Day 65

Roseline Jones

Under a false sky, a seer pondered.

Around her, the world was changing. It was ever-changing, always was, but a great upheaval was occurring. The good kind, an ascension. Transcendence to the next level. Their time in The Pit had begun blind, fearful, and upon a fatal edge. One necessary action after another forcing them forward.

The Sixty had become a drastically different people after two months. Alongside their powers, motivations were evolving.

Each step into the dark and unknown had refined them.

Roseline saw that change with both the Tapestry and her own pale eyes. Success and understanding were turning a burden into a way of life. Rising to the Sky was the goal, but the challenge of The Pit was becoming their everyday. A comfortable one even. Happiness was being discovered despite the increasing dangers. Birthing intimacies and memories that could not be possible without the pressure of this new reality.

She saw Xavier’s plans working exactly as intended.

For better or worse, things were hitting a critical point now.

Acceptance.

Plain and simple acceptance of The Pit.

Harken would rejoice at the revelation while many would deny it with every breath. A terrible lie and a devastating truth. One that colored everything. Completely fascinating, but the seer could not risk uttering this to any soul. Not without disrupting everything. The patterns of the future fraying into the ocean.

An important undercurrent, yet one that needed to remain in silence.

The completion of the fifth floor was accelerating the growing acceptance. Every day normalized The Pit further in concert with rising avenues of power. Valerie playing the part of a mad scientist was only the most recent example. Her actions were shifting the entire Tapestry.

A paradigm shift, of sorts.

Roseline had seen this coming, but it was still a wonder to see one woman’s thread so clearly make a difference. Every interaction spawned new patterns and branches. Valerie's equipment was at the heart of a new well of empowerment. Enhancements that would drive the Sixty to higher understanding.

Through new perspective, further acceptance.

She was beginning to grasp the underlying rules of their little world. Their lives were simplified, a task given, and then pressure to encourage growth. Terrible and brilliant. Xavier was pushing them, his plan was working. They were becoming strong inheritors. Valerie’s work was pushing them past the next barrier. The cumulative effect from day one turned a ripple into a tidal wave.

Beginning with Malachi’s new arm, a clamor of desire was invoked. Rumbled through the underground. The arcanist had created a thirst for upgrades. Her fine works overshadowed anything within the Screens. Roseline laughed at the surge of requests and gaped at Valerie's passion to complete them all.

It was very good that a plan had already been decided beforehand. Seam-ripping chaos if they had not. Party by party everyone was interviewed, interrogated, and then roughly measured. Production began shortly after.

The first party to undergo the process was Malachi’s and there were few complaints about that. Quiet whines at worse. No one denied their leader’s right in light of his demand to be the first into the fray, breaching the unknown for them.

This also forced Valerie’s manner to become more polished with the rest of the Sixty. Roseline smirked remembering that meeting. Productive, but caustic at times. Julia’s snark, a counter to the arcanist's bluntness.

A lottery decided the rest of the order.

While most were taking a long break, the arcanist was feverishly working. Day and night, without break if Soren hadn’t taken serious efforts to curb her attempts to skip sleep. The marksman had been unfazed at throwing the ranting woman over his shoulder and whisking her away to sleep. An action made easier by the manic crafter losing consciousness as her blood cooled with every step away from the stalls.

The progress through the list every new day was extraordinary.

New equipment flowed and the old equipment was offered to Valerie to be sold back to the Screens. The Council was funding her from the community pot, but every little bit helped. Everyone was being re-outfitted after all.

Vacations then turned to training.

What the arcanist had made for them was more than new armor. It was augmentation, empowerment. Filled to the brim with enchantments that resonated with each person’s Affinity. These new aspects of heightened power needed time to familiarize themselves and everything to become natural. Ascending to higher peaks of power always required dedication and none of the Sixty wished to experience a backlash in the middle of a fight.

Studying the changed Tapestry, Roseline smiled. The flow forward looked promising. A hardy foundation had been well prepared for this springboard moment. It was becoming rare that more than a nudge was necessary. There were only the unavoidable crises left to worry about and those were a matter of long efforts. And rolls of the dice. She had to hope that small moments would build up to make the right alignments. Patience was required to guide the Sixty.

Her relationship with Mana demanded it as well.

Learning her role in this world had been difficult. The seer’s affinity was almost hostile to sanity. From the very beginning, the power had taken hold and came close to driving Roseline mindlessly mad. Chaos and fragmented visions. She understood why people with her power were depicted as insane, it was an all too real possibility. Her first several days had been spent under the fear that schizophrenia had finally caught up. Doomed like some in her family. That she had avoided that fate, the pale-eyed woman attributed more to desperate luck than anything else.

The others of the Sixty had the books to guide them, but she was alone. Even had Roseline been capable of reading, the words within wouldn’t have helped a bit with getting a handle on the intrusion of the Tapestry. She had the sneaking suspicion that her power was rare enough, unpredictable enough, that Xavier hadn’t planned for it. Not seriously.

This was confirmed, in her mind, with the second Path book.

Selecting her Path in the first place had been a fluke of ending up in the line and absently following through. Which was for the best since that had been required for the Sixty to pass through the doors, but she barely remembered it. The only proof was the gifted supplies, her cloak, and the first book. Which had been useless even when in the correct mindset to peruse the pages.

The madness digging into her was a personal struggle. One she had overcome alone. Had to. The Tapestry wasn’t a thing of Mana manipulation, it was an inherent ability.

The instructions for using her Mana directly didn’t become useful until recently. After seeing what simply imbuing yourself could do, Roseline had studied to catch up. A determination that burned the hours and then days to eventual success. No spells as of yet, but she had a basic Form for enhanced physical ability and some skill at manipulating ambient Mana.

When the seer heard about the Path upgrades, she had been excited. The book for acolytes omitted her inherent ability completely. The pale-eyed woman had been sure that the new Path would bring recognition and therefore come with a book to cultivate her further.

She was right about the first part.

Upon going to the Screens, Roseline had been offered Seer as the higher Path. The book that came from agreeing to that obvious choice had been less expected.

“Tales Of Divination And Prophecy” by Dione Wadjet as it was named, and she cringed at the words. It was the sort of title used by books found in the Occult section of a corporate bookstore. A triviality meant for children, not the serious tome that would discuss the talents for foretelling.

Her waning hope died after the first story.

The book was an anthology, some were allegorical, others were myths, and a few were historical tales. In each was an element of divination to tie them all together, that element could be a fortune teller or the prophecy alone. Roseline found it frustrating how little those parts took up in the stories. A backdrop, a single scene, or at most the bookends.

No instructions at all, just stories. Still, she read every single one. Multiple times. Frantically searching for meaning and grudgingly pouring over the words. Unlike the first book, there were no changes with each read through. This wasn’t a teaching book.

To the seer’s frustration, it was just stories.

At least that was her frustrated experience, then Harken took a look.

The priestly man had taken a look at the book with curiosity that turned to world-blocking concentration. Slowly sliding into the couch, drawn further into some story. He ended up reading every story. Asking her to give him time to read again, reflect, and absorb.

Two days later Harken returned with his opinion over red wine and a charcuterie board. It was a serious, distant expression that he gave her when the initial tasting had faded to weighted silence. The verbose man was quietly thoughtful. Staring into the depths of the swirling wine as she fidgeted at the continued delay. Roseline was about to press for an explanation when the dam broke.

A small smile. “I hope you can forgive me for this expansion of an answer to your simple ask. To you it was only a sharing of frustration, seeking an ear of understanding. This setup and my delay must only stroke your disappointment in this book.” His long fingers tap out a tune on the leather tome. “I shared it, my book was equally unhelpful. That is until I saw yours. A pairing of sorts… I thought that almost immediately.”

He placed another book on the table. Red leather and gilded words matched her own. The title “Twists Of Fate: Prophets and Seers” by Watis Yeshua gleamed for her attention. Likely it was all Roseline’s imagination, but there seemed to be a hum emanating between the two. A message made in silence. She pulled the new book before her and began to page through.

There were illustrations in “Tales Of Divination And Prophecy” in contrast to the thick word-filled pages in this one. Dry historical notations. This wasn’t storytelling at all, nothing but the stark truth that was known. Bias was sterilized with simple statements of the facts and a stern accusation of anything unsubstantiated.

“How long did it take you to read this?” asked the seer in admiration. She was interested, but knew the style would make any effort slow.

“Far more days than yours,” frowned Harken. Taking a solid taste of wine before adding, “And I’m only on my third read and I’ll need to start over with your book in mind.”

“Because they’re connected? How? I am guessing you don’t mean only the shared subject matter.”

“They present to us two perspectives of how foretelling affects the world and is perceived by the world. Or at least how this world did, and are parallel to how they reacted to it in ours.” He pointed at each book in turn. “Yours shows us the cultural aspect and mine the historical effect. They are lessons rather than instructions. Our talent for the future sight might simply be unteachable.”

“That’s what I figured, but I hoped… How does one guide another in mad visions of space and time?”

“With knowledge and broadening horizons. The power is ours by right of Affinity, so in theory, we’re destined to get a handle on it, with some effort. These books seem to be intended to teach us responsibility and how best to utilize our knowledge with others.”

“Easy for you to say when you only get visions and aren’t risking insanity every time you dip into the pool.”

“Nor can I as readily use my foresight as you can,” conceded Harken. “You’ve shown yourself to be strong against the hysteria and I have complete faith you shall maintain your grip.”

“Your faith is flattering, but it can’t wash away the fear. The first weeks here are a blur to me. I barely remember more than islands of clarity. Most of which was spent curled up in an anxiety ball. When my Path upgrade was named Seer, I thought I was finally getting a helping hand. The fear of losing myself in the Tapestry is constant,”

He laid his hand upon Roseline’s, his gaunt face appearing soft for once. “No matter how deep you go, I’ll see you back. Promise.”

Smiling, she replied, “Thank you, but how would you even help me if I lost my mind?”

“Mana is the essence of infinite possibility, a strong intention can do anything. Nothing could halt my effort.”

“Then I will put my faith in you in equal measure to your faith in me.”

A warm silence fell between them, their hands still touching, unmoving. Frozen in an act of intimacy that neither was acknowledging and yet filled the air unmistakably. She resisted the urge to take a peek, to see the branch paths from this moment. Doing so was a threat to free will. The best actions would become immediately apparent.

Mostly, Roseline wasn’t ready for where the building heat wanted to take her.

She coughed and slipped her hand free to grab something from the charcuterie board. If bothered, Harken showed no sign of it. Instead, he took the moment to collect his own morsels. While she made and ate one at a time, he prepared three stacks before eating.

Distracting yourself! Come on Roseline!

“So um, what did you mean by our Affinity would guide us or uh whatever?”

Harken finished chewing as he collected himself. “I look at the Sixty and see a great deal of instinctive casting. Magical might is themed from person to person. Through the Heartsong the spells come fully formed. They recite the words and it works! Casting in time transfers that knowledge from the Heartsong to us. That’s why our mages begin to craft their own spells on top of what their inner self gives. What I am getting at is that Affinity is the deciding factor on what power we get. It exists in us because there is something instinctive about that element.”

“You’re suggesting that our seeing the future is the result of a natural affinity for it?”

“Absolutely. A product of our talents and desires. Don’t forget that Mana reacts to our intentions. The mixing of those aspects is what creates our Affinity. Damien’s magic reflects his scientific mind, but also his love for the stars. Malachi, his handle on tactics and need for flexibility. Vivian is wholeheartedly devoted to protection and healing. Those are the clear examples. Everyone has a similar make up even if it is not so obvious. We are no different.”

“I’m cursed then,” cringed Roseline. Memories swept sourly through her.

“Cursed? In what way? I am amazed by your Tapestry every day.”

“Of course, you are. It isn’t your burden. You are disconnected from everything! Madness is just an obstacle to you. A problem to solve. Your promise to bring me back is nice, but every time I dive in is a risk. My sanity is at risk, so is my humanity and empathy. Power is terrible and if you could understand how easy it would be to see you all as puppets, you’d be afraid of me.

“Yet, that’s not really the issue. The risks, I mean. If I’m honest, despite my doubts, I know in my heart that I’m up to the challenge. What makes me feel cursed goes back further than The Pit. I had a knack for predicting things even then… I don’t need any warnings about how dangerous telling a prophecy can be. I’ve experienced the chaos that can bring.”

“Tell me.” Soft, earnest.

“No one wants to hear the truth. No one likes the person that rains on your parade. No one really wants to hear a warning, especially if it comes true. I can’t say I’ve always been a mystic, but my intuition was considered supernatural by some. I’d see a relationship and know it would fail from the get-go. I’d know something was a scam before anyone else. Small and big guesses that were all proved correct. Spooked some people.

“I always rationalized it as I was observant, just putting it all together quicker. When I would get a certainty like that, it started to fill me with dread. I was basically Cassandra. No one would listen… keeping mum about everything I saw was almost worse. They wouldn’t have listened, but I didn’t even try. So yes, I do see this as a curse. It is a burden.”

Harken offered his hand, a face softened this time by admiration. “One that you have used masterfully. All for our betterment. Prophecy is new to me, but I did ask for it. I can see that something of this magnitude would be less than pleasant if it was pressed upon you. If there is anything we… I can do to lessen this burden, please tell us. We’ll listen.”

She held his hand earnestly at first and then as if the grip kept her from falling off a cliff. “I don’t think there is anything to be done, but I’ll try to remember I’m not alone. It’s surprisingly hard to remember that even when stuck in the ground with fifty-nine other people.”

“Perhaps you need to go out with us into the dungeon again. Staying down here separates you from us.”

“I’d like to, but there’s not much I can actually do in a battle. My predictions can’t keep up without dipping into the Tapestry and then I can’t communicate what I see very easily. I feel like a tourist, offering nothing and getting in the way.”

“Since my help hasn’t broken whatever barrier stands, perhaps we should talk with Damien or Vincent. Your Affinity with Mana is likely not connected to Faith as mine is.”

“Or, I’m doomed to be standing on the sidelines ‘cause I have no actual acumen for battle.”

“Let’s not give up just yet, I predict there is a solution to this issue. The future is bright.”

“Hah! Of course, we’ll make sure.”

“Yes.”