Copernicus

impulse buy, 300g

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Among the brilliant minds that inhabit the towering Tempest Spire, there’s more than a few interesting ones. True innovation requires a certain degree of deviation from the norm after all; deviation that manifests in strange, quirky ways. Would you like to hear about the head scientist with more than a few skeletons in the closet, or the up and coming young genius with a penchant for eating glass? Or perhaps you're looking for something truly strange, the one who crosses from just ‘strange’ to straight up ‘deranged’? Even the most eccentric members of the Spire speak of him in hushed whispers, and turn away when he passes by… that dragon named Copernicus.

He wasn’t always this way. Although only one of many scientists residing in the Spire, Copernicus was somewhat known for his meticulous work and gentle nature. He kept to a strict schedule, and could be counted on to be where he should be at any point of time in the day, down to the very second. But one day, on a disastrous mission to the Carrion Canyon, his life reached an irreversible turning point.

In the depths of his murky, broken memory, he still remembers that day. The thunderstorms had rolled in far too early, violently separating his team of researchers and sending many to a quick, painless death. Copernicus himself was forced further and further into the canyon, until he found himself sleeping among the bones and withered possessions of wanderers who came before him, having turned into ominous foreshadowings of his own fate. Every day that he spent eating dust and mystery chunks of meat, he never believed that he would emerge alive. Time and desperation does interesting things to a person’s mind, and willingness to do unthinkable things. He doesn’t remember much of his rescue, if he’d been found or if he found his way out. Does it matter to a man broken to pieces and put back together the wrong way?

Now, years later, rumours still fly about, pinpointing every strange facet of Copernicus’ being. From the collection of bones that is his bed, to the way his eyes dart about as he speaks, searching for something no one can see. His work is still as perfect as ever, but even perfection can’t redeem everything. Although he’s returned to society, his mind still remains in the blighted wilderness, cursed to never leave.

by Munakata