#chronoplastic

[cosmic-navel-gazin]

The way every lieutenant in Legacy of Kain has a different colour for each of their clans except Raziel, who shares red along with Kain...

[shesso]

Mi mást csinálna az ember épp késésben a Pezsgő Margitról, mint hogy kiteszi ezt a 2 hete beragadt posztot az érdekesebb londoni kiállitásokról.

Ha már Pezsgő Margit, akkor mindenképp @brgzmpff művésznővel kell kezdeni, akinek Greenwich-ben van kiállitva ez a képe.

Firepit Art Gallery, menjetek január 18-ig, Uber Hajóval 2 megálló Woolwich-tól, ahol ilyen tökjó szoborcsoport van (meg egy igazi embert is elrejtettem a képen).

Ez Tracey Emin - I Followed You to the End, november 10-én bezárt.

Ez holnapig van, vicces csoportos kiállítás, Un Oeuf Is an Oeuf (A tojás az tojás) a TJ Boultingban, elég nagy nevekkel.

Ez meg december 8-ig a Raven Row, ami igazi lakásgaléria - ez pl. egy videóinstalláció az ágy felett:

Chronoplasticity. Ezek meg ventillátorok.

Van hozzá szép fényes katalógusom is, majd lefotózom.

[dogreed-blog]

Some fun with alternative versions of Raziel and Kain in chronoplast room.

[satoshi-mochida]

Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered ‘Boss Reveal’ trailer, details - Gematsu

Aspyr has released a new trailer for Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered featuring a first look at the remastered collection’s bosses.

Additionally, over on PlayStation Blog, Aspyr associate brand manager Matthew Ray as shared further details on the bosses and new map system:

■ Remastered Boss Updates and Reveals

Each boss encounter in Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered is designed to challenge the player’s mastery of Raziel’s abilities. Our goal with the character models was to improve the textures as much as we could while ensuring that they blend in with the apocalyptic world.

Melchiah

The first of Kain’s lieutenants Raziel must defeat. This battle takes place in the Necropolis where Melchiah chases Raziel down while phasing through gates, making the spectral realm no longer safe. Strategically use the environment to expose Melchiah’s vulnerabilities and use his own devices against him. —Melchiah received a full texture overhaul with darkened skin and a slimier body-feel. The bones and skeletal mapping are now more realistic and gory and his eye color was adjusted to match the original look.

Zephon

Fought in a dilapidated cathedral, Zephon has evolved into an insect-like creature, fusing with this towering structure. You’ll need to ascend to the highest chambers and become willingly ensnared to be able to confront him. Search the room for any elemental advantages which could aid you in this endeavor. —Zephon was too desaturated, so we’ve completely repainted his face.

Rahab

This battle occurs in a flooded abbey. Rahab is fully immune to water, which is lethal to Raziel. Use Raziel’s agility to avoid Rahab’s deadly close-range and long-range attacks by jumping and make use of your newly gained Telekinetic projectile ability to exploit Rahab’s extreme vulnerability to sunlight. —Rahab’s head has been remodeled, so the eyes now have a reddish glow which gives him a menacing look. We’ve also altered the fangs to look more vampiric and made his skin color a little more gray.

Dumah

In a desolated fortress, Dumah awaits reanimation. Just like his other brethren, Dumah is invulnerable to any attacks, so Raziel has to be cunning and lure him to a flame powerful enough to melt even the hardest metal, all while avoiding tremendous earthquakes caused by Dumah’s incredible strength. —Dumah’s armor is now a lot dirtier and has patches of mold and blood all over it (considering he was impaled for centuries).

Kain

Raziel first confronts Kain at the Pillars where he must be swift and strike Kain three times to gain the Soul Reaver. The second encounter takes place in the Chronoplast, where the tiered arena makes evasion even more challenging. Track your target’s movements closely and make haste to strike him with the Soul Reaver. If you cannot reach him in time, use your Telekinetic projectile to stop Kain from using his powerful lightning attack. The encounter is intense and dramatic, but we won’t spoil how it concludes. Pre-order to find out! —The models for Kain in both Soul Reaver and Soul Reaver 2 needed to be completely re-designed to mitigate textural issues. With the increased polygon count we felt it was important to bring his look a lot closer to the Kain we got to see in the original FMVs, which was a lot more detailed and showed more-or-less what the original intent was for the character. The original model in SR1 was especially limited so now both games have a Kain that looks consistent between the two titles.

■ Map and Compass Details and Gameplay

In the original versions of the games, players often found themselves wandering the vast, twisting landscapes of Nosgoth, relying heavily on memory and environmental cues to navigate.

The introduction of the Map and Compass marks a thoughtful enhancement that blends modern gameplay conveniences with the preservation of the explorative experience the original titles were known for. The Compass gently nudges the player in the right direction without giving away specific details of where to go or what to do next and the Map is more of a reference tool than a guide. We also included a collection tracker for any Health and Energy power-ups so that you know if you’ve gotten all of the collectibles within each area. All of the major Nosgoth features are present and accurately condensed based on the setting and gameplay. For fans who might feel that these additions are a major departure from the original games, we’ve made sure to incorporate a toggle-off function for the compass.

In addition to its gameplay utility, the map is also a wonderful art piece that was created in collaboration with our development team, community advisors, artists, and designers at Crystal Dynamics. We knew accuracy was paramount, so we worked hard to pull from the original source art, design documents, and clues from game lore. We also incorporated community reviews to ensure nothing had been missed. Thanks to these efforts, the map is accurate enough to feature in the new lore reader bonus menu – identifying the location of each lore entry.

For design direction, Crystal Dynamics designers used a heavily inked approach that sits beautifully with the existing art, creating a stunning new way to visualize the world of Nosgoth. The Map and Compass are there to serve as welcome tools for exploration, ensuring that the remastered versions remain both a tribute to the classics and a modernized, more player-friendly experience.

Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered is due out for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC via Steam on December 12.

Watch the trailer below.

Boss Reveal Trailer

[incorrect-nosgoth]

Zephon: Hey, sire. Remember the Chronoplast?

Kain: Yes.

Kain: Wait, what do you mean "remember"?

[ethaneldritch]

Hypothetical Identity V x Legacy of Kain crossover list:

S-tier is obviously Kain. I'm thinking either for the Detective or Undead. Undead, because his build and weapon look fairly similar. Detective, because he also happens to be the main character of a complicated and tragic storyline (also because Kain never fully "dies"; it'd just feel right for him to run around in synesthesia mode after his part in the game is done).

I'm leaning toward Detective, to add that "specialness" justifying it being an S-tier. Kain doesn't have a very flashy character design, so you'd need something other than tons of special effects encouraging people to buy it.

A-tiers:

Raziel - Axe Boy/Photographer (I'm leaning toward Axe Boy because of the flaming souls and design potential of the trees, but Photographer would probably make a better vampire Raziel. Think "going into spectral" with the cameras, etc.)

Ariel - Naiad (Geisha and BQ don't quite match her temperament, but Naiad's swimming moveset perfectly translates into ghostly floating about. Her harpoon could be redesigned into a staff with the Balance symbol on the end.)

Moebius - Mad Eyes (✨NEED. I. SAY. MORE.✨ His gates could be retextured to look like the stained glass halls in the Sarafan Stronghold.)

B-tiers:

One for each of the clans, of course! I made sure all the B-tiers were Survivors since the higher tiers are very Hunter-heavy, which is unusual for most crossovers.

Razielim - Toy Merchant

Turelim - Mind's Eye

Dumahim - Forward

Rahabim - Professor

Zephonim - Entomologist

Melchiahim - Grave Keeper

(You could switch Toy Merchant for Perfumer if you wanted to represent more of the Razielim's snooty side. Also, Professor and Ento can be switched for Evil Reptilian and Soul Weaver respectively, if you wanted more Hunters in the lineup.)

Miscellaneous Items:

I figure most of the above (except maybe the S-tier) would be presented in an essence, so I came up with some hypothetical goodies to put in the shop, too.

Mini Lieutenants (pets for both Hunter and Survivor. You'd probably be able to get a maximum of two or three for free from the accompanying event, but the rest would be available in the shop. They should likely sell at a discount to the usual pet price as well, since there's so many.)

Mini Sluagh (an alternative pet idea, if the mini lieutenants are too many to collect. Could be for Hunter or Survivor, but I'm leaning toward Hunter.)

Mini anyone, tbh. Vorador, Umah, Janos...heck, just chibify 'em all. I'd open my wallet for that. >:)

Some kind of Soul Reaver accessory (either a small B-tier available in the essence, or an S-tier for Raziel/Axe Boy. In the case of the latter, you could probably brand it as an "elemental font" or something and have color-changing effects for various interactions during a game.)

General Hunter A-tier accessory (turns rocket chairs into a small recreation of Kain's Pillar throne; I'm thinking it could just be a large central Balance Pillar with the others being smaller decorative bits, otherwise the design becomes too big for the item it's replacing. You could even have it similar to BQ's Promised Neverland costume, where the Pillars are whole when a Survivor is first chaired, and decayed when on their second.)

At least one piece of furniture (I literally don't care what, I just have a horrible addiction to collecting furniture in this freaking game. Maybe another throne or some kind of Chronoplast thingy.)

WAIT NO. HOW DID I NOT THINK OF THIS SOONER: BANNERS. (All six clans, probably B-tier. If you wanna get really fancy, you could do a larger banner of Kain's too. Line 'em all up on the wall with his in the middle...oh heck ya.)

Questions? Comments? Remarks from the peanut gallery? Leave 'em all, I'd be happy to hear your thoughts! :D

[taonpest]

Do you think Kain used the chronoplast to win petty arguments he had with his sons

[quaddmgd]

The future of Legacy of Kain - a manifesto of sorts

Recently I had a conversation with my girlfriend regarding what would the best possible future for the Legacy of Kain franchise. From a simple annoyance about how the franchise is perceived, even by its fans, it escalated to almost an hour's discussion, after which we came up with a way that could possibly make everyone happy.

I will try to answer some of the most common ideas from around the web and then finally share my opinion on how I perceive the future of Legacy of Kain.

Why starting with a Soul Reaver remake is a bad idea?

The most frequently requested way for reviving the franchise is probably the remake of Soul Reaver. At first glance, this makes a perfect sense. It's the most critically-acclaimed game in the franchise and no title after could replicate its success. Many fans, me included, started with this game and it's the one people probably remember the most. Its narrative does not necessarily require familiarity with Blood Omen and the game is infamously unfinished, though most of its cut content is still in the game files. That begs for a remake with all cut content restored.

The main gripe I have with a remake is a probability of it rebooting the franchise. At the time of writing, Legacy of Kain came to an abrupt end nearly 20 years ago with an open, hopeful ending that heralds at least one more game. The sequel was cancelled for reasons officially unknown, leaving the plot at a cliffhanger.

Now, sequels to Soul Reaver as we know them, exist only because of its unfinished state. Soul Reaver originally had an ending that teased another game, but it was a complete story and most of its plot points were resolved by the end. After a release in 1999, some of those plot points - chronoplast visions - were implemented in their reworked forms in future installments; the difference lies not only in contexts, but sometimes outcomes too.

If a remake was to happen, releasing the story as it ultimately was would not be optimal. It would possibly require a lot of changes on the story-side and that could doom sequels from ever being remade. Even if Crystal Dynamics - or whoever would work on it - somehow pulled it off without changing the story, would you really want to wait over a decade for an eventual continuation to Defiance, because every next game would need to be remade at this point?

Why starting with a Soul Reaver remaster is not the best idea?

To be honest, I think that remastering the entire franchise for a new generation of gamers is a great idea. Embracer Group, that now owns the entire Crystal Dynamics/Eidos portfolio, even expressed an interest in remakes and remasters. Porting the franchise to newer platforms and releasing better PC ports would be great. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I would buy a copy of Legacy of Kain HD Collection for every platform I own. A $40-60 collection of Nightdive-style ports is a dream. My problem is with solely focusing on Soul Reaver.

What caught my attention is an article by gamesradar, where one of the most devoted Soul Reaver fans I know - thank you for work ❤ - voiced his opinion on a feasible director's cut version of Soul Reaver. It would let you play an extended version of Soul Reaver, that includes all cut content - basically the original vision. It's a great idea, but requires a lot of programming and asset creation beyond basic upscaling. That would probably rule out a remaster collection for a singular price tag, which would encourage newcomers to spend that maximum $60 on five games and dive into the franchise. I want to be proven wrong about it and I hope I will be, honestly.

Another small gripe I have with this kind of remaster is advertising it with with the original vision of the game and then locking that content behind playing the release version, which, if everything goes well with restoring cut content, would be then inferior. I'm opposed to locking stuff like difficulty options, good endings etc. behind playthroughs. I'm all for letting a consumer educate themselves to make a smart purchase and choose how they want to use the product.

Why starting with a reboot is possibly an awful idea?

This should be a short one, as most of reasoning towards it was explained above by me. There was a reboot by Climax in works; after a significant development time, it was cancelled. While from what we've seen it didn't seem like the best course of action for the franchise, the thing I didn't like about it the most was that it was a reboot, not a continuation.

It's not like a good reboot couldn't be developed, but its release would possibly doom earlier games to oblivion. I don't really see a corporation thinking that after a reboot it'd be a great idea to release remasters or a sequel to the original plotline. No one will buy a continuation to mostly story-driven abandonware, and unfortunately I know people that won't play remasters of games so old, when a good reboot is there.

It would seem unlikely for an ending to Defiance to emerge if we got a reboot first; and it's possible we wouldn't see old games ported for current platforms.

What's the best course of action to me?

In my opinion, the first thing that should be released is a HD remaster collection of the entire franchise. Unless you are Valve and your games work on newer operating systems out of the box, modern ports are essential for bringing new people to a well established franchise.

The only viable way to enjoy Legacy of Kain today is original hardware and emulation. PC ports are plagued by many issues, deeming them unplayable, even if you are like me and you like fixing your old school PC games. Unfortunately no console offers backwards compatibility options for these five games and it would be a dream to see them not only on PS4/PS5/XONE/XS, but also on the Switch. Sounds like a great way to give fans long-awaited remasters and invite a new generations of gamers to join in on the fun.

A good re-release is also a great way for a publisher to test the waters and see if the interest is there. It costs much less than a new game and can be outsourced much easier, so it doesn't collide with development schedules.

So if the interest is there and remasters sold well enough, what's next? Ideally, a sequel that would serve as an ending to remastered games.

To me, Legacy of Kain has one of the most memorable stories in gaming, defined not only by events in games, but in efforts of storytellers in tying everything up in such a beautiful way, that I could write another blog post solely about it. It's a tale about defying fate and fighting against all odds, told not only by characters, but also developers. It's a legacy, and a story that deserves a conclusion.

Let's assume the continuation is critically-acclaimed. What now? Now the fun part begins. The franchise can go in any way desired by publishers/developers, maybe even transmedia in a form of movie/tv series.

But many people ask for a remake and I might have a solution for that. Why not release a game just called Soul Reaver - a remake that also reboots the entire franchise. Not only it could use all the cut content, but give developers a new start and space for creativity. Ideally, that would please both fans and people that haven't heard about Legacy of Kain before.

To me that's the best course of action. Remind people about Legacy of Kain with a great HD collection, finish the fight with a sequel, start anew with a highly-demanded Soul Reaver remake.

I hope I didn't omit any details in my reasoning during this long blog post, though I'm certain there are some flaws in my thinking. My desperation for a sequel is what sparked the initial conversation with my girlfriend and a need to write all of this. Despite my selfish reasons, I really tried to find a way that satisfies all possible parties.

[scionofsucc]

What's your AU?

Anon i really appreciate you asking tbh--

I do wanna preface this with "i havent been over the lore in a year or two so im a bit rusty" so like.. tell me if i get something horribly wrong pls fjdhdh

Putting this under a readmore bc its rambily

BuT basically:

Kain fucks up when using the Chronoplast and ends up in a different universe with technology much closer to ours

However time-wise he ends up in the era prior to Nosgoth's recorded history. Seeing as he wouldnt quite fit in with the ancient vampires he uses his Disguise Form (which has become much more reliable since Blood Omen) to hide as a human.

I still havent worked out how Raziel also ends up there but

Raziel arrives and like in Defiance has to posess a body to change planes, but the bodies dont just turn into wraith Raziel (they do decay over time though, losing their jaw first usually lmao) letting him walk around more easily, just... very covered.

The rest of the AU focuses mostly on Kain and Raziel trying to get back to the right universe, understanding all the new technology, and witnessing history that they never got to know unfold as the Vampires and Hylden wage war (That they inevitably get dragged into while trying to get home)

Whew, that was a lot! Thanks again for letting me ramble anon <3!

[kainissoable]

Thanks @dongtopus, now I'm imagining Kain struggling to crochet with those claws of his.

[goodgriefwhatanerd]

As the World Falls Down

Normally I write silly or cute things with no regard to canon, and then sometimes I embrace the Legacy of Pain and write something like this, which is unfortunately perfectly in character. Major character death ahead :)

*

A vision played itself out in the dark, abandoned chambers beneath the oracle's cave; an inescapable prophecy without witness.

Barely a day ago, Raziel died screaming. Kain knows that it was necessary. He knows what he has to do next to keep Nosgoth's terrible destiny on track as he approaches the Razielim stronghold. There are no guards, just a lone figure standing before the open gate. Rowan, holding their sire's sword and staring straight through him.

Oh, he knows he can beat them, that the old vampire never learned how to wield a sword, but that would cost far more than he is willing to pay.

"Step aside," Kain barks, and for a moment he believes they will, but there is only silence. Rowan may as well be a statue. A stone guardian, soon to crumble.

The wind whips up, carrying the smell of rain with it. Kain repeats himself, louder, with just a hint of desperation in his voice.

"I'm sorry." The reply is so quiet he can barely hear it.

Kain lowers his sword. "As am I. But this is how it must be. Stand aside."

Rowan doesn't even answer, just waits. Centuries ago, they slew the slayers of vampires. Now, again, they are willing to die to defend their own.

"Very well. If this is what you choose, let it be so."

Two swords clash, steel glinting as the blades move faster than the human eye can follow. It's less than ten seconds before Rowan falls.

Kain catches them, heedless of the blood pooling at their feet and marking his skin. "You forced my hand," he whispers, stroking their hair as their breathing falters.

He whispers 'I love you's onto cold skin, but the words mean nothing to dead men.

And then he stands, lone king of a dying world. Kain strides on to the slaughter alone, the last of his bridges burned.

The stream of time carries them ever closer to this moment, but the world above knows nothing of it. Let the vampires have their doomed empire.

* The words sank like a cold lead weight into Rowan's stomach. Kain's eyes were still glittering with the joy of newfound knowledge, and Rowan hated themself for having to dull them.

"You learned how to use the chronoplast?" they repeated, trying to swallow the dull sick feeling in their throat.

The tone of the words sank in. Kain stopped in his excited pacing and turned to them. "Yes." He watched them, waiting for their response.

"Sit down. There are some things I should tell you, things I should have done earlier, but hoped I would never have to. But first, answer me just one question: what do you think you are? Truly?"

"I know what I am. The Scion of Balance, prophesied savior of the vampire race. Do you mean to speak to me again of prophecy without your books and tomes?"

Rowan shook their head. "I mean to tell you about something more certain than anything the oracles saw. To understand the prophets, first you must understand that they remembered the future. Think back a thousand years and the memories will be hazy. They looked across millennia. This is about what I remember.

"Five hundred years before the fall of the Pillars, mere days after Janos Audron was slain, I had a visitor. This was at the height of the Sarafan Crusades, and the man himself was most singular. Golden skin shading to green in shadows, long hair as white as bone. He must have been one of the few elder vampires to survive, and so I remembered him well. He was... angry, desperate, and when he looked at me I saw such an agony in his eyes. The crusades had been brutal. and at the time I thought he'd suffered the same losses as the rest of us, but now..."

Rowan looked away, staring at the grain of their robe as they continued. "For centuries I've watched you grow into that man. Every year we spent together, I fell more in love with you, and I became more certain of what it meant that I saw you centuries before your birth.

"It wasn't just that," they said, with more energy now. "There were three attacks on the Sarafan Stronghold in the wake of Janos' death. One was Vorador. One, I suspect, will be you."

"And the third?" Kain asked.

"The third remained a mystery for five centuries, until the day the Pillars turned dark. That day I got another visitor. Blue, skeletal, and like no vampire, hylden, or demon I had ever heard of. But he bore a startling resemblance to the Angel of Death who legend says slaughtered the Sarafan Brotherhood. His name was Raziel as well. Poor boy, I told him what I could. I should have done the same for you, written it all down somewhere, but there was always some distraction, something more worth my time. Often it was you."

Kain ran a claw along their cheek, more and more like stone with every passing century. "And now tell me what you have been avoiding."

Rowan looked at him then and smiled sadly. "You always did need some things spelling out to you. You've given me wonderful things. Gifts and adventure and six beloved sons. I've lived a long and mostly happy life, and soon I'm going to die."

"No!" Kain grabbed their wrist.

"No," he repeated more quietly. "You saw nothing of the future. I have accepted the loss of my empire, the death of my progeny, but I will not lose you along with them. Death shall have no hold on you. I will fight Fate itself to keep you from its clutches."

"You haven't learnt a thing, my love. And I wouldn't have you any other way." Rowan kissed him softly, chapped lips brushing together as light as a falling feather. "The world is worth more than I am. Restore it. Prove that all my learning, all the hopes of our ancestors were not in vain. And whatever happens to me, know that it was all worth it."

Kain embraced them silently. Now was not the time for arguments, but he vowed that no matter what was written in their stars, he would rearrange the heavens to keep Rowan by his side.

[fiberluver]

Meet #Grayhero. This is a mighty big #swatch! Last if the #vintagemystery SUIM402 2011 #chronoplastic #swatch #watches #swisswatch #swatchoftheday #swatchcollector #swatchlovers #swatfie #swatchoninstagram #swatchus #swatchusa #swatchwatch @swatch @swatch_us #swatchusa #iamaswatchwatchaddict #swatchfan #myswatch #madeinswitzerland #swatchswiss #swatchwatches #swatchaddict #watchporn @alexandani #bangles #bangle #banglestack #banglesoninstagram

[guardiansofnosgoth]

Chapter Six: Time Streaming

Once considered impenetrable, the decrepit Dumahim city sprouted out of the mountains like a cypress. None remained to salute the faded purple flags waving in the wind. Skeletal remains of humans and vampires littered the grounds. Those not found by scavengers had been mummified by the cold. Raziel passed them without looking, wielding a rusty halberd. Grey snow clung to his boots.

Fatigue and strong winds forced him to land here. The path to Moebius’ cave lay on the other side of these ruins. There were no tracks, no signs of habitation, apart from a few hawk nests.

Last he passed this way he had encountered several Dumahim squatting in ruins. At the time he never gave them a second thought. Dumah’s death scattered his offspring far and wide. To him they were merely souls to prey on, a nuisance delaying his ultimate revenge. Now Raziel puzzled over their presence.

Due to the city’s close proximity to the Great Northern Smokestack and high altitude the weather remained chilly year round, becoming especially inhospitable during the winter. There did not appear to be enough animal life to support a small population of vampires. The human slaves once imprisoned here had moved on to greener pastures. What were they feeding on?

As he trekked he noticed something unusual near the outer wall. A row of oblong holes, just the right size for rabbits. He stopped and stared. Not since Kain’s conquest had he felt compelled to hunt such pitiful sources of blood. It had been his last resort. Burning with shame, he knelt down and tried to dig something out of the hole.

No luck. The burrow was too deep. Maybe the rodents living here were adapted to Dumahim attempting to fish them out of their burrows with their long tongues. He wondered if it was even occupied. Their tracks could be hidden beneath the fresh snow. He pinched his brow. Finding out probably wasn’t worth the embarrassment. Besides, he was losing time.

The sun started to set, turning the ashen ground yellow. This was the end of his fourth day. Kain had given him only five.

Beyond the deserted city a narrow path wound through the mountains, leading to a secluded landing surrounded by steep cliffs where rested the legendary cave of Moebius the Time Streamer. A massive stone gate protected the mouth of the cave, carved with the image of Moebius’ divination bowl. The doors were sealed. Raziel already knew how to gain entry using the large sundial in the middle of the clearing. However, he stopped as he caught a glimpse of imprints in the snow.

These tracks clearly belonged to vampires. Their two toed talons were distinct. One set was unique, indicating a large vampire that walked on its toes instead of flat footed - a Turelim. The others appeared to be Dumahim. Raziel sampled some of the snow near the tracks and ran it through his fingers. Still soft. These tracks were fresh.

The tracks originated from the other side of the cliff. They concentrated around the door, perhaps trying to determine a means of entry. After circling the cliff, apparently searching for something, they returned to their point of origin and continued further east into the mountains.

This did not look like the behavior of a hunting party, more like a scouting party, one not sent by Kain. These must be the Zillahim Nogah warned him about. He wondered what she hoped to uncover here.

Luminescent crystals arranged in hanging bowls provided minimal light. These same crystals sprouted from the floor and walls in large formations as he traveled deeper into the cave, into the room said to have contained a small museum of artifacts stolen from across time. That room was now barren, deformed and cracked by moisture and time. At the other end of the museum a pair of stone snakes carved from the walls of the cave guarded the final passage into Moebius’ divining chamber. Although the cave’s structure appeared to be less-than-natural, perhaps modified by humans or ancient vampires, this perfectly circular room with its smooth, decorative walls felt most alien, practically untouched.

In the center of that room stood a brass tripod taller than Raziel. On each foot of the tripod rested a gold orb. To the vexation of centuries of plunderers, the orbs were inextricably attached. Moebius’ cauldron, once used to show the young Kain his future, hung from a chain fastened to the tripod where the three legs met. Raziel ran his hand along the inside. No visions stirred. He might as well have sought destiny in a cook pot.

Filling the cauldron should make it useable, he thought. Adding a few handfuls of ashen snow from outside, he used the tinder he collected from the abandoned Dumahim camp near the cave entrance to start a fire. The tinder was cold and rotten. After much frustration he managed to keep the fire going long enough to produce water. Even though it filled less than half, it was the best he could do without trekking back toward Dumah’s city and risking confrontation with the patrolling Zillahim. Raziel gripped the tripod as he leaned over the cauldron.

“Show me the future,” he commanded.

The cauldron showed him dirty water.

Perhaps he needed to be more specific. Raziel mustered his authority and said, “Reveal to me the Nature Guardian’s fate!”

The cauldron revealed his muddy reflection. Raziel pinched his brow and lamented, “Fate, why do you torment me? I’m already too late to return to the Pillars in time. If I could just give that bastard what he wants he might finally let me live in peace.”

If only he arrived here sooner he would have had time to experiment. Unfortunately, continuous flight proved impossible without favorable winds. Even when the wind blew at his back he needed to leap from a high place if he hoped to gain sufficient altitude before he exhausted himself, despite his great jumping ability, and good perches became significantly harder to find after leaving the Necropolis.

On his second day of travel, out of desperation, he had tried to access his bat form. The spell failed him. Whether he had forgotten how to cast it or this form was no longer accessible to him he could not say for certain, but this handicap contributed to his current predicament.  

“Stop that,” he said, slapping himself on the cheek, “No one wants to hear your blubbering. Forget about Kain. No matter what you will only achieve death if you stop fighting. Think! There must be more below, something you can use.”

As he pushed against the leg of the tripod, it rotated on a wheel concealed in the floor. Gears locked the wheel to the walls of the circular room, causing them to turn and block the entrance behind him, opening a path to the secret complex deeper within.

The complex was shaped like a vertical cylinder divided by several layers of wide circular rooms with stairs and hallways branching off and circling back to the center from top to bottom. A massive clockwork mechanism made up the backbone of the entire facility. It stood in the center of the rotunda on every floor. There was a gap of a few feet between the floor and the device, separated by a thin railing, and slumbering at the bottom of that well was the Chronoplast, Moebius’ grand time machine. To one side of the room, near a grouping of inoperable elevators, Raziel recognized the corroded statue of an old man. He paused to look at it.

Moebius the Time Streamer, Raziel’s human predecessor. He had met the man in person before. Moebius’ intentions for Nosgoth had been malevolent long before the corruption of the Pillars, a reminder that however the Pillars chose their Guardians it was not for purity of heart. Now only this cold statue remained, the last evidence of the man who had conspired to eradicate vampires through the manipulation of Raziel’s destiny.

He felt no kinship with this man. Indeed, he loathed him. By selfishly tampering with history, devoting himself to the rapacious will of a false god, Moebius asserted himself as the cause of Nosgoth’s suffering. He nearly destroyed Nosgoth entirely.

Raziel started by retracing his steps. He had been in a hurry to meet Kain on his first passage so perhaps he had missed something important. Most rooms were barren. One contained space for a hearth and a few other amenities, although no trappings of human habitation remained. Perhaps Kain pillaged them.

Half-way down Raziel found a large hall with a high vaulted ceiling supported by thick columns. There were two floors. The upper floor consisted of a walkway around the perimeter with oval balconies extending on either side and beyond those balconies were doorways connecting to other areas of the complex. On the lower floor the ground was black, different from other parts of the complex. Raziel crouched and ran his fingers across the surface. Some off the black stuff came off on his claws. Soot. As he combed the room he found fragments of charred wood and tiny scraps of paper in thin piles near the walls. Here and there he discovered little metal plaques engraved with letters and numbers, the kind you would find in a library.  

Kain must have come here first. Once Kain had taken the knowledge he needed must have destroyed the rest, perhaps out of greed or perhaps to stop it from being used against him. Raziel frowned, recalling a time when he spent hours in Kain’s library with Melchiah and Rahab while they were young. Although he felt no remorse over what he had done he still experienced a pang of longing when he remembered how they used to be, a quiet regret that began long before his execution. He wondered if they ever felt it, too.

At any rate, Moebius’ library was of no use to him now. He needed to press on.

Hunger and vexation pursued him as he descended deeper into the facility. When he came to the chamber where he had seen his history laid out before him, deep underground near the Chronoplast, he found the device inoperable. Instead of a pulsating field of stars he saw only a cracked stone wall surrounded by a broken iron frame. On the save level, tightly sealed behind a stone door, he discovered row upon row of drawers, each containing a scroll protected by a bronze case. These scrolls were similar to star charts but more complex than any he had ever seen.

Something cracked beneath his foot. He stepped back, bending over to examine the object. About the size of a pocket watch, the device resembled an astrolabe. Its mechanical components appeared to be made of gold fitted to some odd red material similar to obsidian in weight and texture. In Kain’s tales Moebius used some sort of small device to hurl him fifty years back in time for the assassination of the Nemesis, then called William the Just. Raziel recalled how the device had activated of its own accord.

He stepped around the device, wisely choosing not to touch it, but after a few steps he returned and gently lifted it off the ground. On second thought, it might prove useful in the future. He decided to put it somewhere he could find it again.

Finally, he came to the Chronoplast itself. The Chronoplast was a domical chamber divided into three levels held up by arching square columns of white marble and blood jasper. On the highest level was a round gate, currently inactive. Brass cogs, dials, and gears adorned each of the platforms, rising upward and outward toward the highest point. An arcane mechanism hung from the domed ceiling; pincher-like, mechanical arms embraced around a glowing, yellow-green orb. Several smaller arms surrounded the orb, each ending in a bulb representing a planet. Surrounding this mechanism was a dark void undulating with stars.

Dark splotches of dried blood speckled the floor. These stains were the leftovers of his final battle with Kain before his sire lured him into the past. They were only a few weeks old. To Raziel, that battle seemed like lifetimes ago. When he tried to recall the white-hot rage that propelled him in pursuit of Kain, the effort left him drained.

Was that betrayal? Would his family despise him if they knew the way he felt about his brothers and Kain?

Sinking to the floor, Raziel sat on the bottom step with his weapon across his knees. Despite traveling so far from the Sanctuary of the Clans his mind felt no less chaotic. Perhaps it was even moreso. He hoped it was only hunger making him feel this way.

Hunger would have been no consequence in his wraith body. Lost souls and sluagh wandered the spectral realm, an endless source of food at his fingertips. Although he could still visit the spectral realm with Melchiah's gift he found himself an unwelcome stranger amongst the dead. Souls no longer gave him sustenance.

With no way to replenish his energy he would make Kain an easy target. The prospect of being imprisoned frightened him more than he cared to admit. However, fighting Kain was a different sort of prison. He could not run from him. With the Balance Pillar restored Kain could track him to the ends of the world, as evidenced by Callisto. Neither could he attempt to kill Kain. If he succeeded that would leave the young Circle in a dangerous position, possibly inciting the disaster he foresaw. Understanding this felt like choking.

That left only one option open to him: the Chronoplast. If he traveled back in time to a point when Moebius’ library was still intact he might find the knowledge he required to properly see into the future. This came with the added benefit of extending Kain’s ultimatum practically indefinitely. He would have time to feed, time to learn, and time to rest. Only, he needed to be reasonably certain of when he was going. Running afoul of Moebius could cut his plan - and Nosgoth’s future drastically short. Assuming Kain had not revisited the Chronoplast since returning to the present the time dials should still be set to the day of Ariel’s murder, when Moebius still lived. But what if he was wrong about that?

Raziel pondered the warp gates once used to connect distant parts of the empire. They ceased functioning after the Pillars’ rebirth, yet they might provide insight. The gates functioned synchronously regardless of physical distance. When Raziel activated the gate in his territory to visit the Sanctuary of the Clans, the Sanctuary’s gate would activate simultaneously and automatically by opening a portal to the Razielim capital. In other words, they became mirror images.

Kain returned to the present not long after the Pillars’ collapse, thirty years after Ariel’s murder, and after Moebius’ death. If the Chronoplast functioned across time the way the warp gates functioned across space, that meant that the settings Kain used on the Chronoplast in the past would be inverted in the present. By activating the Chronoplast without touching the dials it should transport him back to the exact moment Kain left Nosgoth’s history.

Spreading his wings for lift, Raziel leapt from the entryway and landed smoothly on the stairs on the other side leading up to the gate. Behind its frame was a stone wall. Raziel pulled a lever to activate the portal.

Unseen gears whirled and the air hummed with arcane power. Strange mechanisms stirred, causing the air to fluctuate like water inside the gate, filling the inside with stars. Raziel backed away from the gate, watching over his shoulder as the planetarium came to life with static and thunder. A bolt of electricity leapt from the central orb. It struck the lemniscate above the gate. White light burst from the portal with a ghostly wail. It closed like a fist, retracting into the passage, a puncture through time. Raziel approached the gate, shielding his eyes from the tunnel of swirling light.

White mist swirled around his boots. All noise ceased as he stepped through the gate. His flesh prickled as strange forces whisked him backward through time.

...

Fifteen hundred years ago the silent Chronoplast sprang to life. Dials turned, metallic arms swung into position, and the planetarium began to spin, faster and faster. Green lighting jolted from the device, striking the lemniscate above the gate.

Eerie winds played with Raziel’s hair as landed on the other side of the time gate. The chamber rumbled softly as it drained of power, the planetarium slowed to a stop, and the portal closed behind him with a soft hiss. As he descended the stairs, the end of his halberd clicking against the stone, he noted the change in the dials. No sign of Moebius.

Raziel unsealed the doors and stepped into the hall. He gripped the halberd steadily in both hands. Everything seemed quiet. As he crept up the circuitous stairs his nose scrunched up from a horrid acidic odor. Near the top of the stairs he came to an abrupt stop. Only a few feet away, the body of a grey demon lay in a pool of stale green blood. The demon was about twice Raziel’s size, body made up of a spindly grey exoskeleton, sturdy arms with pincer-like claws, each one the length and width of a longsword, and a head resembling a bull skull. Keeping his distance, Raziel prodded it with the staff of his halberd. Definitely dead. He grabbed one of the bony stalks on its back, now safe to touch, and rolled the body onto its side. Foul blood oozed from the jagged gashes across its chest, indicating recent death, along with the stench of burnt flesh. These wounds were consistent with the Soul Reaver. The three other demons strewn about the area suffered similar marks. Raziel grimaced in vindication. This could only be Kain’s handywork.

So the Hylden sent their dogs after Kain. They must have intended to stop him from returning to Nosgoth’s present with the purified Soul Reaver, but they clearly underestimated him - underestimated them. His eyes twinged in dismay of that misplaced nostalgia.

Unfortunately, Raziel would find no sustenance here. Pure demon blood was toxic to vampires. It might satiate him for a few minutes before its determinants drained him of his stamina and sanity, like a human succumbing to salt water poisoning.

In this time period the elevators appeared to be functional. They looked similar in design to the lift that took him to the top of the tower in the Sanctuary of the Clans, although their appearance was far more ornate, reminding him of the architecture in the ancient vampire forges. He decided to forgo their use for now, in case there were any live demons lurking in the halls.

Raziel wondered what he would discover in Moebius’ library in this era. Learning how to interpret his visions would satisfy Kain and ensure the future safety of the Pillars, but what about the Chronoplast itself? Surely the Pillars did not endow him with a gift forbidden. If he mastered the Chronoplast he should be able to prevent Janos from ever being captured by the Hylden, eliminating the need for rescue and leaving the young Kain with a more enviable ally. Raziel might prevent Janos from dying at the hands of the Sarafan. That would change the course of history all together. Moebius could have done it. Why not?

As he made his way through the complex he encountered more demon corpses. Occasionally he discovered a splattering of vampire blood, still wet. On second thought, considering the sacrifice inherent in changing his own destiny to the Soul Reaver, it would be better to start with something small. Janos was not the only person he wanted to save.

Raziel smelled smoke.

He sprinted and fluttered up the last flight of stairs and slid to a stop outside the library, the sounds of loud, heavy breathing and moist crunching alerting him to the presence of a large demon on the other side of the wall. He crouched on the balls of his feet and snuck around the corner.

Fine wooden shelves lined the walls between the support beams, each one lined with books of various sizes. Decorative rugs covered most of the lower floor, except for the raised hearth in the center, while on the upper level half-sized shelves made space for paintings of Nosgoth’s landscape. On the lower floor Sarafan banners hung between the shelves, burning. Little flames danced across the collection. Only the black demon looming near the entryway hampered Raziel from rushing in to save them.

This demon was more than three times Raziel’s size, a greater breed of demon with hard leathery skin and bulging muscle. Thick, curved horns grew from its back and the sides of its skull. One arm hung limp, rent by the Soul Reaver. Crouched over a pile of smoking books and broken furniture, it tore at an undefinable green mass of blood and meat clutched in its opposite hand, oblivious to him. The disfigured carcass of a smaller demon lay at its hooved feet.

From a cursory glance most of the library appeared unharmed. Only the shelves closest to the demon were beyond help. If he put it down quickly and avoided provoking its flame breath he could save the rest of the collection. Based on previous experience with black demons he knew it would use its flames against him unless they fought in close quarters, making trying to lure it out of the library too risky. Their thick skulls and armored skin prevented him from killing it in a single blow. He would have to get creative.

Letting out a battle cry, Raziel charged the demon with his halberd. The demon lifted its heavy head. Raziel vaulted into the air and stabbed the spike down into the demon’s exposed jugular. This maneuver would cost him his weapon, at least temporarily. The demon reared back, bellowing in pain and anger. Raziel swung around the pole, using his wings for balance as he avoided the demon’s swiping paw and flung himself onto its horns. All he needed to do was keep its attention on him until it bled out. Hanging onto the horn with his arms, he jabbed the sharp toes of his boot into the demon’s eye. Suddenly the demon lurched to the side. Raziel looked up just in time to see a bookshelf hurtling towards him. He stood up as the demon crashed into them, sending him hurtling to the floor.

Raziel looked up and saw a second shelf coming down on top of him. With no time to get out of the way he rolled onto his back, protecting his wings, and caught the shelves with his hands, his arms shuddering under the impact as books showered over and around him. As he tried to push the shelves away intense heat rushed across his body. Raziel’s blood ran cold. He tilted his head back, forced to shut his eyes against the scalding light that flashed between the jumbled books. “Damn it!”

How many books perished in that attack? Again Raziel tried to free himself. An enormous weight slumped onto the back of the bookshelf, pinning his arms to the floor and compressing his ribs. Green blood dripped through cracks in the wood. Another wave of heat crashed against Raziel as the demon loosed a second gout of flame from atop his latest tomb. Raziel let go.

Death came easy in the Spirit Forge. Not here.

Time ground to a halt as everything went blue-green. Fires froze, architecture distorted into a surreal parody of itself, and the floor became concave. Inside the spectral realm Raziel shivered. He rolled over and dragged himself out from under the bookshelf through a crevice revealed only in the spectral realm’s unique geography. As he staggered from the wreckage he felt the thousand icy teeth of death gnawing against his skin, reminding him why he found no safe harbor here.

The demon was invisible in the land of the dead. Most living creatures were. Demons could travel to and from the spectral realm with ease, but this one was too wounded. Raziel repositioned himself behind where he expected the demon to be. His head spun as his surroundings reformed to Moebius library in material realm. Color returned, his footing shifted as the floor returned to a flat surface, and heat and smoke assaulted his senses. Raziel covered his nose and mouth. In front of him the black demon hunched over the bookshelf with its back to him. With a wheeze the fountain of flame sputtered from its mouth. It sagged across the broken shelf, struggling to breathe. If Raziel was still down there he would have been crushed.

He tried to avoid looking at the rest of the library. Trying to rescue books from the burning library while that demon still fought for life would only put him in more danger. He scanned the immediate area until he spotted his halberd lying on the floor. The spike had broken off in the demon’s neck. He called the weapon into his hand. There was still the axe.

Raziel climbed onto the demon’s back. The demon stirred, tried to turn its head, however its broad shoulders and horns prevented it from aiming its fire. Gripping the halberd in both hands he raised his weapon over his head and brought the axehead down against the exposed side of the demon’s neck. With the first chop the demon roared and jostled beneath him, unable to lift its great weight. On the second strike blood bubbled and smoke hissed from its mouth. By the third Raziel became a butcher. He hacked until the thing stopped moving.

By now the smoke from the flames was so thick he could hardly see the way out. He dropped his weapon and grabbed as many books as he could carry off the floor. Hot ash burned his eyes and tongue. He put his shoulder to the wall and hurried alongside it until he found the exit. Dropping his bounty on the floor, he ran back inside and started pulling books from the first shelf he could find, repeating the marathon. Soon he could feel his flesh starting to burn. Out of desperation he began firing telekenitic projectiles in the direction where the heat was greatest. This had an effect like beating flames with a sack of dirt. He heard a crash as a shelf toppled over. Unable to withstand the heat, he fled the library.

Eventually the flames began to die down. The library was not ventilated enough to sustain an inferno for long. When the heat diminished Raziel charged back inside with a rolled up banner and used it to beat down the flames until the fire finally ceased. He saved as many books as he could from the lingering smoke. Only a fraction survived unscathed. There were simply too many.

Raziel sat on the ground next to the pile, coughing smoke. Soot covered his whole body. He looked at his pathetic bounty and held his head in his hands, lost somewhere between laughing or sobbing. Finally, he screamed. It was an animal rage, wordless hatred.

[dreadedmother]

… Dobson’s work doesn’t even align with Chistyy Ren’s. The overlap is incidental, linguistic only. Contextual. Chronoplasticity and the Ren Diagram have zero in common. If you look at the developmental timelines involved, you can see two completely separate epiphanies at work there. For a contrast, consider a third epiphany: look into old Math Matthew, the Fating Clone, early Saelunar Instrumentality hero. Tragic stuff. It’s all in the books.

Notice that no one knows who invented f-fields. Building the tech to make f-fields requires f-fields. Who found one first? Nobody fucking knows. Bill Bartlett didn’t know. Strality doesn’t even pretend to know. System would probably arrest you if you knew. Somebody did that shit on purpose. It’s not like velcro or smartphones. If you ask me, everything starts and ends with those f-fields. Pardon! 

[incorrect-nosgoth]

Moebuis: Something brought you here, Raziel. Call it what you will: Fate... Destiny...

Raziel: The Chronoplast.

[ethaneldritch]

The Dumah fixation is strong today 😔✨

Very gradually cooking up a modern-ish AU where the boys snuck into Kain's "forbidden chambers" and discovered the Chronoplast. One dimension-hopping incident later, they're stuck on Earth and have to live among humans to survive.

Meanwhile, Kain is desperately trying to find them...in his usual kick-the-door-down-and-behead-everyone-within-20-feet kind of way. So you can imagine the embarrassment of just trying to lie low while headlines proclaim your 10-foot-tall, horn-crested titan of a dad's latest Bigfoot Sighting-type shenanigans every other week.