'If only the premises were different', Kalypso thought.
— With the Vision, will I be able to sense my surroundings?
— Not only will you, but you will also sense what others cannot. However, I must warn you: some things might stay invisible to your perception. Keep in mind that this gift only functions in the presence of cosmic energies. Anything impervious to them will remain invisible to you.
Anna nodded.
— I don't care, the former athlete replied clenching her fist. It will still be better than being blind.
— So be it.
Suddenly, Anna grasped her head with a groan. It felt as if her skull was being split open. She collapsed, caught just in time by a giant hand.
— The side effects of the Bardo, the goddess said compassionately. You've stayed here long enough. We must seal our Pact.
The air around them came to life. It swirled, drawing a circle around them. Anna heard a warm whisper approaching from afar. It felt alive, like hundreds of spirits rushing toward them. A deep unease took hold of her.
— The Pact we are about to seal is a vow witnessed by the World's Consciousness. Now, listen closely.
Anna fell in transe. Kalypso's voice grew more and more celestial. The words flowing from her mouth echoed in a strange language Anna never heard before, yet their meaning reached her mind.
Let Azura bear witness
On my soul, my consciousness
Under the vow of my True Name, I shall establish this contract with the one who will acknowledge it.
I, Kalupsoia Atlaènti Ogugié Mohain'irivik...
Each syllable of the True Name made the earth and sky tremble.
...I, as the Contractor, to the one who will acknowledge it, expect them to do as follows :
They shall represent me, my name, my reputation, my authority, and my interests;
They shall not betray my values or turn against me;
They shall honor the rites and duties necessary to my worship, provided it is reasonable within the context of their situation;
Their body shall be an extension of my sanctuary;
Theys hall under no circumstance use coercion, even by endangering their own life, abilities, or integrity, to force me to act or refrain from acting in their favor.
In return, I vow to do as follows:
I shall assist them, provided it is reasonable within the context of my situation;
I shall support them in fulfilling their goals, provided it stays within the limits of my means and consistent with my own interests and needs;
I shall protect and preserve their life, unless they express otherwise;
I shall grant them the intellectual resources in my possession for the sake of their growth;
I shall bless them with Truth.
Anna trembled. The word Truth sounded both familiar and alien in her soul. She could feel the term encompassed far more than what her mind could translate. Truth. She knew this was the Vision the goddess had spoken of. And yet it seemed something more. As if she wasn't worthy of understanding it yet. But would she ever be? This Truth had just been bestowed upon her.
In binding ourselves together:
We swear to nurture this bond, and give each other the right to share substance from it, respecting the balance of our common Equilibrium.
We swear that in the face of adversity, we shall be each other's last asylum.
We swear never to reveal anything about the other to a third party without explicit permission, and to protect each other's True Name with our very lives.
We swear never to use the other's weaknesses for harm,
And we shall all knowledge of each other's True Names as well as any harmful information shall be forgotten outside the contract juridiction.
This contract may only be ceased with both side's approval.
— Now, speak your True Name, Anna.
— What...
The mortal didn't know her True Name! She wondered if this would end everything prematurely. Yet something awakened within her. Was it because of the strange atmosphere embracing them? She brushed against a part of her identity she had never known before.
She felt who she was. Each syllable recalled a memory, an event, a decision. The words revealed themselves, one by one, and she knew she would never forget them.
'Yes, that's me,' she thought. 'That's my true name.'
— 'Abempédg Tou-hysous.
— Do you commit as my contractor, 'Abempédg Tou-hysous?
— I, 'Abempédg Tou-hysous, commit as your contractor.
The magic around them surged once more.
— Now repeat after me… the goddess whispered.
We seal the contract.
May whichever of us betrays their word
pay the price and fall into disgrace,
With their name, their body, their soul, and their consciousness.
Let Azura bear witness.
---
In a semi-conscious state, Anna could feel her body coming to shape, like a vast web of filaments being woven together. Then her senses slowly merged within her new vessel, and she could feel her soul penetrating it and taking control.
At first, her muscles did not respond, and she collapsed. Beneath her, the stone floor was cold and damp. As she slid her hands across the tiles, she realized she was on a raised platform. Between the stones, moss and a few blades of grass had found their way through.
For a full minute, she re-explored her naked body, running her fingers over her face, through her hair, down her legs. Everything seemed in order and identical. She sighed in relief. She had doubted the Goddess's word a little, when she suddenly astralized and throw her into a portal connected to Asura.
'I know we were in a hurry, but I'd have appreciated an explanation,' the woman thought, with frustration.
The room was cold, and Anna shivered. She wrapped her arms around herself and decided not to linger.
Time to explore.
After some fumbling, she found the three or steps to go down the plateform, and set foot on a tiled floor. It was dusty and cracked under her toes. The room felt ancient and in ruins, but it was hard to be sure without seeing.
She wondered how to activate Kalypso's gift.
'Do I need to focus on it? She wondered while squinting really hard.
Then she remembered her Contractor's words. Kalypso had described the Vision as a peculiar sense different from sight and using any part of the body to see. Though she didn't know what it meant, she began to move her hands in front of her, imagining waves radiating outward, or attempting to grasp something, alternating between both. Suddenly, the filaments appeared.
It felt like a caress, of dozens, then hundreds of threads, each possessing its own intensity. Some disappeared at one single touch; others clung to her, drawn like hair with static electricity. Once in contact, the strands became extensions of her. By following their path, she could find their destination, follow up with other strands, and map out the contours of obstacles they wrapped around.
The filaments spread out through the entire room, forming a great tapestry, sometimes opaque, sometimes loose, making some areas more readable than others. The tapestry moved, too, as if swayed by currents the woman had not yet mastered the rule of. She realized these threads were the cosmic energies Kalypso had told her about. She decided to call what she saw the Web.
A great joy and a sense of achievement overwhelmed the former athlete as she explored her power's potential. For the first time in three years, she could perceive space. The rounded walls, the Doric columns, a large frescoed Altar, a strange Etruscan feminine statue amid the ruins, just above a basin filled with wild plants.
She gazed at the statue with emotion. The stone woman had long braided hair, and a veil over the crown of her head. Complex jewelry adorned her neck, wrists, and hips, and strands of pearls hung like curtains along the folds of her loose robe. The woman's face was peaceful, eyes half-closed, focused on the center of the Altar. Anna looked at the statue with gratitude.
She had just regained the wings that had once been torn from her. Of course, Kalypso had not done this out of charity. They shared a contract. Still, Anna respected the Goddess's attunedness. Now she also understood what Kalypso meant by having lost her influence. The temple was in a pitiful state. She promised herself that one day, if the opportunity arose and didn't conflict with her plans, she would take the time to restore a bit of Kalypso's glory.