Chapter 33: Meditation

Meditation was always a pretty common trope in Albert's old world. In the fantasy, it was something used to recover or too touch upon something 'divine' in nature. Or even to acquire some sort of new power.

But reality was a lot more boring in that regard. Regular meditation was stated to have, while not supernatural in nature, a multitude of benefits. Ranging from improved focus to improved mental all the way to more esoteric effects like gaining a form of spirituality or enlightenment.

Albert wasn't too sure about the spiritual aspect to it, but studies had shown some correlation between meditation and mental effects. Probably not to the extent various medias tried to push, but there was still some connect.

It didn't matter which side of the coin a person was on, whether they believed humanity having a more spiritual side that shouldn't be ignored or those who scoffed at those superstitions folk and took a more scientific approach. All sides, despite their differences, could come together and agree on one thing in particular.

In the beginning, meditation was hard.

It was difficult for a newbie to truly get into that state of deep introspection. Maybe it was due to the stereotypes associated with it. Sitting alone in seclusion, as still as a statue in the lotus position, maybe humming to attune themselves to the world around them acting as the primary image that most people held when the word meditation was mentioned.

While that was one such method, it certainly wasn't the only one. Just the most visually appealing. Some techniques focused on sound or some kind of visual ques and narrow in on that instead. It was normal to go down the list of available methods and find the one that suits you best. Some like to consider it apart of the journey itself.

But even knowing that, currently Albert was not having a good time whatsoever.

It was one thing to know what that film was and another entirely actually feeling it. Luck, an ethereal fuel that passively protects him from the dangerous uncertainty of the world itself. While not being an absolute thing, it was more than enough to offset rather unusual calamities. Like being struck by lightning or having a meteor fall on his head.

Sure, Albert could feel layers of the film being stripped away every time he activated his talent but afterword? It was like the substance became intangible in the next moment, completely alluding his touch like a scorned lover. But no matter how frustrating this feeling of ineptitude was, he still limited his attempts to only twice per day due to the wariness of hitting rock bottom LCK. Knowing exact how royalty fucked he would be if that 'tank' was used up.

Literally anything or nothing at all could happen. It was a complete toss up. Leaving him powerless under the harsh current of fate itself. Something he was desperate to avoid.

But it wasn't all bad news. Putting aside his ineptitude, the information he could gleam from smoldering sheets of paper was quite enlightening. Despite being such a dry read. A multitude of slightly off diagrams, tie ins completely alien religion and idioms that simply made no sense to him.

Frankly, this 'first' chapter could've been cut down to a mere twenty pages but no matter how hard he tried none of the useless information could be cut out. At least the personalized notes were interesting to read.

The author, Casper Shalmaujek Gitremrurni, often left foot notes that gave Albert glimpses into this far away society. The man positively gushing over impactful eventful events told him all he needed to know. This prince, was a massive history fanboy. Particular in ancient battles against the Wizards of old, commonly called 'The Great Hunt'.

'….Duchess of Dregomir suffused her providence into a unit of twenty able body farmers, alighting them with the single minded task of slaying the wretched Silverwood Sorcerer. While this war band was successful, it wasn't without much sacrifice. All but five warrior remained as the Duchess of Dregomir, now powerless to the whims of fate, had fallen to one of the dastardly mage's apprentices. Thus ending the drawn out conflict and successfully taking back territory for the Alliance. But this wasn't the end of these five….'

Yeah, the prince really couldn't help but gush about turning points in history. Which was nice and all, acting as a breath of fresh air interspersed from the absolute desert of dry words. It was probably only that and the drive to improve that got him through.

The 'first' chapter at-least.

When he had tried to go beyond that point, none of the high quality paper could withstand even a singular letter before burst into flames.

So thus, he called the pages in which anchoring was possible, the 'first' chapter. Whether it was a restriction of the system itself or just that the knowledge beyond that point was too much for the material. Knowing for certain would require a lot of time and money.

But getting back on topic, the 'first' chapter was all about a single technique. A method to manipulate personal providence to alter the outside world. To tip the scales in your favor in other words.

Infunda Fortuna.

Or in easier terms, Infuse Fortune.

It was a very 'simple' technique, that had only one use. To infuse actions with the power of chance, possibly turning failure into success or bring upon a calamity that'll only further impede you. Or for those tabletop nerds like Albert, roll the dice.

He had a theory that these 'dice rolls' happened all the time without him ever realizing it, probably not by something malicious just uncaring for such an insignificant bug. Or maybe it found his actions amusing.

But with this technique, he could scrounge back a modicum of agency. He could make the decision to draw upon those scales and risk it all on chance.

By infusing a little bit of LCK into an action, like skill usage, it would open the skill to the whims of chance. Granting him access to degrees of success like from Call of Cthulhu. Regular, Hard, Extreme and the dreaded, Fumble.

Frankly, it was the most core ability of any table top game and would truly make him into a 'player'.

'If only I could sense my LCK…'

[LCK: 35/45]

Despite being able to literally see the numerical value of his providence, actually sensing or touching that fuel still stayed readily elusive.

He had tried everything these last couple of days, from sitting in a lotus position while singing out mantras to performing yoga at the crack of dawn. But nothing so far has come out of it. At least until now that is.

Albert lied on hard tiled bathroom floor of his temporary abode, allowing it's chill to completely blanket his body. He had even closed the blinds and stuffed some towels under a gap in the door just to cut off more light from reaching him.

The dark behind his lids, and cold seeping into his bones was quite nostalgic in a way. Only the rhythmic dripping sound of that damned leaky pipes disillusioned his initial fears. While the dark did make his heart thump louder, the sound made him aware that he wasn't back in the void.

Drip.

He wasn't good at emptying his mind to begin with, never really figuring out how people could just do it without much issue. His racing brain just randomly brought up intrusive thoughts and memories, only to forcibly shove them into the limelight. Was a problem in his old life and it seemed like this one wouldn't be any different.

Drip.

'...204, I think?'

He had taken to counting after growing incredibly comfortable in the environment before falling off into a light nap only to wake up thirty minutes to an hour later, groaning out in frustration. Counting the amount of times water dripped from that leaky pipe was something he could do idly. At least until he eventual hit the thousands.

Drip.

Albert now feeling completely relaxed, tried to feel for that film that covered his existence. Tried to touch upon that barely perceptible substance. Memories of that feeling of becoming 'lesser' was one his primary inspirations to draw upon. While not ideal, there didn't seem to be any other way.

'Why wasn't there an instruction manual in the 'first' chapter?'

He had found it strange and expected some sort of foul play at work. Why would the author start off immediately with introducing techniques without going into detail as how he would even sense this fuel? It didn't make much sense and the prince wasn't too much help with clearing it up either.

Drip.

So all that he could accurately rely on was his own experience with this elusive substance. And while not a lot of progress, there was still some. He had found that in moment his talent had activated, the film had 'firmed' enough for him to sense it and completely intangible in the next.

Drip.

The 'film' under the pressure of his talent had a very...unique sensation. It was a bit hard to describe but it 'felt' like some sort of powder. Grainy in a way. Like he had collected a lot of dust from a month of cleaning and decided to bathe himself in it. Strange indeed.

Drip.

'Maybe that's where I was wrong at?'

He had initially thought that maybe this human fortune had a type of liquid feeling to it. Given humanity's connection to water itself. Blood, sweat, tears, urine, spinal fluid, synovial fluid etc. The list goes on and on.

So it wouldn't have been strange for providence to have some connection to the life giving liquid also.

Drip.

While he didn't want to spend more LCK for the day, it didn't seem like he would be getting any answers without experimenting first. Feeling like he would acquire some help by observing the effect a couple more times. And plus besides, it'll recover in the coming days.

Drip.

So with a steady breathe and a somewhat calm mind, he prepared to witness the phenomena under new lenses. Like a muscle being flexed, Albert initiated Resourceful.

Drip.

He could feel it. Feel it appear one moment on his 'skin'. A grainy, dusk like substance. Like he had stuck his entire body in a pile of chalk powder. It didn't feel like it had a temperature in the slightest, just existing for that split second before his fingers flickered across his phone.

[LCK: 25/45]

Drip.

Just like that, the powdery sensation disappeared entirely and the feeling of becoming less soon filled that void.

'If only that could last longer..'

Drip.

Albert knew that if he could have constant access to that sensation then this wouldn't have even been a problem. He could sit down and analyze that phenomena for hours on end instead of those short moments of time, completely submerge his thoughts into the spectacle.

'Maybe that's for the best…'

While he had read plenty of cultivation novels, he didn't relish in the idea of spending days, weeks, months and years in meditation contemplating the secrets of the universe itself.

Drip.

Shaking his head, he tried to center himself again. Trying to call up that vivid sensation once more. Drawing upon that chalky feeling as the film lightly pressed onto his very being from all sides. The neutral temperature that didn't seem to make his 'skin' heat up or cool down. Feeling as the substance then retracted in a lesser quantity than before.

He didn't know how long he stayed on that floor. How long he just played back that memory over and over again. Nor how drops of water had leaked out. The floor disappeared, taking it's chill with it.

His body 'floated' through the world of nothingness. Black covering his vision from as far the eye could see.

A shot of terror filled Albert as his inner eye was dragged back into the void. Memories of large spans of loneliness and madness came crashing down on him.

[SAN: 36/45]

Insanity fueled creations that gnawed endlessly at their creator's mind, suckling his suffering to further fuel their own existence. Made up languages scrapped incessantly at his mind, leaving deep scars that follow him to this day. People, places, creatures his mind scourged up from memory seem to mock him endlessly. Creatures sending out harsh words, still humans slowly corroding away under the cruel passage of time, buildings growling and hunting their own kind. Red was Blue. Up was Down. Blood was Water. Skin was Dirt. Creation was a Sin. A stain upon the grand tap-

Suddenly, something drew him out of those spiraling thoughts. Brought him out of that oh so familiar despair. Allowed the dripping sounds to return, and for him to truly feel his own heart beats.

'I can fell it..'

Calling what he felt a 'film' was indeed misleading. It was more like a haze that covered his body from head to toe. Moving and shifty in directions that didn't make much sense to his slowly idling mind. Honestly, his previous dust/powder analogies were apt to say the least.

In fact, it was like someone had collected a years world of chalk dust and dumped it on him. He was sure that if it had any real substance than that it would be choking him casually.

That's just how Albert spent the next...minutes? Hours? He didn't nor care. Just feeling his LCK swirl gently just a couple of inches above the skin, was enough to occupy his entire mind.

He could truly understand now as to why this step was purposefully cut out. Why the prince didn't see a problem in forgoing the step by step instructions. Why the author held such pride for the art of Fortunecraft.

This 'haze' was a direct representation of humanity itself. Chaos incarnate. It moved, never standing still for ever a moment. Some stands following along with the grain while other went directly through another part. Clashing ideologies and conflict evident in every facet of it's being. But despite these differences, these streams still went ever forward. Moving along the extremities of his body, strike out in seemingly direction.

From his head, the haze slid down his shoulder caressing his arms like a shy lover. Tickling at fingertips and collecting in mass around the palm. This movement continued up into his armpit and down his torso. Running along his sides before streaming down his legs and towards his wriggling toes. On he went, following the general movement of the film as it further and furthe-

'Huh?'

He paused in his inspection as an irregularity made itself known. A good portion of that haze had collected and congealed at the fingertips of his left hand, seeming to grab at something. Gripping his fingers tightly around the object, he felt cold plastic.

'My phone…?'

Albert 'watched' as the congealing haze followed along the phone's movements as he waved it in the air. Setting it aside, a thin line of haze connected his finger tips to what seemed like prints left behind on the device. And no matter how far he moved his arms away, the line remained only dimming further from his awareness. Pointing him in the direction like Ariadne's Thread.

He also noticed how this thread seem to slowly lose cohesion and leave behind a light smattering of 'powder' that was quickly swept back up by the current of LCK.

'But they don't feel...right?'

He tried to come to terms with this new feeling that niggled at his perception, while these re-integrated grains by themselves didn't seem 'off' but when compared to their brethren the difference was made readily apparent.

They felt sluggish. Like someone would be after extensive exercise or other physical activity. These grains lagged slightly behind the general chaos of the stream itself and as he watched close, noticed how these seem to sink further into the current.

There they were coasted along by the stream.

Albert had some ideas pertaining to the purpose of this process but it seemed like he would need to wait to look further into this phenomena.

'Another sleepless night it seems..'

He sighed, already feeling the built up exhaustion starting to weigh down heavily on his brain. Alas, the process of discovery and innovation waits not for the limitations of man. The teen did feel satisfied with his progress so far. While he hadn't touched upon Infunda Fortuna, actually being able to sense that film of protection was a massive boon and frankly with that would be massive aid in learning the technique.

But as much as he would like nothing more but to delve deeper into the secrets of Fortunecraft, that was twice now his talent had pointed him in the direction of his phone.

The first maybe could be considered a fluke but the second?

"Don't want to court death so causally…"

Albert mused aloud, scooping the device up and turning it on. Squinting his eyes in preparation, he waited for the block of plastic to go through it's boot up sequence.

He knew had and was being foolish, and definitely should've paid heed to his talents' prodding but he just felt like touching upon his providence was for the best. If not for the technique itself then for the ability. While his initial sensing might be a bit crude, there was plenty of room to grow.

"Who knows," He murmured, eyeing the now brightening ceiling," I might actually be able see it if I work hard enough."

Maybe not. LCK could function the same way as heat in that way, in it's inability to accurately be witnessed by the human eye and only visible through mediums like devices or air.

His speculations were instantly shattered under the repeated and incessant buzzing that emitted from his phone. A frigid ball of dread dropped unceremoniously in the pit of his stomach. Suddenly, the cold bathroom floor felt warm to the touch.

'Hey Albert, call me when you see this.'

'Hey Albert I'm serious.'

'I don't know if you're seeing these or not, call me.'

'Call me.'

'Pick-up the phone.'

'Pick-up.'

'….'

And the stream of messages went on. Growing more and more urgent with every passing minute, followed by an endless flow of missed calls. All in all, if he wasn't sure that Marceline wasn't interested in him in that way then he would be greatly concerned.

The messages and phone calls seemed to have continued up to almost fifteen minutes ago, so feeling those nerves creep up on his skin he called her.

One ring.

Two rings.

"Albert!" A voice crackled loudly over the phone, before suddenly growing more distant," I got a hold of him!"

"What's wrong?"

He asked, feeling his heart thump louder in his ears.

"Listen," Marceline said, speaking over the ever increasing volume of voices in the background," You need to get somewhere safe, like now. Right now."

"Wh-"

"There's not enough time!" She barked, panic lacing her voice," The spirits...The spirits are anxious. Not in the usual way either. Not just one or two but ALL of them!"

That sense of dread finally had a point to adhere itself to and stick it did. From his talks with the medium over the nature of ghosts and spirits in general, he knew that they rarely ever worked in tandem with each other. Acting more like wandering remnants of their unfulfilled desires and generally unresponsive to the outside world. But for all these echoes to be unanimously freaked out…

"Are you somewhere safe?!" She asked after his beat of silence," I wish I could get to you too, but the activity has sky rocketed these last couple of hours. I have Lin, Michael and Steven and their family with me. We're hiding out in a safe house."

'I would've gotten you too but you weren't answering your phone..'

It was easy for him to read between the lines and could sense that now the medium had gotten a hold of him, the frantic concern had turned into something slightly annoyed. Albert couldn't blame her, if he had been frantically trying to get a hold of someone for hours then he too would be slightly annoyed after the message was sent.

"Thank you." He said stiltedly," I'll get somewhere saf-"

His words were cut off suddenly. A loud, blaring klaxon call echoed throughout the city. Sirens whirled into life. Bombarding his ears from all sides.