Monday, September 21

Farewell

My Fellow Steamlanders,

Steelhead is gone. Yes, a slice of it has been saved with a new sign over Nevermoor, but the land of the Weird West, Gaslamp Fantasy and Steampunk Nouveau has passed into legend. It was my home for nine years. Fifty-four years if you count SL's sun rotations, but I digress. 

I wandered in because a friend needed a dance partner for the ball. I never left. I became their Demon Sheriff. Then I became their doctor and the resident Mad Scientist. I invited friends into the world who are still with us, and still entertain you. I made the first clumsy design for Steelhead's flag. I might have even been their Mayor for a day, just before Lunar-san took the oath...the lines of succession were murky back then. I made more than my share of mistakes I admit. But I acted out of love for my home and my neighbors. I pray that my exploits have entertained you more than they have agonized you.

And as that wonderfully bohemian harbor of eccentricity fades into memory, so must I. Please consider me retired and in seclusion. My kin are scattered about the continuum of time and space on one heroic campaign or another, but out of reach. As for the Demon? He continues to weave through the shadows of our dreams. I pray he leaves us alone for another seven generations before his ghostly countenance seizes the mind and body of yet another unsuspecting soul and claims it as his own. 

Thank G_d. I am Free. Be Well, My Friends. 

Sincerely and Bittersweet,

Dr. Darien James Mason

P.S. Please forward any remaining concerns to my attorney, Mr. David Littman, Esq., in New Palermo.