Divulgence (Song of Sophangence Book 2)

by E. I. McAllistair

  “Boyfriend you say? What manner of person is fit to be in a relationship with you? You are no doubt capable, and only a liar would pretend you are not gorgeous. Are there really more people like you milling about campus?”

  “I couldn’t say. It is believed beauty is in the eye of the beholder, which makes me feel that there is no true standard. Yes Phavian is extremely attractive. He is considered to be the most attractive man on campus.”

  “Interesting. I would very much like to see this Phavian for myself. I find that the hype is often not worth the effort.”

  “You will definitely meet him. If you are going to be with Codi and me, there is no way you could miss him. He is often with one of us.”

  “You seem completely unfazed that I am possibly lusting over your paramour. Does this not bother you? Perhaps you think I am so beneath you that he could not possibly desire me?”

  Shrugging as he continues his journey outside, “Get in line. Everyone lusts after Phavian. They were doing it long before I came into the picture, and many people have had the opportunity to get their wish. That has nothing to do with me.”

  “How does it not? You should be jealous, or concerned at the very least!”

  “There is nothing to be jealous about. I trust him, which means outside factors are irrelevant. Also, he is the one who pursued me. If he has grown tired of me then so be it. I’m not going to stop him. Life is too short. For most people.”

  “I for one could never let the person I love be the object of such affections, that is too much temptation for one person! It is a disaster waiting to happen.”

  “Or you are self-conscious about your size, which makes you feel that anyone could be a threat because you don’t see yourself as deserving someone of worth.”

  Gasping with an offended expression Anaar could not see, “That is quite rude of you to say to someone you have only just met! I will have you know I am very comfortable with my size. I would never wish to be a lumbering giant like yourself!”

  “Sure, whatever you say. How do you prefer someone address someone with your condition by the way? I would rather not have people constantly offending you.”

  In all his life, there had only been a handful of people who actually thought to ask him how he liked to be addressed. Even then they never did so for the purpose of correcting others on his behalf. As much as he tried to pick a fight with the large man, Peter found himself being won over by his effortless charms by the minute. He was indeed very sensitive about his size, and this man had seen right through him. Instead of using it against him though, he simply wanted to prevent others from making him uncomfortable.

  “There are many terms that people find acceptable. Little person is one of them, however that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. It presumes that I am something less than any other person, or at least that is how I feel. I prefer the term dwarf, simply because it is the most medically accurate for my condition, and I feel it carries an air of whimsy wouldn’t you say?”

  “If whimsy is what you are going for. You struck me as the type that is quite serious and works hard at making sure you are well put together. Your hair and clothes are indications of such.”

  “We cannot all present ourselves as slovenly as you do. I would be quite interested to know what you would do if you were not so attractive that people look past such dress.”

  Still striding straight ahead, never looking back at Peter, “Are you going to bring up my looks every other sentence? That will get old pretty quickly. I thought you would have more intelligent points of conversation.”

  Once again Anaar’s comments were not cruel, nor intended to be scathing, but they were barbed nonetheless, which made Peter aware that he had been indeed quite obsessive over the man’s appearance. According to the Headmistress, this man was brilliant, much more than he, yet the only thing he could do is speak to him about surface level topics. The loose fitting, worn attire he wore was quite ill suited for someone of his beauty, but Peter decided he would take that as an acceptable quirk and move forward.

  “We have been traveling for some time now. Where are we going?”

  “To Exploration to see Gramps.”

  “Who is this Gramps person you speak of?”

  “Doctor Fredderick Darst. The foremost mind in affinity and attunement studies.”

  “Why would we be going to visit such an esteemed person?! Surely you cannot just have an audience with him whenever you like?”

  “Yeah, I can. He actually gets mad if I don’t come by often enough. He’s a nice old guy. Kinda lonely, but you don’t find minds as sharp as his very often, especially at his age. You definitely won’t find someone who knows more about attunements.”

  “Why do you call him Gramps? Are you two related?”

  “I’m sure he’d like that, but no we aren’t. It was his request.”

  Continuing along the path in silence, Peter began wondering more about this man he had been introduced to. The Headmistress had talked extensively about him, and she even used his first name, a point of familiarity that was not lost upon him. Now he was casually making his way to see yet another world-famous person, who according to him, prefers a familial name to be used. From what he could gather, there was nothing of record about this man. He did not come from a prestigious family, he was not distinguished across the world, there was no information he could obtain about him, yet he navigated life as if he owned everything. He would need to be particularly observant around him.

  When they arrived at the sleek, yet massive building, Peter recognized it as the place he had been just before being fitted for his Vizer. He knew that this place would be one he would visit often, as there was mandatory cultivation of one’s abilities in order to graduate. During the time he was being fitted for his Vizer, they had shown him a number of areas where he would be capable of logging and receiving help along those ends. Where the large man was leading him however, he has never seen, with a number of researchers who simply smiled and nodded at him as he passed. Once they had arrived at a set of double doors, there was a chime indicating the doors were now unlocked and he proceeded through them. Hurrying along so he was not left, he dove through the doors just as they were closing.

  “Gramps! Are you back here? I have someone I’d like you to meet!”

  Somewhere from the back of the lab, all strewn with papers and files, Peter heard something that sounded like frantic rustling. From the direction of the sound an older looking man with wispy white hair appeared in a rush, practically falling over himself. At first Peter thought that it was due to some infirmity, but despite his apparent age he moved quite well.

  “Anaar my boy! So good of you to come by! I feel like I get so little of your time with Ixnes sending you all over the world as of late.” Eyeing Peter suspiciously he looks back at Anaar intrigued. “And what do we have here?”

  “Gramps, this is Peter. He is somehow my mentee. He is part of the new class.”

  “Ah very good! I’ve been informed that we have quite a juicy bunch. The full 100 and more than 70% of them are Quintessences.”

  “Really? That is pretty impressive. Our class is kinda small, but I think we only have about 40% of us are Quintessences.”

  “Very true even if it is still quite high for the school. But what your class lacks in quantity, you make up for in quality! The number of rare or unique manifestations your class has is unlike I have seen!”

  “I suppose you are right. Speaking of unique manifestations, Peter here seems to have one. I think I have a decent grasp of his abilities, but it would be better if he explained.”

  Feeling starkly naked as the two men looked at him expectantly, Peter seemed unsure what he should say, and was even more curious about what this person who knew nothing about him could mean when he said he had a ‘decent grasp’ of his abilities. With more mysteries about this man piling up he was jarred from his thoughts by the old man snapping his bony fingers.

  “Come now boy, spit it out. What is
it you do? I see you are an Air Affinity, the best affinity of course-”

  “Gramps…”

  “Oh fine, I won’t get started on that. You do so hate when I place one attunement above another. Now what is it that you do?”

  Looking up at the two of them bashfully, “It may be difficult for you to understand…”

  With those words both men looked at one another, but instead of being offended, they simply laughed heartily, as if Peter had made the joke of the century. Once they had settled down, the old man still clearly tickled, it was the giant who spoke first.

  “Peter. Do remember who you are talking to. Gramps is the best in the world. Probably the best who has ever existed. If there is anyone who would understand it would be him. I’m his apprentice so we both are quite prepared for whatever you might try to throw at us.”

  “Perhaps he is one of those who does not understand their own abilities! There are so many of them that come in these days. You children have no sense of impetus to explore yourselves! Do you know how many people come in, presuming they have something unique or special, only to find they are a run of the mill Artillerite, or Titan? It is quite heartbreaking when my hopes are dashed.”

  Puffing up his chest, “I know exactly what my abilities are! My manifestation is called Inquest. I can obtain information on essentially anything I want!”

  “Ok then, what is my manifestation?”

  Finding himself put on the spot, “I… Well… That I don’t know.”

  “I thought your Inquest ability allowed you to get information on anything you want though? It would essentially make nothing in the world a secret to you. Then again, you are also equipped to see through secrets too aren’t you?”

  “Well I…”

  “Anaar my boy what are you talking about?”

  “Peter is indeed rare Gramps. Earlier today he was able to tell when Codi was bluffing as easily as he could tell the shirt you are wearing is yellow. We of course know there are far more senses than the five cardinal ones, but it seems that his synesthetic ability turns him into a human lie detector.”

  “Fascinating! I have never heard of that one before!”

  Moving over to him with much more speed than to be expected of an old man, Peter suddenly finds himself being prodded and examined. Because he was so taken aback by the attention, it took him a moment to recover himself and pry the old man off of him.

  “Tell me, exactly how does it work? The cardinal senses are all associated with a particular organ, tactile being the only one that spans the entire body. Ancillary senses are known to transmit information in a number of ways, sometimes being specific to the person who is using it.”

  “Well… I suppose I get this tingling at the base of my spine whenever someone is lying. The further from the truth it is, the more intense the sensation.”

  “Hmm, that could be problematic.”

  “Why is that?”

  “What if you were on the toilet?! How do you know the difference between a lie and a difficult bowel?!”

  Putting his hand to his face whilst shaking his head, “Gramps, I don’t think Peter is going to make a habit of interrogating people while on the toilet…”

  “You must account for these things!”

  Looking down at Peter apologetically, “Please disregard that. Honestly, I don’t even see those two being the same sensation anyway. To that point though, does it only work when you are in physical proximity of a person?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We can conclude it obviously works when you are talking to them face to face, does it work when you are talking to them on the phone?”

  “Now that you mention it, I don’t think it does…”

  “If we presume proximity is a prerequisite, does it only work with the spoken medium, or does it work if someone writes you a message that is a lie?”

  “I don’t know! I have never tried testing all of this! Why do you already have an entire experimental study set up for me?!”

  Shrugging, “It comes with the job. Like Gramps said, many people have no idea what they are truly capable of. There are a number of abilities that are not easily defined. There are also varying degrees and potencies of ability inherent to attunement.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Take for example this guy in my class named Thom. Thom is not a Quintessence, yet the durability and stamina provided to him simply by being Earth attuned are practically enough to be considered manifestations. Someone who wasn’t experienced in identifying these things might mistake him for a Quintessence, even though he is not.”

  “Speaking of being a Quintessence, we need to pin down specifically what this ‘Inquest’ of yours can do. You said it was incapable of finding out Anaar’s manifestation, did you sense he was lying about having a manifestation?”

  “Not at all, it was clear he does have a manifestation, but I can’t figure out what it is.”

  “Why is that the case then? You said you could obtain information on anything you wanted.”

  “It is more like things that are public knowledge or record.”

  Anaar scratches his beard then looks to Fredderick. “It sounds like his ability works like a search engine. Just because the information exists, doesn’t mean he has access to it. It must first be widely available enough for him to find it. I would surmise the more his power grows the easier it will be for him to find more difficult information.”

  “That’s my boy! I very much like that explanation. Let’s test that theory! Do you know what the capital of Indonesia is?”

  “No, but I am sure I can find out.”

  “Try it.”

  “Hmm, it’s Jakarta, but apparently it will be moving some time in the future.”

  “Really?”

  “It seems like it.”

  Doing a quick search Anaar pulls up numerous articles that indeed indicate Indonesia’s capital was scheduled to be changed. When he showed them to Fredderick, the old man became quite giddy.

  “Oh my, this has a number of uses! It is not an ability that will do you much good in combat, but most Mystic abilities aren’t.”

  “Wait a minute Gramps. Something tells me you are being short-sighted. Peter, I can’t imagine you remember everything that you look up right?”

  “No. Why do you ask?”

  “Since you don’t have the Perfect Memory manifestation you would need to access this information whenever you needed it. If we are comparing your powers and mind to that of a computer, it is like you download the information at that given time. In order to prevent your mind from exploding though, you probably subconsciously throw it away. If something need only be public knowledge or record, does that mean you could theoretically download martial arts skills without the need to officially learn them?”

  It was at that moment Peter truly saw what a massive intellect this man he had discounted really possessed. It was only recently that he had come to realize he could indeed do just what Anaar mentioned. Because of his size people often picked on him, never seeing him as a threat. In a moment of desperation, he wanted so badly to know Karate so that he could defend himself. To his surprise not only were forms and names available to him, but to a small degree his body seemed to acquire the motor memory to perform them without incident. Though it was not perfect, it was often enough for him to work with, and the more he practiced, the better his body came to understand the movements inherently. To immediately come to the conclusion about this facet of his ability without even having it meant he was much more than just his looks.

  “Yes, I can do that. What made you think that I could?”

  Placing his finger to his lip, gazing to the ceiling, “Well, I like the idea of thinking of your ability as hardware that gives you access to different types of software. By that virtue, if you could download a program such as how one would disarm a bomb, your powers, the hardware, would translate that into immediate knowledge and abilities that your body could then use. The quest
ion now is if it is possible to download other abilities that you do not have.”

  “I have tried. That doesn’t work.”

  “Hmmm, I could see why that is the case. We still have not even begun to scratch the surface when it comes to understanding attunements, or what they really are. If you don’t possess the means to wield an ability, it makes sense you can’t just download the knowledge and use it. It is like having a file on your computer, but no program that can read it. That makes me wonder what would happen if you were a True Quintessence…”

  As Anaar began muttering to himself, seemingly running the possibilities of different scenarios through his head, Fredderick pulls his from his thoughts.

  “Anaar this is quite the discovery. You are friends with both the Waveweaver and the Singularity user. There is also the Papermaster. Though that one is a known manifestation, it is still exceedingly rare. Now you have been assigned this boy. Are you thinking what I am thinking?”

  “That phenomenon you have been studying that makes rare attunements want to come together?”

  “Exactly.”

  “There is no denying there is an argument to be made for this case. I didn’t mention, but he has another mentor. Codi Aya.”

  “So he has been brought together with the Electrokinetic too?”

  “Yep. Based on your theory this is more than simple coincidence.”

  As the two men fling terms around and speak of theories, Peter comes to understand just how out of his depth he really is. When the Headmistress had mentioned his ability alone was not enough to make him smarter than other people, he had internally scoffed at her words. Now watching these two men go back and forth, he found there was nothing he could look up that could help him understand anything they were talking about.

  He had always thought of his powers to be almost cheating. Anything he wanted was at his fingertips. Even though larger amounts of information left him drained and debilitated, he still had the capability. Now in just a short while he had been shown all the ways his powers were lacking. On the bright side though, it seemed the Headmistress was correct in giving him this large man as a mentor. His previous ideas about what he could do for him were completely shattered. Now looking toward the future, all he cared about was how he could grow stronger with this man Anaar by his side.