The shadows don’t show you if you are in the right life. They simply show what could have been.
From The Erudian Record of Magical Artifacts - 1st revised edition
The Fountain that Shows Second Shadows
On Erudus, sometimes two shadows stretch across the mountain when there should only be one.
The first shadow is ordinary. It’s yours, and it’s the shadow you find on any other planet in the universe. But the second shadow is different It shows you how your life would be if you had made different decisions You must travel to the base of the fountain when the moons are full to see your alternate vision.
Intelligent people only come once. What you see may destroy your future.
What Exactly is The Fountain?
Deep in the core of the Spineback Mountains, down in the darkest caves, rock is threaded with silver and cobalt. The ancients moved these rocks to the edge of the Spinebacks, where the ocean hits the rock.
The ancients created a fountain to celebrate their children’s coming of age ceremonies, and their choices of vocation, friends, love and home. After the children made their choices, they were given a cup of water to drink to signify the pureness of the moment. This celebration was largely a ritual, there was no magic in it, it was just a get together of friends and family.
Until it was not!
After the great volcanic shift on Erudus, the core of the planet moved stirring the water and sending it through different pathways. It rose under the fountain rose from somewhere deep under the Spinebacks giving it its special properties. No one can find its source..
During daylight, if you drink the water, the fountain’s magic will not work. But after Star Turn, when Astra and Lunara are full, something happens. The moons move high over the fountain and magic rises to its waters.
Astra, the mother of your current life, rises late in the night, as Lunara, the mother of the abandoned possibilities of your life, glows bright all night long. When their light mingles and reaches its greatest, your second shadow can appear. Watch carefully. If you blink, your second shadow may disappear before you see what you need to see.
How to see the second shadow
Walk up to the fountain.
Come to the side of it after star turn when the moons are full.
Choose the path you rejected.
Remember the path you did not choose. The path must have been rejected by you and you only, otherwise the second shadow will not appear.
Drink from the Pure Water of the Fountain.
Drink a potion of water. You must drink it all while you remember the journey you chose to forget.
Stand between the moons and the water.
Stand where the moonlight reflects om the water of the nearby ocean.
Observe.
Your shadow will appear and split into your second shadow. It will then show you the path you did not choose..
Let it Fade.
When the shadow fades, it is done.
NEVER ATTEMPT TO CALL THE SHADOW BACK.
What can you see?
The fountain shows the possibilities that could have happened if you made different decisions in your life.
Hydra Ink
When the evening is perfect for second shadow viewing, a master can bring a flask to the fountain and remove an amount of water from it. The water can later be used to give the being a second look at a shadow that has already been called to her. Note: This is ill advised and should only happen if the look at the second shadow is urgent..
To do this, ash from burnt Hydra Grass is added to the flask. The ash and water must be added in specific quantities or the magic will not work. If correctly added an ink is created that reflects cobalt and purple. The ink is used to draw a symbol of life on the base of the fountain base.
On a different Twinfull night, masters can use this ink to create their second view. The ink on the fountain permanently disappears a few glimmers after the shadow evaporates.
Shadow Yearning
Too many looks at one path causes Shadow Yearning.
Yearning symptoms include:
Remembering images from a life you have never lived
Frequently having unknown people’s words and actions pop into your head.
Feeling grief for something you did not do or someone you do not know.
Eventually preferring your alternate path, rather than reality.
The Second Shadow does not react when a person seek to see particular things from their alternate choice. Trying to coax or guide a shadow does not work.
There has been three occasions where there has been exceptions made to this rule. Records say that three different individuals asked the shadow to show them a particular moment on their alternate possibility and the shadow did.
No one undertands why this happened, but scientists from throughout the galaxy have created a theory they call the Hijacked Spell. This theory indicates that someone of great magical ability, elsewhere in the universe, interfered with the reading. Why or for what purpose no one knows.
Recommendations
If your second shadow notices you, immediately leave the fountain. RUN IF NECESSARY.
Jynx two shadows, good!
One Jynx steal fish. Other Jynx deny.
Lykie’s shadow dangerous.
Lykie, must not see!
When exactly can I look?
Lykie funny! Never!
Archival note
The fountain teaches people that the universe sends us on the path we are meant to be on. We must journey through life, letting our pasts go, and focusing on the present.
The fountain wants up to believe we are where we should be. The second shadow is meant to fix our anxiety and let us know we are on the correct path..
The philosopher Latinus - Master of Interpersonal Magic
Archive Classification
ARCHIVE RECORD - The Shadow Fountain
Phenomenon: The Fountain of Second Shadows
Classification: Possibility Magic
Activation: Twinfull
Risk: Neutral
Collection: Restricted
Known Danger: Shadow Yearning
Jynx Rating: Mildly Foolish - “Hoomans no need two shadows.”
Twinfull makes magic happen elsewhere.
The Skies at Twinfull bring Magic.
Maybe, you should look at the path ahead.
