Do they need to be made of glass and filled with liquid magic, or do they need to be made from sugarcane to attract sweet-toothed spirits, or do they have microchips that hold impossible mathematical sequences that need to be played in order? What is your twist on the iconic wand?
Throughout history people have fallen asleep to never wake again, only to exist in a state of dream until death came for them soon after. This phenomenon was rare and most importantly, poorly understood. Cultures throughout history came up with simple explanations and stories to help themselves repress this horrid happening. Demons, fairies, spirits, and most importantly links to personal failure of character were used to frighten children and escape the very confusing and deep fear of that which we couldn't understand.
In the age of enlightenment, the occasional alienist would theorize the reason for this strange happening and the peculiar events that always seem to occur nearby were recorded finally. Failures of memory, weakness in judgement, nightmares, hallucinations, delusions and other mental phenomena were acknowledged for the first time being connected to these events.
But it wasn't until the 1970s, a time of new age mysticism and technological progress, where the answers finally came. Studies into the brain revealed that the mind, during sleep, could enter a state of connection with those nearby. But more importantly, they would reach out to minds also in this state. This state can be reached only rarely and when it is, the body starts consuming itself to gain more energy for the brain to strengthen and widen this connection. Eventually killing itself in this pursuit.
These Sleepers however, for a very short time, are able to achieve collective thinking and abilities that don't reflect our understanding of the brain. Infecting nearby minds temporarily, causing mental degradation, sensory distortions, even zombification in some cases. But these end when the brain dies.
Government shadow organizations turned to researching this far more deeply. And for nearly a decade, much was learned and with little consequence. Through the use of drugs and medications the Sleepers could survive much longer and we could even communicate with them. The Sleepers, from then on, were used for communication, storage of information, and a great assortmentof strange abilities. But in 1985, the Wake awoke.
Researchers wanted to use the brains of the dead as materials for new sleepers and so they began a project under the eye of the government. But when the first dead woke, so did the rest. The worlds dead began to wake up, not as the people they once were. But something else. Something whole malicious and hungry.
The Wake is the name for the greater horde of the undead. The Shiners, as they are individually called, are zombies in the most literal sense. They bite, scratch, and kill with no regard. And when you die, regardless of your interactions with them, you become one of them.
Humanity is on the brink of extinction. These creatures are dangerous and extremely hard to kill. Even if the brain is gone, something is deeply linked to their nervous system. And so unless they are burned to blown to pieces, they continue their onslaught.
The Wake is the horde of undead, called Shiners, that are the inevitable result of human drive for discovery.
Humanity created sleepers, people placed in chemically induced comas that significantly increase their psychic prowess. Causing the creation of a psychic sphere of influence where people can "hack in" to the brain of the sleeper to communicate with others that have done the same. This lead to an explosion of research into psychic capabilities within these spheres of influence and countless discoveries on the true might of the human mind.
However, as humanity expanded beyond the horizon and into the void, the most useful tool for them was the sleeper. Sleepers can form long range links to one another that allow for instantaneous communication to and from locations light-years apart. Creating the perfect web of relays for a budding galactic empire.
However, no one really stopped to consider the consequences of extending these powers too far. That if we can send out messages through the void this way, what stops something else from responding.
The Nightmare came suddenly and without warning. Infecting all sleepers of Roz III within a day and no one knows how far it spread outside before the sleepers were woken to prevent further contamination. The nightmare now acts to wake the dead as something... else. Something malicious amd angry to have been woken up.
Now the Wake reeks havoc on Roz III with no end in sight. And as the sleepers were woken up, there's no telling if anyone even knows something is wrong. No one is coming. No one but the dead.
Sleepers, Restless, and Dreamers.
Sleepers are seen as gifts from the universe to be used for the betterment of humanity. These individuals are kept in a perpetual state of slumber using a concoction of strange drugs to amplify their psychic prowess. These individuals can, in this state, act as powerful communicators that can reach across the cosmos instantaneously.
The premise is that people in a sleeper's sphere of influence can communicate with any individual within the same or a connected sphere of influence. By using two sleepers, people across the universe can communicate any idea with perfect clarity across the void of space without interference or delay.
However, on occasion, very rarely due to the drugs that circulate through their system, sleepers are known to have nightmares. These nightmares are known to cause localized psychic events. People within the sphere of influence will be compelled to think or act in a specific way. This can cause mass hallucinations, mental singularity, or even zombification.
Most people can access the sphere of influence without much strain or trial. However, there is a drug that allows the user to amplify their psychic prowess if they need it.
This drug is also used by the Dreamers. People who use the sphere of influence as a computation method. By ingesting these drugs regularly, they can store, communicate, and program psychic wavelengths that anchor around their own psychic presence. All this to say, they use the incredible processing power of the sleeper's brain to create mental tools for calculation, processing, or even just entertainment.
The dreamers are able to cause mental distortions. Mind control, mind alteration, and illusions are their specialty. But they can only access these powers while in the vicinity of a sleeper.
The restless are a group that pose a different problem altogether. These mages unintentionally resist the call to sleep for decades, leading to their minds blurring the lines between reality and dream. Allowing for the creation pinches, distortions in reality that redefine how an object, person, or place looks or functions.
However, restless can only resist for so long. Eventually, within a 30-ish year period, the restless will fall asleep, and then something else will awaken.
Witnesses are something angry and malicious. Often dangerous or even actively malicious, making them a horrible threat to humanity. Capable of distorting reality with little limitation, they are very difficult to defeat. The CED, Cognitive Evolution Division, are responsible for study, experimentation, and termination of unruly restless. As well as their recruitment, be it voluntary or otherwise.
At time of the comic, humanity is just beginning to learn about sleepers and the restless. And worse a strange mental influence keeps popping up in the sleepers. This influence creates strange patterns and beings as hallucinations in the sphere of influence. These manifestations affect people, causing hemorrhaging of the brain and death within moments just from visual contact.
As restless are immune to the sleepers' psychic energy, they are sent in to destroy these strange entities with their psychic powers and recover the sleeper conjuring them.
Sleepers are seen as gifts from the universe to be used for the betterment of humanity. These individuals are kept in a perpetual state of slumber to allow humanity to communicate across the cosmos instantaneously.
The premise is that people in a sleeper's sphere of influence can communicate with any individual within the same or a connected sphere of influence. By using two sleepers people across the universe can communicate any idea with perfect clarity across the void of space without interference or delay.
However, on occasion, very rarely due to the drugs that circulate through their system, sleepers are known to have nightmares. These nightmares are known to cause localized psychic events. People within the sphere of influence will be compelled to think or act in a specific way. This can cause mass hallucinations, mental singularity, or even zombification. When this happens, the sleepless are called to deal with the issue.
The sleepless are mages that do not sleep that can blur the lines between reality and dream. Creating pinches, distortions in reality that redefine how an object, person, or place looks or functions. They are sent out to materialize the nightmare and kill it in the physical world. This is done by assigning the nightmare to a sacrificial object and destroying said object.
When two people meet, they establish a link. The center of this link becomes a second mind that absorbs their psychic energy and provides basic communication. After years of being together, whether they like or hate one another, the second mind starts allowing them to trade emotions. As in they know what the other is feeling and are drawn to feel the same, circumstances permitting.
After maybe a decade, both can communicate subtle thoughts without meaning to. And the power continues to swell the more time they send together.
However, if this person, called an anchor, dies, the psychic energy snaps back into the other person. Normally, this causes a psychic reaction. The person, depending on the circumstances of the death and relationship to the deceased, will transform into a monster. For example, a positive relationship that was built mainly on trust and kindness will result in a transformation into a Hunger. A creature that looks to consume the joy and pleasure of those around them. Often leading to mass suicides depending on the quantity of psychic energy in the snap.
But, if someone has a anchor of equal or greater strength, they will instead become a psychic. Capable of superhuman abilities. For example, a relationship built on begrudging respect and hate will result in a Breaker class psychic. Someone who can cause explosive bursts of psychic energy and have superhuman strength and endurance.
My group does these little character journals where we write scenes to kinda show off our characters. And we all try to one up each other with every post. So I thought I'd draw out a little scene. The scene is of my Edit who can't control her powers and changes her face almost every day finally gaining full control and seeing her real face for the first time since her awakening. It's not great art, and it's especially rough for how long I took to make it.
Metals in my world are far rarer than in our own, so when a sword or other weapon is broken or rusts, people will attempt to save it or even reforge it rust and all. Which is how a strange phenomenon was discovered. Rust seems to carry the memories of the metal it comes from. And when forged into a new weapon or tool, these memories enhance what the weapon is capable of. This is the process of enchantment.
Some memories of violence cause swords to deal wounds that do not heal, some memories of passion or vigor cause hammers to strike harder, some memories of focus cause knives to cut cleaner. And the more an enchantment rusts and is reforged, the more powerful it becomes.
For example, memories of violence might, in the beginning enchant swords to deal wounds that do not heal or strikes that don't miss. As the enchantment progresses in potency and presentation, these slashes may strike at a distance. Eventually, a target may be cut to ribbons just from the wielder touching the sword.
And so, people in my world have taken to rust farming; placing iron or steel weapons or tools into the moist soil to cause it to rust faster. Then they take rust and enchant other weapons or tools via imbuing them with the rust.
Crossbreeding rusts allow more nuanced and powerful enchantments.
Rust cutting
The process of rust cutting is a little more complex in this world than it would be in ours.
It all begins with the smashing of fruits and adhesives into a fine paste that loosens and collects rust. There are six standard versions of this paste recognized by the alchemist college (though technically there is no limit to its possible variations), each pulls on different memory types, preventing the mixing of non-compatible rusts and allowing the propagation of specific enchantments.
Then comes boiling. By boiling the pastes at different temperatures it becomes loose enough to get into the rust so it becomes sodden with the paste. Placing the rusty tool within the pot and altering the temperature ais integral to the process of rust cutting. Each paste has one, if not several, temperatures that they need to reach to truly saturate the rust so it becomes easier to cut.
Finally cutting the rust is relatively easy to extremely difficult, depending on how well you made and applied the paste.
Six elixirs
The categories of elixer, the magic paste, are as follows:
Hunger - desire, hate, passion; known for violent and forceful magics.
Surrender - fear, withdraw, patience; known for distortive and illusory magics.
Empathy - understanding, connection; known for healing and supportive magics.
Domination - control, subduing, suppressing; known for manipulation and dominion magics.
Tranquility - acceptance; known to absorb and store magics.
Wild - confusion of magic; known to be volitile and unpredictable. Used specifically for expirimental magic that pushes the bounds of what magic is capable of.
Salt portals are doorways drawn with loose salt that allow the mind to wander through. These formation follow strict linguistic rules to determine what the mind sees on the other side. And always there mist be a witness to walk through.
Basically, salt in my world can be arranged into certain patterns to allow one to transfer their mind across time and space to another pattern of the same make. Allowing people who step onto the aforementioned salt portal to see and hear into the past or present of other portals since their creation.
However, there must be a witness on the other side, at the other portal. A witness is used almost as a host for the mind as it travels to these various portals. You can only see through their eyes and hear through their ears if they are within the space of the portal. Otherwise the mind can travel, but will experience nothing.
This has led to the creation of forced witnesses. People tied or otherwise forced to remain within the portal at all times. They are fed, they are kept alive, but only as long as they remain useful.
And when a witness dies, they are submerged in the salt to preserve their knowledge. Meaning anyone who mentally I travels via salt portal will have access to their memories.
In essence, rust in my project is when the memories of a metallic weapon or tool start to manifest in the physical world. One can reforge the rust into a new tool and the memories in the rust will imbue said weapon or tool with an enchantment. And the more an enchantment rusts and is reforged the more powerful it becomes.
For example, memories of violence might, in the beginning enchant swords to deal wounds that do not heal or strikes that don't miss. As the enchantment progresses in potency and presentation, these slashes may strike at a distance. Eventually, a target may be cut to ribbons just from the wielder touching the sword.
And so, people in my world have taken to rust farming; placing well-used metal weapons or tools into the wet soil to cause them to rust faster. Then they take rust shavings and enchant other weapons or tools. Sometimes those new weapons or tools are sold off, other times they are placed back into the ground to let the memory fester.
God Rust is an anomaly where the rust bleeds memories of things that haven't happened and places that don't exist or at least not that we know of. And when you make contact with the God Rust you experience these memories and the senses used to perceive them, senses humanity hasn't developed.
When this happens you enter a state where you can sense a world that shouldn't exist. One we simply cannot see. A world of fairies and monsters and spirits. This state lasts only for a short time, but having access to god rusted metals allows you to enter this state at any time.
In my story, my mc steps on a rusty nail and gains insight into this world. And whenever a creature of this other world is around she feels the pain of the nail in her foot. This is the beginning of her adventure in this hidden world.
Anyway what do you think of this idea? Anything that you would suggest changing? I'm open to ideas.
In essence, rust in my project is when the memories of a metallic weapon or tool start to manifest in the physical world. One can reforge the rust into a new tool and the memories in the rust will imbue said weapon or tool with an enchantment. And the more an enchantment rusts and is reforged the more powerful it becomes.
For example, memories of violence might, in the beginning enchant swords to deal wounds that do not heal or strikes that don't miss. As the enchantment progresses in potency and presentation, these slashes may strike at a distance. Eventually, a target may be cut to ribbons just from the wielder touching the sword.
I had the idea for a phenomenon called god rust to occur when a metallic weapon or tool rusts due to human intervention. The process is a secret held by a small group of people who know the secret of rust magic in general.
The god rust is an anomaly where the rust bleeds memories of things that haven't happened and places that don't exist or at least not that we know of. And when you make contact with the god rust you experience these memories and the senses used to perceive them, senses humanity hasn't developed.
When this happens you enter a state where you can sense a world that shouldn't exist. One we simply cannot see. A world of fairies and dragons and monsters and spirits. This state lasts only for a short time, but having access to god rusted metals allows you to enter this state at any time.
In my story, my mc steps on a rusty nail and gains insight into this world. And whenever a creature of this other world is around she feels the pain of the nail in her foot. This is the beginning of her adventure in this hidden world.
Anyway I don't know if this addition ruins the magic so I wanted to ask for opinions. What do you think of this idea? Anything that you would suggest changing that would still allow for my mc to interact with this other world? I'm open to ideas.
In essence, rust in my project is when the memories of a metallic weapon or tool start to manifest in the physical world. One can reforge the rust into a new tool and the memories in the rust will imbue said weapon or tool with an enchantment. And the more an enchantment rusts and is reforged the more powerful it becomes.
For example, memories of violence might, in the beginning enchant swords to deal wounds that do not heal or strikes that don't miss. As the enchantment progresses in potency and presentation, these slashes may strike at a distance. Eventually, a target may be cut to ribbons just from the wielder touching the sword.
I had the idea for a phenomenon called god rust to occur when a metallic weapon or tool rusts due to human intervention. The process is a secret held by a small group of people who know the secret of rust magic in general.
The god rust is an anomaly where the rust bleeds memories of things that haven't happened and places that don't exist or at least not that we know of. And when you make contact with the god rust you experience these memories and the senses used to perceive them, senses humanity hasn't developed.
When this happens you enter a state where you can sense a world that shouldn't exist. One we simply cannot see. A world of fairies and dragons and monsters and spirits. This state lasts only for a short time, but having access to god rusted metals allows you to enter this state at any time.
In my story, my mc steps on a rusty nail and gains insight into this world. And whenever a creature of this other world is around she feels the pain of the nail in her foot. This is the beginning of her adventure in this hidden world.
Anyway I don't know if this addition ruins the magic so I wanted to ask for opinions. What do you think of this idea? Anything that you would suggest changing that would still allow for my mc to interact with this other world? I'm open to ideas.
In essence, rust in my project is when the memories of a metallic weapon or tool start to manifest in the physical world. One can reforge the rust into a new tool and the memories in the rust will imbue said weapon or tool with an enchantment. And the more an enchantment rusts and is reforged the more powerful it becomes.
For example, memories of violence might, in the beginning enchant swords to deal wounds that do not heal or strikes that don't miss. As the enchantment progresses in potency and presentation, these slashes may strike at a distance. Eventually, a target may be cut to ribbons just from the wielder touching the sword.
I had the idea for a phenomenon called god rust to occur when a metallic weapon or tool rusts due to human intervention. The process is a secret held by a small group of people who know the secret of rust magic in general.
The god rust is an anomaly where the rust bleeds memories of things that haven't happened and places that don't exist or at least not that we know of. And when you make contact with the god rust you experience these memories and the senses used to perceive them, senses humanity hasn't developed.
When this happens you enter a state where you can sense a world that shouldn't exist. One we simply cannot see. A world of fairies and dragons and monsters and spirits. This state lasts only for a short time, but having access to god rusted metals allows you to enter this state at any time.
In my story, my mc steps on a rusty nail and gains insight into this world. And whenever a creature of this other world is around she feels the pain of the nail in her foot. This is the beginning of her adventure in this hidden world.
Anyway I don't know if this addition ruins the magic so I wanted to ask for opinions. What do you think of this idea? Anything that you would suggest changing that would still allow for my mc to interact with this other world? I'm open to ideas.
Magic in my world feeds on two things, rust and rot. Today I'll talk about the rot.
The most common fruit in the marshlands is a poisonous berry. It is ultimately very nutritious, but very deadly. When people learned that they could boil the berries to weaken the effects of the poison during a famine, their population increased dramatically throughout the marshlands as they were the only species eating the berries.
However, those with weaker immune systems didn't fair as well against the berry's venom. Necrosis was a commonplace symptom of poorly boiled berries or just poor immunity. But this is how the people discovered the secret magic of rot.
Rot in my world holds a memory of what it once was. Muscles, organs, flesh, bone, etc. And mages can reinvigorate the rot to summon phantom limbs that can be arranged out of these pieces.
Basically, a mage can create a sort of energy as an extention of themselves by rotting parts of their body. So if they sacrifice an arm to necrosis, a phantom arm may be called upon to act on their behalf. But if they have sacrificed an arm and a leg to necrosis, they can summon a phantom limb that is a fusion of the arm's and leg's musculature in one limb. Allowing one to essentially empower the limb to be a supernatural appendage.
However, there is a way to push this power further. By grafting dead or dying limbs or organs to the body, one can harness these memories to create a more powerful phantom limb. Becoming far more powerful or delicate. Becoming far beyond the limits of what is human.
Some mages manifest super powerful eyes, some extra delicate hands, some super powerful leg muscles. The catch is this phantom limb must always be attached to the body.
Magic in my world feeds on two things, rust and rot. Today I'll talk about the rot.
The most common fruit in the marshlands is a poisonous berry. It is ultimately very nutritious, but very deadly. When people learned that they could boil the berries to weaken the effects of the poison during a famine, their population increased dramatically throughout the marshlands as they were the only species eating the berries.
However, those with weaker immune systems didn't fair as well against the berry's venom. Necrosis was a commonplace symptom of poorly boiled berries or just poor immunity. But this is how the people discovered the secret magic of rot.
Rot in my world holds a memory of what it once was. Muscles, organs, flesh, bone, etc. And mages can reinvigorate the rot to summon phantom limbs that can be arranged out of these pieces.
Basically, a mage can create a sort of energy as an extention of themselves by rotting parts of their body. So if they sacrifice an arm to necrosis, a phantom arm may be called upon to act on their behalf. But if they have sacrificed an arm and a leg to necrosis, they can summon a phantom limb that is a fusion of the arm's and leg's musculature in one limb. Allowing one to essentially empower the limb to be a supernatural appendage.
However there is a way to push this power further. By grafting dead or dying limbs or organs to the body, one can harness these memories to create a more powerful phantom limb. Becoming far more powerful or delicate. Becoming far beyond the limits of what is human.
Some mages manifest super powerful eyes, some extra delicate hands, some super powerful leg muscles. The catch is this phantom limb must always be attached to the body.
A terrible knowledge plagues humanity. A language of pure power and distortion that can breathe new vectors into reality. A language that rots.
The Curse is a spoken language that can only be harnessed by a select few people. People born with particular minds able to calculate and manipulate the language. They need only speak and small distortions of reality will appear. Memories can slip, flesh may burn, iron may change to gold. But no matter how long they speak or how much they wish, their magic is temporary. The effects will begin to fade the moment a statement ends.
Burns heal quickly, memories return unchanged, and gold will become iron once more. But there is a way to make these effects permanent.
The True Word is the written form of the Curse and it can be learned and used by anyone. Anyone with access to a Cure Wielder. For the only way to use True Word is to carve it into the flesh of a Curse Wielder. You might understand now why knowing how to speak the language would be a curse.
For the many enslaved the few. The Curse Wielders were put in chains and their skin used as canvas to create spells that would last for as long as the flesh was maintained.
Mages would buy flesh of or a whole Curse Wielder to use as a scroll. This scroll then was perforated with True Word and in doing so spells could be created and activated through various somatic and verbal actions. And when these spells were used, the carving would glow and the skin would rot.
The language feeds on the vital essence in the skin, making it rot when used. So long as the carving remains in tact, the effects of the spell will maintain. Fissures in the ground will remain open, doorways to other worlds will stand, even death itself can be reversed indefinitely. But at the expense of suffering.
A day came when the Curse Wielders were given their humanity back. Some don't involve themselves with magic anymore, while some will use True Word on themselves. And others, a select few, allow their flesh to be another's canvas. Some even take on and give life to grafted flesh of dead Curse Wielders. Allowing old magic to return to the world.
Salt acts to preserve certain pathways in the mind that would naturally break down and be replaced. As more and more of these pathways form and are maintained through the salt, people will start manifesting psychic limbs that they can learn to control like learning how to manipulate their limbs as a child. By frequently using these limbs one strengthens them and can break human limitations of strength, speed, and endurance just by manifesting them.
However, the stronger these limbs are, the more salt buildup is needed to manifest them. And when one doesn't properly maintain these pathways, they rot and poison the mind, turing the salt wielder feral.
Salt men are the result of those whose minds were poisoned by improper maintenance of their powers. These zombie-like entities consume the salt in the living to power their extreme strength, speed, etc.
I'm also trying to make a reason for survivors to sometimes turn into salt men due to exposure to these energies flooding their system. They would essentially have to consume copious amounts of salt to not turn, making them targets to other salt men.
Rust acts as the memories of metal tools and weapons and can be used to enchant other metal tools and weapons through reintroducing the rust while smithing.
And by continuously rusting and reimplementing memories into metal, one creates a more potent enchantment. For the rust may hold the memories, but fire acts as the catalyst, activating and enhancing the enchantment.
For example, memories of violence might, in the beginning enchant swords to deal wounds that do not heal or strikes that don't miss. As the enchantment progresses in strength and presentation, these slashes may strike at a distance. Eventually, a target may be cut to ribbons just from the wielder touching the sword.
People in my world have taken to rust farming; placing well-used metal weapons or tools into the wet soil to cause it to rust faster. Then they take rust shavings and enchant other weapons or tools via reforging them with the rust. Sometimes those new weapons or tools are sold off, other times they are placed back into the ground to let the memory fester.
As time progressed, people learned to make springs, gears, and other useful mechanisms out of enchanted metal. Allowing not only memories to be stored, but for them to be connected in complex clockwork devices.
To do this, people would create wind-up mechanisms of enchanted metals that interact in a way to create connections between memories. And when a multitude of these memories are active and interacting at the same time, it creates a rudimentary computer.
These computers would enable more complex enchantments and even allow thinking machines that could calculate and manipulate through magic.
For example, weapons that can't be wielded in anger, cameras that can investigate and capture pictures of the mind. And the computers can be independent thinking machines though some do have inputs.
However, there is a strange phenomenon that occurs when rust forms too fast. When rust forms too fast there is a shortage of memories to fill it. That doesn't mean that rust comes up blank though. Instead, the rust will remember things, places, people, that don't exist. And the enchantment of this rust will be all the more anomalous for it.
Called god rust, with it one can forge keys that open doors to places that don't exist. And in computers one can communicate with those that have yet to be born or those long past.