Prologue

A spyglass assisted view from Blue Wizard Bastion to the southwest reveals just the sparse beginnings of the forest that cloaks Dream Master Lake. Just behind the first groves of trees, a peaceful village and monastery sit in quiet contemplation. But it was not always a quiet, nor tranquil place to contemplate ones existence. Around a decade ago, a pair of blue wizard researchers eagerly put their new brainwave technology to the test—without the recommended Ethics Committee approval. 


A series of magical relays were placed leading into the forest, and from a makeshift laboratory outside the bastion’s walls, the wizards began their experiments. Quickly growing eager to test their theories, they looked for a forest creature that could provide them with the quality of data that they desired. Recklessly, they decided on one of the most intelligent—the great owl. Some incantations later, a set of !magic program functions along with some test commands were uploaded and installed within any owl near their relay. The upload succeeded; and the owls awoke to foreign thoughts operating in their conscious awareness.


The stubborn owls immediately set themselves to the task of understanding this persistent nagging. The wizards collected and analyzed the data, and the owls sat in meditation, interrupted only by brief, inexplicable periods of mental stress. The wizards congratulated themselves, and were excited to attempt their next exploit. Unfortunately for them, their code was poorly optimized for the owl runtime environment, and certainly not lightweight. Determined to return to their normal state, the Great Owls refused to accept this new normal. 

   One by one, each owl focused inward and discovered the logical structures the wizards’ magic had created within. What they saw was puzzling—troubling, even; and yet, they realized they had already adapted. Taking back executive control, the owls disabled the intrusive processes dedicated to sudden and inefficient data transmission, and each began to explore the depths of its own psyche. When they discovered the functions for owl-to-owl networking, a real renaissance occurred. Suddenly, they were communicating and building shared knowledge. Soon, they started performing cluster computing. Decimating the local rodent population for the required calories, the owls finally succeeded and cast their first decentralized spell. Fully exposing the network of magical relays, the meddlers’ lab appeared on their conscious awareness. They started channeling yet another spell…


The wizards had gone back to the bastion to enjoy their success, but returned to see their laboratory completely reclaimed by nature. All their electromagical equipment, full of their precious data, was destroyed: split by roots and half-buried in a layer of fresh soil. A few young trees strained against the ceiling, threatening to bring the whole place down! The amateur wizards fled, fearing that they had angered some powerful spirit of the forest. When they returned to the bastion, their university professor greeted them at the gates—apparently a little bird had told him something! The experiments would not be continued, at least not by those two.


Back in the forest, all was calm for many years. The owls had no reason to change their ways; the forest had everything they needed and was their home. They spent years pondering the nature of their being and the Runiverse they inhabited. However, as their horizons expanded, so too did their fear. Some owls had dedicated themselves to divination in order to look out across the world; and the fearsome things they saw frightened them: the Quantum Shadow, the Psychic Leap, and all sorts of monsters of a nightmarish quality. Even humans, with their complex motivations, could be a threat.


These things worried the owls; but they were not powerless, and they also knew that they could make allies. Deciding to leave their mark on the world—carve their rune upon the door, they prepared what would be their most powerful spell. For nearly a year they conjured, staking their magical essence into the wide circle of runes etching into the stone floor of the cleaning. Four owls, the most wise and dedicated to the cause, flew down and stood just inside the circle of runes, and the spell was cast. A great chain of sigils, bathed in a pillar of warm light, gently descended from the heavens to inscribe themselves into the runic circle. As the final seal landed into place, light engulfed the forest floor—and no being, owl or otherwise, dared try to witness...


When the night sky finally showed the stars once more, reopened eyes landed upon four great statues of polished stone. Their hopes and dreams made manifest, the owls retired from spellcasting and rested, waiting for their new friends to find their way home.  

Entered by: 0xe7F4…8E97 and preserved on chain (see transaction)