Familiar Monsters

By Janrae Frank and Phil Smith

The Age of Burning on Daverana resembles our own world and era in many ways, although the interference of the various gods has affected its level of technological sophistication. Firearms are on a par with those of our own world; aircraft have fallen into disuse due to the need to conserve fuel, and emergent technology is driven by the need for greater energy efficiency rather than refinement or processing power. Thanks to Ishla the Tinkerer, genetic research is highly advanced by the time of Mother Damnation, and it is this field with which this essay is concerned.

Genetic engineering was used widely throughout the Godwar: both sides created races of monstrous creatures by combining genes from different creatures. Those able to contact demons and extra-planar beings encouraged and coerced them to take possession of certain specimens, which later bred and gave rise to hardier breeds and caused faster and greater divergence of species. Later immigrants from Earth that were brought through the Gates Arcane by the gods would call them by names taken from our folklore.

The various species of trolls resulted from the hellgods' forces combining human genes with pachyderms to bring up their resilience and muscle mass (elephants and rhinoceri were particular favorites) while a steady diet of dark arcanes gave them advanced powers of recovery and regeneration. The forerunners were known as the Select, although the embattled Louistranans soon came to call them 'ugs' due to their brutality and savagery. In many cases experiments took place to fulfill particular strategic needs. While the Select served as heavy assault soldiers, genetically engineered monkeys or 'imps' were developed for mischief and agility and unleashed upon radio antennae, vehicles and technological installations. Later, when Galee required fast-breeding, aggressive and versatile shock-troops, orcs were bred from human and warthog stock; while chimpanzee and baboon DNA gave rise to vicious waves of goblins.

While the records concerning this have been lost by the time of the Dark Brothers of the Light novels, gene Readers who have had an opportunity to examine these creatures have begun to divine the origins of these monsters. Bio-alchemists and bio-magicalists believe that some of these races can be returned to their original state if ever the lifemages return to the world in sufficient numbers to bring about their reversion.

Ishla the Tinkerer, God of Technology, still experiments with genetic engineering as she did in Mother Damnation. She created a foil for every creature of the darkness that the hellgods created. Many of her earlier successes are due in part to the insights of her one-time high priest, Zälek the Meddler. Between them they devised many variants of the mutagen commonly known as Moon's Mourning. Some of these have already been encountered in the Daverana stories: one variant created the race of demon-eaters from the native Nabaren race. Dane Jayce has been transformed with another variant. The unpredictable Variant Three killed most of the candidates on which it was used, and was thus abandoned until an ideal candidate was found in the character known only as 'the scavenger'. Ishla continued to experiment after Zälek deserted her; and her approach worked so well that other gods followed suit, but never with the same degree of success.

In each case, the gods contrived to create polar opposites for each of the hellgods' innovations. When hellgods created the Nakesht from wolves, Tala, God of the Moon and Mistress of Wolves created the lycans from similar stock. Hadjys the Dark Judge created the Shivari, or tigerkin, to counter the threat posed by the rakshashas. No doubt other species will rise in similar fashion; each new race giving rise to its equal and opposite in the genetic arms race that the gods have waged for centuries.

The balance of power tips back and forth crazily. Victory is uncertain.

GODWAR CENTRAL

Familiar Monsters

By Janrae Frank and Phil Smith