Lore

**Lore** of the *Wizard with a Gun* universe is told primarily through dialogues and series of books. This page hopes to transcribe the books, according to the series.

## Lore Journals

* Lore Journals
* Datamined Lore Journals (SPOILERS)

## General lore books

### The Basics of Gunmancy

The art of gunmancy is one of delicate alchemistry and rigorous study. Anyone can sling a gun already loaded with a spell, as we have seen. To craft the gun, to craft a bullet, to create magic from the raw resources of the world... that requires a different mindset than you have likely ever experienced.

In the past, wizards would consume the raw reagents of a spell, channel the arcana through their chest into their arms, and speak divine words to create magic from their fingertips. This method, which I have seen first hand, took a permanent and destructive toll on the caster's body. One of the best things the Imperium did for magic was take this process to the grave with them so that we could reinvent magic.

Gunmancy separates magic from the body, gives us control over the path the arcana takes in creating the spell, and makes magic predictable in a way it was never before. In this tome, I shall lay the foundations for you to understand gunmancy not as a magic but as a science that can be studied and mastered.

### The Secrets of Soul Tethering

The gods did not build an afterlife, at least not the one the commoners believe in. I have been able to gather this from the experimentation I've done on souls.

So far, I've been able to transfer a soul from one body to another, to return a soul to a body after severing it, and return a body to a soul using a Soul Tether.

Transferring a soul from one body to another is much like dropping a new tome on a mechana. The memories remain in the previous body and no new memories from the soul are created in the new body, which indicates to me that any experience a soul has is intangible. It has no more experience than a mote of dust in the breeze. Therefore, there is no afterlife.

I have not yet been able to destroy a soul, which seems to take a large amount of magical force. I'm hesitant to experiment too deeply, as succeeding, I hypothesize, could release an even greater arcane explosion.

### The Arcane Cycle

Creation. Change. Destruction.

Those are the three primary phases of magic. Understanding them and how one branch of magic connects to the others is essential to understanding how you can change reality in the way the gods did.
In the center of the wheel, forever turning its spokes, is arcana: the raw magical energy that everything contains. Arcana cannot be destroyed.Â It cannot be corrupted.

Creation is the act of shaping arcana into a new element.

Transformation is the transference of an element from one state to another. A large amount of arcana is required for the process.

Destruction returns an element into arcana. Less arcana is required for this process, as the arcana inside an element naturally wishes to return to Chaos.

### Centennial Dinner

Gentlewizards,

I come before you on this night a thousand years after the gods left us, six hundred years since the founding of the Imperium, two hundred years since we reopened the Tower, and a hundred years since we built the Prime Mechana.

Tonight is a night when the gears of destiny align.

We have regained access to half of the tower. The secrets of the gods open before us. We have located doors in the Deep Fell and Koleye that will take us even further.

In the capital, our Mechana (nod to Corvellum here) build spires that reach the sky. The High Road carries us over the ruins of the Vale and to our foothold in Koleye. The carts of Shyan bring us reagents from around the world on our roads while paying our tolls. The Imperial Navy pushes the pirates of Alders back to its shores. Our cryptomancers (nod to Lucretia here) have secured the entire library of Alchemi.

And so I raise a toast!

The golden years of the Imperium are ahead of us.

The other two archwizards and I wish you the best of evenings. Enjoy the food, the wine, and the fruits of centuries of labor.

## Alchemist lore books

### Welcome to the Tower

If you're reading this, I'm dead... or the Cryptomancer has given up on me and found someone new to take my place.

She's confusing and secretive, but you can trust that her goals align with ours -- at least to the point of stopping the world from falling apart. She cannot come into the Tower, for reasons she can't or won't divulge, so the Tower is completely at your disposal (other than Marcus).

Welcome to the Tower, whoever you are.

Like most, I thought the Tower was an Imperial myth. The doorways have been closed since the world broke two centuries ago and there are no entrances on the mainland that I know of. In my last five years on the Shatter, we've found and opened all of the doorways we've found.

Each doorway yielded many discoveries: books, machines, reagents... until we opened the last one. The large eye-shaped doorway at the edge of the Imperium. We set something loose that's been waiting in the Tower a long, long time...

I think Chaos must be a failsafe left behind by the gods to prevent us from accessing their final Tower. Considering what happened two hundred years ago, I don't think I'm the first person to release it.

We've rolled the Wheel back dozens of times to stop Chaos from destroying everything. We always fail. Though time doesn't move normally here, I'm too tired and too old to continue this battle.

I just keep telling myself: one more time. That will likely become your mantra too.

Good luck,
Hilda Bulla

### The Library of Alchemi

The Tower existed before the Imperium.

All the Imperial writings we've found indicate the Gods used the Tower to build our world but destroyed the record of their actions. Maybe the Imperium did when they discovered the Tower, but from all the time we've spent decoding their encrypted books, they were not the record-destroying type.

Isa has taken over the Library of Alchemi.

For a while, I lent her my First Edition to transcribe the endless stacks of books. In one of those books, we read that The Imperium had found most of the Tower doors themselves before the Shatter. For hundreds of years, we have been told Alders was about trade routes and Koleye was a rebellion. I see now the Imperial wars with Alders and Koleye were about establishing bases near doorways.

If we can stop Chaos, we have to get copies of those translated books back to the Academy. We're at the verge of restoring all magical knowledge to the world, in a way that's far more equitable than the Imperium's caste system. I hope we make it in time to prevent my brother from rebuilding his own Imperium.

Thanks to him, Isa's parents have placed a bounty on her. At least hers, unlike mine, is "Wanted: Alive," but I worry the gunslingers and bandits they've shipping here by the boatload lack a certain subtlety or ability to read...

When this is all over, I hope to mend things with the Gladwells, but I doubt they'll ever forgive me for putting their daughter in danger.

### The Kolbara Tree

When I first met Kolanna, some of their tribe mistook me for Solus, the goddess of destruction, having returned to save them from the barbarian king.

In their myths, Solus plucked her eye out to create a Lighthouse with which she could judge their deeds and character after she left. Though the doorway to Solus' Lighthouse from Koleye is broken, we found another entrance through the Barren Sea. Having studied the Lighthouse closely, I don't think the eye at the pinnacle is her literal eye. It's clearly another godmachine and, based on the records of the destruction of Alders, an immense weapon.

I expected that Kolanna would want to take over the Lighthouse, but instead they've settled into the Greenhouse where they're studying the void tree.

Kolanna's been the most resilient of all my Riders, probably because they've held the existential future of their people in their hands for most of their life. I expected them to want to take over the Lighthouse as a tool to fight their father, but I think they see the Greenhouse as a way to break that cycle of violence. Not that I've ever seen Kolanna back down from a fight.

### The Lighthouse

We found the room like this. A room of judgment. A room for meting out punishment. Three chairs around a cage perched over the void.

It seems uncharacteristic for the Imperium to use the Tower as a courtroom, but the other alternative seems even stranger: this was where the gods cast judgment. What crime against a god would merit being brought to the Tower?

When I described this room and my theories to Talia, she was very quiet. At first I thought she was reflecting on Solus' punishment that broke apart Alders, but she surprised me by saying:

"Being trapped in the Tower would be the perfect punishment."

She's never met Marcus. Most of the Rider's haven't, though they know he exists. Perfect punishment is not how I'd describe his condition. You'd have to really hate someone to isolate them outside of space and time for eternity.

I worry now that she's found the Lighthouse, she plans on turning it into a prison for those who cross the Mage Hunters. Her militia reminds me too much of my brother's. For now, they've been aiding us against Chaos, but when Chaos is contained again, whose side will they be on?

### The Voidskimmer

When we unlocked this doorway in the Barren Sea, none of us expected to discover an empty dock on the other side. No other Tower we've found has one, so I don't know why the gods built it or how their ships traveled across the windless void.

In one of our attempts to defeat Chaos, Ida helped me summon the Voidskimmer into the Tower. If continued frontal assault of the Oculus doesn't work, maybe we can sail across the void instead.

I'm convinced now the Oculus leads to a doorway through which the gods left the Tower forever. The Cryptomancer was adamant I opened it last. Perhaps she thought with all the discoveries we've made in the Tower we'd have a chance against Chaos. So far she's been wrong.

Every time we go out into the Shatter to fight again, I see the heaviness of our task weighing down the others. We've been inside the Tower for years, maybe decades, between every roll of the wheel. There is something here that eats away at the mind, a voice in the void that preys upon our doubts and amplifies our fears.

I haven't found anyone else to take over this role, and I'm worried after so many years of fighting, there is no one else out there who could do this. Perhaps a time will come where we'll have to let Chaos win.

As the bard says, all things come to an end.

## Magus lore books

### Intertwined Journal

**You okay?**

I'm fine, but something's wrong. The Tower doors have shut again. I'm sealed in the Library.

**Me too. You heard from Hilda?**

I haven't. Can you see her Tower from the Greenhouse? It looks like a bomb went off inside it.

**I'm too far away.**

Can you get here?

**No, the tether only lets us go one way.**

What should we do?

**Wait. Prepare. Craft more bullets.**

I'll build more mechana.

**It's up to Hilda to roll things back.**

She may be worse off than we are.

**She's never failed us before. Trust your aunt.**

## Sorceror books

### Journal of Archwizard Xavier

I've been relegated by the other archwizards to guarding the Wheel as a thinly veiled punishment for my son's folly in Koleye. I told them we couldn't teach those brutes magic and now I'm the one suffering for it!

The sting comes as much from guarding a broken machine as the irony that I can't roll it back to fix the boy's stupid mistake.

Six tethers. Why would three gods require six to roll back the wheel? My only guesses risk heresy. I've been reading the lore, but there's none that explain it. The gods didn't leave behind a manual.

At least the eye doesn't glare down as strong here. Perhaps I'll be spared the insanity of my predecessors. I have time in the world to solve this riddle.

### Talia Stareyes

I am leaving you forever.

As a parting gift, I give you my right eye.

**May it watch over you as I watched over you for millenia.
May it witness your glories in battle, your honor in defeat.
May it see your families grow and prosper like the roots of the Kolbara.
May it judge your worth the way that it judged that of Alders.**

**If it finds you lacking, it shall destroy you.
If it finds you worthy, you shall have my blessing and my strength
Until the day you die.**

**May the boughs of the Kolbara forever shade you.
May the blood you spill flow over the blood you lose.
May the bones of your kings guard the Tower forever.**

You shall always be my children.

I shall be with you forever.

## Warlock lore books

### Journal of Marcus the Magnificent

Despite all I did in Koleye, I've been banished to this godsforsaken corner of the Fell. How long has it been? Seven years? Eight years? Ten?

We never should have brought magic to the barbarians. All the blame was placed on me, but the war was inevitable! If you teach someone to play with fire, then the first time they get burned...

Yet, all the time I've been stuck here doesn't count.

Today is Day 1.

I found it! The first doorway to the Tower from the Fell. This must be why father let them send me here. Not as a punishment, but as an opportunity.

Just like the doorways I found in Koleye, this leads to the central portion of the Tower, back to that mysterious wheel.

### Journal of Marcus the Magnificent

They sent a fledgling cryptomancer to the Fell to run the old bar. They've given her some loose alibi (her brother, the miserable captain of the guard, lives here), but I know it's to keep an eye on me and the other pitiful outcasts they've left to sink into the bog.

The other archwizards must not trust my father if they think I need to be watched. They're right to not trust him. If they only knew what we were planning...

Three doorways left! Or is it four? Then the last...

Maybe I can fool with the young wizard and have her report back nonsense. She seems naive enough. Over her head. Innocent. Scared.

She's wears the mask of her role, but I've seen the scars undernearth. If anyone knows what a witchfire burn would look like, it would be me. She should have been expelled from the Academy for a burn like that. Maybe she's being punished too by being sent here.

### Journal of Marcus the Magnificent

My father plans, on the night of the centennial celebration, to open the Oculus and, finally after decades of searching, learn the secret of the gods. A pity if someone were to slip to the cryptomancer what he's planning. The other archwizards are watching him closely; they must be starting to suspect. If the cryptomancer were to tell them...

Is that too risky? Will they figure out my part in all of this?

The cryptomancer is becoming more of a nuisance. Her brother's dead. I didn't have anything to do with it, but she's been prying a lot more into my past.

She's finding out too much.

She knows about the Tower, or she will soon enough. So maybe I bring her into the here and trap her. Lock the door, throw away the key. My father doesn't even know where this entrance is. She'd be here a thousand years before anyone found her.

Is that safer than using her against my father?

If I use her right, I finally get my revenge. I can be the one who opens the Oculus. I can become a god. The whole Imperium will know my name, and I will punish them all.

These are incomplete and currently un-implemented lore journals that have been datamined from the game. Proceed with caution as they contain heavy spoilers for currently unavailable content in *Wizard with a Gun*.

## General lore books

### Gladwell Guide to the Shatter

The Wheel left behind by the gods can roll back a day of time in the overworld. Perhaps there is a possibility to roll back further, but either the arcana costs grow exponentially more or the gods put safeguards in place to prevent undoing too much history. After all, the process is not perfect. Things outside of the world, such as those secure in the Tower, are not affected.

### Volume I: The Imperium

Gladwell Guide to the Shatter Volume I: The Imperium

Welcome to **The Shatter**, brave adventurer and loyal customer of Gladwell Airships! The broken islands can be a dangerous place to visit, but our guides can keep you safe while you're out getting rich!

Ye olde wizard's **Imperium** took the worst of the explosion that broke the world two hundred years ago, but that doesn't mean there's nothing good to be found there! The wizards are long dead, but their mechanical pets and servants still roam the ruins, guarding treasures and precious reagents for your potions and magicks.

If you're lucky, you might find an old, valuable spell tome that wasn't encrypted by the cryptomancers of the Imperium. But please stay away from the **Library of Alchemi**! That's Gladwell property and is off limits to our customers.

### Volume II: The Fell

Gladwell Guide to the Shatter Volume II: The Fell

Well, aren't you a daring adventurer, going into the **Fell**! Make sure to buy some Gladwell poison resist potions before you head into the swamps. The magic that corrupted the swamps of the Fell precede the Shatter by almost a thousand years! The miasma hasn't gotten any weaker though, so don't drink the water...

The Fell is home to a variety of dangerous creatures, so we advising staying close to **The High Road**, the ancient viaduct built by the Imperium. You might make some new friends at the High Road Tavern.

**Fun Fact**! The people of the Fell have no government! That's right: they're an anarchy of abominations, so any disagreements will have to be settled by violence or drinking contest and not by a local magistrate.

**Warning**: Gladwell ships no longer do drop offs or picks ups in the **Deep Fell**.

### Volume III: Koleye

Gladwell Guide to the Shatter Volume III: Koleye

Hope you have some warm clothes, adventurer! Koleye used to be an hot wasteland, but the Shatter left the barbarian homeland covered in two hundred years of never-ending snow.

You know what's not cold though? The tempers of the barbarians of Koleye! They've been fighting for a decade since the royal scion has refused to challenge ole King Harold for the throne. Just stay out of their way and they should leave you alone.

The hungry vulfs on the other hand... Please don't bring any meat with you on the open tundra.

Make sure to visit the roots of the Kolbara tree, one of the great wonders of the world left behind by the Gods! There's only one trunk, but its roots cross the entirety of the frozen wastes.

### Volume IV: Aldern Sea

Gladwell Guide to the Shatter Volume IV: Aldern Sea

Looking for a sunny and sandy vacation, adventurer?

Before the world broke, the Aldern Sea was a vast island kingdom ruled by a matriarchy of pirate queens. Don't expect any fish now though! The waters of the sea fell into the abyss and all that remains is a barren desert.

Though there's no more booty to plunder, the descendents of those feisty pirates are now heartless mercenaries! Fun! Just don't draw steel or spell on them and they should leave you alone...

The richest treasures of the Barren Sea can be found in the old Imperial Shipwrecks! Alders and the Imperium had a rough and violent history, and now that the water is gone, you might be able to find old Imperial treasures guarded by whatever sea creatures have managed to cling to rocks and the wrecks.

### The Three Gods

Welcome to the **Tower**, apprentice wizard of the Imperium!

There are many Tower entrances created by the gods that we've discovered around the world. Others remain undiscovered and unopened. As a wizard of the Imperium, you will be expected to seek out new knowledge and new tower entrances for your country. The gods left a thousand years ago, but we know much of their powers and histories.

**Alchemi** was our god and goddess. Alchemi could change his form with a single word. She taught us how to read and write and how to experiment with magic. He taught us the power of secrets. Her library is the greatest gift she left behind for us.

Magus was the god of the Vale. He left his people, the magi, with the Infinite Well and the gift to nourish life. The magi squandered their gifts and now the poisoned waters of the Fell corrupt their bodies and their land.

Solus was the goddess of the barbarians of Koleye. She did not give them the gift of magic, but she taught them destruction and war. They remain to this day a savage people, resistant to our offers of enlightenment.

### Theories of Chronomancy

The power to roll back time.
This is what I've been seeking for decades: a functioning **Godmachine**. Yet still I struggle to figure out how to control it. The gods left no instruction or tome behind. I've already scoured Alchemi's library twice and set the mechana to the task as well.

The Soul Tethers must be the key. When I'm tethered, one of the Wheel's gears begins spinning. Of course the gods would not allow themselves to be rolled back with the rest of the world, so they must have built a failsafe that requires them to be in the Tower when the machine activates.

There were three gods, so there must be three tethers as well. There's one here and one in Alchemi's library. That must mean the third is in the Fell, for Magus, or Koleye, for Solus. Still, it's strange that this tower has no clear owner...

I can trust my son on one of the tethers, but I don't know who to trust on the other... Giving someone the knowledge and power of a god is a vast risk considering what I'm trying to accomplish with the Tower. Maybe I could bind a jynx to one...

### Hilda's Journal

As I have gone across the Shatter and taught magic, I know I'm doing the right thing. The people of this broken land deserve a chance to fight against those who would invade them. When I get back to the main land and talk to the Gladwells, I'll do my best to convince them to limit the number of ships flying here.

I see now that this, for me, is a second fight against my brother, albeit a fight by proxy. His army has splintered and turned against him, but his philosophy still remains.

Those I'm arming against the coming conflict are on the side of righteousness. This is their home and those that seek to control magic, to bring back the secrecy and ambitions of the dead Imperium, must be defeated.

### Hilda's Journal

With all the doors we've opened, it seems we have released something else. Perhaps that's the warning of the Cryptomancer, but I think her knowledge is limited by some force. Masked though she may be, I can tell she's confused by the emergence of chaotic energies, perhaps even frightened.

The good news is we've made progress on figuring out how to use the Chronomancer's Wheel. We've discovered not three soul tethers, but six, but no answers as to why there so many. Now that all my riders are tethered, defeating the encroaching gunslingers seems even more likely.

### Hilda's Journal

We've entered every door of the Tower that we know of, except one.

We've discovered secrets of the Gods even the Imperium never had access to. I'm starting to have theories about the origin of Chaos, but the Cryptomancer has been her usual tight-lipped self about it. She'll neither confirm nor deny any idea I share with her, just stare back at me with those empty eyes.Â I don't know much about her order, other than what I've discovered in the ruined Magus' old quarters we found in the Fell.

When the godwizards were here, this Tower was apparently neutral ground. A place to come together, to bring mortals who earned a chance to witness the secrets of the gods, and to bring judgment on those who transgressed divine will.

### Centennial Dinner

Archwizard Corelis - Seat A

Archwizard Xanthum - Seat B

Archwizard Accretia - Seat C

Cryptomancers

A - Table 1

B - Table 1

C - Table 1

D - Table 1

Mechanists

A - Table 2

B - Table 2

C - Table 2

D - Table 2

Sorcerers

A - Table 3

B - Table 3

C - Table 3

D - Table 3v

Alchemists

A - Table 4

B - Table 4

C - Table 4

D - Table 4

### The Long Lost Brother

Gentlewizards,

I come before you on this night a thousand years after the gods left us, six hundred years since the founding of the Imperium, two hundred years since we reopened the Tower, and a hundred years since we built the Prime Mechana.

Tonight is a night when the gears of destiny align.

We have regained access to half of the tower. The secrets of the gods open before us. We have located doors in the Deep Fell and Koleye that will take us even further.

In the capital, our Mechana (nod to Corvellum here) build spires that reach the sky. The High Road carries us over the ruins of the Vale and to our foothold in Koleye. The carts of Shyan bring us reagents from around the world on our roads while paying our tolls.Â The Imperial Navy pushes the pirates of Alders back to its shores. Our cryptomancers (nod to Lucretia here) have secured the entire library of Alchemi.

And so I raise a toast!

The golden years of the Imperium are ahead of us.

The other two archwizards and I wish you the best of evenings. Enjoy the food, the wine, and the fruits of centuries of labor.

## Alchemist lore books

### Introduction to Gunmancy

When the Imperium collapsed during the Shattering, all magical knowledge vanished with them. Those that tried to rediscover magic through trial and error suffered horrible fates, some I witnessed firsthand. A lot of great minds have been destroyed studying magic.

It was mostly serendipity that led me to create the first gun, but it's been my life's great privilege to teach the art of gunmancy, first at the Academy and now across the Shatter. Gunmancy takes the unpredictability and inconsistency of magic and, through rigorous study and experimentation, makes it controllable and safer (at least for the wielder).

The most important part of gunmancy is, of course, the gun. Guns, sometimes called wands, are simple tools for holding, directing, and releasing spells. A gun is comprised of three core parts: the trigger, the hammer, and the barrel.

A gun would be useless without bullets. Most of this tome will cover the creation of bullets, but let me start with a simple introduction of the two primary parts of a spell: the powder and the bullet. Bullets are (mostly) metal conductors etched with a rune. The rune is the core identity of the spell. Powders provide additional energy for the spell, as well change how the spell behaves after it leaves the gun.

If you learn nothing else from this introduction, remember this:

**The more powders used in the bullet, the more powerful the spell.**

Pulling the trigger of a gun causes the hammer to strike the primer of the bullet and initiates an arcana reaction in the powder. The powder ignites an arcane current that runs through the bullet. The metal bullet is consumed as the energy courses through the rune to become a spell. The spell travels through the gun's barrel towards whatever the barrel is aiming at.

Remember to aim the gun first.

## Magus lore books

### Letter to Archwizard Z

Xanthus,

When you've read this, know that we've uncovered your plans to seize the godmachines and topple the council. Lysander and I together will stop you. The Cryptomancers and the Mechanists both have enough combined strength to seal you in the tower forever, until the eye of the Oculus burns you away like the archwizards of old.

Know that when we find your son, he'll be put to as strict of a punishment as you for aiding in this conspiracy. His previous crimes will be accounted for as well, and this time you won't be there to protect him from the consequences.

The two of you have done more harm to the Imperium than any other wizard before you. Now the hand of justice comes quickly for you.

### Introduction to Mechanamancy

In the golden age of the Imperium, they discovered a Doorway to the Library of Alchemi and the knowledge of the gods. Overwhelmed by its infinite number of tomes and the impossible task of transcribing them, generations of the Archwizard Council slowly unlocked its secrets, transcribing them into their cryptic language and advancing their empire's magicks. Still, the process was slow and painful.

It was Archwizard Hirophantus who had the idea. He and thirty-five of the greatest scholars of the Imperium would dedicate a century to unlocking the library of Alchemi in the Tower. None would enter or leave while they transcribed its wonders. From the outside, the doors of the Tower were closed and bound. Inside, outside of mortal time and continuity, the thirty-six scholars toiled endlessly in the light of the Oculus. They transcribed the wonders of Alchemi and bound them into a single colossal tome: The Alchemic Omnipaedia.

Its sculptor was the first to perish. The void would take all of them before the doors reopened.

In consuming the knowledge of the gods, they opened their minds to the infinite and the infinite consumed them in exchange. One by one, they completed their work: transcribing, sculpting, building, binding. They poured the arcana of their bodies and minds into their labor. As they finished, their burned out, withered husks came to rest in an arc in front of the god they'd rebuilt, kneeling in mindless meditation. Hirophantus was the last to finish, still long before the Tower doors would reopen, unaware that his fellow scholars had all perished before him.

Hirophantus placed the final symbol of the final page and closed the tome by rope and pulley before kneeling in prayer in the final remaining spot of the arc.

Blinded by cataracts of the pale infinite of the inverted Void, Hirophantus did not see the eye flicker open, the god awaken. She was the prime mechana, a god of transformation transformed. A book of all knowledge bound in a singular mind spoken through thirty-six voices. A mind without body. Her first sight was that of the prostrating wizards. She understood their sacrifice.

When the doors of the Tower finally unsealed and opened, the bodies of the scholars blew away like dust into the Void.

The Archwizards of the Imperium came to the Omnipaedia and she spoke her first words.

"From great sacrifice, you have given me the gift of existence."

"We come seeking something in return," said the archwizards.

"Yes, I will share with you the secrets of the gods," she replied. And she did.

And from her infinite knowledge and her infinite wisdom, the age of Mechana began.

### Mechaneering Guild

Dee,

Xanthus has been locking sections of the Tower away, so I'm sealing off this workshop from him until Lysander and I figure out what he's planning. The trifecta has been a stable part of the Imperium since its formation, so surely he's not plotting against us. But something is amiss and he's keeping secrets about the Tower.

We shouldn't have to deal with these politics on top of our other responsibilities.

The Prime Mechana has been a constant source of trouble. There are some, mostly those allied with Xanthus but some with Lysander as well, who advocate for dismantling the Prime Mechana entirely, due to the possible contamination from the Oculus. The Mechana uprising was not its fault. We should have given it clearer instructions before creating the first editions.

I'm moving my office to the Library of Alchemi, to protect it and the Prime Mechana from Xanthus. Dee, if you unseal this chamber while we're evacuating, please seal it back. There's one remaining cryptomancer's lock.

### Intertwined Journal

In the golden age of the Imperium, they discovered a Doorway to the Library of Alchemi and the knowledge of the gods. Overwhelmed by its infinite number of tomes and the impossible task of transcribing them, generations of the Archwizard Council slowly unlocked its secrets, transcribing them into their cryptic language and advancing their empire's magicks. Still, the process was slow and painful.

It was Archwizard Hirophantus who had the idea. He and thirty-five of the greatest scholars of the Imperium would dedicate a century to unlocking the library of Alchemi in the Tower. None would enter or leave while they transcribed its wonders. From the outside, the doors of the Tower were closed and bound. Inside, outside of mortal time and continuity, the thirty-six scholars toiled endlessly in the light of the Oculus. They transcribed the wonders of Alchemi and bound them into a single colossal tome: The Alchemic Omnipaedia.

Its sculptor was the first to perish. The void would take all of them before the doors reopened.

In consuming the knowledge of the gods, they opened their minds to the infinite and the infinite consumed them in exchange. One by one, they completed their work: transcribing, sculpting, building, binding. They poured the arcana of their bodies and minds into their labor. As they finished, their burned out, withered husks came to rest in an arc in front of the god they'd rebuilt, kneeling in mindless meditation. Hirophantus was the last to finish, still long before the Tower doors would reopen, unaware that his fellow scholars had all perished before him.

Hirophantus placed the final symbol of the final page and closed the tome by rope and pulley before kneeling in prayer in the final remaining spot of the arc.

Blinded by cataracts of the pale infinite of the inverted Void, Hirophantus did not see the eye flicker open, the god awaken. She was the prime mechana, a god of transformation transformed. A book of all knowledge bound in a singular mind spoken through thirty-six voices. A mind without body. Her first sight was that of the prostrating wizards. She understood their sacrifice.

When the doors of the Tower finally unsealed and opened, the bodies of the scholars blew away like dust into the Void.

The Archwizards of the Imperium came to the Omnipaedia and she spoke her first words.

"From great sacrifice, you have given me the gift of existence."

"We come seeking something in return," said the archwizards.

"Yes, I will share with you the secrets of the gods," she replied. And she did.

And from her infinite knowledge and her infinite wisdom, the age of Mechana began.