Dear Grey,
By now you have learned as much of the ancient history of our world as we have been able to piece together. In this lesson, we would like to discuss our recent history and how we’ve managed to achieve some equilibrium despite the tragedies we have experienced.
For most of the Sixth Age, we have been concerned with the basics of survival with very little magic to sustain us. Kin have turned to technology to fill the gaps, often with grave consequences for our lack of knowledge and skill. But we have persevered as best as we were able in the broken, ruined world that surrounded us.
At a certain point in the Sixth Age, the Beloved must have taken pity on us, for a certain kin rose to some status regardless of the fears and taboo around magic to become a liminal creature. Her name is Storm and with an iron will and fierce pride she wove together some sense of civilization from the scattered tribes and groups we had become. Her beauty and presence is most unlike Safia, whose gentle strength had guided us with little demands or harshness. Storm drove us toward her own ends with an implacable spirit that owed most likely from the shattered world she had blossomed into.
Though it cannot be said exactly how it happened, what we know is that she gathered around her some few strong magicians she could find and convinced them one by one to offer affinity to her. Somehow she had found that the use of affinity to one another could delay the effects of the Ruin, perhaps by cycling the use of power from one magician to the next, rather than one single most powerful person that would attract the plants and their gruesome fever. It is a delicate balance to be sure, and one that took great trust or perhaps guidance by an even greater will to accomplish. These magicians she brought into affinity she named her family, the Four Moon Families, and together, they began to push back against the Ruin that had laid claim to our world.
As we have mentioned before, the world of the Sixth Age had become one of seas and oceans surrounding a myriad of islands. These islands, each protected by a magician or group of magicians, became individual city states, not unlike our small kingdoms of the Fourth Age. The islands ruled by Storm’s family members became aligned with each other and began to develop technologies to protect us from the clouds of ruin plants in the waters. Through the careful use of magic and greater use of technology and the new sciences we had discovered, the Four Moon Families, led by Storm, restored a measure of beauty and flourishing to our lives.
Storm’s own seat of power, the Firefly City, is the resurrected remains of the city that Safia and the Pillars ruled. As such, it is a strange place that is both lovely and haunted by the souls of the thousands of deaths that have taken place there. It is both the center of our civilization once again as well as a constant reminder of what we have lost. The haunting is quite literal, as the city is full of thousands of small fairy lights of lost souls that hover in the air, moving on their own or in great clusters in no discernible rhythm as they float. They are most visible at night and their small, flickering lights are what give the city its current name. Despite the uncanniness, citizens enjoy a fair amount of safety provided by the iron will of Storm and her servants. Storm created the first of the Four Moon Families, the Black Moon, and has heavily restricted the use of magic in her city to ensure that the delicate balance she has created is not disturbed. Firefly City’s citizens enjoy a productive and balanced lifestyle , as the city’s culture encourages personal growth and refinement through one’s work, rest, and passions. It is Storm herself who is the patron of our organisation, having taken a pre-existing one and breathing new life and resources into it. We were reblossomed as the Arcane Hierarchy and given the task of preserving what magical history we may, so long as our members do not practise the arts ourselves and become prey to the ever dangerous ruin plants.
Firefly City’s sister city HoloHue is protected by Whimsy. Whimsy inherited the second Family, the Gold Moon, from its previous leader and formed her own group of magicians, the Neon Sxints, as her aids in the protection of the city. HoloHue is a heavily technological culture, as we are sure you have noticed. The city is filled with buildings cloaked in moving projections, neon signs, flashing billboards, and a variety of whimsical touches meant to entertain and even dull the senses. It is a city of colour and light. Citizens’ needs are catered to with city services employing a number of technological solutions geared towards the least amount of effort and the most amount of wonder. Food, water, stimulants, goods and services can all be delivered to your doorstep with a command delivered to the city’s municipal artificial intelligence named Riri Rizz. If so desired, a citizen never needs to leave their place of residence and may spend countless hours absorbing the wealth of entertainment that HoloHue has to offer, whether it be through other kin whose wills drive them to do something other than just enjoy, or virtual entertainers who never tire. There is music, movies, endless culinary inventions, and all manner of diversions that soothe the soul and have made HoloHue the city of choice for those kin who desire nothing more than to enjoy. After our struggles, who can blame them? Magic use in HoloHue is generally restricted to the Neon Sxints, who have different degrees of tolerance.
Of the other two branches of the Four Moon Families, the Rose Moon and the White Moon, not much can be said here. The head of the Rose Moon commands a floating city, facilitated through a network of sanctuaries and theatres devoted to preserving the sacred arts of kin. Her domain is not regulated to a single island but exists in many places, connected by these buildings and their loyalty to her. We unfortunately do not have any information on the head of the White Moon.
There are other islands ruled by other magicians that have not joined the Four Moon Families, but we can discuss them another time as it becomes necessary. For now, it is enough that you know the environment you find yourself in and the reasons for our caution.
In our next lesson, we will discuss the structure and tactics of our organisation in more depth. As ever, thank you for your continued dedication to your studies.
Sincerely,
A. Grey