Observations and Discoveries of Anomalic Activity, AKA Glooms, Entry 1

[Poolson]

[For sale by a book peddler in Ephia's Well, for 10 dinars each.]

Observations and Discoveries of Anomalic Activity, AKA Glooms, Entry 1 by Isadora Sylvestre


Opening: What is a Gloom?

A Gloom is a shorthand name for Anomalous Activity that defies the rules of reality. It is a phenomena that is difficult to detect by the naked eye, and requires anomalous artifacts, or a high volume of Gloom radiation settling within a living or magically animated host, to know exactly when you have entered, or left, a gloom.

- Method one, exposing an anomalous artifact to naked air, employs a violent, opposite reaction to the present gloom, simply by exposure.

- Method two, Gloom radiation within a living host, sets in an 'corporeal disassociation', which has ever-so-slightly nudged the host out of its place in the material world. When exposed to a gloom, a subtle, nebulous sensation settles into the living creature. This can feel like a finger held just shy of your forehead, or a shiver up your spine.

Glooms manifest in strange ways, though the most common are the corruption of the elements, such as, but not limited to:

- Extreme heat, without a source, or means to entrap this heat.

- Sounds that echo into eternity until they become deafeningly loud, with no source of causation, and in defiance of the surrounding environment permitting the escape and travel of sound.

- Sudden chill, despite being under a high noon sun in the Great Ring.

These Glooms can - as Narwen Alendiel and Ottavio Banducci can attest as witnesses - manifest of their own volition, by perverting the very air, or changing a core attribute of a property, be it a non-living organism or a chemical compound found in nature, but what is truly interesting is that they are at their strongest when manifesting in a sentient host capable of thought. Like lightning arcing off of brass or copper, living beings serve as excellent conduits for these Glooms to manifest and "arc" from them onto other things, living and inanimate alike.


But what are they?:

Aside from a literal description, it is hard to say their true nature, or what causes them. What can be confirmed, is that this phenomena is as recent as the Ringfall.

To visualize it, as one best can, from my own observations: Our world is a picture frame, and reality itself is a picture too big for the frame. The frame is constantly being moved to try fit as much as it can. As a result, parts of the picture are out of focus, or cut off, losing the means of portraying appropriate context.

As for its cause, it was previously considered by Professor Feodore Dustwink, quote paraphasing; "a direct result of the Great Ring's disconnect from the elemental planes, and the rapid conquest of the Djinn.". While this theory still holds some merit, and can be attributed to one of its causes, new evidence has emerged that this is not the sole cause, as new phenomena caused by Glooms have been observed, that it is not just irregular behavior of the elements, but rather born out of concepts unique to sentient life alone.

Exhibit One, with Lyrist Aurelio d'Lyon, Marcellus Saenus and Richo "The Fast", would be a concept of Heroism, that emboldened those in proximity to extreme dare and bravery, even in defiance of great, immediate peril and to supernatural effects. Indeed, even magi who partook in conjuration, had their spells augmented, to turn the beasts called forth into impossibly perfect images of chivalry's greatest virtues, made manifest in a living being.

Exhibit Two, with Jamilah Ayad, Mannie, Otho and the late Koji as witnesses, would be concepts of Cruelty and Malice, that employed a certain bloodlust, fearlessness and hatred not normally inherent within the host. Indeed, it even drove them to forego tactical superiority of immediate dispatching of the opponent upon their flank, to hobble and paralyze their opponents instead, with slices to vital tendons, and spine taps.

This suggests to the observer that it is more than a symptom of the Great Ring losing its connection with the elements that made up the Material World, but rather the world itself, and all of its makeup - its inhabitants included -, beginning to forget itself and its own rules, after the traumatic event of the Ringfall and the collapse of the City of Rings. Perhaps, in its own error, it is attempting to correct itself to preserve itself, and in so doing, creates the anomalous activity that we perceive today, with growing frequency.

Think of it like a puzzle that is attempting to puts its own pieces back together, but it lacks the logic or eyes to know which is the correct place to put it, to visualize such a vast and nebulous concept.

Why do they matter?

As the world has suffered the extreme trauma of an apocalyptic event, it falls upon us to rebuild. Not just stacking stone walls and sowing fields, but rejuvenating the earth, filling the rivers, mitigating the harshness of the blistering sun that causes all but the most steady plants to wilt. We, as survivors of the old, and inheritors of the new, must sow back together the very seams of the world.

It is more than a matter of seeking the mysteries of the new world to wrestle with the elements, it is a matter of willpower, collective thought and shared vision for the future, to rebuild the world in an image of our choice. Descriptions of progression to social change, have escaped the confines of metaphors, and are now beginning to become literal.

It is the author's thoughts, that these Glooms, for the many dangers they pose, hold the potential to serve as the needed building blocks, to restore the world to its function. That a project that focuses on Actualization of these Glooms' features, and anchoring them into reality, is what will be our best hope, for life in our new home.