose. Each of our lives is like a thread, weaving through the fabric of reality. Only my father can understand the pattern as it forms. I took her mind after she attempted to kill one of her… How can I put this in a way you’ll understand? You are both familiar with the concept considering you yourself share a similar… trait.”

Gareth’s gaze snapped to his right as Olban collapsed to his knees. “Oh, by the Gods. I apologise for intruding on your business, lord.”

Please stand, Olban. I’m no more worthy of worship than you are.

“But… But you have to be him! What you just said? You’re Vellan! The guardian of sleep!”

I am, and I understand your people venerate us. We’re not Gods. If such beings exist, they’re as much a mystery to us as to you. We just have a far deeper understanding of our purpose and a little extra power with which to pursue it. That’s all.

“Really? But”

Stand.

“Yes, sir!” Olban scrambled back to his feet, still staring at the wolf with an expression of awe.

“So… She was like us? She shared her mind with someone else and attempted to kill… him? Her?”

Yes, but I stopped her before the attempt could be made. You know that such a crime would be futile in the dream, but it would have damaged all of them had she made the attempt. She was a lot less fortunate than you two.

“How?”

Just as our lives weave a pattern in reality, the worlds themselves do much the same at a far deeper level. They move and shift, they overlap and spread apart. They dance to a tune even my father cannot comprehend. That is why you are as you are. Two worlds, the world of your birth, Gareth, and the world that brought forth Olban. At the very moment you both burst forth, screaming into the light, at exactly the same physical location in both worlds, they crossed each other… Well, you’re the result. We call it a conjunction. A minor one in your case.

“The same place? And time? At just the…” Gareth furrowed his brow in disbelief. “But the chances of that…”

It’s rare, but it happens. You are proof of that. Her case is a little more… tragic and far, far more unusual.

“More unusual? How?”

Simplicity itself. You are the result of two worlds crossing each other. Hers is one of many. A major conjunction. As a result, seven minds shared the same body but they only ever experienced one world. They never had the opportunity to cross completely to any of their others. Too many, all tugging in different directions meant they only ever got as far as the dream and never passed through it. She’s spent a large part of her life in a mental institution. She is from your world, Gareth. She firmly believed that the only way to gain a life for herself was to kill her… Hmmm…

“You don’t even have a name for us? For what we are?”

There was never a need. You are what you are.

Olban nodded. “And the one she wanted to kill?”

Unharmed. They only ever interacted as separate entities within the dream realm. The balance has still been disrupted. It must be restored.

Olban sighed. “Is this why you appeared to us, sir?”

It is. I require your aid.

“You… I don’t understand.”

Take her.

“Take her? Where?”

Allow her to become a third. To join with you. Her mind will return when you awaken in your world.

“But…”

I know it will disrupt your plans.

“But we were so close! This very---”

This very night, you believed you would become untethered from each other. I understand, but this is important.

“But if we have another mind, another person…”

She will require a ring of her own. In fact, all six of them will. They will finally see the worlds they were destined for. All of them. You are the only pair I could ask for this favour.

“But... How? How could the rings help them? I can only materialise, manifest in his world because of the---”

They will not require magic to reach their worlds, they already have physical presences in them. The rings will only be required to grant each independence from the others. She, however, can never rejoin her own body. She was severed from it. She will manifest in the ring, just as you will.

Gareth stared in horror at the wolf. “But you… But she… she looks… What?”

By your measurement of time, she’s twenty-nine years of age.

“Born? A mindless baby? What? In a coma for nearly thirty years?” Gareth shuddered at the thought. “They’ll be physical wrecks! Wait. Didn’t you say seven minds?”

Seven births were linked. Seven people all shared the same body. Unfortunately, one of the children was from a far more primitive world. The child died, and of course, when the physical vessel dies, the mind goes with it. Where to, even I don’t know.

“But coma patients? For that long? How can they still be alive?”

The wolf shook its head. You shouldn’t concern yourself with the details. Suffice to say, the dream realm is very flexible where such things are concerned. Time isn’t quite so confining.

“You… You’re proposing their minds travel back? To the start?”

Olban shook his head. “But my rings don’t do that! I don’t know any magic that can!”

You may not. I will be the one to provide that final push.

Gareth sighed. “This is going to take years, isn’t it?”

Worry not. Simply by reading the inhabitants as they dream, I understand a little of your worlds. I have, shall we say, significant influence with the others of my kind. Olban. The only thing that took you so long was the lack of resources, true?

“A lot of study, research in how to accomplish it. After that, each ring took a week to make, sir. But it took me six months to afford the exotic metals and another year of experimentation, attempting to extract a pure form of aluminium. That took a lot of effort.”

But now you now possess that knowledge. If you agree to aid this woman, I believe you’ll experience several… shall we say, serendipitous occurrences. They shall provide you with all the resources you’ll require.

Olban nodded with a sigh. “I agree, sir.”

I require an agreement from both of you.

“What if she turns violent?” Gareth eyed the woman again, warily. “You already said she’s spent time in a loony bin! She’s already guilty of attempted murder!”

In each of your worlds, you’ll remain in control of your own bodies. She will merely be a passenger. Unless you relinquish control, she will not have any. Something I’m sure she’ll find quite distressing. She was the dominant for much of her life. The others were quite content to sit in the background most of the time, only emerging infrequently.

“So… We’re a lifeboat and as long as we don’t hand her the tiller, she’ll never gain control?”

No.

“Alright. I agree. How do we do it?”

Guide her through the woods and into the between. She will fade, just as you do, Gareth.

“And on the way back to mine?”

She’ll regain her physical form as you approach the woods from one side and lose it again as you retreat from them on the other. Just as each of you does.

“What if she tries to run away in the woods?”

You each attempted that in the past. Where did that get you?

Olban nodded. “It was an interesting experiment. Worth a try. I get it. We take her on, she’s a part of us.”

Oh, before I forget. You do still have a promise to keep.

“A promise?”

Yes. A proof of magic. One that can be demonstrated to those who know your secret. Gareth’s doctor will not be receiving a visit from you in the near future, after all.

“But without the rings, how can we”

The prototype to the rings, the proof of concept you made. It will still work.

“The armband? But I set that aside over a year ago! I’d forgotten all about it. It’s only capable of transferring itself, not a person.”

You promised Gareth proof. The armband will suffice for now.

“Yes, sir. Thank you. I would’ve never thought of that. I may spend today adding a little to it.”

Good fortune will follow you. The wolf vanished.

Olban regarded the woman. “Damn. Didn’t think to ask her name. Come on. I’ll carry her, it’ll be quicker. Especially when we get to the woods.” He strode over to her and hoisted her up into a fireman’s lift before turning back to the direction they’d been heading before spotting her.

Gareth jogged to catch up. “We’ll just have to ask her when she wakes up.”

* * *

The woods were a strange place to most, but to Gareth and Olban, they were just a standard part of life.

They first made their presence felt as columns of mist began to appear, as similar mist rose up around their ankles. As they continued, just as Olban had appeared, the ground and trees appeared too, gaining solidity with every step. Trees with pink and purple leaves. Each time they passed through the woods, the leaves took on a different hue.

Gareth glance around as they crested a hill and sighed. “Seems tonight is one for missing out on the fun. Look.” He pointed.

At the bottom of the hill, to their left, the faint hint of a classroom. Of desks, children, a teacher at a blackboard and a much more solid, naked boy standing at the front, covering his embarrassment with his hands and wearing a look of sheer horror.

“One of the classics.”

“I know, but not today. We have more important things to do.”

As they wound their way through the forest, they passed a few more such dreams. A man plummeting into a pit, screaming, a boy blowing out the candles on a birthday cake before rushing across the room to open his presents, a woman fleeing down spectral streets pursued by shadows, another man behind a counter facing a shadowy figure in a ski mask with a gun.

“I’d advise against intruding on other people’s dreams when you cross over physically, Gareth. As will I, when I cross to yours. Keep out of it.”

“You don’t think---”

“I do, yes. You can’t be hurt when you’re dreaming. You most certainly can if you’re here in person. You could even be killed. I wouldn’t want to run into that!” He pointed at a T-Rex rampaging through what looked like a ghostly New York in the distance. “There seem to be a few more nightmares than usual today. I wonder if this is that balance thing he mentioned.”

“You think her attempt to kill her… sister? It might be the cause of this?”

“Who knows? Maybe next time we run into Vellan, we can ask him.”

It wasn’t long before the trees, the very ground beneath their feet began to dissolve again to be replaced by the stark whiteness of the between.

A few steps and Gareth could sense the same was happening to him. “You might as well put her down, now. I’m starting to fade. So’s she.”

* * *

Olban awoke and stretched. As he did so, he felt something stirring in the back of his mind. He smiled and kept his eyes closed as he wormed his way out of bed.

“Olban? The cock hasn’t crowed, yet. Why are you getting up?”

“Sorry, father. I have a lot of work to do, today. I’ll break my fast and be on my way.”

“So, the day’s finally come?”

“No, father. There’s been a… complication.”

“Oh?”

“I’ll tell you later. I need time to discuss things. I know how much you hate it when I talk to myself. I also need to consult with Master Stell.”

Qui a dit ça? Où suis-je? Pourquoi je ne peux pas ouvrir les yeux?

Oh, for fuck’s sake! Why didn’t the bloody wolf tell us she was a fuckin’ frog?

Olban muttered under his breath. “Gareth, show some respect. He might not be a god but he’s better than any of us.”

Do you speak French? Considering your world’s been blessed by not having any, I doubt it!

“I imagine such things as language barriers are not something he concerns himself with.”

The woman’s voice took on a more fearful tone. Where am I? Who are you? What is that horrible smell?

Olban opened his eyes and looked around his home, at the fire pit in the centre of the large, single room, its smoke snaking to the hole in the roof, the animals penned on one side of the large circular structure, the huge communal bed Olban shared with his whole family.

Gareth sighed. Thank God she speaks English. No Google Translate, here. Welcome to the home of Olban ap Gwynn. You’re not in Kansas anymore, Dorothy.

Kansas? I’ve never been to America and my name is not Dorothy. Where am I?

You didn’t even get that reference? I thought everyone in the bloody western world had seen the Wizard of Oz!

Olban grinned but remained silent, allowing Gareth to handle things until he was dressed, fed and alone.

But how can I be in a… What is this? One of those living museums? One of those fake villages set up to be like… This looks even more primitive than medieval Europe.

Oh, it is, but there’s nothing fake about here. Dark ages, possibly very early medieval would be our best guestimate, development-wise. From what I’ve read on the subject, Saxon is pretty close. I suppose in your case, being French, fifth-century Gaul might be the equivalent. And yes, here, they do have magic potions, just like in Asterix. I’m sure you’ve heard of him!

This is a dream! It has to be a dream.

Oh, this goes far beyond the dream. Dreams are where normal people go when they sleep. Us two? We go much further. Much deeper. And now, so will you.

Relinquish control! Give me back my body, whoever you are!

Olban will retain control here, just as I will retain control in our world. Consider yourself lucky we agreed to help or you would’ve spent the rest of eternity as nothing but a mindless husk.

Give me back my body!

Olban… Grab your crotch.

Olban chuckled and did so.

Feel that? Have you ever had a cock and balls to fondle? It isn’t your body.

I’m a man? How can I be a man? What’s happening to me?

Your body’s still in our world. You’ve been severed from it for your crime.

Crime? What crime?

Did you, or did you not, attempt to kill one of your… companions?

It was the only way! I had to be alone! I had to!

Six sharing the same head is a little much. I almost understand, but… You hated them so much?

No! I loved them, but…

But your own selfish need to be all on your lonesome forced you to act. Gareth’s voice dripped with sarcasm. What happened then?

A wolf came. It told me to stop.

But you didn’t, did you?

I tried to imagine up a blade. It was a dream. It should’ve been easy. Then… She started to sob. My mind. I felt it all burning away. I thought it killed me. I’m dead. That’s it, isn’t it? I have to be dead!

The wolf spoke to us. Asked us to help. You thought killing your companions was the only way to be alone. There is another.

How? How can there be another? My doctor tried every medication, none of it worked.

You’re a victim of misdiagnosis. As am I. Why? Because the medical professionals in our world know nothing of magic. That is the solution to your problem. You don’t suffer from multiple personality disorder, dissociative identity disorder or whatever else your shrink chose to call it. You genuinely shared your head with five other people. Real people. Trapped by a rare magical occurrence.

But that’s impossible!

Unusual. Very unusual in your case. Two of us was strange enough, but at least with only two, we could cross to each other’s worlds when the other slept. That’s where you are, now.

As they’d been talking, Olban had finished getting dressed. He stepped outside and looked up at the still-dark sky with only a dim glow on the horizon that indicated the oncoming dawn.

“Welcome to my world.”

It was a good night for star gazing. The warrior was high in the sky and the three moons shone brightly in the clear autumn night. Lan, the largest was almost full and bathed the village in its eerie green light, the next, the bright-blue Tore, was a thin crescent and the smallest, silver Perrio was half illuminated.

“When we encountered you, you were just a naked, mindless husk, as Gareth said. A wolf circled you, protecting you. That was no ordinary wolf. There are powers in the world. Powers far beyond humanity. The wolf was one of them. It prevented your crime. It severed you from your body and kept you until we came along. The only two people who could help not only you but the others who shared your mind. I suggest you stop being demanding and just enjoy the ride because until you gain a body of your own, you’ll never be in control. Oh, by the way… The wolf didn’t give us your name. As it clearly isn’t Dorothy. What is it?”

There was awe in the voice when it next spoke. Awe at the heavens above them. Eloise. My name is Eloise Parker.

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I’ll tag everyone for this one. There’s a few who haven’t replied yet and it’s not been a week.

@Rob_Lee. If you’re still willing to keep the admin page updated, could you add this chapter? And the character profiles when I post them? I’ll wait until Sunday before gathering up the tag list and assigning a schedule.

@VerityMonet, @Chacko_Stephen, @AJAY9979, @CalebPinnow, @Carissa, @coldfront, @EllPoet, @GLD, @Itsyaboy, @LiannaC, @MeeJong, @Never_more, @nightscribbler, @pepita_picasso, @Rob_Lee, @Roses311Sublime, @saluthibou, @shaynabryer, @spike1, @ValiantRaptor47, @Voidkin_Killer, @WhiteWolfe32.