Records: Aegis of Gaia

### **Aftermath of an Avoided Apocalypse**

The world was a bit numb about surviving in the wake of a battle that lit up the moon. Now, not two weeks after the apparent conclusion of the War of the Celestials, questions were asked about what comes next. The angels were dead – *long live the angels* – but it had been made clear that "the heavens" were not Heaven.

It was implicit there were other worlds – so were there other angels? Did they prepare for the return of the angels? Would the other angels share the madness that nearly destroyed the world?

Or, as the Magus once suggested, did they prepare for something... *worse?*

### **What Could Even Be Done?**

The Battle of Moon's Shadow had been a conflict absolutely terrifying to mortals. There was a depth and complexity to the skies that the world had never realized or had to face before. Even grasping that space, or why they could see but they couldn't hear it (most of the time), required an understanding that most still didn't have.

For those who had been through a school enhanced by *Books of Learning*, the situation wasn't much better. There was a sense of educated perspective, but now knowing the scales made it somewhat harder when it came to imagining a solution, a defense, or even traveling through that kind of space (much less wielding weapons so great it would turn night to day).

Except the Order of Merlin. The wizards were a step ahead.

### **Hints and Rumors**

There were a few instances in royal courts where these natural questions bubbled up. On more than one occasion, OM reps mentioned they were beginning "the Aegis," which was a specific kind of [antique] shield... but seemed more a metaphorical reference. More details were *not* forthcoming.

One bit leaked, though: a fuller name. The "Aegis of Gaia" was quickly seized upon as the Order of Merlin's answer to the angelic threat. It was a project of some sort, and in the noble courts, the name was broken down, translating to the "Shield of Earth."

Given what little was known about the mysterious ways of the OM/ROM, the organization was already operating around the world. They'd created wards that protected from the lethal "moonbeams" of the battle, and unlike uncontained angelic battles (like the one that leveled York), there had been a battle inside Westminster and the magic had contained it.

In hindsight, those wards were even more impressive now...

### **Insider Information**

The Order of Merlin were indeed taking steps to create a planet-wide magical defense system.

Based on inside information of the archangels' extreme prejudice, there were two response possibilities: either evacuate the planet or defend it. The "normal" angels' home can't intervene directly or they risk open war across the heavens – and in this case, the good of the many outweigh the good of the few.

The OM isn't sure how to push a portal all the way to another world. According to the angels, though, any defense project would have to withstand "rays of solid light" (as "relativistic projectiles" was unintelligible technobabble to late 14th-century ears).

Based on brute-force multiplication of defensive power, the OM elects to pour resources into a planetary shield.