Muse's Log - Space Odyssey Fiction
4 months ago
– Fri, Aug 09, 2024 at 10:31:52 AM
Muse’s Log
Sing in me, oh muse, of planets unseen by the eyes of those who share my blood; of that interstellar sea, dark as midnight; of those travelers, weary of their strange roads, who pray for familiar worlds to unfold upon that next horizon. Sing in me and through me of that long journey home.
Seven months and seven days we have wandered here now, and oh muse — the things that I have seen. On jeweled Nymest, its skies adorned with rings of red stardust, there are temples that channel scouring wind into a sound of prayerful song, some ceaseless hymn-wise rhythm. I have stood astride comet-kingdoms, travelling cities that scar the velvet heavens with the blue fire of their passing. I have supped with presidents and empresses over dishes of scorpionfish and vat-grown veal, tasted wine untouched by gravity’s cruel grasp. Such wonders have I seen in our wanderings, and yet…
…and yet, such horrors. On the moons of Khophesat, I saw a plague of twisted shapes, each madness the bespoke torment of a genius long maddened. I have seen warships clad with world-wrecking armaments, the restless lightning-javelins of warriors in search of quarrel. I have seen starving worlds and lonely worlds and worlds long dead; their once-glittering cities open to the sky like the cloven chests of corpses.
And that crew, my crew; my far wandering and lonely crew. They labor beyond what I could demand of them, their faces hero-masked and stoic. I see exhaustion as it creeps into their bones; I see despair as it coils round their hearts. Brave and strong and brilliant as they are, none of them are accustomed to this strangeness. We have gained an infinity of novel worlds, and lost all possibility of home. End log.
Tamara Lowery looked down at the transcript of her day’s log and hovered her finger over the delete button. She was as no-nonsense a captain as the Martian Union had ever made, a steady presence to her relatively unseasoned crew. She came up through stellar cartography and deep space astronomy; she was a scientist, an officer, and a mother, not a poet. But there was something about being so far from home. It was easy to treat their journey home as some great odyssey worth a muse’s attention because that meant it was possible to get back. And there was no promise of that yet.
Mother. The word stuck in her mind like a thorn, and she tried her best not to pick at it. Twenty-nine weeks of wandering meant she’d already missed Virginia’s birthday. Lamar would turn five in a few more days, too. Not for the first time, she wished her love was a lasso long enough to reach her children from across endless space, and sturdy enough that she could pull herself home along it.
It wasn’t though. The little fits of poetry this place — the Tenebrium — provoked in her? They were a distraction. Worse: they were an indulgence. Love wasn’t enough to get them home, and prayer was a slim hope, too. The crew of the Forgiveness knew that they were going where they weren’t wanted when they’d signed up for a trip to Despina. Neptune told them nothing when he wrapped their starship in his wrath and flung them here, beyond all maps and hope of return.
She splashed her face with water from the sink. No moping today. No poetry. She was a rock, upright and steady. In the dim light of her quarters, Captain Tamara Lowery of the M.U. Forgiveness dressed herself and straightened, making her face the same mask of resolute confidence that she wore for her crew every day, and stepped through her door —
And into madness. Gone, the familiar corridors of glassteel and ultraplastic. In their place were high, crumbling walls of weathered stone. The floors were strewn with dust and debris, and overhead the sky — sky, she thought, on my damned ship — was ominous red streaked with clouds of offensive neon pink that hurt to look at for longer than a blink.
Captain Lowery looked down, activating the communicator on her wrist. She called out for a sitrep from anyone who was listening. At first all she got back was static, but she scrolled up the comm frequencies, examining the noise. The pattern reminded her of the signals she’d once gotten from the background radiation of a dying star, and once she knew what to scrub out, the signal came in clear and easy.
“Captain,” a voice came from the communicator. It was a brave voice, but rattled, and it belonged to Lieutenant Jackson. Jarrod was her youngest officer, a baby-faced engineering genius who’d never been outside of the Sol system before…well, before all that unpleasantness with Neptune, the planet and God alike. “I’ve got your signal locked now, Captain Lowery. I’m having trouble keeping up with everyone; the bridge is still here but the other floors have been overtaken by some sort of extradimensional incursion.”
“You’ve got a read on me,” the Captain said, her voice meticulously even-keeled. “That’s good. Good work, lieutenant.” She didn’t have to see the man to imagine him taking a big breath out. Jackson was a good kid, but he flailed around if you cut him off from other people. He didn’t need praise, just contact. Another voice on the comm line. And one day, he’d grow into the confidence he deserved. “Can you get a read on my surroundings?”
“The incursion continues throughout most of your deck, but I think you could still get to the maglift. It’s hard to be sure though; the interference on sensors is a lot thicker than on comms, and even when I get something concrete, the whole place is just a mess, captain, just —”
Tamara Lowery didn’t hear what Jackson said next. Something else pricked her attention. As casually as she could, she peered around a turn in the stone wall. More walls greeted her. Many, many more; branching off in at countless intersections. And there, fifty yards away and stalking towards her, was something so big and so heavy that the walls shook with its every step. It reminded her of a minotaur, but wrong — the horns curled like a ram’s before forking like a deer; the fur was a garish motley of blue and yellow; the snout had a hardness to it, like a beak. It saw her and sped towards her, its war cry enough to deafen her to whatever else Jackson was saying, still.
That was the Tenebrium, through and through — just familiar enough to get an inkling of what was happening, but alien enough that you couldn’t coast along on what you knew from home.
“It’s a maze, lieutenant,” she said, taking off at a run. She chose her path second by second, putting as many turns between her and the creature as she could manage. With luck, it wouldn’t be able to build up too much momentum that way. “Get those sensors sorted out now and point me towards the maglift.”
At $39,000 in Funding - NEW ADD ON - FOUR COLORS-THEMED DICE SET - A dice set selected to represent Four Colors will be offered as an option Add On to all backers pledging to a reward tier that includes a hardcover copy of
Scion: Mythic Shards. A drawstring bag with ten 10-sided dice in For Colors colors can be added to your pledge for +$20 each.
At $40,000 in Funding - ADDITIONAL MYTHIC SHARD #2 - A seventh Mythic Shard setting for Scion second edition will be added to the
Scion: Mythic Shards PDF and hardcover book. The theme for this additional Shard will be decided by Backer vote!
That's right! If we manage to achieve $40,000 in Funding, the developers and writers will come up with a SEVENTH SHARD to add to the
Scion: Mythic Shards book. The theme of the new shard will be decided with a Backer Poll.
Your options for a new shard, should we achieve this Stretch Goal target:
-
Teen Drama: Scion High, but with a more action-y style and greatly expanded. More like Riverdale than other teen dramas.
-
Cartoon: Where being made a fool is worse than being Taken Out.
-
Sports Drama: Drawing inspiration from Ted Lasso, A League of Their Own, and the Sandlot. Personal growth through sports competition.
-
Journey to the Wild West: Journey to the West, but it's set in the Wild West. Wuxia cowboys!
-
Aquatic Adventures: An Atlantis meets Waterworld and pirate-themed shard. Dive into the depths to recover lost relics or awaken the slumbering Earth Gods to create new lands.
The poll for backers to vote on their favorite will run until the moment the campaign ends. You must be a backer to have a vote for the possible new shard, so join in before the end if you haven't already! Again, we'll be voting now, but this shard will only be added to the development list and added to the eventual Scion: Mythic Shards book if we unlock this Stretch Goal at $40,000 in Funding!
FINAL WEEK COUNTDOWN! VOTES ARE IN - NEW SHARD ADDED! A FINAL STRETCH GOAL?
4 months ago
– Thu, Aug 08, 2024 at 10:47:53 AM
Hello Shardstriders,
There are moments it feels like we just started this campaign, but in truth we've been running for just over three weeks now and we're now officially in our FINAL WEEK COUNTDOWN!
Over this final week I'll be sharing a handful of instruction and review-type posts about Reward Tiers & Add Ons, Stretch Goal reviews, and What Comes Next, so if you've got any process questions or are wondering about how the Crowdfunding steps work, I'm hoping to clarify any remaining questions before we finish. Of course, if you're still wondering about something, please ask and I'll help as best I can.
Final Week Program
- Aug 11 - Reward Tier & Add On Review
- Aug 13 - Manuscript Preview # 5 - Space Odyssey!
- Aug 14 - Stretch Goal Review
- Aug 15 - Final Day Checklist & What Comes Next
The Campaign on August 15th at 2:00 PM EDT... sort of.
This book and campaign are all about these alternate realities that open up new possibilities. We're going to check out one of those new possibilities with this campaign and see what happens! It's called "OVERTIME MODE" and it allows us to keep the campaign rolling as long as backers are pledging.
Overtime ModeOvertime Mode extends the campaign past its original end time to give backers a final chance to make their pledge and adds an interesting twist to the end of the campaign. How long will it extend? That’s entirely up to backers: The campaign will keep going for an additional 10 minutes as long as pledges keep coming in – a chain of back-to-back pledges is called the
Backer Train. The campaign will end only when the Backer Train stops after a period of 10 minutes passing without any pledges.
You’ll know we’re in Overtime Mode when the campaign’s Backer Train counter displays a bright rainbow border and a new countdown that resets to 10 minutes after each new backer joins that final Backer Train ride.
So, we've scheduled the campaign to conclude on June 6th at 2:00 pm EDT, but it'll be extended in 10 minute chunks as long as backers keep pledging. Will we add an extra 10 minutes? An extra 20? Or will it all finish up as we programmed? Who knows, but we'll find out together!
THE SIXTH SHARD
Not only have we come together to fund the development and creation of this book, we've also helped kick it up a notch! When we started, the book contained five different setting shards - alternate versions of The World that enabled us to explore our Scion characters from a slightly different angle.
-
After the End: A post apocalyptic desert full of peril and opportunities for new beginnings
-
Cyber-Scion: A cyberpunk dystopia where Scions pilot mecha to fight corporate kaiju
-
Farewell to Heroes: Gritty noir cities where Scions are illegal
-
Four Color: A place of superheroes, alter-egos, and over-the-top excitement
-
Space Odyssey: An entire galaxy of starships and aliens
Over the course of the Crowdfunding campaign, backers have gained access to the current draft version of each of these setting explorations (with the exception of Space Odyssey, which will come on Tuesday). You can read the book before the campaign ends, before any pledges are processed and payments collected.
But being a backer has also given you a vote on what new shards to explore - because we've added a SIXTH shard to the book via Stretch Goal. We had a poll running for the past week, looking for backers to help choose the new shard setting that will be developed for the final book, and now all of the votes are in!
And the winner, with 44% of the votes, is...
LOST TIME - Rules for playing a battle for the stability of all realities as Scions slip through the different shards and semi shards trying to thwart a usurper's plan to invade another reality. Sliders and Doctor Who style adventures with a group of Scions who are selected to be reality police.
A SEVENTH SHARD...?
Should we stop there? Are six shards enough to hint at possibilities and present new takes on our Scion games? Or - with one week left - can we introduce the possibility of s Seventh Shard for our final book?
At $40,000 in Funding - ADDITIONAL MYTHIC SHARD #2 - A seventh Mythic Shard setting for Scion second edition will be added to the
Scion: Mythic Shards PDF and hardcover book. The theme for this additional Shard will be decided by Backer vote!
That's right! If we manage to achieve $40,000 in Funding, the developers and writers will come up with a SEVENTH SHARD to add to the
Scion: Mythic Shards book. The theme of the new shard will be decided with a Backer Poll.
Your options for a new shard, should we achieve this Stretch Goal target:
-
Teen Drama: Scion High, but with a more action-y style and greatly expanded. More like Riverdale than other teen dramas.
-
Cartoon: Where being made a fool is worse than being Taken Out.
-
Sports Drama: Drawing inspiration from Ted Lasso, A League of Their Own, and the Sandlot. Personal growth through sports competition.
-
Journey to the Wild West: Journey to the West, but it's set in the Wild West. Wuxia cowboys!
-
Aquatic Adventures: An Atlantis meets Waterworld and pirate-themed shard. Dive into the depths to recover lost relics or awaken the slumbering Earth Gods to create new lands.
The poll for backers to vote on their favorite will run until the moment the campaign ends. You must be a backer to have a vote for the possible new shard, so join in before the end if you haven't already! Again, we'll be voting now, but this shard will only be added to the development list and added to the eventual Scion: Mythic Shards book if we unlock this Stretch Goal at $40,000 in Funding!
Recruiting New Backers
I know, this is something I've already said many times (and seem to say during every project!), but for this final week, you are officially a Mythic Shards Ambassador for this Crowdfunding project. It's time to share your excitement for Scion and Mythic Shards! Basically, we want to recruit as many curious backers as possible to see how long we can keep our Backer Train running over this final week.
It probably wouldn't hurt to have others to votes for that final seventh shard as well!
I know I've ended many update posts with "Keep spreading the word! Invite others to join in!" - but what does that mean, and how do you do it?
Easy answer - don't stop talking about Mythic Shards until 2:01 PM EDT next Thursday August 15th (and then as long as we continue running in Overtime Mode). Yes, family and friends are tired of me talking about it. But what else have I got to talk about? And they've learned to tolerate me during a crowdfunding campaign. But here's the thing - there are others around who haven't heard or don't know about the campaign.
There are many, many Onyx Path and Scion fans who haven't yet heard about this campaign and would love to join in. We're right in the middle of a very busy season - tons of different things competing for our attention and changing schedules and nicer weather - so it's not surprising that new backers are just finding out about the campaign every day. If you have an opportunity to let someone know, please do and let's make sure they have a chance to join in before the end.
Resources to Share
If you're inviting new backers, or if you are a new backer (hi new backers!), here are a few key resources to be aware of for this campaign.
Backers are able to review the (soon-to-be) complete manuscript for this book before the campaign closes and any pledges are processed. With the exception of the Space Odyssey section coming on Tuesday, the entirety of the rules and options from this book are available for download and review by backers, along with all of the setting information for these shard sections!
Anyone who pledges to this campaign before the end can read the entire book now AND provide feedback directly to the developers to help guide the manuscript through the final phases of development and editing!
And, if you join now, as I've noted, we'll be posting the final chapter of the book next week before we reach the finish line. This final chapter is all about taking your Scion story into space, and we'll have some preview fiction from that section tomorrow.
Plus, all backers joining in before the end get to vote on the topic for a possible seventh shard - and hopefully help us add it to the book by unlocking that $40,000 Stretch Goal target!
Interviews! Previews!
Despite some technical difficulties, Scion stalwart
Michele Masala and Co-Developer
Hiromi Cota (and a voice over from an Advil ad!?) hosted a special Crowdfunding Campaign Kickoff twitch stream (Featuring a special video from
Kim Godwin) that you can check out
<here>
Co-developer
Kim Godwin sat down with the folks at
The Old Ways Podcast for an in-depth interview, which is available to listen to at
https://directory.libsyn.com/episode/index/id/32320657In addition, Kim was also Eddy’s guest on an episode of the
Onyx Pathcast, availble
<here> so
take a listen as they talk about the book, as well as Kim’s excellent, ever-growing, body of work with
Onyx Path!
Finally, for a sneak-peak at the final Shard coming next week, check out
Awkward GM Corbin‘s vid as he takes a look at the
Space Odyssey Shard, available here:
https://youtu.be/aOdSb74Hh8I?si=SBPy-8upvnAXJ22V
Watch the Game in Action!
Actual plays from the various shard settings can be found on Onyx Path's Youtube archive of Twitch streams.
I've said it before, but one of my favorite ways to learn about a game is to just watch it in action, and these one-shot sessions give a great insight into how these different shard settings affect and present a new take on a game of Scion. Even if you've already got an ongoing campaign, throwing a weird alternate universe one-shot adventure into the mix can be the perfect way to explore this game, and that idea is certainly presented here. Love it.
ONYX PATH DISCUSSION CHANNELS
The Discord is particularly lively, but you might be able to gain further insight and some in-depth conversation at any of these Onyx Path discussion zones:
Share the Links!
1) Don't forget to share a link to the Crowdfunding page in any discussion you have (where appropriate) - and feel free to pass any of the long list of links above to those who may need more info (or, just point them to this post!)
2) Don't forget to tell us about any post or review or discussion you write! Come to the comments section and let us know so we can all go and contribute! I know I keep saying it, but really - these last days are key. Keep the enthusiasm high and keep on inviting others to join in, either directly ("Come see...") or just by setting an example of your enthusiasm and interest.
I'm really interested to see if we can get a backer train going at the end of the campaign and wondering if we can keep rolling for another 10 or 20 minutes past our set end time!
Final Week
We've got one week to go, everyone! Thank you all so much for your support! We work together because it's the right thing to do, and because backers make it better! Let's finish strong! And let's continue exploring these new but familiar Worlds together. We've got one last section coming our way on Tuesday, but remember... if we get enough new backers and support, we can be adding a SEVENTH SHARD before the end of the campaign, and the direction for that one will be decided by BACKER VOTE. So join in and vote and let's take this book on it's own journey of apotheosis from Hero (5 shard settings) to Demigod (6 shard settings!) to God with 7 shard settings!!
Oh yeah, there are also these four Stretch Goals to smash on our way!
At $36,000 in Funding - MYTHIC SHARDS REFERENCE GUIDE PDF - FAREWELL TO HEROES - A series of charts and information for a Storyguide to use while running a Farewell to Heroes game will be added to the Reference Guide PDF. This PDF will automatically be added to the rewards list of all backers receiving the
Scion: Mythic Shards PDF.
At $37,000 in Funding - NEW ADD ON - FAREWELL TO HEROES-THEMED DICE SET - A dice set selected to represent Farewell to Heroes will be offered as an option Add On to all backers pledging to a reward tier that includes a hardcover copy of
Scion: Mythic Shards. A drawstring bag with ten 10-sided dice in Farewell to Heroes colors can be added to your pledge for +$20 each.
At $38,000 in Funding - MYTHIC SHARDS REFERENCE GUIDE PDF - FOUR COLORS - A series of charts and information for a Storyguide to use while running a Four Colors game will be added to the Reference Guide PDF. This PDF will automatically be added to the rewards list of all backers receiving the
Scion: Mythic Shards PDF.
At $39,000 in Funding - NEW ADD ON - FOUR COLORS-THEMED DICE SET - A dice set selected to represent Four Colors will be offered as an option Add On to all backers pledging to a reward tier that includes a hardcover copy of
Scion: Mythic Shards. A drawstring bag with ten 10-sided dice in For Colors colors can be added to your pledge for +$20 each.
Meet the Society of Justice
4 months ago
– Fri, Aug 02, 2024 at 09:28:48 AM
Hello Shardstriders,
I've got another preview today, this time from our next shard section coming on Tuesday - Four Colors. This spins the World of Scion into a four color comic book universe. Following up on yesterday's fiction, I'll share some of the iconic characters from this version of The World.
Before we get into that, a few quick updates for our campaign. We have indeed unlocked our first dice set Stretch Goal and are well on our way to the unlocking another!
ACHIEVED! - At $33,000 in Funding - NEW ADD ON - AFTER THE END-THEMED DICE SET - A dice set selected to represent After The End will be offered as an option Add On to all backers pledging to a reward tier that includes a hardcover copy of
Scion: Mythic Shards. A drawstring bag with ten 10-sided dice in After the End colors can be added to your pledge for +$20 each.
At $34,000 in Funding - NEW ADD ON - CYBER-SCION-THEMED DICE SET - A dice set selected to represent
Cyber-Scion will be offered as an option Add On to all backers pledging to a reward tier that includes a hardcover copy of
Scion: Mythic Shards. A drawstring bag with ten 10-sided dice in Cyber-Scion colors can be added to your pledge for +$20 each.
After those two goals, we're on our way to expand our Mythic Shards book by adding a sixth shard to twist your Scion game.
At $35,000 in Funding - ADDITIONAL MYTHIC SHARD - A sixth Mythic Shard setting for Scion second edition will be added to the
Scion: Mythic Shards PDF and hardcover book. The theme for this additional Shard will be decided by Backer vote!
That's right! If we manage to achieve $35,000 in Funding, the developers and writers will come up with a SIXTH SHARD to add to the Scion: Mythic Shards book. The theme of the new shard will be decided with a Backer Poll.
Your options for a new shard, should we achieve this Stretch Goal target:
-
Aquatic Adventures: An Atlantis meets Waterworld and pirate-themed shard. Dive into the depths to recover lost relics or awaken the slumbering Earth Gods to create new lands.
-
Lost Time: Rules for playing a battle for the stability of all realities as Scions slip through the different shards and semi shards trying to thwart a usurper's plan to invade another reality. Sliders and Doctor Who style adventures with a group of Scions who are selected to be reality police.
-
Journey to the Wild West: Journey to the West, but it's set in the Wild West. Wuxia cowboys!
The poll for backers to vote on their favorite will run until NOON Eastern Time the DAY AFTER we achieve this Stretch Goal. Again, we'll be voting now, but this shard will only be added to the development list and added to the eventual Scion: Mythic Shards book if we unlock this Stretch Goal at $35,000 in Funding!
Finally, before I get to today's Four Colors preview, I've got a couple of links to share to learn more about Mythic Shards and the work that's gone into creating this book. While Hiromi was out sourcing dice to build our Stretch Goals, co-developer
Kim Godwin sat down with the folks at
The Old Ways Podcast for an in-depth interview, which is available to listen to at
https://directory.libsyn.com/episode/index/id/32320657 In addition, Kim is also Eddy’s guest on the latest episode of the
Onyx Pathcast, availble
<here> so
take a listen as they talk about the book, as well as Kim’s excellent, ever-growing, body of work with
Onyx Path!
Finally, for a sneak-peak at the final Shard coming in just over 10 days, check out
Awkward GM Corbin‘s vid as he takes a look at the
Space Odyssey Shard, available here:
https://youtu.be/aOdSb74Hh8I?si=SBPy-8upvnAXJ22V
Comic books emerged in the early 20th century and gradually changed much of literature, so much so that many academics have written of them as contemporary reinterpretations of ancient myths and legends. Starting as tales of masked crime-fighters, as time went on, parallels between comic book protagonists and ancient heroes like Hercules became clearer, gradually shifting the landscape of comic books. Soon, more contemporary eras of modern heroes emerged, which were quickly dubbed “The Golden Age of Superheroes.”
Four Colors situates the world of Scion within the Golden and Silver Age of comic books. The first half of this chapter is equally appropriate for players and Storyguides, providing useful information on creating the uniquely vibrant tone of this era of superhero stories with a mythical Scion twist. Players will also find various new game options set within the world of Four Colors.
The Society of Justice
The Society of Justice carries on in the shadow of the departure of one of its founding members, Major Thunder through a dimensional rift. Society superheroes emerge from many walks of life and stand together unified to protect humanity.
Captain Lightning
Eric Donner grew up as an orphan on the streets of the Bronx, New York with no inkling of what fate held in store for him. By his early 20s, he worked hard, finding a part-time job, and scraping together enough to rent a small apartment —he believed he could accomplish more. He joined the Marine Corps propelling him to the Western Front of the Great War. At the height of the Battle of Belleau Wood, Donner discovered a shard of Mjolnir in the ruins of Eglise Saint-Etienne de Belleau. Desperate for his friends and forces to survive the bloody conflict, he felt something calling him. He reached out and grasped the current of power that answered his prayers and fused with the divine power of Thor.
His marines stood in awe of their officer surging with the power of the storm and dubbed him, Captain Lightning. When the Marine Corps command heard of one of their own walking as a superhero, they hoped he’d stand shoulder to shoulder with Major Thunder to defend the American way on the world stage.
But Captain Lightning learned from what he and men like him experienced in the trenches. He saw where the games of mutually assured destruction led and it didn’t interest him to keep playing, nor did being a political pawn. Donner truly believed in the ideals he stood for; truth and liberty, not merely paying them lip-service. No sooner had he been unveiled, with much fanfare, as America’s protector alongside Major Thunder than he renounced the idea of acting as a threat to ideological rivals. Captain Lightning instead began working to better the lives of American citizens. For years he fought to crush human trafficking rings, free cities from the grips of organized crime, expose corruption and white collar crooks. As more super-villains emerged, he garnered his own wealth of enemies including the sinister Doctor Arcturus.
Silverheart
Donnie Rhodes inherited his divine nature by birth, from his mother Aphrodite of the Theoi pantheon. Rhodes never doubted his nature to be anything other than a Scion, and since emerging into his power he’s come to relish every moment of it. Aphrodite made no secret of her identity, revealing herself to Rhodes on her son’s seventeenth birthday and telling him all of what it meant to be the child of a Goddess of sexuality, desire, and prosperity. However, in Donnie, the power of his mother’s sexual nature manifested as a deep-set compassionate love for all humanity.
By the time Rhodes adapted to his newfound potential, the first of the World’s superheroes began to emerge. Although Rhodes had already begun to use his abilities to aid others, he did so without adopting a secret identity as a superhero. Aphrodite had taken care to ensure her child had a sizeable inheritance, one which Rhodes used to foster social care and progressive systems throughout Inner Metro City. Rhodes adopted the persona of Silverheart only after he realized the identity could serve as an ambassadorial brand, growing the reach his philanthropy possessed.
His biggest achievement, though, was his role in forming the Society of Justice. Acting as the group’s bankroller, Rhodes utilizes his super-human levels of appeal, charm, and fortune to help guide the Society, navigating the rigors of public appeal and media. Despite the enormous accomplishment of not only forming the world’s first superhero team but acting as their frontman, Rhodes hides a wish that his heritage had granted him greater physical feats as well; wishing that he could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Captain Lightning in defending the weak and powerless. Silverheart always doubts himself, even in battle, to the point where his lack of confidence is his greatest weakness; one which he constantly struggles to overcome.
Jetwire
Yukiko Kuromizu was always an energetic child. Ambitious and competitive, she was perpetually driven to win and wasn’t afraid of considerable odds. She’s the seventh child in her family — something her parents believed to be good fortune, and her winning streaks at high school sports was proof of that. Her first job saw her train as a firefighter, believing she could turn her natural gifts to good use. After years of duty, she had saved many, earned the gratitude of hundreds, and drew the attention of Susano-o, Kami of the sea and storms, who found her a worthy avatar for his might.
As one of those who were chosen to be gifted her powers, Yukiko had already shown her worth. Her patron’s divine essence manifested in an ability to grasp and manipulate the forces of acceleration, propelling her at considerable speeds. With this, she could help more people than she could ever imagine; and soon garnered recognition as one of Inner Metro City’s guardians. Her reputation soon preceded her as a hero who’d help anyone no matter how big or small the issue, from stopping armed gunmen to rescuing cats stuck in trees, and always willing to stick around to give a reassuring smile before rushing off to the next job.
However, Jetwire’s newfound abilities also landed her in more than her fair share of trouble as well. Perpetually over-confident, she’s unwilling to let any slight or offense slide, no matter if it’s from mortal or God. She’s already earned a reputation as an upstart troublemaker among numerous pantheons due to her tendency to give aloof, arrogant deities a stern down-to-earth talking-to. Not even her own patron Susano-o is free from her lectures on the importance of moral values. He’s quite willing to put up with her outspokenness — as far as he’s concerned, Jetwire has barely begun to scratch the surface of the powers he’s granted her.
Amber Phoenix
Nán Fāng Zhū Què died during Apep’s rise to power centuries ago, devoured by the Annihilator who feasted on his rival’s power. But Gods are resilient and don’t perish easily, and even though Nán Fāng Zhū Què was utterly cannibalized, a flickering of her divine nature survived. Forming into an ephemeral, celestial soul-egg, the remnants of Nán Fāng Zhū Què gathered, lingering in slumber until her strength and consciousness coalesced firmly enough to facilitate her rebirth.
Her spirit dwelled in a long-buried tomb until, in 1908, it was uncovered by an eminent archeologist and Scion of Heru, Horace Farrow. Farrow had already garnered a reputation for recovering valuable artifacts for the Boston University’s Gabel Museum of Archaeology. Locating the fallen God’s temple in Yunnan, Farrow led an expedition on behalf of Boston University to “chart China’s unwritten history”. In the inner sanctum, Farrow located a sealed chamber which housed the God’s soul-egg. Believing the relic to a treasure, the Scion placed his hands upon it and was imbued with the Phoenix God’s lingering essence. Indwelled by Nán Fāng Zhū Què, Horace Farrow now acts as a host for the phoenix’s ancient personality.
Since then, Farrow has been the site of a — mostly — internal battle between the Egyptian God Heru and the Vermillion Bird. While Heru only rarely speaks to Farrow, the God’s voice is clear and loud, making his wishes known. Meanwhile, Nán Fāng Zhū Què dwells within Farrow, tempting and steering him in ways that even he is not fully aware of. When the professor maintains full control, he’s able to tap into the benefits of the phoenix, providing him with exceptional powers: flight, mastery of fire, eternal youth, and healing. But this comes with a cost, as Nán Fāng Zhū Què is not always content to play a backseat role. Usually, she limits her interaction with Farrow to manifesting herself as a guiding voice which only he can hear; but at times, the phoenix rises to become her host’s dominant personality, taking control. Unlike Farrow, Nán Fāng Zhū Què is reckless; she has lived without physical sensation for centuries and takes full advantage to indulge in the best life has to offer whenever she’s in control, much to Farrow’s chagrin.
Lady Grim
Brigitte de la Croix is twice blessed and twice cursed, for her father is Baron Samedi, but her maternal grandfather is Apep the Annihilator; every choice she makes risks upsetting a powerful God. Her well-dressed father steers her towards unabashed hedonism and reveling in life’s gifts, while her world-devouring grandpapa pushes her along the road to violent overthrow of the world order. For years, she tried walking on eggshells, avoiding overt choices that might put her in the Gods’ bad graces. But Apep eventually swayed her to his side, grooming her to become one of his chief lieutenants. She inherited many of his powers: control of shadows, telepathy, a deep understanding of the occult and magicks, the means to control the minds of others, and the ability to transform into the form of a serpent.
For several years, Lady Grim was Apep’s dark harbinger, working diligently to further his goals by spreading chaos and destruction. She clashed many times with the Society of Justice, earning herself a place among their rogue’s gallery as one of their deadliest foes. Her own schemes were often far less brutal than Apep’s own, however; using her powers to turn Inner Metro City into a palace dedicated to herself and controlling the minds of the population to loyally serve her. In truth, Brigitte simply didn’t share Apep’s thirst for destruction, and began to see more merit in her father’s love of life. After all, if her father found so much to love about life that he sought to enjoy every drop of it, why should she destroy it? The Society of Justice were not unaware of this, coming to see Lady Grim less of a foe and more a potential ally if she could be shown the error of Apep’s ways.
Ultimately it was Silverheart who convinced la Croix to turn her back on her grandfather’s evil schemes. Since then, Lady Grim has put her villainous ways behind her. Initially she wished nothing to do with superheroes, but over time (and with the aid of Silverheart and other allies) she came to recognize the importance of using her powers for good. Now she fights alongside the Society of Justice as one of their core members, much to the aggravation of her grandfather.
ACHIEVED! - At $35,000 in Funding - ADDITIONAL MYTHIC SHARD - A sixth Mythic Shard setting for Scion second edition will be added to the Scion: Mythic Shards PDF and hardcover book. The theme for this additional Shard will be decided by Backer vote in a poll that ends tomorrow!
