7 ways Cursed Mage flips off the surveillance state
Cursed Mage is dystopian fiction masked as a dark paranormal fantasy. And it flips a giant middle finger to the surveillance state.
That means it’s more than elemental magic, eerie visions, and even political intrigue. It’s a warning wrapped in a spellbinding story.
Between the lines, you’ll find a world where mass surveillance isn’t a conspiracy theory, it’s a daily reality where “institutions” swallow people whole. Unregistered Mages live like hunted animals, and data centers log every coin you spend, word you speak, and move you make.
If you’ve ever traded liberty for convenience, you’re halfway there already. My mission? To make sure you see it coming before it’s too late.
1 – Institutions are all over the place
In Cursed Mage, it becomes clear early that everyone knows about ‘institutions’. They’re places the Vimsinewian government sends people who claim to possess some kind of supernatural ability, and it doesn’t have to be elemental control.
These institutions could be a Mage school, but they might also be hellacious prisons. Where one goes depends on who they are. A Mage, for example, will get different treatment than a Moor (a non-Mage).
2 – Intel uses covert means to locate unregistered Mages
I touch on this in Cursed Mage, but it’s vague. Still, I’ll let you know that Mages working in intel have a way of measuring aether concentration (energy outputs) in a specific area, letting them pinpoint where an unregistered Mage or a group of them may be living if that concentration is higher.
Even worse is that not all unregistered Mages know about this. Those who can keep themselves hidden more than those who think staying “on-the-grid” and using means to cloak themselves in society will do the trick.
3 – The political class keeps an eye out for unregistered Mages
With libertarian concepts scattered throughout this work, you know there will be unregistered Mages popping up. Unregistered Mages don’t believe in the system, and some may even look to build parallel systems.
But the Mage-run political class knows who a lot of these people are, and they secretly spy on them. Other Mages who refuse to conform will register, but covertly operate against the ruling class.
4 – Mages are watched even when registered
There’s no such thing as a Mage the political class can’t find a use for. Whether as covert operatives or disposable cannon fodder, the regime always has a slot for them in its machinery.
And if there’s a Moor who openly questions authority or claims a superpower? They’ll find a way to make them disappear until they become a useful drone.
5 – Mages constantly watch Moors’ bank transactions
While the nation of Vimsinew has no CBDC or stablecoins, it doesn’t mean they don’t lean toward a cashless society. The Vimsinewian Kronor (think US Dollar) is still a thing, but you won’t see many cash-related transactions.
Even some of our brightest characters mindlessly swipe debit cards or use their tech-driven holographic watch phones to make payments. Sounds like soft dystopian fiction clouded in paranormal fantasy, right?
6 – Mages are constantly on their “best behavior” for a reason
Registered Mages and a whole lot of Moors are on their best behavior because the surveillance state is always watching. That would make a technonazi like Larry Ellison proud, even if he’d brand Cursed Mage dangerous fiction for subtly spreading awareness about sickos like him.
Ellison may think he’s fighting for “the greater good” with mass surveillance. But then again, Gellert Grindelwald used that term as his slogan during his reign of terror in the events that took place before the Harry Potter series kicked off.
7 – Vimsinew pretends to be a free country
“Land of the free, home of the brave,” right? Or, as I’ve seen so many misinformed people claim, “Land of the free, because of the brave.”
Yeah, cool story, bros. While I have no doubt the U.S. is a better place to live than China, Iran, Russia, and definitely North Korea, the reality check is that every “proud citizen” of every godforsaken country on the planet thinks that theirs is the best.
Just like many Americans at home who think the U.S. can do no wrong, even when they’re out bombing children or providing the means, guess what? So is Vimsinew, the United States equivalent in Cursed Mage, and the world of Catenary if you haven’t already figured that out.
Only, Vimsinew is even more dystopian and foreshadows the technocratic state America is turning into. And one reason it’s happening is because “the brave” is allowing it while fueling interests overseas, as opposed to humanitarianism, freedom, and democracy, they claim to be fighting for.
And trust me, a young combat veteran named Kaarina Taivalkoski, the one girl in the Catenarian Chronicles Yours Truly would date because she sees through Vimsinew’s lies, drives that point home.
Dive deeper into Cursed Mage
Did I enthrall or offend you with these seven ways my dark paranormal fantasy exposes and flips off the growing surveillance state in the West? If you’re still here, you’re the kind of reader I want in this fight.
Don’t feed the technocrats another data point. Skip the trackers, bypass the middlemen, and get Cursed Mage straight from me at a better price and without putting your purchase into some corporate database.
