Fragments of THE Map
THE Map being a map made by the veritable Creator; it legendarily could show the whole of Creation, right down to the subatomic level (not that the people retelling the legends would put it that way, of course). If it ever truly existed, THE Map is either long-since destroyed, or transcended, or it’s actually Creation itself now and we’re all just living on its surface. However, there are still small pieces left. They’re oddly invulnerable to damage; every so often, a piece will neatly detach itself from the main Fragment. And every so often, two Fragments can be combined into one larger one.
The great advantage to having a Fragment of THE Map is that it is dynamic; it will show you everything going on within the boundaries of whatever it’s a map of, as they happen in real time. It can also show what did happen in the past. The effect is as if someone was looking directly from above down into the scene, with the ability to see through ceilings and other top cover. Fragments do not provide other sensory input besides sight, but the images are in color and are extremely detailed. Those skilled in using a Fragment can shift the perspective a little, but it’s never going to show even a limited horizontal view.
The great disadvantage of a Fragment of THE Map is that it only shows one area. A Fragment that is about one and a half feet by three feet will typically show about a city’s worth of land, with larger and smaller pieces scaled accordingly. Oddly, very few Fragments appear that do not correspond with a nearby area, which suggests to some that the Creator doesn’t actually mind if these artifacts get loose. But only to some; the thought of activist deities tends to unnerve many people.
One last note: anyone with a Fragment of THE Map would be well-advised not to look down at himself if he happens to be able to. That’s an excellent way to go into a dazed state that will last until somebody comes along to break that person’s gaze. And even after that, the vertigo will induce vomiting. Very prodigious vomiting. People are just not all that well-equipped to really understand a Fragment of THE Map. It’d be a truly terrifying item if the Creator wasn’t so basically benign.