文档介绍：MAGE
THE ASCENSION
1
Prologue:
Through
A Darkened
Mirror
They say that magic is dead. It's a convenient fiction, is magic — a quaint artifact
of a history that never existed, a fairy tale. Unicorns and dragons, magi? swords and
ancient tomes are all just children's stories. Nobody believes in any of it. But we're
giving that the lie right now as we step through this wall... like so... ah, and those
flatfoots on the other side will have no idea where we've gone.
Go ahead and sit down a moment; you'll need to absorb what I'm saying, and I
need to catch my breath. No, don't pick up that board. I'm not going to kill you or
ensorcel you or eat your flesh or any of that crap. So shut up and listen, or you'll
have a very short life in the next few minutes, and not because of me.
Hang on. I've gotta do something else.
All right. We can hide here a bit without worrying about those cops. They'll busy
on the other side of the block. Gives me some time to bring you up to speed.
The Magical World
You've stumbled through your life with the belief that this is an orderly, rational
world, that science can explain everything and that myths and fairy tales are for
children. You've worn blinders put on you by a hundred years of engineered history.
Everybody buys into it and if you don't, you're a crank, a psycho or a crystal-waver.
The problem is, that's just the world people buy because it's safe. It's orderly and
mundane and everything's explainable. Everyone can get fast food and a boring job
without worrying about crazy things like demons or magic spells.
You're different. You thought you were insane when you looked out tonight and
saw what was really going on, right? That incessant pressure in your head had to be
a tumor and you were just hallucinating — that's it. Convenient way to avoid the
idea that maybe your sudden recognition of magic is really a sudden awareness of
the truth that's been hidden al