Chapter 3: The Symbolism in Fantasy
Enigma turned away from Jaeger, and stood up slowly before walking to a nearby window to peer outside. With a snap rain began to fall from the sky.
"Listen well Jaeger…the reason I tell you these things, is because the gods must tell the champions these things specifically…you are my champion, and by my guesses…the champion of Wish, Death, and Spectre, now as well…"
"I guess that makes me popular…" Jaeger muttered while lighting up his smoke, even though he didn't feel the want for it at the moment. If it wasn't for the fact it was a magical smoke that didn't hurt the lungs or use carbon, he was sure to be a chain smoker in context.
"The archetypes are something even we the gods do not understand…but the Man Immortal and the Cosmos Eternal made it clear their findings across the planes…those two fulfill the archetypes of the Explorer in its aspect of the 'Seeker'…someone who spends their life searching in vain or success towards an idea or theory…many things…they would've originally been the archetype of 'The creator' with their powers over flesh and energy…but they had a change when they met one another…and thus a change in self…things are strange this way."
'The Explorer? Seeker? Creator?' Jaeger rubbed his jaw and stood up hesitantly before walking over to the window where Enigma was looking out of.
"It starts like this…
The Ruler: Broken King, Tragic King, King of One and all for King. The king that was good or bad, but was broken of their ideals…the king of good and bad that led down a path of failure and destruction…a king all for themselves, or a king all for others…The ruler is a type of leader, and one that has many forms. Each archetype has a main title, but several branches beneath it like that of a tree. Have you ever noticed only certain men can truly lead? Whether they fail, have evil intentions, or otherwise?" Enigma turned to Jaeger with a deep gaze.
"I…have…but in the same context is this not merely using psychology to break down human personalities into groups and sub groups?" He knew however he answered it would lead to more knowledge, Jaeger tried his best to stay neutral which only further made him speculate about his own archetype.
"You see…The Man Immortal and Cosmos Eternal found that separate universes followed separate rules…you know this world has magic and powers right?"
"Yes, of course?..." Jaeger felt a door being pushed ajar in front of him, as if a truth of the world was about to be known. It was.
"They found in a universe they called 445 and 447…that one followed the rule of innately being born with a disposition to magic, where you wouldn't have access to the other elements…and in another you had access to all elements but they had to be learned over a life time. Sound familiar?"
"Nature and nurture…" Jaeger leaned against the window and blew out a puff of smoke, his hand holding the smoke layed on the window sill and let smoke waft out and down to the ground below. Mixing in the winds surrounding the building, his eyes focused on the rain.
"Yes…this is when they began trying to find the perfect 'place' that could combine these two, or a place with both already apparent…but they failed."
"They failed?"
"Yes…they never found it even after searching for a very…long time. That's when they began finding other gods, other men and women of great power to help create a new place of existence…and that was when the seed of creating this universe was made…through trial…and error…and errors…and endless trials…we moved across different planes of existence, and like this world did things with other beings and species, until we found this world…and thus a cycle of 'the game' began…"
Jaeger didn't speak, his ears were wide open but his eyes were knitted.
"When this occurred, the 'higher gods' as we call the unknown forces outside of our reach…began to manipulate us as well, as if seeking to work with our pleas. Thus…we found we too were subject to these forms, and a resolution of philosophy was made. We are not exempt from the Archetypes, we are merely the closest peaks of them. Universe 445 is where Spectre originated from…anyway…the archetypes…"
Enigma took in a deep breath of the smell of rain coming from the window, before fulling turning to Jaeger and leaning his back on the window sill.
"The Ruler: Broken King, Tragic King, King of All, All for King.
The Shadow: False Mask, Alt-Shadow, Dark tail.
The Wise man: Voice of Man, Voice to King, Philosopher.
The Persona: Sheep, Clay man, the Everyman.
The innocent: Moral man, Free bird.
The Hero: Tragic Hero, Superhero, Warrior, Antihero.
The Jester: The Fool, The Now, Trickster.
The Creator: Dreamer, Inventor, Artist.
The Lover: Magnet, Feeler, Loveless.
The Nurturer: Teacher, Parent, Saint/Devil, Manipulator.
The Explorer: Seeker, Wanderer.
The Rebel: Rebel…
The Neutral: Enigma, Spectre, Omnist.
These are the distinction we have made Jaeger…and each has their own meaning, their own purpose…"
Every word that Enigma spoke transformed into a literal version within the air, as if he breathed life into words and cast them into the air they floated like an illusory list around the room.
"Where am I truly on all this…" Jaeger head swiveled as his eyes focused on each and every word and name.
"Like I said…The wise man: Philosopher… Someone who explores the world and perspectives of others, to learn of inner and outer self. Spectre was this same type of person…someone who is led by curiosity. This will inevitably change, as those with deep knowledge use it in many ways…for him…he became an observer, a Spectre who in all aspects is introspective."
"Do you know the other champions archetypes that I am to find?" Jaeger didn't ask to break down each thing, he would have to mull over this for a long time. He wasn't a god of course, nor was he in any place currently to ask everything with all the time in the world in his hands.
"Some haven't been made yet, some have yet to step forward…but for the ones I know exist currently…" Enigma waved his hands and several of the titles and their sub names disappeared leaving few behind.
"The Shadow: Alt-Shadow….The Ruler: All for King as well as the King of All are at conflict…The Hero: Warrior…The Jester: The now…are currently known of the 9, including you its 6. However…those two 'kings' are at war…and whoever wins, or is helped to win…will drop the number to 5, leaving 4 more spots to bare fruit."
Jaeger nodded simply, noting each title and their sub name down in his mind.
"Here" Enigma waved the illusory words down from the air onto a slip of old paper in his hand. They engraved themselves onto the paper after several seconds, before Enigma handed the sheet to Jaeger.
"Only you can see its contents, and only other champions can be told what I have told you" Enigma eyes him seriously while gripping the sheet of paper tightly, Jaeger nodded in understanding and only then did he release his death grip and let Jaeger take it.
"Funny enough…a naturally formed version of this 'system' we devised was a Prophecy in Spectre's world…" Enigma remincised on memories, while Jaeger stored away the sheet in his trench coats interdimensional pocket. This trench coat really was handy, Jaeger was glad Solomon gave him it.
It did feel bad to have several tears and hole in its from fights...but who was to blame, the werewolf or the vampire? The undead or the bosses? It surely was his fault. Heh.
"Well…let's begin" Enigma said after a long while.
"Huh?" Jaeger muttered out before remember the trauma from before, "Okay…so about tha…AHHH YOU SON OF A BITCH…." A heart lurching pain came over Jaeger as Enigma's eyes flared with power.
Those down below from the tower heard a loud voice curse, and every head that could hear it turned to the sound that was soon washed away by the tide of lightning that flickered over the sanctuary.
A man holding a tome shivered, "I feel like someone just walked over my grave…"
A woman standing beside him patted his shoulder, "I was here the last time I heard something like that…don't listen to it, they say you'll be cursed with bad dreams."
The man nodded as he turned away from the mage tower with a gasp at the word 'curse'.
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Jaeger slapped the floor hard with his body and let out several gasping sounds, "FUuck yoouUuu…fuck me…"
"See, I told you it wasn't as bad as the last time, your still conscious see."
*ding*
Jaeger lifted his lethargic arm and looked at his watch.
'Cape of the traveler: A new skill and boon has been given, a combination of the interdimensional space of your frog and the power over space from the cape has been combined and upgraded.
Under a list of words of the previous skills and abilities was a change to 'teleport'.
'Teleport: The cape is the medium to manipulate space, and will naturally pull in the energy to do so.
3 marks: 1 mark equals 15 jumps of 10 feet, or 150 feet in full. Using all three marks will move you 450 feet.'
'Interdimension: Within the cape is a large space, by bending space and travelling halfway the user is placed within it.
Right wing: Home/Space/Habitable. 1 mile wide, 1 mile long. Height changes with time.
Left wing: Objects/items/materials/treasury'
"By using up a small mark of teleportation, just a ten foot jump…you can spin to the left or to the right to enter your interdimensional space, or not swivel so as to just use the teleport power. The space in the right wing is a place you can create, and live within as well as build a town in…while also being able to bring others inside with you one at a time through the cape. They can stay there as long as they like, wherever you teleport from into the inter space will be where you come out of…however for them, they will come out wherever you currently stand in this space we are in now…anyway, the left wing is like an interdimensional bag, only you can access it…and you can't leave someone in it, unless they are dead"
"Wow…" Jaeger's eye brows shot up, "Okay…that one was worth it"
"You probably aren't going to build a town…that's okay though" Enigma smiled.
"Town does seem…weird…to have…in my cape…I might bring people there though…"
"Oh it seems the windows is open huh" Enigma turned to the window, Enigma smiled as a sigh was let loose from Jaeger's mouth.
*whoosh*
Jaeger's body was catapulted out of the open window, for several seconds time froze , before it seemingly ran in reverse as the rain fell upwards from Jaeger's flailing body. It wasn't really in reverse, but when you fell faster than rain it would look as such.
'That kind…son of a bitch…man…'
*vhoompsh*
Jaeger landed on the ground with a thump as he teleported near to the fountain in the center of the sanctuary. The teleports seemed to take away inertia, or else Jaeger probably would've died.
With a crack of the back, Jaeger stood up straight and gallantly walked towards Craft's shop as if nothing had even happened. However, a certain man and woman standing outside the tavern were looking at him with mouths agape.
'I told you' she said in her mind.
"Only demons come from there…" The man backed away until he ran inside the tavern.
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"I! My boy! I have that item for youuu" Craft rubbed his hands in glee, "You're sure gonna like it hahaha"
Jaeger smiled, "Thanks Craft…alright, spill the beans!" He whipped the cigarrete in his hand like a hidden knife at Craft, but the latter caught it in a flash and lit it before Jaeger even blinked.
*Puff* "Fwhoo…okay, so I kept the original design of the octagonal top hooded lantern…8 sided glass…and bowl shaped bottom with the small bowl like circle on the inner side of the bowl. A ring was placed at the very top most portions of course, to hang from the belt etcetera…"
"Yes…yes…come on, don't tease me" Jaeger laughed.
"Okay so…the 'Flying Lantern' was patented after an item created by someone in the past…however, it of course was changed a bit. It invokes, fire, light, and lightning to be used by the user.
Fire: Like a lantern, absorb fire energy, creates ambient tempertures.
Light: Cast light absorbed to float in the surroundings.
Lightning: With the 'generator bracelet' asa medium, float the lantern in place to generate, fire or light energy, and create a field to deter ghosts and fill lightning runes."
"Holy shit" Jaeger blurted out.
Craft smiled while one of his duplicates came out of a backroom with the item covered in clothe, it would seem that Craft had learned from someone this was to give anticipation and indeed it was working.
Craft 2 lifted the clothe, while Craft 1 in front of Jaeger handed the item to him.
"Wow…its so…beautiful" Jaeger clutched it with love.
"Thanks…when you told me about your power, I always thought about something like this. With it being able to charge your rune, if you are ever in a spot that needs you to stay still it can create a field to help against enemies…and help you not run out of attacks. The fire was like the previous lantern, and the light can be used while moving around without having to use the lantern itself. Say you meet a dark hallway, you can cast the light down it instead of walking down it with the lantern yourself…the ambient temperature is just a small thing, it is to help in cold environments while at the same time make hot environments not to…hot"
"Thank you so much Craft…wow." Jaeger shook his head, "You really are amazing."
Craft smiled, "like I said, take it as a gift…next time, you gotta trade me something good!"
Jaeger nodded, "I shall definitely I promise"
With a wave Jaeger left the shop and headed back towards the base of the Mage School towards the mosquesque information center beyond the front gate.
"Hello!...oh you…" He was cut short by Jaeger, "Let me SPEAK it first come on!"
"Okay…sorry…" He sat a little deeper in his chair behind the desk.
"I'm going to go out; I was wondering if any working maps were for sale of paths to take to other sanctuaries."
"Of course…here." He waved his hand and several *dings* were let off from Jaeger's watch, he nodded in thanks and left as fast as he came.
Nobody liked having their mind read, it made a conversation boring!
"Where to begin…if I have to find these other champions, then I should follow what they are supposed to 'act like'…even if I don't know them, i know their 'archetype' now" Jaeger muttered to himself as he looked towards the mage school.
'Are you still in there Alexandra?'
Jaeger asked around, but everyone confirmed the idea that the time in the mage school was 4 years and the time outside to the time inside differed. Currently, from the last time people had entered they had 'come out' merely a day after going in. Now though, it had been far more than that.
Supposedly someone caught wind of Enigma making the times inside and out 2 to 1. So in two years, that was when they would leave the space of the school.
Jaeger left a message with the head student from the fountain he had talked to before. He nodded and kept the letter close to his chest.
"Just don't forget to tell her what happened to me, and the stories of my parents." Jaeger felt much like his mother did long ago, leaving a passing message before leaving to die. He shook the thought away, and waved goodbye before stepping out into the fog.
'My first goal should be to find Solomon and Anna…or Malcolm and Jack…however the latter two seemed to have disappeared. Solomon had come back once while I was gone, and then left with Anna again.'
Silence shrouded Jaeger's ears as he passed through the fog, familiar undead sprang forth from ally's and dark places but they were cut down as fast as they came with a whirling chain blade.
Jaeger walked towards a random building that had been left open and found a cushioned chair. He looked out the door several times before setting the chair on fire, and then taking out the Lantern to absorb the energy from it. After the chair turned into faint charcoaled remnants, he switched the lantern on to a low glow and left the building.
"Time to practice a bit…" With a thought, the two vertical cylinders switched places, and with a spin the 7 chambered cylinder spun without reserve.
*click* *clack* *click* *clack* *click*