Page #2

Professor Faulk shot an inquiring look at Kota then back to the scorch mark and his notes covering the classroom’s floor. “Okay, Kota what do you need?” Defeat apparent in his face Professor Faulk kicks at his notes while he walks over to Kota snatching Kota’s journal from his hands. “Well professor I believe I may have came up with a way to see through glamors. If you look at the design on page forty-two, it’s a concept for a pair of goggles with a new filter I’ve concocted. By using a dispel potion bath on a set of opal lenses the refraction rate should be amplified tenfold causing the glamor to be temporarily scrambled.” As Kota speaks Professor Faulk nods his head in agreement and glances through the pages that Kota mentions. “Kota I must admit these designs are rather impressive and the basis of your theory is sound. What do you need from me?” Professor Faulk asks as he shoves the journal back into Kota’s hands. He pauses for a moment to look Kota over looking at the bright green eyed boy who is barely nineteen years old. Kota has round dark circles underneath his eyes stubble on his chin and at six feet tall is eye to eye with the professor. “I need to ask for funds for the opal lenses sir. I know you don’t give charity so whatever I need to do to earn the money please let me do it.” The Professor mulls this over for a moment then says , “Absolutely not, if you need funds take it to the Dean if she believes your project is worthwhile she’ll pay for it I have no spare silver for someone else’s theories.”

 Kota was taken aback then he understood. “You’ve already blown through this semester funds haven’t you?” Kota said this smugly and confidently with a bit sarcasm blending with his voice. The Professor turned and began to walk away trying to hide a smile. “You Bum!” Kota screamed as he ran out the door and towards the dean office.

Page #1

It’s here in the midst of the celebration in Mirage City that we find Kota a young apprentice to the Scientist Edmond Mortimer Faulk, running through the crowded streets toward Mirage University the finest school for both magic and science in all of Reyanall. Kota is running at full speed desperately trying to hold his notes in his journal as he hustles by the people crowding the streets of the city. Everywhere Kota looks people are drinking and making merry while they haggle with road side vendors over the price for tech or trinkets. In the distance Kota hears an excitable man screaming, “Come one come all see the amazing Acid Amour held together by magic metals watch as every blade dissolves as it touches this shield.” The fact that Kota heard the man over the throngs of people filling the streets told Kota this man must be able to scream like a banshee, but no two bit con or street side vendor could dissuade Kota from his mission. Smells of freshly roasted meats and fine sweet treats filled the air as he neared the University located down in the heart of the city adjacent to the Palace of the Mage King. Both buildings stood at equal height if it were not for the high walls of solid stone surrounding the Palace, it is possible Kota could have wandered into the king’s court looking for Professor Faulk. Kota dashed through the corridors of glass looking inside each room as he held tightly to his notes. {“Only Professor Faulk will be able to confirm my theory and help me obtain the funds I need to produce a prototype.”}, Kota thought scanning the next classroom for any sign of the Professor. Finally as Kota rounded the corner to the courtyard he heard a slight explosion and watched a small puff of smoke appear on the other side of the university.  (“Got you now!”) Kota knew his target lay where ever that explosion had occurred and to his amusement, he did find Professor Faulk standing in an empty classroom holding a knob from a burner in hand and a relatively large scorch mark left in front of him. At that very moment Professor Faulk let fly some of the most offensive language ever before spoken in any known dialect as he threw the knob to the other end of the room and tore at his notes.

“Professor...? Do you have a moment to spare for a quick question?” Kota asked as he slowly entered the room. Being the Professor’s apprentice for over a year now Kota knew only after a failed experiment would Professor Faulk even consider working on another project if only to clear his mind of its own confusion. 

Opening

In the world of Etherya there are many creatures that are capable of sentient thought. There are the humans, the vampires, the werewolves, the mages, the dragons, the angels, and the merfolk all of whom would live in a chaotic all be it harmonic state if it were not for the demons. Demons, fallen angels consumed by their sins, ravage the world of Etherya. See demons are much more than a household pest, they are malevolent creatures bent on consuming, collecting, breaking, using, torturing or burning the immortal souls of all the creatures that inhabit Etherya. And in Etherya’s time of greatest innovation and prosperity the world will soon discover their existence.

The year is thirteen sixty in Etherya a time of peace and technological wonder has fallen over the planet. The supercontinent Paalumar and its many nations are holding yet another peace summit slash celebration in the famous Mirage City.  Mirage City the capital of the desert nation Reyanall is famous for two very distinctive reasons. The first and most obvious upon arrival is the city is made almost entirely of glass. A shimmering jewel in the desert sand Mirage City was founded by some of the most powerful Mages in all of Etheryan history. These Mages literally bound together the sand with a special magic that only Mages of the highest order have ever been trusted to know. The second reason that Mirage City is so well known is for Amish Christopher Pi the Scientist behind the discovery of the Christopher Concept which states that magic can be stored, this being the most significant discovery in over a century. Up until Pi’s discovery Mages were bound by the limits of their physical bodies as to what they could conjure. Such as moving an object, if the object was close and small, little effort was needed to move it, but if the object was massive and further away the Mage could easily exhaust him or herself. Now with the added magic from Pi’s magic storage devices Mages and other magic users could add a bit of magic every day to crystalline objects to draw from to perform feats before unimaginable. This also meant something much more significant non-magical creatures such as humans could now use magic without the assistance of a Mage.