Aether
He drew a little fire rune and let it warm up while he pinched some blue powder into a metal spoon. He set it on the glowing rune and the powder quickly melted down to a syrupy liquid, which he injected into a scarred and faintly glowing vein in his arm. I watched as his eyes started sparkling and a smooth, sharpened quality replaced his earlier sloppiness. He winked at me and asked if I ever 'got light', offering me the spoon and the powder.
I refused.
--12th of Silver, Year 15
Properties
Material Characteristics
In its pure form, it is a very fine dark blue powder. The less pure, the lighter the blue coloration.
Physical & Chemical Properties
Highly reactive to magic, acts as an amplifier for runes when used in their construction. Weakly magnetic. Can be sensed as though the powder was a magical item.
Compounds
Primarily used as an ingredient in bleaska, the dwarven high explosive. Can also be used in the making of many different potions, runes, and other items.
Geology & Geography
Aether can be found in veins of white sand that appear throughout the crust of The Planet Dwan. They are usually only a few feet wide but can be miles long.
Origin & Source
Refined from mined white sand.
Life & Expiration
Stable, does not lose potency over time.
History & Usage
History
Aether was first discovered by the immortal Gnomes who saw its potential as an amplifier for magic of all sorts and used it in many of their experiments during the immortal eon. It was just another interesting curiosity in the material realm before death.
After Death, the Dwarves, desperate for a way to continue the Great Lowway Project, discovered the recipe for Blaeska, an extremely high explosive that was piezoelectric in nature. The recipe relies heavily on Aether. After large scale mining began, it was discovered that Aether could be used by the mortal races as a drug that heightened awareness, increased intelligence, and gave the user a sense of great euphoria. It was soon banned by the The Forge Council in a refined form in The City of Stadupglod.
Discovery
It's magical amplifying properties were first discovered by a famous immortal gnome named Professor Lupnoot Snunbuss Thikmass Throffelfeather Analytical Lab Technician The First M.D. M.S. who was testing different naturally found minerals for their rune making potential. The first rune she drew with the Aether destroyed her research lab, and from then until the Second Thanixian War, she discovered more of Aether's properties.
Everyday use
Legally, it is an industrial material that is only to be used in the making of Bleaska.
Illegally, it is used as a high quality drug with both stimulant and depressive properties by many of the citizens in Stadupglod. It is smuggled in great quantities down the Lowway and sold on the street for a huge profit.
Industrial Use
When boiled with about a half-gallon of Goblin blood over a hot rune-fire in an iron cauldron, will produce a piezoelectric high explosive called bleaska, primarily used in the Great Lowway project to excavate the massive tunnel.
Refinement
Aether in its most common form is a very light blue sand. Most of this material is tiny white granules of a different mineral, called ivorine, that has little use. A very careful sifting method is used to remove the ivorine from the aether, the latter of which is then packaged into small cubes of pure aether called 'blueboxes' and the former is disposed of.
Manufacturing & Products
Bleaska- A piezoelectric high explosive
Byproducts & Sideproducts
Kol- A sticky black residue that forms on the inside of the iron cauldrons. When scrapped off and dried, it can be crushed into a powder that can be used as a highly addictive stimulant by any biological and sentient race.
When goblins are given kol, they become highly suggestive in addition to its other effects. When given kol regularly over a 3 tide period a goblin adopts the piezoelectric explosive nature of bleaska at the same mass ratios.
Hazards
The refinement process can lead to a condition called 'Ivory Lung" which is caused by the constant inhalation of ivorine and aether dust.
When boiled in the bleaska making process, it releases smoke that over time can cause blindness, muteness, lung failure, and psychosis.
When injected in a hot liquid form, over a long period of time can cause veins and blood vessels to glow blue, heart failure, seizures and stroke. Psychologically long term use can cause an inability to empathize with others, an erosion of valid self-reflection, paranoia, delirium, hallucinations and depression.
Distribution
Trade & Market
Legally, the Forge Council owns all the aether on Dwan, mined or unmined. They sell it to the Pelgar group for a set price for the strictly industrial purposes.
Illegally, it is smuggled into the city by the rail system of the Lowway by many different gangs, political groups, and cults with connections in the Pelgar Group or the Forge Council. It is then split up into 'squares' or small bags of the dark blue powder which are then sold on the street for massive profits.
Storage
Shipped in one ounce cubes called 'blueboxes'. For use as the drug, the blueboxes are broken up into four gram bags called 'squares', which can further be broken up into 'sides' (one gram) and 'points' (half-gram)
Law & Regulation
Only legal in the possession of the Pelgar Group, and only when being used in the bleaska manufacturing process. Harsh punishments exist for anyone caught in possession of refined aether in the city.
Type
Ore/Mineral
Value
Bluebox- 100gp
Odor
Odorless when solid, smells like ozone when burned
Taste
Grainy with an electric sensation
Color
Dark blue in pure form
Boiling / Condensation Point
Can only be boiled/condensed through magical means at very high temperatures.
Melting / Freezing Point
Can only be melted through magical means, but melts on contact with any amount of magical heat. Resolidifies into a powder when heat is removed.
Common State
Solid, powder
Related Locations
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