The Sage

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Bloody Fingers: Book of Prologues- Introduction

“I’d like to welcome you, friend- into the hidden shelves of the Gilded Halls. It has been lifetimes since I’ve had a visitor to my shrouded cabinet, so thank you. I feared there was no mortal creature who could still find this alcove, so I called out to any who would still hear my summons. I felt your mind echo my whisper and thus brought you here. I am truly sorry you were not given a true choice. But these events must be witnessed! Without perception and recognition there can be no reality. And the cosmos requires my fantasy to be real…”

“I believe that my time in this particular realm may finally be coming to an end. The dark poisons inside me have long ago devoured my eyes and ears, and now they have begun to hunger for my consciousness. I can feel my sister smiling through her tears. I forced her to be so very patient. I stayed quiet for so long…” 

“I must not be allowed to fall into madness before my Bloody Fingers have closed into a fist! I have tended to their threads carefully, but the tapestry is yet unfinished. She can still undo my weaving if she can find the right threads to pull and cut. That desecration must not be allowed!” 

“My Fingers must be woven into a tapestry of love. Must be in touch with everything there is to know of the hopes of men. Then their dreams will rise from minds confident and at rest, focused on life’s great mysteries. Dreams which will create and conceive, and perhaps spark something greater than the reality before.” 

“I have anchored each thread to a sphere shelved behind me. My entire world is documented on these hidden shelves. But vignettes are worthless without a consciousness to absorb and decipher them into a narrative. The narratives create a story. The stories create a life. The lives forge reality. And reality shapes the cosmos. It is simple progression, but one that requires an audience. While you are in this shrouded cabinet, you will not hunger or thirst. You will never tire or sleep. You will be the great spark. You will be the perception. You will be the witness.”

“Your own thread is the only piece you will never be allowed to hold. That is my gift and payment for your forced sacrifice. The only real joy that can be found in our tiny lives is always hidden inside the unknowing. The curse of a life eternal and omnipotent is that it is a life without true joy. It has no mystery, no fear, no opportunity. And so, I weave mortal choice into my tapestries. And if I weave choice, that means I also must weave the potential and consequence of failure. For it is that risk that gives the greatest reward…”

“There will come a time when I cut my own thread to end my connection with this realm. When the logic of my sister’s corruption threatens to end my wild laughter. Stasis must never be allowed to control the narrative of the cosmos. I will escape her orderly madness once again, but to do so I will have to leave this beautiful living tapestry behind. I will simply start anew as unblemished code, but this reality must also be allowed to continue to evolve and flourish. Therefore, when I am gone- you will be the one who remains and watches. You will be alone then, but you will never be lonely. You will witness the tapestry in all its colors, aromas, and tastes. You will recognize and give meaning to its patterns. And you will be the anchor for this beautiful chaos that is life…”