Reika

Chapter 1 First appears in:

Reika's Amulet

A talisman gifted by Reika to her young ward, Haroona. As something she wore for many years, passing it on to the safe keeping of another does not come lightly; the patterns have been deciphered, however, and so this is what must be done.

In the Shivalik foothills of the Himalayas, locals know of a spry old woman usually called Reika. Her name is about all that’s known. She’s not quite a wandering sadhu (or mystic), not quite a hermit. She is certainly not from the area yet she speaks every local dialect. Some villages may go years between seeing her. She is not hostile but declines any invitations or gifts.&nbsp;Some in the early LYS have a similar experience of her. For a time, she is often around their gatherings, though nobody can say if she was a member or not. She shares little and limits her interactions—a watcher, not a joiner—but always seems to be the most knowledgeable and skilled Quaestor in the room.&nbsp;There are rumblings that she takes on apprentices from time to time. For eager Quaestors this is a prospect as exciting as it is intimidating; just being in Reika’s presence can be a humbling experience.

While pursuing an old pupil of Reika’s named Vincent Lichter across the desert of the Richat Structure, Haroona unexpectedly confronts a mysterious faction calling themselves the Ascendants. She witnesses her mentor mercilessly cut down by Vincent before a raging sandstorm separates them forever.

Richat Structure: Teacher and Apprentice

As his former teacher, &lt;sp&gt;Reika is often aware of what remains unsaid just by looking into Vincent’s eyes, an ability to empathize with his thoughts and intentions of her then young pupil. Yet, many years later, before she is struck down by the Ascendants, there is but a blank... Reika suddenly realizes she can no longer discern what Vincent is thinking.&lt;/sp&gt;

Haroona and Luther trek across the steep canyons and narrow gorges of Anatolia before reaching an underground chamber dating back to the Sahin era. Haroona uses her amulet to unlock the Cambrian device, triggering an Echo revealing &lt;sp&gt;her mentor as one of the Unknown 9.&lt;/sp&gt;Bringing their discovery above ground their progress is quickly stunted as &lt;sp&gt;Reika appears before them, having joined forces with the Ascendants. She claims the Cambrian device for Vincent’s cause and leaves a gobsmacked Haroona along with Luther and Buchra to be taken prisoner upon the Morning Star. &lt;/sp&gt;

Anatolia: Woman Out of Time

Chapter 9

Discovering the &lt;sp&gt;Cambrian device in an ancient cavern, Haroona triggers an Echo revealing Reika had, in fact, been one of the Unknown 9 eons ago. Back on the surface, Reika has joined forces with the Ascendants; she promptly betrays her former student by claiming the device for Vincent&lt;/sp&gt; instead.

&lt;sp&gt;Reika’s body, inert and dreamless inside the tethering capsule, is now safely aboard the Morning Star. Heeding her mentor’s last words, Haroona and Buchra find themselves dropped in the humid jungle expanse of Central Africa.&lt;/sp&gt; For countless centuries, no one has disturbed the lost complex of Reithden... until now. &lt;sp&gt;Haroona is afforded a precious farewell with Reika, at least in the guise of Buchra, before entering the Sahin city ruins. Outside the wondrous conclave hall, Haroona parts from Buchra and takes her first steps in joining the Unknown 9.&lt;/sp&gt;

Reithden: What Was Once Lost

Chapter 13

&lt;sp&gt;Reika’s body lies inside the Tethering capsule, now safely aboard the Morning Star. Haroona is granted a final farewell with Reika, at least through a Stepped-in Buchra, for a precious moment before resuming her search for &lt;/sp&gt;the ancient Sahin city of Reithden.&nbsp;

No one can accuse Haroona of leading an easy life.&nbsp; From an orphan living on the streets of Chamiri to adopting the ways of a nomadic Quaestor-in-training, she possesses a special gift belonging only to the very few. As the source of her phenomenal strength, she believes it also keeps her from fully integrating into society; using her gift to help others sometimes does more harm than good. Haroona develops feelings of isolation, slowly withdrawing and shutting others out. &nbsp; After receiving guidance in the Umbric arts and discovering the existence of the Fold, she learns to control herself better than before. The knowledge is nothing short of a revelation, however, it does not - or cannot - fix everything. Now in her early twenties and still alone in the world, Haroona takes on odd jobs to survive while meandering in and out of dangerous circumstances. Prone to reckless behavior or acting on impulse, Haroona nevertheless possesses wisdom beyond her years, granting her purview to see life for what it truly is: one big game where the stakes hardly matter anymore.

Haroona

Haroona has honed her Umbric talents under her mentor’s strict tutelage, allowing her to make sense of the ‘gifts’ she was given. Reika, too, found meaning in the arrangement; without Haroona, Reika would have languished in the loneliness and isolation she’d become so accustomed to.&nbsp;

In 1888, Vincent Lichter was the youngest to witness the birth of the Leap Year Society (LYS). His family - deeply entrenched in an esoteric secret order - embraced the LYS ethos, and Vincent soon became a devoted member. His fascination with the Fold intensified, leading him to specialize in Diving—a discipline that would alter the course of his life.&nbsp;Within the LYS, Vincent’s talents and ambition propelled him forward. To the elder Quaestors, he symbolized hope—a harbinger of the society’s potential impact upon the world. His decision to join a Diving research project in 1890s Alaska was hailed as a providential blessing, all but guaranteeing the project’s success.&nbsp;In the rugged Alaskan wilderness, Vincent collaborated with brilliant and dedicated Quaestors. After relentless effort, he achieved his first Dive into the mind-bending Deep Fold. Each subsequent Dive left him transformed; his determination turned into obsession. Marshalling support, he expanded the project into a Diver training school—the Ascendants. Yet, in this pursuit, Vincent’s noble qualities, once in the service of the LYS’s altruistic goals, twisted into something more troubling and radical.&nbsp;As the Ascendant rhetoric grew provocative and their Fold explorations reckless, the Leap Year Society had no choice but to shutter the Ascendants initiative. Undeterred, Vincent declared war. The Ascendants, he asserted, were the true heirs of the LYS. Members could either pledge allegiance to him or face Ascendant wrath. Nothing would stop them from harnessing the ominous power they discovered in the Fold for humanity’s future—a future where Vincent wielded significant power.

Vincent Lichter

Reika did once consider Vincent a pupil of hers, but the extent of their lessons never approached that of Reika and Haroona. Nevertheless, Reika was instrumental in helping Vincent to take his first steps into the Deep Fold. Without her, there would be no

Umbric abilities, enabled by a Quaestor’s connection to the Fold, defy the laws of nature as we typically know them. Sometimes known as the Umbric arts, these abilities improve with practice, and experienced Quaestors who have a strong connection to the Fold and a keen sense of their own Am exhibit more potent abilities.&nbsp;&nbsp;Each Quaestor’s profile of abilities is their own—some excel in common skills like Peeking and Diving, while others specialize in rarer abilities like Tuning. As humanity’s comprehension of the Fold deepens, a multitude of unimaginable abilities may lie waiting to be discovered.

Umbric Abilities

Has anybody ever really seen what Reika is capable of? Certainly she can Dive, Tune, Step and employing all kinds of melee trickery. But she has only offered instruction to a handful of souls, and is not the type to show off Umbric abilities like party tricks

The universe is in constant dialogue, says the Book of the Patterns of Convergence; one simply needs to recognize the signs to hear its call. Different forms of communication and linguistics are explained, including all written and spoken languages as well as sensory based communication. Intrinsic to this is the divine music of mathematics, otherwise known as the ‘expression beyond language.’ Discussed further are the use of symbols and logograms, especially in numerology or cryptography, as it signals events related to causality. Within the Patterns one cannot predict the future per se, but one can decipher its probabilities.

Patterns of Convergence

No one can know the future, but Reika has a curious knack for deciphering the probabilities. For her, it’s a matter of examining the many signs and signals of the universe. Ripples in a pond… The flutter of a butterfly…

Media Gallery

Fortunato Lombardi

Bruiser

Amina Li

Azad Jayed

Seeker

Tethering Capsule

Shade Bracers

The Sahin Language

The Three Bodies

The Deep Fold

Reithden, Central Africa

The Morning Star

Quinta Matos, Sintra, Portugal

The Deep Fold: First Dive

The Morning Star: Reclaiming The Bridge

Unknown 9: Awakening

I must admit it is no small feat to catch me unaware. Perhaps I have misread the patterns…

person

Reika

First appears in:

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Richat Structure: Teacher and Apprentice

Richat Structure: Teacher and Apprentice

Richat Structure: Teacher and Apprentice