Jessamine had finally arrived at what seemed the only logical answer to this unique problem, and it was a solution that made a particular part of her brain very happy.
Switch the tether to Elisabeth Moriarty.
It was an impulsive move, born from the deepest remnants of her psyche, but one that would hopefully do the trick. Even though she didn't understand what the lightning-like magical tethers were, she knew that she could rely on her own synchronicity to sort out what needed to be done.
And shifting the blame to her nemesis probably wouldn't hurt.
She looked around, and was sad to find that once again, nothing appeared to change from her point of view.
But Britannia is so far away, I wouldn't be able to notice a change, would I?
There was only one way to know for sure if it had worked: without wasting a moment, Jessamine cancelled her Farsight Projection, though she made sure to keep her time-perception and magic sight spells active.
She blinked, and she was back in her room at Spear's Tip—and there was no longer any tether in her sight.
With a thought, she teleported herself to the tallest spire in Camelot and surveyed the academy: there were many tendrils of magic there, and one tracing her path back to her room (which quickly vanished), but there was only one that left the island in the direction of Rome.
And it looked like it was terminating at the underclassmen dorms.
She waited for the creeping vine of the Roman counter-magic to appear on the horizon, which, while it took some time, probably travelled the tremendous distance in the blink of an eye. It was only her exponentially-reduced perception of time which allowed her to trace the path taken by the marking spell.
Presently, the counter-magic reached its destination, and after what seemed to be a few seconds, both her original tether as well as the counter-magic marking spell vanished.
The mark had been placed; the danger had passed.
Success! she rejoiced. However—penetrating the nullification zone will still be difficult. If I use Farsight Projection in there, the projection will be destroyed even if I have a chance to redirect the tether.
But that can wait until tomorrow.
With another thought, she found herself back in her room, and she laid once more in the bed which had kept her body company for the past few hours.
Magic sight… Magic Eye… no, All-Seeing Eye. Yes. That's what I'll call it.
She dwelled on the success of her experiment for a few minutes before sleep finally caught up with her.
"You've been busy," said the voice without words, and Jessamine was instantly awake and alert.
She leapt out of bed and knelt before the conspicuous hole in reality from whence the voice came.
"Domino," she said, "it's been far too long."
"I merely step from one moment to the next," it said. "Length of time holds no meaning for me."
"Why have you come to this moment?"
"Am I not welcome, o debtor mine?"
Jessamine thought she detected a small hint of joviality from the otherworldly being, but her sense of overwhelming inferiority prevented her from responding in kind.
"Far be it from me to be unwelcoming, my lord," she hastily replied before continuing: "Pardon my curiosity. It has been four years since we last spoke."
"We did far more than speak, did we not?"
"I do not mean to diminish—"
"Enough, child," it said. "Never let it be said that a god of magic does not understand humor, or, as your kind call this particular brand, sarcasm."
"Apologies, my lord."
"Do you know why I'm here?"
The snarky reply that Jessamine briefly considered was just as quickly overruled by her sense of self-preservation.
He's either here randomly, or something important has happened.
If something important has happened, it must either be a global event or something that I've done…
Wait…
All-Seeing Eye.
Her magic sight activated with that thought, and she looked at her savior anew.
In the place where there was a void in space, she could now see the faint outline of a person, and that person was emanating a massive number of magical tethers from every angle. It was by the way these tethers congealed and looped back upon each other that she could see a human-like shape in the midst of the nothingness, and the scene was astonishing to a mere student.
"Well met, Jessamine di Cadenza. Replying by using the spell to which I was referring—you have some wits about you."
"What am I looking at?"
"You will find out in time, so do not overlook the importance of this discovery. Are there any others among your people who can see magic in such a light?"
"I know not."
"You speak truly," Domino replied, "and yet the answer is not satisfactory. You can divine the truth from your own knowledge."
"Which knowledge?"
Domino did not reply, which Jessamine interpreted as meaning that no response was necessary.
I am able to use All-Seeing Eye because my synchronicity allowed my brain to translate 'seeing magic' into a real magical effect.
There are a few out there who also have genius-level synchronicity… the Ultimate-level magicians.
But they have not made public the existence of such a spell, unless—
The Roman nullification zone.
The only way such a device could have been built is if they have a magician who can use All-Seeing Eye to understand the fundamental nature of magic.
"I understand now," she replied. "But what is the point of knowing that others can use All-Seeing Eye?"
"Humility and preparation."
"Preparation for what?"
"The future, of course."
Jessamine took a moment to ponder the meaning of this statement, but she didn't arrive at any useful conclusion.
"So—what should I do next?" she asked.
"Fall."
Huh?
But she wouldn't receive an answer to any further questions, because Domino had vanished in the very instant that he replied. Reality returned to a state of normalcy, and Jessamine was left to wonder what her next step would be.
It was now late Saturday afternoon, and Jessamine realized that she had been alone in her room for almost a full day; that was cutting it close. Even with her excuses, she had to maintain a presence at the Society so that she had an alibi if she ever needed one. She'd have to take a little time away from her investigation in order to strengthen that alibi, but it was worth it.
She refreshed her glamour, appearing too sick to contribute to the Guy Fawkes' celebration planning but not sick enough to stay in bed all day; it was a delicate balance, but she thought she pulled it off quite well.
Making her way to the library of Spear's Tip, she found that those same preparations were well underway—she remembered the hectic schedule and last-minute changes the event demanded from her time organizing it last year—but it looked like they were managing fine without her.
She looked around the room quickly and found the person she was looking for:
Ah, no wonder they're doing fine. He has more experience than I do.
Duke Henry Cahill was, despite his elevated title, only a couple years older than Jessamine herself. He had inherited his family title with the unfortunate passing of his parents in "the Incident," a magical terror attack which also claimed the life of Jessamine's father among many others, and which was widely regarded to have been the work of the Moriarty family. While the family had never publicly taken credit for the attack (they never took credit for anything they did), MI7 was confident in their assessment; Jessamine was confident in that verdict as well, enough to bear her decades-long vendetta against the family.
The House of Cahill were prominent and vocal supporters of the House of Pendragon, and as such it was natural for a Cahill to be in charge of the Royal Society. Their lineage had produced many Britannian military commanders, and there were just as many divisions of the armed forces who swore loyalty to the House of Cahill in equal regard to the House of Pendragon.
If ever the House of Cahill turned against the Royal Family, thought Jessamine, the only beneficiaries would be our enemies. Our already-dwindling military might would be crippled.
The office of Chairman had little responsibility within the Society aside from providing general guidance and direction: it was many a political role, and those who occupied it were expected to politick. Henry Cahill, like his father and grandfather before him, was well-suited to this role.
But now, owing to her absence, it appeared Henry had taken up Jessamine's slack and had been leading the planning committee in their efforts.
His back was facing her, and he seemed to be engaged in conversation while hunched over a map of the campus, so he hadn't noticed her enter the library. She made her way towards the table which was serving as a temporary hub for the planning committee, waving politely to those who saw her, and noticed that they only responded with timid acknowledgements of her presence.
Not thinking much of it, she settled in a chair next to her superior.
"Ah, Jess, you're finally awake," he said, straightening himself. "Look who has offered to help with our Fawkes shindig."
She looked across the table and her expression instantly soured.
A certain Moriarty daughter was leaning over the table, supporting herself with one arm while the other was pulled back to rest on her hip. Elisabeth's low-cut top was sending a message which Henry had surely received, and Jessamine could not have been more disgusted by Elisabeth's obvious attempt at flirtation.
"Hey, Jessie!" she said with a crocodile smile. "Heard you weren't feeling so well, so I offered to help Henry here get everything sorted in time for the party. I hope you don't mind?"
"Not at all," Jessamine replied, though she didn't hide her disdain as well as she thought she did. "I didn't know you had experience in event planning."
"Oh, well, I know how to run an organization," the Moriarty replied. "And, to give credit where it's due, your Society has been awfully obliging."
Jessamine frowned intensely, unable to repress her emotions any further—not that it mattered, as her sentiments were shared by the majority of the people present.
How easily she masquerades as someone else.
But then again—so do I.
She hides her true nature; I hide my inhuman power.
We are not the same.
We can't be the same.
"It would be great if you could provide some references, Lizzie," she said with a sly, malicious smile. "How can we trust you know how to run an organization on your word alone? Anyone could make such claims."
"Ladies, please," Henry interrupted. "I know you two don't get along, but we have bigger priorities right now."
"What do you mean?" asked Elisabeth, feigning ignorance. "We're very close friends, I'll have you know."
He raised an eyebrow in a look that said I don't believe that for a second.
"It's true," Jessamine affirmed, though her tone spoke the truth. "But, I do have some errands to run, and I want to get a good night's sleep tonight—so I'll leave you to your little firework show."
Henry shot her a glance as if to say, C'mon, are you serious? but replied:
"Alright, Jess, get some rest. Will we see you at this 'little firework show'?"
Jessamine, who had stood and walked towards the door, looked back over her shoulder at the pair standing by the table.
"I can't say for certain, but I'll try to be there."
"I'm looking forward to it," said Elisabeth, a predatory grin emerging as Jessamine departed.
Her purpose had been accomplished. She need not tarry.
She didn't actually have any errands to run: that was simply another pretext to make her absence from the Society less suspicious. In reality, Jessamine returned to her room to contemplate Domino's final word.
"Fall."
The simple memory of his voice made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up, and she glanced around her room to make sure she was truly alone—not that it would have made any difference, but it was a subconscious reaction that she couldn't control.
It was the essence of primal fear.
Satisfied with her solitude, she turned her thoughts back to that single word.
But what does it mean?
What falls? Nations, governments, cities, people—
The fall of the Union?
The fall of Rome?
The fall of Vatican City?
The fall of Elisabeth Moriarty?
The fall of the Domino Witch—
Wait—
The Domino Witch, falling.
I cannot teleport into the city, but I can teleport myself above it.
It would be easier to just walk through the zone, but Domino said "fall," not "walk," so it must have some plan in mind.
Maybe it wants me to make a dramatic entrance?
I still don't know what its purpose is, but it doesn't seemed too concerned with how I behave, so long as I follow its orders when it gives them.
Alright, then.
Time to plunge into the deep end.
The sun was setting now: Rome was already in darkness, but she decided to postpone her arrival until the dead of night.
For now—there was one thing she wanted to see.
She appeared in an alley alongside Park Court and was able to tell from the auras alone that a few upperclassmen were nearby.
All-Seeing Eye.
As she emerged from the alley, she made her way towards the park and quietly observed her fellow students. It was a lonely hour: most residents of Camelot were enjoying dinner, or were otherwise entertained indoors, and only the lovers graced the park's greenery. The sunset had drawn them, but it would be over soon, and the students would soon be engaged in other pastimes.
Watching the creatures gave Jessamine a similar impression as a childhood trip to the London zoo, but the recognition of this fact was quietly accepted without protest.
She drew closer, and she was finally able to make out the object of her attention. The craniums of every individual ejected many magic tethers—she recognized the black lightning instantly—but they formed complicated loops, knots, and other structures for which Jessamine had no name. There were far more tethers than even the Roman nullification zone, and their source was clear: these magical oddities were intrinsically linked with the human brain.
The brain is magical.
This realization overwhelmed Jessamine's imagination, for no one had yet been able to understand why the brain was so instrumental in the practice of magic. And yet, the answer was right in front of her.
The brain… is magical.
So—a magician's aura is what, exactly?
It was then that she noticed something unique about the magical tethers of the brain: she had noted previously that the tethers glowed with an otherworldly light that she couldn't describe, but when there was such a density of tethers present, the glow was magnified tenfold. It didn't seem to be a visual glow, in much the same way that Domino's voice was not a voice which used words to communicate.
Fascinating.
Jessamine mulled over the myriad ramifications of this discovery as she teleported back to her room; while this could revolutionize the theory of magic, she was more concerned with what it meant for her own brain. She hadn't disabled All-Seeing Eye.
She found her mirror and beheld herself.
Her magic-tether-brain held many similarities to those she had just observed, though there still appeared to be some element of artificiality present which she could not easily identify.
It made sense, though, when she dispelled her glamour and looked at her new body in the mirror—it had the same styling as her brain. The tendons, sinews, bones, and organs were all there (were they? she hadn't checked), but they seemed… wrong. And now, she held the same opinion of her own brain.
I truly am a wolf in sheeps' clothing.
Time to hunt.