2013.10.06 - Deeper Powers

Russia 1415 ADE

It had been so easy. Once she found her first piece of magic, the rest fell into place. Sasha still had to search, to travel, to dig, to examine, but her struggles were worth it. Her husband was now a puppet to her will. Her children were loyal assistants in her rituals and spellwork -- assistants who knew better than to speak of what their mommy got up to. She had spent years collecting her magic, and the more she learned the easier it all became. She was unravelling the secrets of magic through hard work and natural brilliance, but her successes came so fast it almost astonished even her sometimes. Half by intuiton, half by good fortune, her power grew. She eventually became strong enough to gain her own circle of cult-like followers. People she parcelled out bits and pieces of magical knowledge to, as well as tools she found or created, and who in turn did her bidding.

But Sasha was not done. Just gaining knowledge and mystical devices was not enough. Though every new discovery seemed to make the imaginary universe in her head closer to becoming real, she had yet to find the means to her end. The way circumstances seemed to go out of their way to assist her in this pursuit of sorcerous power indicated to her that she was correct in her certainty of her destiny. She was MEANT to rule. But she was reaching the limits of what mere spell knowledge could achieve for her ultimate goal. And she was mortal. She could not forget that. Unlike in her head, she aged and she could be killed. Her luck seemed to have run out. Discoveries became fewer and smaller, taking more effort. But if there was anything Sasha knew, it was how to work.

So she worked, and she worked, and through her efforts and her minions, she found knowledge she was not supposed to find. A knowledge of beings that could give instant power... For a price. She was neither stupid nor desperate enough for their deals. So she made plans.

Sasha's body was a tool to her. Nothing more. If the tool was inadequate for the task, it needed to be improved. She began designing ways to add to her body... To replace inefficient parts with mystical contraptions and artifacts... All so that she could make the vessel large enough to contain the greater power she hoped to obtain.

Then she contacted those dark powers once more. They tried to tempt her, but it was they who were eager for a contract. And so they made mistakes. Blunders.

Such as agreeing to appear physically before a woman whose body was mostly made up of magical storage devices able to contain even demon lords...