Mixing Science Fiction, Future Fantasy and Magic Into Reality

My current novel is Rumors of War, the first of a series of books called The Deck Const. It takes place eighty or so years in the future after civilization has crumbled. The main character is The Soldier, and he's on an endless quest to find the lost talisman, The Deck Const. Anyway, without getting into all of the specifics, one thing I have found somewhat difficult is to integrate a very serious story of a tragic future with magical elements. The world I have created is one where magic does not exist, so it is not a typical fantasy land, but there are certain elements that transcend normality, such as seers and predestiny. This requires having to walk a very fine line of keeping it real while allowing the fantasy elements to shine through as well in a world where it might just not belong.

To do this, I've revisited the old style of magic inherent in religious history, where clerics would research advanced science to appear to be working magic, yet be following the simple laws of physics and chemistry. In a typical fantasy story, like my Reagul series, you can get away with having a magic user like a sorceror or witch, but when characters are carrying M16s and .357 Magnums, driving around in Humvees, finger waving and doing magic seems a lot more out of place.

One thing I have attempted to do is to keep the main character just as uncomfortable with magic in his world as I am. When something unnatural takes place, he feels it, and the story reflects that in the characters themselves who become very offset by magical elements, like a seer or someone who meets The Soldier and speaks of having known he was going to show up because of a prophecy that was passed down over generations.

The world itself is a lot more fun to play around with, as it begins in San Francisco, continues to Los Angeles and concludes in Las Vegas (for the first book). Each one of these places becomes a caricature of itself by becoming a full blown overrepresentation of what we know about these places (Los Angeles is ruled by movie studios that fight battles with real weapons; the people of Las Vegas gamble their lives on one chance to become nobility or slaves; etc.). The atmosphere of the world itself is extremely dark, and it has been a lot of fun to bring it to light with an equally dark character who is unsure as to whether or not his task in life is for good or bad, having lived most of his life before the quest in very gray areas of decision-making.

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