대균열

장막은 우리와 악마들의 세계를 분리한다. 그런데 이러한 장막을 뚫는다는 것은 무엇을 의미할까? 실상 장막은 매우 깨지기 쉬우며, 일반적인 사람들은 이러한 사실을 생각하는 것만으로도 두려움을 느낀다.

장막은 물리적 막이 아니며, 특정 장소에 국한된 구조물도 아니다. 장막은 어디에나 존재한다. 그것은 사람들의 집, 그들이 걷는 거리, 여느 농부의 들판, 그리고 외딴 산골짜기에도 존재한다. 그리고 그것은 언제든 갈가리 찢겨 악마를 비롯한 두려운 존재들이 봇물 터진 듯 밀려드는 통로가 될 수 있다.

전해 내려오는 이야기에 따르면, 작은 균열들은 봉인이 가능하다고 한다… 하지만 큰 것이라면 어떨까? 만약 어떤 재앙과도 같은 마법이 거대하고 끔찍한 균열을 만들어내서 장막 전체의 통일성을 약화한다면? 그러한 "대균열"은 온 세상을 위협할 것이고, 그전에 종종 발생했던 악마들의 침입 따위는 그저 아름다운 일화에 불과해질 것이다.

바로 이러한 가능성 때문에 우리는 마법을 경계해야 하고, 이런 일이 일어나지 않도록 하기 위해 어떤 조치든 취해야만 하는 것이다.

—구도자 알란드라 베일 저, 마법의 진정한 위협에서 발췌

 

The Breach

What does it mean to pierce the Veil, that which separates our world from the realm of dreams and demons? For the average man and woman, it is a frightening thought to consider just how fragile this separation actually is.

The Veil is not a physical curtain, not a structure limited to a particular place—it is everywhere. It is in their home, in the streets where they walk, in farmers' fields as well as remote mountain vales. At any moment it could be torn to shreds, allowing demons and other horrors to flood into our world like water through a burst dam.

Known lore tells us that small rifts can be sealed... but what about a large one? What if some catastrophic magical event created a rift so large and horrific, it weakened the integrity of the Veil as a whole? Such a "breach" would threaten our entire world, turning concerns about occasional demonic intrusion into a charming anecdote compared to the monsters we would then face.

If there is anything to be done, any reason we should look at magic with fear, it is for that possibility more than any other.

—From The True Threat of Magic by Lady Seeker Alandra Vael