Someone is standing over him.

"Welcome, wanderer."

"Thank you," says Blair, noting that actually 'wanderer' isn't such an inaccurate term for him, even if he didn't wander here himself. He sits up, grumbling a little. ... At least he doesn't have a shadow on top of him anymore.

"So what's my fabulous prize?"

The angelic creature hovers with a faint thrum, a faint shimmer surrounding its metallic wings.

"My aid, as a servant of the Creator. No time shall pass while we are here, but once you leave, I will be unable to aid you again. I may answer your questions, or grant you whatever is within my power. If you wish for suggestions, the Creator has left me a list of gifts that I can bestow upon you: each will cost me one-fifth of the holy energy available to me."

".... Okay. What are the limits of your power?"

"I cannot act outside this place, and even here, I have a limited amount of strength. I may grant you gifts or abilities to take with you outside this place, or change how you will be fit into the fabric of the world when you leave."

"But not, say, put me and my sister back on Earth with a million dollars."

"Alas, no. But I can grant you money in the new world."

"Good to know. But more importantly - what's the new world like?"

"It is a place of both magic and technology, but the shadows have overrun it. It is not so terrible - so long as one avoids their attentions."

"And if one specifically volunteered to not avoid their attentions? What then?"

"Then you will be glad of my help."

"Mm. What's the list of pre-packaged gifts?"

"A compass to anything. A store of mana. The ability to dismiss your familiar. 500,000 credits. A pair of portal rings. The ability to sense danger. Impossible weapons and armor. Any single option from any of the cards you have seen thus far, though some may require more energy for me to create or give to you."

"Expand upon dismissing my familiar, and the portal rings?"

"If you are given the ability to dismiss your familiar, you may make it vanish completely from the world with a short ritual. While it is dismissed, your soul will return to your own body, and you will be unable to transform: however, you will be indistinguishable from a non-Majokko, making it difficult for Shadows to sense your presence. Repeating the ritual while your familiar is dismissed will summon it again.

The portal rings are approximately the size of a bracelet: they are unbreakable by anything but the most powerful of magic, and anything that enters one ring will exit from the other, regardless of the distance between them."

"Hm," says Blair, not really liking the idea of not being able to transform. "Expand upon the impossible weapons and armor? How are they impossible?"

"They are works of magic that should not be possible in the new world - but my Creator's magic may bend the rules of reality to make them possible nonetheless. All are powerfully magical."

"You're being awfully vague with your answers," he points out, "for all of them. Is this the basic overview, or do I get to play 'list things for me' again? Because I'll be honest, I am exhausted and not really in the mood."

"This is the basic overview. I am legitimately here to help you, unlike the Shadows."

"Okay, just making sure." Yawn. "I don't suppose there's anything you can do for my being exhausted without permanently wasting power?"

"That's a small matter."

Blair will suddenly find that he's much more alert.

"You could have simply lain down and rested, since time here is stilled: but this is more efficient. And the glowing walls don't help you mortals sleep."

Blink. He sits up, a bit more energized.

"Thank you. I'll probably ask for that again, later, faster than sleeping. Okay, first of all - was there any information that I did not discern about how my card worked that I should know?"

"Yes. You failed to discern that both Style and Signature have supernatural non-cosmetic effects, and were assigned a weapon type by the Shadow. Additionally, the Shadow hid many of your powers' cooldowns, limited uses, or mana expenditures from you. Furthermore, the Shadow neglected to tell you that you would be given a female body in the new world. These are the items that occur to me immediately, but I may have forgotten something myself: the Shadows' lies are often surprisingly subtle and complex."

".... Ah. Damn. What effects did my chosen Style and Signature have, and what weapon type was I assigned?"

"Your Gothic Style will grant you the ability to manifest five illusionary clones of yourself, and swap places with one of them every fifteen seconds. Your Ribbon Signature will allow you to bind, grab, or throw nearby enemies with a small expenditure of mana. The weapon type you were assigned was a paper fan."

Blair snorts. "That's what I get for pissing it off, I suppose. The clones and Ribbon Signature, though - I actually like those options quite a lot. What does being assigned a weapon type do, exactly?"

"Your weapon type determines what class of objects you can channel your mana through to create magical effects. One of them will always appear in your hand when you transform. They are a necessary component of casting, though much more important for those who are not Casters. Be thankful that you were not a Knight: the Shadow would likely have given you something like an umbrella. Technically a melee weapon, but..."

Snort. "Quite. Well. Can I operate other weapons? And is it possible that one of the impossible weapons you could get me could be used to channel magic?"

"Yes to the first, no to the second, since none of the impossible weapons is a paper fan."

"Do you have a magic gun? I could use the fan for casting and then just. You know. Shoot things. With a gun."

"I have magic guns. Plural. Would you prefer the one that fires heat-seeking impaling grenades, the one that shoots coherent plasma, or the one that can be loaded with a variety of minorly magical ammunition, as well as regular bullets?"

"How is the minorly magical ammunition magical? Meaning, what does it do?"

"For a gravity mage such as you, it would be able to create directed pulses of force in arbitrary directions. Essentially, the gun allows you to cast small spells as if you were standing where the bullet impacted."

"..... I like. But, what does the coherent plasma do?"

"Mostly it destroys things extremely thoroughly, since it launches a contained sphere of over 5,000 degree plasma. Not quite as collateral-damage heavy as the seeking grenades, but extraordinarily destructive to what it does hit. Mind your backstops, because that sphere will probably not stop until it impacts many feet of solid earth."

"Mm. I think I prefer the minorly magical ammunition one, I threw my lot in with battlefield control pretty heavily, might as well play to my strengths."

"Seems sensible to me. Would you like me to manifest it for you now so I may demonstrate its operation?"

"Would that permanently use up the fifth of the magic in demonstration and lock me into that choice?"

"Manifesting the weapon would expend the required energy, yes."

"Then let's hold off on that for now, there are likely other weapons available to check, much as I like the idea of having a gun. What's your selection of other ranged weapons?"

"Bows of various types, a crowd-control shock weapon called an arc-caster, a throwing hammer that always returns to its owner, and a spear that supposedly once belonged to a god. No comment on whether the spear actually belonged to a god, but it's certainly interesting. I believe it's supposed to work best for those with demonic blood."

"Do I qualify for demonic blood, what with matching my eye color to my sister's?"

"Unfortunately, no."

"There's nothing stopping me from handing it to someone with demonic blood, though?"

"No, if you can find a demonic ally."

"My sister was leaning Hanged Man, I'm willing to bet she stuck with it. What does the spear do?"

"It can strike any target one names to it, regardless of range or intervening obstacles."

Blair blinks. ".... Any easy retrieval methods available?"

"I don't believe that's included."

"Ah. And anyone could likely pick it up and use it if it's not retrieved."

"Yes: it is a weapon that seems destined to turn against its bearer. Supposedly, those with demon blood who wield it are not subject to its betrayal, but I am uncertain of how."

"... That makes it very interesting," murmurs Blair. "And I will keep it in mind, because my sister was very - the term she used was made of paper, I don't think I'll argue with it. I would like her to have some self defense besides life-stealing and a bodyguard."

"Your sister has not yet departed from the Shadow's choice. If you wish, I can ensure that she is placed into the world in a location with a sympathetic ally - someone who, like you, was placed into this world by the Shadows."

He considers.

Her options were between the high-born family with strict rules and the one where there would be monsters trying to kill her.

It doesn't take very long for him to decide. "... Yes. Please do."

"I will expend one-fifth of my power on this. Is this still acceptable?"

"Yes."

The techno-angel seems to focus for a moment - then a halo of neon light flashes around her head, and dissipates.

"It is done."

"Thank you." Pause. "Now, about the bows! What are they like?"

"To be frank, they are flashier than they are effective. Most of them are some variation of 'shoot arrows with an elemental effect.' One of them can shoot around corners, but for a gravity mage like you..."

"Quite useless and I'm better off with the gun," he agrees. "And no crossbows or, I don't know, slings or anything?"

"Not that I would consider worthy of your time, no."

Nod. "Give me an honest evaluation, how good do you consider my combat capabilities without the magic gun, especially in comparison to the monsters you know I'll be fighting?"

"You should be able to easily overcome any single lesser shadow, and groups of them should be doable. A mid-ranked shadow with minions would be a closer fight, but if you use tactics, you should prevail. You don't have enough mana to battle anything larger yet: the greater shadows are too durable, and a group of mid-level shadows would be intelligent and coordinated enough to box you in. Fortunately, your current power set gives you options for escape as well."

"So, pretty solid, but room for improvement. How does it compare to the average Majokko, and how long does the average Majokko last?"

"The average Majokko tends to concentrate too much on offense or defense, giving them very few options when their strategy fails. The universal issue all Majokko have is running low on mana, since if they expend too much they will die. It is their lifeblood and their source of power in one. The very fact that you are considering alternative methods of combat improves your chances dramatically. That said, most Majokko die in their first year. I expect you'll make five years before you attract the attention of a Master. When that happens, you will need allies. Find them, the sooner the better."

Nod. "Luckily I seem to have two allies set up for me already, if I can just locate them. Which, I picked caster, so that shouldn't be impossible." He considers. "I'm curious, what would you suggest I use my remaining power on?"

He notes that it might have been stupid to use power to get his sister an ally without checking everything first, but he's not sorry. Not even a little.

"I would suggest the targetable compass, since that will enable you to find your sister easily: once that is done, you can then use it to locate useful things such as 'the nearest shadow.' A weapon that does not rely on mana would also be highly recommended, likely the casting-gun."

She taps her chin, making a light, bell-like chime.

"I confess I'm intrigued by the spear: with the compass, it would even be retrievable. For the last option, I would likely choose either 500,000 credits or a mana battery. That is, unless there was a particular option on another card that you were intrigued by?"

"I think I'll pass on the credits, personally, with my sister likely to choose Hanged Man. I am not above begging her for handouts. Is finding the nearest shadow typically difficult?"

"Once you become known and feared, yes. It becomes difficult to hunt lesser shadows to sustain your mana once you become powerful enough. And besides that, you can use it to orient to specific shadows that you can unambiguously identify, which is useful in combat situations."

Nod. "Excellent point." Pause. "Will my sister also get the mystery box? Because I didn't even specify everything, as evidenced by my paper fan."

She shrugs. "The Creator's whims are unpredictable. I do not know."

"... Whims?"

"As you said yourself, you did not even select everything you could have. I suspect the Creator actually chose you because it amused Him to see you forcing list after list from your shadow."

"... I get free stuff because I was funny," says Blair, blankly.

The angel shrugs. "He is the Creator, He does what He wants. I might be completely wrong. Would you rather not have free stuff?"

Blink.

"I am quite happy with my free stuff, no complaints," out loud, "it was just surprising."

"I'm sorry if I seemed offended, but I am pledged to His service. For all His eccentricities, I believe He is truly trying to do right by this world of His."

Do not insult the nice angel that is giving you free stuff, Blair.

Nod. "It's quite all right. I apologize for any implied insult. It seems that there's an awful lot of world to fix, how he does it is up to him as long as the results are good."

"He is rather busy, and this world is unfortunately too deeply in the Shadows' control for Him to focus His efforts here. Things will become better soon. They always do."

"Oh? Is there a standard procedure for this?"

"The Shadows make a bid for control every century or so. So far there have been eight near-apocalypses. All were averted by the actions of the Creator."

"And this is the latest bid for control? ... Why are they grabbing random people during it?"

"The Creator believes the Shadows are trying to subvert the Universal Law by introducing foreign elements. So far, they haven't succeeded."

"Good to know. Universal Law?"

"The rules by which physics and magic function."

"Ah. And if they subvert this, the Creator's powers are weakened?"

"'If they subvert the laws of physics, would the creator's power would be weakened?' Well, yes, if you count 'atoms ceasing to exist as a coherent concept' as an attack on the Creator's power."

"No, I'm... Why are they attacking by this method? They're creating enemies for themselves, and I don't think they're stupid, whatever they gain from potentially subverting the Universal Law has to be worth making enemies, albeit often very shortlived ones."

"The Shadows themselves are bound by the Universal Law, such that only a certain number of their forces can exist in this world. By summoning people from other worlds, they can bend that restriction, since those they summon are not Shadows - but the Shadows' own innately cruel nature works against them. They do not know how to cooperate with those they summon."

"... But they see their own failures to cooperate and still keep doing it? That doesn't make sense, the shadows I talked to were - cartoonishly evil, perhaps, but they weren't stupid."

"Gaining allies is a secondary goal: with every person they summon into this world, the Universal Law weakens slightly. The more they shift the world from its intentions, the less control the Creator has. It is like raindrops disturbing the surface of a still pond."

"Is it in their best interest for the person they summon to live very long lives affecting as much as possible, or is just the summon enough?"

"In many cases they prefer the former, but they are not exactly opposed to killing their summons if they become problematic. I believe they offer the Majokko option specifically for those who intend to fight them, so that they know which summons are more trouble than they're worth."

"Ah. And then have a way to easily identify them and kill them, after," murmurs Blair.

"Yes. They don't even have to come to you: you are forced to go to them."

"How efficient. Though - why even arm us at all? Is it in the Universal Law that it has to have some semblance of fairness, some gains to recoup the losses?"

"Yes: that is also why the Shadows are bound to speak the truth if you ask the right questions."

"Hm. Will the Universal Law bind me in any ways I'm not accustomed to from my previous world? That being things that aren't 'having atoms' and 'obeying the laws of thermodynamics' and the like."

"No: as an outsider you are not generally subject to the Universal Law. This is why outsiders such as you are so dangerous when allied with the Shadows. Consider what would have happened if that shadow had been able to outright lie to you."

"Quite. Thank you, Universal Laws."

Not that it means that they're universally helpful, he thinks.

"Yes. Though the Shadows work to destroy the order of things, the Creator has laid bindings and bindings upon them to keep them in check. The struggle continues, but I have faith in Him."

"Is there potentially a way to defeat them completely?"

"Yes, potentially. The Creator has been working towards that goal for many centuries, but it is a great undertaking even for Him."

"How can I help make that happen?"

"Drive back the Shadows. Prevent their subversion of the Law. The more the Creator is distracted by battle, the less time he has for the greater plan."

"So exactly what I was going to do anyway. Okay. Works for me."

"I am glad to hear our goals are aligned in this way."

She smiles.

"Was there anything else you wished to ask before you left?"

"Yeah, lots. What are the different levels of shadows like?"

"They become more cunning the more powerful they are: minions are dull and pettily cruel; masters are intelligent and determinedly malevolent. The other shadows are somewhere on a continuum between the two."

"How powerful are masters, and how powerful are minions?"

"Minions are barely even threats to you. If you ever encounter a Master, you will know, and you will run if you have any sense."

".... Yes, I understand that, but what does that translate to? Do they casually warp reality around them? Do minds snap into jelly upon seeing them? Do they sing the most annoying songs that get stuck in your head for ages?"

"Masters are able to deflect even powerful spells with their natural resistance to magic: they are similarly proof against all but the most powerful mundane weapons. Should they be wounded, they regenerate extremely quickly.

They use magic to invade the minds of others and otherwise gather intelligence, have extremely destructive offensive spells, and are often extremely mobile as well. Their greatest power, however, is the ability to call up new shadows from human bones. No Master is ever encountered alone."

"You mentioned that I'd attract a Master's attention after about five years, and I'd need allies then. This implies that they can be killed, and that I'll need to. So... how do I kill one?"

"By the concentrated effort of a group of Majokko or other powerful allies, a Master's guards can be cut down. Then the Master's defenses and regeneration can be worn down by concentrated fire. It is most important to have a group in order to keep the Master confined to a small area, so that it cannot attack bystanders for additional bones to conjure more guards with."

"How large of a group of Majokko could reliably take down a Master and their retinue?"

"I would estimate at least five would be necessary to have any chance, and twenty or more would be needed to make it reliable."

Nod. "And how often are people abducted, and how often do they choose to become Majokko?"

"Reasonably commonly: my intelligence is not perfect, but I would expect a dozen or so each month. Of those, perhaps a fifth or a sixth become Majokko. So perhaps two candidates each month across the whole of the city, the majority of whom will die before you have a chance to find them. So one candidate every two months. Six candidates per year, five years - you will barely be able to assemble a force in time, even if you find all the candidates available to you."

"And keep them alive, which I doubt's going to be a cakewalk, and I bet doing something like this will attract a Master's attention early - I'll need more than Majokko, I think. Which cards are most suited for fighting the shadows? From best equipped to least, please."

"Majokko. Kukla. Fianna. Lilim. Cambiare."

"Empress, Hermit, Chariot, Hanged Man, Fool," murmurs Blair, matching them to their cards to stick them in his mind properly. He nods, after. "And how does the Cambiare's allies rank, from strongest to least?"

"Only the occultist is even vaguely competent in these things, unless the Cambiare has gained artifacts of power through their fate."

Nod. "But Cambiare would probably be good for infrastructure, gathering supplies and intelligence and the like," he muses. "Right. Okay. Do the Masters have personalities? Politics, maybe?"

"I believe so, yes. But it is difficult to know of their actual personalities."

"Right. But it might be something I could use as leverage, make useful. The odds are against me. Every little thing I can get my hands on could help."

"Indeed."

"I don't suppose you could give me a list of abductees that are still alive that might be willing to help? If they're not Majokko, they'll have a lifespan that hits double digits."

"I don't have such a list, unfortunately. But the compass would let you locate 'the nearest Kukla.'"

"Yeah, I'm getting the compass," says Blair. "No doubt about it. It's too useful."

"I agree. The intelligence it grants is invaluable."

"It's valuable enough that - is there a way I could keep from losing it? Magically via Majokko spells, with one of the fifths of the magic, et cetera?"

"I could make it a power inherent to your mind for no extra price, but then you would not be able to lend it to another. Perhaps you could purchase both an internal and an external compass?"

He considers.

"How useful would the mana battery be?"

"An insulating cushion of extra mana is a luxury few Majokko have. That extra capacity could very well save your life in a desperate situation. From day to day? Perhaps not the most useful of gifts. But when you need it, it will be in an emergency."

"And it's not possible to make the compass - I don't know, tied to me, so I can retrieve it if I focus?"

"If I could do that for the compass, the same enchantment would be more useful on the spear. Which you already asked about. So no, I cannot."

"Worth a shot," shrugs Blair. "I don't know how any of this divine magic works."

"It was a good thought, however unfortunately flawed."

The angel stretches her wings and runs a hand through her metallic hair.

"Any powers available to anyone that lets them retrieve lost objects?"

"Nothing springs immediately to mind. Some Kukla can view things from a distance, but that's of no help if you can't identify where the object is."

"Pretty much." Sigh. "I don't want to have an internal compass, because it's incredibly obvious that I am incredibly likely to be dead in a decade. It'd be lost, and that's one less useful thing against the shadows floating around in the world. How good are shadows at burglary?"

"Decent, but some Kukla have the ability to flawlessly perceive everything within their auras. In the right hands, it might be exceedingly difficult to steal."

"Mm, but I can't guarantee finding a Kukla that could offer that like I can guarantee demonic blood for the spear," he muses. "And I do not want them to have the compass. Ever."

"We could build a self-destruct into it such that if a Shadow ever holds it for more than ten seconds, it will explode?"

"... Okay, that helps. Maybe make it longer, though, so it can potentially be retrieved, and built so you can't game the system by only holding it briefly - it being touched by a Shadow starts a twenty four hour timer to self destruction that stops when picked up by a non-Shadow? .... Hm, but then if there's ever a non-Shadow that is evil, we have a problem..."

"I feel that it's better to risk an accidental destruction than the compass falling into the hands of the shadows. If we make the timer that short, it will prevent explosions from casual contact, while still making possible handling time short enough that the shadows cannot discover the self-destruct until it's too late."

"They can discover the self-destruct? Okay then. Ten seconds of uninterrupted contact with a Shadow."

"I wouldn't put it past some of the Masters to inspect it minutely. They are accustomed to assassination attempts."

Nod. "Fair enough. All right then. How big of an explosion can we manage?"

"Enough to kill any Lesser Shadow, maim a mid-level one, and do damage to Greater Shadows and Masters. Any more bang than that would take extra energy."

"How much collateral damage would be caused by such an explosion?"

"I should be able to keep it fairly pin-point. If someone else was standing directly next to the shadow, they might be in trouble - but anyone more than two or three steps or so away should be fine."

Nod. "That sounds excellent, then."

"Still holding off on instantiations until we have a full kit prepared?"

"Yep. Might think of some improvement while we talk. Speaking of - how dangerous is the gun in the hands of the Shadows? And do they count as demons for the spear?"

"The gun is only slightly more dangerous than a regular weapon in the hands of the Shadows. For the spear... I have no idea whether they count as demons, but my guess would be 'no'. The spear prefers those 'of demon blood', but to the shadows, I suspect it prefers those 'of human blood' - half-demon, half-human."

Nod. "So a self destruct for my gun would just be wasteful, and the spear is - complicated."

"Yes, that's about the size of it."

"The spear is very complicated," sighs Blair. "They'd only get to use it once easily, but that one shot could screw everything over. I still want it, mind, but ugh."

"If you used it judiciously on nearby foes, you might be able to use it at less risk of it being turned against you."

"Not for me," he reminds the angel. "For my sister, with the likely demon bloodline."

"Hopefully she would have no risk of it being turned against her at all."

"Yeah, no kidding. ... Is there a way you could hand me a self destruct button for the spear?"

"I could build it, but it would be draining. The spear is an artifact of significant magic- containing the energies released in its destruction would be difficult."

"Yay. Right. No self destruct for the spear, I guess."

"It's within my energy budget, but I estimate that between summoning the spear and building the self-destruct, it would use up three-fifths of my mana. Two-fifths if you don't mind collateral damage when the spear explodes."

"No self destruct for the spear," says Blair, nodding firmly. "Not worth giving up the mana battery and gun."

"So that's the gun, the spear, the mana battery, and the self-destructing compass?"

"... Yeah, I think so. Uh, can you teach me how to use the gun before you send me off?"

"Certainly. I'll need to manifest it, of course."

Nod. "Yeah, go ahead, I think I'm set on my choices."

And the angel hands Blair a revolver.

"Here you are. Take as long training as you need."

"I was planning to!" he agrees, grinning.

Not needing to eat, sleep, or rest in any way is very useful. Blair is very thorough about learning how to use his shiny new revolver. Just because he can't practice its additional magical effects doesn't mean he can't learn to shoot well. The largest obstacle is boredom, and boredom can be staved off with interesting conversation and the understanding that his life is literally going to rely on his ability to shoot things.

But staved off is not defeated, and eventually, boredom wins out.

"Right," sighs Blair, "I think that at this point trick shots are about the only things to add to this education, but even with all the time in the world I don't think it's worth it. Besides, I'm going to start forgetting things."

The angel nods. "There's only so much that can be done in this empty space. Are you prepared to leave?"

"Is there any extra stuff you could potentially teach me that might be useful?"

"Unfortunately, my knowledge of the outside world is extremely out of date, and unlikely to be of much use to you."

"Well, knowledge of the outside world isn't just what you could potentially get me. If you have, say, knowledge of a skill like, I don't know, unarmed combat - that could be very useful."

"Unfortunately, I only know how to instruct in the things I instantiate."

"Okay, but do you know other things?"

"I'm not certain what exactly you're looking for, here."

"I'm not quite sure, either, I'm just. Trying to get as much in my corner as I can before I go into a place where I'll be fighting for my life."

"If I had skills to offer you that I thought would be useful, I would offer them."

Nod. "Fair enough. Sorry, just - making sure. Well. I guess then I'm ready to go."

"Good luck."

The angel manifests the rest of Blair's gear. The spear gleams malevolently.

"All you need to do is hold all the items you're taking with you, and then desire to leave."

Blair nods, and then grabs hold of all of the items.

"Thanks. I'll make good use of these."

And then he desires to leave.

The angel and the white space vanish, leaving him in a spartan apartment.