Introduction: There's magic in the world; aether permeates everything. It's in the air, oceans, and underground, and it gives everyone fantastical powers.A fox-like monster capable of turning its own body boneless and altering the air around, making it thick as jelly? Aye.A four-legged taran barrelling toward you horns first– wait! Are there two tarans? Nuh-uh – the beast's simply using its echo ability.In fact, everyone has one – a magical trick up their sleeve. Everyone except humans, that is.Incapable of doing any magic whatsoever, humans learned how to survive in the world infested with monsters. They conquered steam, gunpowder, and, more recently, the very aether itself. Not as magic, no, but as fuel. They figured out how to extract, process, and burn it. So what if monsters go berserk when they sense the fallout? That's just the price of convenience.Most people love it. The corporations too.After all, who needs to use magic when one can abuse it, instead?Living in this unforgiving world, there is a young fella named Cillian, who strives to become a chevalier – one of the famous monster tamers roaming the plane and protecting the innocent… Well, not quite. All chevaliers work for Foerstner Group and do the company's bidding. But it's better than being stuck behind Lua's walls his whole life.And during his journey, perhaps the boy will also uncover the mysteries that has plagued him for years. How did humans come to be here? Why are they so different from everyone else? Why can't they do magic? And what's with that giant vortex in the sky, spinning and shifting colors without end?What to expect:- Steampunk setting.- Slow-burn progression both in power and in social status. And I mean it. The monster taming stuff only starts in the middle of book 1. Cause, until then, the characters (who are ordinary 18-year-olds) are not ready.- Focus on exploration.- No cheats/shortcuts/chosen ones. Cillian's path to becoming special among specials is going to be long and arduous.- Book 1 is set in an academy, but the rest will take place in the wider world.- NOT LitRPG.- Long chapters spanning anywhere from 5 to 10k, twice a week (Mon/Fri 05:20pm EST).- Celtic mythology elements.- Some Irish slang. Should be understandable from context, but I'll be providing explanations in the notes. I'm not from Ireland, so if you are, you should probably skip this one as not to get offended by my occasional misuse.- Imperfect grammar. Sorry, I'm not a native English speaker; still learning. Steamin' past perfect, man. Hate it. Articles too.Wikipedia: "Brummagem" and "Brummagem ware" are terms for cheap and shoddy imitations, in particular when referring to mass-produced goods.The cover art by srifez....