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Alya takes 137 steps in the direction she is facing, turns to the west and enters the building to her right, and pushes a button directly below the basement floor in the elevator. She searches for the Prophet and speaks with her.
She snaps out of the vision. Her first Prescript as a new Index Messenger (second, if you count the one telling her where to get her new cloak). She begins walking.
When she first became a Proselyte, it was a bit unexpected—the only Messenger she’s seen throughout her time suddenly appeared with a Prescript to bring her to a brain surgery facility. She’d already had a few visions during her time in the Backstreets, but that one was quite sudden. The Messenger in question had left before the surgery was even complete, and the surgeons in question were not inclined to ask questions.
Before then, her Prescripts only came to her in deep sleep. Afterwards, she received direct visions that could happen at any time. The blindfold custom of Proselytes was no hindrance. After all, why would she need to see when the Prescripts could show her all?
That was her idea, anyway. To see what kinds of situations the Prescript would get her into.
And now, as a Messenger, she anticipates that her duties will let her see even more.
She enters the elevator, and neglectfully pushes the button to the basement before pushing an invisible button below it immediately after.
(She should have known it was going to be invisible, she thinks).
As fate would have it, the basement is deserted, and she descends what feels like 10 more floors before arriving in… an empty room that looks nearly identical to the basement she was just at.
This is a strange setup, she thinks, but not unexpected for our type.
She takes a number of steps into the room, observing the area. Unlike in the basement before, there are no storage boxes, but a quick investigation has her face to face with another woman.
"You are late. I expected you to be here earlier"
Truly, the Prescripts are all-knowing.
“Come with me.” she says. “I will show you the secrets of the Prescripts.”
She inputs a combination into a second invisible panel, and the walls open to reveal the chamber inside.
All sorts of electronics are strewn around the room, as if it was a standard Fixer Workshop. But it was plain to see this was no Workshop, given the diagrams about the human brain strewn about the floor, and there was a method to the madness—even if Alya couldn’t tell what it was, she knew she’d figure it out after enough time.
“This is the Prophecy chamber. But it would likely be more accurate to say this is the Prophecy Machine chamber. I am Thoth, the Index Prophet. I know exactly how to create a new one, and I will teach you how to install one into a block of the Backstreets."
“First, take a look at this particular machine.”
Alya looks at it, but sees nothing. “Shouldn’t you be showing me the inside? It’s just a box if you don’t.”
“No, you do not need to know what is inside. The machines are easy to install. Your primary job is to ensure safe travel of the box to the location that needs the Prescripts. If it were to fall into the hands of our enemies, the result could expend a lot of resources. Of course, fate will ensure that nothing will fall into the hands of our enemies, but there need not be any need for fate’s intervention if you do this properly.”
Thoth was not a particularly helpful person to Alya specifically, but she understood the general gist, as well as the hidden implication of punishment if she were to fail. After all, even fate is subject to resource limitations.
“So then what is the purpose of the Messenger if I am only to install the machine?” Alya wondered aloud.
“It is true that we have a comparatively lesser number of Messengers than other branches. However, you are not only to install the machine. In the future, you will come here to learn how to cooperate with the surgeons we use for Proselyte recruitment, and how to repair the machines in the event your defenses are broken. Otherwise, you will spend most of your time simply guarding it.”
“But you have to understand, Alya: this is a very important task, beyond the scope of your desires. This machine is the method by which the Will of the City is conveyed. Without it, the Cityfolk would be lost and purposeless in the vast sea of desires. The Prescripts hone this into a method to live with meaning in an otherwise meaningless world. We cannot let the City go without them.”
“...I understand. Thank you, Thoth. May the Prescripts show grace to you.”
“May the Prescripts show grace to you as well.”
Alya leaves the building with the box on her person, goes to Apartment Building #1373, and installs the box in the basement by digging into the floor to find the power supply.
Alya knew before that the Prescripts were performing a service to the cityfolk and satisfying her curious mind. Alya is certain, now, that the box in her hand carries with it the will of the entire City.