Cloneborne Cutting Room Floor 01 (Patreon)

So... I wrote a bunch of stuff... then had to cut it for various reasons, one of which was that it was just too exposity and 'tell, not show' in a way I preferred to avoid. But I didn't want it to just get deleted... so I decided to give it to you guys. Consider this 'soft canon'. It's canon unless I write something in a story chapter that overwrites it. 

"They're the Outguard," Rain said. "When the Mass Production Models were made, they were the ones who protected the Earth of the other universe against extraterrestrial invasion."

That drew Tiikasia and Ahgido's interest, and while the warriors escorting them remained vigilant, they also glanced towards the statues. "They were the commanders of Earth's armies, I take it?"

"Oh no, they weren't affiliated with the military at all," Rain said. "No, they were all magic-users who actively went out to do the fighting when an invading force tried to conquer the planet. Since we're the defense service who're here to do the same, we all look up to them for inspiration, and strive to be like them when the time comes to protect our world."

Rirris' mind broke that apart into multiple conclusions for later pursuit: these Outguard were of significant cultural importance; seven of them were enough to protect a planet from an invasion force from space, which implied great power in magic or a massive system supporting them; they were either extremely effective in their field or had very effective people controlling the narrative for them, a conclusion she'd only learned to reach after living with the humans; their magic could counter an invading force that was likely coming from space, meaning at least one had orbital-range detection and offensive capability at minimum…

"All of them were human magicshapers?" Tiikasia asked as Rirris typed in her thoughts for later inquiry.

"Well, no, not all of them," Rain said. She gestured at one of a statues, one that seemed to depict a human male, but on a second look Rirris concluded they were wearing too much armor to be certain. "Honored Nightmare didn't have any magic, but that didn't mean he's any less capable than anyone else. He was one of the most feared heroes in the Outguard, and specialized in infiltrating targets, mapping out enemy patrol schedules, performing sabotage, and extracting super-secure targets all by himself. Even without magic, he was one of the most feared and renown of the Outguard. He's a reminder that we can accomplish great things even without magic…"

Tiikasia and Ahgido listened intently as Rain enthusiastically went on about the Outguard, painting a slightly terrifying picture as she managed to make it abundantly clear how six magicshapers and an infiltration specialist could be up to the task of protecting a planet from forces who had control of the orbitals. From the description, the one called Mortal seemed to be capable of a magicshaping that was similar to They Who Change Through Life's 'Cultivation of Essence', and was commensurately monstrously powerful as a result. Rain spoke of punches that shattered spacecraft, orbital flight at supersonic speeds, directed sound that could shatter buildings, and songs that could invigorate allies and disorient enemies. The Free Peoples' records hadn't known They Who Change Through Life were capable of the last one—though the rest were well-recorded phenomena among their experienced magicshapers—but according to Rain, it was because Mortal was an accomplished musician, acoustician and sound engineer who had a lifetime's experience in weaponizing sound.

The one called Poise was revealed to be a Symbol of Fear, and enthusiastically praised by Rain as one of the bravest heroes of all time. Rirris couldn't help agreeing. She'd met Symbols of Fear before, and when they were being shaped by their hearts, they were very… risk-adverse, prioritizing their own survival first and foremost. Fear was the self-preservation instinct being very loud, after all. Their magic very often shaped itself towards flight or some other form of mobility, ranged projections that could be thrown at a distance, and ways to not be detected such as invisibility or other forms of sensory obfuscation. She'd never heard of a Symbol of Fear whose magic had shaped itself to bring them towards danger at supersonic speeds and hit it repeatedly with a pseudo-matter slab of metal large enough to use as a desk. As methods of self-preservation went though, it was no doubt very effective. As something an attacking force had to face on the ground…