Subterfuge Spectacles

Subterfuge Spectacles are a kind of specialized eyewear used in the Emerald City to circumvent the Wizard of Oz’s decree that all exterior surfaces in the capital must be painted in shades of green. These most-excellent eyeglasses allow the wearer to translate the tones of their oppressively viridescent environment into a veritable rainbow of other hues. They are commonly used in the creation and viewing of subversive murals throughout the city.

 

Manufacturing

The specialized lenses which make the Subterfuge Spectacles possible are crafted with spells created by the good witches of the South and North: Glinda and Locasta. Though the pair have repeatedly denied any knowledge of the enchantments, the wicked witches—Baccata and Elavaris—maintain their suspicions, as does the Wizard himself.

 

Because the lenses are illegal, they are manufactured by sympathetic magic users in Yesterland and smuggled across the Bay of Beauty into the port of Nova Aurelia. From there, they are fitted into the most common frames the smugglers can find, then shipped up the River Quad and into the capital for distribution.

 

History

The spectacles were first developed by Glinda and Abena the Redeemer during the 150s. The first pairs worked by dialing down the saturation of all colors to zero, rendering everything in shades of gray. And while this was a welcome development for those who needed a break from Mandatory Green, customer feedback was clear: folks wanted a rainbow, not a rain cloud.

 

In the later 150s, Glinda and Abena finally learned to trust Locasta—the second Witch of the North—and she provided the final ingredient necessary to create the glasses known and loved today. A drop of shapeshifting kíndallan blood was all it took to perfect the formula, and Locasta had a secret stash of the stuff. All she asked in return was that she never be forced to reveal her source. And once she promised that the kíndallan donor was a willing participant, the other two were satisfied and production began in earnest.

Item type
Clothing / Accessory
Rarity
Common
Weight
25 grams (approx.)
Dimensions
Variable

Comments

Please Login in order to comment!
Jul 1, 2026 02:08 by Keon Croucher

I like this, its a fun object, and the illicit element is a nice touch. Understandable why they exist too, I mean absolutely everything is just emerald green? That's obnoxious visually, gimme some variety!

Keon Croucher, Chronicler of the Age of Revitalization
Jul 1, 2026 11:35 by E. Christopher Clark

Everything is shades of green (with some gold accents, though I haven't yet figured out why gold is allowed sometimes). So there is some variety, but not much.

Jul 1, 2026 03:29 by Chris L

These sound fun! Why do I feel like these are like the sunglasses from "They Live"?

Learn about the World of Wizard's Peak. I'm participating in World Anvil's Summer Camp 2026, are you? Check out my progress at my Summer Camp 2026 Hub!

Jul 1, 2026 11:36 by E. Christopher Clark

Ooh, I hadn't thought about that! I was thinking of these glasses from the first Wizard of Oz novel that everyone has to wear to supposedly keep themselves from going blind at the beauty of the Emerald City—but which are actually green tinted to make everything just appear green. I thought it would be a fun inversion.

Jul 1, 2026 17:37 by Joella Kay

Ingenious!

Jul 2, 2026 13:20 by E. Christopher Clark

Thank you! I'm building towards a resistance movement/rebel alliance with some of this week's prompts and this is the first part of that.

Powered by World Anvil