Follow the White Rabbit, and you shall be led to Wonderland.

The relationship between Marilyn Althorn, and the White Rabbit who called herself Sophia Winchester, was always quite the odd one in the former’s eyes.

She couldn't really understand anything about Sophia, apart from whatever enigmatic words she had heard from her. She couldn't comprehend her at all, she was a being of an irrational nature pretending to be something rational.

Her aura of enigma and of someone far far older than her was also something to note. At times it even subconsciously caused Marilyn to think nothing bad about her, in fear of offending her somehow.

Perhaps it was because of Marilyn not knowing much about her at all, possibly it could be due to her incapability of her getting through and having a closer conversation with her.

“Hm…”

In her eyes, despite her failed attempt of analysing Sophia, she was the kind of person that might’ve experienced a great sense of loneliness. That much could honestly be obvious.

Her job of guiding people yet never exactly interfering, from what she could understand, must’ve been an lonesome job. A burden only Sophia could take.

“Who am I kidding? I know practically nothing about her, I should probably stop speculating about these things…”

Whatever it may be, at least an attempt of wanting to know more about her was made. She could perhaps ask her, but somehow she knew that wouldn't be so productive of her time.

All that she must do now, is to follow that White Rabbit. The small critter, with its monocle, hopping about deeper into the ever so extending alleyway.

It had been around 15 minutes of walking through these winding pathways. She could definitely sense that space itself had been warped. That much was clear, and she wouldn't exactly call it an Act of God now. Though still, the level of proficiency and mastery to do this kind of feat so casually, to the point she couldn't even tamper with it when she tried…

“How much experience does she have, to be able to do this…?”

It was akin to the concept of space itself having been exploited and warped, to the point of its very nature changing within this very space. It felt to her like she had been walking in circles, it felt like a maze, it felt like a massive headache just thinking about this.

She should probably stop thinking about it, for it was unhealthy of her to even think about the inner workings of it, trying to wrap her head around how the alteration of concepts worked.

Then—

“Marilyn Althorn, The Mage From Kharnam.”

That voice called to her once again, speaking directly to her mind. It did not cause her to stop, it just caught her attention, that was all.

The space around her began to change, to the point that a clear pathway to leave this maze was identified by her.

“You have been welcomed back to Wonderland, and towards the Sanctuary you shall go.”

That was the signal, one that Marilyn would use to chase after the rabbit that began to run away from her towards that light. The alleyway around her, the fabric of reality, had been moulded into a tunnel as she flew.

"Vis Propulsiva!"

This time she did not just remove air resistance from herself. Having learned spatial cutting as a skill earlier that day to fight against the Guardian Golem, she used the knowledge of spatial alteration to boost herself even further than just using a pushing force. It could be said that even light would not catch up to her with this. But—

“Are you kidding me???”

The fabric of reality did not obey her rules, as even with using space itself to propel her forward, the distance did not close at all, in fact it got farther away. It frustrated her, but nonetheless without her intervention the came rushing to her like a wave.

And she once again was forced to plop down, this time not towards the soft grass, but a cobblestone road.

“Aghk-!”

She felt a bruise on her forehead that instantly healed, and she stood up straight after crash landing so suddenly again. And Marilyn Althorn would then look around at her new environment.

Clear skies blocked by tinted glass and windows. The endless field of flowers over the horizon could be seen, but she was not there. She was in fact in a garden of sorts, a greenhouse.

It was of an elaborate make, with a gazebo having been seen by her now. Arches decorated with vines and roses accompanied her path towards it. She could also see butterflies flying past and around her.

The tense thoughts she had within her mind disappeared just from the presence of this garden, this Sanctuary. The spirit of this place, whatever it could be, pacified such things.

Then, having arrived, she encountered that familiar face once more.

“Ah, hello again, Marilyn.”

She was of the same stature and physicality as her, yet she wore a more tomboyish Victorian outfit that fit her form. Her hair was of pale minty green, and her eyes were deep ocean blue. She was unconventionally beautiful to the eyes of the average person, no matter their preference.

Her smile brought a degree of ease to the girl. But still…that presence…

“Sophia, you are very eldritch, you know that?”

Sophia placed down her cup of tea onto its custard, “Hm, is that so? Was I scaring you just now?”

“...No, you're just very hard to understand.”

Marilyn had declared so, and proceeded to sit down right across her within the gazebo. It was the same fancy table set she had seen before, during their first meeting, so nothing notable could truly be taken note of by her.

“It's rather rude to call a young maiden ‘eldritch’ so suddenly. You are aware of that, correct?” Sophia said again.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

“I am, but I couldn't exactly call you a young maiden, despite your appearance.” Marilyn responded, “You just bore that old lady vibes, you know what I mean?”

Sophia sighed, “...Your sister and Elysia had been rubbing off on you, haven't they?”

Marilyn chuckled, “Perhaps so, they have been quite the influence.”

Sophia blinked, a small smile curling up as she did. “Very well then, I shall assume we can begin our discussion now.”

The air around the gazebo, as well as the entire Sanctuary, switched to something more of an atmosphere of the night. It kept its tranquil quality, yet the seriousness was apparent.

Marilyn nodded to that statement she made, “You said something about the origins of my Eyes of Heaven…?”

She took a sip of her tea, “I did. Have you ever wondered about it yourself? About the reason why you did see creation unfolding in front of your very eyes?”

“...Not really.”

It was a bit shameful to admit for her, as this ability of hers had always been a core part of her arsenal. She had yet to exploit and master it to its fullest, but she figured that could come in later.

“I always felt like that whole scene, prior to my arrival here, was just a dream for me.” Marilyn explained, “It was nothing more than that. It feels hazy to me now too, but some details are still vivid.”

“Hmm, I see.” Sophia leaned backwards towards her chair, legs crossed, “That's quite disappointing, knowing how thoughtful of a person you are. Your mind always thinks of something, whether they be mundane or important.”

Marilyn raised an eyebrow, “Don't all people do that…?”

“Yes, but you do so more than others, Marilyn.” She said again, “In fact, your contemplative nature was paired very well with this ability to comprehend that you have.”

“You're talking like I was given this ability…was I?”

Marilyn was now wondering about that. Eldryn said she was blessed, and despite his ramblings being half nonsensical and half out-of-topic to what she has, it still brought that idea up in her head.

Could it be…?

“Hmm…before we get to that topic.” Sophia interjected, “How much knowledge do you have of the gods?”

“...You do know that I already know what I know, right?” Marilyn said to her.

“Yes, but it's impolite of me, hence why I am asking.”

“Fine.” Marilyn sighed, before thinking hard about that particular question she's trying to answer. “From what I know, we regard the gods as these creating and sustaining forces that permeate throughout the world, like Essence, but reside in a far higher realm unreachable for even the In-between. They're fundamentally above it, existing within their own framework that transcended all of creation in its entirety. They're all passive, but through belief and worship they deemed us as worthy of their time and consideration.”

“And you people, regardless of your belief, have mostly relegated your works as worship towards them, only some like that preacher have persisted with the traditional way.” Sophia completed her answer.

“Yes, that's pretty much it. And in terms of names…for the Western Pantheon.”

Marilyn cleared her throat.

“There is Ordos, the God of Order, Justice, and Oaths. Zerathos, God of War, Honor, and Strategy. Aisha, Goddess of Life and Healing. Morrigan, Goddess of Death and Oblivion. Sollus, God of Light and The Sun. Constella, Goddess of The Moon and Twilight. Logos, God of Knowledge and Uncertainty. Raidus, God of Warriors and Heroism. Aphoria, Goddess of Passion, Beauty, and Love. Faberion, God of Smithing and Craftsmanship. Naran, God of Strife and Punishments. And lastly there’s Seraphina, Goddess of Devotion, Salvation, and Deliverance.”

That small speech she had brought a small degree of applause from Sophia, “Quite the good show of memory. You’ve sure read a lot.”

“It's a mandatory thing for history class, so it's an obligation.” She said, sighing out a breath of relief. “Why do you want to ask about them, anyway?”

“It's because of them being important to the topic at hand, of course.” She said, “You are aware of the term Onlooker God, correct?”

“...Yeah, a term used in theological philosophy, that these gods are distant and impartial, right?” Marilyn replied to her.

She nodded, “They're different from those Personifications, the others I have told you of two years ago.”

Marilyn was put into deep thought once more, as she heard that term again. It was a hazy memory, but she did in fact remember something along the lines of Sophia recommending her to mind her manners around those others.

She was already aware of that theory regarding the divine, of the Onlookers and Personifications. Onlookers she already knew of in a nutshell kind of way, but Personifications were something more confusing to her, the others that Sophia deemed them as.

“Wait…others…are you saying…?”

“....no, I am not a god, Marilyn. You may think of me as possessing godlike power and an enigmatic nature, and they may regard me as one of them, but I am not a god nor them.” Sophia rebuked.

“Then…what are you?”

“You already know, whatever title I have, that is what I am.” Sophia refused to give her a clear answer, a smile added onto it. As expected, Marilyn's attempt to understand her was rendered a failure.

After a few moments, Sophia resumed her lesson, “Personifications could be deemed as gods, but they're not always deities in the way you think they are. Some of them are just beings who have reached the pinnacle, that is all. Do mind your manners when you meet one, they can be quite self-centred.”

“Y-yeah, noted.” She said, sighing. Truly these terms were confusing to her, to the point it brought a minor headache. It felt like a lecture, almost.

Sophia placed down her cup of tea again, and rested her own two hands upon her thighs. “We’re getting off-topic, so I’ll just make this clear. Marilyn, the Eyes of Heaven that you have, that is something called an Origin Factor.”

“Origin…factor?”

A foreign term, or rather, it's an obscure term to her. She could most likely find knowledge about this particular topic in some library, but it would probably be an arduous task to take hold. Nonetheless Sophia continued onwards, and she could only listen.

“Like how butterflies are meant to metamorphosize from caterpillars, how bulls are meant to have horns, and flowers to bloom. The very Origin of a person decides their uniqueness and particular traits in their lives that they will pick up one way or another.” Sophia explained, “The Onlookers were responsible for delivering these Origins towards creation, the names of everything that exists. They're pretty much just a fancy term for concepts themselves, apart from a few caveats that don't matter to this conversation. So it would be pretty redundant to discuss Origins by themselves.”

“Then…what are Origin Factors, exactly?”

Sophia leaned forward, “An Origin Factor is a tangible manifestation of one’s very Origin. You people would deem them as Divine Blessings, but Origin Factors are the more academic term for this,” she stated, “Your Origin was to realise the intricacies of creation, the Origin of Comprehension, of why things could be the way they are. Hence, your Origin Factor…”

“...Is the Eyes of Heaven. Something that I have been granted…ever since I was reborn here?”

She nodded, “You were always meant to have it as who you are now, for as Kei Etsuko you have always been isolated from your potential as a person, unable to understand why your suffering was given unto you.”

Marilyn gazed downwards upon hearing that name, saddened by the memory. But, she steeled herself to face forward.

Sophia then continued, “The Onlookers did not give you this directly, for it's a byproduct of how creation is. But, more or less…truly, you are blessed.”