The Butterfly Effect

“I want you to join us this time, if you think you’re up for it.”

Jasmin had said it so casually, Eme nearly agreed thinking it wasn’t anything significant. But then she thought about what Jasmin was really implying.

“I couldn’t,” Eme said quickly. “I can’t, you know that. I’m not going to do anything with you. I’ll watch and I’ll guide but I’m not going to actually do any of it. It’s too much of a risk.”

“We’ve figured something out, you know,” Kiara remarked. She carefully took a sip of her tea. “Jasmin’s certain that we’re capable of performing one of the big acts of forbidden magic without facing any negative side effects. But we can’t do it with just the three of us—the negative force will only be neutralized if all four of us work on it.”

Eme was about to shake her head again, but the other implications of it sunk in before she could do it.

And Brynn was the first to take advantage of it. “If we figure this out… there’s no stopping what we’re capable of.”

“Please, Eme,” Jasmin said. “I’m sure we all perfectly understand your apprehensions—”

“Frankly, I think you’re just being annoying,” Brynn casually interjected.

Jasmin glared at her then turned her attention back to Eme. “But, despite those apprehensions, I want you to be a part of this. This wouldn’t be possible without you and it will open up so much more if we can have your direct involvement…”

“Are you sure?” The question came quicker than Eme could really think it over. What was she saying? Was she really going to agree to this, cross the line she’d made for herself? Even… even if the promises of her dreams could be realized if she just took a step across..?

“As long as the four of us work together on it, I’m sure we’ll succeed,” Jasmin confirmed with a nod. “So, would you be willing to join us..?”

Every part of Eme wanted to refuse, deny becoming a part of any bit of this; she’d stayed away this long, she didn’t want to join now.

Yet the more she thought of it, the more she acknowledged what it meant and the things they were possibly only months from achieving—after years of hard work.

So before her better judgment had a chance to overtake her again, she cautiously nodded her head and said, “Alright, I’ll help. What do you want to try doing?”

“We’ve yet to decide,” Jasmine replied. “But given that we can do something big, that’s what it’ll be. We have the choices of a glimpse into the future, a chat with the dead, or the manipulation of a living body.” She paused, undoubtedly noticing Eme’s expression. “The third isn’t exactly an option, though. We’re here to prove the world wrong, not make them believe we’re evil.”

“Well, I would’ve wanted to try it,” Brynn remarked.

Kiara nudged her. “Not only do we have to make sure it’s actually ethical, but we need to be careful of who else is here. Astyu’s still at home, isn’t he?”

“He’s up in his room now—doing schoolwork on his own,” Eme confirmed. “But I don’t want to bother him. According to my research, necromancy of any kind tends to lead to other anomalies in the surrounding area. It’s probably too much of a risk to do here, especially if we want to keep him from knowing what we’re doing or getting hurt from it.”

“Then a bit of future-seeing it is, then,” Jasmin said with a chuckle. “You know, I started out this quest of mine as a fortune teller… I suppose it seems fitting, in that regard, so long as everyone else is willing to try it.”

Kiara nodded her agreement and Brynn muttered something that, frankly, sounded more like reluctant acceptance. Eme still hesitated but, after all of their attention was brought on her, she also somewhat-hesitantly confirmed her acceptance.

Jasmin gave a comforting-yet-unnerving smile and gestured towards the hall. “Shall we get started, then?”

“Let me just check in with Astyu one more time,” Eme mumbled. “I’ll make sure he knows that I won’t be able to be with him for a little while.”

She left then, trying not to sound too distracted when she found Astyu and explained, vaguely, why she wanted him to stay in his room. He looked to have so many questions… All she could do was hope that, eventually, she might not need to hide it from him.

That she’d be responsible for making Mávri Mageía just as dangerous as any other type of magic.

She should’ve understood that it was far too good to be true. But, at that point, even if she knew exactly what would happen to her… would she actually step away from it? Or would she keep going, hoping that somehow she’d be able to change her fate?

“It shouldn’t be too far ahead,” Kiara was saying as Eme walked into the room the others were in.

“I don’t think it should be too far from here, either,” Jasmin remarked thoughtfully. “From my experience, it’s usually more taxing the further out you have to go—both in the physical and metaphorical sense.”

“So we’re just going to keep things boring,” Brynn said with a sigh. “Fine. I suppose if that’s what it takes for the rest of you to go along with it, then that’s fine. Let’s stop being indecisive—we’ve got to do something, or else I’m going to get bored.”

Eme slowly took the empty space for her—a spot on the floor between Kiara and Brynn. “I thought about it a little, too, and I think the next festival will be a good place to try. It’s right here in Yllvamel and it’s only a week away. We should probably keep it to a specific street, though. Even with all four of us, it might be hard to find the fate of the whole town…”

Jasmin nodded wisely. “That’s exactly what I was thinking. What about that street just behind the church? It usually doesn’t see that many visitors, so we likely won’t have to process too many things at once.”

They all gave their signs of agreement, so they got started. Some part of the preparation—what they’d done research for, and what made most of this possible without harming them—was almost like instinct. The other portion came easily enough, even though it wasn’t something Eme was quite as familiar with.

And, before long, they were uttering the words that would allow them to see the future.

When they’d started, they’d sat down at roughly even-spaced spots that, from above, probably resembled corners of a square. This projection of the future, that street during the festival, was placed in the center.

“Kiara,” Jasmin said calmly, though there was an undeniable tinge of excitement, “can you ‘see’ your illusion, as well?”

“Yes.” Kiara sounded a bit surprised, yet relieved all the same. “What you added worked. Even if my… actual eyes see nothing, I can still ‘see’ it. You won’t have to describe it.”

“Wonderful. Now, let’s see what awaits this little pocket of Yllvamel during the festival…”

They all turned their attention to the projection, hushed and eagerly awaiting whatever it might have for them.

Nothing eventful really seemed to happen; there weren’t many people who walked past that spot, and none of the stalls had been set up that far away from the main streets. But still, Eme knew it wasn’t exactly the quietest of spots—there didn’t quite seem to be enough people walking through.

And Eme couldn’t help but notice that none of the four of them were there, even if she was quite certain she’d probably walk through that path at some point. It certainly wasn’t closed, and there were people who lived around there she thought she’d visit…

But before she could absorb too much of the information, the illusion ended.

“That barely showed us anything,” Brynn pointed out. “I say we do another. Something that’s going to actually predict something.”

Jasmin shook her head. “We should only do one for now. We need to make sure that it doesn’t influence us, and doing multiple at once will only compound any existing issues.”

“Besides, I suddenly have a bad feeling about all of this,” Eme admitted. She looked at Jasmin. “Are you sure this is safe?”

“Technically, I can’t be sure of anything,” Jasmin remarked, though she must’ve known it definitely didn’t help. “But I believe so, yes. You’re worried about the fact none of us were in it, aren’t you? Things like that are completely normal when seeing the future. It’s not a sign of anything, at least not with the information that we have. Things will turn out just fine. I promise.”