Category: Spell / Magic

#Lore24 – Entry #187 – Supers Month II #6 – Burning Passions, Burning Buildings

From the journal of Abigail “Sassy” Dawson, Mage of the Order of Hecate

Havin’ suffered the loss of my family as I had, and then spendin’ the last few years mostly alone in the hills talkin’ to Granny Opal and our familiars, I weren’t in no position to be offerin’ no shoulder to cry on.  Not that I could really know how to comfort whatever this woman was; I knew she weren’t exactly human by then.  I finally managed to find my voice again when I felt the prickle of ice on my skin, even through my wards, and realized she was colder than the wintery cemetery was, yet not a bit of ice stuck to her. 

She looked a mite embarrassed when she realized what she was doin’, and picked herself up, wiping at her tears, which were somehow stayin’ wet in the frigid air.  She went and sat on some poor feller’s tomb and cried some more but told me about how she’d had a fight with her husband, gotten a little drunk, and needed to be alone for a while.  Course, that sounded right normal to me, and not a word of it explained why I was standin’ in near two feet of snow in October.  Still on edge, and waitin’ for an attack of some kind, I cautiously leaned up against one of the tall, statuesque grave markers and asked her blunt-like what she was tryin’ to hide, what she was, and what she was doin’ with the weather.

It was almost like she hadn’t even realized she’d been controllin’ it then, given that look on her face.  I will admit, that was one of the few times I ever saw Assane embarrassed by the things she did.  Almost at once the cold eased around her, and the wind started to die down, though it’d take another couple of days for the cold to clear up altogether and get back to a more seasonable climate.  She collected herself from there, using a quick burst of magic to gussy up her appearance and change her clothes into somethin’ that looked more fitting for the cold.  Certainly, she was more talented with the arts than I was, cause I’d never seen the like from Granny Opal’s teachin’s. 

‘Fore I knew it, we was headed back into town proper like, her ridin’ with me on Asher.  He weren’t havin’ no trouble in the heavy snow, even with the both of us, given the little magical tricks he’d used all on his own.  By evenin’, we were sittin’ down for a proper meal at the hotel, and I was tryin’ to learn more about her, though she was bein’ just as curious ‘bout me, always leadin’ the conversation off herself and back to me.

It was durin’ our little sparrin’ match that her husband Richard would show up, and my fate were sealed.  I’d almost got her to spill the beans ‘bout what she was when her face darkened and I felt the air go cold ‘round us, her eyes a lookin’ to the doorway.  Again, I won’t be sayin’ much ‘bout appearances, cause those meant little to these two, but Richard was comin’ in like all was forgiven, but she weren’t havin’ none of it.  Weren’t long before the two were standin’ right in the middle of the restaurant and yellin’ at one another.  Didn’t take me long to figure why, cause I was lookin’ him over with my mystic sight and found the same odd nature I’d seen with Assane, only he was pure fire instead of solid ice.

Now, I never claimed to understand just how love works, nor how opposites attract; works for magnets, guess it worked for these two, but damn, they can be trouble when they get riled up.  Kinda put me in mind of a couple a spoilt children after a while.  Couldn’t have known then how right I was on that one…  Anyhow, before I knew it, Assane had slapped the shit outta Richard, and he slapped right back, then the two was a brawlin’ right there in the floor.  There was a right ton of onlookers, downright mortified most of them, cause this weren’t no proper behavior for a lady nor a gent. 

I saw the magic bubblin’ up from the pair right before it exploded, before I could do much about it.  Fire burst outta him, and ice came outta her, uncontrolled, wild, like their brand of love, I guess.  Next thing I knew, people was runnin’ and screamin’, the buildin’ was a burnin’ on one side and froze solid on the other.  Worse, the two had found their way out onto the street, and their magic was a spreadin’ all over the street.  I weren’t equipped for this kinda thing, cause I hadn’t learnt no magic that could hope to stand up to their power yet, so I just did what I could to try and get people outta harms way. 

They were like a force of nature at this point, and though it might’ve been less, I woulnd’t have been surprised if a quarter of the city was either burning or froze up.  People had already been hurt, but there weren’t nobody else who could deal with the two, so I had to make a tough choice then.  I didn’t like killin’, but I weren’t about to see a bunch of innocents get killed over a lovers’ quarrel, so Asher and I rode up after then.  I tried to reason with them, but they weren’t hearin’ none of it, even flung fire and ice my way when I got too close.  As much as I hated to, I unloaded my six-shooter into them. 

I think they were probably just as surprised by it as I was, but my improved magic bullets did the job, and the two fell dead in each other’s arms, all tragic romance like. 

I didn’t linger longer than I had to after that.  I did what I could to help fight the fires, and after a long night, I avoided the hard questions that were a stirrin’ in town and hit the first boat bound down the Ohio River, a bit shellshocked at havin’ to kill a pair like that. 

I was sleepin’ real sound from sheer exhaustion after that in my tiny cabin.  I’d gone to bed alone, Asher up on deck with the other horses, so when I awoke later on in the day, I was right surprised to discover I weren’t the only one in the bed.  I must’ve squealed right loud when I realized I had two people pressed up on either side of me, but I was even more surprised when I’d hopped out of bed and realized who they was. 

I’d gunned the pair down myself the night before, but here they was, grinnin’ at me just as alive as they had been the night before durin’ their spat, though they looked completely different now, aside from what I saw of their true forms with my mystic sight. 

“We like you; you’ve got guts, kid,” Richard had said, flashin’ a smooth smile at me.  “How about we get to know each other properly?”

I should’ve refused the offer.  Lord only knows why I didn’t.

#Lore24 – Entry #186 – Supers Month II #5 – Winter Comes Early in Louisville

From the journal of Abigail “Sassy” Dawson, Mage of the Order of Hecate

After that hot summer down in Franklin, and a little more time spent in the surroundin’ area to make sure no more of them mongrels were lurkin’ about, I eventually drifted up north, and into Louisville.  It just so happened that fall was comin’ on hard by then, and when I say hard, I mean winter hard.  There was a cold snap came in, and it was downright wintery up there, and it was barely halfway through October; had snow in the air and everything.  Asher pointed it out to me first off:  that weren’t no natural weather pattern what had come in; it was magical.  I was downright impressed with the scale they’d managed to change up the weather, but then I started wonderin’ exactly why whoever was responsible for it had done it.  Didn’t make no sense at first glance, ‘ceptin’ to make things harder on the folk ‘round the city, till I got to thinkin’ about some of Granny Opal’s stories and lectures.  Looked like I had another monster runnin’ around to deal with, some kinda feyfolk or, Lord forbid, a wendigo.

Well, as I would soon learn, I weren’t to have no such good luck.

I restocked my supplies and got me some winter clothes first off, checked into a hotel for the first time in a good while and started to get a feel for Louisville and the arcane flows that were messin’ with the weather.  The flows of magic weren’t like anything I’d seen before.  They were subtle, mostly hidden, but stronger than anything I’d encountered before, like a true master of the arcane had formed them.  As I was tracin’ them out and lookin’ for a source, I began to wonder if I was steppin’ in on the territory of some witch more powerful than Granny Opal, cause I’d never seen even her make somethin’ like this. 

So, after a few days trudgin’ round in the freezin’ weather, with snow startin’ to pile up, I finally managed to trace down the source, which was in the Cave Hill Cemetery.  Once I’d worked out the nature of the flows, it was like a vortex swirlin’ around the place, and a cold one at that.  I was wrackin’ my brain tryin’ to figure out what could be lurkin’ in there that could be controllin’ the weather like that, what kinda creature could or would do it.

Well, when Asher and I finally made our way in, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, so I had insulated myself against cold magic and had some fiery surprises in store for whatever it was.  What I didn’t expect to find was a beautiful woman wearing a rather scandalous dress for the time, the kind you’d see in a brothel, even if it was colored more like something befitting a funeral, moping about amongst the graves, not affected in the slightest by the wintery weather.  Won’t say much about her looks here, cause, as I’d learn, how she looks from one time to another don’t much matter.  She hadn’t noticed me as I approached, too deep in her melancholy, and I strained to get a read on what she was.  She looked human at first, and for the longest time, I thought she was, but once I’d had a good long look at her with my mystic sight, I finally pierced the magic that was around her; there was a spell up to keep her from being noticed, one I’d used myself plenty of times, but there was somethin’ extra about her appearance. 

But it weren’t no illusion she wore.  I wasn’t even sure what I’d seen even then, cause what I saw didn’t make no sense to me.  It was like I saw two overlapping images that were at once the same being; one the human woman, the other a woman composed entirely of elemental ice and cold, both bound together by something else I just couldn’t put my finger on.  She must’ve finally felt my eyes on her, cause she whipped around suddenly, and the air got even colder somehow, pressing down on my wards against it like an avalanche rolling down a mountain; it was all I could do to hold them in place.  Even Asher got anxious, dancing about a bit despite himself.

She didn’t attack me outright, though, seemed more startled that I’d spotted her, really.  We stared at one another for several minutes I think, not sure what to make of one another.  I sensed her mystic sight upon me as she looked me over and saw her look of puzzlement.  Finally, I broke the ice, so to speak, and introduced myself, and that I was just inquirin’ as to why she felt the need to turn the Louisville area into a winter wonderland, and if there were anything I could do to help her out. 

Lookin’ back on it now, I suppose that was one of the biggest mistakes I could’ve made.

Before I knew it, she had burst into tears and was on her knees in the snow, cryin’ her eyes out about her lover and her getting’ into a big fight, and before I knew it, I was down there tryin’ to comfort her.  Finally got a name out of her, and it was a weird one for Kentucky to be sure, Assane.  Sounded foreign, just couldn’t guess which kinda foreign back then, not that I would’ve ever guessed it right anyway.

I certainly had no idea what was happenin’ right then, nor could I have understood exactly what I’d just stepped into, but the next few years would be one hell of a ride.

#Lore24 – Entry #184 – Supers Month II #3 – The Way of the Gun

From the journal of Abigail “Sassy” Dawson, Mage of the Order of Hecate

The rifle I’d managed to get my hands on weren’t anything special, just an old Enfield muzzleloader that had seen a bit too much work on the battlefield.  Accurate enough for what I wanted if a bit on the “well-used” side, but not like them new fancy repeaters that were startin’ to show up.  Couldn’t get my hands on a new Springfield or no revolvers at the time either, but that’d come later on.  I’d grown up with this kind of gun anyhow, so I knew all about their quirks.  Even spending a couple years in the hills with Granny Opal didn’t affect my aim too much; a dozen shots with the gun and I was pretty much dead on target.  Not that she appreciated all my shootin’ up in her holler, and I don’t reckon Smoky liked it none either, but the meat I brought in with it made up for it, even if she might’ve looked at me like I was a little off in my head.

Still, weren’t too long after that when I started playin’ around and mixin’ my magical learnin’ with my shootin’.  Started by enhancin’ my caps so that they would always go off for one, so none of that misfirin’ for me!  Then I started messin’ with some of the divination to enhance my aimin’; before long I was nailin’ shots with that ol’ rifle that nobody on Earth had the right to make.  After that, I got the bright idea to start infusin’ some elemental energy into my shot.  First time I shot a tree with one of them explodin’ Minie balls, I was somehow impressed and terrified at the same time.  After that I toned things down a bit, makin’ a smaller charge, tryin’ some fire and ice and such.  Even tried workin’ with the power to try some kinda quick reloadin’ scheme with an elemental helper, but that didn’t work out so well.  Wouldn’t be the craziest thing I’d wind up doin’ with my guns by any stretch; I was just getting’ started after all.

One day down in town, I heard that the War Between the States was declared done and learned about President Lincoln getting’ assassinated.  Seemed like things were on the mend, but I’d learn soon enough that couldn’t be further from the truth.  Still, I got that itch to see just how things had changed since those Union bastards came in on us.  I was still raw about that, but war ain’t nothin’ great, and brings out the worst in everyone, so I wasn’t plannin’ on holdin’ a grudge or nothin’; I done dealt with those that did it, after all, and was finally startin’ to sleep full nights again without wakin’ up screamin’. 

But, that’s neither here nor there.  Once I’d mentioned to Granny Opal I was thinkin’ about explorin’ about a bit, she put me through my paces in the next few weeks, makin’ sure I had all the knowledge I could ever need.  We parted on good terms, in her cantankerous way, and I was even told I was welcome back if I ever found myself back in this neck of the woods.  I’d never make it back to her, though, and I never really found out what happened to her, but I half expect to see her show up somewhere down the line, chidin’ me for not visitn’ her none.

#Lore24 – Entry #183 – Supers Month II #2 – The Way of Magic

From the journal of Abigail “Sassy” Dawson, Mage of the Order of Hecate

I’d learn a few things when I finally woke up and took account of where I was.  I could smell the age of the old cabin mixed with the scent of herbs and fresh-baked bread, saw that my wounds had been tended and bandaged.  It only took a few moments before I realized I was right hungry, so I eased out of bed, unsteady as I was at the time, and stepped through the open doorway into the main room of the cabin.  That was when I’d meet Granny Opal for the first time, a witch older than the hills themselves so it was said.  I’d heard the name growin’ up but didn’t ever figure the tales of a witch up in the distant hills to be fact till I saw her and she introduced herself.  She weren’t nothing like what I figured from what I’d heard about her; she looked more like the ‘granny’ of her namesake than the old crone you’d think of when you hear the word “witch”, gray hair up in a bun, plump and wrinkled with age, a little pair of glasses threatening to slip off her nose, that kind of look. 

Still, she weren’t one to mince words and dillydally about, so she told me how it was and how it was going to be for a fair sight.  As she told it, I’d sought her out on my own after a fashion now that my powers had woke up, and she was gonna teach me how not to get myself and others killed with what I could do, at least, not by accident.  I guess maybe she took a bit of pity on me then when my stomach spoke up, cause she said she’d wait till after breakfast before startin’ my lessons.  I never once questioned her ‘bout all this; just seemed right to me now that I didn’t really have noweheres else to go; I had family up north ‘round Lexington somewhere, so I’d been told, but I never met them, so they might as well not have ever existed.  I took a seat at the old table and noted all the strange things she had hangin’ ‘round her place, animal bones and sticks and beads and feathers and the like, all kinds of different arrangements, and all kinds of bottles and jugs filled with things I’d learn about later on, not all of them pleasant.  Granny Opal was a good cook, I’d say, fixed some fine bread and stew, though the taste was a little funny till you got used to it.

Once my stomach weren’t interruptin’ us from jawin’, she started teachin’ me about what had happened.  I started gettin’ images in my head of what all had happened that day as my memories came rushin’ back.  I got real close to sickin’ up right then when I remembered what I’d done, but managed to hold all that food I’d just eaten in somehow.  As she went over the basics and started learnin’ me some techniques to focus my mind and spirit and my head cleared up, I first became aware of my familiar, Asher, lingerin’ over by the fence, chewin’ on some grass.  Turns out he’d been my familiar since I’d handled breakin’ him in a couple years back, I just never realized what it was I’d done.  Now that I’d started learnin’ the ways of magic, it weren’t long before I was talkin’ to him in my head and hearin’ his voice just as plain as day.  That’s how I eventually learned he’d picked me up out in the woods, havin’ slipped outta the stables on his own once the shootin’ started, and he’d sensed Granny Opal all on his own and took me to her.

I’d be sittin’ out the rest of the War with Granny Opal, becoming an apprentice witch, I suppose.  She’d introduce me to her familiar soon enough, a big ol’ bobcat named Smoky, and though he weren’t no normal bobcat, he still put Asher’s nerves on edge whenever he was about.  I’d learn that our familiars acted as something of a buffer and a conduit for tappin’ into the magic that was all around us, though I reckon magic had started to fade away from the world a while back for whatever reason, which was why there weren’t too many of us witches about anymore.  They were also magical beings, our familiars, bonded to us for the rest of our days, though they could certainly still be killed through other means, and were that to happen, we’d lose our connection to the majority of our magic till we bonded a new one. 

I’d learn some basic control techniques, how to call upon the elements and formulate magical essence into our “spells”, and a fair bit of her herbalism and alchemy, and how to use the mystic sight, too.  ‘Course, I had to learn all them pesky rules and such about what I should and shouldn’t be doin’ with my magic, but I’ll save all that lecturin’ for somewheres else. 

We didn’t see a lot of visitors out there at Granny Opal’s cabin; not many would venture out that way unless they was in need of some of her special healin’ poultices and the like.  Everyone was downright afraid of her, really, but I figure that was more just somethin’ she spread around to keep most people away.  She enjoyed her privacy, and just tolerated me for a short spell, I reckon.  Still, she weren’t unpleasant or mean, was a good teacher, and was mostly patient with me.  I’d ride Asher down through the hills a good ways to town ever so often to pick up a few supplies that weren’t traded to Granny by her occasional visitors, and I’d pick myself up a rifle for huntin’ and such after a fair bit of tradin’. 

Granny thought I was a might touched in the head when I came back with that gun, since everything we could ever need we could work through magic in some way or another, but I just didn’t feel right not havin’ one.  Sure, I could fling rocks or manage a spurt of fire, or somethin’ else like that by then, but I don’t reckon that’d go over well outside her little holler.  Folk just weren’t gonna accept that sort of thing in the modern world.  Might actually be why magic started to fade, I guess; people just stopped believen’ in it.  I didn’t plan on stickin’ around forever, and she didn’t expect me to either.  So, I’d start playin’ around on my own, and as I’d learn, I could do some right fancy tricks when I combined my magic with my shootin’. 

#Lore24 – Entry #158 – Wild West Month #6 – The Golden Star Serpent Which Breaks the World

As told by Kumiko Stalks-Amongst-the-Stars, shaman of the Midnight Panther tribe of Kerra-Kerra

Our Great Mother Saressh, in her divine wisdom, gifts her most faithful children with the gift of the Sight, of visions of futures that may or may not come to pass.  It is with her guidance that we have found our way, alongside the many spirits of the land and seas and air that dwell upon the Broken Cage that Still Imprisons. 

Yet, all that he has shown us does not bode well for our people or for those who are not of the Kerra-Kerra or the Other Peoples who Roam the Bitter Frontier, or even the places within the world we do not travel.  For there exists a prophecy that has not come to pass, but has been shared by the shaman of all tribes, that I have experienced myself.

One day, there shall be a great Golden Serpent from the Stars beyond the Broken Cage that Still Imprisons who shall fall upon our world.  This Golden Star Serpent shall seek truths that we ourselves do not know, buried in the deepest and darkest of secret places within our world.  We know that what this Golden Star Serpent seeks lies within our sacred lands, within the Bitter Frontier.  This much Saressh has shown us to be true, though when it shall happen, we cannot know for certain.

She has also shown us that should this Golden Sky Serpent find what she seeks, the Broken Cage that Still Imprisons shall be changed forever, the very nature of our world torn asunder.  This will scatter our peoples amongst the stars themselves, not only the Kerra-Kerra, but those dwellers in the Cities from Beyond the Great Walls and even in lands far beyond our own Bitter Frontier.  The very nature of life upon our world will be changed forever.  Our world will be broken; this we cannot prevent.

And yet there is hope, for the Great Mother has told us that not all is lost, for even in the darkest of times, the spirit of our people shall continue to thrive through and beyond this Breaking of the World.  Though we of the Broken Cage that Still Imprisons may be changed forever, we will not allow our spirits to die, cannot allow our ways to be forgotten.  We must adapt to whatever changes may come, for that is the life we have always lived upon our Bitter Frontier.

#Lore24 – Entry #157 – Wild West Month #5 – Life and Death Upon the Bitter Frontier

As told by Kumiko Stalks-Amongst-the-Stars, shaman of the Midnight Panther tribe of Kerra-Kerra

The Bitter Frontier is our life.  The Bitter Frontier is our death.  To live as a free people, we Kerra-Kerra must accept that freedom is first dangerous, but preferable to the life inside the Cities Beyond the Great Walls that lie in the direction of the sun’s rise.  Though filled with many dangers, the Bitter Frontier is where we live our lives, thriving in ways those not born of the wilds can never understand.

The Bitter Frontier’s bounty is plentiful until it is not.  If the spirits are not respected, then they will see to it that we suffer for our disrespect; when we revere them as they should be, our lives are simpler and filled with good hunting and good growth.  Some spirits may see to it that we suffer for our lack of action in defending them as well, for there are many of the peoples from the Cities Beyond the Great Walls who venture into the Bitter Frontier and now have many settlements in lands they have claimed from the Many Peoples who are both Kerra-Kerra and those who are not.  They do not understand our ways, and this leads to conflict, which upsets the natural order.

They seek what we do not, ripping stones they desire from the bowels of the earth itself, sucking the very lifeblood of the land to burn and turn the skies black with smoke, to expand their claims upon the land, attempting to bind it with their Bands of Wood and Steel so that their Howling Steel Chariots may travel swiftly across the Bitter Frontier.  They bring their Thundering Weapons to bear against us, killing us from afar, so it is with great reluctance that we have been forced to adopt their ways of killing, lest we ourselves be killed.

But hope still springs for the Kerra-Kerra, for the spirits hear our cries, and make cries of their own.  Those from the Cities Beyond the Great Walls are not welcome within the Bitter Frontier, and venture here at their own risk.  Many have been the Lesser Uproars of the spirits, sundering settlements that grow too large, scattering its peoples to the wind and ripping free their binding bands upon the earth, removing the precious things they seek to claim from within the shifting rock.  Entire landscapes have been changed by the fury of the spirits.

I fear that this will be an eternal struggle, for that is the nature of the Bitter Frontier.

#Lore24 – Entry #156 – Wild West Month #4 – The Ways of the Spirit World

As told by Kumiko Stalks-Amongst-the-Stars, shaman of the Midnight Panther tribe of Kerra-Kerra

Though we will always owe much to our Great Mother, the goddess Sarresh, it is in the home of the Great Spirits that we dwell, and to them we must always show much respect and deference, for it is ultimately they who will allow the Kerra-Kerra to continue to live upon the Broken Cage that Still Imprisons.  This is why we must learn of the many spirits that live within this world, for we must know and respect and fear them, lest we suffer another Great Uproar and be scoured from the very face of this world.

Greatest of the spirits are the primal sprits, those of the most basic and elemental forces that have the power to shape the land itself, those which determine where we may live, where we may hunt, and whether our people may live or die.  Spirts of Earth, Fire, Water, and Wind are the four most primal elements which make up all the others, and it is these spirits we must always strive to revere and offer our thanks, for it was they who caused the Great Uproar when they freed themselves from the Devil-Wardens.

Next are our most sacred spirits, the totem animals which our tribes revere and have taken as our guardians and guides.  For our people, it is the midnight panther, a powerful and cunning hunter which stalks its prey by night.  It is the great spirit of the midnight panther, Munkuro Tsume, which we revere most, and who grants us our spiritual magics and, for the shaman of our tribe, our ability to take on their forms so that we may travel amongst them.  This is like the other tribes of Kerra-Kerra, and those who are not of our people who still hold to the ways of revering the spirits. 

Then there are the many spirits of nature that dwell within all aspects of the world.  They are made up of pieces of the great primal spirits and are found within everything upon the Broken Cage that Still Imprisons.  These spirits are of the plants and trees, of the rain and snow and drought, of the earth which grows our food, of the animals who are not our totem spirits, of the mechanics used by those who are not of our people…everything.  It is not important for those who are not shaman to know all their names, but it is vital that they continue to acknowledge their presence within and without, for we must always strive to live in harmony with them.

#Lore24 – Entry #122 – Muckenmyre Month #1 – Shipwrecked off the Dragon Isles

From the journal of Takara, Slave Inquisitor of the Stellae Illustris.

I have little memory of the Dragon Isles; we really weren’t there that long, just a few foggy images of rocky islands in the distance.  I was there to assist the Emperor’s Inquisition as they tracked the remnants of a group tied to the Res’Teringal rebellion, the last of those who would dare oppose his rightful rule, driven from their hiding place after several months of searching.  The remnant rebels had taken up with a pirate fleet, hoping to flee the emperor’s grasp, perhaps to live long enough to mount another attempt to buck the control of the Empire.  Once our chase fleet had caught up with them, they made straight for the Dragon Isles.  We knew they were bound for Cypress Isle at the tip of the island chain, but they were desperate. 

They turned toward the inner islands. 

They brought the storms…the Dragons’ Fury.

These storms were…like nothing I had ever witnessed in my life.  No storm within the many regions of the Empire that I have traversed in my two centuries of life were anything close to the fury that came from those islands, rolling down from the skies to the north like a gray and black wall of roiling death.  Our fleet was doomed the moment Inquisitor Dama decided to follow the pirates closer in.  I don’t know if they made it out; we lost sight of them within moments as the seas began to surge, lightning struck all about, and hail slammed into us.  The thunder…it really was like the roar of dragons.  That is the only way I can describe it…what else could sound so terrifying, even to someone like me, than a roar from a legendary dragon?

We tried to turn away, but it was far too late for us.  Our decision to follow the rebels toward the inner islands had sealed our doom.  Our ships were shattered in minutes.  I had already made my peace with my death, to whatever fate my soul would face.  My life had been nothing but suffering, either inflicted upon me, or with myself inflicting it upon others.  It was all for the Emperor of course, may He live forever, and I certainly would change nothing that I had done in his name…but to die so quickly…I certainly could never have imagined such a…merciful end.  It was not an ending for someone who had been responsible for causing so much pain to others, especially those of my own kind.  Most of my brother and sister slaves certainly did not deserve what I did to them, but I am a loyal slave to my great Emperor, and it is his will that I channeled; I was his vessel, his voice to those who could not understand it.

I felt the cold of the virulent sea, felt the electric charge in the air and water from the lightning as I was tossed around, felt my bones break from the impact of the hailstones, from my body slamming into the broken hull as it was tossed from one massive wave to the next.  Somehow I became entangled with the rigging or some netting, became stuck fast to a portion of one of the broken ships.  In my last moments of consciousness, I was certain that I would be sinking below the waves, would become one with the sweet, cold, void that lay below.

My expectations were perhaps too high.

My hopes for death were premature.

For I am still here.

#Lore 24 – Entry #118 – Sci-Fi Month II #27 – BDSM Cybersystems Model S/M-02 Scouting/Mapping Drones

From the Personal Journal of Chiasa Charity Chiasakaniki, Systems Analyst and Programmer, IT Division, assigned UEF-04, Maharani Morgiana.

I’ve always enjoyed playing with drones, and now that I’ve finally had the chance to mess around with these bleeding edge scouting drones they’ve loaded us up with on this mission, I’m like a kid again.  These things are just awesome!  Is the name of the manufacturer a bit on the shady side?  Absolutely, but there’s no signs of whipped asses or kinky shit here, just the unfortunate naming scheme these people settled on way back when they just did custom tech mods.  Or maybe it was fortunate?  Certainly gets a lot more diverse crowd on your product, that’s for sure.  I looked’em up before, seems like they do good work, and they hit it off big time back when Aphelion Station was barely a year old with their security bots, so I reckon they were brought in to handle some new drones for these exploration gigs too.

Anyway, these drones are preem!  Their bodies are light weight and durable carbon fiber, and they make use of micro-grav field generators so they can fly around without worrying about getting propellers stuck or broken.  They kinda look like little black flying saucers, about a foot in diameter, but once they’ve activated their adaptive camo, you won’t even notice.  You can take control of them directly through a comm app or dedicated controller, and they’re packed with multiple small sensor packs, high-def multi-spectrum cameras, and an all-round laser mapping setup that’ll create super-accurate 3D maps of whatever they’re scanning.  I almost couldn’t believe the amount of hardware they’re packing in these little things; total super-spy stuff right here!  Curiously, I did get the sense there was magic in these things, so I’m thinking that maybe they’ve taken normal equipment that is usually much larger and micro-sized it. 

Talk about one hell of a price tag!  When I asked exactly how much these things cost, all my boss would say was that I’d better not break one, or I’d be paying it off the rest of this trip. 

Luckily for me I didn’t have to be the one who broke one to get a look inside; once we arrived in the Vellion sector and picked up the scout teams, we found out a couple of the drones had been damaged, and I convinced one of the BDSMC techs to let me help out, being the super-talented IT tech and leet hacker I am and all.  So, that’s when I learned these things are using the same kind of advanced AI as the security bots, specialized for evasion and recon operations.  They’ve not really been field tested in extreme conditions, so bugs are bound to show up, and that’s what happened here.  Some of the local wildlife didn’t like these things getting close, even if they are silent and almost invisible, and were able toss some rocks or bash them with sticks.  Pretty lame way for these things to go down, but it’s a harsh world out there, I guess.  Can’t make them invulnerable and this light; those electronics are protected from the elements, but an angry monkey with a rock is just too much.

So, like, I kinda maybe managed to make a copy of the AI code…not that I really intended to, of course, it just kinda happened when I wasn’t paying too much attention to what I might’ve been doing while running a diagnostic with the tech.  I’ve been pouring through it, and like, holy shit, this is advanced stuff!  There’s all kinds of options in here that aren’t even in the official specs, just waiting to be turned on or off or applied to different type bots!  I am going to have so much fun playing around with this code!  I gotta get my hands on some parts now, build my own little buddy bot!

You know…thinking it over, I might actually hint at the BDSMC techs that I could improve the AI on these things, make their evasive routines more responsive, that kind of thing. Or at least help them with the debugging stuff.  I’m pretty good at running code, I’d say.  And it’d like, be a lot less suspicious if I wound up building my own little bot, right?  Seriously, sometimes my hands just do things without my mind even being there!  I blame my tail-brains, lol.  They’re always getting me in trouble, moving on their own without me realizing it.  Kerryns and ferians probably get it.

#Lore 24 – Entry #116 – Sci-Fi Month II #25 – Astral Divination and Navigation

From the Personal Journal of Primula Tallfoot, Arcane Support Division Head, assigned UEF-04 Maharani Morgiana. 

Sometimes I can’t help but ponder how I’ve wound up all the way out here…where my life has gone so very wrong that we’re relying on someone like Mizutani to navigate this entire fleet.  He still gets lost aboard the Morgiana on the regular, is still routinely late to work, and yet he’s the most talented diviner aboard?  Somehow.  Some way.  Mizutani, who can’t seem to see past his next date night, is being called upon to navigate the fleet?!  Is one of the gods of magic just fucking with us on this one?  I’d believe it.  Seriously…Mizutani is our go to on this leg of the trip?  I’d better make sure that cage of his is extra tight and prickly so that he stays focused, or we’ll all wind up diving into a quasar or taking the wrong kind of ride through an aetheric current.

Captain Silvercask is the one to blame for this mess we’re about to find ourselves in.  We’ve been following the course that was approved by the ASC before we left, and out of the blue, the captain showed up this morning to inquire about long range divination for a system outside the planned flight path.  He never told me where he got the idea to view the system from afar, and was actually pretty tight-lipped about it, simply asking for an indulgence.  Fine, whatever.  Everyone has secrets.   I get it.  Maybe he’s got word from one of those trailblazer teams?  Regardless, since we’ve still not overcome that long range interference that plagues the fleet’s sensors out here, we’ll have to rely on our diviners.

I still can’t understand how Mizutani specialized in divination, with a special focus on astral divination, and somehow excelled at it at the academy.  Yeah, I had to pull his records again just to make sure I hadn’t imagined it when I’d read it the first time.  Did someone give me falsified records as a joke?  The captain and I have arranged for tomorrow morning, first thing, to find out.  The ship’s due to drop out of hyperspace at 0900 and the ASD is due to begin divination immediately once we revert to realspace.  I’ll be overseeing the operation, of course, but Mizutani’s the lead on this one.  The twit looked like he was about to panic when I told him about him finally taking on some serious responsibility.  I had to get pretty stern with him to make him understand that being late in the morning was not an option if he ever wanted his dick free again and might have implied some additional restrictions if he screws up.  Think I got my point across.  I’m sure he’ll be plenty motivated to perform tomorrow.  If it’s one thing arcanists are good at, it’s working under pressure.  At least, I hope that’s still how they teach them at that fancy school…

Entry Update:

I guess anything’s possible, even Mizutani getting to work on time and performing his duties as expected.  I wouldn’t have believed it until I saw it today, but he actually knows what he’s doing.  Apparently when properly motivated, he can perform admirably.  Will it continue beyond today?  I have my doubts, but we’ll see. 

The astral divination went splendidly, with Mizutani leading another half dozen of our diviners in a circle, their gazes focused on the system in question.  It looks like another fairly standard star system, a dozen planetary bodies, though only one appears to be in the habitable zone, the third one in line.  Several of the larger outer planets will likely serve well for construction materials and other resources, and there were no immediate dangers found in the system itself, no signs of modern tech, but there are definitely more primitive civilizations on the planet, pre-industrial, equivalent to most of our own societies during the Age of Legends.  Thus far, the diviners have seen humans, orcs, kobolds, and a few elvish enclaves; there are likely others in the mix as well.  So far, my prediction of encountering no truly alien species is correct.

Mizutani was drawn to a particular region as he focused on the planet’s surface, in the mountains on one of the southern continents.  He sensed lingering arcane ripples coming from the area; his scrying mirror revealed ruins there…draconic ruins in fact.  Though mostly hidden amongst the jungle overgrowth, the higher elevations revealed undeniably draconic architecture and statues.  It seems that we’ve finally got a proper ruin to explore!  Captain Silvercask is changing course as I write this and has already dispatched a scouting team to secure the area for us and other teams to study.  We should be arriving within the week, and I for one am anxious to finally set foot outside the ship and get to some serious work!