Syllus pulled down the computer panel from her ceiling to view the precise incantation she would need for the greatest possible success at the market today.
Her incantations Were not known to anyone else, a language all to her own, of her own invention. Of course, others knew OF them, but nobody but her could use them, so there was no point in learning them for anyone but her. The time put into them by her over the past few years no doubt strengthened the power of them, but the true strength of the words came from her innate aptitude for literary arts. She knew seventeen languages, half of them dead.
As she finished uttering the words necessary for her to assure the selling of her goods (that I will not type here because you couldn't comprehend it anyways, no other reason, certainly not because I haven't paid any mind to what the language would sound like or anything), she grabbed the various vegetables and crafts she spent her spare time rearing and exited her home with them, awaiting the bus.
On the ride, she noticed someone in front of her holding a small, glowing contraption. Her mind raced as she tried to recall where she'd seen it before, getting herself absorbed in the origin of this insignificant checkpoint along the roadmap of this day.
Then, it hit her.
This was a device of proof. It functioned much like a computer, but slightly more limited in its capabilities and much more compact. The true benefit of the invention was that it could be taken anywhere. She knew what one being in possession of a device of proof meant, however. This was a government worker. Either that or someone with massive connections. She stared wondering about the implications this could have.
Government workers, or anyone with enough connections to pose as one, rarely, if ever, visited Syllus’ unnamed settlement. But if one did, she'd posit them to be a Drithur from Domain Nine, as that was the nearest outpost to her native cluster of settlements.
As the bus ride continued, anxiety welled in her chest. She knew better than to let urban legends and rumors get the best of her. On most days, she wasn't the type of person to believe in what others revered as supernatural. But today was not your average dау.
Weeks prior, several settlements over, something strange began. Birds were burrowing, bears were yelling, and the townspeople went about their daily business. All seemed normal, until the town was bisected. Completely and utterly cut in half. Houses pushed apart from the middle as if both halves were positively Charged magnets. No cause could be identified, and Drithurs were called to the scene. Nobody was hurt, so eventually the government-contracted forces dispersed.
The next settlement over had its rude awakening several days later. A strange, metallic goop-like substance had coated much of the streets and houses. Hard as rock, but shaped as If it were recently poured magma, the goop had an interesting effect on the settlement's data reception. No internet or contact--based technology would function within the town. As such, they were not able to call the government for help. Several of the settlement's most able-bodied individuals traveled to the next settlement over and used their functioning internet to inform the government about their recent disruption. The issue was resolved, the goop was disposed of, but then the unrest began.
Because of the visitors from the other settlement over, word of the strange disturbances spread even faster than it would have already. The third settlement in line began to prepare itself. Against what, it did not know. But there was the general feeling that keeping their guard up was better than proceeding like nothing had happened. And, as everyone had feared, another disruption occurred. This time, a much more straight forward one. The water tower collapsed, taking with it the settlement's primary source of liquid for the coming weeks.
That was three days ago. The intervals between disturbances seem to vary, but it's never been more than a week between each. The disturbances would always occur in one settlement, then next in the most nearby settlement.
The closest settlement to the most recent anomaly was hers. And so, the presence of this probably-government worker concerned her. Things were nearly always a stable status quo there. An anomaly or two was to be expected, but now, in this fashion, of all times? Syllus was fully convinced the presence of this device-holder was a herald of things to come.
He was very pale. He looked like he didn't spend more than ten cumulative hours outside a year. He brushed his long, disheveled hair out of his eyes as he continued to be transfixed by Whatever was on his device. He wore what appeared to be torn rags. Upon further inspection they looked to be several different, previously Whole, outfits sewn together. The most striking thing about him though, was his eyes. He always had the look that he was looking at something unnerving and shocking. Like he was always in the midst of having that instinctive reaction you have when looking at something disturbing on a primal level. In short, his furrowed, eyebrow-less brow and bulging eyes gave way to the impression that he was always in 'kill mode'. Yet, somehow, he looked serene. Something about the consistency with which he held this expression made him feel like he was always in-control. The bizarreness of this appearance was not lost on Syllus, and she was captivated by it.
So captivated by it, in fact, that she didn't notice the bus had already passed her stop. She got up mid-ride and ran to the door. The driver, understanding what was happening, opened the door for her to slip out before the vehicle accelerated too much.
The day hadn't started off well, but then again, her incantations were to assure her day at the market was a success, and she hadn't technically entered the market yet. Slightly discombobulated by the bus altercation, and still wrapped in a pungent anxiety over the recent anomalies pointing towards her presence in a danger zone. She was not aware of her surroundings.
As one may expect, this caused her to fumble. Bad.
She tripped down a nearby well on her way to the market, her mind occupied with thoughts described prior.
In another word, her last thoughts would have been 'I wonder why this well is here, nobody uses it for water. It was here before the settlement was built. They decided to build it here because they were interested in why the well was here, in fact. I guess some may consider it historical, then. It's still a hazard regardless. I should bring this up to the council members if I don't die.'
And, as you may expect, she didn't. She was grabbed, by the shirt. It was the man from earlier. Before Syllus could utter a word of thanks, he set her firmly on the ground and zipped away in the blink of an eye.
The day at the market went well, as expected. But for some reason, this was what mattered the least to Syllus. A week passed. No notable anomalies to be seen. A month passed. Months. Years.
Nothing ever happened to her settlement. However, four days after she was saved by the man at the well, another anomaly occurred, and in the nearest settlement to hers that hadn't had an anomaly occur there yet.
To most, this seemed to disprove the theory that these disturbances went from settlement to adjacent settlement. However, to her, this couldn't be further from the truth. An unusual presence appeared before her, did something unusual, and left. The only thing separating that from the other instances was that nobody but her noticed it.
After a few more disturbances occurred in the same fashion, they stopped. And after the dust settled, it came to light that the settlement that was thought to be the origin point of these anomalies was the second -in-line. Well, it came to light to Syllus at least. Five days prior to the 'first disturbance' there was another anomaly. In an adjacent town, but this one was different. This one was good. Townspeople woke to the money in their bank accounts doubled. Fraud was investigated but ultimately nothing turned up. They just had more money now. Nobody knew how. However, to most people, this was considered an isolated, unrelated incident to the others. After all, it couldn't be the same thing if it was done to help others, right?
What was thought of as a mysterious string of disturbances or natural disasters to the public became a picture of a less clear-cut force to Syllus. Sometimes bad things happened. Sometimes good things happened. Maybe that man was the cause of it all, maybe not, but to her, this was 'Fickle Chaos'.
'Fickle Chaos', the term she came up with to describe the string of incidents, was Whatever force could do something so good as save a life and so bad as destroy homes and communities within the same month. What everyone else thought of as a purely bad force, she thought of as a curiosity to be understood. Why do bad things happen sometimes and good things other times?
It became a myth to her and her alone. She'd tell others bits and pieces, but just like her incantations, it was something for her and her alone to ponder.
