Experiment 731 – Imperial Legion Second Division
Administer by courier only. DO NOT COPY.
By authority of Commander Radis
17th of Scythefall, Year 692 CR
The following report documents the outcome of Experiment 731; the record was vandalized and may not be complete.
Mission Outline
The purpose of Experiment 731 is to further evaluate the possibility of utilizing non-sentient creatures in service of reconnaissance. Non-sentient creatures can engage targets and perform functions that would be otherwise unavailable to Legion personnel.
The application of scrying is well known to us, including the ability to remotely access an individual’s sensory experience to perform reconnaissance. The requirement of the source being a human or human-like subject is a known limitation to scrying operations; to date there has not been a successful documented instance of a scryer being able to access the senses of other beasts.
Rather, it appears that scryers may have been able to do so, however it appears that once they have entered the mind of a creature they are unable to leave. Scryers that have attempted to do so invariably find themselves bound to the creature permanently, resulting in the rapid wasting of their physical form and subsequent death. Records show the Legion has conducted multiple experiments and each time it has resulted in the loss of the asset with no appreciable benefits.
Scholars proposed a proxy approach to assess the potential to access the source by having a second scryer attune to the asset which entered the creature. In doing so, it is expected that the second scryer will be able to engage with the sensory experience of the source without becoming trapped themselves.
Of course, it is well known within the scryer community that attempts to enter non-sentient minds will result in entanglement, and Legion training explicitly warns against this type of activity. As such, Experiment 731 is a long-form experiment wherein the candidate was identified at a young age and sequestered from the rest of the community. They were taught what they needed to know to perform the reconnaissance but are not aware of potential entanglement.
A record of the experiment’s results follows.
20th of Scythefall, Year 692 CR
The asset was brought to [unreadable] for initial reconnaissance assignment. Asset was advised their target was near a sandborn expedition in the southern region of the Ryukhan desert. This area is known to have been exposed to [unreadable]; this [unreadable] is under evaluation for potential weaponization. Within a half-candle of mission initiation, asset acquired a visual of the target which was confirmed via description:
“Large reptilian, thick head on a muscular neck that tapered past shoulders to a fine tipped tail. Creature walks on hind legs with forearms tucked tight against the chest. Movement of the creature’s shadow gave away the head, moving side to side in a slow sweeping pattern.”
Asset was ordered to engage. A moment later asset stopped responding to commands and breathing became labored. Clerics began attending to asset to stabilize them while second scryer prepared to remotely access asset. Their report follows.
“I am in it. The [unreadable] is not hungry, but it is hunting. It has established dominance in its range but has detected repeated incursions of another type of creature. It knows the creature to be small and two-legged, with skin that changes both in color and texture. The creatures announce themselves with calls, sometimes loud, other times soft. They are disrespectful of [unreadable] boundary.”
We believe the creature has encountered sandborn explorers.
“[unreadable] is on the high ridges above a small group of the other creatures. It jumps down. Its claws swing. It tastes blood and something else, something not… animal. A sharp pain in the [unreadable] leg. It turns, and the swipe of its claw cleaves the attacker in half. The attacker was a sandborn warrior. The sandborn flee. [unreadable] begins consuming the sandborn.”
Scryer disengaged. Scryer reported extreme nausea and dizziness. Clerics tended to scryer and the experiment was terminated for the day.
Asset was still engaged with the target, unable to return. Commander Radis ordered clerics to ensure asset remained stable overnight while scryer recovered.
21st of Scythefall, Year 692 CR
Commander Radis was advised of rapid deterioration of asset just before sunrise. Overnight efforts to stabilize asset were strenuous – clerics complained of the energy expenditure required to maintain the asset while he was engaged with [unreadable]. Additional support was requested from the Temple Order as [unreadable] did not have enough healing to support the second reconnaissance task. Three healers reported becoming violently ill, while two died.
Scryer initiated reconnaissance and entered sensory experience of the asset, reporting the following:
“[unreadable] marked its territory with scent and expected that to ward off the sandborn. It did not. [unreadable] is confused why the soft creatures continue to encroach on its boundaries. [unreadable] does not view the sandborn as viable prey. They are too numerous. They keep coming. It does not like the taste of their flesh.
It has tracked them to something that looks like a stone. It is not a stone. Sandborn enter and exit through a dark triangle. [unreadable] is waiting.
[unreadable] waits until the sandborn are inside the stone. It is the hottest part of the day. [unreadable] charges the stone. The stone is soft. The stone collapses. The sandborn scream. The sandborn do not survive.”
Scryer disengaged from asset. Scryer vomited, then lost consciousness.
25th of Scythefall, Year 692 CR
High Commission review:
Commander Radis was relieved of his position and the experiment was terminated. Seven clerics and two scryers were lost. The information provided proved to be of very little tactical value. While the experiment was successful in accessing alternative minds, the cost was determined to exceed the value of intelligence gained. The High Commission therefore orders a ban on the use of scrying in such a manner. Violations of such order are not in the interest of the Empire and will be punished accordingly.