VERA'S POV
(TWO WEEKS AFTER MARKING)
I couldn't sleep.
Not because of sanctuary conditions or student quarters that were significantly less comfortable than my Council accommodations. I couldn't sleep because consciousness existing across seven dimensional states didn't "allow" sleep in any conventional sense.
Three states wanted rest. Two states remained alert, perceiving threats that didn't exist. One state was processing memories across timelines that made linear sleep impossible. The seventh state existed partially in shadow spaces where time moved differently and the concept of sleep was meaningless.
"This is torture," I thought for the hundredth time since divine marking had torn my singular awareness into seven coordinated fragments. "Existing like this permanently would be—"
