“One who has found life shall know death will not touch them.”
—Endus 2:39
14:01 WT, 9th of February, 1639 (9th of Memesa, 1995)
Anomalous Containment Assembly Chamber, Central Subterranean Zone, Site Alpha, [Unknown County], Tirnikt, Neragon
The Anomalous Containment Assembly was but a shadow of its former self, of the 156 original members, only 38 were present at Neragon during the displacement. The remaining members sat in their designated seats, sparsely scattered across the semi-circle that was the Assembly Chamber.
They had been called to an emergency meeting, but it seemed the caller, Evans Nott had not arrived. In one particular seat, Anna James looked worriedly around the chamber. Although anyone who glanced at her would have only noticed the blank, unreadable poker face she was wearing.
Just where is he? Anna thought angrily, she practically had to cancel all of her activities for the early afternoon because of this.
As if on cue, the heavy door at the front of the chamber creaked open, drawing the attention of the scattered members. Evans Nott rushed in, his hair ruffled, and his suit rumpled. His gaze swept the room, landing on Anna, who met his eyes with a glare that could have incinerated stone.
"Apologies for my tardiness," Nott announced, his voice a touch breathless, but he quickly composed himself, straightening his suit and adjusting his spectacles. "We've encountered unforeseen developments that demand immediate attention."
Everyone remained silent, although Anna's expression remained unyielding.
Nott marched to a podium at the centre of the chamber.
"As some of you might know, we have detected an anomaly on one of the envoys from the Arem Kingdom. I have identified the diplomat as one Ranon Kantor, and he seems to be unaware of the entity he is harbouring."
He inhaled deeply, his eyes shifting across the room, gauging the reactions of the Assembly. Some faces betrayed concern, others curiosity, but the majority remained stoic.
"I have sensed..." he trailed off before his voice regained its composure. "Something... unexpected. That entity is I-01."
At that, several members gasped comically while others looked confused. Anna herself had only heard about something called "I-01" in passing so she had no idea what significance it held.
"Impossible, we smashed that thing to bits a decade ago!" An assembly member behind Anna shouted, interrupting Nott.
"An action I did not condone." Nott said with a hint of annoyance, whether it is due to being reminded of whatever had happened or being interrupted was beyond Anna (one thing she had discovered quite early as Head of Research was that Nott did not like being talked over). "Nevertheless, we must act swiftly. I-01's reappearance is a concern itself but she most definitely seeks revenge for what happened to her."
Anna looked behind her, it was Aiden Kennedy who had shouted, a man from Philimania and the representative (or former representative) for Site Ihwaz. Expected as the I in "I-01" stood for "Ihwaz".
Another member with sandy hair on the other side of the chamber stood up. "Excuse my ignorance Herr Nott, but what is I-01?"
Nott responded with a measured tone, "I-01 was an entity from beyond our known realm, she had admitted herself she was responsible for the destruction of the planet Yulcan which of course, now forms the inner belt of the Gentu System."
And it could destroy our planet as well, was the unsaid threat that hung heavily in the room.
"We can only surveil for the time being." Nott continued, his tone suggesting he did not want any rebukes. "Head Breckon, you will organise a surveillance team to monitor Kantor and the entity closely. Since it seems she has not acted directly hostile yet, it's essential we gather as much information as possible without instigating any… provocative measures."
The Head of Security for Site Alpha, Edwyn Breckon stood up from his seat and nodded. "Yes sir."
"Oh, and I almost forgot," Nott added. "Our new anomalous team might be useful."
"Of course." The man replied, "May I be excused?"
Nott nodded, and Breckon swiftly left the chamber.
"Does anyone have any questions?" Nott glanced around the room. Anna remained silent but someone else stood up and inquired, "Should we notify the government of the entity?"
"Only some details, and that it is under control," Nott answered immediately. "If they intervene, it will only complicate the situation."
The representative from earlier, Kennedy, stood up. Nott gestured for him to speak.
"Why not destroy her again? Yeah, we copped losses before, but we pulled it off."
"Your site only succeeded because you had the element of surprise, "Nott spoke with a deceptive serenity. "And I will not approve of any action that might directly cause our destruction. Moreover, it is claimed she was destroyed, yet she is still here with us, meaning the previous strategy might not even work."
Kennedy did not seem to heed Nott's warning. "But she's a threat! Ain't pre-emptive—"
"Mr. Kennedy," Nott spoke with such sharpness that the Philimanian man immediately fell silent. "From what I have read, the entity wished to cooperate with VROEMG until..." he paused. "...something was learned from her. Killing the entity was absolutely unnecessary. I will not risk the safety of this world on rash decisions."
At that, Kennedy sank back into his seat, appearing chagrined.
"Does anyone else have any questions?" Nott asked.
Nobody spoke.
"Well, this was rather short, this meeting has been dismissed," Nott said. "I myself, have someplace to attend to."
Sparing Anna a glance, Nott swiftly exited the chamber as the other members of the Assembly began to disperse.
How had she heard so little about such a dangerous entity? Anna frowned, making a mental note to find out more about this I-01 later.
16:12 WT, 9th of February, 1639 (9th of Memesa, 1995)
Central Subterranean Zone, Site Alpha, [Unknown County], Tirnikt, Neragon
Leaving the Assembly Chamber, Evans Nott hurried down the labyrinthine corridors of Site Alpha.
He nearly bumped into a researcher as he turned a corner.
"Apologise for my haste Mr. Walker," He muttered, barely breaking his stride. he heard the researcher respond but he was barely listening.
Evans Nott had not been sleeping, or eating, ever since the displacement as he had been too busy with the string of events that had happened since then. Immortals (as well as gods) like him didn't necessarily need sleep or food, but he still indulged in those practices for sheer enjoyment and to remind himself of the time before he had discovered his immortality.
While the return of I-01 was indeed worrying, the fact no hostile actions had been observed was somehow both reassuring and perplexing. A thought nagged at him. How had I-01 survived her own assassination? He might not have been present when it had occurred but he had read a strike team had been dispatched initially but they eventually had to resort to an atomic bomb to destroy her.
Nothing had been left, and Site Ihwaz had been almost completely destroyed. And, it was even more baffling how she had ended up in this new world.
No matter, fixating on that would resolve nothing.
Why did they have to be so rash, damn them, damn them! This will be the end of us!
He sighed inwardly.
They needed to find a way back, fast, and he might just know what could do that.
He eventually made his way to a large wooden double door, something that looked quite out of place in the sterile corridor of Site Alpha. Making sure he was not being watched, Evans rapped the door in a specific rhythm, a pattern only he and a few selected others knew (nearly all of whom were not in Neragon during the displacement).
"In sêla unti êwa." He whispered, and the doors swung open.
If any normal person were to stumble upon the dimly-lit interior of the chamber Evans had entered, with its rows and rows of shelves and cabinets, they might assume that they were in a library. But the room Evans Nott had entered was no ordinary library. It was an archive – no – his archive, of all known magical entities, artefacts, phenomena, their histories, and many other things.
Evans's footsteps echoed softly on the cool stone floor as he made his way to a specific section a few aisles down. He scanned the row of boxes, books, and cabinets, eying each label and inscription. Finally, he stopped at one indistinguishable metal shelf with a large half-rotting box resting in its middle level, a small runic stone lying on top of it.
Producing a wooden fan from beneath his right sleeve, Evans pointed at the stone, and with a gentle flick, it levitated off the box onto the shelf surface. The runic stone's magic flared slightly before becoming silent once more.
Concealing his fan/wand once more, Evans lifted the box and placed it on the floor. He glanced at the inscription on the lid briefly: “17 Kunnen (5th month) 1609”, before opening the box delicately and placing it next to the box, revealing a collection of leather-bound books and empty vials.
He took out his cellphone, turning its flashlight on before taking out a book only labelled "Three" with his other hand.
He set it on the floor as well, flipping it to a specific page. He frowned after a moment and flipped it again.
After a few moments, he sighed, what he was looking for was not there. Evans placed the book back into the box, taking another one out in turn. This was going to be a long day, and he was starting to wish he had upgraded the archive with more modern lighting systems. He made a note to himself to do just that later.
He eventually had to go through two other books in the box before arriving at one in particular, this time labelled with a “Six” in a bold greyish font.
He skimmed through it, and there it was, the passage he was looking for, a surge of triumph welling within him as he gazed at the curly text on the yellowed page.
It read: "The...
16:59 WT, 9th of February, 1639 (9th of Memesa, 1995)
Meeting Room 12, Agency of Central Security Headquarters, Eddington, Talgwn, Potegir, Neragon
"Good afternoon gentlemen." The Agency Director's greeting resonated across the room as the bushy eyebrowed man sat down at his seat at the front of a long wooden table.
"Please, do take your seats."
The assembled group of deputies, clad in their black suits, settled into their designated spots around the table, their expressions varying from attentive to neutral.
The Director glimpsed at a piece of paper on his side of the table before speaking. "This marks the first formal meeting since the event that has transported our realm. Deputies, you know the drill."
Deputy Richard, the head of the Directorate of Operations stood up and cleared his throat before addressing the group. "As we're all aware, our agents have been sent all over the new world to gather as much information as possible." He paused. "We believe we have built a reasonable image of what the natives call the Known World. I can explain this with a presentation as I feel that might better elucidate our findings."
The Director nodded, snapping his fingers, causing a projector screen to unfold from the ceiling with a quiet whirl. "Proceed, Deputy Richard."
The deputy took a few minutes to set up the presentation.
"From our reports," Richard began, "observations confirm a wide range of cultures, and languages, that differ significantly from our own. Some of their cultures and languages seem to parallel some of our own world of course, but not all."
"In addition," He clicked through slides showing various cityscapes and ships, all appearing to be from various historical eras. "The new world appears to be an amalgamation of various societies and eras from different historical periods. We do not know why this is the case as it seems they are quite aware of each other and we would need further investigation to understand this."
The presentation transitioned into a map of the new world, zooming in to the north-western part of it where Neragon was included. "This, is the known world, it is surrounded by large oceans with currents that are said to be capable of sinking even the most formidable ships. We are aware of other large landmasses outside this region, but what exactly they contain remains a mystery."
Richard clicked again, causing colours to outline three continents in the known world. "The natives divide the known world into 4 regions: the First, Second, Third Civilisation Areas, and the Non-Civilisation Area, much like our First, Second, and Third World."
He zoomed in on the continent Neragon was next to. "This is the First Civilisation Area, or the Milishent Continent, they are considered to be the most powerful and technologically advanced in the world. Using our history as a benchmark, technological levels are approximately in the 1930s to 50s. The strongest nation here is the Holy Mirishial Empire which we border."
Some deputies and even the director looked alarmed, but they didn't interrupt.
Then, the map moved west, above another continent. "And here is the Mu Continent, or the Second Civilisation Area. As the name suggests, they are the second most technologically advanced region, equivalent to our pre-Great War 1910s. The main power here is called the Commonwealth of Mu, although a smaller power also exists next to them called the Leiforian Empire."
Click.
And now the map moved east, past the first continent to a third large landmass. "And, of course, we have the Third Civilisation Area, which makes up the southern region of the Philades Continent. The superpower in this region is called the Parpaldian Empire and they, technology-wise, seem to be in the late 17th to early 18th century pre-Industrial era. The Parpaldian Empire itself seems to parallel many of our great powers during that particular point of time."
"And finally." The map zoomed out, showing the "known world" once more. "Everything outside of these three regions is viewed as Non-Civilisation Areas. Technological levels vary here, but most are similar to our Middle Era 1600s and lower."
The director opened his mouth to speak, but Deputy Richard held up his hand. "My apologies sir, I'm not finished yet." He clicked on another slide, a map outlining a country on a continent south of the Third Civilisation Area.
"We have two places of interest that warrants further investigation into. This is our first.” He gestured towards the map. “This is the Kingdom of Quila which is located on the Rodenius Continent, south of the Third Civilisation Area. Huge deposits of what the natives call 'burning water' which turns out to be crude oil are known to exist here, so it might be a strategic point for potential negotiations.
The map then transitioned, now showing a group of islands shaped like banana. “And this is our second place of interest, we received words from our agent in Qua-Toyne, which is the country north of Quila just an hour and a half ago. The islands you see here are a country called Japan. We know very little about this country but they – or at least the natives our agent talked to – claim they have been transferred to this world.”
Immediately, everyone seemed to straighten ever so slightly. Deputy Richard continued. “Several people of this country were also spotted by our agent. These people seem to be contractors of some kind judging by their uniforms and he has concluded that based on that, their equipment and what natives say of them; Japan is at least more advanced than the Holy Milishial Empire and possibly equal to us. Of course, this is merely a conclusion from very little evidence and we might need further confirmation."
There was silent at first, but the Director eventually nodded, pleased with the report his subordinate had presented. "Thank you, Deputy Richard… Please forward this to the central government." He thought for a moment. "And we might need some men in this Japan region sooner rather than later. That was very enlightening."
"Thank you, sir. It will be done."
"Now, on to you Deputy Hoss." The Director inclined his head towards the head of the Directorate of Surveillance, a stiff-faced woman with her hair in a bun.
"Sir, VROEMG has notified us about a free anomaly on the person of one of the diplomats from Arem, beyond the identity of this diplomat, one Ranon Kantor, we have been given no further details about the nature of this anomaly," Deputy Hoss stated neutrally.
"And what is VROEMG's stance on this?" The Director said sharply.
"I asked just that, and they replied half an hour ago." The woman replied crisply. "They wish for us to not interfere and told us they will handle it themselves." She seemed to consider something for a minute. "Herr Nott himself has been seen interacting with the envoys yesterday, so it is likely VROEMG is quite aware of the capabilities of this entity, but they are not willing to share specifics with us at this point."
The Director's brows furrowed slightly and several deputies seemed uneasy, exchanging anxious glances.
VROEMG had never been too cooperative with the Agency, but to not divulge something as important as an anomaly in the heart of Neragon? It was a suspicious development.
"Deputies, thoughts?" The Director said.
The Deputy Director spoke up. "I say we put more eyes on these envoys. We need our own information on this anomaly, especially if VROEMG is holding back."
The Director nodded in agreement. "Exactly as I thought, Deputy Richard, get it done."
The head of Operations nodded curtly. "It will be, sir."
The Director leaned back in his chair, "Do you have anything else to add Deputy Hoss?”
The woman shook her head. "Not at this time, sir."
"Very well, Deputy Bloom? I believe you had notified me two days ago about a new breakthrough in regards to Project 56?"
The Deputy, a young pony-tailed man who was the head of the Directorate of Innovation, cleared his throat before responding. “Of course, sir. We…”
And that was how the rest of the meeting went.
17:46 CMT (Central Milishient Time) (Same as WT), 9th of February, 1639 (9th of Memesa, 1995)
Central International Affairs Department (9th floor), Ministry of Foreign Affairs Building, Lafleya District, Runepolis, Holy Milishial Empire
Chief Daniil Gorgias, a balding but distinguished figure with broad shoulders and a slightly hooked nose, idly went over a financial report detailing the department's past month of activities. He did not really need to, as every figure and detail were imprinted in his mind like engraving on steel. But he was merely killing his unwanted free time until the minute hand above his office door crawled to 6 o'clock. At that hour, he could finally abandon his desk and return to his wife and children.
But he couldn't read something again and again for 15 minutes straight, so he finally decided to put down the report and leaned back in his high-backed chair. After a minute, he got up and turned to the office window, his gaze shifting to the view of Runepolis behind it. The city's spires and glass domes glistening in the late afternoon sun, A sight he'd grown accustomed to but never tired of witnessing.
His mind wandered to the upcoming visit tomorrow for the so called "Neragese", something that his department would be in charge of. Normally, contact with a new society would be the responsibility of the Non-Civilised International Affairs Department, but given the fact they had quite literally appeared in their “backyard”, it had been relegated to his department instead which was responsible for relations with countries of the Milishient Continent.
It was not every day a whole new society materialised out of nowhere which made it slightly bothering, as the Ancient Sorcerous Empire had been prophesised to reappear in this manner. But their Emperor had dismissed such notion saying if that was the case, they would be conquering the world, not trying to establish diplomatic relations with them.
He shuddered at the thought of the empire's return. Shaking it off, he straightened his suit and picked up the report once more, flipping through it without truly absorbing any information, trying to forget the worrying notion.
The minutes passed by sluggishly until finally, the clock above the door announced the awaited hour. With a swift movement, as if rehearsed, Gorgias opened a drawer and neatly placed the report in it. He grabbed his fedora which hanged from the coat rack beside his desk, ready to finally leave his work.
Extract from Evans Nott - Omnipædia
Herr Evans Wilhelm Theodore Nott HM RI NE IL (born 19 Kunnen 1601) is a Neragese politician, historian, and writer who served as Member of the Council of Magic for Sudtoland from 1743 to 1749, Head of the Neragese Council of Magic from 1749 to 1754, as well founder and Kanzlex of the Anti-Anomalous League (now Union of Realms Organisation for the Containment of Magical Anomalies) from 1754 to 1796. As of 1991, he is the incumbent Director of Site Alpha, serving since 1760.
Nott was born in Winhelm, Sudtoland to an aristocratic family as the youngest of two other siblings, James III and Morgan. As a half Mutamni (Wizard), he attended the Fragenward Institute of Magic from 1618 to 1621 after which he was enrolled in the Royal Wilding Military Academy. Evans Nott joined the Neragese Army in 1626 as a member of the King's Royal Lancer. However, he was transferred to the 52nd Light Horse Regiment and sent to northern Hesterath following the outbreak of the First Northern War in 1710. He saw action in the Neragese Protectorate of New Laughton in modern day Hernslavia and the infamous Battle of Helena’s Field, gaining fame as a war correspondent and writing books about his experience in the army. Because of his bravery and fame, he was appointed as colonel of the 29th Infantry Regiment in 1739 and was sent to Trimeshia a year later with the beginning of the War of 1740. During his time in Trimeshia, Nott saw the havoc of the combined force of magic and technology, witnessing firsthand the devastating Siege of Nordton which left the city in ruins in Pusper of 1743, an experience that would later shape his career as a politician to advocate for the regulation and control of magical anomalies.
After the war, Nott retired from the military and turned his attention to politics and was elected as Member of the Council of Magic for Sudtoland the same year. Nott became known for his conservative views and his stance on magical regulation, often clashing with more progressive members of the Council who advocated for more lenient policies on magic use. Despite this, he gained a reputation as a skilled negotiator and was able to use his influence to secure funding in the field of magical research. In 1749, Nott was elected as Head of the Neragese Council of Magic. During his tenure as Head, he focused on increasing the Council's power and influence over magical affairs, often at the expense of individual freedoms. In 1754, the Anti-Anomalous League was found under him, which aimed to control and limit the use of magical anomalies in Neragese society. Nott served as the League's Kanzlex (Chief Director) for the League after his resignation from the council, until he stepped down in 1796 to focus his attention on Site Alpha.
In addition to his political career, Nott was also a prolific writer and historian and wrote extensively on military history, politics, and magical theory. His most famous book, The History of Magic in Neragese Society, is considered a seminal work on the subject and is still widely read and referenced. In the present day, at the age of 394, Nott is still an active participant in Neragese politics. Despite his advanced age, he remains a respected and influential figure in the magical community, and is considered a key influencer in the development of magical regulation in Neragon. He continues to serve as Director of Site Alpha, a position he has held for over 230 years.
Evans Nott. Omnipædia. 12:12, Retrieved 9 Memesa, 1995 from https://gbm.omnipaedia.org/w/index.php?titel=Evans_Nott&altid=19512.
