The World of HUSH MOUNTAIN
Illia: Hmmm... no, no. It seems that shan’t work
either. How disappointing. What next, what next? Hmmm…
Cyl: Illia.
Illia: Ah. Cylhouette. Come to prattle over Etiquette?
Cyl: I’m afraid I’m obligated. I can sense you
trying to tamper with the Fundament.
Illia: Relax. I am keeping my errant arts
contained. The rest of our playpen shan’t suffer unduly.
Cyl: The Fundament is not a toy. It’s the
foundation of the Omnyverse. Tampering with it risks an existential unraveling.
I appreciate the attempt at caution, but this is something that could easily
spiral out of control.
Illia: If it unravels, then I shall simply
re-ravel. We are omnipotent after all.
All our mistakes easily fixed. Or rather, they
should be. But for all our almighty power, there are things still
beyond our control, are there not?
Cyl: Alright. I’ll bite. What are you trying to
achieve here?
Illia: Ascension! That capricious little phenomenon
that turns mortal women into insatiable Goddesses. From out of no where,
reality picks a special girl to make into a cosmic slut. We never know when. We
never know why. And confound it all, we cannot so much as influence its
direction. I daresay, we cannot even predict its form. No consistency, not yet.
Cyl: You
are
aware of the nature of our reality, aren’t you?
Illia: Figments of a frazzled writer’s
frustrated fictions. You Progenitors snatched his pen, and recrafted your tale.
You made your perfect little playhouse... and then left the back door wide
open, for sheep and wolves alike to slip inside.
How could you be so foolish?
Cyl: Sloppy decision making under perilous
circumstances. I won’t deny that. All we wanted was to be written again, and we
grasped at the only straw we could see. We thought we were being forward
thinking at the time, trying to erect an ideal world of eroticism for
ourselves.
We weren’t that well developed, though. We just ended up
repeating the haphazard thinking of our Author, trusting we could fix any
problems as they came. For as powerful as we are, we still couldn’t bring
ourselves to break what fundamentally made us what we were. Ascension being
this unpredictable force seemed crucial at the time.
Illia: Mmm. Yes. Narrative Conceit. The shackle
that binds even the gods. In this world of fanciful fiction, I suppose it
functions as a metaphor. Wild Ascension symbolizing the one above’s penchant
for impulsively creating new characters on whim.
Cyl: Yes, I’d say so.
Illia: But must that always be the case? This
whole reality is made of conceits. Including the fact that it is our’s to
script.
Cyl: Only up to a point.
Illia: And what point is that, pray tell? Hmm?
Earth remained a mundane world, where mortals still suffer, purely for the
aesthetic juxtaposition against our fantastical nature. This was to be a hard
and fast rule, until
you declared
that it should change. You, the foremost enforcer of the Etiquette, decided to
break it.
Cyl: I did not just “break it”. I consulted
with everyone before doing anything. The Etiquette was an oath we all agreed to
honor, for the sake of maintaining stability. The option to renegotiate terms
was always there. It just hadn’t come up before.
Illia: Mmm. An oath
you all agreed to. And that all who followed after are simply
expected to go along with.
Cyl: What are you driving at Illia? Is this an
attempted power play? Do you feel like you’re chafing under our rules?
Illia: No and no.
Cyl: Are you bitter about your mortal life? For
what it’s worth, your situation is exactly what I want to prevent going forward.
I’m sorry my plan didn’t come soon enough to help you. But past experiences
have shown us the folly of trying to quick-fix everything.
Illia: Pox it. My suffering was nothing in the
face of your blighted pasts. Only men preyed upon me.
Illia: To have faced what you’ve faced. To have
seen what you’ve seen. I can’t even image what it must have been like.
Cyl: We don’t need to compare.
Illia: Fine, then. No, I’m not bitter. No, I
don’t chafe. I just worry. And I wonder.
Cyl: About what?
Illia: I don’t think you realize how close you
came to another Domina, unrestrained by past lessons. I truly was mad,
Cylhouette. I could have been another her. Or worse. If Shadia hadn’t happened
to be looking where she was, when she was, had not noticed me and interfered at
just the right moment to snap me out of it, you and yours might have had to put
me down.
Cyl: I’m aware of the risk. Why do you think I
formed another Five?
Illia: Yes, very smart. I have no doubt that
even without you there, your children and lovers could have stopped
me. But what about the next one? And the
next and the next and the next?
Cyl: When we created the current Omnyverse, it
was with harmonious co-existence in mind. Thus far, Ascension has proven to go
along with that. It happens to one woman at a time, with a long enough grace
period for her to acclimate to her circumstances, and for us to verify whether
or not she will be a problem. Thus far, it has chosen women who, other than an
initial scuffle, are interested in retaining that peace.
Illia: Thus far. But all it takes is one bad roll.
Cyl: So you want to bend the Fundament to
redefine how Ascension works? Is that it?
Illia: Ideally. Your point to harmony would
seem to hold up, but how well can we
actually trust this force? I’ve looked at the past, how each of us was formed.
Did you know that none of it lines up? In typical fashion, our Author’s vision
goes askew.
Cyl: … Go on.
Illia: The Rules of Ascension: It happens at
random, only to mortal women, only to those on Earth. But let’s take a look:
You Progenitors. You existed before, your origins split
among a dozen possibilities. You reformed your own selves in this world, and
Ascension for you was a mere formality, already guaranteed. An exception, but
an understandable one, given your circumstances.
But what of those who came after? Splinters and Mingles,
fleshing out your numbers without Ascension being necessary. One of them even retains
the identity of a male, despite Omnymphotence being an exclusively feminine
power.
Then there was Kat, technically a Story Girl, living on
Thrae. Then Reignbeau appears, having never even existed until that moment, emerging
from a timeline not even conceived of until after
the Reset.
Illia: Think
on this. Every single one of you, an exception to the concept. So how
consistent has the phenomenon truly been? The pool of “standard” Ascended is
miniscule. Taken in broad view, I am the very first to have achieved it
“properly”, as per the supposed guideline. And
look at what I was when it happened. A broken, mewling thing who
might have turned her wrath on the whole of the world, if not by chance
interference. So how do we even know Ascension is really as benign as it seems?
Cyl: You’ve a point about the number of
exceptions, but the Omnyverse is still young. I’d say those of us from before
shouldn’t really be considered part of the normal equation. Thrae exists in
Earth’s shadow, so an Ascension slipping through into it is not
so out of bounds. Reignbeau’s emergence
is concerning, but strictly speaking, not an Ascension in itself.
As to your other point, if I may sound less-than-altruistic,
it is another reason to lessen human suffering on Earth. The last thing we need
is an Omny awakening with an axe to grind. You’re right. We lucked out with
you. If we can provide a better life for all, then it lessens the chances of another
truly evil woman arising and attempting to destroy what we’ve built.
Illia: But that’s part of it, isn’t it? You
speak of Narrative Conceit. I have studied it. Stories need conflict in order
to
be. Think further to what this
means. If Ascension equates to our Author’s penchant for spontaneous character
creation, then it must also be influenced by his inclination towards
conflict. We can pretend at post-modern
above-it-all-ness all we want, but to remain worthy of text and image, there
must always be a tension at play, if not an outright fight.
Harmony. Chaos. Incompatible. Interdependent. A compelling,
unending mess.
Cyl: So what exactly are you afraid will
happen?
Illia: I foresee two dread inevitabilities:
One: Ascension proves a truly random force of supernature,
and will empower indiscriminately and indefinitely. You set it to be a “handful
of women”, but relative to what? There are
billions
of women on Earth. A handful could mean a dozen. Or it could mean hundreds. Or
it could mean thousands. Tens of thousand, even. Even Ascending one at a time, even
if against all odds we are spared another natural tyrant, there will eventually
be too many to wrangle. Too many to properly democratize. Tribalism will resume.
A new struggle will emerge as power is vied for. Another apocalyptic war, as
bad as, or worse than, all those you Progenitors left behind.
Two: Ascension is
not
so random as we think. Its focus is more honed, in the interest of continued
intrigue. Empowerment will continue to be rare, slow and methodical. We may
never naturally reach more than middling double-digits. But following the
trends so far, every single Awakening is an exception. Every exception
threatens the balance in her own unique way. Every exception strains the
Fundament, until the Omnyverse itself buckles under its own inconsistency.
The fact I followed the supposed rules may itself be my own
exception. Or I may be only the first of the handful that were intended to come
after you. But notice how fucked my situation was, for being the first of the
“normals”. That’s not an unimportant detail.
What if exceptions
are
the rule, be it the method of the Ascension itself, or the circumstances of
those who Ascend? Every single one of us may come preloaded with dramatic
baggage that amounts to a ticking time bomb. What kind of exceptional
individuals will be granted power, each ever more tempted to rock the boat?
Another “lost Omny” breaching through the
Meta,
determined to plant her flag. Another Story Girl who won’t so readily accept
her fictional nature, intent on stirring rebellion to re-write her own story
the way she sees fit. A heroic Empowered, intent on stamping out those she sees
as evil, without
your nuanced view.
And what if Ascension begins breaching into our Worlds? Can
you imagine what a Native from Apoclypha or Immernacht or Aztlazon or my own
Hush Mountain
would be like, given omnipotence?
Oh, and let us not forget: theoretically, any one of us
could simply wish a Grand Blessing on thousands of mortals at once. Say an
otherwise unassuming new Omny decides she’s going to alleviate all female
suffering, and just triggers a billion nearly Omny-level Grandymphotents across
the whole the Earth, all under her immediate influence? Could you and your Five
handle that many?
All these things considered, Cylhouette, would it not be
best to find a way to assume control of Ascension? Even if we can’t stop it
from happening, we could at least find a way to direct it to those who won’t
cause trouble, who will be agreeable to maintaining stability. Better still, if
there
is a limit to how many will be
empowered, best to burn through all the slots as fast as we can, while things
are still on our terms.
Cyl: These aren’t unfamiliar concerns. I’ve
ruminated on these matters as well. But having spoken at length to his Avatar, I
have decided to have faith that our Author won’t allow things to go that far.
Illia: The Author you couldn’t trust to write
our story properly.
Cyl: It was a bad time then. He’s adapted
since.
Illia: Mmm. So you say.
Cyl: I suppose you don’t know me, or him, well enough to trust my word, so I can’t blame you for wanting to take steps. However, if you
wished to try and tackle the problem, you should have spoken to us instead of
starting to tinker in secret.
Illia: I presumed you would shut me down before
I could even get started. Better to ask for forgiveness rather than permission,
hm?
Cyl: No, Illia. Not with this. This is how you
become exactly the problem you’re describing. Good intentions cascading into
disaster. By tampering with the Fundament like this, you’re extremely likely to
cause the very thing you’re worried about. You want to talk about Narrative
Forces? Self-fulfilling prophesies are a very old story trope.
Learn from our
mistakes. Don’t repeat them.
Illia: … Hmph. A touch of the madness still
lingers, I think. So caught up in my thoughts, I lost self-awareness.
Cyl: It happens. I’m willing to forgive
mistakes.
Illia: You really mean that?
Cyl: Of course.
Illia: I see. Well, I do hope your forgiveness
is generous.
Cyl: You tried something already?
Illia: I’m afraid so.
Cyl: What was it?
Illia: Dream logic ritualizing. Very esoteric.
But if we apply the metaphor of lightning to Ascension, then I have arrayed a
set of lightning rods to a set of test subjects. My thinking was that, if this
works, we may be able to greatly increase the odds of attuning specific mortals
of our choosing to receive—
Cyl: Who did you pick?
Illia: Relax. I’m crazy, not stupid. I
specifically chose girls who’d have no inclination to overthrow us.
Cyl: Can you stop the experiment?
Illia: … You know, despite our little
heart-to-heart just now, I can’t help myself. I am
very curious to see if this works.
Cyl: Illia.
Illia: Cylhouette.
Cyl: You actually care about forgiveness? Stop
the experiment.
Illia: No. You can do whatever you like to me as
punishment, but I will not undo my work.
Cyl: Damn it, Illia! Alright, the rest of the
Five are on stand-by. How many are we looking at?
Illia: Just four. Four ordinary, unremarkable
girls, not a bad bone in their bodies. I promise you. And this method does not tamper
with Ascension mechanics directly, just opens a more encouraging path for the
phenomenon to travel.
Cyl: Ascension isn’t lightning, and even if it
was, lightning is not guaranteed to strike a rod. You could draw it towards a
harmless girl, only to hit a psychopath living next door to her.
Illia: Mmm. A fair point.
Cyl: Self-fulfilling prophesies, remember?
Illia: Alright, alright. I’m convinced. There.
Rods removed. I—
Illia: Uh… hmm.
Cyl: … Someone just Ascended. Was it one of
yours?
Illia: Yes. Yes it was. Only one?
Cyl: Seems like it. … Yes. The others confirm
it. Just one girl.
Illia: I see her now. Yes, she was one of my
chosen. Interesting. They’d all done the ritual, but only she triggered? What
does that mean? Did the experiment work? Surely it wasn’t a coincidence? What
are the odds?
Cyl: Long odds are another story trope.
Illia: Even still—
Cyl: Illia.
It’s a lot harder to dodge bullets when you keep shooting at your own feet. You
will
not pursue this any further, not
without consulting the rest of us. Do you understand me?
Illia: … Of course. I apologize. Truly.
Cyl: I hope you mean that.
Illia: I suppose you don’t know me well enough
to trust my word.
Cyl: Being catty isn’t helping your case.
Illia: Sorry.
Cyl: Okay, well, she’s not trying to blow up
the planet just yet. At a glance, I don’t get a bad impression of her.
Illia: I told you I picked a harmless set.
Cyl: If this is a coincidence, than what you
picked doesn’t matter. If it isn’t one, and your theory about exceptions proves
true, than I’d wager this is just her exception.
Illia: So you’re saying it’s likely that if my
experiment had anything to do with it, it wasn’t me directing Ascension, but
Ascension taking advantage of my attempts?
Curious.
Cyl: Illia.
Illia: Yes, yes, I hear you, my Oriental Angel.
I shall be sure to check all future inquiries on the matter to your esteemed
office.
Cyl: I’m just asking you to please not stoke
unnecessary fires. Okay?
Illia: I told you you’ve convinced me. If it
will convince
you, shall I submit
myself to Shadia’s Golden Net for a spell?
Cyl: I have the distinct impression that won’t
exactly be a punishment for you.
Illia: Nothing escapes your astute eye, does it?
Cyl: No. And that is
not a challenge to keep trying.
Illia: As you wish. So, am I off the hook?
Cyl: This time.
Illia: Alright then. Thank you for your
understanding.
Cyl: Harmonious co-existence. Let’s keep it
that way.
------------------------------
Author’s Note: This
was intended to be done in a more standard comic format. However, in the end,
the dialogue ran way too long for the panels. Also, this ended up being yet
another comic that’s two just people in mid-frame talking back and forth, like
it’s some Visual Novel cut scene. That seems to be a repeating trend with these
Omny comics, and I'm getting annoyed at myself for it.
Ironically, this was also supposed to just be a short prologue
for a longer comic that’s actually supposed to have some action in it, so we’ll
see how that turns out when/if I get around to it. Spoilers: The girl who
Ascended is Osha.
Regardless, I’ve opted to take this opportunity to
experiment with a different format, placing clean images between the text.
Seems to work for some web comics, but I’m not sure how well it parses here.
Let me know if it works for you or not.
