Fate

**Fate** is a causal force that pervades all of reality, binding all dimensions of it together: space, time, and cosmos. It is often thought of in terms of threads. Each object, creature, or person follows their thread as it guides them through space, time, and the cosmos. Often, that thread intersects and knots with others, sometimes braiding together for long periods, and other times cutting each other short. This results in a complex tapestry across all dimensionality, where all these threads exist simultaneously and interact with one another.

Some schools of thought suggest that this resulting tapestry is by nature fixed over space, time and cosmos. In other words, unless an external force outside reality were to change it, there is only one path a person can follow. This is known as the *Logic of Destiny*. As per this principle of belief, free will is an illusion and will always align with what fate decrees, whatever the end.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, other schools of thought believe that the tapestry is in constant flux: in past, future, and present. Free will, choices made by any being with the power to do so, ripple out through the tapestry and affect the entire interconnected tangle, in every direction of space, time, and cosmos. This is known as the *Logic of Will*. As per this principle of belief, free will is the single most important possession of a sentient creature, as it can literally shape reality.

Some Schools of Magic interact directly with the tapestry of fate, as listed here:

* Divination uses arcane energy to observe fate as it changes over time, generally into the future, allowing the prediction of future events. This is generally a very difficult affair, given the complex nature of the tapestry. The *Logic of Will* dictates that it is impossible to divine future events with true certainty, since the tapestry is in constant flux. Observed events may yet end up being true, but may very well change on a whim. The *Logic of Destiny* dictates that it is possible to divine future events with true certainty, however it is impossibly difficult to do so without observing the entire tapestry. Observed events may end up being true, if they are isolated and the diviner has successfully read the surrounding tangle, but may also end up being false if the diviner has miscalculated their reading.
* Chronomancy uses arcane energy to manipulate the dimension of time. Since fate is intermingled with time as it is with space and cosmos, this can cause adverse effects when the change is significant. In theory, it can cause a break in reality so severe that it causes a total unravelling of fate, and therefore a propagating collapse of reality into a different state (akin to a false vacuum collapse). This collapse conforms both with the *Logic of Will* and the *Logic of Destiny* as, in the former, it is merely another change in the tapestry, and in the latter, the change into a new shape of reality is simply a pre-destined natural progression.
* Daemancy is a theoretical school of magic that can directly alter the tapestry of fate, in theory re-arranging it without the same risks as Chronomancy. As per the *Logic of Will*, this is simply another way to cause flux in the tapestry, no different than free will but with a larger scope. As per the *Logic of Destiny*, this alteration can only be accomplished safely with total knowledge of the tapestry, otherwise it can cause a collapse just as much as Chronomantic magic.