Revelations

“If you weren’t here before me, lad, I’d have had trouble believing you.”

Eion sat back in his chair, shaking his head in disbelief. “You get these abilities and immediately run into damned mana slavers? You drew the short straw, that’s for certain.”

After how they’d reacted to the idea that he was late-blooming, he decided he’d keep the details of what his powers actually were and how they worked vague. Despite that, he had still covered the rundown of what had happened to him since gaining these Gamer powers.

Moira was pacing back and forth, seemingly anxiously, having stood up when John got to the time of his ****. “...I thought you were just another Abyssal student who wanted to be left alone, like that Gryff girl, or even just like Ela, and I had simply missed you somehow.”

There was a little jingle, and the redhead pulled out her phone. She took a moment reading whatever was on the display before turning to Eion. “I need to go. They’re moving the other captives rescued, and I need to be at the manor to organise temporary quarters for them.”

She paused for a moment, and turned to John. “I would... appreciate it, John, if you would come by sometime around midday. I have some… matters that I’d like to speak about with you. I’m sure Eion, or Velvet, will be able to give you directions.” And then she left the room with a nod to everyone.

“Well. In that case, Vel and I will have to explain the Abyss to you.”

“Actually,” Velvet interrupted her father with a sheepish little smile directed at John, “we already covered a bit. It was when they were moving us at the start. I told him some basics of the Abyss so he could understand, sort of, what was happening to him. We went over what the Abyss is, the boundary between us and the mundane, and Auras. Only the general gist of them, though.”

“Did you now?” He raised an eyebrow at his daughter and turned to John. “In that case, why don’t you tell me what you know so far, and we’ll work on it from there. We’ve no hope of teaching you everything in a single sitting, mind you. Much of it will be experienced rather than taught, unfortunately, but we can cover the basics and make sure you won’t accidentally die. If you wouldn’t mind, lad?”

John sat forward in his chair, his still-tired mind beginning to wake up with the new stimulation. “Okay. I know magic is real, and comes in different forms and at different strengths. Anyone with magic is called an Abyssal, and the Abyss is a world that co-exists with the normal world. This is enforced by the boundary put in place by Gaia, who is some kind of ultimate goddess-thing.” His eyes narrowed slightly as he thought, his analytic mind beginning to turn its gears. “That’s the basics of what I know. I’d also guess a couple of things though.”

Eion nodded at him. “Go ahead. We’ll point out if you get it wrong.”

John thought for a couple more moments. “I think that the Abyss isn’t a complete overlaying world on top. It’s more like a patchwork… or, like, a collection of… bubbles, I guess? You can go to a bubble and either enter the Abyss or stay in the normal world. That’s why they took us into one when they needed to fight while taking us, so the noise wouldn’t disturb anyone.” He glanced at Eion, who made a vague gesture to continue. “And… what happens in these bubbles doesn’t change what happens outside, so they can set things up permanently without affecting the outside. I also think that there are certain ways of having or getting magic that are more… powerful isn’t quite the right word.”

“Potent?” Velvet suggested, a vaguely smug smile on her face.

“Yeah, that’s it! Potent. I don’t have the slightest idea of what those ways are, but I’d bet that whatever you called me… late-blooming? I’d bet that that’s one of those ways that’s considered more potent, since everyone reacted so much to that.”

Eion had slowly begun to smile throughout John’s theorising, whilst Velvet still had that happy smug smile shining. The man spoke after John finished, “Your money is mostly safe, lad. I’m impressed with your accuracy, though you got a couple things wrong. The bubbles, as you called them? Those are known as barriers. And there are three types of them that are commonly used. The average barrier that most Abyssals can make is temporary; you make it, do whatever you damn well please in it, and then when you leave, it’ll disappear. There are traces left behind, but it can’t be reopened as it was.

“The second is a Natural Barrier, which occurs on its own, and usually needs no particular enforcement from an Abyssal - nobody needs to fuel it. The problem with these is that the time they’ll linger is random, depending on how it formed. And finally are the barriers that a Fateweaver has enforced. These will stay as long as there’s either a focal charge point for them or the Fateweaver is holding it in place.”

He noted the clear question on John’s face. “I’ll explain who the Fateweavers and the other big groups are after this. First, though, I need to explain what late bloomers are, and why it’s going to be important for you.” He took a deep breath, collecting his thoughts.
“Late bloomers are rare. They always have been, though we don’t see many of them. Something ridiculous like one in a million or more. Then, add that one of the hallmarks of late bloomers, other than the fact they’re late to the party, is that they are always very powerful. And I don’t mean some trifling measurement. They can be just a little above the average, or can be…” he paused a moment, thinking, “...well, for lack of a better term, they can be downright godlike.”

John’s eyes widened. “So… that’s why you were both so surprised?”

Eion nodded. “In the last hundred years, John, there have been… I don’t recall the exact number, but certainly no more than fifty, and that’s with the modern uptick in both special cases and general Abyssal population. Though, there were likely a few more who died along the way, or chose to hide the power. Of those, seven are employed by one of the nations in positions of notable power, four by the Auction, and one man actually founded and leads his own Abyssal Nation.”

The look in the man’s eyes seemed to fill John with an unusual sense of anxiety. “Not only could you turn out to be a major power, if only for the region, but any guild who has access to your power might instantly be set on the fast track to being a big name. Had that mana factory known what you are…” Eion trailed off, but the implication was clear to John.

Now that people knew who he was, and that he was around, he was in danger.

John swallowed, feeling uncomfortable in his skin. “So… what are my options now, Eion? W-what can I do?”

The grizzled man leant back in his chair, locking eyes with John. The Gamer held that gaze, startled to realise that the man’s irises were so dark they appeared almost black. He could have sworn they were a soft brown earlier.

Eventually, Eion spoke, and John blinked, feeling strangely drowsy. “You stood by my daughter, lad, so I’ll give you true advice, rather than what would give me advantage.” John leaned on the table, giving his full attention. “What would I do, in your situation? Take no offer yet, and see what each would give you. If you turn out to be a big deal… well, the offers might have helped you to gain power quickly in the beginning, but the restrictions they come with could turn out to be problematic later. I know because I wrote our contract myself.”

He chuckled. “For now, both myself and young Miss Brighton have offered you support in some fashion. Take advantage of that, as it comes with no strings other than friendship. I don’t know what you can get out of Miss Brighton, but the Order is a very resourceful guild, and I’m sure there’s something you can gain.”

His face slipped into a sly smile again, and he glanced at Velvet, who still sat at John’s side. “As for myself, well, you seem to have gotten the ear of my most trusted associate, so I imagine you’ll find that you’re gifted a few things that she manages to weasel out of me.” John glanced at Velvet who was studiously examining the floor to hide the rosy blush that had crept into her cheeks.

He decided, quite bravely, that the best course of action was to gloss over that entirely. “You said you were going to explain whatever ‘Fateweavers’ are? Something about barriers, I think?”

Eion chuckled at the not-so-subtle redirection, but let it pass. “Fateweavers, yes. They’re the barrier experts. A High Fateweaver has near absolute control of any barrier they enter. I haven’t seen it myself, so I can’t tell you much, but their abilities to speed up time in barriers and such is said to be damned impressive. Regardless of that, what is important to know is that Fateweavers are one of the three great non-combat organisations of the Abyss.

“The Fateweavers are one, the Apothecaries are another, and finally the Abyss Auction. The barrier experts, the healers, and the merchants, respectively. The Fateweavers establish long-lasting barriers and such, as I mentioned. The Apothecaries are kind of like an Abyssal hospital. You go to a branch, or they come to you occasionally, and they perform healing or aid when necessary, and sometimes other modifications. All for a price, of course. And then there’s the Abyss Auction. It’s the ultimate market. If it exists, you can probably find it listed on their site somewhere. These are gross oversimplifications of the role each actually plays, of course, but that’s the general idea.”

John tapped his fingers against the table thoughtfully as he processed the information. “What about Gaia?”

“Gaia?” Eion repeated, slightly confused. “Well… she’s Gaia. The ultimate power, the deity above all other deities, and a few dozen other names, depending on who you ask and where you ask. She enforces the boundary between the Abyss and the mundane, being one of the only entities with enough power to do so, and certainly the only one that’s not ill intentioned towards humanity, if not outright benevolent.”

He raised an eyebrow at John. “Honestly, lad, you needn’t worry much about her so long as you follow the rules. She hasn’t really involved herself on a personal level in a very long time. Certainly not so much as most lesser deities these days.

John thought for a moment, trying to come up with any other questions, when Eion spoke again, “Lad, I’m sure you’ll have plenty more to ask, but that ought to be enough for now.” Eion paused, and then his tolerant smile dropped slightly as he seemed to remember something. “Besides, you’ve got your own responsibilities.”

“Huh?” John gave a confused look, racking his brains. “What do you mean?”

“Lad… It’s nine-thirty. Tuesday morning. You were in that place for most of yesterday. We picked you up at around five AM, when the guards went out for breakfast, and you slept for just a few hours.” His tone was sympathetic, as the news hit John.

“...Oh fuck! My mom!” John suddenly realised and began to stand up.

“Don’t worry,” Eion said, also standing, with Velvet joining them. “I pulled some strings to make sure the cops didn’t get involved. But your mother must be worried sick, and you should go see her. I’ll drive you.” He looked at Velvet.

Almost immediately, she raised an eyebrow and said, “Dad, I’m tired, not incompetent. I’ll be fine.” She faced her fellow **** victim. “John…” She hesitated a moment, seeming like she was going to say something more, and then said, “B-be well.”

He raised a very confused eyebrow at that, not noticing Eion’s outright grin. “O-okay? See
you later, Velvet.”

He turned to leave the room, and had managed two steps when he heard the quiet muttering coming from the slender girl behind him. “‘Be well’? Seriously… that hard to ask for his number or…” Her mumbling faded off, and John almost turned around, until worry for his mom, alongside an unhealthy dose of fear and social anxiety, kept him moving to the door.

Eion, on the other hand, did stop at the door, holding it shut with a bemused grin on his face. John waited for him to open it, and when he didn’t, looked at his face. The man, without changing that grin, very deliberately looked from John, to his daughter, and back to John, a message so clear that even John could interpret it. And though it didn’t show on his face, John got the feeling that there was the underlying threat of what could happen if he upset the man’s daughter.

John took a deep breath, spun on his heel and hurried back over to where Velvet was still muttering to herself. Just the simple act of walking over filled him with an unreasonably wild sense of excitement. “Er, Velvet, do you- what I mean-” She turned again to face him, and he was struck dumb for a moment.

There were many unfair things he’d met the past day or two. Being kidnapped was one. Getting magic only to have it forcibly drained from him. Becoming a berseker, watching a man die, killing a man, almost dying himself - these were all unfair, and he’d had to deal with each, forcing them down where they couldn’t hurt him. Despite it all, John felt he had never seen such a cruel and unfair thing as Velvet’s eyes. She couldn’t see through them, and had no idea of the effect they had. Those great, sparkling pools of pearl that turned to face him sightlessly, showing such a depth of hope that shone forth from the expression that she’d never learnt to guard.

He drew in a deep breath and **** the words out, wincing at each stutter, “C-c-can I-I please g-giveyoumynumber?”

And then it was all worth it for the massive smile that blossomed across her face,