What Honor I Can Bestow

My Dear Ash,

It did not seem that long ago that I first built you. In trying to save a life that was too far gone, I was astounded to discover I had in fact created an entirely new life.

From the beginning you have proven your bravery. You sacrificed your first body to save a brother you had never met. You were uncompromising in protecting me when I had regressed in age by a failed experiment to a petulant child. You were crucial in the liberation of Steeltopia and the restoration of the Emperor's just reign. And finally, you assisted the construction of and my escape to the Clockwork Caravel. For all this, you never asked for more than the proper uniforms, the tools of your trade and a place to recharge at night.

All this is now denied you. I hope this gift will begin to make up for it.

Your older sister Gematria was built with a Galvanic Tesseractor integrated into her design. The GT is my greatest invention, a device that folds time and space to allow a construct to travel almost anywhere and anywhen.

This may seem like a simple pocketwatch to you, but it is far more than that. Under the functioning face you will find a miniaturized hadron collider powered by a flywheel in a frictionless zone. Yes, Ash, this is a Galvanic Tesseractor attachment, built especially for you.


Fasten the chain to complete the circuit and let it charge. Gematria will show you how to use it when you are ready. While she uses a Quantum Displacer Control disguised as a necklace to manipulate the transchronal energies, all of your controls are within your device.


Use it well, my Son. You've earned it.

With Proud Affections,
~Dr. Darien James Mason

*Replicas of the GMT Quantum Displacer Control and the Galvanic Tesseractor Pocketwatch (aka Pocketwatch of Gemological Mystery) are available at Clockwork Couture. Please note that while the GMT-QDC is conspicuously beautiful and indicative of a wearer that grasps the secrets of traveling the Continuum, it does not function without a working Tesseractor. The Tesseractor Pocketwatch replica, for safety reasons, is preset to take the wearer through time at the rate of one minute per minute with proper maintenance. Which, really, is for the best. Trust me on this.

A Fresh Start

***BEGIN TRANSMISSION***

"Good Evening, Ladies and Gentlemen! I am Doctor Darien James Mason, Captain of the aethership Clockwork Caravel. Behind me you see my crew...my children, Gematria and Ash. They are free-willed clockwork constructs. Children, would you like to introduce yourselves and explain our mission?"

"Gladly, Father! I am Gematria Mason. Our employers at Clockwork Couture have asked us to explore the myriad worlds of aetherspace, and retrieve artifacts and accouterments of interest to you, the discerning Neo-Victorian!"

"Greetings. I am Ash Mason, the Engineer for the Clockwork Caravel. During our adventures we will be providing links with detailed information on clothing and gear we have especially useful, which luckily for our Steampunk audience will be available from Clockwork Couture. Father?"

"Yes, we understand our adventures will introduce us to an entirely new audience. Those of you who wish read our adventures in our former home of Second Life are welcome to peruse through my journal and Gematria's. To clarify, Gem's name was originally Qlippothic, but after the second unit...*shrugs* well, it's an interesting read. Gematria! Set course for...Hmm? What is it Ash?"

"Our engines are still aimed at Zindra."

"What? Oh! Dear me, that would have been embarrassing wouldn't it? Recalibrate the engines please."

"Yes Father."

The Reckoning

***BEGIN TRANSMISSION***
"People of the Second Life! I am Doctor Darien James Mason onboard the aethership Gygax II! In retaliation for for my unjust banishment, my Aether Cannon is positioned and charged to annihilate the monumentally ill-conceived project of the Lindens, the continent of Zindra! To show I mean no harm to the Residents of the Grid I am giving you all five minutes to jump off your poseballs and pack up your..."

"Doctor Mason?"

"RED FIRE! What is it, Gematria? Can't you see I'm in the middle of my monologue?"

"We have an incoming call from a Miss Abigail from Clockwork Couture. They wish to discuss a corporate sponsorship!"

"I can't be distracted with...pardon? Corporate..?"

"Line #2, Doctor."

***END TRANSMISSION***

Left behind

What does it mean to be a descendant of Bloodwing? It means trying your entire life to free yourself from a byzantine legacy of dark magic and betrayal. It means having his anthem trapped in your head...always. Qli-2 is still unaccounted for. And I fear for Amarantis.

OSGrid: LBSA Plaza Renovation, Industria

I sat by as Mr. Frisby (he's "Mr. OSGrid"), Doctor Rorrim (the elfin lady) and the other gurus of this Grid collaboratively revamped the sim. Before it had been a steel pyramid with a maze underneath. A maze for first rezzers who may not even know how to move yet?

The couch I was sitting in fell many stories as the area was leveled, and the ground was changed to a glowing blue grid.

I also received an invitation to investigate an OSG sim called Industria. At my visit it was still obviously in the building phase. Something about an industrial zone built around an old TB ward? Yes, they would need a doctor, wouldn't they? It may have a Crimson Falls feel to it when it's done, I certainly hope so.

I've learned of the fate that befell the Clockwinder and Dr. Obolensky's coup. I cannot directly intervene, but I can scan the waters of the Linden Grid for that giant milk bottle. I can also coordinate communications with the resistance if need be. My Revenge will have to wait.

I'm in this mood because of scorn

A second refusal. It was like trying to reason with a brick wall. Not even for the rulers of the Steamlands would they relent. The Lindens had more pressing concerns, obviously. I could see the swirling black clouds that blocked my view of the Grid. Further, a nation was getting ready to suspend passports to the Grid. I sympathized with my antipodean friends. And then there was the matter of that nuclear missle... Even if they did relent, would there be anything left in a few years for me to return to?

At last, I was no longer confined to the bridge of my aethership. I had a passageway that ran the length of the vessel (the side portals were still locked to me as the rooms were unfinished, of course) all the way to the engine room, which was also pressurized and gyrostabilized at 1G. With the instability and general inaccessability on the surface of OSGrid of late, I need some room to pace.

I paid a visit to my crew in back. The room was flickering from the showers of sparks as they welded a pipe to the engine core. They abruptly stood to attention as I entered. I adjusted my goggles and examined the pipe, the soddering still glowing a cherry red. Then I examined the blueprints framed on the wall of the chamber.

"These plans have been tampered with!" I roared.

Gematria calmly explained. "Father. The critical errors of the last..."

"I am well aware of the errors of the Gygax I engines." I pulled a lever bolted to the wall and a pneumatic tube dropped into my outstretched hand with a blast of cold air.

"Here are my blueprints. Do not alter them again."

"Father. Permission to speak freely." Ash looked to me with visible concern.

"Denied. You will both obey your Creator. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, Doctor Mason", they spoke slowly in unision. A subtle form of protest, no longer calling me Father. Let them. As the bulkhead doors closed behind me I felt the vibrations of the floor become more pronounced. They were recalibrating to my specifications, as ordered.

So I'm locked out, along with all of Australia

Confirmed: Second Life, online adult games to be banned outright in Australia

Zindra was a day late, a dollar short and half-assed to begin with. My sympathies go out to Sir Edward Pearse and all the other Netizens Down Under. It may be too late for me, but you can still go to your Parliament and fight for your freedoms!