Vyasa's Jade Elephant is an artifact featured in "The Big Snag".
Origin[]
This jade elephant sculpture was made into an artifact by the revered Hindu scribe Vyasa, the author of the Vedas, as a result of his work with electricity.
Effects[]
This artifact has the ability to store electrical energy. Its storage capacity is limited, and charging it beyond its capacity causes it to shoot bolts of electricity uncontrollably.
Electricity can also be emitted at the will of its holder, and is powerful enough to kill humans. It is unclear if it can do so without having to absorb any first, or if it must always be charged. Whenever it emits electricity, it trumpets like a true elephant.
History[]
The elephant is used in conjunction with a battery backpack to safely absorb errant static balls in the Warehouse. When the elephant is fully charged, it is placed onto a stand connected to the backpack to drain the elephant's energy into it.[1]
Pete Lattimer and Myka Bering used the elephant and backpack to absorb static balls in the Warehouse's library. Pete accidentally charged the elephant beyond its capacity, preventing him from draining it in time and causing it to fire electricity erratically. This sent pages of Anthony Bishop's Manuscript flying around them, trapping them and itself inside of it.[1]
The elephant took the place of the manuscript's central MacGuffin, becoming a magical object uncovered by the fictional Oliver Carson in an archeological dig prior to the novel's beginning. The elephant was desired by collector Caspian Barnabas, and stolen by Oliver's wife Rebecca to kill them both with it. Rebecca later nearly killed Pete with it, and then used it to try and kill Pete, Myka, Bishop, and Lily Abbott. When the story was given an ending, the elephant was returned to reality along with Pete and Myka.[1]
It was later stolen and used by the evil Benedict Valda from Paracelsus' alternate timeline to kill Mr. Keeler and infiltrate the Regent Vault to steal the handle of Hiram Abiff's Setting Maul.[2]
Real World Connection[]
Vyasa is the title given to Krishna Dvaipayana, a legendary Hindu sage and scribe known for dividing the Veda, the Hindu holy book, into four parts (the Vedas). "Vyasa" is a Sanskrit term that means "compiler" or "arranger", or "separation" or "division", referring to his work.
In real life, Vyasa is not known to have worked with electricity. This claim may have been mistakenly conflated from another Hindu sage, Agastya. In the early 20th century, a manuscript was discovered that was claimed to have been written by Agastya that described the process of making a dry electric battery, but the authenticity of its origin or the historicity of its contents are unproven.[3]
Gallery[]
TBA