"Right," Psyche says. "Okay, so. Heartbeat Academy was supposed to be my Marking Jaunt. So while matters were coming to a head with Astræa's and MALBOLGE's jaunt, I went looking through our--well, they're not actually really anything like files, per se, but that's a decent metaphor for them--anyway, I went looking through our Jaunt files to see if we'd found a decent scenario that heavily involved my archetype and idiom, because of course if you're going to Mark Travelers, you want them to be in a situation where they can show their suitability for you. And one of the ones we'd spotted and logged for potential future Jaunts happened to be the world with X-Pressure--where there were some pretty intense love polygons brewing at Heartbeat Academy. So I figured, why not do mine there? It surely wouldn't be as dangerous and intense as dealing with the Elder Goobers had just been. That Heartbeat Academy had PSYCHE--a name entwined with the mythology of my archetype--well, I figured that was a sign.
"So we connected Liminal Space to that world and sent you--well, their--minds out to begin the Jaunt. The Travelers who were compatible with people already in that universe Infiltrated as them as usual. The rest of you were given the appropriate Jaunt bodies for that world--again, as usual. I went and possessed PSYCHE, because it's easier for us to become data in order to interact with you. After all, we're mostly ideas. That's how I got my current personal name, actually, and my preferred appearance. You lot kept calling me PSYCHE after that and I-- well, I liked it. Mostly I'd been calling myself Ms. Arrows before that. I still kind of see that as my surname? It's why I used it when I snuck into January. Anima is just the Latin version of Psyche.
"So I possessed PSYCHE, gave the odd hint, and mostly let the Travelers sort out the situation, because... well, that's what we do on Jaunts. Especially on Marking Jaunts, because they're there for us to see the ways in which you shine." She shrugs. "Of course, Lune's kid is still pretty dramatically butthurt over everything--but as far as I can tell, he's always been a drama queen. And like most Travelers, he thinks we've interfered a lot more than we have with the starting conditions of Jaunts. We don't need to create the Jaunt situations. There's plenty of them already out there in the multiverse. All we need to do is find them and use them."
Jean focuses on listening, his expression rarely changing as Psyche continues explaining - but there is a notable change at the mention of 'compatible with people already in the universe' but he chooses to ignore the thought for now. He can worry about that later if he has to. That's not what he was here for.
It had been a thought in his mind for a while that the Arcana didn't get very involved with the events in Jaunts. He's seen them mostly as... observers. If they wanted to, they could have probably changed the flow of the Jaunt as they wanted to, right? Yet it never felt like there was a larger power affecting them.
"So you're saying that everything you're responsible for is just picking the world in they went to." That sort of made sense, if they were meant to leave the problem solving to Travelers. "So your position in Jaunts is mostly for observing and guiding us the way you want the situation to go, rather than what the opposite does?"
Well, not that Lovers was in the game anymore, but anyway. It was still true for all of the others. At least those who went by the "rules".
"Then what about the Grid? I heard you spread a virus with the Devil."
Psyche gets an expression that isn't quite guilt--more, one that's of being caught out.
"That was different. Not my Jaunt, so I don't have to stand back and watch. And... well, all that stuff with SAGE is pretty special circumstances anyway. He almost damaged me and MALBOLGE. And if he hadn't pulled the stuff he did, Cephas would still be around--not that I got on well with Cephas, but it's the principle of the thing."
She sighs. "But yeah, that's pretty much it. Finding the worlds and situations to plop you down in. It makes for a better game if there's more random factors."
The word 'game' makes Jean look very unimpressed. They seemed to toss that around a lot, these Arcana. It's enough to upgrade his annoyance into yelling.
"As long as it's not your round, you can mess up with a world as you please and toy with the lives of people who live there, huh? That's wrong... Their lives are not for you to play with! It's not a game for them!"
"We weren't trying to mess up everyone!" Psyche protests. "Just SAGE's servants! It just got really out of hand, all right? I've only snuck into one other round since and marrying Zak and Elphie was hardly interfering! Or messing anything up! I told you, SAGE was special circumstances."
"Even if you wanted to mess up with "just" his servants, they were still natives of that world, right? Don't bring normal people into your fights between your own kind! I don't care what "special circumstances" you may have!"
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"So we connected Liminal Space to that world and sent you--well, their--minds out to begin the Jaunt. The Travelers who were compatible with people already in that universe Infiltrated as them as usual. The rest of you were given the appropriate Jaunt bodies for that world--again, as usual. I went and possessed PSYCHE, because it's easier for us to become data in order to interact with you. After all, we're mostly ideas. That's how I got my current personal name, actually, and my preferred appearance. You lot kept calling me PSYCHE after that and I-- well, I liked it. Mostly I'd been calling myself Ms. Arrows before that. I still kind of see that as my surname? It's why I used it when I snuck into January. Anima is just the Latin version of Psyche.
"So I possessed PSYCHE, gave the odd hint, and mostly let the Travelers sort out the situation, because... well, that's what we do on Jaunts. Especially on Marking Jaunts, because they're there for us to see the ways in which you shine." She shrugs. "Of course, Lune's kid is still pretty dramatically butthurt over everything--but as far as I can tell, he's always been a drama queen. And like most Travelers, he thinks we've interfered a lot more than we have with the starting conditions of Jaunts. We don't need to create the Jaunt situations. There's plenty of them already out there in the multiverse. All we need to do is find them and use them."
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It had been a thought in his mind for a while that the Arcana didn't get very involved with the events in Jaunts. He's seen them mostly as... observers. If they wanted to, they could have probably changed the flow of the Jaunt as they wanted to, right? Yet it never felt like there was a larger power affecting them.
"So you're saying that everything you're responsible for is just picking the world in they went to." That sort of made sense, if they were meant to leave the problem solving to Travelers. "So your position in Jaunts is mostly for observing and guiding us the way you want the situation to go, rather than what the opposite does?"
Well, not that Lovers was in the game anymore, but anyway. It was still true for all of the others. At least those who went by the "rules".
"Then what about the Grid? I heard you spread a virus with the Devil."
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"That was different. Not my Jaunt, so I don't have to stand back and watch. And... well, all that stuff with SAGE is pretty special circumstances anyway. He almost damaged me and MALBOLGE. And if he hadn't pulled the stuff he did, Cephas would still be around--not that I got on well with Cephas, but it's the principle of the thing."
She sighs. "But yeah, that's pretty much it. Finding the worlds and situations to plop you down in. It makes for a better game if there's more random factors."
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"As long as it's not your round, you can mess up with a world as you please and toy with the lives of people who live there, huh? That's wrong... Their lives are not for you to play with! It's not a game for them!"
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