RADITI®ONThe Chariot. By SAMUEL INABINET AND ITIALCOLIM SHEPPARDCREDITS Authors: Samuel Inabinet and Malcolm Sheppard. ‘World of Darkness created by Mark Rein® Hagen Storyteller game system designed by Mark Rein Hagen. Development: Bill Bridges Editing: Carl Bowen. Art Direction: Aileen Miles Interior Art: Langdon Foss, Jeff Laubenstein, Alex Sheikman Cover Art: Christopher Shy Layout, Typesetting & Cover Design: Aileen E. Miles 1554 LITTON DR. STONE MOUNTAIN, CA 30083 USA GAME STUDIO ©2003 White Wolf Publishing, Inc. Al rights reserved. Reproduction without the written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden, except for the purposes of reviews, and for blank character sheets, which may be reproduced for personal use only. White Wolf, Vampire, Vampire the Masquerade, Vampire the Dark Ages, Mage the Ascension, Hunter the Reckoning, World of Darkness and Aberrant are registered trademarks of White Wolf Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. 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Check out White Wolf online at hetp://vww.white-wolf.com; alt-games.whitewolf and rec.games.frpstoryteller PRINTED IN CANADA. ames, places any or product in these pages is not a challenge to the trademark SONS OF ETHER sue eal}CONTENTS ther @®VERTURE W/AYES WAITHIN INTR@DUCTION: STRANGENESS AND WTOPIA, CHAPTER ®NE: THE EIGHT-TRACKITIETH@D CHAPTER T W/@: THE ESSENCE ©F SCIENCE CHAPTER THREE: THE DYNAMIC FACULTY EPIL®GUE: EVERY STEP @F THE WAY BREN OR CONTENTS: 3 Cy HabtSouthern California, 1978: “What a heap of junk!” “That things'posed to roll;ortuntiel inta the ground, or what!” “Looks like fuckin’ Buck Regers or something! Ace whipped out a rag and dusted off. A— his ride with well-practiced swipes. Not because of razzing from gringo hot-redders—Jeaving them in his dust was just going to he the icingon the cake.|It was the dust itself that worried him. He didn’t know what would happen if extraneous mater got caught in the field when he kicked it into high gear. Residual ionization had already coated the hull with magnetized dust, covering up his cousin's fine- 338 paint job, Blue: flames Ticking dut of the geill Against a deep red background, with “La Fuente det}—— Rigmo—Baja"78? writcen in florid script abe 4 fenders. When his cousiti/had said chat the o ce steed ae ae? Ba rie Bopha tc “Where's the dingleballs? Thought you-b shan ing them dinglehalls on yer rods! reilly wiping out the air intakes, Ace oo sel ba PaPEGEGIA. The sbooks were abetral f mounted trrehe trunk, facing backwart tke Te bea ARIE iesd shel dod lot He spelt gdofy Flash Gordon contraption, he thought. | “So, we doin’ this already, of what?”ous owt ——\—jrubber. Supremely corfideng) Ace let hiss ake the 3Ozaxithmic scale heyvas too panicked to register. lead, carefully putting La Fuente into gear Mhilet here was water directly below, and he was sloy TR lyon achre ror. Peifect, A’ toroidal field, urhing ttself inside olit, channeled through every system in the car— combustive, electrical, heat lights and sound 2 zation. As long as the central # retdined mbdular cohefence, it shes Leven-a sonic boom, After bx | oug sorts a eeatan had fitrally | vadeated pleqrofon| Toop —that is, his new ei ~~ Santtana’s Caravanserai Ni ———filebrs don't cl | PALA ____| The starter flag wa} a monograttinéd hank held [byhis opponent's squeeze, a squeaky Barbiell fy [1 feet andes hen TP rtoh es hk edlhis ustang and drummed err steering wheel, Ack slid into © and flipped) the ignition toggle. La Fuente Jeske “Hey, va apd that Y'know ya gotlyer fan i eward?? “Don’t you know nothin’, man? He's gonna jet- el bn refried bean farts!” ‘Ace ighored the insults; watching how the dust ait moved. Out fhe front, around back to the scoops, muddying| the sunset, in the| rearview all acruned in eemote forwar of-airdtag, fl perimen ing wich pulse ruining ing cynting- Mas tong as rhesintake- in_just the unset behind me, A layer of haze distorted the ike a Houghnagg -track pei Catlog 1 id] and_tan,_The-ofly.sense_of motion was derived from the seefningly slow roll of the Earth's surface far below. |He was|passing over a broail river that he guested to |be the|Cotorado. His mitrors showed fading red; ighed-to_life, blasting-dusty-air forward-through—jahead was cool dark blue. 1s this the Doppler effect? he cil. wondered, No, | can’t be approaching light speed. It's fsunts Téwet half; its uppeF pdrtidn was éleaf and painfully bright. With a shock Ace realized thar he ‘was leaving the earth’s atmosphere. If I'm all the way cout in space, how can | be breathing? Shouldn’t 1 be up like a balloon and exploding or something? ‘That didn’t happen. In fact, he felt wind on his ace “i ixedy enjoying thesongof the wind thagseemed to straight through hin, as th posed GMP AAR mere air. Le k, he phow many stars he could'see, even uthe desert at night. The whole sky “horizon loomed ahead, straighten- ‘OWward himas he reached the apex of ayy and began a|nose dive back to earth. ‘twisted in protest. The brake pedal -nearlybentas he pressed both feet into it,arching his ys Nothing. Why didn’s Lthinkabout how to stop this thing? What the fuck am I gonna do|now? Frantic) hhe ttiedito downshift while thumbing the jeostat babkwardt The engine went into a coughing tang fightalled forward amic.yshrick of burhing yy iakinlg the Gar, Row fast and nowslow, following istingarhgosta¢ taped tohisgearshifchandle, So intent wasAce pn monitoringthe movement of the field thathhe didn’ je stunned expression. on hig opponent ® Mustang fell behind. Nor dic mentary blut of the finis! (“line as he passed'it ong tenth of a second latet- Nor i Ae he had left the entirely. ntil the horizon ahead started to ct d sink cihishor rod 086 oF the large inegular crescents stood a human ——_— } | heintact-and-seemed to be functioning | ly, the motor thrumming as though happy to ‘ing toward the tip of a huge peninsula with a outer surface oF = toroidal field flowed backWyFather suggestive coastline that any suggestible ado- faster: ft ee “ Tescent male would recognize. Then the ground was rushing up| too, fast to make out any more detail, “Totus inconceivable speed into an engulfing tie- dye rosétte, butatitscenterthe impact site came into Fs hike arstone flower to receive him.1t——- Jooked like some-kind of palace courtyard made of enormdus rough-hewn ro¢ks, with thick walls, a |square tower, pylons topped with globes and) cres- ‘cents, and even tables and chairs like Flintstones ‘farnitute. A few yards from ground ero; framed by In the last instant of his headlong plummet, Ace _ playapart in Santana’smasterful percussion section. made ot the details of chi figure. It appeared to be | t taal elias tL t jj [|stone brescen,rehdy °é, but wi ™ E gigle aise TT THe 5 e Tas8 + EGS miele bs 4S SRE 2 ete ae ige 3 ale 2 4S | iy as : Zo 3 3 eo zs eee = 3 aS 2 BS 223 $8 [stFTL RL Te The of Ether often seem ntric and delusional. would tell you that ical su- perstition for crank theories or ideals that stark pragmatism, Some- are at times, but the Tradition has never on or a political power. Eccentric? Definitely. Life isan experiment, and 3 liberated as Science should be, then its bound toproduce some unusual personalities. Delusional? Mad Scientists aside (and the Tradition can deal with that problem on its own, thank you very much), the Sons of Ether will tell you that they look at all the variables in their work — including the individual. Technocrats set Se WaRSTs we | a af AWE MT Ug ery Mlle ery sats re of things is inthe habit of concealing itself. leraclitus, “Fragment 123” themselves up for a fall when they fail to realize importance of the observer's will, which is why som of their proud innovationsare revealed to be fraudulent or filled with dangerous side effects. Reproducible ex: periments might regulate reality, but Fortean phenomena, psychic Resonance and enigmatic cosmo: logical principles will always interfere Infact, Ether Science ismore than aset of discarded theories, pulp shticks and wild speculation. It’s gaunt- let thrown down to the Technocracy, the scientific establishment and reality itself. It rejects reducing na- ture to a set of predictable mechanisms than can be endlessly recombined, because it knows that such un- derpinnings are false and always on the verge of being overturned. The truth recognized in the Kitab al-Alacir isasimple, exhilarating and terrifying one: Everythings true. Anything is possible INTREDUCTION: STRANGENESS AND UT@PIA i. Cy MhTHEME: THE SAVING Paw @F THE IITIP@SSIBLE As Armageddon looms, old assumptions have to be cast away before they render humanity helpless to act. As long as the Sleepers believe that they are powerless to change the universe, they will always be its victims. Now, more than ever, the Sons of Ether need to introduce Science that defies what the Consensus thinks is ® impossible. Cosmic forces are aligning against the survival of a species that believes that it can do nothing but wait, consume the last of its riches and appeal to its leaders to act. The Technocracy is conflicted between its desire to save humanity from harm and its will to exert control — impulses that now work at cross-purposes instead of for the greater good of the Masses. Enter the Sons of Ether. Theits is a Science that rejects limits and immutable laws. It could feed billions, colonize space and fight off the worst horrors of the World of Darkness, but in saving humanity, it could give it the power to destroy itself — to wreck the very foundations of the Tellurian. Etherites realize this, which is why they're so idealistic. Limitless power needs to be guided by an ethos, or else it becomes a terrible weapon. Nevertheless, the time for half-measures is over. Change is on the horizon, and the Tradition has the tools to prepare humanity for it TTl@e@b: REALIZING SCIENCE'S POTENTIAL Ether Science is powerful and diverse, but without massacceptance, itshares many of the flaws of occult belief systems. Scien- tists must be initiated into their craft and advance based on intensely personal in- ‘queeee| Sights. Dynamic Science is hard to 2EIGA reproduce, it requites years of study, and it SEL requires discretion and subtlety to use ef- fectively. As the world races toward its destiny, the flowering of Science must take two forms. First, new Sons of Ether need to breale away from Tradition dogma, selfish motives and infighting, They need to create genuinely new inventions and push the borders of the possible instead of recycling antique theories for their own sake. Second, they need to find a way to share these revelations with the Sleepers, to break them from pessimism that reducesinnovation to commodity and denies that any other way of living is even possible. New Science needs to contradict the established norms, or else its possibilities will never be unlocked for general use. Quantum physics was the fist “great contradiction,” butnow itneeds tobe challenged and expanded in turn so that Sleepers willsee that many theories exist, and they can use the ones that suit them in their own quests for knowledge and survival. CONTENTS TATA This book provides revised and expanded information on playing the Sons of Ether: the other Enlightened Scientists of Mage: | The Ascension. The following chapters j«inf detail how Ether Scientists organize, study and even use “magic.” Chapter One: The Eight-Track Method takes us on a literal ride through the Tradition’shistory, ethos and relation- ship with other occult societies, Scientists and the mysteries of the World of Darkness. Ernesto C. Amanguale takes a trip to the end of the world and learns that his Science might be all that stands between disaster and Ascension. S@NS OF ETHER tom Pane dyn Saal ‘Chapter Two: The Essence of Science introduces us to the Tradition and its Science. The Sons of Ether are about more than just pulp style and anachronistic theories. Their factions, organization and approach to Science (or magic) are all presented. And even though pulp isn't the end-all of Ether culture itcertainly has its place. Adventure never goes out of syle Chapter Three: The Dynamic Faculty concen- trates on tips for playing a Son of Ether, including notable Scientists, ideas for all-Etherite games and a sample cabal that’s ready to be used in your own Mage games. Ready-to-play templates round out the chapter, allowing you to run a Son of Ether right from the book.‘Atetus: “The Virtuous,” legendary sage and te- the Ether, human knowledge and the nature of -puted-uthor of the Kitab al-Alacir. Thought to bean reality. The book contains the central theories of allegorical o mythie-character by some, herite Master, so-called semi-offigial position. that she would normally. oc- ‘cupy. Some specific Chairs have their own titles, “responsibilities and requirements for eligibllity. Doctor: All Sons of Ether can claim the title of Ether Science, but there are many divergent inter- ofa_pretations. This. Primer Grimoire is loaned to virtually all budding Scientists and is known to spark Awakenings. Parmenidean: Theories in the Kitab al-Alacir similar to those of Patmenides, a pre-Socratic Greek "Doctor, kither from pre-existing credentialgorthanks oreo: Parmenidean physics holids that the cos- sae botet ipleting an Etherite apprenticeship (which is, "0s ~ of coutse;fequivalent;ifnof superior, roany education). Etherites who tara the title only fromthe “Tei ardcohetdingsdbwned upon by thoae who. eared ordinary credentials firs. | Blectrodine I ey Ether during the 19th ceatuty when they|re-estab- lished their identity as a distinct onganizatibn. “Emeritus: An Archmige | Bther? The “Fifth ESence” of reality upbn which the rest ofthe cosmos is founded: Ultimately, Ether is ~fundamentaland imperceptible, toretahookd Ethers") such as Quintessence can be measured Etherite: Informal, popular erm fora member of the Sons bf Ether. Favored by Scientists who would like to divest themselves of the sexist connotations of the Tradition’ proper name. | Engineers: Name of th Sons of is w'continuous entity, withour any void. This 1undane cesnjes holds every phenomena, both ‘real! and “un- real.” Therefore, some common medium must exist to. suppprt reality without emptiness (che Ether), and laws that assert that something is impossible must be categorically false, | ~The Parmenidedns (or Pupils of Parmenides)_ formed both a\Greek cult and issance society, both of which might have Crore modern Sons of Ether. Professor: An Adept-ranked Scientist capable diester of supervising a lab and directing Researchers in. theifield. “Reductionism: Scientific and philosophical te- net thatholds that all possible phenomena can be reduced to a set of consistent, explainable mecha- nisms. Rejected by the Sons of Ether on the basis that [7 Faiean Usfistal phehomera for which there is] PHetomens are infinivey dymamnic argh posses of eviderice but no known cause, such as tains pf frogsor psychic-phenomens; Used-by the Sons of Ether to uneover-hidden natural! laws end to prove: the Patmenidean doctrine. + ——_Hbratlitan: Theories in the Kitab al-Alaci lar to) thbse| proposed by the Greek philosopher Henclta, Herel docs blalebhe tality in| ‘constant flux as opposing metaphysical forcts destroy each other and recombine into new phen ~~" House Golo? Medieval braich of the Hermetic ‘ torstudying the Kitab to the moder Sons of Ether, sal-Alacir: “Book of the Ether!” Arabic “name of 4 Greek text that espouses theoriés about res OPE ig Sad * ade oy its simultaneous rational explanations. Researcher: An Ether Scientist capable of inde- pendent field research but. not che supervision. of ‘thet Scientists. If Tradition terms, roughly equal to a Disciple Science: When capitalized, Etherité Awakened inventions, research and theo- ries, as opposed to Sleeper or Technocratic science: ‘Also called “Awakened Science; Ether Science-or Dynamic Science, __Scientist: A general term-of an Btherite of any. rank, Usually capitalized. Specialist: A Scientistwho usesanarrow range of linedr Effects; what mystics cal a soreerer or psychic. INTR@DUCTION: STRANGENESS AND UTOPIA, ke 2 nae ype a fSME EEL MAES EE Say snake TRACK ITIETH@D FMT OL Te Te a] 1 PRE PR Me ie PRR RA TAMA AR A eR v BAND @NE: STONE FLOWER “T have discovered the secrets of the pyramids, and have found out how the Egyptians andthe ancient boulders in Peru, Yucatan, ond Asia, with only FQMPA) vive tools, raised anal set place blocks of stone weighing many tons! — Edward Leeann, uilderofCoral Castle France, 2003: Within an omate recessed cupboard in a disused wing of a large antique telephone rang. It continued to ring for some time, while wed down the long ough search- hallway, pausingateach room ing for the source of the sound. ‘Meanhil, light and sound poured from the mansion’s expansive greenhouse. Candles and ol lampshungon chains from the ceiling or swung on jointed t light intensified and focused by lenses anc reflectors to where a figure sat amid a cacophony of whirring wheels, grinding sears, coughing combustion devices and shrieking steam- pipes. The figure, a young man clad in insulated apron and gloves, perched upon a high stool and glared through thick gongs atthe glowing core ofa dismantled armature on the sping arms, their wlhld he : uy worktable before him. Behind him, a second figure resem: bling an oversized tin soldier entered the greenhouse, its postureramrod-straighe, itsstride thumpinga metronomically exact thythm until it stopped just behind the young man. Ie said, “Telephone call for you, ‘The young man covered his work with a dust-cloth and tured, removing his goggles. “A what?” The tinsoldier’s words emerged fromabellowsin itschest, passing through a series of tiny homs, whistles, tuned strings and rubber bafles that peoduced a fairly intelligible imitation cof human speech. They did, however, tend to mangle the phonemes of the French language. “A telephone call.” The young man blew out some of the nearest lights and pulled a few levers, silencing some of the noisier machines, “How is that possible?” “A simp! the form of leclectrical apparatus, sir, transmitting sound in "Musthave missed one," the youngman muttered, emoving his gloves and apron. He followed the tin soldier into the old wing ofhis fayette to wher the lfashiomed receiver dangled fom thecupboar. A chair an end ble ha been dusted ofan placed nearby, the onl frieze in the empey room CHAPTER One: THe BGHT-TRACK METHED en Bal B“Till take this call,” he told the automaton, “but after- wards we must disconnect this device and remove the line from the mansion grounds.” “Certainly, sit.” The young man settled himself and lifted the phone, fastidiously avoidingany direct contact with the cramblingcord, Thecalle'svoice wasalreadyasking, “Chevalier Yves Mercure?” “Yeu “Hey, man, sorry for intruding like this. I didn’t even think this number would work, but the operator had it listed, s0, what the hell, right? The caller spoke English in an ‘American accent with some regional variant. “I doubt you'd remember me, but we both talked some hyperdimensional physics with Dr. Mueller at thae big Y2K party.” “Ltecall somewhat. Did ‘Doctor Comet’ever find his way hhome intact? He seemed rather, how-yousa, lit up.” “Uh, well, nobody's actually seen him since chen, man." Yves sat up. “That is distressing. [had no ides.” “You should keep in closer touch. I heard you don't keep clectricals in the house. No telephone, no radio. You should at least consider some modern communications, man, The old soup-can-with-the-string severely limits your range and the number of people you can talk to.” “Lhave always considered that ro be the device's most attractive feature.” “Funny! Hey, yourememberthat miniature tansmission shaft I sketched for you that night? Dd you ever try i! How'd it work” “Oh, that! Perfectly! I was a fool to doubr you. Infact, I incorporated it into the device that answered your call. believe that I ‘owe you one.”” “Uh, yeah, glad you feel that way, bro. Because I called to ask you a really big favor." Florida, 2003: Fucking American, Yves thought. How do I allow myself tobe deaumint these things? Thissso typical I'm the scion of anoblelneage, goat, and here Iam sneaking into a roadside tours ap by dark cof right lke some drunken teenage peasant! | do not need this sit By the time he had geared up and sealed his Ethersuit, however, he had a moment to appreciate his surroundings, and he instantly regretted his unkind thought about the place. The Joomingobelisk, the squat imposing tower encrusts! with tropi- calvines,thecrescentsandringed globes, the giantrockingchair still swaying to and fro, all inspired wonder and fascination, Eyeing the massive rose stones, so whimsically shaped yet so precisely placed and fitted, he understood why such sites were regarded with religious awe by non-Seientific peoples. Facing north, he stepped this way and that until he had Polaris lined up in the gunsight-shaped apecture on a hilltop several yards away. He raised his right hand, thumb up, and pivoted to the left while keeping his arm pointing north. ‘With his left hand he adjusted a variable-focus Ether lens mounted on his helmet while scanning the western horizon. 14 SONS OF ETHER There. A tiny light was rising above the westem wall at metzoric speed. Yves drew a bulky waveform converter, matched its setting tothe focus of his lens, aimed. When the light was framed by the larger of two stone crescents that towered above the wall, he fired. ‘The lightceaseditsascent midway between the crescent’s points and instead grew larger. The converter bucked and kicked, shooting out purple flashes. Yves tightened his grip and chinned a switch to increase the tension in his Ethersuitsjoints. Theobjectswelled in discrete stages, like the frames of film run at slow motion, intime tothethrob ofthe converter. Soon itfilled thecrescent, now no longer a star but the frontend of the funniest looking fout-wheeled vehicle Yves had ever seen. Part Camaro, part Boeing, part Maytag. Clutching the steering wheel with white knuckles was a kid, wide-eyed, full lips pulled back from clenched teeth, black hair on end and pointing straight back The converter’spulse slowed. Carand kid bung frozen in the erescent for full second, then vanished and reappeared about halfway between the crescent and where Yves stood, stayed motionless in that postion for at least three seconds while the converter emitted a steady beam. Then one more pulse, and the vehicle was poised just a few feet above the ¢ground, not moving. Yves sighed with reliefand thumbed the converter's handle; three spindly legs telescoped out of the bottom and held it pointed at the car like a violet spotlight. Itseemed totake the kid a while to realize thathe wasn't dead. His dark eyes moved tentatively back and forth, taking in Yves and his surroundings. Though he was still clutching the wheel and standing on the brake, the grimace plastered across his face by tertor and acceleration relaxed slightly. He ‘worked his jaw and lips, and after a few tries, he managed to croak, “What's happening?” Yves suddenly realized how ill equipped he was for hhandling a young human being undergoing an intensely ‘weird crisis, Determined not to lose control ofthe situation, he said coolly, “A simple enough question. To which an infinitude of honest answers may apply.” “What's happening to me! Right now!" ‘No good can come from lying to the boy, Yves thought. Just stare with he basies."You, right now, areaccelerating toward the earth at a velocity too great for my instruments to register.” “Right. And what happens when 1 hit?" His fingers tightened on the steering wheel. “Ab, A question about the future. Questions regardingthe future are subject to conjecture. Justasquestions about the past are open to interpretation. What do you believe wll happen?” “Uh, asfaras can figure...” The kid was trying tosound cool too, buthe couldn't keep theshiill of panicfrom his voice. “I'm going to die in one mother of an explosion?” “Then let us conjecture upon that particular hypothesis. How exactly did you calculate that answer?" well