The Kitten is Scarier than the Shark

Oh, you're back. Hello!

Well, I'm sure you're wondering how I'm still able to tell this little tale. My heart did just get obliterated, after all, and it was indeed quite painful. And if it's in the same instant that I died that I'm telling this tale, then how am I prolonging it so endlessly?

The answers, as with all things, lie within the Book.

'My God, that sounded cheesy…'

'Shut up. We've already had this conversation. I always talk to myself whenever I'm thinking hard about something. It helps me focus.'

Over the next few months, I became increasingly obsessed with the Book. It took me an entire month to put the pages in order, and even then, I could barely understand beyond Section 2. So I started reading. A page or two a day, spent merely digesting the contents of the marvelous Book.

The Author was a mad genius, I learned. He would rage and rant, while simultaneously calculating the formula of an incomprehensible spell. But never in words, no. It was beyond the words. Written between every letter, bastioned between the lines of text, present on every page. It was there. Formulas, calculations, mad laughter formulated and distilled into words. The Book was naught but a Dream, I learned, for all the wonder and terror that entailed.

The shifting pages were only the beginning, the warning sign that this Book was more than it seemed. It was the writing on the wall, the symbol of something so beautiful and horrible it belied comprehension. I was dreaming of eternity in a room with no doors, no floors to keep you from falling further into panic. Each one small fear suddenly titanic in its implications. Situations so far beyond grotesque, I would've amputated my own imagination just to make them stop.

But they were beautiful, those words. The simplicity with which they explained their madness, the way they wove together to create a tapestry so utterly exquisite, so angelic, that I wondered if the Author fell from heaven. It danced along my mind like a pen upon paper, writing thoughts, equations, imaginings so pure that they whispered with the softness of rain upon the open earth.

It was no wonder that I became obsessed with decoding its' contents. My life held more meaning with the Book in my hands than it ever had without it. It taught me better than any tutor, whispering Mysteries into my mind with the soft caress of a lover.

And then I finished the first chapter, and the true madness began. What was once a whisper of kind guidance became a roar. The theories were no longer hidden, and the words that once sheltered the delicate treasures became an endless terrain of wild scribblings built to contain the profound imagination of the Author. The theories he made… they defied reality itself.

I closed my eyes, sighing as I finished the latest page. In truth, the first chapter taught the basics of the Dream, and was more of an introduction than anything. It gave one the keys one must know to decode the rest of the Book. The Author wove a system of his own design, one that spoke of physics and magic in the same sentence. While every other System either followed nature or belied it, this one freely allowed itself to grow beside nature. It respected Nature as an equal, and asked it to lend its' power rather than taking it or ignoring it. Yet, at the same time, it spoke of psion flows and magecraft, implying that the System it created had self-appointed rules.

I smiled, finally closing the Book and stroking it gently. It shivered under my touch, shimmering and glowing. "Hello, beautiful." I whispered to it, feeding a steady stream of mana into it. "Would you mind sizing down for me? It wouldn't do for some uncultured swine to see you and wish to take you from me."

It glowed softly, and magic circles shimmering to life on every surface. A moment later, it was a simple necklace with a book the size of a matchbox in the center. I picked it up by the chain and fastened it around my neck, tucking the Book beneath my shirt. "Thanks, girl." I murmured, rising to my feet.

I managed to find my mana within a day of finding the Book, but I never cast any of the spells. And even if I wanted to, the Book seemed adamant that I not do so until I had finished the Theory Section, or Section 1. While not originally sentient, it had gradually acclimated to my mana, weakly fluttering its' pages every now and then. I nurtured it, guiding it, feeding it energy when it needed it. And in return, it, she, became more and more intelligent. I no longer needed to search for the page I wanted, the Book opened herself to the exact spot I needed before I even asked.

She was my little Book, now, and she would never belong to anyone else.

I began my morning ritual, being extra careful to tidy up my appearance. It was selling day, after all, and I needed to look my best. I noticed Von at his workbench, yawning and stretching. He glanced over at me, noting the glimmer of the chain around my neck. He sighed, rubbing his eyes. "Kid, you're going to kill yourself with that thing, one of these days."

I nodded seriously, brushing my fingers against it. "Don't worry, brother. She'll stop me from doing anything dangerous."

He snorted. "Yes. She. That's my problem, kid. One of these days that little 'Book' of yours will end up becoming a full-fledged Grimoire, and God only knows what'll happen then."

I tilted my head. "Why are you so worried? She's my Book." The Book shivered slightly against my skin, and the chain flickered golden.

He just shook his head, picking up his hammer and heading to his forge. "'She' is a book, not a human. You don't know what she is, what she wants, what she'd do if she managed to take on physical form. I trust a Devil more than that Book, because I at least know what the Devil will do to me if I let my guard down. I don't trust anything that doesn't show me where it keeps its' brain, and you ought not to, either."

I sighed, heading towards the kitchen for a quick breakfast. "You need to learn to trust more, brother. I understand where you're coming from, but if you never trust anyone, then you're going to end up dying alone one day. I trusted you, didn't I? And look at us now."

Von snorted. "Yeah, you say 'trust' now, but in a couple years, when you finish that thing like you've been planning to? Grimoires are dangerous, kid, and if the Mad Scientist and the Crimson Satan themselves didn't want anything to do with this Book, then you probably don't either."

I just gave him a sideways glance, but said nothing. I understood his point, but I'm not just going to ignore this thing. I haven't had a purpose in my life since my parents died. I could angst about their deaths for the next ten years, or I could do something with my life. And this little Book? It needed me, just as much as I needed it. I would complete the theories, finish the incomplete spells, and possibly even write my own entries into its' pages.

I picked up a cereal bar and a carton of milk, tucking them in my bag. I gave Von a respectful nod on my way by, put on my protective covering, and left the building.

Over the past few months, the Ash had grown increasingly dangerous. While before, it could be predicted with some measure of success, now it was entirely random. The storms would just start, some lasting less than a minute, others lasting hours. Of course, normally I would be a bit more wary before putting on the lenses nowadays, due to my declining vision, but I had accidentally found the creator's notes on an object of similar design in Section 4. It taught me how to activate and deactivate the lenses using a slight spike of mana. Very useful for sudden storms.

…Actually, come to think of it, I never did finish reading that particular entry. I should ask the Book to help me find it later.

Filing that thought away, I began the long trek to the information market. The information market is exactly as the name implies, a market for information. It's where we Reveres go to sell the papers we find, and where we meet with the shadier people in Naskapi. It's across town from Von's shop, so it takes a while to walk there. About forty-five minutes, to be precise. We visit a different person every day, and today's client was a big one.

Forty-seven minutes later, I pushed open the door to a shady-looking store and slipped inside. Carn was just inside the door, waiting patiently while having a one-sided conversation with the door guards. I entered, nodding to the guards, and sat beside Carn to wait. The man we were to meet was known as 'Shark' in the crime circles. This was because he always made a point to circle you several times, driving you up the wall with terror before he finally struck. Fortunately, that meant we had quite a bit of time left before Shark finally called us into his office. Plenty of time to re-read what I needed to know.

I tapped Carn on the arm. He turned, pausing his 'conversation' to look at me. "What'cha need, mate?"

I sighed. "Carn, pop quiz. Do you know anything about this guy? If not, then you're just going in blind."

He blinked. "Er… if'n I remember correctly, 'e uses Mind Magic."

I blinked at him. "Do you know what that even is?"

"Nope!" He replied cheerfully. "But that's what I got you for, mate!"

I grit my teeth, but pulled out my Book. The guards seemed to suddenly lose sight of me, but they weren't too worried about it. Like I was no longer their problem. Perfect.

"All right, girl." I whispered. "Mind taking me to the Arcana?"

The Arcana is a Section of the Book dedicated to magic. It didn't just explain different magics, but also gave insight on how to combat them, exploit them, and even learn them yourself.

Perfect for planning ahead.

Section 2: Arcana.

Entry one: Introduction. (Level 1: Human)

Beginning apprentices and other newcomers to the magical world tend to have two big questions about Magic. The first is the why – what it is, where it comes from, and why some people can use it when others can't. The second is the how – what works and what doesn't, and what you can expect when dealing with a Mage.

The traditional answer is that magic is connection. A Mage is a person who has an attunement to one particular aspect of the world around them: they perceive that aspect more clearly and directly than other people and over time they can learn to control it. The aspect can be something elemental like air or heat, something connected to living beings like life or thought, or an abstract concept such as chance or time.

The type of magic a Mage is connected to is based on their inner nature – their personality, character, and soul. You could say that someone's magic is an expression of their inner self, but it's just as true to say that someone's magic is their inner self. Mages generally can't survive without their magic, and in the rare cases where it's separated from them, they don't live long. The Mage's nature determines the kind of magic they can use, not vice versa – there's no way to use Fire Magic without having the personality of a Fire Mage. This doesn't mean that Mages of a certain type are all the same, but the type of magic that someone can use always reflects a profound truth about the kind of person they are.

I smiled. "Well, then, exactly what I needed. Thanks, girl." I flipped the page, and continued reading.

Even the most multitalented Mage can never learn to use more than the tiniest fraction of all the spells out there. While it is possible to learn a different type of magic, this requires that you use an entirely different personality while using it. While with Fire you were a scorching inferno of Wrath, now you are a cold burn of Ice. It's important to note that there are no magic types that are inherently evil. Some are inherently dangerous and make it very easy to do unpleasant things to people, but there are good and bad Mages of every type.

I sighed. "I don't need this right now. Mind taking me to the second entry?"

Several dozen pages flipped, and I began the next chapter.

Arcana #2: The Three Families.

Mages divide the types of magic into three broad families: Elemental, Living, and Universal.

Elemental Magic is the magic of the physical world. The most well-known types of Elemental Magic are Air, Fire, Earth, and Water, but Lightning and Ice Mages are also common, as are types of magic which most people wouldn't consider elements but which seem to fit better in the Elemental category than any other, such as force. Elemental Mages are the most common kind of Mage by a long way, probably more common than both of the other families put together.

Out of all the families, Elemental Mages are the best at directly affecting physical reality – they're the artisans, engineers, and soldiers of the magical world, and it's rare for them to come up against a physical problem they can't solve. That said, their way of solving that problem is unlikely to be subtle. Elemental Magic is usually very obvious and attracts a lot of attention. Keep getting straight flushes in a poker game and you'll get some funny looks, but most people won't think you're using magic, they'll think you're cheating. Go flying down the street and you'll get a very different reaction.

Elemental Magic tends to be well-suited to combat. All Elemental Mages have at least some natural ability to hurt people and break things, even if it's not what they specialize in. More importantly they can use shields, which give them a good natural defense against most other attacks. As a result, most Battlemages are Elemental Mages.

So Carn would be an Elemental Mage. Good to know.

Living Magic is the magic of living creatures and covers life and death, thought and emotion, and shapeshifting. While most mages can affect living creatures one way or another, Living Magic can alter them directly.

'…Fuck. I'm already hating the idea of fighting Shark.' I flipped the page.

Living Magic is completely unable to affect inanimate objects in any way, which means mages of the living family are much more limited than Elemental Mages in what they can do. An Air Mage is always surrounded by his chosen element—no matter where he goes, there's air. (If there's not, he probably has bigger problems to worry about.)

Since when was the author a wise-ass? I don't recall anything like this in the introduction. That was mostly warnings. Lots and lots of warnings.

A Mind Mage, on the other hand, can only affect creatures that have minds. If he's on his own, he's kind of stuck. Living Mages also can't directly protect themselves from physical harm in the way that Elemental Mages can.

All right, maybe it's a bit warranted. It certainly gets the point across faster.

That said, Living Mages have a few things going for them. When it comes down to it most important things in the modern world tend to involve dealing with other people one way or another, and that's what Living Mages specialize in. Living Magic also tends to be harder to detect than Elemental Magic, and Living Mages can blend in with ordinary people more easily than Mages from the other families (although part of that is probably because Living Mages tend to be more social). Finally, while Living Magic can only affect Living creatures, it's very good at affecting Living creatures and within their field Living Mages outshine everyone else by a long way.

So living magic is subtle, yet powerful within its' field. If elementals are flashy and obvious, living mages are more subdued. Shark is probably going to try and either talk around us, or quietly adjust something in our minds. Damn. I checked the bottom of the second page, which listed weaknesses and strategies.

Mind Mages can only affect minds they can understand. Either think in a language they don't know, or use some combination of Thought Acceleration and Memory Partition.

I opened my mouth to ask the Book to take me to those spells… but hesitated. The Book has been extremely clear that you should finish an Entry before trying anything on it. I flipped the page, and began to read once more.

Universal Magic is the rarest, the strangest, and the most poorly-understood of the three families. It covers abstract concepts like Divination, Time, Space, and Chance.

I blinked, my attention well and truly caught. '…Author? Thank you for your insistence that I finish every word. I will never doubt you again.'

More than any other family, Universal Mages of different types don't have much in common with each other. A Fire Mage and a water Mage and an Ice Mage might use different elements, but in a lot of ways they're very similar – they can all shield, they can all Gate, and they can all hit things with their magic until it breaks. On the other hand, a Time Mage, a Space Mage, and a Diviner have wildly different abilities. Some types of universal magic such as space can actually affect the physical world even better than elemental magic can (at least in specific areas) whereas other types like divination can't affect the physical world at all.

Divination. Seeing the fucking future. I WANT THAT. NOW.

I flipped the page, finding only the next Entry, which explained types of magic. 'Dammit, I want—'

The pages began flipping, responding to my desires. Finally, it landed on a later Entry.

Arcana #7: Divination Magic (Part One)

The first type of magic this Section will look at is Divination, a type of Universal Magic. A Mage who can use divination magic is called a Diviner, a Seer, a Probability Mage, or a fortune teller. Divination is one of the most limited of all magics. It does one thing and one thing only: it allows its user to see the probability of future events. It can't change those probabilities, it can't change those events, and it can't affect the material world in any way. All it can do is provide information.

A regular person introduced to a new situation doesn't know what's going to happen. When you're faced with a machine you don't know how to use, you don't know what pressing any of the buttons does. Over time, you start to learn how the thing works. Eventually, you might even learn why it works. And once you know the how and the why, you can figure out what's going to happen whenever you mess with the thing.

A Diviner gets to shortcut that. When he looks at a situation, he sees possible outcomes: he knows the what without understanding the how or the why. Every Diviner develops his own sensory code for this, but most do it visually, 'seeing' the potential futures unfold. In general, a Diviner's visions are limited to his own senses. He can only see the outcomes that he would be able to perceive were he to actually live through them.

YESSssss… I WANT THAT.

For a novice Diviner still unfamiliar with his powers, divination is strange and terrifying. His visions come in random unpredictable flashes, sometimes showing him nothing at all and sometimes overwhelming him with an insane rush of information as he experiences dozens of futures at once. All apprentice Diviners have at least a few episodes where they quite simply go batshit crazy. Over time they learn to master and control their visions, ordering them to their will, and as a result nearly all experienced Diviners develop a high level of mental discipline. The ones who can't manage that give up their power or go insane.

Well, I'm already kind of insane, so no issues there.

Once they've learned the basics of control, novice Diviners start learning to direct their visions, exploring the consequences of simple actions: what happens if I press this button? How about if I turn this card? What if I jump off this bridge? Over time they learn to explore more complicated futures, comparing multiple courses of action against each other and picking a single future out of many.

Divination magic can predict anything that can be predicted. The two things it can't predict are chance and free will.

Chance is the simpler of the two – some things are just random, although at a human scale truly random events are actually much rarer than most people think. More common is a sort of emergent unpredictability, where the cumulative effect of millions of tiny events adds up to something that isn't completely random but is chaotic enough that long-term prediction is impossible. Diviners can't predict pure chance but they can analyze it in terms of probability, interpreting it in an ordered framework.

Free will is more complex. Philosophers argue over whether free will exists but Diviners know it does, even if they don't understand exactly what it is. If someone genuinely hasn't made a choice, Diviners can't see beyond it. The most they can do is see the most likely choices, and the consequences.

Aside from those two limitations divination magic can predict just about anything, subject to the skill of the Diviner. Part 2 of this Entry will explore what that means.

Dammit, I want to learn more, but… I still need to find out what those two spells from before were. Thought something and Memory something.

"Hey, girl, mind helping me out, here?" I asked softly, and the Book seemed to… hesitate before complying. She must have been judging whether or not I was capable of learning the spells. But sure enough, the pages flipped of their own accord.

Thought Acceleration (高速思考, Kōsoku Shikō) is the main magecraft of Atlas alchemists. Fast thought is only a prerequisite to it, and it is truly the ability to multi−expansion diagrams. Thought Acceleration is the proof of an alchemist, while Memory Partition is a proof of their facilities.

Memory Partition (分割思考, Bunkatsu Shikō) is an ability used by the superior alchemists of Atlas. Paired with Thought Acceleration, the very proof that one is an Atlas alchemist, it is the ability to partition their thoughts to form multiple independent thought processes. While normal people can only have a single "room" in their brain and focus on one thought, partitioning adds partitions to the one room to create multiple rooms. The prerequisite for the superior alchemists of Atlas is at least three rooms, while five is on the level of a genius. The record for partitions made was eight.

It is different than having multiple independent machines in their heads because, while there are multiple processes, they work toward one goal. They manage different problem sets, but work together to generate one overall solution. While machines can calculate on the same level, nothing else compares when used for problem solving. The limit of an average alchemist is one thought into multiple rooms, but superior alchemists can perform first-order tetration of their thought into rooms. The rooms are synergistic, so four partitions allows for 256 thought processes.

It can be used to calculate the opponents' movements in battle, think out multiple separate ideas at once, and calculate data one gathers.

I felt a wide grin stretch across my face. 'Fuck. Yes.' I glanced down at the abstract instructions, and set about decoding them. By the time the door to Shark's office opened, I had gotten the bare basics down. And even if seven times my normal thought speed was puny in comparison to the thousand times thought speed of the Author, It's still more than enough to make the world move in slow motion. As for Memory Partition… two rooms. That's all I have. And hopefully, it'll be enough.

I rose alongside Carn, marveling at how even my body seemed to move in slow motion. Then a large man in a crisp business suit stepped out the door, and I felt the tiniest brush against my mind. I probably wouldn't have even felt it if I hadn't accelerated my mind. The man opened his mouth… and kept opening it… and kept opening it… okay, I can see how this could get annoying.

Seven seconds later, his mouth fully opened, and a slow sound began to reach my ears. 'Okay, fuck this. The Book mentioned something about using a modifier on the spell to make your senses function normally, so I'll use that.'

I shifted the framework of the spell, and something in my mind clicked. The world seemed to jerk slightly, and I could suddenly hear what the man was saying. "-ill see you, now."

I nodded, tucking the Book beneath my shirt once more. "Thanks."

He nodded, turning and walking back through the door. Carn and I followed, Carn making sure to let me go first. I nodded to the guards on the way by, silently apologizing for my companion's motormouth. My thoughts continued to whir madly, dissecting what I had read about Diviners. Perhaps I could become one? The Book said most Diviners were purely support types, but with the help of the Book, I don't doubt I could easily sidestep that.

The Dream did specialize in blending together different Systems to create impossibilities, after all.

We finally reached a large set of double doors, and the man in the suit pulled them open. He paused mid-pull, however, and turned to look each of us in the eye. "If you ever listen to anything I have to say, let it be this. Never lie to the Shark, he knows more than you can imagine."

I blinked, remembering an entry from the Book about a world filled with machines and people in pods. "No shit, dude." I replied, my expression never changing. "He's a Living Mage, and you never know what they're up to."

'I totally know what I'm talking about, yep. A bona fide, experienced Revere. I know everything, and say nothing. Please don't call me on this, dude.'

The man's expression turned confused. "A what?" He shook his head. "Never mind. You know that saying about sharks smelling blood?"

'…Okay. Apparently, most people don't know what Living Mages are. Possibly no one.' My lips twitched.'I suppose I am taking my information from a sentient book written by a mad genius, after all.'

I nodded, saying nothing. He made a finger-slicing motion. "The instant you show weakness…"

Carn gasped. "'E can smell blood? That's bloody amazing, mate! I wish I could do that!"

'Oh, and Carn is a dense idiot, but that's nothing new.'

The man blinked. "Er…"

I sighed. "Sorry, brother, but your rehearsed speech won't do shit against guys like us. We might look small, but we can kick the shit out of you if we have to."

His earnest expression fell. "I see. Well, my apologies then. That little speech usually has the newbies good and terrified by the time they see Boss."

I nodded. "Would've worked, if we were the run-of-the-mill Reveres, but we're the best of the best."

He chuckled. "I see. Well, good luck."

He finished pulling open the doors, and closed them behind us after we stepped through. Another dark hallway greeted us, and I cautiously led us forward. I didn't use a light, they would be expecting that. They might even have some sort of flammable gas or something just to weed out the morons. It's best to just use your five senses in these situations.

Finally, my slightly outstretched hand touched the wood of a door. I felt for the handle, and opened it. We stepped from the darkness to a bright room, a large desk in the center. I snorted. 'Disorientation tactics. Make 'em confused by changing rapidly from a dark to light room, then hammer 'em with questions. Classic interrogation tactics. Fortunately, I'm half-blind from using the lenses so many times, and Carn is simultaneously smart enough to let me do the talking and dumb enough to not actually remember anything of value.'

As expected, a sharp voice spoke from behind the desk. "Oh? A pair of rookies, I see. And who might you be?"

I sighed. "Definitely not rookies, that's for sure. Wolf did the exact same thing to us last time we met. Now the real question is, did you steal the idea from him or did he steal it from you?"

'Good. I reversed the momentum of the conversation, got him talking, established that I have connections, and bought us time to observe further. Trap diffused.'

I glanced around the room. It was pure white, with the only black present in the cushions of several chairs that were arranged in an arc facing the desk. The chairs themselves, as well as the desk, appeared to be made of solid marble, and were polished until they shone. The man behind the desk, most likely Shark, was very well groomed. He was remarkably handsome man with quirky long hair combed backward in a rough fashion that had a strand hanging down his face. He wore a white suit, the same color as the rest of the room, and had a sharp black tie. A pair of dark sunglasses hid his eyes.

The man chuckled. "Well, to be honest, he had it first. One of my boys spilled half his information before he even figured out where he was. I was fine with it, because the man didn't know too terribly much, and I got this little tactic out of it. And, upon further inspection, I can see you both came prepared." He tilted his head, light glinting off the frames of his dark glasses. "Odd. There aren't many things that can escape my notice."

I smiled slightly, smug in my knowledge, if a bit confused that Carn seemed to be protected as well. "You'd be surprised. I can name three off the top of my head, not even counting my companion's method."

He hummed in thought. "Your mind… seems… disjointed. Like there are four people speaking at once. And then they all start saying something simultaneously, and it still makes no sense. As if it's all sped up or something. But, while it's strange…" He turned his head to look at Carn. "It's nothing compared to your companion's method. His mind is full of random thoughts, unimportant bits of information, and speculations about…" He seemed confused. "…Smelling blood?"

I chuckled. 'Yeah, that sounds about right.' "Sorry, cousin, but he's too smart for you. You might have figured out by now, but we're a team of movers and shakers. He knocks the other guy off his guard, and I pick up on what falls."

Carn's eyes widened. "Wait, I'm doin' what? I thought I was supposed to be smelling for blood!"

The man at the desk chuckled. "I see. I take it he's trained himself to make pointed observations at seemingly random times?"

'Training? Hell no. Carn just says whatever comes into his head as soon as he notices something new. I just decided to weaponize that. But still, he doesn't need to know that.'

I nodded. "Yes. And I apologize if he says something insensitive, but I already had to talk him down from his normal methods."

He smiled, and gestured towards the chairs. "Thank you for the warning, Revere. But I would be more surprised if an obviously experienced team such as yourselves didn't press me for information. You are, after all, making a living off of selling such tidbits."

He paused, tilting his head slightly. "And, ah, no. Mister…" He paused once more. "…Snuffleupagus. I do not have the teeth of a shark. That is simply a moniker that I go by, so as to not endanger my personal life. And, if I'm allowed to ask, what should I call you? Aloysius Snuffleupagus is a bit of a mouthful."

I blinked. 'Snuffleupagus? Goddammit, Carn.'

Carn puffed out his chest proudly. "Ye' can call me Snuffy. 'S what all me friends call me."

To his credit, Shark didn't even bat an eye. "Very well. Snuffy and…"

I tilted my head slightly. "Call me Dee."

"Snuffy and Dee." He paused. "Darius 'Dee' Doorman, no?"

'Nope. Carn's just never bothered to learn my real name, so he probably just made that one up on the spot.' "Does it matter our names?" I asked calmly. "We're here to sell information, not fuck around."

He looked at me, and I heard a hint of amusement creep into his voice. "Nothing shakes you, does it?" Silence. "Well, good. I'm glad I'm working with professionals, then. So what do you have for me, Mister Dee?"

I smiled for the first time since we had entered the room. "Mister Shark, you seem to be making a beginner's mistake, here. You're convinced that we're the real deal, but we aren't nearly as certain about you. So, would you mind convincing us?"

He laughed, a gravelly sound that vibrated the chair I rested on. "Very well, Mister Dee." He reached into a drawer in his desk, and pulled out a metal briefcase. It opened with a soft click, revealing several stacks of bank notes. "I trust this is to your satisfaction?"

I nodded, and opened my bag. "Yes. That's all we needed, sir." I pulled a small stack of papers out of my bag, and Carn did the same. "Now, let's do business. The first item I have is on the Accords—fifty grand, minimum."

He blinked. "Excuse me? The Accords?"

I nodded gravely. "I'll do you one better." I held up a half-burnt sheet of paper. "Signed Accords."

He began to smile. "Gentlemen… I do believe that this will be a wonderful relationship."

As we walked out of the building, Carn seemed to be buzzing with excitement. "'At was bloody amazing, mate! What the bloody 'ell even was 'at!?"

I sighed, heading into a dark alley. I know this city like the back of my hand, and this is the easiest way to throw off pursuers. "I sold him the information, Snuffy, just like I always do. What part of that was confusing?"

He laughed. "The whole thing! Ye' didn't just sell the papers, ye' haggled upwards!"

I shook my head, sighing. 'We should be safe, now, we're out of earshot of even the Yokai.' "I've told you before, Carn, always start small and haggle up once they realize what you have. I know people are always saying to start high and haggle down, but that's a pile of shit. Haggling down gives you a maximum sum, and after you name your price, it can only ever go down. We Reveres aren't salesmen, we're auctioneers. Whoever gives the highest bid, we sell to."

"Well, yeah, but wha' abou' the Accords thingie? It was only summat about children of Maous. What could he possibly use that for?"

I grunted, ducking into a side passage. "Easy. It means that the Crimson Lucifer is having some kind of issue involving his kid, so he had to get the law involved. From the looks of it, the addendum was meant to legalize different treatment of a Maou's child during, quote, 'extenuating circumstances'. That means one of two things—one, the kid is 'special needs'. Two, the kid is something so incredibly special that both the Maou and the Council had to agree to keep him safe. Both options mean there are some big waves headed our way."

Carn blinked. "…Eh?"

I shook my head. "Just… you have your cash, don't you?"

He nodded. "Aye. It's safe in me—"

"No, don't say where it is." I groaned. "Now, take a left and you'll reach the recycling plant. You know your way home from there, right?"

He blinked. "Oh, sweet! Thanks, mate! See ye tomorrow!"

And then he was gone, leaving me to my peace. I sighed in relief. While Carn is genuinely a good person, and wouldn't stab his worst enemy in the back, he's still not the brightest bulb in the box. Very useful for baffling people, though.

I turned a corner, and continued on my way. It was dark enough that I could only see vague silhouettes, and even those were blurry due to my declining vision, but I knew these alleys well enough to navigate blind. 'Now, what about that Diviner thing? The Author never explains how you can become each different 'class', so I'll be using only my observations and the Book itself as a tentative guideline. I wonder—'

I stumbled, surprised. There was something, someone, on the alley in front of me. They seemed to be unconscious, and their black hair blended in with the dark alleyway. I sighed, debating whether or not to leave them here. On one hand, they would probably wake soon, but on the other… they seemed rather small, which meant either a child or a woman. And as pragmatic as I am, I would hate to leave either behind in a dark alley, where the next person who comes along might be much less friendly.

I leaned down, finding their arms, and pulled them into a basic fireman's carry. After checking that they were secure, I continued on my way.

Forty minutes later, I finally arrived at Von's smithy once more. Fortunately, the Ash didn't flare up, as I was unsure whether or not the being I was carrying was capable of resisting it. I pushed open the door, slipped inside, and pulled it shut. Von glanced up, noticing my passenger with a raised eyebrow. "Who's that?"

I shrugged, walking over to the couch and setting them down. I took a step back, and clearly saw her for the first time. She wore a simple, thin brown dress that was smudged with dirt from her time in the alley. Her hair was a midnight black, and was easily long enough to reach her waist. Oddly enough, she had a pair of black cat ears atop her head, and a tail peeked out the bottom of her dress.

Von blinked. "Kid, I know I said it was okay to bring girls home as long as you warned me first, but I was intending that for when you were a lot older."

I snorted. "She was passed out in an alley near Third and West. I didn't even know she was a girl until five seconds ago."

There was an awkward pause.

"So… should we just wait and see if she wakes up?"

"Pretty much, yeah." He agreed, turning back to whatever he was working on. "There's some leftovers in the fridge if you're hungry, but otherwise just find something to do. Read an Entry in that Book or something."

He sat on a bench, leaned over, and began to work. I sighed, and after grabbing a slice of cold pizza from the fridge, pulled a folding chair from its' spot by the wall and set it beside the couch. I suppose there are still Entries left that I haven't finished. Starting with the part two of the Diviner Entry. I opened the Book, and it flipped to the page I wanted.

Arcana #8: Divination Magic (Part Two)

The first part of this entry explained that Divination Magic allows its user to see the probability of future events. This second part will take a look at what that means in practice.

For a start, Diviners don't get surprised much, at least not in the short term. A Diviner can see the next few seconds of his own immediate future very clearly and trying to give them a surprise (pleasant or unpleasant) rarely works unless the Diviner is asleep at the wheel.

Divination Magic is also great for finding your way around. A Diviner can move in pitch darkness as fast as a normal person can in full daylight. He can't actually see, but he knows which futures lead to him bumping into something or tripping over and he can choose different ones. He can also quickly pick out a route through an unfamiliar location by taking a second to find out where a path leads and whether there are obstacles on it.

Divination is a powerful defense as well. Diviners are very good at dodging and with a bit of practice can quite literally dodge bullets. It's not that they're fast – they're no quicker than a normal man – but no matter how swift the attack they're just not there when it lands. They can look through the futures, find the ones in which they're not hit, and take the necessary actions to lead to them, often without seeming to make any particular effort. There are limits and they can't dodge things that simply can't be dodged, but trying to hit an alert Diviner is frustratingly difficult.

Finally, although it's rarely used in this way, Divination Magic can be surprisingly effective as a means of attack. Most Mages tend to assume Diviners have no offensive ability, and in a way, it's true – Divination Magic is completely useless for directly hurting someone. But there's nothing stopping a Diviner from picking up a weapon and an attack from someone who knows exactly how to get through your defenses and where to hit to do the most damage can be very nasty indeed. They don't have the brute force that an Elemental Mage does, but their knowledge gives them powerful leverage.

Although the tricks above can help Diviners deal with short-term problems, it's not what they specialize in. A Diviner's real power lies in information.

Other Mages tend to assume that Diviners can find out the answer to any question by thinking about it. This is both right and wrong. Diviners can't simply ask a question and get an answer – the universe doesn't run a question-and-answer hotline. However, Diviners can look into possible futures. They can find out what would happen in conversations if they introduced a certain subject, see what would be visible to their eyes if they moved a certain way, discover what's behind a door or inside a private room…

What this adds up to is a lot of information. Most of it is useless, but odd bits aren't. And while Diviners usually don't know what they're going to get, they have a lot of practice at putting pieces together and they can nearly always find out far more than other people would like them to.

Which doesn't really make them many friends.

Other Mages have very mixed feelings about Diviners. Almost every type of magic has more direct ability to influence the physical world than Divination does, and for all their tricks Diviners are no match for a Battlemage. What this means is that practically any Mage who looks at a Diviner knows that he could beat him up without much effort.

On the other hand, that Mage also knows that said Diviner, given time and motivation, could find out every one of the Mage's most private, embarrassing, and dangerous secrets. And Mages – especially ones who play the deadly political games of the Light Council and the Dark cabals – have a lot of secrets. Mages like the idea of Diviners working for them, but they most definitely don't like the idea of Diviners working against them, and they're never quite sure which one a Diviner is doing.

As a result, Mages tend to prefer to keep Diviners at a distance, and the feeling's often mutual. Diviners know how other Mages see them and are keenly aware of exactly how easily a Battlemage could crush them in a direct conflict. It's usually much safer for a Diviner to stay on the edges of magical society, out of sight.

In secret, many a Diviner have become assassins. Battlemages could certainly easily decimate a Diviner up close and personal, but consider that the Diviner is a mile away with a sniper rifle. They know when and where their target is highly likely to be. They know where to set up with the greatest chance of getting away. And when shooting simply look about 5 seconds into the future, does the bullet hit? If no then readjust until they get it right, then fire. Instant death.

I glanced over to the next page, and to my shock, found several theories as to how Divination would work. Not the musings of a madman, but a solid theory. There was a note explaining that while the Author tried to follow this path, he discovered that he didn't have the talent for it. His magic instead fell under the realm of Space Magic.

The theory stated that for an aspiring Diviner to awaken their powers, they would simply need to open their mind to the outside forces. Universal Magic, the Author explained, was accepting a loss of control in exchange for an abundance of power. He mentioned how his own Space Magic controlled him more than he controlled it.

I chuckled to myself at the thought. 'Loss of control, eh?' I glanced around my surroundings. 'It's not like I've ever really had much control in the first place.'

I looked over the cat-girl once more, and decided she really wasn't going to be waking up soon. I glanced over the theory once more, reading the instructions more closely this time.

Most people think seeing the future is like reading a book. You skip a few pages ahead, see what's going to happen. That's impossible, of course. You reach a fork in the road: do you go left or right? You might go one way; you might go the other. It's your choice, no one else's.

What a Diviner sees, is probability. In one future you go left; in another you go right; in a third, you stop and ask for directions. A hundred branches, each branching again and again to create thousands, for every one of the millions of people living on this earth. Billions and trillions of futures, branching in every way through four dimensions like a river delta the size of a galaxy.

You can't look at all that at once. If you opened your sight to all the possible futures of everything around you, even for an instant, the knowledge would destroy you, wipe away your mind like an ocean wave rolling over a drop of water. Seeing into the future is a constant discipline, always keeping your guard up, always focused. The real reason there are so few Diviners is that most of them either go crazy or block their power off so that they don't have to deal with it anymore.

The Diviners who don't go crazy learn to see futures in terms of strength. Everyone develops their own code, a way of interpreting the information. To the one I spoke with, futures appeared as lines of light in the darkness. The stronger and more likely the future, the brighter the glow.

The next thing you learn is how to sort futures, search for groupings of events in which things happen a certain way. And once you've done that, all you have to do is look back along the strands and find out which actions lead to them.

Now, first thing's first. Open your mind, and see into the universe.

(I swear to Christ, if you haven't learned how to do that yet, CLOSE THIS BOOK NOW. Any dipshit stupid enough to read this before the introduction chapter is too stupid to live.)

The rest of the page was blank. I HAD read the introduction, so there wasn't an issue. The Author occasionally did things like this, making the page blank to all but those who had connected to the universe itself. I opened my mind, and the world seemed to… dim, slightly. This is the most basic form any Dreamer learns; the Book had told me in the introduction. Opening one's mind carefully enough that you don't lose yourself, yet fully enough that you can affect the World around you. The absolute essence of the Dream.

If you've made it this far, then you're not a complete moron. Congratulations, you can follow basic instructions. Now the next part is a bit confusing, and I couldn't understand it myself, being a Space Mage and all. He said to 'look beyond the now, and into the might-be.'

I blinked. That was certainly cryptic as hell. But still, I tried to follow the instructions. Slowly, ever so slowly, I began to open my mind further, trying to 'look beyond the now', or whatever that meant.

I abruptly learned exactly what that meant as the full force of the future slammed into me. I almost fell off my chair as millions of voices, actions, and whispers of possibility smashed into my skull at the speed of Von eating a burrito.

Shut up, my metaphors are perfect. You've just never seen Von eat a burrito.

I managed to close my mind enough to breathe once more, and the possibilities faded to a dull roar. I grimaced, looking back to the instructions.

Now, this is going to be hard. Damn near impossible, even. But I want you to let go. Stop holding back the futures, and let them happen. Find a still point in your world, and latch onto it. Then, let go.

I froze. 'Let go? Are you insane? Never mind, stupid question. I already knew he was a psychotic bastard before I even started the introduction. But still… the Book literally just warned me of what could happen if I looked too far, opened my mind completely. I'd rather not lose my mind, thank you very much.'

I took a deep breath, trying to remember what else the Book had said about it. Finally, I recalled the Author's cryptic warning before I even reached the instructions. 'Universal Magic was accepting a loss of control in exchange for an abundance of power.'

A loss of control.

I gritted my teeth, closing my eyes. 'Dammit, I know I'm going to regret this.'

And I let go.

The next few… seconds? Minutes? Hours? Were pure agony. I could feel my mind being stretched, pulled into every different direction as it tried to contain the vastness of the future. And then, when I thought all was lost, that it would destroy my mind like it had so many others', I felt a tug from my magic. It washed over my mind, soothing its' cuts and scars, stitching back together the broken sections. I was finally able to pull my mind away from the scarring mass of possibilities. And yet… they never quite left me. They were still there, at the edge of my mind.

I took a gasping breath, doubling over in my chair as I tried not to vomit. My entire body ached, and I could tell my remaining mana was nil. 'That… was intense.' I glanced down at the little Book, still sitting innocuously on my lap. I hesitantly reached out, hand shaking, and picked it up once more.

Oh, good, you survived.

Asshole.

Well, since you obviously read Section 2 Entry 4, which warns of the dangers involved in using magics beyond your sphere of influence and gives you a simple test to let you know what kind of Mage you are, you weren't worried at all.

If you didn't, you're a fucking moron.

…All right, maybe I deserved that one. I'm pretty sure I skipped that Entry so that I could get to the part about Mind Magic faster. I really should've finished that one first.

Now, the next thing you need to do is sort the possibilities. This will take quite some time, as you need to carefully group each possibility with those like it, searching for groupings of events in which things happen a certain way. And there are many, many possibilities. (Please see Thought Acceleration for some help in this matter. It's a nice, Neutral magic that anyone can use, regardless of their affinity.)

Once you've done that, all there's left to do is practice. Use your ability constantly, looking at all of the possibilities ahead of you, until you can see five minutes ahead of you at all times. What happens if you use jam instead of Nutella for your sandwiches? What happens when you turn left instead of right on that path?

But please, bear in mind, Diviners cannot predict what someone with free will will say, not with perfect accuracy. For this reason, it's best to actually hold conversations with other people.

And unless you have something similar to Devil magic at your disposal, find someone else to throw fireballs for you. Hell, find a Chance Mage and start picking and choosing what will happen. Just please, don't piss off anyone stronger than you.

I sighed, closing my eyes and shutting the Book. I had it size down once more, and tucked it beneath my shirt.

Time to get to work.

By the time I managed to sort out the possibilities into their respective groups, it was already dinner time, and the black-haired girl was beginning to stir. Quick warning—don't ever use Thought Acceleration for five hours straight. It gives you the mother of all whiplash when you finally return your mind to normal. I still managed to make my way to the toilet before the vertigo caused me to expel the contents of my meager lunch, though, so thank God for small blessings.

As the Book said, every mind interpreted the futures differently, putting them into a context they could understand. My mind thought of the future as a path of winding alleys. The darker the alley, the less likely the future, and vice-versa. During those hours of sorting, I set up my Memory Partition to practice. One Partition was entirely dedicated to sorting, but the rest were working in complete synchrony. 3^3 is twenty-seven trains of thought, all moving at seven times normal speed and doing their damnedest to make sense of the futures they saw. At this point, I had only gotten good enough to see a second or two into all the possible futures in a given group, but it's still good enough to know what will kill me and what won't.

I stumbled back to my chair, sitting down heavily and wiping my mouth on my sleeve. I blinked tiredly, glancing over at Von. I looked ahead a few seconds, noticing that if I said anything, he would jump in surprise and ruin whatever he was working on.

Five hours, at seven times the speed. That's thirty-five hours straight of sorting through possibilities over and over and over again in order to train my magic to do it automatically.

But soooo~ worth it.

I glanced over at the black-haired girl this time, looking ahead until she woke up. I gleaned from various paths of conversation that she had been looking for her little sister before she blacked out. I couldn't get further than that before she became skittish and defensive. So… what if I greeted her by name and offer my help?

Ouch.

Apparently she knows Senjutsu. Good to know, painful to realize.

Well, at any rate, she'll be waking up in… sixty-seven seconds. As I considered various possibilities and walked different routes, the future shifted and changed. As I ceased seeing some things as an option, those futures disappeared and others opened.

Author, thank you for your help. This is amazing.

I finally settled on a path as she stirred. She groaned, sitting up and glancing around, her expression deceptively sleepy as her eyes darted around her unfamiliar surroundings. She noticed me, and turned to size me up. I kept my usual firm expression in place, knowing that if I showed any other expression she would assume I was the one to make her black out.

"I found you passed out in the alley." I told her bluntly. Not soothingly, she would find that patronizing and would start the conversation hating me. Not a good idea.

She smiled sweetly, swinging her legs into a sitting position. It was meant to make me lower my guard, but I could tell she was ready to bolt if she had to. "Why, thank you, mister Revere."

"Call me Dee." I stood, turning to pick up my chair, folding it and placing it against the wall. For once, my ambling gait served a purpose, making her relax slightly. "You're in a shop called The Iron Strike." I told her, returning to my spot. "I don't know what time you collapsed, but I found you about noon and brought you straight back here. It's six now."

She turned, noticing the smithy for the first time. She seemed to relax at the sight, slumping in her seat. "Oh, I know this place. It's run by Von, right?"

I tilted my head in acknowledgement. "Yes, but he's out right now. I'm his apprentice."

Her eyes went to my calloused and scarred hands. "I see. Well, Von is a friend of my mother, so he'll know where my house is. I'll just wait here until then."

I nodded silently, walking around the couch and into the tiny kitchen. I filled a glass with water from the tap and walked back, handing it to her. "Here. You can purify it if you want, I won't be insulted."

She tensed slightly. "H-how did you—"

"Ears." I replied bluntly. "Naskapi is the only place left for Nekoshou to hide, as dangerous as it is. I just put two and two together."

She relaxed, and seemed to look me over more closely. "You're the same age as I am." She noted, sounding surprised.

I nodded. "So, care to tell me what you were doing in that alley?"

She tilted her head, her ears twitching. "Why would I answer that?"

"Because I might be able to help. I know this city like only a Revere can, its' alleys and hiding places." I replied, holding out the glass of water.

She took it, and I could see a soft glow coming from the water. A breath of fresh air brushed past my face, smelling of green forests and bubbling streams, long-forgotten memories surfacing. She took a drink, and soon the entire glass had been drained of its' contents. Finally, I spoke. "I'll tell you what. I'll answer as many questions as you do, but only if you're honest."

She hesitated, but eventually nodded. I spoke once more. "All right then. What you were doing in that alley?"

"Things." She replied easily, a smile flickering onto her face. "What's your real name?"

"A word." I replied just as easily, killing her smile. "We can give each other bullshit answers all night, or we can actually answer each other's questions. What you were doing in that alley?"

She sighed. "Worth a shot. You might've been one of those heroic, honest people."

"Gullible people, you mean." I deadpanned. "I'm a Revere. Just today, I talked Shark out of a briefcase of cash. If I were gullible, I would've gotten robbed blind. If you want to play politics, I can dance circles around you. Don't try me. If you have questions, answer mine first."

She scowled. "Shark? I call bullshit."

I reached into my pocket and pulled out a simple contract. At the bottom was a shiny seal of admission. "I bullshit you not, sister. He even invited me back."

Her eyes widened, and the futures involving her attacking me disappeared entirely. "A-ah. My apologies, then." She hesitated, then answered. "I was looking for my little sister. She's a little girl, about two and a half, with white ears just like mine. Have you…?"

I shook my head. If I treated her question as a question and then demanded an answer to one of mine, she would punch me. "No, sorry. Now, your question?"

She eyed me. "How do I know you're Von's apprentice? You could be his creepy illicit son, for all I know."

The conversation branched wildly at this point, each future a different possibility, with extremely touchy conditions. Likely things like whether or not she believed me, or the tone and inflection I used. In ninety-nine out of a hundred futures, what I said only lead to her deciding I wasn't worth her time. I searched for the future in which I was, looked back to see what I had to do to make it happen, and did it. I didn't have the faintest idea why I had to say or do things that way. I just knew it would work.

I sighed, walking over to Von's workbench and picking up a seemingly innocuous cylinder with a metal handle. I returned to my original spot and held the handle in one hand and twisted the cylinder with the other. There was a click, and I unsheathed a menacing, twisted blade. It was grooved, triple-edged, and sharp enough to cut a thread draped over it. "See this?"

She nodded hesitantly, eyeing the odd blade. I chuckled. "It's the best knife I've ever made. Full length is eleven inches, eight-inch blade, three-inch handle, and has a ridged grip to prevent slipping. It's light, maneuverable, has a spiraled triangular blade on one end and a hollow compartment for dispensing poison or holding a catalyst in the handle. Hold this thing tight, and it'll act like a drill." I swung the blade slowly, mimicking a blow. "It'll stab a circular hole, straight through their skull. Even without the enchantments, when thrown it'll puncture damn near any shield spell short of an Elemental Shield."

Her eyes were fairly large at this point, having just been told I could no-sell her entire defensive strategy with good enough aim. To her credit though, her voice remained steady. "I-I see… and the enchantments?"

I smirked. "Almost every single one I know. I was able to call in a favor with a guy at the mines, and got myself several different ores. It's not mithril, but this fucker's got the closest alloy possible. Mythril is famous for its' strength and amount of enchantments it can hold, right? Well, while this thing can't even come close to its' strength, it smashes mythril's record of five self-sustaining enchantments by two."

Despite herself, she was definitely getting interested. I stayed on the initial path, however, deciding that jumping ship at this point to sell some girl a trinket would be stupid. "It has at least two eighth order enchantments as well as several other, lower-level spells. Immortal Animation and the Spell of True Ownership are only the beginning. It also has three separate blessings, the Spell of Perpetual Sharpness, and a spell that makes it heat up on command."

'I would be using it myself, if Reveres weren't banned from holding weapons.' I grumbled to myself.

She blinked. "I'm fairly sure at least one of those gives it intelligence."

"Only enough to pick and recognize its' owner." I replied, re-sheathing the blade and holding it at my side. "It's top-of-the line, and not even Von has seen what this thing can do yet, what with how busy he's been lately. Do you believe me, now?"

"Yes." She murmured. "I do." She raised her voice to normal speaking tones. "Why did you pick me up in that alley?"

I took a deep breath, taking a step back to lean against the wall. A quick check revealed that I was still on the right track. "That's… a complex question. I'm going to be honest here, and I need to know if I can trust you."

She nodded, seeming slightly offended. "I won't tell anyone a word."

I smiled slightly, and began to speak. "Good. Well, I picked you up because I thought you needed it. I'm a Seer, even if I'm not a very good one. I saw you, and thought you needed help." Her ears twitched, and she nodded. 'Oh, shit, is she using Senjutsu as a lie-detector? Magic, don't fail me now.'

"You're a Chance Mage." I continued bluntly. "Even if you don't know how to use it, you still have the talent." I paused, putting the sheathed blade in my pocket. While it was true, it had taken me some serious Path-Walking in order to find out about it. "Thing is, the kind of magic I'm referring to is human magic. It shouldn't be possible for you to have any natural talent with those cat ears, meaning you're not completely Nekoshou."

Her expression twisted. "I'm half-human." She spat bitterly. "What of it?"

I sighed. "Calm down, I don't care about blood purity or whatever. Hell, my best friend is a half-Devil. You asked why I picked you up, and I'm giving you your answer. The bottom line is, even if my powers are weak, I can still see a little. I get impressions sometimes, too. And right now?" I looked her square in the eye. "Both of those are telling me that you're going to be a large part of my future one day."

Her entire face turned beet red, her ears pointing straight up. I pretended to be oblivious, continuing. "I don't know how or why, but you're going to have a large impact on my life somewhere down the line. That could mean one of two things. Either you're an enemy, or an ally. If I left you there you might've become my enemy. And even if I don't know your full capabilities, I think I'd rather have you as an ally."

This was the hard part, and if I screwed up a single motion, she'd definitely wind up smashing me through a wall. I walked over, not moving a single facial muscle, and sat on the couch beside her. I kept my emotions in check, storing all unnecessary emotions behind a Memory Partition. Meeting her eyes once more, I spoke in a soft voice and held the knife out to her, grip-first. "So tell me, kitten, are you going to be my ally?"

Her face flushed once more, and she averted her golden eyes. "W-well, um…"

I sighed, trying to project disappointment. "Never mind, then. I'm sor—"

"Wait!" She yelped swiveling to face me once more. "Your predictions! Have they ever been wrong?"

I shook my head. "No. Never."

'Never in my five hours' worth of experience, that is.'

Cheeks flaming, she reached out a hand and took the dagger. "T-then I'll do it! F-for the future!"

I smiled kindly, reaching out and ruffling her hair. "Good." I murmured, noticing that her cheeks reddened even further. "You'll need to name it, then. That's how the blade will recognize its' owner."

She glanced down at the still sheathed blade, and undid the sheath with a soft click. "Whisper." She decided, and the grooves of the blade began to glow.

As the glow died down, the future shifted once more. Somehow, the chances of her hitting or otherwise striking me were practically nil as well. Don't ask me how giving her a magic knife made her less violent, but it did.

…I'm starting to understand why Diviners don't rule the world. Yes, the magic is powerful, but its' purposes lie mostly in information gathering, rather than practical knowledge.

She started fidgeting, her face reddening once more for inexplicable reasons. "U-um… so… my name is Kuroka. What's yours?"

I hesitated, but a quick check told me that giving her a fake name would only irritate her. I sighed. "Dakota. But please call me Dee."

She nodded. "All right… Dee."

I pulled back my hand and rose to my feet. "Well, now that we've got that figured out, let's find your sister. I might be able to help a bit, if you tell me what to look for."

She blinked. "What do you mean, what to look for?"

The future shifted once more, and I noticed that the futures in which she refused my help were appearing less and less. I relaxed slightly, letting go of the 'alley' I had been following. "There's a technique called 'path-walking'. It allows me to look down a particular future and make different choices to see how they affect it. The catch is, I can only work with the information I have. Right now, she could be anywhere in the city."

Kuroka's eyes widened. "Really? Do you need a crystal ball or something to see that far?"

I shook my head, thinking back to the vague instructions in the Book. "No, I just need my magic and somewhere my body won't be disturbed. But at my level, if I go more than a day in the future, I'll lose the connection with my body."

She frowned. "So, just tell you where to look, and make sure not to break your concentration?"

I nodded. "Pretty much, yeah."

She blinked. "That's… oddly convenient."

I shrugged. "Magic generally is. Now, where might she be?"

Her brow creased in thought, and she didn't speak for a moment. Finally, she answered. "Somewhere in the forest. Probably practicing her Senjutsu. I would be able to sense her, but there's an Ash storm coming."

My eyes narrowed, and I looked ahead. "In three hours, yeah. But why would that…"

"Stop me from sensing her before?" She finished. "Because my range isn't that large, and I was circling the city to cover all possible ground. As for the Ash… I don't know. It's odd. Whenever there's a storm coming, the entire city seems to get wrapped in this… ominous cloud. It makes sensing impossible."

I sighed. "Well, which parts of the forest might she be in?"

She shrugged. "The… north, I guess? I checked most of the other areas already."

'Great…' I grumbled to myself. "All right. Von should be here in… huh. Too much variation. A minimum of forty minutes, a maximum of two hours. We've got plenty of time. Just… give me a few minutes. Guard my body, won't you?"

She nodded hesitantly. "Just… make sure no one bumps you, right?"

I nodded. "Pretty much. There's nothing much to it, but if I lose track of a Path, I have to track it down again, and… well. There are billions of possibilities, and tracking down a single one is like steering a feather through a sandstorm."

She nodded. "Okay."

I checked the immediate future one more time to make sure she didn't shank me or something, but it seemed relatively safe, so I closed my eyes and let my consciousness drift.

In my mind, I stood up from the chair, walking out the door and down the street. I adjusted my hat, allowing my sunglasses to slide down my nose as I glanced above the rims. When one has blue hair, they go for all the anonymity they can. I slipped into an alley, navigating the spaces between buildings as I headed north. I squeezed into a gap less than a foot across, waiting a few seconds for a group of men who had spiked hair and the flush of alcohol in their cheeks. I don't know who they are, but nothing good will come of them seeing me. After they passed, I returned to my journey. I eventually reached the edge of the forest, and glanced around. If I went left…

Ouch. Nope. I distinctly remember the forest as nice and peaceful, not full of man-eating plants. So, safe to say she isn't that way.

I went right instead, wandering for the next hour or so and calling for Shirone. After too much time had passed, I cut off that future and returned to the moment I exited the last alley. I was looking once more at the forest before me, and this time I decided to just go straight. I evaded most of the disturbing plants, having to cut a few paths short so as to not experience being eaten too many times. I continued calling for the elusive girl, wandering around for the next half-hour or so. I paused when I heard the rustle of branches behind me. Cursing my failing eyesight, I turned and squinted into the darkness. The future was abruptly cut short as something tore through my throat, knocking me back on my ass and continuing to shred my fallen form. Huge gashes opened in my chest, my ribcage shattered as my foe continued its' assault. Agony laced every breath, and my vision began to dim as I looked up at the blurry silhouette of my attacker.

I cursed, feeling the phantom pains of my injuries as I cut the thread and jumped back a few minutes. I activated my Clearsight glasses, deciding that I had at least enough vision left to use them for a few seconds. The night sprang into sharp focus, and I slowly advanced down the same route I had walked before. The branches rustled once more, and I turned in time to catch a flash of white. I ducked, and my attacker flew past me in a failed attempt to cleave my throat out. I ducked and wove, straining my mind and looking a second into the future.

Hey, it's hard enough to Path Walk, but looking into the future while doing it? You'd be lucky to get vague impressions, let alone solid probabilities.

Nevertheless, the impressions were enough to tell me what to do in order to cut the Path short, so I just did the complete opposite. I leaned away from a scything cut, ducked a left hook, and blocked a kick that would've knocked me out. Unfortunately, no matter how good I am, I was on a clock. My vision dimmed by the second, and that meant the future was dimming as well. My dodges were getting narrower and narrower, and I still hadn't gotten a good look at my attacker. Finally, I stumbled on a protruding root while stepping away from a cut that made the air sing, and my attacker instantly cut me down where I stood. My last instants finally afforded me another detail of my foe—eyes of glowing gold, slit by a black pupil. My head bounced off the ground, and I lost my grip on the Path.

I allowed myself to slowly make my way back to consciousness, grimacing as all the phantom pains hit my body at once. I gritted my teeth, waiting for the throbbing to become bearable, and opened my eyes.

A pair of amber orbs greeted me, a pretty face with flushed cheeks only inches from mine. She blinked, jerking back with a squeak as her oddly red face deepened in color. I sighed, straightening and wincing as the pains in my chest returned. "All right." I grumbled, gingerly poking at my nonexistent wound. "Question. Your sister with the white hair. She wouldn't happen to have golden eyes, would she?"

Kuroka blinked, her red face slowly losing its' color. "Y-yes. Why?"

I rubbed my eyes, deciding not to reply. "Senjutsu has dangers, doesn't it? Or so I've heard."

Her face had lost its' flush, and she fiddled with the sheath of her new knife. "Yes. The force of Nature…" She hesitated, snapping the sheath into place with a quiet click. "…It's corrupted. If one were to take too much at one time, you would turn into a monster."

I nodded once. "Right. So, if said sister were to have fallen into such a state, would you be able to help?"

She nodded. "I just have to touch her in order to purge the corruption." She paused, looking worried. "Is she really…"

"Carved me up like a Christmas turkey." I said bluntly. "Twice. Not fun."

She frowned. "Couldn't you defend yourself? Throw a fireball or something?"

I snorted. "Mage 101, girl. Mages can only ever have one kind of magic. The human system is cheap, but governed by strict rules. That's why I was so excited you were a Chance Mage."

There was a brief silence as she digested this.

"So…" She began, twisting the sheath off the knife once more. "We have to go find her, and I have to touch her in order to bring her back to normal." She stood, and made her way towards the door. She paused, looking back to me with an irritated expression. "Well?"

I grunted, rising to my feet and sliding on the Clearsight lenses. I followed her out the door and led the way to the alley I used the first time. I paused, glancing back to her. "Wait, are you okay with tearing your clothes a bit? I'm thinner than you are, so you might end up at least getting yourself dirty."

She huffed, crossing her arms. Her ears stood straight up, and her tail lashed. "I'm perfectly capable of doing anything you can, Dee. Girls can be strong too, you know."

I sighed. "No, I know that. Half the gang bosses in the city are girls. I'm just wondering if your mom would want you ripping your dress."

She flinched, glancing down at the garment in question. "…Oh." She murmured. "Right."

I grunted, unzipping my jacket and handing it to her. "Here. Now, don't get left behind."

I turned and began the long route to the edge of the city.

We strode along the route I had taken in my Path, making sure to avoid the carnivorous plants that Kuroka visibly flinched upon seeing. "Corrupted Nature Chakra." She mumbled, turning her gaze to the frayed sleeves of her jacket. "Probably what made her snap."

I glanced at the enormous venus flytrap, making sure to give it a wide berth. "Wouldn't corrupt Chakra just dissolve the plants?" I asked, trying to distract myself from my previous acidic death at the jaws of a similar plant.

She shook her head. "Nature Chakra can't destroy plants, just corrupt them. That's why the Ash just hurts humans, not the buildings or streets. If touched, it would burn the skin. If it enters the eye, it causes blindness. If consumed, one's innards would be dissolved. But it doesn't actually kill you directly, because all it's doing is corrupting the Chakra of your body wherever it touches you."

I elected to accept that and move on. I'm hardly an expert on Chakra, I'm just skating by on hearsay.

We finally reached the place I had been attacked, and I looked ahead to check for our 'guest'. "She's to our left." I murmured softly. "Take two steps back and crouch down."

She nodded and did as I asked, and I took a step forward. I plotted this part out meticulously, knowing that if I made a single wrong move, I was dead. Kuroka took only two seconds to purify her sister once I pinned her, but first I had to catch her. Whatever path I chose, the element of free will meant that I couldn't know with certainty what she would do. I just had to give it my best shot.

I deliberately snapped a twig with my foot, and the fight blurred into action. I didn't turn on my Clearsight lenses, knowing I could win without them. Tilting my head, I avoided a scything blow from her claws as I stepped back. Three rapid-fire strikes followed, targeting my ribs, stomach, and spleen. I felt a thin line of blood drip down from my now ruined shirt as I missed a step, and I grimaced to myself. My window was in five… four… three… I ducked a flying kick, spinning and holding my arms just so. Two… one… zero. I braced myself, and the next assault was met with a perfect counter. I twisted her arm behind her back, swept her legs out from under her, and slammed her face-down into the dirt.

Kuroka didn't waste time, immediately joining me and helping me hold her down with her own augmented strength. Holding a glowing palm to the back of her sister's head, she took a deep breath and let it out. Her sister's struggles gradually ceased, and I let go of her arms. Soon enough, the little silver-haired girl was fast asleep.

Kuroka gasped for air, releasing a breath I didn't know she had been holding. She stumbled to her feet, picking her sister up in a princess carry. She shot me a tired smile, and I nodded once in return. "Let's get back to Von's smithy." I suggested, turning and leading the way.

"W-wait!" She yelped, stumbling after me.

I turned, and the future became slightly vague. I blinked. 'Huh. She must be making a decision.'

She took a deep breath, and the future snapped back into place. "A-actually, why don't I tell you where I live?" She glanced furtively at me, cheeks flushing. "I-I mean, if you're a Revere, we shouldn't have to wait for Von, right?"

I shrugged nonchalantly, inwardly doing a victory dance "Fine with me. Where to, then?"

I closed the door behind me, bell tinkling lightly. Von paused in his work, glancing up. "You took her home, then, lover boy?" He asked, wiping his brow.

I nodded, ignoring his good-natured ribbing. "She's Fujimai's daughter. Kuroka."

He raised an eyebrow, humming to himself in thought. "Ah, the nice lady from the outer district, yes?"

A silent nod was his only reply.

He sighed, setting aside his hammer and wiping his hand. "Not a good background, that. I bet she didn't like her old man, did she?"

I shook my head. "Seemed to hate her human side for some reason. Any idea why?"

He sighed. "I do, at that." He wiped off his face, leaning against his workbench. "Mai's a Nekomata from the Nekoshou clan. At some point in the past, she met a human scientist and fell in love with him. Problem is, it wasn't mutual. The guy only wanted to have sex out of lust for her. She still wanted to pursue him regardless, but it didn't work. Eventually she became pregnant with and bore his children, but the father never paid too much attention to them."

I grimaced. "That sucks."

"It does." He agreed, picking up his hammer and tongs once more. "But it's none of our business."

I nodded, and he returned to his work. I walked over to my couch and sat down, pulling out my Book.

Section 2: Arcana.

Table of Contents #1: Human Magic

This Section covers 'big-picture' topics – magic types, how spells work, the political structure of the Light Council and their relations with Dark mages, and so on.

Entry #1: Introduction to Magic

Entry #2: The Three Families

Entry #3: Types of Magic

Entry #4: Normals, Sensitives, and Adepts

Entry #5: Light Mages

Entry #6: Dark Mages

Entry #7: Divination Magic (Part One)

Entry #8: Divination Magic (Part Two)

Entry #9: Chance Magic

Entry #10: Time Magic

Entry #11: Introduction to Spells

Entry #12: Spell Components

Entry #13: Learning Spells

Entry #14: Council Factions (Part One)

Entry #15: Council Factions (Part Two)

Entry #16: Council Factions (Part Three)

Entry #17: A Mage's Name

Entry #18: Fire Magic (Part One)

Entry #19: Fire Magic (Part Two)

Entry #20: The Concord (Part One)

Entry #21: The Concord (Part Two)

Entry #22: The Concord (Part Three)

Entry #23: The Concord (Part Four)

Entry #24: The Concord (Part Five)

Entry #25: The Keepers of the Flame

Entry #26: The Keeper Orders

Entry #27: Charm Magic

Entry #28: Gate Spells

Entry #29: Life Magic

Entry #30: Force Magic

Entry #31: Mind Magic

Entry #32: Magesight

Entry #33: Space Magic

Entry #34: Water Magic

Entry #35: Air Magic

Entry #36: Other Worlds (Part One)

Entry #37: Other Worlds (Part Two)

Entry #38: Other Worlds (Part Three)

Entry #39: Other Worlds (Part Four)

Entry #40: Death Magic

Entry #41: Earth Magic

Entry #42: Master and Apprentice (Part One)

Entry #43: Master and Apprentice (Part Two)

Entry #44: Master and Apprentice (Part Three)

Entry #45: Master and Apprentice (Part Four)

Entry #46: Master and Apprentice (Part Five)

Entry #47: Master and Apprentice (Part Six)

Entry #48: Advanced Divination (Part One)

Entry #49: Advanced Divination (Part Two)

Entry #50: Advanced Divination (Part Three)

Entry #51: Advanced Divination (Part Four)

Entry #52: Advanced Divination (Part Five)

Entry #53: Advanced Divination (Part Six)

Entry #54: Advanced Divination (Part Seven)

Entry #55: Normals and Magic (Part One)

Entry #56: Normals and Magic (Part Two)

Entry #57: Normals and Magic (Part Three)

Entry #58: Normals and Magic (Part Four)

Entry #59: Normals and Magic (Part Five)

Entry #60: Shapeshift Magic

Entry #61: Sound Magic

Entry #62: Ice Magic

I sighed, slightly disappointed. I had already devoured the entire Advanced Divination subject, and had learned quite a bit from it. The first described the reasons why Diviners weren't gods, the second introduced Path-Walking, the third explained how to form patterns in the futures, and the fifth, sixth, and seventh introduced the different schools of Divination. I had read them all after I frustrated myself trying to manage all the possibilities. Unfortunately, that also meant that I have nothing else to learn from the Book on that topic.

...

...

...

After my day of excitement, I didn't actually find reading all that interesting. So what else can I do?

I glanced over the table of contents once more.

'Maybe I can figure out how to teach Carn Elemental magic?'