The Empty Mirror
Chapter 59: Experience
In the vast panorama of the occult, a dichotomy between two mystical artifacts could be glimpsed: "Hunger on Trial" and the sceptre "Two of Wands". While the former leans towards offense, inflicting passive damage with relentless precision, the latter is dedicated to defense and vitality restoration. In the scale of comparisons, the choker would rise above the staff, as a duality emerged between both objects. "Hunger on Trial" boasted intrinsic precision and power, but stability marked the greatest difference. The choker exerted a more refined control over its blessings and curses; the hunger it awakened was sustainable and relatively remediable, although the fear of being consumed in one bite always loomed. On the other hand, the staff "Two of Wands" was prey to instability. The will that seemed to emerge from the forest permeated the relationship with the staff. While it soothed wounds and neutralized deadly poisons, its unpredictable nature posed a challenge. It exorcised the corruption of Hanging Gardens from my being, but its curse plunged me into mutation and degradation, like a contradiction in its very essence. Protection and torment intertwined in a dark musical, stitched by the veins of the supernatural.
Like a deranged lover, "Two of Wands" conquers you with promises of love and envelops you in its possessive and hostile embrace. It's an amalgam of contradictions and abnormalities, where restraint seems a distant echo. Sometimes, its touch is torment that transforms into healing, in a grotesque and surreal process that twists reality. Other times, its energy seeps into my being, but its suffocating presence turns my nostrils into thickets and trees shaped like women. It's a healing that, in its excess, threatens to devour life itself, or unleashes delusions and phobias that corrode my sanity. It's an embodied paradox, distant from the loving touch of "Ace of Wands".
Regarding the choice of the name "Whip of Vitality" for the staff's second ability, the reasons are both evident and hidden. Its ethereal form resembles a whip that strikes the skin like the hooves of a runaway horse. This whip leaves its victims marked by death instantly, at least the abominable creatures of the Hanging Gardens. The irony lies in the contrast between the name and its effect, for far from kindling vitality, its attack is a manifestation of individual hostility, inflicting an anti-healing effect and a loss of vitality that submerges wounds in pestilent waters and corrodes the body towards involution. With these accounts in mind, I am about to draft a report on "Two of Wands", following the presentation established by the Marquess.
But before proceeding, it is necessary to narrate a peculiarity of "Hunger on Trial", one that has left me perplexed on more than one occasion. For, according to my experiences, if we can call them that, understanding experience as an amalgam of perceptions channelled through the senses of our ephemeral biological existence, interpreting it as the information flowing from the outside world to our own physiognomy, and the reflection that arises in response to such perceptions. With these words, I found the impression that the cursed choker seemed limited in its attacks only towards biological entities, towards those beings endowed with life. It's not so much about the incapacity to corrode steel with its bite, but rather how its abilities, so to speak, are intimately linked to the victim rather than the bearer of the artifact.
Allow me to explain: when "Hunger on Trial" was unleashed against the insectoid aberration on the outskirts of the Hanging Gardens, its attack was tailored to the very nature of its target. It wasn't a subtle thrust or an unrestrained outburst, but rather a proportional act, as if being guided by a force beyond the bearer. On that occasion, I wasn't even aware of using the choker effectively; I simply activated its ability in proportion to the challenge at hand. The same happened with the vine; an attack with the same ferocity directed towards the giant insects wouldn't have been sufficient to confront this new threat. Thus, it executed a proportionate assault, adapting to the nature of its opponent in each encounter.
However, this phenomenon of proportional attack, as I've mentioned, manifested independently of the bearer. Something beyond the user's consciousness seemed to guide the intent of "Hunger on Trial". And here comes into play a theory that lurks in the shadows of the mind: the very essence of the choker is imbued with hunger, a voracity that transcends the simple act of wearing it. In this deductive analysis, we discard the presence of the bearer as the epicentre of influence, for any attack directed at the enemy triggered in the bearer an equally voracious sensation, in proportion to the quantity and complexity of skills employed, but not to the magnitude of the adversary. Consequently, the influence didn't emanate from the hungry bearer, but rather from the victim.
And in the dark confines of the Hanging Gardens, where nature disintegrates and corrupts, the voracity of the insects equals the threat they pose. It's as if we were to say that the hungrier you are, the more intoxicated you feel; that's the inherent proportion in the aberrant essence of the Hanging Gardens. Therefore, the victim's voracity translates directly into the level of inflicted danger, as if the enemy's threat were balanced with the damage caused. However, this is based solely on a theory, a complex construct of imagination where laws of association are shaped, grouping related ideas to determine the impact of hunger, threat, and critical damage. Now, let's continue with the analysis of the staff.
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"Two of Wands" emerges as a magically imposing staff, imbued with tangible power that transcends the mundane. Forged from the weathered wood of a tree forgotten by time, its surface bears intricate engravings that encapsulate the very essence of the universe's flow. From its roots to its peak, the staff seems to pulse with its own life; its double spiral structure is a twisted staircase to doom, with leaves and buds that emerge and vanish in an eternal cycle of renewal. At its apex, writhing like a manifestation of torment, rests a monkey's paw judged and disfigured, stained with dark red at the fingertips and the palm's centre, its dry and dull fur merging with the staff's wood in a grotesque symbiosis. The monkey's paw, sometimes clenched in a macabre fist and other times open in a deformed palm, is infested with rotten flesh and hemorrhagic larvae writhing in a dance of decay, awaiting to be kindled. Its sharp and twisted nails, blackened by death, seem eager to tear the bearer's flesh or disfigure it beyond recognition.
Blessings (Abilities):
1. Fertility Shield (Area Defence): With a vigorous gesture, the staff radiates an expansive wave of magical energy that envelops all allies in a glowing halo. This shield, woven with the very threads of life, not only protects against enemy onslaughts but also nourishes and strengthens those within its radius. Wounds heal swiftly, and the allies' resilience is magnified, endowing them with renewed fortitude and rejuvenated vitality, with a probability just shy of 50%.
2. Whip of Vitality (Single Target Attack): By channeling the essence through the staff, the bearer unleashes a spiral of pale green and golden light that materialises into a whip of magical energy. This whip, sharp as a surgeon's scalpel, projects precisely towards an individual target. Upon impact, it not only inflicts physical damage but also implants in the target a sensation of stagnation in their own process of growth and renewal. Wounds heal slowly, and the enemy's vitality gradually fades, weakening them as the power of involution descends upon them, with a probability exceeding 50%.
Curses (Negative Side Effects):
1. Uncontrolled Growth: This curse manifests as an unleashed force that distorts the flesh and bones of the bearer. As the staff channels its energy, the user's body may begin to grotesquely expand, resulting in monstrously oversized limbs, bulging torsos, and distorted facial features. This painful and disfiguring metamorphosis turns the bearer into an aberrant creature, hindering their interaction with the outside world and their peers.
2. Magical Instability: Unbridled energy lurks within the bearer of the "Two of Wands", threatening to unleash the staff's magical power explosively. In moments of intense concentration or emotion, the accumulated energy can escape uncontrollably, wreaking havoc on the user and their surroundings. These sudden bursts of power leave the bearer exhausted and vulnerable, unable to master their own abilities and exposed to unexpected dangers.
3. Psychological Disfigurement: This insidious curse infects the mind of the bearer of the "Two of Wands", causing hallucinations and disturbing visions. Immersed in the connection with the cycles of life and evolution, the user may be assaulted by dreamlike landscapes and ghostly figures that blur the line between reality and illusion. This mental confusion leaves the bearer at the mercy of their own distorted perceptions, plunging them into an abyss of alienation and unease.
The initial description of the staff is based on when my eyes first set upon it, it was as if time itself stood still. The amputated monkey's paw, in its initial state of inactivity, seemed like a forgotten relic, its stiffened joints barely responding to touch. Would the staff and its companion, the monkey's paw, come alive again upon finding a new bearer? Its ancient appearance suggested a history lost in the shadows of time, but I was unsure if its weathered look was the result of prolonged neglect or an inevitable process of decomposition upon separation from the bearer. I could only theorise, let my mind wander into the mysteries surrounding that enigmatic object.
As for the second attack, the whip, I considered it an individual threat, aimed with surgical precision at a single target. I chose to employ a binary approach, following the example of the Marquess, calculating the probabilities of success with a margin of uncertainty greater and lesser than fifty percent. Was the Marquess's strategy based on criteria beyond that threshold? It was an enigma that I could only solve through my own experience, relying on my ability to adapt to changing circumstances.
The shield, on the other hand, stood as an impenetrable bulwark against enemy assaults. Its protective aura enveloped me in a dome of safety, where no threat seemed capable of penetrating, at least in theory. My conclusions about the curses were based on an analysis biased by my limited experience, although I had not yet faced any of them really directly. However, the first signs of mental deterioration were beginning to manifest, feeding my fears about the staff's stability and its influence on my fate. My hand transformed into a worn leather glove, then revived, was just the prelude to a series of mental challenges that left me exhausted. Was "Two of Wands" the reflection of my own instability, or was it simply a coincidence in the chaotic universe in which I found myself trapped?
After the skirmish with that monster of bulging chest and rough fur, I continued my journey towards the peak of the Hanging Gardens. Although time seemed to stretch into eternity, each step barely brought me closer to the desired goal. During this odyssey, I found myself compelled to feed on those unborn beings, questioning my own nature in the process. Had I become some sort of witch devouring unborn creatures? Despite consuming those depraved foetuses, the monster that emerged from its shell did not seem freshly arrived in the world. Was it hiding inside that egg, waiting to lure unsuspecting prey like an aborted fetus returning to the maternal womb? Perhaps, or perhaps not. Maybe they simply emerged from the embryo as fully formed adults, unlike insects that transform in the blink of an eye.
In the course of my pilgrimage, I came across another specimen similar to the monster born from the egg, although fortunately at a prudent distance, devouring trees composed of muscle and flesh. It was then that I realised that the Hanging Gardens were nothing more than an open-air latrine, for urinating and defecating, where the physiological needs of human beings still persisted, except for sleep.