# chapters

path: 124
author_id: seuzz
title: Background: WHS Administrators and Teachers
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span><b>Principal:</b> Jeffrey Sagansky<br/>
<b>Assistant Principals:</b> Anthony Staufford; Garson Dow; Barbara Meek<br/>
<b>Office Secretaries:</b> Stephanie Dunn; Christina Hale; Amanda Hammond; Yolanda Livingstone; Carmen Benitez; Brianna Vang; Damon Galvan<br/>
<b>School Librarian:</b> Margaret DeWare<br/>
<b>School Nurse:</b> Cecilia Schaffer<br/>
<br/>
<u>Language Arts</u> <br/>
Ms Gladstone (senior), Mr. Hawks, Mrs. Goretsky, Ms. Cho (freshman), Mr. Montague, Mrs. Epstein (sophomore), Mr. Hagerman (junior)<br/>
<br/>
<u>Mathematics</u> <br/>
Ms. Simeon, Mr. Kowalski, Mr. Muniz, Mr. Leopold, Mrs. Nestor, Mrs. Oliver<br/>
<br/>
<u>Sciences</u>: <br/>
Mrs. Gambetta, Mr. Carr, Mr. Gelding, Ms. Maxwell, Mr. Cash, Mr. Krohling<br/>
<br/>
<u>Social Studies</u> <br/>
Mr. Santiago, Mr. Walbert, Mr. Fernandez, Mr. Hartford.<br/>
<br/>
<u>World Languages</u> <br/>
Mr. Leavey (French, Latin, Spanish), Mr. Henderson (French), Mrs. Kohl (German), Ms. Martinez (Spanish), Mr. Rodrigues, Mrs. Lepine<br/>
<br/>
<u>Vocational</u> <br/>
Mr. Peters, Mrs. Hoagland, Mr. Cant, Mr. Boykin, Mrs. Hart, Mr. Hummel (Wood &amp; Metal), Mr. Kaminski, Mr. Barrientos (Agr), Mrs. Wendt.<br/>
<br/>
<u>Arts</u> <br/>
Mr. Trencher (Art); Ms. Willett (Art); Mrs. Heinz (Orchestra); Mrs. Hayes (Choir); Mr. Stemple (Marching Band); Mr. Wilkes (Drama)<br/>
<br/>
<u>Health and Family Sciences</u>: <br/>
Mrs. Heaney, Ms. Duggan, Ms. Brice<br/>
<br/>
<u>PE</u> <br/>
Coach Brooks (B Basketball); Coach Tesla (Cheerleading, G Basketball); Coach Porter (Football); Coach Stokes (Baseball); Coach Gellman (B Soccer); Coach Puente (G Soccer, Lacrosse); Coach Carter (Swimming, Softball); Coach Coles (Gymnastics, Dance); Coach Gossett (Swimming, Wrestling, Track); Coach Schell (Volleyball); Coach Acuna (Tennis)<br/>
<br/>
<u>Tutorial Staff:</u> <br/>
Ms. Johnson, Mrs. Welch, Mr. Luna, Ms. Clayton, Mrs. Browning</span></div></div>


path: 125
author_id: seuzz
title: Background: Non-Westside Characters
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span><u>Eastman High School</u><br/>
See choice at bottom of page<br/>
<br/>
<u>The St. Francis Xavier School</u><br/>
<b>Abigail ‘Abi’ Steiner</b> Sixth form/senior<br/>
<b>Davina ‘Vee’ Macklin</b> Sixth form/senior<br/>
<b>Kirsten Wright–Wallace</b> Sixth form/senior<br/>
<b>Marius Hall</b> Sixth form/senior<br/>
<b>Todd Baldwin</b> Sixth form/senior<br/>
<b>Niamh Stirland</b> Sixth form/senior<br/>
<br/>
<u>Schuyler Middle School</u><br/>
<b>Shawn Sellers</b> Robert Prescott's best friend<br/>
<b>Jeff Mielke</b> Friend of Robert Prescott<br/>
<b>Mike McFarlin</b> Friend of Robert Prescott Fattish red-head<br/>
<b>Casey Sennik</b> Class bully; persecutor of Robert Prescott and many others<br/>
<b>Andrew Stowell</b> Friend of Casey Sennik Very smart, and also a bully<br/>
<b>Shane Bish</b> Bully, friend of Casey's<br/>
<b>Jason and Jordan Rush</b> Track-and-field athletes; twins<br/>
<b>Anil Bose</b> Student Friend of Bruce Mumaw and Karen Aker<br/>
<b>Bruce Mumaw</b> Friend of Anil Bose Proto-stoner<br/>
<b>Stephanie McLean</b> Andrew's girlfriend<br/>
<b>Karen Aker</b> Friend of Anil Bose and Bruce Mumaw Proto-punk<br/>
<b>Mr Quincy</b> Science teacher<br/>
<b>Coach Pensey</b> PE teacher<br/>
<b>Mrs Bradley</b> English teacher<br/>
<br/>
<u>Keyserling University</u><br/>
<b>Aubrey Desmond Blackwell</b> Collector of occult manuscripts Warlock, more or less Professor of Archaeology at Keyserling College<br/>
<b>Jack Freeman</b> Handsome professor of French Lit<br/>
<b>Terrance Moser</b> Chair of Archaeology Dept<br/>
<b>Dr Anna Swinton</b> University professor of music Singer  of professional standing <br/>
<b>Melody Weiss</b> College student Scary-smart; a hostile student in Blackwell's archaeology class<br/>
<b>Kevin Miller</b> Friend of Dylan's Also gay<br/>
<b>Jonathan Tellman</b> Rich university student with an A&amp;F fetish Housemate of Andy Henson<br/>
<b>Andy Henson</b> Rich university student Housemate of Jonathan Tellman<br/>
<b>Mitch Farmer</b> Football player<br/>
<b>Kurt</b> Drummer Many, many piercings Friend of Jelena Patrovic<br/>
<b>Zoe</b> Blonde with black clothing Friend of Jelena Patrovic and Melody Weiss<br/>
<b>Justine Millar</b> Roommate of Umeko Prescott<br/>
<b>Connor Hutchison</b>  Recent Westside grad, friend of Ioeger/Lamont Works at Starbucks with BF Justin Carr w/ plans to open own place<br/>
<b>Justin Carr</b>  Recent Westside grad, friend of Ioeger/Lamont Works at Starbucks with BF Justin Carr w/ plans to open own place<br/>
<b>Manuel Ramos</b>  Housemate of Connor Hutchison and Justin Carr; bodybuilder<br/>
<b>Stephen Hoff</b>  Friend of Manuel Ramos; bodybuilder<br/>
<b>Elise Turner</b> Girlfriend of Jordan Cooper.<br/>
<br/>
<u>Various relatives</u><br/>
<b>Russell Black</b> Gordon Black's father; cop; bad tempered and abusive<br/>
<b>Carter Abraham Brown</b> Oldest brother of Alec Brown; out of town; training in special forces<br/>
<b>Eric Isaac Brown</b> Older brother of Alec Brown; student (junior) at Keyserling<br/>
<b>Micah Reuben Brown</b> Younger brother of Alec Brown; twin of Riker<br/>
<b>Riker Simeon Brown</b> Younger brother of Alec Brown; twin of Micah<br/>
<b>Rob and Kelly Cooper</b> Chelsea's mom and dad<br/>
<b>Jordan Cooper</b> Chelsea Cooper's older brother; student (sophomore) at Keyserling; plays lacrosse<br/>
<b>Meg Garner</b> Aunt of Eva, Jessica, and Marc; teller at a bank<br/>
<b>Sarah Johansson</b> Caleb's divorced mother<br/>
<b>Leah Johnson</b> Timothy Johnson's mother<br/>
<b>Jade Johnson</b> Timothy Johnson's 8th-grade sister<br/>
<b>Margaret Kirkham</b> David Kirkham's mother<br/>
<b>Tad Kirkham</b> David Kirkham's 13-year-old brother<br/>
<b>K C Petrovic</b> Older sister of Jelena Patrovic<br/>
<b>Brandon Roth</b> Justin Roth's older brother; lives out of town<br/>
<b>Charlie Russo</b> Older brother of Danny Russo; manages Milagro Beanfield Warehouse<br/>
<b>Mokichi Saito</b> Yumi Saito's older brother; student (sophomore) at Keyserling<br/>
<b>Curt Straussler</b> Father of Jonathan Straussler; owns Proteus Engineering<br/>
<b>Nicole Straussler</b> Mother of Jonathan Straussler<br/>
<b>Dylan Toltzman</b> Caleb's older cousin; gay<br/>
<b>Bruno and Renata Vasquez</b> Maria Vasquez's parents<br/>
<b>Betty Vredenburg</b> Cindy and Lucy's mom<br/>
<b>Penelope Lucile Vredenburg</b> Cindy Vredenburg's older sister ("Lucy"); student (sophomore) at Keyserling<br/>
<b>Jai Weaver</b> Older brother of Bhodi Weaver<br/>
<br/>
<u>Various adults</u><br/>
<b>Ted and Tom Arnholm</b> Proprietors of Arnholm's Used Books, where Will purchased the book<br/>
<b>Eric Kim</b> Owner of King Kong Komics. Industrial spy for Fane.<br/>
<b>Andrew Gray</b> Will's neighbor, a wheel-chair bound computer programmer; twenty-six years old<br/>
<b>Coach Dale White</b> Mid-20s coach at Eastman High<br/>
<b>Andy Keyes</b> Foreman at Salopek Engineering<br/>
<b>Jack Weiland</b> Worker at Salopek, in charge of the distribution center<br/>
<b>Debra Herrera</b> Receptionist at Salopek<br/>
<b>Tom Langley</b> Worker at Salopek<br/>
<b>Jorge Ortega</b> Worker at Salopek<br/>
<b>Arturo Barone</b> Strausslers' Butler<br/>
<b>Michael Boisvert</b> Strausslers' Lady's/Gentleman's Valet<br/>
<b>Scott Daniels</b> Strausslers' First footman<br/>
<b>James Willson</b> Strausslers' Second footman/Security<br/>
<b>Paula Szymanski</b> Strausslers' Housekeeper; first cousin once removed to Mark Szymanski<br/>
<b>Courtney Reeves</b> Strausslers' Parlour maid<br/>
<b>Laura Bachman</b> Strausslers' House maid<br/>
<b>Amanda Mayers</b> Strausslers' Chamber maid<br/>
<b>Sarah Tisdale</b> Strausslers' Laundry maid<br/>
<b>Jean Roussel</b> Strausslers' Cook<br/>
<b>Elizabeth Pomeroy</b> Strausslers' Under cook<br/>
<b>David Snead</b> Strausslers' Head Gardener<br/>
<b>Charlie McGehee</b> Strausslers' Groundskeeper/Security<br/>
<b>Huojin Liu</b> Strausslers' Chauffeur/Security; brother to Project Diana's "Liu" of TWS and secretly a Fane operative<br/>
<b>Egeman Tiryaki</b> Strausslers' Security chief<br/>
<b>Mrs Duncan</b> Prescott family acquaintance at St. Michael's Episcopal Church<br/>
<b>Paul Lavelett</b> Administrator at Social Security office<br/>
<b>Philip Carlson, Jr.</b> Kristy Carlson's dad. Rich real estate mogul.<br/>
<b>Mila [surname TBD</b>: The Carlsons' domestic help.<br/>
<br/>
<u>Stellae Errantes</u> Magical-metaphysical secret society<br/>
<b>Frank (Giuseppe Braccioforte) Durras</b> Dark, saturnine, athletic Pretends to be smart, plays down physical strength [Malacandra/Lurga]<br/>
<b>Joe (Franz Felix Alois Liebesspruch) Durras</b> Blonde, effervescent, brilliant Pretends to be a jock, plays down braininess [Arbol/Viritrilbia]<br/>
<b>Charles Maximilian Brennon</b> Head of the Stellae Old, thin man [Arbol/Glundandra]<br/>
<b>Father Ed</b> Spiritual guide to the Stellae [Lurga/Catilindria]<br/>
<b>Laverne Ortiz</b> Family friend and helper<br/>
<b>Kali Valentine</b> Senior member and trainer [Viritrilbia/Perelandra]<br/>
<b>John Reilly</b> Senior member and historian [Arbol/Perelandra]<br/>
<b>Nash Carnes</b> Senior member [Mordandra/Malacandra]<br/>
<b>Richard Bredon</b> Senior member Investigator and agent [Eldibria/Malacandra]<br/>
<br/>
<u>Others</u><br/>
<b>Fred Dayton</b> Republican congressman</span></div></div>


path: 1251
author_id: seuzz
title: Background: Eastman High School
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>This is a running, updatable list of characters who have appeared in the story. New characters, created by any author, will be added as part of occasional updates. Feel free to develop new or established characters in novel and interesting ways.<br/>
<br/>
<u>Eastman High School</u><br/>
<b>Ian Carpenter:</b> Captain of the basketball team.<br/>
<b>Shawn Gregory:</b> Basketball player, best friend of Ian Carpenter.<br/>
<b>Brett Dutoit:</b> Eastman basketball player. Father owns a salvage yard.<br/>
<b>Jonathan Sebastian Straussler:</b> Eastman basketball player. Immensely wealthy. Dating Monique Travers.<br/>
<b>Scott Bridges:</b> Basketball player.<br/>
<b>Derek Linwood:</b> Basketball player; best friends with Scott Bridges. <br/>
<b>Susie Maitland:</b> Derek Linwood's girlfriend <br/>
<b>Ben Paxon:</b> Basketball player. Jerk and bully.<br/>
<b>Tony Rodriguez:</b> Basketball player. Jerk and bully.<br/>
<b>Timothy Travis Johnson:</b> Basketball player. Former junior-year class president. Dating Julianna Seaton.<br/>
<b>Conor Nilsson:</b> Basketball player.<br/>
<b>Jordan Reynolds:</b> Basketball player. <br/>
<b>Cooper Black:</b> Baseball player; member of debate team; dating Faye Griffin.<br/>
<b>Dennis Hoffman:</b> Baseball player.<br/>
<b>(Jason) Kyle Lakewood:</b> Charismatic captain of championship soccer team. Dating Jenny Taylor.<br/>
<b>Zach Vanderburg:</b> Goalie on the soccer team; best friend of Kyle Lakewood. Bully.<br/>
<b>Andrew Claskey:</b> Soccer player. <br/>
<b>Peter Robins:</b> Soccer player.<br/>
<b>Kevin McIlroy:</b> Football player.<br/>
<b>Spencer Lambright:</b> Football player<br/>
<b>Jenny Taylor:</b> Beautiful captain of girls' soccer team. Dating Kyle Lakewood.<br/>
<b>Hannah Chamberlain:</b> Captain and star forward of the girls' basketball team. <br/>
<b>Elisabeth Pruit:</b> Member of the swim team.<br/>
<b>Mitch Kendall:</b> Member of the swim team. Has been chasing Elisabeth Pruit<br/>
<b>Alyssa Randal:</b> Senior. African-American, captain of cheerleader, chief gossip-monger.<br/>
<b>Rhianna Miller:</b> Senior. African-American cheerleader<br/>
<b>Becky Torres:</b> Senior. Bombshell cheerleader. <br/>
<b>Jessica Pearce:</b> Senior. Cheerleader. Beautiful and smart, but with an evil reputation.<br/>
<b>Kyra DaSilva:</b> Cheerleader; dark, Italianate; stylish haircut<br/>
<b>Leslie Keys:</b> Cheerleader; foul-mouthed tomboy, hangs with AP crowd.<br/>
<b>Nina Barraza:</b> Cheerleader; dusky, good friends with Lorena Espinal. <br/>
<b>Ann Sibley:</b> Cheerleader; short, intense, redhead; intense; hangs with AP crowd.<br/>
<b>Nikki Cave:</b> Cheerleader; dark, Iberian, walks around in a cloud of humidity.<br/>
<b>Lorena Espinal:</b> Cheerleader; dusky, good friends with Nina Barraza.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Tina Branson:</b> Senior; one of Alyssa's acolytes. <br/>
<b>Mandy Simpson:</b> Senior; one of Alyssa's acolytes. <br/>
<b>Maddy Caron:</b> Senior; one of Alyssa's acolytes.<br/>
<b>Lisa Frances Rickover:</b> Senior; one of Alyssa's acolytes, but independent minded.<br/>
<b>Natalie Dawkins:</b> Senior; one of Alyssa's acolytes..<br/>
<b>Summer Nguyen:</b> Senior. Goth, and painfully shy. Freshman member of Alyssa's gang.<br/>
<b>Sammy Orson:</b> Senior. Social butterfly. Very vain.<br/>
<b>Julianna Seaton:</b> Junior class president. Dating Timothy Johnson.<br/>
<b>Lawrence Farmer:</b> Senior. Gossip maven, rival of Alyssa Randal's.<br/>
<b>Geoff Dunholm:</b> Senior. Drama/debate guy. Tall, serious, decent. <br/>
<b>Faye Griffin:</b> Senior. Member of debate team; dating Cooper Black<br/>
<b>Eddie Wasnowski:</b> Senior. Member of debate team.<br/>
<b>Hector Armijo:</b> Senior. Member of debate team.<br/>
<b>Jennifer Wallace:</b> Senior. Drama student.<br/>
<b>Gabe Sunstein:</b> Senior. Drama student.<br/>
<b>Darcy Whitehead:</b> Senior, friend of Geoff Dunholm. Smart and ambitious and scary.<br/>
<b>Christine Anne "Kristy" Carlson:</b> Student. Very rich.<br/>
<b>Adam Karter:</b> Senior. Blonde, raffish, social butterfly with a bad home life.<br/>
<b>Paul Zametti:</b> Guy at school; plays in a band with Adam Karter.<br/>
<b>Kent Farrell:</b> Student; plays in band with Adam Karter.<br/>
<b>Christine "Chris" Yves:</b> Forceful punk rock girl. Out lesbian. Plays in the band The Hi-Hats.<br/>
<b>Terry Fitzgerald:</b> One of Chris Yves's bandmates. <br/>
<b>Lisa Palacki:</b> Terry Fitzgerald's girlfriend. <br/>
<b>Thomas Gilliman:</b> One of Chris Yves's bandmates.<br/>
<b>Christopher Trantham:</b> One of Chris Yves's bandmates. <br/>
<b>Dana Pak:</b> Senior. Yumi's cousin, same age. Older sister of Sarah Pak.<br/>
<b>David Johnson:</b> Senior. Has a crush on Dana Pak.<br/>
<b>Caleb Ryerson:</b> Senior. David Johnson's best friend.<br/>
<b>Kevin Keighley:</b> Senior. Friend of David Johnson.<br/>
<b>Matt Isaacs:</b> Senior. Friend of David Johnson. Fat.<br/>
<b>Whitney Hoang:</b> Senior, friend of Dana Pak. Dating Dennis Hoffman.<br/>
<b>Melissa Swenson:</b> Senior. A friend of Dana's.<br/>
<b>Liam Mahon:</b> Irish exchange student. Staying with Kelly Trask's family.<br/>
<b>Kelly "Sunny" Trask:</b> Senior. Strawberry blonde. Liam Mahon is staying with her family. <br/>
<b>Genevieve Blake:</b> Senior. Works on the school newspaper<br/>
<b>Joshua Cheswick:</b> Senior. Has a thing for marionettes. <br/>
<b>Eileen Piper:</b> Senior. Friends with Joshua Cheswick.<br/>
<b>Sawyer Harrison:</b> Senior, unpopular. At start of story is in a mysterious coma.<br/>
<b>Tasha Brown:</b> Senior; friends with Hannah Chamberlain.<br/>
<b>Amy Rhodes:</b> Senior<br/>
<b>Ursula Jensen</b> Senior-class would-be mystic.<br/>
<b>James Black:</b> Senior; shy, oblivious object of several crushes. <br/>
<b>David Johnson:</b> Senior. Brother of Joanna Johnson.<br/>
<b>Amanda Conners:</b> Senior; friends with Hannah Chamberlain.<br/>
<b>Marcy Hickerson:</b> Senior. Boyish. Friends with Westside's Michelle Estrich.<br/>
<b>Elissa Schindler:</b> Senior. Friends with Westside's Michelle Estrich.<br/>
<b>Daniella Rorie:</b> Senior. Boyish. Friends with Westside's Michelle Estrich.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Tatiana Escoto:</b> Junior. Dominican, from New York.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Gavin Brewer:</b> Sophomore. Stud soccer player. Crush of Sarah Pak. <br/>
<br/>
<b>Sarah Pak:</b> Freshman. Dana Pak's younger sister.<br/>
<b>Joanna Johnson:</b> Freshman. Younger sister of David Johnson.<br/>
<b>Helen Kendall:</b> Freshman. Friends with Sarah and Joanna.<br/>
<b>Brenda Daly:</b> Freshman. Red-head. Friends with Sarah and Joanna.<br/>
<b>Carrie Carmichael:</b> Freshman. Queen bee in training.<br/>
<b>Marissa King:</b> Freshman. One of Carrie's hangers-on. Mother is Cameroonian.<br/>
<b>Patricia Jennings:</b> Freshman. One of Carrie's hangers-on.<br/>
<b>Sara Alvarez:</b> Freshman. Came from Honduras 3 years ago.<br/>
<b>Belinda Harrison:</b> Freshman sister. Sawyer Harrison's younger sister.<br/>
<b>Sarah White:</b> Freshman. Sister of Coach Dale White. Dating Shawn Gregory.<br/>
<b>Monique Adrienne Travers:</b> Freshman. Dating Jonathan Straussler.<br/>
<b>Nick Diaz:</b> Freshman. Hunky.<br/>
<b>Lewis Crosby:</b> Freshman. Cute.<br/>
<b>Derek Forney:</b> Freshman. Sort-of dating Jade Johnson.<br/>
<b>Patrick Carlson:</b> Freshman. Kristy Carlson's brother.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Mrs. Cussler:</b> Social-studies/history/debate teacher. Renowned hard-ass.<br/>
<b>Miss Redmond:</b> 30-year-old history teacher. In charge of school newspaper.<br/>
<b>Mr. Zigler:</b> Biology teacher.<br/>
<b>Mrs. Nilsson:</b> Social studies.<br/>
<b>Mr. Iverson:</b> English.<br/>
<b>Mr. Jones:</b> Math.<br/>
</span></div></div>


path: 13
author_id: seuzz
title: Background: Settings
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span><b>Saratoga Falls:</b> Metropolitan area in the state of <i>mumble mumble.</i> Population: 65,000. Major employment centers include the Keyserling School of Mining and Technology (an engineering college) and the Fort Suffolk military base.<br/>
<b>Acheson:</b> A village of 5000, independent of Saratoga Falls but nearly engulfed by its neighbor. This is where Will and his family live.<br/>
<b>Fell's Lake</b> Wilderness lake at the north end of town<br/>
<b>Stewart's Hole:</b> Preserved nature pond with an ornamental Chinese pagoda<br/>
<b>Water Towers:</b> Cluster of utilities east of town. Notoriously dangerous spot with roving youth.<br/>
<b>Saratoga Falls Rock and Gravel:</b> Long-closed business east of town; quarry out back is a hangout for thrill seekers.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Fort Suffolk:</b> A military base with a small contingent. An engineering corps on site secretly does "black technology" research.<br/>
<b>Saratoga Falls Municipal Airport</b><br/>
<b>Madison Memorial Library:</b> Downtown municipal library<br/>
<b>Saratoga Falls Convention Center</b><br/>
<b>Morris Clevenger Community Athletic Fields:</b> Soccer, baseball, football fields next to South Creek Park.<br/>
<b>Saratoga Falls Country Club:</b> Members include the Blankenship, Ansell, Kirk, Gardenhire, Mansfield families. Workplace for Gary Chen, Chris Trantham (dishwashers), Martin Gardinhire (waiter).<br/>
<b>Sunset Hills Retirement Village</b><br/>
<b>St. Michael's Episcopal Church</b>: Prescott family's church<br/>
<b>King's Methodist Church</b>: Oldest Methodist church in town. Looks like a cross between a cathedral and a castle.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Suffolk Wilderness Park:</b> Wilderness preserve near Fort Suffolk.<br/>
<b>South Creek Park</b>: Small park located near Stewart's Hole<br/>
<b>Hochstetter Park</b>: Small, dangerous park in a bad part of town<br/>
<br/>
<b>Westside High School:</b> Will's high school, one of two serving Saratoga Falls and Acheson.<br/>
<b>Eastman High School:</b> The other high school in Saratoga Falls/Acheson<br/>
<b>Agape Christian Academy:</b> Christian school<br/>
<b>Keyserling School of Mining and Technology:</b> A land-grant college that has evolved into a major engineering college, closely associated with Fort Suffolk.<br/>
<b>Schuyler Middle School:</b> Robert Prescott's school<br/>
<b>James K. Polk Elementary School<br/>
William McKinley Elementary School<br/>
Thomas Jefferson Elementary School</b><br/>
<b>Acheson Elementary School:</b> Abandoned elementary school some blocks from Will's house. He has a padlock on the basement (reachable through an outside door). Part of the school has been turned into a recreational center.<br/>
<b>Coolidge High School:</b> School in another, undetermined city.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Northgate Mall</b>: Large retail center<br/>
<b>Northgate Place</b>: Giant strip center adjacent to the mall<br/>
<b>The Shoppes at Fell's Lake</b>: High-end retail shops<br/>
<b>Redway Plaza:</b> Located across the street from Eastman High<br/>
<b>Hoover Shopping Center:</b> Run-down shopping center next to the Walmart<br/>
<b>100 Twentieth Street:</b> Six-story commercial residential building across from the university. Houses luxury apartments, Arnholms, The Crystal Cave, and Arundel Jewelers.<br/>
<b>Appalachian Square<br/>
Carriage Hills Shopping Center<br/>
South Creek Shopping Center<br/>
Mellon Village Shopping Center</b><br/>
<br/>
<b>Silver Cineplex</b>: Movie theater adjacent to the mall. Alec Brown works there.<br/>
<b>Palace Theater</b>: Former movie theater, since repurposed as a community theater.<br/>
<b>Monte Viso's</b>: Mini golf / go-cart race track / retro-arcade. Popular for date nights. Commonly referred to as just “the Montie”.<br/>
<b>The Warehouse</b>: Dangerous, popular night spot. High-schoolers only can attend; run secretly by Karol Mathis, managed by kids themselves.<br/>
<b>Legends</b>: Upscale dance club, the haunt of the rich and respectable teen set.<br/>
<b>Vaqueros:</b> Mexican-themed dance club.<br/>
<b>Two of Clubs:</b> Dance club, with separate rooms for over and under 18.<br/>
<b>The EndZone:</b> Dance club near college campus. Aka, "The FriendZone" for its bright, plastic atmosphere and lack of real sex appeal.<br/>
<b>State Theater</b>: Old movie theater, long abandoned.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Salopak Aerospace:</b> Small engineering company that employs Will's father and Sean Mitchell.<br/>
<b>Proteus Technologies:</b> High-tech firm with ties to Fane. Owned by Jonathan Straussler's father<br/>
<b>Blankenship Motors<br/>
Ansell Auto Alliance</b><br/>
<b>Brampton &amp; Wolf Law Offices</b><br/>
<br/>
<b>Layzee-Nites Motel:</b> Cheap motel<br/>
<b>Donna Motor Court:</b> Cheap motel, surreptitiously rents by the hour; owned by Kim Walsh's dad.<br/>
<b>Executive Inn:</b> Long-closed motel near the municipal airport.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Wal-mart<br/>
Nirdlinger's:</b> Oldest and most prestigious department store in town.<br/>
<b>Larsen's Department Store</b>: Located at Northgate Mall<br/>
<b>Feldman's Clothiers</b>: Located at Northgate Mall<br/>
<b>Silberman Jewelers</b>: Located at Fell's Lake<br/>
<b>Chesterbrook Clothiers</b>: Located at Fell's Lake<br/>
<b>Anbrog</b>: Shoe shop. Located at Fell's Lake<br/>
<b>Eve</b>: Makeup shot. Located at Fell's Lake<br/>
<b>Dollar Save</b>: Generic run of the mill dollar store located near Eastman High. <br/>
<b>Second Pickins:</b> Vintage clothier, located downtown<br/>
<b>Thrifty Nifties</b>: Vintage clothing at Northgate Plaza. Cassie Harper works there<br/>
<b>Supreme Furniture &amp; Mattresses</b>: Old-line, locally owned store<br/>
<b>Argosy Furniture:</b> Second-hand furniture shop, owned by Stephanie Wyatt's father. Large online presence with worldwide shipping and buying.<br/>
<b>Top S(h)elf Storage:</b> Storage units, owned by Carlos Montoya's uncle. He has a weight room and video studio in two of the AC-cooled units<br/>
<b>Arnholm's Used Books:</b> Large used-book store. Will finds the BoM there.<br/>
<b>Level Cap</b>: Video game retail store in an old Blockbuster storefront. <br/>
<b>King Kong Comics</b>: Eric Kim's place. Christian Knouse's hangout.<br/>
<b>Ginormous Robot Comics:</b> Located at Redway Plaza<br/>
<b>Tempting Fates:</b> Fortuneteller in Hoover Shopping Center. Owner is actually Will's aunt.<br/>
<b>Michael's Hobby and Craft</b>: Located at South Creek<br/>
<b>CVS Drug</b>: Located in Mellon Village<br/>
<b>White Fang Outdoor Equipment</b>: Large shop for hunting, hiking, camping equipment<br/>
<b>Steel 24-Hour Gym<br/>
Saratoga Falls Tae Kwon Do<br/>
Knobb's Hardware<br/>
Ace Hardware</b><br/>
<br/>
<b>Ristorante Locarno:</b> Most expensive restaurant in town. Heather Varnsworth is a waitress-manager.<br/>
<b>Le Metropolitain</b>: Second-most expensive restaurant in town. Located at Fells' Lake<br/>
<b>Besandwiched</b>: Occult-themed restaurant<br/>
<b>Panda Garden Chinese Buffet:</b> Owned by Gary Chen's uncle and aunt (Lee and Sue Jiang)<br/>
<b>Ben's BBQ:</b> Restaurant. Home of the "Stick to Your Ribs Platter". Owned by Karol Mathis, local gangster<br/>
<b>Ray's BBQ</b>: Beloved barbecue shack located near Sutton Wilderness on edge of town.<br/>
<b>Osaka</b> - A casual and tiny Japanese restaurant. Popular at lunch. <br/>
<b>Arriba Mexican Cantina</b>: Located at Northgate Mall<br/>
<b>La Cocina Cantina and Restaurant</b>:<br/>
<b>Balducci's Pizza</b>: Famous, high-end pizza<br/>
<b>Cluck-for-a-Buck Chicken-to-Go</b>: Located at Redway Plaza<br/>
<b>Taco Famoso:</b> Fast-food Mexican. Infamously awful<br/>
<b>The Smilin' Marlin:</b> Seafood restaurant<br/>
<b>The Coldest Cut</b>: Delicatessen located in Northgate Place<br/>
<b>Milagro Beanfield Warehouse:</b> Coffee shop.<br/>
<b>The Koffee Kauldron:</b> Coffee shop.<br/>
<b>The Crystal Cave:</b> Coffee shop, located in the same building as Arnholm's.<br/>
<b>The Flying Saucer:</b> Coffee shop<br/>
<b>Dunn Brewin':</b> Coffee shop located on Keyserling campus<br/>
<b>Cafe Oro</b>; Coffee shop. Located at Fell's Lake<br/>
<b>Paris Baguette</b>: Located at Redway Plaza<br/>
<b>La Patisserie</b>: Bakery and restaurant. Located at Fell's Lake<br/>
<b>Cherry Brook Breads and Cakes</b>: Long-established bakery, supplies baked goods to restaurants as well as consumers.<br/>
<b>Don's Donuts:</b> Donut shop. Keith works there.<br/>
<b>Salvation Donuts:</b> Donut shop. Owned by the family that operates Agape Christian Academy. Located at Mellon Village<br/>
<b>Very-Berry Frozen Yogurt</b>: Next to the theater. Open late and a common post-movie hangout.<br/>
<b>Alamo Freeze/Dairy Queen</b>: Hybrid store combining a DQ and an upscale ice creamery.<br/>
<b>Thai Won On</b>: Thai restaurant located in Hoover Shopping Center<br/>
<b>The Estate</b>: Bar/music venue close to the college<br/>
<b>IHOP<br/>
Panera<br/>
Starbucks (2)<br/>
McDonald's<br/>
Carl's Jr.<br/>
Five Guys Hamburgers</b><br/>
<br/>
<b>Eagle Foods:</b> Locally owned food store. Managed by Steve Patterson's father.<br/>
<b>Canopies Food Store:</b> Locally owned organic/health/alternative food mart<br/>
<b>AAA Liquor and Wines</b>: Staff known to overlook even obviously fake IDs.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Crane's Pointe Apartments</b>: Cheap, rundown apartment complex.<br/>
<b>Lexington Park</b>: Cheap trailer park.<br/>
<b>Keyserling Presidential Suites</b>: Luxury apartments, located across from the university. In same building as Arnholms and the Crystal Cave.</span></div></div>


path: 131
author_id: seuzz
title: Environs
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span><b>Van Dief County:</b> County that Saratoga Falls is located in.<br/>
<b>Roryvale, Waxtend, New Independence:</b> Small towns east of Saratoga Falls.<br/>
<b>Suffolk, Scottsford</b>: Small towns south of Saratoga Falls<br/>
<b>Lattyville, McGuffey City</b>: Small towns west of Saratoga Falls<br/>
<b>Fletcher Grove, Adaburg:</b> Smal towns northwest of Saratoga Falls<br/>
<br/>
<b>Russian Lake:</b> Large lake north of Saratoga Falls<br/>
<b>Lake Covington:</b> Large lake east of Saratoga Falls, directly on the other side of Fort Suffolk and the Suffolk Wilderness.<br/>
<b>Mohegan River:</b> River that flows along the western edge of Saratoga Falls.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Cathcarts:</b> Quasi-mountainous region several hours from Saratoga Falls.<br/>
<b>Cuthbert:</b> Hillbilly burg in the Cathcarts. Dominated by the Shabbleman clan.<br/>
<b>Drury:</b> Small town in the Cathcarts, not far from Cuthbert.<br/>
<br/>
<b>I-62</b>: Interstate bounding the north edge of town.<br/>
<b>State Highway 126</b>: North-south state road, turns into 20th Street in Saratoga Falls. East-west State Highway 37 [Borman Road] dumps into it downtown.<br/>
<b>Appalachian &amp; Pacific Railroad:</b> Legacy RR line (now part of Genesee &amp; Wyoming RR)<br/>
<b>Plumtree Road:</b> A dangerous, switch-back tortured road northwest of Saratoga Falls.</span></div></div>


path: 14
author_id: seuzz
title: Background: The Book
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>The <i>Summa Libra Personae</i> is a book of magic spells which describe how to create the elements of magical disguises. For an astute scholar of magic, it also doubles as an occult dissertation describing the constituent parts of people.<br/>
<br/>
The book is protected by magic. It is difficult to copy down (by hand or electronically) any of its words or sentences, or translations of these -- ink fails to flow, pencil lead fails to leave marks, computer applications crash. <br/>
<br/>
Anyone who picks up the unowned copy will find every page but the front cover sealed shut, as though the pages have been glued together.<br/>
<br/>
Each page is "unsealed" in turn by the performance of a specific action; most of these are related to the completion of a spell. That is, the owner can unlock a spell only by making and using an item from a the spell that precedes it. All spells require an odd but not impossible to assemble mix of ingredients, and the use of sigils provided by the book. <br/>
<br/>
The book was found in Arnholm's Used Books in the special collections cabinet, where it had been priced and placed without any of its unusual properties being noticed. The original price of $225 was marked down to $2.00 after it was found that its pages would not part.<br/>
<br/>
The book is mentioned only in several rare codices, one of which (in the Bodleian Library) brought it to the attention of Aubrey Blackwell.<br/>
<br/>
NB: The book is damaged. The page containing the eighth spell is torn, rendering the spell incomplete. Because that spell cannot be completed, subsequent spells cannot be unlocked unless a special trick is performed to get past it. That trick is described in these appendices.<br/>
<br/>
<div align="center">Advice to Authors</div><br/>
Do not be too impressed or intimidated by the amount of detail given in these appendices. You <b>do not</b> have to use the Latin, the detailed instructions, etc., in your chapters. They are only there so that you know <i>what is in the book</i> and by implication what is not. The details are provided so that authors can check against an objective, authoritative source and not accidentally invent something that will contradict what another author might write. </span></div></div>


path: 141
author_id: seuzz
title: Cover, Facing Papers, Title Page
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span><div align="center"><b>Cover</b></div> <br/>
It's a hefty book, about the size and shape of an old encyclopedia, and is even heavier than it looks. It is bound in a lustrous cover of red leather that is shot through with threads of what appears to be gold. A gold pentagram is stamped on the spine, but there are no other identifying marks.<br/>
<br/>
<div align="center"><b>Facing papers</b></div><br/>
On opening the cover, you are struck by the intricate line work that covers the facing papers of the inside cover. Each line is the thickness merely of a spider's web, and like spiders' webs they cross and crisscross each other in loops and spirals and gentle curves. It is hard not to become dizzy while staring at the designs, for the patterns seem to shift and alter, and the longer you stare, the stronger the sensation that you're in danger of falling into the book and into those webs, to be caught and tangled inside them.<br/>
<br/>
Later, after you have bought the book and taken it home, you are thunderstruck to find the line work has vanished, leaving a creamy page of white, blank save for a single sentence and a strange symbol. The sentence reads, <i>Emptio me cum pecunia, possidere me cum sanguine.</i> The online translator you consult renders this as "Purchase me with money, possess me with blood." Directly below is a dense whorl of lines that you recognize as the stylized form of a thumbprint.<br/>
<br/>
Not until you have cut your thumb open and pressed blood to that mark does the title page come free from the page behind.<br/>
<br/>
<div align="center"><b>Title Page</b></div><br/>
At the top of the page, in bold, Gothic letters, are three words: SUMMA LIBRA PERSONAE.<br/>
<br/>
Directly beneath, in smaller letters: "Personae, de Elementa, et ad Relatio Inter Se; et eorum Constructio; et Modum Repraesentationis et ejus Reflexio in Materia."<br/>
<br/>
Below this is a block of text, also in Latin:<br/>
<br/>
<i>Lector diligens; in hoc opus ipsis est data sunt Personae tuus, eius familiarissimum aliquas operationes, et relationes ejus partes ad invicem ut totum constituere. Factum est compilatur et restituantur en forma singulari ex primaevis, antiquis, classici et moderni scientia, et sunt ornataque per nova et mirabile inventis. Datum sunt tibi maxime convenientis expressiones propter abstractionis et ad praesentationis de elementis Personae ad illustrationem intellectus, et Modi specifici ut per animadverto quam abstractae in materialiter, ita quod sensibus, non solum etiam intellectus.</i><br/>
<br/>
At the bottom of the page is a row of stylized faces, gazing serenely out at you: an old man, a young woman, a hale warrior, and a child. But as you looked at them, they seemed to shift places and attitudes and ages, so that the old man would, from a different angle, come to resemble the young woman, and the child would age into a crone.<br/>
<br/>
"The Latin is terrible," your friend Joe tells you one day as you're talking about it. "Mind you, I half-guess it's deliberately terrible. The asshole who wrote it seemed like to talk in double-meanings and puns, but he didn't have the talent for it. Take the title. 'Summa Libra Personae.' The literal translation is 'The Total Balance Scale of Personas,' which doesn't make a lot of sense. But he was probably trying to be metaphorical. 'Libra' means a scale, like you see statues of justice holding. It can also be one of those leveling rods that you use to determine if a surface is perfectly straight. So he's talking about the kind of tools you use to weigh and measure things, like you're constructing a model or a diagram. So 'The Total Measure of Personas' would be a better translation. <br/>
<br/>
"And if you <i>really</i> want to draw the metaphor out," Joe continued, and he grins at you like he does when he's trying to scare you with tales of vampires and chupacabras, "just think of those measuring scales, and pretend they're being used by a butcher. Because that's  what the <i>Libra</i> is, right? An instruction manual for taking people apart. 'Personas, Totally Dissected and Laid Out on a Table Top' is probably what the cocksucker was going for with that title. Meh. He was a superb engineer, but not much of a literary stylist.<br/>
<br/>
"Mind you," Joe adds after a thoughtful silence, and he leans forward to pick up one of the masks that you made using the book, "he might have also been making a pun about these things. You've got a whole person copied up inside here, right?" He hefts the mask. "And it weighs only a little less than a pound. 'Libra' was also measure of weight for the Romans, about twelve ounces. So 'The Complete Twelve Ounce Persona' or 'Personas, Totally Wrapped Up in Twelve Ounces' might be another translation."<br/>
<br/>
You ask, "You call it 'the Libra' when talking about it. Why?"<br/>
<br/>
"'Cos 'Summa Libra Personae' is a mouthful. Dur. And there's too many other famous books with 'Summa' in their title. The Summa Theologica, the Summa contra Gentiles. And that's just Aquinas. There's also the Summa de poenitentia, the Summa Aurea, the Summa Codicis. You tell someone, 'I was reading the Summa', which Summa are they supposed to think you were reading? And the things the book makes are called 'personae', so that leaves 'Libra' as the best, shortest thing to call it."<br/>
<br/>
You point to the title page. "So how would you translate all this?" you ask Joe.<br/>
<br/>
He shrugs as he takes the book up. "I told you what the title means. The subtitle would say something like, 'Personas, On'—or 'of' maybe—their Elements and Relations to Each Other; their Construction; and their Modes of Representation and Reflection in Matter.' As for the rest of it—"<br/>
<br/>
He sucks in his upper lip and studies the page for a minute.<br/>
<br/>
"Well," he says, "if you were going to translate it in something like the style they would have used back in the seventeenth century, it would probably come out something like this." He reads:<br/>
<br/>
"Diligent reader, in this work you are given the <i>persona</i>, its innermost workings, and the relations of its parts to each other so as to constitute the whole. It is compiled and reconstituted in an original manner from primordial, ancient, classical and modern knowledge, and embellished by new and marvelous discoveries. You are given the most convenient expressions for the abstraction and presentation of the elements of the <i>persona</i> for the enlightenment of the understanding, and the practical means by which to realize these abstractions in material form, that they may be comprehended by the senses and not only by the intellect.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Credit to Nostrum for the Latin translation.</b></span></div></div>


path: 1411
author_id: seuzz
title: The Second Page
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span><div align="center"><b>The Second Page</b> </div><br/>
The title page had been firmly locked down when you bought the <i>Libra</i>. Not until you had "claimed the book" for yourself by pressing a bloody thumbprint to the facing papers did it turn loose. But Joe turns it now and reads the continuation.<br/>
<br/>
"On the possible abuse of this science. It is the nature of <i>personae</i> that they be given motion, for without motion there is no life, and matter from which the <i>persona</i> has departed is a mere corpse. Moreover, it is the nature of <i>personae</i> that they be displayed for contemplation, for although the <i>persona</i> is realized in matter it is perceived only through the understanding of those who behold it. Therefore, this work describes methods for the creation of <i>personae,</i> and their use, by which a true <i>persona</i> may be replaced with a false one, and inhabited from within by one to whom the <i>persona</i> does not belong.<br/>
<br/>
"It has been since the Fall the evil habit of men to deceive and to employ instruments of deception, in contravention of holy law, and by dissimulation to encompass their purposes. By pretense and disguise have mighty labors been achieved, and it will easily be grasped that the knowledge and instruments given in this work can be employed for purposes other than the enlightenment of the understanding, and the admiration and comprehension of God's mighty creation.<br/>
<br/>
"Let the reader beware those dangers, to soul as well as to body and mind, that attend this subject and its study, and let him not deceive himself as to them even as he perceives the means by which he might use its instruments to deceive others. Let him not say in his heart, "Come, by the knowledge and craft of this work may I encompass many great works, and ease my heart to all content. Let me employ its art how I will, and understand it no further than that my purposes be realized from behind the false faces I may construct with it." This work contains no snares but those the reader may make for himself, yet such is the folly and perversity of mankind that many may those snares fashion for themselves, and in their pride see not the dangers that attend even the most artful falsehood.<br/>
<br/>
"Nor let any untrained in alchemical geometry enter here. Great mysteries in this work are presented, and so certain locks are placed upon it.<br/>
<br/>
"Sign it not with a heart or spirit that is frivolous and unheedful."<br/>
<br/>
He closes the book. But you take it and open it again to that page of warnings, and read:<br/>
<br/>
<i>De Re Abusus Potentialis hac Scientiam.<br/>
Est in natura Personae quod sit dandum motus, quia non est anima sine motus, et reliquae Materia a quo Personam quod praeterisse sola corpus inertis residuum. Praeterea, est in natura Personae, ut esse videantur per contemplationem; quamvis Persona attinens in materia, tantum percipitur sola per intellectum qui vident. Ergo, hoc opus ponit modos pro creatione <i>personae,</i>, et eorum usu, per quae vera <i>persona</i> potest reponi cum falsum unum, et habitabitur a in a unum, cui <i>persona</i> non pertinent.<br/>
<br/>
Quia ex tempore Magna Ruina ut mali habitum autem Homine de fraus et adhibent de machinationes deceptio,prevaricando legem Divinam, et in illa simulatione dissimulatio operient, circumvenio proposito. Per calumnia et dissimulato, magna laborem habent effectum est, erit facile percipi quod scientia et machinationes presenti in opus, possunt usus in se proposita praeter quam illustrationem per intellectus, et admirationi et comprehensionem ex magni creaturae Dei.<br/>
<br/>
Sit lector, cave illis pericula, ad animam sicut ad animum et corpus, quod attende hoc subiectum et suo studio, et eum non seducat se ad eos etiam, ut ipse percipit, per quem, ut usum eius instrumenta fallere alios. Et ne forte cor dicens, "Veni, et sic; per artes et scientiam huius summa operis, ut quia Ego potes cingunt multa magna opera, et aperis cor me ut in quae omnis contineri. Dimitte me, uti eius es quam ego, et intelligere, sed non amplius, quam quod mea causa esse intellexit, a post falsa facies ut construere cum." Haec non opus habet insidias sed lectorem faceret sibi, prauitas humana insipientia et tamen, quia plures formae suam tentationibus, non attendit superbia et periculis etiam arte effecit.<br/>
<br/>
Nec quisquam ignarus geometriae alchymicam ingredieris huc. Traduntur mysteriis opere, quod est obsignatum compagibus. <br/>
<br/>
Nec signi est cor ejus et spiritus hoc est frivolum et negligens.</i><br/>
<br/>
<b>Credit to Nostrum for the Latin translation.</b><br/>
<br/>
Return to main index: "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interactive-story/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/14" target="_top" title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047">Background: The Book</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interactive-story/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/14" target="_blank" title="Open in new window."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a></span></div></div>


path: 142
author_id: seuzz
title: First Spell: The Persona
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>There are two paragraphs of Latin at the top of the page: a list of ingredients, and a set of instructions. The bottom half of the page is dominated by a sigil: two circles of nearly the same size, one enclosing the other, to make something resembling a rimmed wheel. Inside the rim (the 1/2-inch space between the circles) are inscribed intricate symbols resembling Hebrew or Arabic or Sanskrit. Similar symbols are inscribed along the inner surface of the innermost circle, and around the outer surface of the outermost circle. The interior of the circle is empty.<br/>
<br/>
It gave you a headache to puzzle out the Latin, particularly such expressions as <i>calx celeritir</i>, which turns out to be an ignorant stab at translating "quicklime" into Latin. The book is also dreadfully nonspecific about measurements. <i>A handful of quicklime? A spoonful of wet plaster?</i> How much is that? You guessed that it didn't matter much, and it turned out that it didn't. Nor did it seem to be very picky about what kind of "wood ash" was wanted.<br/>
<br/>
The ingredients were not hard to procure, though you had to run around all over town to get them:<br/>
<br/>
<i>A handful of quicklime, a handful of wood ash, a spoonful of wet plaster, a spoonful of olive oil, a lump of quartz as large as your thumb, a handful of ice, a scrap of wet paper, and your own hot breath. You also had to by a convex mirror and a metal bowl. You had your own set of matches, though.</i><br/>
<br/>
All told, it cost you about $60 to buy the supplies, and with them you are able to make 6 masks.<br/>
<br/>
You start by combining the quicklime, wood ash, and plaster in the metal bowl and set it on the sigil. Three times you run your fingertip around the circle. The ingredients hiss and release a faint stench. Then you add the quartz and wet paper. But when you plop the ice in, the stuff in the bowl hisses and pops, and a great smoke pours out. So too does a stench, as of sulfur. You wave it away run your fingertip twice around the sigil.<br/>
<br/>
Now the worst part: There is still a great stink coming out of the bowl, but you put your face to it and breathe hard on it. Once more you run your fingertip around the sigil, and the fizzing mixture settles down into a grayish paste. <br/>
<br/>
The book tells you to pour the stuff over the mirror and then set a flame to it, and the first few times you executed the spell, that's what you did. And of course it worked: Ghostly blue flames danced for a quarter hour over the shell, then winked out. After that, you peeled the shell (surprisingly cool) off the mirror.<br/>
<br/>
These days, though, you set the stuff on fire while it is still in the bowl, then pour it over the mirror. It was an accident the first time you did that, but it turns out to work just as well as the what the book specifies. The stuff burns in the bowl for fifteen minutes, then hardens when you pour it over the mirror. It creates the same kind of hollow hemisphere either way.<br/>
<br/>
You steel yourself against what comes next after pulling it off the mirror; no matter how often it happens, you never get used to it. The hollow hemisphere twists in your hand like a live thing, and it is only with supreme presence of mind that you don't drop it.<br/>
<br/>
But it is no longer a hemisphere. It is now a mask, a thing with the shape of a face: brow, nose, cheekbones, lips, chin. The eyes are solid, though. But though it is the face of no one in particular, it closely fits your own features when you press it to your face. Of course, nothing happens when you do.<br/>
<br/>
Before you can do anything with it, you have to polish it. The first few times you used a cloth, and it took you several hours work for several days -- maybe twenty-four hours of sustained polishing spread out in two- or three-hour chunks -- before you had buffed the mask, on both sides, to a deep and burnished blue, like that of a cloudless sky. These days, though, you use a car buffer, and it takes you only forty-five minutes, tops.<br/>
<br/>
You still didn't know what you had the first time you made one of these things, and it was only after setting it on your own face that you finished the magic. You became very stiff all over, and if you hadn't been lying on your bed you would have fallen over like a plank of wood. For a moment only you felt the weight on your face. Then it began to press down on you, and a warmth spread through all your limbs. You felt yourself dragged down into unconsciousness. The first time it happened you felt panic. The second time (for you had to make a second mask after losing the first) you just felt pleasantly drowsy.<br/>
<br/>
You wake twenty minutes later, feeling stiff all over, and push the claustrophobic mask from your face. It has now acquired a shine, and liquid drops of light run over its surface. They coalesce, though, into the ghostly image of a face, like a 3-D image inside the mask. If you turn the mask this way and that, you can make out different sides of the face; the top of the head; the top of a bare set of shoulders; and so on. It's your own face. (Or, when you put a mask on another person, it is their face.) But you have to know what you're looking at in order to recognize it, for the image is faint. <br/>
<br/>
You return to the book. The first time you made a mask, an oval stain had appeared in the middle of the page, and you laid the mask atop it. When you lifted the mask, the page, which had been firmly stuck to the page behind, fluttered loose, and the stain vanished as mysteriously as it had appeared. On the reverse was an explanation of what you had made: <i>Per hoc ars est, receptaculum est. Habes effudit in eam imago et fecit persona. In hoc receptaculum a secunda imago potest infundi, et tertia, et magis. Per hoc ars nova personis fieri potest. Persona non potest subtritus, donec fuerit signati.</i><br/>
<br/>
Blah blah blah. There's more, but basically it says, "Congratulations, you've made a 'receptaculum', a thing that can you can use to copy people. You can fill this thing with a person's <i>imago</i>, which more or less their bodily form, inside and out. You can fill it with the <i>imago</i> of a second person, too, and the two will mix up with each other to make an <i>imago</i> that is like a combination of the two you put into it. You can keep adding <i>imago</i>, making new <i>imago</i> until you get bored. But you have to seal the 'receptaculum' up before you can do anything with it. After you've got it sealed, you will have made a 'persona',"<br/>
<br/>
That's what it calls these things: Not masks, but "personas", like pretended characters. Which, you can see, is just what they are. Masks that turn you into other people, either a person that you have copied, or the people you have created by mixing up the forms and images of lots of people.<br/>
<br/>
The back of the page also gives you a way of taking off a mask -- or persona; whatever you want to call it. You have to clutch your forehead -- or the forehead of a person wearing a mask -- between forefinger and thumb and pull while chanting a certain word three times fast. When that happens, the mask comes away in your hand. You have to be lying down when you do it, though, because you pass out again when the mask comes away.<br/>
<br/>
That's the thing about taking off masks and putting them on. They knock you out. If you put a blank one onto someone, it sinks into them like a stone, vanishing, and they fall unconscious, and no matter how much you shake them, they are unresponsive. After ten minutes, the mask will reappear on their face. If you do nothing, they will remain unconscious for another ten minutes, but you can at least shake them awake. (But man, are they groggy and angry when you do that. You feel a little sick when woken up like that, usually with a headache. At least it goes away quickly, once you start moving again.) Similarly, when you put a mask onto someone, they fall unconscious for ten minutes, though at least you can wake them.<br/>
<br/>
Putting a mask on someone, though, is nothing like in a movie, with blurring or morphing. Put a mask on someone and it instantly vanishes, like a stone sinking beneath the surface of a pool of water, and suddenly they are not them anymore, but are someone else. Snap of a finger, blink of an eye. You once watched very closely, to see if you could catch the moment of change. You're not sure, but you <i>think</i> you caught them wavering, like a reflection in a pond when a ripple runs through it, and then the reflection has changed. But it happened so fast you can't be sure it wasn't your imagination. <br/>
<br/>
* Note: If wearing a mask and a <i>mens</i> that are not glued together, they must be removed separately. The mask will be the first to come off, followed by the mens.</span></div></div>


path: 143
author_id: seuzz
title: Second Spell: The Seal
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>The mask now has your image in it. Time to seal it up, so that it can be worn.<br/>
<br/>
The second spell, like the first, doesn't tell you what you are making. It only gives you a list of ingredients, some instructions, and a complicated sigil.<br/>
<br/>
Fortunately, you already had extra supplies on hand, for the sealant—the "membrana", the book calls it—doesn't use anything that doesn't go into making a mask, and it calls for rather less of it, in fact:<br/>
<br/>
<i>A small quantity of wood ash, a small quantity of quicklime, a spoonful of wet plaster, a spoonful of olive oil, a scrap of wet paper, a metal bowl, flame.</i><br/>
<br/>
At least this spell does not stink when you execute it. You combine all the ingredients in the bowl, set it on the sigil, and run your fingertip three times around it. You set it on fire, and when the flames have gone out a few minutes later, you have a thin, paste-like stuff that you can apply to the inner surface of the mask with a paintbrush. It dries fast, and quickly turns transparent. Only a faint glistening shine to the interior of the mask tells you that it has been closed up and can be worn.<br/>
<br/>
You were a little confused the first time you executed the spell, because there was no change to the page -- no mysteriously appearing stain or any other sign -- to indicate that you had successfully executed it. On a hunch, you laid the sealed up mask on the page, and when you lifted it the page fluttered loose. On the reverse it basically tells you what you already know: You have now sealed up a mask, it cannot absorb any more images, you can wear it—<br/>
<br/>
Well, you can wear it if it is someone else's persona. Then you can put it on, and when you wake up ten minutes later you will find yourself transformed (inside and out) into their physical duplicate. You won't have their memories, though, or any of the personality traits or talents. But you'll just like them -- at least, you'll look like them at the moment that you put the mask on them. If they have gotten a haircut or a tooth pulled, or gotten a cut or amputated a limb, well, too bad. That change will <i>not</i> show up in the mask.<br/>
<br/>
That doesn't mean that <i>you</i> can't change the appearance inside the mask. You can put on mask and get a haircut, for instance. The haircut won't do anything to <i>your</i> hair, of course, and if you get cut or if you lose a finger or (God forbid!) an arm, you can just take the mask off and you'll stop bleeding (and your own arm won't fall off). But if you put the mask back on, you'll continue to bleed out.<br/>
<br/>
But you won't leave a trail of blood. That's one bizarre thing about the masks. Though they can bleed and shed (and drop other, um, fluids and solids) like a real person, the stuff that comes off them vanishes after a few minutes. Snip off some hair, and a few minutes later it evaporates. Same with blood and saliva and everything else. Everything that falls off or squirts out will disappear after a few minutes.<br/>
<br/>
There's some other funny things about the masks, and what happens when you get them around the real people. For a start, although you can wear masks of other people, you can't wear a mask of yourself. It will go into you and knock you out, but it will come out again a few minutes later, like it is trying to copy you, even though it's already got your image inside it. But even though it looks like it's trying to copy you, it won't. So, like, take the example above of making a mask of someone, putting it on, and getting a haircut. If the real person tries to put it on, they won't be able to wear it, even though the haircut makes the image in the mask look a little different. But when the mask comes back out of them, it won't have changed or updated. Instead, it will still have the new haircut. <br/>
<br/>
The same is true if it was the real person who got a haircut -- you can't get the haircut into the mask by trying to copy them with it again. You'd have to make a new mask.</span></div></div>


path: 144
author_id: seuzz
title: Third Spell: Mens (Mind)
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>The <i>persona</i> that you made only copies your body. But you need it to act like you, too.<br/>
<br/>
But like they say: There's an app for that.<br/>
<br/>
You turn the page to the third spell in the book and double check the ingredients and instructions.<br/>
<br/>
<i>A strip of copper, a strip of zinc, a drop of quicksilver. Two small pocket mirrors and a steel-nib pen.</i><br/>
<br/>
You had to run around all over town to find someone who would sell you a small bottle of mercury, and you wound up getting it "under the counter" at a gun shop of all places. The steel-nib pen, though, turned out to be the most expensive item. All told, it cost you almost $100 to get the supplies to make even one of the things, but you had to buy them in such quantities that you're in no danger of running out any time soon.<br/>
<br/>
You cut off a strip of copper and a strip of zinc from the rolls that you bought. You lay the copper atop one of the pocket mirrors (the spell did not specify "pocket mirror", but that's the size you bought and it's a size that works) and carefully dribble out a single drop of mercury atop it. You cover it with the strip of zinc, and then lay the other mirror—mirrored side down—atop the zinc to make a kind of sandwich. This "sandwich" you set on the sigil.<br/>
<br/>
The book also gives two sets of runes. The first you scratch into the back of mirror with the steel-nib pen while pressing the layers of metal onto the sigil. The stack hisses malevolently as you copy the runes, but it ceases abruptly—and the runes you wrote vanish—once you've made the last stroke. You remove the topmost mirror and pluck up the results.<br/>
<br/>
It's made a metal strip with a silvery shine, about an inch wide and five inches long. (Always it will have these dimensions, so long as the metal strips have been at least that big.) It is very thin and flexible, more like paper than metal, but with more heft. It fits comfortably in the cupped palm of your hand.<br/>
<br/>
Now comes the tedious part: carving the other set of runes into the strip.<br/>
<br/>
This is long and tiring work, for you have to press the pen deep into the metal for each stroke in order to make an indentation. But the metal doesn't like to be indented, and you have to work each stroke hard, over and over again, before the metal yields. Even then, more than half the time, the stroke fades away after you've moved on to the next, so that you are constantly having to go back and scratch lines where you had already scratched some. Nearly three hours pass before you have completed what the book calls a <i>mens</i>.<br/>
<br/>
As with a <i>persona,</i> you have to lay yourself flat before dropping the <i>mens</i> onto your forehead. And as with a <i>persona</i> it conks you out for ten minutes as it copies your brain, you sleep for ten more after it has reappeared on your forehead. When you do wake, the strip flutters away. When you pick it up again, the runes have vanished have been replaced by your name, which seems to float in ghostly blue, roman all-caps just above the surface of the metal, like a hologram. <br/>
<br/>
It freaked you out, the first time it happened. <i>It knows my name!</i> you thought. Well, it had better, if it's going to copy your brain. On the reverse of the page (which turned loose when you laid the first of the things across the sigil) there was but a single sentence of Latin: <i>Scire mentem alterius,</i> which your preferred online browser rendered as "to know the mind of another."<br/>
<br/>
So the thing has your memories. More than that, it even has your personality traits, and tastes and dislikes, and a lot of your talents, too. Anyone who wears this thing will remember everything that you can remember, will know what you know, and will be to imitate your mannerisms. They will like what you like, and dislike what you like (although, in your experience, these feigned likes and dislikes can be easily overridden if you concentrate hard enough), and will even be able to execute the kind of mental gymnastics that you can execute.<br/>
<br/>
They won't look like you when they do this, though, because they won't look like you. They'll only be able to think and act like you, while still being able to think and act like themselves when they want.<br/>
<br/>
Just as removing a mask knocks you out, removing a <i>mens</i> knocks you out too, and it is removed using the same gesture and formula as removing a mask. And, like with a mask, you cannot wear your own <i>mens</i> but you can update it by putting it back on again, so that it will start "remembering" all the stuff that you did after making it. You can also give yourself <i>its</i> memories. You lend your <i>mens</i> to a friend who needed to use your brain on a math quiz, and when he gave it back you put it on. When you woke, you "remembered" going to his class and sitting in his desk and taking the math quiz; in fact, you remembered almost everything up to the moment that sat down to pull it off again. The odd part was that, although you remembered doing things, you didn't remember any thoughts or feelings. You only remembered the actions.<br/>
<br/>
Well, now you have a <i>persona</i> of yourself, and you also have a <i>mens.</i> They can be worn together by someone else, by putting one to the forehead and one to the face. Then they will look just like you, and be able to act just like you. It would be more convenient, though, if they could be attached to each other.<br/>
<br/>
* Note: If wearing a mask and a <i>mens</i> that are not glued together, they must be removed separately. The mask will be the first to come off, followed by the mens.<br/>
<br/>
* Note 2: It is possible to set a blank <i>mens</i> upon someone wearing a mask <i>if</i> the mask is not attached to a <i>mens</i> and there is no <i>mens</i> already mounted on the person. In that case, the blank mens will sink into the person, copy their mind, and return, exactly as if they were not wearing a mask.</span></div></div>


path: 145
author_id: seuzz
title: The Fourth Spell: Gluten (Glue)
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>The next spell in the book is almost as easy as the second, and requires even fewer ingredients.<br/>
<br/>
<i>A handful of quicklime, a handful of wood ash, a spoonful of wet plaster.</i><br/>
<br/>
You mix it all in a bowl that's been set on the sigil and run your fingertip thrice around the sigil, then set a lighted match to the mixture. It burns a brief time, leaving a grayish slurry.<br/>
<br/>
It's a paste, though one with peculiar properties. It remains perpetually wet and slimy in the bowl, and it can only be used to glue two items together: a <i>mens</i> and a <i>persona.</i> It will stick to nothing else.<br/>
<br/>
You coat the back of the <i>mens</i> with the <i>gluten</i>, then carefully set it inside the mask. Now you have a complete <i>persona.</i> If someone puts it on, they will wake in ten minutes (unless you shake them awake earlier) with your mind and memories and in a copy of your body.<br/>
<br/>
It will take them awhile to get your memories, though. That's a weird thing about gluing a memory strip to a mask, and why you often don't do it. Put a memory strip on someone, and they'll wake knowing everything you do. Add the mask, and they'll wake still with your memories. It works the other way, too. Put them in a mask, then add the memory strip, and they'll have your memories.<br/>
<br/>
But if you glue the memory strip into the mask? Funnily enough, it will take them hours to get the memories.<br/>
<br/>
Oh, if they concentrate really hard, searching for something in particular (like a name, an address or a phone number) then they might be able to get it. But nothing comes easily. As the hours while away, more such memories will come, and they will come more easily. But it will still be a strain. Even after twelve hours, the wearer of a completed <i>persona</i> will have a tough time doing the impersonation.<br/>
<br/>
Sleep is the only solution. A solid six hours of sleep, you have found, will unlock the <i>mens,</i> giving the wearer complete and easy access to the memories, personality, talents, etc. Even then, there is something about the mask that acts as an impediment. It takes some little concentration to "get into character," and even after inertia has taken over, you have to push yourself to maintain the characterization. A sharp surprise can even scare you out of it, so that you have to again concentrate to find your footing. (It's a bit like falling off a bicycle: Easy to fall off but easy to get back on, but it takes a moment, and you have to build up the momentum again.) The whole thing can be tiring if the impersonation is carried out over the span of several days.<br/>
<br/>
There's only one person you know who can so the impersonation thing without strain, right from the start, even in a completed <i>persona:</i> Will Prescott. The guy is spooky when put in a mask. He comes out of the magical sleep <i>actually thinking</i> that he is the person he's imitating, and you can see it in his face when he "remembers" who he really: <i>Whoa!</i> He says it gives him a five-second migraine, and a feeling like vertigo. And after that it is easy for him to switch personalities.<br/>
<br/>
"It's like closing one eye, then opening and closing the other," he says. "You know how the perspective shifts just a little bit? Just like that. I look at the world with one brain. Then I shift and I'm looking at the world with the other brain."<br/>
<br/>
He even says he finds it easier to stay in character than to break character. "I just kind of zone out," he says. "Instinct takes over, and I'm just that person without even thinking about. Sometimes," he adds with frown, "I have to shake myself loose, to remind myself of who I really am."<br/>
<br/>
<div align="center">* * *</div><br/>
Because this spell uses the same ingredients as the first and second spells, it doesn't cost any extra. By the time you got to it, you had figured out the pattern with the book: Make the stuff, use it the way it's supposed to be used, then press the item onto the book. That will cause the page to unlock, giving you the rest of the spell and a new one.<br/>
<br/>
In the case of <i>gluten,</i> the book didn't have much to say, except to tell you that with this stuff you can glue memory strips into masks. But as for the next spell ...</span></div></div>


path: 1451
author_id: seuzz
title: Fifth Spell: Pedisequos (Golem)
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span><i>Saltpeter, charcoal, sulfur, resin, naphtha, aqua fortis, camphor.</i><br/>
<br/>
All of that stuff was reasonably straightforward, even if you had to do some substitutions. Gasoline for naphtha (you've also found that kerosene and even motor oil work as well), and although nitric acid may or may not be what the author meant by "aqua fortis," it works. The trouble is that the book's author was very vague about the quantities needed. The first time you tried the fifth spell in the book, you deliberated used more of each than you hoped was necessary necessary, which meant you spent $150 on this one spell, with nothing left over. You could probably use less, but you're dealing with explosives, and you'd rather err on the side of caution. Because $150 will buy you a successful spell, you spend $150 each time you need to execute it.<br/>
<br/>
But you don't begrudge the $150. What you do begrudge is the one really nasty ingredient: Four hundred pounds of earth taken from a graveyard.<br/>
<br/>
There you have experimented, using dirt from directly atop a grave, but also dirt from a far corner. Both times it worked. Still, it's nasty business, shoveling dirt into five-pound sandbags. It takes up less room than you'd think—it all fits neatly in one corner of the bed of a pickup truck—but it's heavy, sweaty, backbreaking work.<br/>
<br/>
Has to be done in the dead of night, too. Not because the book calls for it, but because you don't want anyone seeing what you're doing when you're getting it.<br/>
<br/>
You also have to use human hair. Naturally, you use your own. Not much, just a little lock.<br/>
<br/>
The first time you attempted this spell was also the first time you paused and thought long and hard about what you were doing and how you were going to do it. The ingredients are all explosive, and you were going to light them on fire. The sigil took care of that, though. Under its instructions, you added each ingredient, one at a time, to the bowl balanced on the sigil, and after each addition you ran a fingertip around the sigil. When you were done you had a black, foul-smelling liquid, but it didn't seem unstable. <i>So far so good,</i> you thought at the time.<br/>
<br/>
But worse even than that, you had to pile all the stuff—including the dirt—onto the sigil. The only sigil available was the one in the book. You've tried copying out the sigils, but there's something funny about the book: Although you can copy out the sigils onto paper, the ones you copy don't work: they don't transmogrify the stuff into whatever magical form it needs to be in for the spell. (Even more frustrating, Will Prescott is the only guy who seemingly can copy the sigils and get them to work. But he is spooky in a lot of ways.) But it couldn't be helped. So you found yourself a nice deserted spot, opened the book to the spell, and dumped out all the dirt atop it, poured the other ingredients over it, and lit a match.<br/>
<br/>
You light a match now and set it to the pile you've just constructed atop the book. You are enveloped by a purple bloom of light, which quickly evaporates, and when the phantom lights clear from your eyes, you watch the blue-violet flames that noiselessly lick all about the dirt. No heat comes off them, which seems almost like a miracle on top of the magic. You leave it to burn.<br/>
<br/>
You check back in a few days later, and find that the fire is still burning. The pile of dirt has also begun to tighten up into a solid cylinder. The next day, when you come in, a couple of fissures have opened up in it. A single rent runs up one side, almost to the middle, and two smaller rents have opened in the sides. It is making a kind of magical mannequin, and these rents have given it two legs and two arms. Before it is done, a lump at the other end will look like an onion-shaped head.<br/>
<br/>
The fire has gone out, and you relight it. The book warned you about this in its characteristically vague way. The fire will go out, and you'll have to relight it, and keep relighting it until it doesn't relight anymore, which will be the sign that it is finished. You're not sure how long, in the best of circumstances, it will take. Maybe six days, you would guess, if you babysat the thing and relit it instantly on its going out. By checking in every few days, though, you are letting it lie cold for hours on an end, and so it takes more like seven or eight.<br/>
<br/>
Halfway through the time, though, you pull the book out from underneath. This does not interrupt the spell. Possibly you could have retrieved the book earlier, but you like to wait until the thing has solidified, so that you don't accidentally pull out any dirt with it.<br/>
<br/>
A week after you started, the thing is done. It is grayish-white all over, and with a rag you rub a thin film of dust from it. It looks like the rough form of a statue—the trunk and limbs and head—abandoned by a sculptor before he had gotten down to the work of carving it into an actual likeness. It only weighs a few hundred pounds, but it might as well weigh a ton.<br/>
<br/>
The book calls it a "pedisequos". You think of it as "a golem."<br/>
<br/>
Like the creature of myth, it is a servant made of stone. Unlike the creature of myth, it is not animated. To make it live, you have to set a complete <i>persona</i> on it: mask and memory strip. (Use only one, and you get a thing like corpse in one case, and an unchanged statue in the other.) Onto the face of the new <i>pedisequos</i> you set the newly made persona of yourself.<br/>
<br/>
The mask slips into it like a plate slipping into a sinkful of water. At the same instant, the golem vanishes and a naked person—you—are laying there. There's no bullshit of taking ten minutes to wake up, either. Your doppelganger opens its eyes, looks at you, and sits up. "So I guess it's a week later," it says in your voice.<br/>
<br/>
This is your servant: It looks like you and will act like you. It will obey you too. That's not because it necessarily likes you. But the hair you added to it puts it under your power. (If it was someone else's hair, it would be under that person's power.) It will not only obey you, it will let you reshape its personality to an extent. Onto one of these things you once set a persona of one of your bitterest enemies, and after five minutes of careful instruction you had gotten the thing to think of you as its best friend, and itself as your bosom buddy. But otherwise the things display all the instinctive personality that comes with the <i>persona.</i> They will act just like the person they are imitating, easily and naturally.<br/>
<br/>
Having confirmed your success, you reach forward to grip it by the forehead. Using the standard trick, you pull the persona off its face. The golem reappears in its place. But now it has assumed a sitting position.</span></div></div>


path: 1452
author_id: seuzz
title: Sixth Spell: Vinctus
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>You've made many <i>personas</i> since adding the <i>Summa Libra Personae</i> to your occult collection. You've made many a <i>mens</i>. You stirred up more than one pot of <i>gluten</i> and more than one pot of <i>membrana.</i> You have several golems out and about, serving you.<br/>
<br/>
But there is one spell that you have performed only once.<br/>
<br/>
It is very similar to the spell that makes a <i>pedisequos,</i> requiring almost all the same ingredients: Saltpeter, charcoal, sulfur, resin, gasoline, nitric acid, camphor. Human hair.<br/>
<br/>
There are only two differences.<br/>
<br/>
The first is that it calls for only twenty pounds of earth, though still from a graveyard.<br/>
<br/>
The other is that it calls for a <i>corpus humanum.</i><br/>
<br/>
A human body.<br/>
<br/>
It's not very particular, too, about what kind of human body. The first time you saw the spell, you blanched, called over your golem, and with its help you stole a corpse from a funeral home. That worked out okay, and was better than the alternative, which you've since learned (from those more expert than you) would have also worked: a living person. Not that they would have been living after the spell is performed.<br/>
<br/>
The process is otherwise almost the same as preparing a golem. Add each ingredient, including the hair, to a bowl set on the sigil, running your fingertip around the sigil once after each addition. Pour the resulting mixture (black and stinky) over the body, which has been sprinkled with the earth. Throw on a match.<br/>
<br/>
Boom. Purple fire engulfs it. Noiseless and without heat.<br/>
<br/>
But this fire only burns a very short time, and will not relight. What is left is another statue, like a golem.<br/>
<br/>
This one, however, is much more detailed in appearance. All the way down to the pores and the tiniest hairs, it is a stony, grayish-white imitation of the body that you used in the spell. It is stiff and unmoving, though, just like a golem.<br/>
<br/>
Will Prescott tells you that if you use a living person, it looks like they're breathing, though you have to get up really close to check. However, if you test it closely, you will discover that it is just an illusion. There is no breath, and the chest (despite appearances) doesn't really move. The person is completely imprisoned beneath, which is probably why the book refers to this thing as a <i>vinctus.</i><br/>
<br/>
Like a golem, you can set a <i>persona</i> on it, and as with a golem it will instantly transform and instantly wake in the form of the person copied into the mask, and will act like them. It will obey the person whose hair was used in the construction. The mask can be removed in the same way.<br/>
<br/>
In other words, it is a golem in every way that counts. The only difference is that you need less dirt from the graveyard.<br/>
<br/>
But you will need a human body.</span></div></div>


path: 1453
author_id: seuzz
title: Seventh Spell (Ludius) and Others
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>You have a golem and you have a <i>persona</i> that it can wear. But after thinking things over, you decide to change your plan slightly.<br/>
<br/>
You text one of the golems that you have placed at the high school. <i>Bring me _____ after school,</i> you tell it, naming the next person you have decided to replace with a doppelganger.<br/>
<br/>
In the meantime, you turn the page to the seventh spell in the book. It was a spell that unlocked as soon as you had finished making the <i>vinctus.</i><br/>
<br/>
It uses the same ingredients as a golem, mixed in the same way. One ingredient at a time you add them to the metal bowl balanced on the sigil. Saltpeter, charcoal, sulfur, resin, gasoline (though kerosene and motor oil also work, you have found), nitric acid, camphor, and a handful of dirt taken from a graveyard. After the addition of each, you run a fingertip once around the sigil. The result is a black, smelly liquid.<br/>
<br/>
The first time you executed the spell you were very careful to follow the directions exactly. After making up the stuff, you put a flame to it. It burned very purple and very bright for a few seconds, then went out, leaving a much thicker kind of paste behind. At this point, the page turned loose, and you found the rest of the instructions on the other side.<br/>
<br/>
You followed those directions and painted the interior of a mask, turning it the color of tar. It hardened almost instantly. Then you laid a hank of your own hair inside the mask, and set it on fire. The entire interior of the mask caught fire for an instant, and went out. The hair was gone, and the interior of the mask had turned a mottled gray—the same color as a golem.<br/>
<br/>
The fourth time you executed the spell, you messed up. You added the hair with the other ingredients before setting the contents of the bowl on fire. The result was a paste, but instead of being black, it was gray. At first you thought you'd messed up. But you tried it anyway, painting the inside of a <i>persona.</i> You found that the results were the same, and <i>persona</i> prepared one way will act like a <i>persona</i> prepared the other way.<br/>
<br/>
Since then you have taken to using the second method, which yields a paste that you can store in a plastic container and carry around with you. It's much more convenient that way. You unpacked a saved supply of the stuff now.<br/>
<br/>
It's some hours before the high school lets out, which you occupy by making another <i>persona</i> and <i>mens,</i> which you attach to each other after sealing. It's around four when the golem you contacted—one of the basketball players; very popular at the school—arrives with the victim you directed it to bring. They are just inside the door when you spring at them with the blank <i>persona.</i> "You don't waste time, do you, boss?" the golem says. (Golems like to call their masters "boss," you have found.)<br/>
<br/>
With it's help, you drag your unconscious victim into the living room, to prop them on the sofa, to wait. Ten minutes later, when the mask comes out again, you sit at the foot of the sofa with a brush and the paste that you had made. It takes only a minute or so to coat the interior of the newly made <i>persona</i> with it. Your victim's name is not obscured by the paste, however, but continues to shine inside the mask, seeming to float just above the surface, like a hologram.<br/>
<br/>
You blow the stuff dry—though it is already dry to the touch—and turn it over and set it on the sleeping face. It seems to sink in. But there's no change in form, for the <i>persona</i> is of the person lying on the sofa.<br/>
<br/>
But it is no longer that person. It is a golem.<br/>
<br/>
Or, technically, according to the <i>Libra,</i> it is a <i>ludius.</i><br/>
<br/>
The thing opens its eyes and sits up. "What the fuck?" it gasps.<br/>
<br/>
Of course the thing doesn't know what has happened. It only knows what the original person knew, and the original has no idea what is going on.<br/>
<br/>
So you explain to the ludius the change in its circumstances. It is now your servant (like a golem) that has to do what you tell it to do (like golem). After some explanations and exhortations, you convince it that it is pleased to be one of your servants.<br/>
<br/>
Then you tell it to get undressed. It smiles, and complies.<br/>
<br/>
While it is disrobing, you fetch the <i>persona</i> of yourself that you made. Inside it you paint a layer of the stuff you made, creating another <i>ludius.</i> Back in the living room, you push the other ludius back onto the sofa and remove the <i>persona</i> by grasping it by the forehead and pulling while chanting a string of syllables fast three times. The original person appears—though there is no obvious physical change—and onto their face you press the mask of yourself. Your own face and form appear, and your doppelganger sits up smartly. "Whoa. Again?"<br/>
<br/>
"Change of plans." You tell your double who you have decided to replace.<br/>
<br/>
You then strip, and your double changes into your clothes. Again, it is like a golem, doing as you order, and is pleased to be your servant. But your victim is hidden underneath your face, unconscious, and will know and remember nothing should you ever remove your face from theirs and let them free again. After you are stripped, you drop onto the sofa, raise your latest mask to your face, and push it in.<br/>
<br/>
It is ten minutes before you wake, and you're groggy enough to be surprised when you look down and see your new body. It takes you a moment to remember who you are supposed to be. You give your replacement some last-minute instructions as you dress, then leave to let that basketball player take you out. It will be some hours before the memories start to come (it's always that way with masks, with you) but the golem is one of the best friends of the person you are now impersonating, and is able to fill you in on some necessary details. You are out until late that evening, killing time before going home to sleep, during which you will master the full impersonation.<br/>
<br/>
That seventh spell might be the best of all. It's like a portable golem, already inside a mask. All you have to do is pop it onto someone, and they will turn into a copy of the person inside the mask. But they will be asleep, and the masked personality—a slave to the person whose hair is inside the mask—will take over. But if it's your hair in the mask—as it is in this case—you will be awake and inside the mask, and able to carry on the impersonation. Even better, if you put the mask onto the person you copied, after filling it with the ludius-paste, they will also go to sleep beneath it, leaving their own duplicate to fill their place while under your command.<br/>
<br/>
"Just be sure to use real hair," Will Prescott warned you once. "And don't use any hair off a fake—off a golem or anything like that," he explained. "That hair evaporates when it's inside a mask—or inside a golem for that matter—and though it will still make a golem, it won't obey you. It might even ... Well—"<br/>
<br/>
He had turned a little shy at that point, and declined to say what worse thing could happen if it was fake hair and not real hair that went into a golem, a vinctus, or a ludius.</span></div></div>


path: 14531
author_id: seuzz
title: Eighth Spell: The Test
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>The page containing the eighth spell is ripped. This was done on purpose by the book's compiler, as a test of the reader's skill.<br/>
<br/>
The book itself contains a vital, animating force, and the solution is to use visible part of the spell to make a modified mind-strip. When set on the book itself, it will disappear and make a copy of the book. When the band reappears, it can be set on the torn page. The strip will disappear (forever) but regenerate the torn page, which can then be turned.<br/>
<br/>
The visible part of the spell does not contain explicit instructions for completing it. Rather, the magician must have shown a superior sort of skill, demonstrated by the ability to understand the reasoning within and behind sigils and ingredients, and the ability to grasp the fundamental nature of magic (that it is not made of recipes but from the visionary ability to see how causes and effects may be linked). <br/>
<br/>
This spell should not be solved lightly or accidentally within the story. The ability to make a strip of the right kind depends on reading the fragmentary spell in the right way, and a literal or uneducated reading of the spell will not create the right sort of band.</span></div></div>


path: 14532
author_id: seuzz
title: Ninth Spell: The Anima-Slave
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>This is a mind-strip superficially similar to the mind-strip made in the third spell. It can be recognized at sight by the fact that the letters that flame on its surface are red, not blue.<br/>
<br/>
The anima-band copies not only the person's mind and personality but also their anima: the life-force (roughly, the soul). As such, it is a much more powerful kind of device and must be used with great discretion. While the book's user can use mind-bands to learn the mental secrets of others, he uses the anima-band to impose personality changes upon others. Basically, someone who dons an anima band becomes convinced that he or she <i>is</i> the person whose anima has been copied. They lose their own sense of identity, and feel that they are the the copied person body-swapped into a new body.<br/>
<br/>
Best kind of comparison:<br/>
<br/>
If Jack puts on a mask of Jill, then <b>he looks like and can act like Jill, but is certain that he is really Jack, and can act like Jack when necessary.</b><br/>
If Jill puts on an anima-band of Jack, then <b>she looks like and can act like Jill, but is certain that she is really Jack, and can act like Jack when necessary.</b><br/>
<br/>
The person who wears an anima-band, though, has no psychic link with the original; the person is also not the slave of the original, or of anyone else. For this reason, they can be unreliable allies, especially if they resent being "trapped" in a body that they dislike. It is especially dangerous for talented magicians to duplicate themselves in this way, for in doing so they populate the world with independent beings of equal stature and talent; these can quickly become formidable rivals and may seek to displace the original even if they understand that they are not themselves the original. However, such things can be useful in populating the world with "duplicates" of allies or loyal henchmen, or with spreading mischief by mimicking the effects of body-swapping.</span></div></div>


path: 14533
author_id: seuzz
title: Tenth, Eleventh, and Twelfth Spells: The Chameleon
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>The next three spells work in conjunction with each other, but have been broken up as a further test of the adept's ability to understand the magic.<br/>
<br/>
The eighth spell consists of a sigil that by inference gives the ingredients for a varnish that is applied to a mask. After a light buffing, the mask loses all evidence that it contained any images or minds. For all intents and purposes, it looks as though the mask has been erased. However, if someone copies their own face into the new layer, they are capable of wearing the mask—it doesn't just recharge with their memories and changes in body form.<br/>
<br/>
The ninth spell is a complex sigil that merely indicates that newly imprinted images on a mask can be covered up with layers of varnish, which themselves can then be imprinted with new images; and so on with no theoretical limit. To recognize this instruction, one must be able to read the elemental sigils that make up the complex sigils for the varnish and the mask, because they have been written in a way that does not make them immediately recognizable as such.<br/>
<br/>
If one put on a mask charged in this way, then it will default to the wearer's own body if that body is contained within the mask. Otherwise, it defaults to whatever the topmost image is. Those who have not mastered the tenth spell (or any of the previous spells) in this way may be fooled into donning a seemingly blank mask, unaware that they are adding their image to a library of them; they may also don a chameleon mask without realizing that there are other images contained within the mask.<br/>
<br/>
The tenth spell is the simplest. It is simply a graphical device that shows how to switch between images contained within a chameleon mask. This involves brushing against your forehead in a prescribed manner.<br/>
<br/>
Note that memories are associated <b>only</b> with particular body images, and that each body image requires a mind strip if it is to carry memories. As a result: (1) Switching from one body image to another will involve losing the memories, habits, personality, etc., associated with the first body image. (2) Switching to a body image that does not have a mind strip will mean that you will bring up the image only, and will not have any memories, etc., associated with it.<br/>
<br/>
<b>Chameleon masks and golem shells:</b> Chameleon masks can be golemized, but each layer must be separately golemized. This means that if the mask is set to a personality that does NOT have a shell inside, the person inside the mask will be conscious and active; if the mask is set to a personality that DOES have a shell, the person inside will disappear and be replaced by a golem-version of the person in that layer. (Exception: if the wearer has control over that golem layer, then they will continue to be conscious and active.)<br/>
<br/>
Each layer put into the chameleon masks counts as a separate golem, and counts toward the magician's limit on having golems. Golems cannot operate magic, so a golem cannot switch out of its current face.</span></div></div>


path: 15
author_id: seuzz
title: Reader Comments, Message Forum, Etc.
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>The first four replies to this entry are reserved for story ideas or spell ideas contributed by readers. Note that such ideas may be introduced later in the story--but maybe not. No idea in this branch is to be considered canonical or to be used until further notice.<br/>
<br/>
The fifth entry is a placeholder for various old notices, comments, blog-like entries, and other whatnot. It has been superseded by a couple of new resources.<br/>
<br/>
* If you want to keep apprised of my writing activities connected to the BoM universe, check out my "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-The-Book-of-Masks-Homepage" target="_top" title='A hub for the "Book of Masks" universe.'>The Book of Masks Homepage</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-The-Book-of-Masks-Homepage" target="_blank" title='A hub for the "Book of Masks" universe.'><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a> blog.<br/>
<br/>
* There is a message forum for the BoM/TWS/SB universes here: "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/forums/item_id/2180090-BoMTWS-Message-Forum" target="_top" title="Message forum for readers of the BoM/TWS interactive universe.">BoM/TWS Message Forum</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/forums/item_id/2180090-BoMTWS-Message-Forum" target="_blank" title="Message forum for readers of the BoM/TWS interactive universe."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a> <br/>
<br/>
* Stuff more generally related to my writing interests can be found on my Tumblr page: <a class="duLink" href="https://seuzz.tumblr.com" rel="nofollow">seuzz.tumblr.com</a>  <a href="https://seuzz.tumblr.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="New Window"><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a>.<br/>
<br/>
* If there are particular storylines you would like to see continued, or ideas you would like to see written, you might drop me a line about doing a commission. I don't accept every commission request, but my terms are outlined in this document "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2139956-Commission-Contract" target="_top" title="Terms and conditions for producing writing-for-hire at WdC.">Commission Contract</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2139956-Commission-Contract" target="_blank" title="Terms and conditions for producing writing-for-hire at WdC."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a> </span></div></div>


path: 151
author_id: wordsmitty
title: The Book's Structure and Possible Future Spells
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span><font class="size4" style=""><span style="font-family:comic sans ms, cursive">For what it's worth, I present one possible idea (theory?) about <i>The Book of Masks</i>.  This is just a concept and is not planned for use.  I am hoping that it might make sense to others, so please comment by adding a chapter at the end.</span><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
<u>First</u>, one must understand <i>The Book </i>is meant to teach as it goes.  Not in mere execution of procedures it contains, but in what is important for a magician to use magic. Most importantly, learning to develop and control his/her own power.<br/>
<br/>
Spells step one through learning the power one piece at a time as follows (numbered by spell):<br/>
<br/>
<span style="font-family:verdana, sans-serif">1.  Make "disguise" - learn that to get a result is real work (like polishing) and introduces "collection" issues (passing out which is both bad and good if used properly).<br/>
<br/>
2.  "Use" disguise <u>physically</u><br/>
<br/>
3.  Collect a copy of a "spirit" or "soul."<br/>
<br/>
4.  "Impersonate" a person vs. just a "disguise."</span><br/>
<br/>
   So, you have now learned: <br/>
          physical = disguise<br/>
          disguise plus soul = impersonation<br/>
<br/>
<span style="font-family:verdana, sans-serif">5.  Create life by making "body" (from the soil) and adding "life" from a mask.  <br/>
<br/>
6.  "Change" life at will.  Make (almost dead) body from live person then make it live again with a mask. <br/>
<br/>
7.  "Controlling" life to do your bidding and be what you want it to be (no stone golems used).</span><br/>
<br/>
To continue one must recognize the progression, recognize the similarities, understand the materials, and connect all.<br/>
<br/>
The eighth spell is only partial - just materials without instructions, or just some instructions, or pieces of each.  It doesn't matter at all.  The magician must be able to discern from it and what he/she has learned to combine whatever however to create the next spell.<br/>
<br/>
<span style="font-family:verdana, sans-serif">8.  Progressive control and imagining the result rather than assembling a recipe (unlocks torn page to reveal the next full page. What the spell is is also irrelevent. It could be dirt, hair, and fuel used on <i>The Book</i>.  Whatever.  It just has to prove the magician is worthy)</span><br/>
<br/>
The magician must always learn and grow.  He/she must "see" beyond procedures in order for magic to work.  More than just the "how." (I think I read that somewhere. <img alt="*Smile*" border="0" class="emoteZ" height="15" loading="lazy" src="https://images2.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/e21/smile.png" style="" title="Smile" width="15"/> )<br/>
<br/>
Each succeeding "spell" is only partially described, or cryptically described.  The magician must use this perception to create the result desired from here on.<br/>
<br/>
Future spells, however they may be described/hidden, would do the following(throw in sigils where needed):<br/>
<br/>
<span style="font-family:verdana, sans-serif">9.  Controlling people &gt;&gt;  changing persona   &gt;&gt;&gt;  controlling what another will do, act, or be but still are themselves<br/>
          Going beyond disguise and impersonation<br/>
          ¿  a specially sealed mind strip of yourself ?  gives them your emotions, personality, but not memories or appearance<br/>
<br/>
10.   Creates a slave without a mask or band - brings corpse golem back to life but person will now answer to master's commands<br/>
<br/>
11.  Putting multiple people in a single mask, building layers vice merge.  (How can it be used is not explained in this spell, just how to "collect")<br/>
<br/>
12.  Selecting layers from a multiple person mask.  Shows how it works.<br/>
<br/>
13.  Makes "impersonation" permanent.  Like creating corpse golem but with person wearing regular mask going in<br/>
          Makes real person's mind dominant over mask's persona (opposite of mask dominating a corpse golem)<br/>
<br/>
14.  12 plus 13 allows person to change their impersonation of anyone in the multiple mask at will.<br/>
<br/>
15.  Collecting and sorting aspects of physical and spirit to whoever you want.  manipulating people Physically or mentally.<br/>
<br/>
16.  Somehow putting your whole self (physical &amp; spirit) inside someone else. (yea, this may be possession)<br/>
<br/>
XX?.  Using 16 to move at will so you never get sick or age.</span><br/>
<br/>
<span style="font-family:comic sans ms, cursive">Just what went through my mind as I read more and more branches of good stories.<br/>
<br/>
Enjoy or destroy.</span></font></span><br/>
<br/>
</div></div>


path: 152
author_id: ryannfraser
title: Idea 2
chapter_content:
<div><span style="font-size:1.47em;"><div> <span>A spell that disguises you as a female, except it gets stuck and you have to do something to remove it.</span></div></span></div>


path: 153
author_id: gimlet
title: Connective Masks
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>One possibility is something the maker of masks would likely not use (though it's certainly possible). The spell requires two, blank, unimprinted masks with unimprinted mind strips. Additional work and materials would be needed, but the masks should be in contact with each other (or possibly both on some sort of stand together) when the spell forms the new powers in them. The result links the masks together and they change from the blue, sheen to a deep purple, but still both blank.<br/>
<br/>
When worn ONE of the masks will do nothing. However if two people wear both masks at the same time their minds are permanently linked and the masks are gone! This forms two bodies with a mind as an amalgam of those from the two original minds, but the new mind controls both bodies simultaneously and seemingly easily, with no confusion over which body it is using. Mental confusion however might well ensue as one body would have to act as it normally would, and although the new mind has all the information of the mind that once inhabited that body it would have to sort out which memories, habits and mannerisms go with that body. A lot of experience using mind strips and masks would help with this confusion somewhat.<br/>
<br/>
Another possibility would be the same but less powerful. The masks do not disappear and when removed the two individual personas return, though both retain the memories of the new mind's experiences while blended. Whether the individuals would want to return to the joined state is debateable, and indeed the mind made might be subtly different another time, even with the same two people, as their experiences in the interim would change the gestalt.<br/>
<br/>
EDIT (Added clarification): Anything that an individual body could do the joined mind could do just as well, including any skills either body had. If a body was a martial artist then the melded individual would know all about that and that body could still do martial arts just as well. The other body would likely not have the muscle memory and physical responses to be good at it, but it could still work. Plus with his knowledge training that new body would be quicker than usual in such physical skills.<br/>
<br/>
Doing something with a body would be easy. The new persona would feel perfectly at home with one body running, the other sitting down at dinner. It would feel perfectly natural and straight forward. However it is ONE mind, and trying to concentrate on which body was doing what might be tricky. Something that used reactions would likely work right, but if he had to think about it he might use the wrong body to do something. For example, if a drink was in front of one body he'd likely not try to use his other set or arms to try and reach for it. The hand eye coordination would be reflexive enough to get it right. If one body was writing one thing and another was writing something else however the conscious thought of what was being written could get confused. Imagine being in two classes at once and writing history notes in Maths and vica versa. Talking might be the same, not sure which mouth to use in a situation.</span></div></div>


path: 155
author_id: seuzz
title: Updates: Behind the Mask
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>I had a blog at WdC when I had an Upgraded Membership. I lost it when I downgraded to Basic.<br/>
<br/>
I used the blog for lots of things, and one of them was to post notes, comments, updates, etc. about my interactives, for the benefit of anyone who wanted to know what was coming up or what was going on behind the scenes. I've decided to start doing those kinds of updates here, in the interactive itself. This thread is for those things, and now if you're subscribed to BoM or follow it closely, you should know when there's a BoM-related update. Other updates, of the sort I also put up, are now at <a class="duLink" href="https://seuzz.tumblr.com" rel="nofollow">seuzz.tumblr.com</a>  <a href="https://seuzz.tumblr.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="New Window"><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a><br/>
<br/>
Because this interactive is open to everyone, people who left comments on the blog will be able to leave comments in this thread of the interactive. They can be related to BoM, The Wandering Stars, Student Bodies or whatever. I only ask that you use the Choice labeled "Comment", and that when you post a comment that you leave a couple of "Comments" as a choice so that others can continue to comment. The "Next" choice is the one I'll use for whatever update comes next.<br/>
<br/>
Like, see below.</span></div></div>


path: 1551
author_id: seuzz
title: News: 11/7 [Commission Contract]
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>If you follow the old blog you likely know this already, but I've posted some terms under which I am willing to accept commissions for writing. I posted it on the old blog, but since that is likely to disappear soon, I've made a page for it in my Portfolio: "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2139956-Commission-Contract" target="_top" title="Terms and conditions for producing writing-for-hire at WdC.">Commission Contract</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2139956-Commission-Contract" target="_blank" title="Terms and conditions for producing writing-for-hire at WdC."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a><br/>
<br/>
If you're wondering why there's a housekeeping post showing up in the BoM interactive, hit "Go Back" to see the previous chapter. This particular thread I will be using henceforth as a BoM-centric blog so readers can get quick, obvious updates about what's going on with my interactives.</span></div></div>


path: 15511
author_id: seuzz
title: News: 11/10 [Commission Accepted]
chapter_content:
I have accepted a commission and have just posted the first chapter. Background on the resumed storyline:<br />
<br />
Will, after buying the grimoire, has panicked at the first spell and sold the book to Caleb. Weeks pass, and Will is summoned out to the school by Chelsea Cooper, whose boyfriend, Gordon Black, has succeeded in using the book to turn himself into a statue. Chelsea, who for some reason thinks that Will knows all about the book, wants things fixed. Will, though confused as to how Chelsea and Gordon got ahold of the book, has agreed to help.<br />
<br />
Will has succeeded in getting Gordon mobile again by putting a Gordon-mask onto the Gordon-golem, and has taken the grimoire and the supplies off by himself so he can study them. He has just decided to bone up on the next spell in the book, and to do it without consulting Chelsea ...


path: 155111
author_id: seuzz
title: News: 11/18 [New Storyline]
chapter_content:
<span style="font-size:1.25em;">Yesterday's chapter, "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/113122113221232"  target="_top">Of Hooks and Hooky</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/113122113221232"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>, concludes one commission I received. Today's chapter, "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1131221121"  target="_top">Chelsea's Special Touch</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1131221121"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>, begins another in a closely related part of the interactive. Will is still working with Chelsea, but this time he has explained the workings of the new mask spell to her, and she has ideas of her own on what to do with it ...</span>


path: 1551111
author_id: seuzz
title: Update [11/29]: Trivial but Wanted Revisions
chapter_content:
There are apparently three new chapters up today: "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/111112"  target="_top">Making People the New Fashioned Way</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/111112"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>, "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1111123"  target="_top">The Mash Up</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1111123"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> and "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/11111231"  target="_top">The Offspring of Two Cousins</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/11111231"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>. But they're not really new so there's actually no reason to trouble yourself over them.<br />
<br />
While writing commissions I'm also slowly combing through the interactive, making tweaks here and there. In some cases I'm copyediting the contents; and some chapters that had "choices" for titles are acquiring actual titles.<br />
<br />
Some early chapters are getting bigger tweaks. Back when BoM launched, for instance, any chapter past "Chapter 3" (IIRC) could only get two choices at the end. These days, if you have a Basic Membership or higher, you can give any chapter three choices. So in some spots I'm editing to include additional choices. Today I found a spot where I wanted to add more choices.<br />
<br />
Another change since the old days: A long time ago the site put no limit on chapter length. These days, there's a 10K-character limit. By and large this is a good thing, as it encourages discipline in one's prose. But it causes problems when I want to tweak an old chapter that has way more than 10K characters in it. The chapter I wanted to tweak, for instance, had closer to 13K characters.<br />
<br />
After fiddling with things a bit, I decided the best thing to do was delete the original chapter (which was a dead end) and insert three new chapters in its place. This increases the number of choices associated with that stump of the story, breaks it up into logical chunks, and brings each chapter in well under the character limit.<br />
<br />
TL;DR: Those are not three new chapters, they are a very old chapter, slightly revised and divided (like Gaul) into three parts. That is all.


path: 15511111
author_id: seuzz
title: News: New Storyline [11/30]
chapter_content:
Today's chapter, "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1131221121112111112231"  target="_top">Plots Have I Laid, Inductions Dangerous</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1131221121112111112231"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>, concludes the second commission. For those curious about such things, here's the basic outline I was asked to write to: <i>A storyline with Yumi being impersonated. Also, as part of the plot, Chelsea somehow has Gary's mask and is using it to take over his business/ take over other aspects of the school.</i> It was supposed to be for 5 chapters, but it took me 14 just to bring these pieces together in a way that to me felt motivated, and even then I barely got to the Chen stuff. But I was having fun, and I liked the idea, so I let it stretch out, and I am likely to extend this branch in the future.<br />
<br />
Another commission starts tomorrow: a mini-commission, let's call it. Someone dumped <75K GPs on me as a gift, and I told them I'd write a couple of chapters for them. If you want a head start on it, go to "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/11123122212212212111112221111212111221212211111112212122"  target="_top">Gloria's Revenge by Proxy</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/11123122212212212111112221111212111221212211111112212122"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> and backtrack until you figure out what's going on. The TL;DR? Patterson has the book, and he's forcing Will and his friends to procure masks for him. Will has wound up impersonating Kendra, and more or less under the influence of that mask has set about ruining multiple people, most prominently Chelsea Cooper at Westside and Alyssa Randal at Eastman.<br />


path: 155111111
author_id: seuzz
title: News: New Storyline Tomorrow [12/4]
chapter_content:
Today's chapter, "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/111231222122122121111122211112121112212122111111122121222112"  target="_top">The Brick Wall</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/111231222122122121111122211112121112212122111111122121222112"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> completes the mini-commission. The pitch I was asked to work toward: <i>a continuation of the imaj Kendra storyline, which ends by "Gloria's revenge by proxy", the choice being taken being the second one. I really enjoy Chelsea and Chris yves as characters and i'd like to see them both figure this thing out and maybe reverse the situation?</i> There was a lot of leeway inside the idea of "figure this thing out and maybe reverse the situation," and this was the way I chose to interpret it.


path: 1551111111
author_id: seuzz
title: News: Background on the New Branch [12/5]
chapter_content:
Today's commission starts a six- [EDIT: Oops, turns out it's seven-]chapter run. That's all I really have to say about it. The background? Will, needing money for the experiments, has taken a job at his dad's company and also brought Caleb into a partnership. Together, they have used a mask of Will's father in a plot to loot the company of some chemicals. As "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1111112111"  target="_top">The Hot Box</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1111112111"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> opens, Will has accidentally given the chemicals back to his father. (He mistook his dad for Caleb in a Mr. Prescott disguise.) Can Will work up the nerve to retrieve the package so the experiments can continue? And what will happen then?


path: 15511111111
author_id: seuzz
title: News: New Storyline Tomorrow [12/11]
chapter_content:
One commission ends today with "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1111112111112121"  target="_top">Certain Dramatic Incidents</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/1111112111112121"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>. Tomorrow, I will publish four chapters: one chapter followed by three parallel sequels. One of them will then get a 3-chapter mini-commission as a sequel, written in gratitude for another unbidden gift of <75K GPs.<br />
<br />
The mini-commission's pitch: <i>I have a kick for darker stories. I was thinking about Will using anima bands to take over school's principal to get some advantages. Or going to an interview in a company he wished to work, but lacked the means or knowledge to, and using masks and bands to get it. Or maybe something petty... like using the PE teacher to get access to the cheerleaders in the change-rooms.</i> <br />
<br />
One could do almost anything with that, so I used it to kickstart an early choice that never developed. What if Will, while working alone, decided to victimize his own friends while experimenting with the masks? I already had four unpublished chapters written that laid the groundwork for some shenanigans—the ones I'll post tomorrow—and used the commission to extend one of them.<br />


path: 155111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: Query: Coinmining
chapter_content:
<span style="font-size:1.25em;">So, starting today I'm seeing some coin mining stuff showing up on the interactive chapters. I'd be interested in hearing from people, either by email or (if you can post interactive chapters) in this branch, if they have any strong opinions in any direction about this new WdC feature and whether it affects your ability to read or enjoy WdC interactives</span>


path: 1551111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: Update: Three Bits of Business
chapter_content:
First, you might notice that a lot of "blog entries" have suddenly disappeared from the interactive. I did a purge this morning.<br />
<br />
When my blog when on hiatus, I started doing BoM-related updates within the blog itself, here in this branch. When the blog came back, I continued posting updates here. I will continue to post such relevant updates.<br />
<br />
But I disliked the way it padded the chapter count. So I have decided that, going forward, I will do a semi-regular purge of those posts (probably on a monthly basis). The posts made here will be archived at the blog, so they won't be lost, but they'll no longer accumulate permanently here.<br />
<br />
Second, there's another one-off chapter now posted: "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/113122112111211111223132213323131"  target="_top">Dregs and Druggies</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/113122112111211111223132213323131"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a><br />
<br />
Finally, there's a new poll up in the "You Guys Choose the Adventure" game: "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2155987-BoM-4-The-Solo-Magician" title="Will Prescott makes a magical mask. But who does he test it on?" target="_top">BoM 4: "The Solo Magician"</a>" <a title="Will Prescott makes a magical mask. But who does he test it on?"  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2155987-BoM-4-The-Solo-Magician"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>.


path: 15511111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: Update: Another Poll, Another One-Off
chapter_content:
<span style="font-size:1.5em;">Will decides to experiment on a friend. But which one? You decide: "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156070-BoM-5-My-Friend-the-Guinea-Pig" title="Will decides to experiment on a classmate. But which one? So many choices!" target="_top">BoM 5: "My Friend the Guinea Pig"</a>" <a title="Will decides to experiment on a classmate. But which one? So many choices!"  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156070-BoM-5-My-Friend-the-Guinea-Pig"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a><br />
<br />
Meanwhile, here's another one-off chapter: "<a title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047" href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/113122112111211111223132213323222"  target="_top">Clearing the Airhead</a>" <a title="Open in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interact/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/113122112111211111223132213323222"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> </span>


path: 155111111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: Update: Did People Miss the Latest Poll?
chapter_content:
<i>I posted the following in the wrong place. I didn't think much of it, but the vote totals for the last poll dropped, and so did the number of raw views. So I'm wondering if people missed it.<br />
<br />
In case they did, I'm posting the link here, and I'm going to leave the poll open for another 24 hours. The vote is close enough that any entry could still win.</i><br />
<br />
<div align=center>*


path: 1551111111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: Update: New Chapter Choice, and New Poll [4/24]
chapter_content:
It was a close-fought contest for how to continue "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156127-BoM-6-The-Leftovers" title="Will cruises the hallways after school, looking for a "test subject."" target="_top">BoM 6: "The Leftovers"</a>" <a title="Will cruises the hallways after school, looking for a "test subject.""  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156127-BoM-6-The-Leftovers"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>. But the choice "A teacher would make a good test subject!" was in the lead for both days that the polls were open, so I got a head start on writing that chapter. That's the reason you get a new chapter today: "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156320-BoM-7-Tackling-a-Teacher" title="Will tests the mask on a teacher -- and doesn't like what happens next." target="_top">BoM 7: "Tackling a Teacher"</a>" <a title="Will tests the mask on a teacher -- and doesn't like what happens next."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156320-BoM-7-Tackling-a-Teacher"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>. There's a poll at the end of that chapter, so again you guys get to vote on what happens next.<br />
<br />
Probably going forward, though, I'll be posting chapters every other day. I got a head start on today's chapter, but here on out I'll be posting a poll on one day, then I'll have to use the next day to compose the winning chapter choice. I might use the intervening days to compose chapters in other storylines, but I don't think I'll be posting them. I prefer to run only one storyline at a time.


path: 15511111111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: Update: New Chapter w/ Poll [4/25]
chapter_content:
<span style="font-size:1.25em;">Okay, you guys just be that way. If you want a chapter every day, vote early in the poll, vote often, and vote overwhelmingly for one choice. <br />
<br />
I mean, <i>damn.</i> I'm not sure they get 96% of the vote in <i>North Korea!</i><br />
<br />
So I had plenty of time to see which way things are going, so I wrote the next chapter long before the polls had closed. New chapter and a new poll are here: "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156408-BoM-8-The-First-Mask" title="Will now has a mask, but needs money to continue." target="_top">BoM 8: "The First Mask"</a>" <a title="Will now has a mask, but needs money to continue."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156408-BoM-8-The-First-Mask"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> </span>


path: 155111111111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: News: "Servers Busy" Got You Down? Try This!
chapter_content:
There was another overwhelming vote margin for the winning choice at the end of "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156408-BoM-8-The-First-Mask" title="Will now has a mask, but needs money to continue." target="_top">BoM 8: "The First Mask"</a>" <a title="Will now has a mask, but needs money to continue."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2156408-BoM-8-The-First-Mask"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>. I should have gotten a sequel chapter written, but for reasons I didn't. Tomorrow, though. I remind you, an every-other-day schedule is likely to be the norm with these poll-driven choices.<br />
<br />
As a small solace, I'll talk today instead about my plans for helping people get around the WdC "server load" roadblock.<br />
<br />
You know what that is, don't you? If you have a Free Membership at WdC, or if you're unregistered, then you can't always get into the interactives. Quite often you'll get a "servers busy" message, and will have to reload and reload throughout the day until you get through. Never mind why WdC does things that way—it's a topic that causes <i>agita</i> and ill will.<br />
<br />
But WdC doesn't put up the same roadblocks for static items (like polls).<br />
<br />
So here's what I'm going to do: Going forward, I'm going to post new BoM/TWS chapters inside a static item. That static item will be separate from the interactives, so you will not be able to navigate from those new chapters back into the archives. Also, those chapters will only be posted there while the storyline is being continued. But this will allow those members to read new content as it is posted without hitting the "servers busy" roadblock.<br />
<br />
I've created a special index page that will link to the static items that are currently posted. Bookmark that page if you're a Free or unregistered member, so that you can get to the static versions of new content without a lot of fuss.<br />
<br />
Also, I will be moving these updates to a new blog. That, also, is for the benefit of Free and unregistered members, who after all have a hard time getting into the interactive. So I realize now that it's not fair that the update notices should be kept there. More general topics will continue to be posted at "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2154538-Seuzzs-Blog" title="Blog for describing updates to some of my writing projects." target="_top">Seuzz's Blog</a>" <a title="Blog for describing updates to some of my writing projects."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2154538-Seuzzs-Blog"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>.<br />
<br />
So here are the important links going forward:<br />
<br />
* The new blog for updates: "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-BoMTWS-Interactives-Updates" title="A specialized blog given over to updates to the BoM and TWS interactives." target="_top">BoM/TWS Interactives Updates</a>" <a title="A specialized blog given over to updates to the BoM and TWS interactives."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-BoMTWS-Interactives-Updates"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> <br />
* The index page for static versions of interactive items: "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2156490-BoMTWS-Temporary-Static-Collection" title="A permanent post redirecting readers to current storylines." target="_top">BoM/TWS Temporary Static Collection</a>" <a title="A permanent post redirecting readers to current storylines."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2156490-BoMTWS-Temporary-Static-Collection"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> <br />
<br />
Bookmark these pages, or remember that they are located near the top of my Portfolio.<br />
<br />
I will be periodically posting updates here in this thread over the next week or so, to remind people of these changes, but after that all updates will be through the blog linked above.


path: 1551111111111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: Reminder: New Location for Updates
chapter_content:
<span style="font-size:1.5em;">I'll be posting occasional reminders here: Going forward, updates about the interactive will be posted in "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-BoMTWS-Interactives-Updates" title="A specialized blog given over to updates to the BoM and TWS interactives." target="_top">BoM/TWS Interactives Updates</a>" <a title="A specialized blog given over to updates to the BoM and TWS interactives."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-BoMTWS-Interactives-Updates"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>. There's a new entry there today: "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/action/view/entry_id/933518"  target="_top" title="An entry from the book 'BoM/TWS Interactives Updates' (Item #2156493)">To Continue or Not to Continue</a>" <a title="Open Item in new window."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/action/view/entry_id/933518"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a>.<br />
<br />
And this has been one of those reminders.</span>


path: 15511111111111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: Another Reminder
chapter_content:
<span style="font-size:1.5em;">Going forward, updates about the interactive will be posted in "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-BoMTWS-Interactives-Updates" title="A specialized blog given over to updates to the BoM and TWS interactives." target="_top">BoM/TWS Interactives Updates</a>" <a title="A specialized blog given over to updates to the BoM and TWS interactives."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-BoMTWS-Interactives-Updates"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> and <b>not</b> in the interactive itself. Bookmark or Favorite that page if you want regular updates about BoM and TWS.</span>


path: 155111111111111111111
author_id: seuzz
title: Next
chapter_content:
<span style="font-size:1.5em;">There's a new BoM poll up. You should check it out: "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2158519-Book-of-Masks-Meta-poll" title="Which storyline should Seuzz continue next?" target="_top">Book of Masks: Meta-poll</a>" <a title="Which storyline should Seuzz continue next?"  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/polls/item_id/2158519-Book-of-Masks-Meta-poll"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a><br />
<br />
Also, you should be checking "<a  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-BoMTWS-Interactives-Updates" title="A specialized blog given over to updates to the BoM and TWS interactives." target="_top">BoM/TWS Interactives Updates</a>" <a title="A specialized blog given over to updates to the BoM and TWS interactives."  href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/books/item_id/2156493-BoMTWS-Interactives-Updates"  target="_blank" ><img style="opacity:.4;" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" onMouseOver="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" onMouseOut="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" height=12 width=12 border=0></a> for BoM updates, if you're interested in them.<br />
</span>


path: 1551111111112
author_id: passwordv2
title: Enable adblock and disable javascript.
chapter_content:
<span style="font-size:1.5em;">It's a systemic issue across various websites with the real underlying issue being rooted in human nature itself. You can't change who people are, but you can protect yourself from being exploited through rational decision making. </span>


path: 1551111111113
author_id: teh_cool_fool
title: Re:Coinming
chapter_content:
The impression that I get is that it isn't a mandatory thing and looks like it requires your permission to do anything, so really it strikes me as nothing but a brief annoyance to deal with. Not really worth getting up in arms about. That said, if they're secretly using your computer to coinmine regardless of whether you've given consent or not it's a shitty thing to do and actually worth getting angry over.<br />
<br />
Otherwise, I dunno... get over it? It's literally just another option to farm for stuff. Not really that manipulative, just a bit of an eyesore.


path: 15511111111131
author_id: teh_cool_fool
title: Side note
chapter_content:
<span style="font-size:1.5em;">I should also preemptively say that my comments were towards no one in particular, just towards an vague, nonspecific "you".</span>


path: 1552
author_id: rugal
title: A Bit of Thanks
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>From the looks of it it seems like people enjoyed the recent chapters I did starting from "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interactive-story/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/111131131114" target="_top" title="Interactive Story Chapter in Item # 1510047">The Female of the Species</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/interactive-story/item_id/1510047/action/view/chapter_map/111131131114" target="_blank" title="Open in new window."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a> because I've received quite a bit of tips in relation to those chapters (and a few others) as well as some nice words so I just want to return a bit of appreciation. I can't necessarily speak for others who contribute to this interactive but I know that me personally at times it can feel a bit like writing in a vacuum to an audience largely of myself and it's easy to wonder if anyone else is reading or enjoying it so the tips and nice words certainly help in that regard.<br/>
<br/>
That's not to say I'm expecting them every time I fart out a half-baked idea but I'd be lying if I said that it doesn't feel nice to have your ego massaged every now and again and know that people out there are enjoying what you do. So thanks to bori258, Easy, YJFL and bickuribox for either either the tips or the kind words.<br/>
<br/>
Thanks as well to the regular contributors to this over the years such as smitch, Wordsmitty, imaj and of course Seuzz. A lot of work has gone in both up front (i.e. the published chapters) and behind the scenes to build a decently cohesive and functioning universe. Many of these characters go back years and often multiple interactives and I definitely have grown attached to many of them over that time as I'm sure other contributors and readers have as well and I'm sure both writers and readers have their favorite characters or plotlines.<br/>
<br/>
I myself love Chelsea and Will plotlines as I believe the two always play off of each other very well and it's nice to get a peek behind Chelsea's mask (pun partially intended). I think she's one of the most well realized, well rounded characters in this: she can be hateful or sweet, you can despise her or love her and none of it ever seems contradictory. Chelsea can certainly be a lot of things but boring is never one of them and she may be my overall favorite character.<br/>
<br/>
So again many thanks to the readers who tipped me or said nice things, to those who have been reading over the years and to everyone who's contributed and worked hard to make the world of Saratoga Falls a lively and interesting one.</span></div></div>


path: 15521
author_id: rugal
title: Something A Little Different
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>For NaNoWriMo Seuzz, smitch and possibly others decided to do some non-BoM writing projects using characters that show up in BoM. I wouldn't really consider it NaNoWriMo but I figured what the hell and decided to do something as well. You can view it here: "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/portfolio/item_id/2175624-Onward-Towards-the-Apocalypse" target="_top" title="Short vignettes regarding the end.">Onward, Towards the Apocalypse</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/portfolio/item_id/2175624-Onward-Towards-the-Apocalypse" target="_blank" title="Short vignettes regarding the end."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a>. So it's not BoM but uses characters from the series and I figure that some people who read this might be interested in that.<br/>
<br/>
Onward, Towards the Apocalypse contains no magic or identity swapping shenanigans whatsoever though so for anyone looking for what you'll be disappointed; consider it an alternate universe/alternate future deal where no magic (that we know of) exists. There's not even a true overarching story. Instead it's a series of short vignettes focused on different characters as they face "the end of the world" i.e. for most of them their looming graduations and the way everything they know is soon to be upended.<br/>
<br/>
All of the vignettes take place beyond where BoM typically takes place (early fall in Will's senior year) and there's a bit of jumping around depending on the character i.e. Samantha's taking place around Christmas while Chiho's is the next summer. That said I'd say that there still is a bit of a reading order as both Samantha chapters are intended to bookend everything so start with "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2175644-Samantha-Carpenter---So-Ends-the-World" target="_top" title="Samantha's friend has a shocking announcement.">Samantha Carpenter - So Ends the World</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2175644-Samantha-Carpenter---So-Ends-the-World" target="_blank" title="Samantha's friend has a shocking announcement."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a> and just work your way down the list.<br/>
<br/>
If you read it give a little feedback, tips/GP or whatever.</span></div></div>


path: 155211
author_id: rugal
title: Commissions
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>If anyone's interested I'll take some commissions for gift points. It'll work not too dissimilar to Seuzz's terms which you can read here: "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2139956-Commission-Contract" target="_top" title="Terms and conditions for producing writing-for-hire at WdC.">Commission Contract</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2139956-Commission-Contract" target="_blank" title="Terms and conditions for producing writing-for-hire at WdC."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a> though with a few differences as well. To read the entire thing go here: "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2175713-Commission-Terms" target="_top" title="Want some chapters? Here's what you need to know.">Commission Terms</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/view_item/item_id/2175713-Commission-Terms" target="_blank" title="Want some chapters? Here's what you need to know."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a><br/>
<br/>
Read it and if you want to commission me shoot me an email with your idea or ideas and we'll see what we can do.</span></div></div>


path: 1553
author_id: seuzz
title: ShoutOut to Reddit user "WillPrescott"
chapter_content:
<div><div> <span>I just found your Reddit post. It made me blush.<br/>
<br/>
But it didn't get much traction, only complaints about WdC bandwidth constraints.<br/>
<br/>
So here you go: "<a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/forums/item_id/2180090-BoMTWS-Message-Forum" target="_top" title="Message forum for readers of the BoM/TWS interactive universe.">BoM/TWS Message Forum</a>" <a href="https://www.Writing.Com/main/forums/item_id/2180090-BoMTWS-Message-Forum" target="_blank" title="Message forum for readers of the BoM/TWS interactive universe."><img border="0" height="12" loading="lazy" onmouseout="$(this).css('opacity', '.4');" onmouseover="$(this).css('opacity', '1');" src="https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif" style="opacity:.4;" width="12"/></a><br/>
<br/>
Ideas to help reddit readers (and others) get in to BoM are welcome.</span></div></div>


# choices

choice: End these charades, finally
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111121


choice: Go see "Will Prescott"
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112212


choice: Find other company
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122112


choice: Switch back to Chen
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211111


choice: Swap with Karter for reprise of last night
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111122


choice: Keep your temper
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111211


choice: Accept the new job
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112121


choice: Make a counter-proposal
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112122


choice: Go with Caleb's idea
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121232


choice: Disguise yourself as Kirkham
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121233


choice: Put everything back as best you can
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212311


choice: Become Chelsea Cooper
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123121


choice: Gordon Black
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231221


choice: Dane Matthias
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231222


choice: Will Prescott
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231223


choice: Dana Pak
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231232


choice: Meet Kirkham at Andrea's
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312311


choice: Continue
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312111


choice: Sure, that's a great punishment for Call
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312121


choice: No, Call's so dumb he should stay right there
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312122


choice: Abandon your plan to roboticize Kirkham
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312131


choice: Turn Kirkham into a bot
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312132


choice: Find and punish Call
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121332


choice: Investigate the door
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213311


choice: Add Roth
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312111


choice: Continue
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211211


choice: Finish the mask and get it onto Caleb
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211221


choice: Stop to check things out
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211222


choice: Get Caleb to try it out
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211231


choice: Lay the band aside and ignore it
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211233


choice: Talk to Kirkham
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112321


choice: Investigate your old body
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112322


choice: Go to class
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312133121123231


choice: Continue
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321111111


choice: Johansson and a friend
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312133121123232111112111111


choice: Reston and a friend
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312133121123232111112111112


choice: Go to the party
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321111121111131


choice: Keep it only flirty and platonic
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323211111211111322


choice: Continue
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312133121123232111112111113211


choice: Continue
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323211111221


choice: Flee out the window
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323211121


choice: Stay and see what's going on
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323211122


choice: Go into the house
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321121


choice: Put Kirkham's soul inside Johansson
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321122


choice: Keep Blackwell alive, sort of
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312133121123232121


choice: No, this is an offer only for her -- or people you choose
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312133121123232122111112


choice: Olivia Byrne
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321221111111


choice: Cindy Vredenburg
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321221111113


choice: Go see Johansson when this is done
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312133121123232122111111211


choice: Deal with Lucy's problem
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321221111112121


choice: Deal with Molly's problem
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321221111112122


choice: Deal with Johansson's problem
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321221111112123


choice: Continue
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323212211121


choice: Confront the person downstairs
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321221121


choice: Sneak out without being seen
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232321221122


choice: Cindy Vredenburg
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323221111


choice: Kelsey Blankenship
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323221112


choice: Rachel Bell
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323221113


choice: Investigate this yourself
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323221121


choice: Get Blackwell out here
path:
1112111321122222122222212212121121211221112121312112311221121112112112111221211121111321331211111122111121231231213312112323221122


choice: Continue
path:
111211132112222212222221221212112121122111212131211231122112111211211211122121112111132133121111112211112123123121331211232322121


choice: Make a lot of noise
path:
11121113211222221222222122121211212112211121213121123112211211121121121112212111211113213312111111221111212312312133121123232221


choice: Stay as Rosalie
path:
1122111111121222212221211211221112211111221211111111111111122121222122211121112112211112212122212121


choice: Shift into Rosalie
path:
1122111111121222212221211211221112211111221211111111111111122121222122211121112112211112212122212122112


choice: Keep Kirkham for yourself
path:
11221111111212222122212112112211122111112212111111111111111221212221222111211121122111122121222121221112


choice: Discuss the future
path:
112211111112122221222121121122111221111122121111111111111112212122212221112111211221111221212221212211111


choice: Meaningful silences
path:
112211111112122221222121121122111221111122121111111111111112212122212221112111211221111221212221212211112


choice: Return to Saratoga Falls
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221121221111212122211122111112121211222121111


choice: An afternoon passes
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211212211112121222111221111121212112221211121


choice: Just go back home
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111221111121211211112111111


choice: Replace someone at Eastman
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112211111212112111121111122


choice: Frank makes excuses and says no
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122111112121121111211111212


choice: Prescott, who's Prescott?
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111221111121211211112111112112


choice: Brush her off
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112211111212112111121111121112


choice: Tell Frank
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122111112121121111211111211111


choice: Ask Rosalie about Cuthbert again
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111221111121211211112111112111121


choice: Let Rosalie drive
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112211111212112111121111121111222


choice: Find somewhere to put your suitcase
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122111112121121111211111211112212


choice: Change to Hélène
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111221111121211211112111112111122112


choice: Make excuses and leave
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112211111212112111121111121111221112


choice: Find someone to talk to
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111221111121211211112111112111122111111


choice: It can wait
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112211111212112111121111121111221111122


choice: Go back to bed
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122111112121121111211111211112211111212


choice: Forget about it just now
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111221111121211211112111112111122111112112


choice: Put it off till later
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112211111212112111121111121111221111121112


choice: Nash would prefer to write a memo
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122111112121121111211111211112211111211112


choice: Choose your second ousiarch
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112211111212112111121111121111221111121111111


choice: Get out now
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122221211221112211221211


choice: Use a sigil
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111222212112211122112212121


choice: Join
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122221211221112211221212211


choice: Run
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122221211221112211221212212


choice: Insist on staying
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122221211221112211221212222


choice: Head to Oxford
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112222121122111221122121222112


choice: Choose an officer
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122221211221112211221221


choice: Find somewhere warm
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111222212112211122112212222


choice: Make something up
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122221211221112211221222112


choice: Agree
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111222212112211122112212221111


choice: Still refuse
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112222121122111221122122211122


choice: Stick with the plan
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111222212112211122112212221112111


choice: Call in the experts
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111222212112211122112212221112112


choice: Become Ben
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111222212112211122112212221112122


choice: Call Rick
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122221211221112211221222111212111211


choice: Run
path:
1122111111122211221111222121211211212112212121121211121221122211122112212111122221211221112211221222111212111212


choice: With either the Stellae or Fane
path:
11221111111222112211112221212112112121122121211212111212211222111221122121111222212112211122112212221112121112212


choice: Give your captors a surprise
path:
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choice: Play dead
path:
112211111112221122111122212121121121211221212112121112122112221112211221211112222121122111221122122211121211122212


# story_info

field: description
data:
<td align="left" class="norm">A chance discovery in a used book store gives Will Prescott, high school senior, ownership of a book that tells how to create masks and golems that will allow him to disguise himself as anyone he wants. How will he use this knowledge--and can he survive the attentions of other, unscrupulous persons who want the book for themselves?<br>
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<b>Rules</b><br>
1. I know the workings and contents of "The Book of Masks" (the magical tome Will discovers), even if the chapters that describe them have not been posted. Though I can't forbid others from adding chapters that describe or alter its spells, it would be best if other authors left those aspects to me. It would spare us heartache on both sides.<br>
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2. This is an interactive, but branches DO NOT describe alternate realities. Events that take place in one branch MUST be consistent with events that take place in other branches. Any facts that would be in place before the story starts, and which are revealed in a chapter, must also be true in ALL chapters of the interactive, whether or not they are revealed.<br>
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3. Separate sections splitting off the first chapter describe the characters, settings, and other aspects of the story. Free invention is encouraged, but try to consult these so that you don't accidentally create bad breaks in continuity. Free invention that I accept will be added to these "appendices," and I in turn will do my best to respect the additions made by others.<br>
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4. I reserve the right to edit chapters for grammar, spelling, format, and other technical issues. I will try to avoid making substantive changes to other writers' additions, but I do reserve the right to make edits to or deletions of chapters that violate continuity or the rules of "The Book of Masks" too radically.<br>
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5. There are no content or rating restrictions; I have purposefully added "Erotica" as a genre and rated the overall story 18+ to signal these relaxed restrictions. Still, try to remember that this is a <b>story</b> and not just an opportunity for pornography or fetish fiction.</td>


