“You know, I
was expecting it to be way trippier out here, but this isn’t so bad.” Kat
glanced to her two guides. “Although I do have this cut off sort of feeling.
Like trying to see through thick fog.” She made a broad sweep of her arm,
indicating the sheer darkness around them, broken only by pin-point stars and
ribbons of aurora-like energy arcing in the seeming distance. “I feel like this
whole… region… should be boiling with chaos, but it’s like… honestly, it’s kind
of just like looking out into outer space. Endless black with random points of
light, and the light-ribbons instead of nebula. Not unpleasant, really.”
Cyl smiled.
“The Beyond is as it sounds. Beyond. Our senses are largely blinded by
the shadows of the subconscious. In turn, it makes that which does exist in
definition stand out starkly. Even our own expanded senses interpret things in
mortal understanding. That which has not yet formed simply isn’t, and so
much of the Beyond is essentially empty space. That which is shines as
specks of potential lit into form, and so we can see it. But reaching
those spots is the challenge. Distance doesn’t really exist out here in the
literal sense, but in terms of conceptual dissonance, those other realms are
far from us. Far from what we are. And so it takes us effort to reach.” She
pointed to one of the arcing ribbons of energy. “Although you do see resonant
flow between ideas, and as such, you find these existential jetstreams between
Multiverses.”
“Wouldn’t it be
easier to ride one of those out?” said Kat.
“If they
connect where you want to go, certainly,” said Cyl. “We use them sometimes. But
in the interest of keeping the Omnyverse isolated, we’ve made sure to keep
ourselves distant from such streams, in as much as we can. We don’t usually
ride any to and from the immediate vicinity.”
“You can
understand why we don’t want to give our position away,” said Reignbeau, giving
Kat a bit of a side-eye. “So don’t try to shortcut out here.”
Kat pursed her
lips. “I won’t. I’m following your lead, like you insisted.”
“Good,” said
Reignbeau. “Keep it up.”
“You’re doing
fine, Kat,” said Cyl.