#Lore24 – Entry #357 – Sci-Fi Month IV #22 – Vexations Along the Way

Transcribed From the Personal Recording Implant of Andra Ganim, Chronicler of the Codex Infinitum

AG:  “I must admit I’m a little hesitant to ask, but could you tell me more about those vexations?”

RV:  “You have absolutely nothing to worry about, my dear.  I assure you, though I may seem a bit angry at times, it’s not aimed toward you.  I consider this quite the honor, truth be told; a shame it’s taken you this long to seek me out, but I suppose all things come in time.

Now, my initial challenge in my study of this reaction was simply finding enough test subjects.  I had no way of easily identifying those who possessed this trait unless I could see them or interact with them myself, so given all my other duties, this proved quite troublesome.  Plus, the extremely low number of those that possessed this trait made it exceptionally difficult to find in general.  That was one reason I began expanding my search to other worlds when I was able to travel freely amongst them.

By the time of the Age of Legends, I would have an understanding of what exactly this trait was, what it indicated about the nature of those whom possessed it, and would shift the focus of my studies to attain a deeper understanding of what it truly meant, what other secrets may lay hidden around it and behind it.  Of course, my studies were delayed through war, threats to the entire world, and various other annoyances that would divert my attention.

Beyond the Imperium War, I had hoped to study the incarnation of Lila Darius of the period, but by the time I was able to return to my studies, she had died and been reincarnated elsewhere in the galaxy, and I could not locate her.  So, even without trying, she had caused me yet another delay.  With the spread of populations throughout the stars, one would think it would prove somewhat easier to identify the individuals I needed, but for a time, it seemed that my choices were very limited, had even seemed to have dried up for a few decades.  I through the drakonae of all people would have an abundance of these individuals, but they proved to be just as rare amongst them as any other species. 

I attempted to study this on myself over the years, of course, but ultimately could not find the data I needed without placing myself in greater risk than I deemed safe.  However, I would remain patient, learning what else I could about the pattern of draconic travel and details about their methods that were hidden deep within their ruins and relics.  Their newest creations that I could find, those only a few thousand years older than I, possessed some extremely fine details that were not present in older works, that had simply been lost to the ravages of time.  One could compare these small details to DNA strands, practically invisible and just as easily destroyed, almost as if they were coded into the very materials as they were forged by their draconic creators.

AG:  “What did these details reveal to you?”

RV:  “Unfortunately, nothing that I could immediately act upon for my own desires, but that would still prove useful in some form or another throughout DSM’s existence.  There were indications of methods that could be used to alter or influence the various aspects of life itself using magic and science that had been forgotten even before I came along.  Some small fraction of this knowledge I managed to extract and utilize, leading to some of the more significant contributions from DSM over the years, mostly in the form of advancing medical technology to the state where divine healing has become almost extinct in some areas of the core worlds. 

But that was research I mostly delegated to my underlings in the AR&D division, for it didn’t further advance the understanding of what lay beneath and beyond the flesh.  I would continue my studies of the patterns of draconic movements through time, though, and given their spiral nature, I arrived at a theory that would seem to be advancing to fact.  Even after their vanishing, the pattern continues, and after several more centuries, I was able to again begin to find more of the test subjects I required.  More of the individuals with this trait began to appear, several of which drove the further development of the corporatocracy as it is today, only this time I would not waste my time being subtle.  I would have what I wanted, whatever it took, whoever it was that I had to lay my hands on to study.”