[3rd POV]

“You look surprised, did you not mean to enter my store?” Wanda asked, a small teasing glint in her eyes as she watched the group. Said group was tense, and almost seemed like she was afraid of whatever was happening, of her.

“I…no we did, I suppose. It is just that we are rather…blind sided by the oddity of this place. We had not expected to enter…a bookstore” Picard responded, calming himself down from the slight tenseness that had been filling him a few moments before.

“Ah, most of my new customers act that way in the beginning. It’s pretty confusing, isn’t it? To see my door just appear in your ship, in the USS Enterprise” Wanda said, looking them all over as she stopped when she saw Deanna looking at her in confusion.

“You are attempting to see my mind, aren’t you?” Wanda asked, amusement flickering on her face as the woman stilled.

“I-I apologize, I did not mean any offense” Deanna said, sputtering slightly at the words of Wanda.

“You are trying to read my emotions, but are failing, right? Do you wish to see them, child?” Wanda asked, not at all offended by the woman, who stared at her in surprise before slowly nodding.

“Alright then. I’d prepare myself if I was you. My mind is…quite powerful. I’ll limit what you can see, so that you mind does not simply…shatter underneath its might” Wanda said, giving the woman a warning as Deanna was about to speak, before her eyes widened as a loud gasp echoed from her lips.

She was barely able to stand as she felt the might of her mind, only a small percentage of the true extent of it, well, more like a fraction of a fraction. And that fraction was lessened even further, than the true extent of it.

“Deanna? Are you okay?!” Riker asked, moving to catch the woman before she could accidentally fall, watching as Deanna held her head, pain curling through her skull as she was doing her best not to fall unconscious.

“I-I’m fine. It’s just-her mind…it’s so strong. The-the strongest that I have ever encountered, even stronger than the Q’s” Deanna responded, grunting in pain as she felt it slowly begin to lessen, noticing that Wanda herself was cutting off the connection once more.

“I did warn you. My mind is impossible for you to actually comprehend. I had to limit it to around 1 percent of 1 percent of 1 percent. So infinitesimally small that it was all but meaningless to me” Wanda said, as the others looked at her with wide eyes.

“H-How strong is your mind?” Tasha asked, wide eyed.

“Hmm, stronger than anyone in your realities. My mind is fully capable of warping reality if that is what you are asking. And while that “Q” that you have mentioned is quite strong, he is below me in this day and age” Wanda replied, the others paling even further once they realized that they were in front of the strongest being that any of them had ever met.

And that was scary.

“You are more powerful than the Q? How is that?” Data asked, tilting his head in confusion.

“Hmm, it’s a rather long conversation. But in simplest terms, it is because they are limited to a singular multiverse, while I can access all of them freely. Thanks to that, the power that I can utilize is far beyond what they can. Well, that and I am the walking embodiment of a number of concepts” Wanda answered.

“What concepts?” Data asked before anyone could stop him.

“Chaos, Knowledge, Magic, Possibility, and the Beginning. I embody all of them, and thus are all of them” Wanda replied with a simple smile on her face.

“And by being all of them, does that mean-” “That I know everything about all of them? Yes. It means that I am effectively omniscient when I want to be. I know the secrets of the meaning of life, of how the universe was born and how it will end. I know what souls are and how they are made. I know the deepest depths of science that can do things like warp and create universes and use them as nothing more than power sources for machines that can travel anywhere through their resident multiverse” Wanda cut the man off once more, a smile still on her face.

They could only stare at her for a few more moments, not knowing what to even say to that. To the fact that a being that could answer so many of the secrets of the universe, ones that they have always wanted to know, was standing right before them.

“Before you ask the questions that I know that you no doubt have, just know, that I shall not be answering the ones that I am sure you wish to know. Like the secrets of life and its meaning. But what I can tell you, is that the books that I sell have a lot of meaning, and quite a lot of knowledge that I am sure your people could utilize quite well” Wanda said, stopping them from asking any stupid questions that she was already prepared for.

“And why can you not just tell us the meanings?” Worf asked, as Wanda smiled.

“Because Worf, the greatest parts of life is the journey that you undergo throughout it. And the secret of life is not one that should simply be handed off, but must be earned and learned. It is something that you creative species shall learn over the next thousands of years” Wanda said calmly, the group staring at her in surprise.

“Take if from knowledge itself, Lieutenant Worf, you shall learn many things across your journeys over the next few years. And you will find that life is much more than just battle and exploration. And yes, I know the future, and what your stories hold. After all, I am possibilty” Wanda added, a smile still on her face as she noticed that Data had wondered off to find some books to buy.

“…And how much do these books cost? The ones that you mention you sell” Riker asked.

“Hmm, matters. I know your kind doesn’t really use currency. So I suppose a trade of books and knowledge from your realm would do well for me. Or rare materials native to your universe. Afterall, I have never been there. And even if I can simply create and learn it all, that would be dreadfully boring” Wanda replied. Riker looked over at Picard upon hearing this.

“What if we were to offer you the cumulative knowledge of the human race, barring the classified parts?” Picard questioned, making Wanda smirk slightly.

“Considering how advanced your species is. You’d get every book in the shop. As well as every new book I get for the next few dozen books. And the reason why is simply because the books that I have are worth…quite a lot. and there were books from species that quite literally invented the concept of time travel” Wanda replied.

“Surely the cumulative knowledge would be better than that”

“You underestimate what sort of knowledge my bookstore possesses inside, Captain Picard. I would suggest that you begin to browse, and should you wish to buy some books, then find something to trade. But that knowledge would be greatly appreciated” Wanda replied, as she stayed comfortable in her chair, watching as they all looked at one another.

Huddling closer, they began to quietly converse, knowing fully well that she can hear them easily.

“Should we buy her books? How can we be certain that they are safe?” Tasha asked.

“Safe from what? What could possibly be of harm to us from some simple books? And if she really wanted us dead, we would be dead already. I think we should do what she said, and browse. Find some books, and offer a trade. And if the books are truly as revolutionary as she is saying that they are, we come back again and give her a much larger trade, one that will give us access to her books for quite some time” Riker said.

Picard nodded, agreeing that this was the best course of action. Wanda was basically a gold mine for Starfleet, even if it was one that would have to be treated well, traded with well, and not lied to. They could not afford to do such a thing.

So, with that, they began to split up to look over the books, all the while, Picard had one thought on his mind.

‘Let us see what knowledge…knowledge possesses’

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That’s the end of the chapter!

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