Ridge's Prologue
Magic is magic. Ever since I was first visited by Boccob when I was a young lad of thirty-eight years, I knew this to be true. Sure the sources are different, but once the power is received by the body, the source no longer matters. It is really a simple matter of access. If one can purify the mind, one can accept all sources of magic into one’s being. If one can purify the body, the magic will flow more efficiently as the caster manipulates the weave to repair the imperfections in this mundane world. A mage’s place is as caretaker of the world, repairing the normal wear that time and life impart on all of creation. In fact, all mages work to reduce the dulling of the world. That is exactly why magic is so exciting, because the lack of magic is boring. This is also why a life of contemplation of these mysteries is not acceptable. What good is knowledge if it is not put to use? You never see an engineer sitting around trying to figure out whether a design is safe. No! They make their prototypes and test them again and again, adapting until it is done. If a dozen gnomes end up in the lake and you have to repair the roof thrice weekly, so be it. Magic should be the same.
With this philosophy I searched for a master who could help me achieve perfection when channeling magic. None on the Gnomish Isle were willing to accept my revelation of arcane-divine unity. They were so unwilling to open their minds to the utter simplicity of the truth. Does anyone question that with a proper application of force to a lever system in which the acting lever is twice the length of response lever the resulting force is magnified such that a larger mass can be moved, or in reverse a lesser mass is moved more rapidly? No. And does anyone argue that the sum of the squares of the two shorter sides of any isosceles triangle is equivalent to the square of the longest side? No, because that’s preposterous. That only works for right triangles. But the simplicity and obvious truth of the equilateral use of magical sources was seen as just as preposterous, and so no one would debate it with me.
I was disappointed, but with a hopeful heart I joined the church of Boccob. This gave me a wonderful opportunity to continue my studies and further my knowledge of the sources of magic. For while the goal is in the practice of the art, some base knowledge is still required. Since we Boccobites are not in high demand to service the masses, we are able to spend most of the day in study and contemplation and experimentation. Like this one morning when my morning devotions were so rudely interrupted by the sound of my head hitting the desk in front of me as I drifted off for the third time. I quickly opened my eyes and noticed something very strange. The light from my candle was radiating in all directions, properly illuminating my room and creating flickering shadows on the walls and ceiling. If my head should fall down when I fail to attentively prevent it from doing so, why does the light not? Perhaps this was a portent of the loss of physical cohesiveness within the Gnomish Isle. There was only one way to know for sure. So the next day I gathered some supplies and went searching for a test subject. As luck would have it, I found a small, tan colored mouse living in the wall of my chambers. Over the next three days I used everything in my magical arsenal in an attempt to make that mouse fall toward the ceiling as did the light. The first logical place to start was to cast light on the subject. Not only did the mouse stay firmly on the ground, but the light emanating from her did hit the ceiling. The first test had failed, but I was not defeated yet. Next, I placed the mouse in darkness to eliminate the potential downward force applied from the light shooting off of the mouse up to the ceiling. I fed the mouse a feather fall potion in case that would change her personal preference to be on the ground. I even tried placing her on a cylinder of wax in case the shape of the candle was the causal agent. Try as I might, that mouse never left the ground except for the one time I threw her off the desk to make sure that the feather fall potion was working. It was, and as her feet touched the ground she gave me a look of shock and confusion, and then scurried back to her mouse hole.
After studying that mouse for three days, I discovered that I had finally found a new teacher. Not the mouse, of course. In fact, the mouse really had nothing to do with it. But after experimenting for three days straight, I was quite hungry, so I went to the kitchens to search for a very late dinner or a very early breakfast. Who should I run into but the famous world traveler Bartemis! As we shared a quick bite he regaled me with tales of his adventures with the Warriors of the Eclipse. This was when I found out about my new teacher. No, not Bartemis, but Arcadius, mystic theurge of the Eclipse. He was doing things with magic that no one in the Western Isles had done in more than three centuries. Then again, no one in the Western Isles had done much with magic over the last three centuries with the fall of magic and all, but still, it was quite impressive. Not only could he access both the divine and arcane sources, but he had found ways to integrate them into a single effects. I would seek him out and learn his techniques and become the purest spell caster in all of the Western Isles!
So, to make a long story short, yes, I am the gnome looking for a ride to Fort Eclipse. Thanks for asking. My name is Terrigenous, but you can call me Ridge.