The Short Cut
(Domain)
This is one of the perilous Domains. Admittedly, all Domains are perilous - and
we're not talking about just a little peril, here. They're all unhealthy - still, The Short Cut is
somewhat impressive, in its own predatory way.
That was a deliberate use of the word 'predator', by the way: it's a hungry
Domain, and one with the instincts to go after the weakest members of its
prey. Many ethereals visit the Domain;
most survive the experience without a problem.
The remainder... well, they knew the risks.
The primary aspect of this Domain - the one that
makes it so attractive - is that it is cuts the travel time of any journey in
the
Once 'inside', the traveler will be confronted with
an appropriate archetype; one entity might see a set of dank underground
passageways, another a brooding forest trail, a third a glittering cyberspace
grid or something more unusual. All that
has to be done is to get to the other side; no matter how much time is spent
inside, the traveler will emerge to discover that he, she or it is now much
closer to the destination (always enough to cut the total travel time in half). Several ethereals have immediately summoned a
portal again, in order to cut the travel time still further: the exact results
are unknown past "...and they were never seen again". Most denizens of the
The major difficulty with using the Short Cut is
that the Domain will constantly test and prod its visitors, looking for
suitably weak entities to feed upon.
Every visitor will have to make three successful Intelligence rolls to
make it to the other side, representing the various trials and puzzles placed
in the way. A failed roll will do 2 Mind
Hits to the traveler. Being knocked
unconscious while in the Short Cut is effectively a death sentence; the Domain
will feed upon the ethereal as it disperses.
However, spending any Essence to boost the roll
beforehand will prevent this damage.
Most skills will be useless for solving the obstacles, as they are
invariably intensely personalized (and designed to take advantage of whatever
character flaws are possessed by the traveler), but having an
appropriate Knowledge skill such as Psychology or Riddles will add +1 to the
Intelligence roll. More gruesomely,
using an Initiated ethereal as a 'sacrifice' obviates the need for one test. Mortals and celestials entering the Short Cut
are... left strictly alone. They will
not be granted access to a portal, are not tested, receive no benefits and are
not attacked. The Domain has no desire to
attract the attention of either Heaven or Hell, and as for mortal dreamers, ah,
it is well known that acquiring a reputation for Man-eating is an unparalleled
way to attract the attention of Heaven.
Generally speaking, a reasonably powerful ethereal
can use the Short Cut without too much trouble or expenditure of Essence, and a
6 Force spirit with enough luck, planning or ruthlessness can exploit this
Domain quite effectively. It's also
considered a good way to easily winnow through a troop of recruits; send them
in and enlist anyone who comes out. And,
of course, it can be a useful enough threat or punishment - so, the Domain is
quietly tolerated as being useful.
But nobody actually likes it.
Features: Living Domain (Intelligence 8, Precision
8, Will 10, Perception 6, Dream-Shaping/6), Hostile, Serendipitous, Time
Effects