End of Empires - N3S III
- Thread starter North King
- Start date
Ancient Rihnit Poem
Amidr taoatia jakao maiosa, maiosa omadoo kep Arosaon ni ari ta sadikaha diaomaqi umarati koma Rihnit.
Banamata kat akija aro okataoka dikamoa atra aro ta kep nga ni kep aro naga.
Oja taokma dibuni grasoalat ara ni kep ikaduha ni kiatha, Okadjakora qiagakidjama okama kep arongana.
English Translation
Spoiler :
Tambien
Theseus, Duke of Athens
TO World
FROM His Imperial Majesty, King of the Four Quarters of the Earth, Emperor of the Dulama Caril XX
Let it be hereby be known that His Imperial Majesty has grown learned in the ways of Machaianism. Through this knowledge, it has become apparent that the Spirit encompasses all things, not just Machaianist believers. As such, His Imperial Majesty has determined that the different belief systems are all, ultimately, different paths to the same destination. Knowing this, His Imperial Mjaesty hereby issues the following Edict and encourages all brothers in Machai to do the same.
FROM His Imperial Majesty, King of the Four Quarters of the Earth, Emperor of the Dulama Caril XX
Let it be hereby be known that His Imperial Majesty has grown learned in the ways of Machaianism. Through this knowledge, it has become apparent that the Spirit encompasses all things, not just Machaianist believers. As such, His Imperial Majesty has determined that the different belief systems are all, ultimately, different paths to the same destination. Knowing this, His Imperial Mjaesty hereby issues the following Edict and encourages all brothers in Machai to do the same.
I suppose, in the sense that it's the only current religion to condone human sacrifice. There's not been much (any?) development beyond NK's description on the Wiki article, though, and that doesn't sound too violent.
However, the Dulama Empire doesn't follow the Dulama religion any more. Back when alex controlled the Dulama, he converted the empire to Machaianism officially (at the same time the capital was moved to Mora, I think). The traditional Dulama religion still exists, but the vast majority of its followers are in the Vithanama Empire (which contains the historical Dulama heartland around Dula and where the Dulama religion forms a solid majority), not the Dulama Empire remnant. While the empire was still united, there were significant tensions between the Dulama-religion-following east and the Machaianist court, but oppressing the Dulama religion was never realistic. It's not surprising that, with most of the followers of the Dulama religion no longer in the empire, the empire would turn against the Dulama religion more completely, though calling it "sadistic" is a bit overstated. (On the other hand, turning against the traditional religion completely carries significant political risks vis-a-vis the Vithanama.)
Jehoshua
Catholic
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I would hazard a guess that the Dulama do not see their traditional religion as sadistic, but rather see death in the context of human sacrifice as a merciful end to suffering, and a liberation from the clutches of the God of Death. However the law is still foolish methinks, it will likely come back to bite him eventually.
Tambien
Theseus, Duke of Athens
If I remember correctly from my reading, sacrificial death weakens the God of Death's hold on the living. The end goal is to remove his power from the world completely.
As for the law, it is there to serve a purpose which is well worth the risks.
As for the law, it is there to serve a purpose which is well worth the risks.
Perfectionist
Angel of Verdun
Screwing up my courage and taking the League of Gallasa
Jehoshua
Catholic
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2009
- Messages
- 7,284
Portents in the Heavens
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-
A new star burned in the firmament, brighter than all the other stars in the sky. At its coming, in all quarters of the world, it was not unnoticed, and in the days since its appearance much thought had been given to interpreting this sign given from heaven, for it is known that written into the stars are portents of things to come. However interpretation of omens as with most things in the mundane world of mortals was always contested and so from the deserts of the Savirai to the mysterious kingdoms of the west many prophets, mystics and other harbingers of doom peddled varying interpretations of what this great change in the heavens meant for those on earth.
In the Holy City it was much the same, within the hallowed halls of the Grand Patriarchs residence beyond the hustle and bustle of the winding maze of streets, which as always seethed with constant activity and business unmoved with scrying the heavens and ignorant of the higher mysteries contained within, the Grand Patriarch and a pair of Hierophants (Oporeastin), those priestly scholars and mystics who spent their time discerning the will of Opporia through signs and meditation were discussing this new star...
"Some in the Farubaida say this star heralds the emergence of a new avatar of their false goddess what do they call it... the Aitah!, hmph, the absurdity!"
Oporeastar Ijayasan scoffed at the latest reports from a certain well-known astrologer from the city of Karoha, who proclaimed the emergence of a new incarnation of the Aitah as he peered over arcane charts, and starmaps inscribed with icons of the constellations and particular stars.
"ah yes, truly absurd" Oporeastar Etraxetas intoned "but we can not discount that it represents the ascendancy of the so-called fifth Aitah, and the decline of Maninism in the North. Such a new star in the unchanging firmament most certainly heralds great change, even the barbarians of the steppe know that!"
"Yes change, but surely the heavens would not herald the coming of a false-goddess, a woman like any other no?" said Ijayasan
"Of course not, but the false-goddess is peripheral to the great shift occurring there. It heralds the reorienting of the North, the decline of one power and the rise of another, I must insist"
The Grand Patriarch continued to listen to the Oporeastin discuss the peculiarities of the stars location in the heavens, and its relationship to previous celestial events. Foolishness over trifles, he thought. The new star did of course herald change, omens always did, it did perhaps even reflect upon the events stirring even now in the far north, or perhaps even a multitude of inter-related shifts, the heavens after all were filled with explicit and implicit meanings. The new star however he felt was a portent of much more, such a great change, such a clear and ominous portent heralded the coming of a truly great shift in the mortal world, something that was not restricted to the raging of the heathens, or to one part of the realms of men, but rather one which would leave nowhere and no one untouched. Grand Patriarch Aisen coughed to get the attention of the Oporeastin and began to speak.
"It means war"
The Oporeastin looked and began to speak, the Grand Patriarch raised a hand to silence them.
"Not a war of the same kind as was seen in the War of the Empty Throne, portents of the kind we are discussing do not herald such things. No what this new star, which burns brighter than all the others heralds is a war the likes this world has never seen, which from the east unto the uttermost west will burn throughout the realms of men leaving none untouched by its passing. A war in which spiritual forces as much as the armies of men will wage battle over the fate of this world."
The Grand-Patriarch turned to look out of the window over the rooftops of the Holy City, an ancient city untouched by war and which would hopefully remain as such for millennia to come.
"Most Holy Grand Patriarch" Ijayasan said "surely we must pray that what you say this star heralds will not come to pass, or at the very least that it does not come too soon if you are right"
The Grand-Patriarch smiled "It is true, we do not know the hour when this war will come. Perhaps it will come at a late hour or emerge from the War of the Fifth Aitah as an inferno rises from a spark. Either way, when it comes it shall surely strike when we least suspect it. We have been warned, now we must prepare."
The Grand Patriarch continued to talk to the Oporeastin, as the people of Opios continued serenely as ever in the evening. The new star burned brightly on the horizon to the east as the sun passed beneath the edge of the world. The light faded and day turned into night.
Thlayli
Le Pétit Prince
From: The Karapeshai Exatai
To: The League of Gallasa, The Airani Roshate
It will be known for all the ages that the Aitahists promised peace with silken tongues. But when their moment came, they burned. There are no Aitahist innocents; every one of them are liars and slaves.
The Concord of Sirasona will not be defied. The death of the innocent follower of the Manin will not be in vain.
We will march. And we will win.
To: The League of Gallasa, The Airani Roshate
It will be known for all the ages that the Aitahists promised peace with silken tongues. But when their moment came, they burned. There are no Aitahist innocents; every one of them are liars and slaves.
The Concord of Sirasona will not be defied. The death of the innocent follower of the Manin will not be in vain.
We will march. And we will win.
TheMeanestGuest
Warlord
To the Dual Empire of the Savirai and the Nahari
From the Republic of the Daharai
The Republic has been well pleased by the gentle hand with which the Emperor Qasaarai has governed the Sacred Isle of Dinyart, but no man lives forever. We know the Emperor Qasaarai goes to war against the distant Satar, and the Daharai wonder if that Isle or its people shall then hold a place within his heart. It may even be that the Emperor Qasaarai should not return from his war, for we have heard the Satar terrible and vicious foes. The Daharai should then fear for the fate of that place were it deprived of the Emperor's protection.
The Daharai would have Dinyart returned to the bosom of Spitos, so that our minds may be eased. We are generous, and would not insult the Savirai, and would offer to them a sum of 2500 measures of fine silver as our price.
From the Republic of the Daharai
The Republic has been well pleased by the gentle hand with which the Emperor Qasaarai has governed the Sacred Isle of Dinyart, but no man lives forever. We know the Emperor Qasaarai goes to war against the distant Satar, and the Daharai wonder if that Isle or its people shall then hold a place within his heart. It may even be that the Emperor Qasaarai should not return from his war, for we have heard the Satar terrible and vicious foes. The Daharai should then fear for the fate of that place were it deprived of the Emperor's protection.
The Daharai would have Dinyart returned to the bosom of Spitos, so that our minds may be eased. We are generous, and would not insult the Savirai, and would offer to them a sum of 2500 measures of fine silver as our price.
Jehoshua
Catholic
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2009
- Messages
- 7,284
ooc: 2500 measures of fine silver for a sacred Island TMG? if that translates as 2500 economic points... well lets just say that wouldn't buy you a seminary in Opios. In fact what it would buy you according to the guide for such matters is approximately 2.5 temples.
das
Regeneration In Process
Chief-of-Chiefs Second-Gaci crossed the Kotthorns and conquered Bisria, and founded the city of his fathers name halfway between the old lands of the Moti and his new realm. This was the start of the Holy Moti Empire, and of Gaci-City, and also of bureaucracy. For Second-Gaci had made Gaci-City the capital of the Empire, and has affixed all government to it. He bid the council of the Families to meet there every year to carry out his will in the old lands, and paid officials from among the locals to administer the new lands, much in the manner of those who had ruled it before, except inasmuch as the seat of their government was also in his fathers city.
Then the pious Chief-of-Chiefs Third-Gaci went further in his reign. Not only did he defeat the Satar and uphold the unity of the Church (much like it is being done today, in answer to the relapse of the intervening years and also as the consequence of new decisions reached within the Church itself), but he also curbed the animal pride of the Families and extended organised government to the old Moti lands and all the other territories. The Church established schools to train people, Godlike and human, Moti and Bisrian alike, so that they could serve the Chief-of-Chiefs will and assist him in the establishment of good governance throughout the Empire.
But it was Chief-of-Chiefs Fourth-Gaci, the unifier of the Uggor peoples and the first to be called Ayasi, who had found the time and care amidst his many wars and enterprises to create our small office. A number of well-read bureaucrats were set aside under Werci of the Elephant Family to work as palace historians, attached to the court, given access to its archives and ordered to write down and study the Empires history and antiquity without passion or prejudice, in devotion to Opporias Truth and the Ayasi. He did so, because he had heard of the great historiographers of the East, and did not wish for such ignorant people to be able to claim that they exceed the Empire of Iralliam in learning; yet also, he wished for the glory of the Empire to be enshrined and the mistakes of its rulers to be remembered so as not to be repeated for none, he said in the last year of his life, are perfectly good other than Opporia, and even faithful and well-intentioned Emperors can make mistakes. In this he showed remarkable wisdom and humility, for many vain rulers in the world would rather have the histories praise them, but not blame them, painting a white picture: yet would that not be a denial of Istria? And is not denying Istria the surest sign of falling victim to his schemes?
For this exact reason it needs to be said that Ayasi Third-Frei and Ayasi Fifth-Gaci (though that one does deserve great honour for the liberation of the Sesh and his heroic death in battle with the Satar) were often ill-inclined to heed their predecessors wisdom, and sought to have only praise and glory in their histories; and worse, that those whose duty it was to respond with the truth often fell into false flattery or shameful sycophancy, in their reigns and sometimes even later. Yet others then restored the honour of the office.
Some say the reign of Ayasi Fourth-Frei was that of languor, yet he had brought order and much-needed regularity to the court and the aristocracy of the Empire. Our department had thrived under him, too: it was greatly expanded and charged with tracking the histories of families and lineages of all of the Imperial Nobility, Moti, Bisrian and other. I am too young to have been there then, but my master, Beraci of Lumada-City may Opporia take him had told me that we were held in great honour in those days.
I, Vati of Gaci-City, had been fathered by a tax-collector and born to a merchants daughter, at the beginning of Ayasi Fifth-Freis reign. My father fell sick and died not long after my birth, but my mother had enough money left to send me to a school. There I had learned to read and write, to count and to stargaze, and to know and follow the light of Iralliam. I was a promising student, and so I was accepted as an apprentice scribe at the palaces historiographical chamber. Beraci saw my talents and kindly permitted me to take on more important work, before I became a full historian.
Ayasi Fifth-Frei was the opposite of Ayasi Fourth-Frei. Inexperienced and young, he exhibited nothing like languor, and instead rushed off to fight the resistors of the Church in the south at the advice of his brother and traders. Yet after coming back, he had changed, and confidently grabbed the Empire by its chains. Thus he pushed through reforms of the Church, though those were later recognised as necessary; he redistributed available or conquered lands among his friends and allies; and he remade the bureaucracy as his father had done for the hereditary nobility yet our service here was more limited, and most of all we advised the Order of Faith.
So what came after Ayasi Fifth-Frei struck us all like lightning that came out of a clear sky although perhaps the signs were already there, and we simply dismissed them as outrageous gossip and idle talk. For the new ruler, Ayasi First-Lerai, was not a man of religion or culture. He was, they said, in comfort at the saddle, never on the throne so much that some alleged he was a bastard child of the now Dowager Empress Laira-Freia and a Tamed Satar bodyguard, though surely that was nonsense. Yet it was true that he disdained the court, its celebrations and its ceremonies, and when not traveling in the Empire, had begun to cut down on its extravagance. Yet even then, we did not think that he would count us among it, or that he would decide to close what Fourth-Gaci had opened!
Ours was a treasury of knowledge and a repository of ancient honour; despite our individual failings and vices, our office as a whole was a bastion of scholarly, courtly and human virtues. That was a great thing, to be proud of; a great gift from Opporia and the Ayasi that we were to take care of. So with trepidation yet also with resolve I accepted the Ayasis offer, though I know not why he had chosen me. The historiographers were dismissed, but history was not over, and I needed to write it down. And the Ayasi told me to do just that, for apparently he did have need for at least one historian as he left the capital once again to inspect his fortifications. Thus I was told to go with him and record what I saw and heard what he said and did. And so, without passion or prejudice, and in devotion to Opporias Truth and the Ayasi, I began writing this.
Then the pious Chief-of-Chiefs Third-Gaci went further in his reign. Not only did he defeat the Satar and uphold the unity of the Church (much like it is being done today, in answer to the relapse of the intervening years and also as the consequence of new decisions reached within the Church itself), but he also curbed the animal pride of the Families and extended organised government to the old Moti lands and all the other territories. The Church established schools to train people, Godlike and human, Moti and Bisrian alike, so that they could serve the Chief-of-Chiefs will and assist him in the establishment of good governance throughout the Empire.
But it was Chief-of-Chiefs Fourth-Gaci, the unifier of the Uggor peoples and the first to be called Ayasi, who had found the time and care amidst his many wars and enterprises to create our small office. A number of well-read bureaucrats were set aside under Werci of the Elephant Family to work as palace historians, attached to the court, given access to its archives and ordered to write down and study the Empires history and antiquity without passion or prejudice, in devotion to Opporias Truth and the Ayasi. He did so, because he had heard of the great historiographers of the East, and did not wish for such ignorant people to be able to claim that they exceed the Empire of Iralliam in learning; yet also, he wished for the glory of the Empire to be enshrined and the mistakes of its rulers to be remembered so as not to be repeated for none, he said in the last year of his life, are perfectly good other than Opporia, and even faithful and well-intentioned Emperors can make mistakes. In this he showed remarkable wisdom and humility, for many vain rulers in the world would rather have the histories praise them, but not blame them, painting a white picture: yet would that not be a denial of Istria? And is not denying Istria the surest sign of falling victim to his schemes?
For this exact reason it needs to be said that Ayasi Third-Frei and Ayasi Fifth-Gaci (though that one does deserve great honour for the liberation of the Sesh and his heroic death in battle with the Satar) were often ill-inclined to heed their predecessors wisdom, and sought to have only praise and glory in their histories; and worse, that those whose duty it was to respond with the truth often fell into false flattery or shameful sycophancy, in their reigns and sometimes even later. Yet others then restored the honour of the office.
Some say the reign of Ayasi Fourth-Frei was that of languor, yet he had brought order and much-needed regularity to the court and the aristocracy of the Empire. Our department had thrived under him, too: it was greatly expanded and charged with tracking the histories of families and lineages of all of the Imperial Nobility, Moti, Bisrian and other. I am too young to have been there then, but my master, Beraci of Lumada-City may Opporia take him had told me that we were held in great honour in those days.
I, Vati of Gaci-City, had been fathered by a tax-collector and born to a merchants daughter, at the beginning of Ayasi Fifth-Freis reign. My father fell sick and died not long after my birth, but my mother had enough money left to send me to a school. There I had learned to read and write, to count and to stargaze, and to know and follow the light of Iralliam. I was a promising student, and so I was accepted as an apprentice scribe at the palaces historiographical chamber. Beraci saw my talents and kindly permitted me to take on more important work, before I became a full historian.
Ayasi Fifth-Frei was the opposite of Ayasi Fourth-Frei. Inexperienced and young, he exhibited nothing like languor, and instead rushed off to fight the resistors of the Church in the south at the advice of his brother and traders. Yet after coming back, he had changed, and confidently grabbed the Empire by its chains. Thus he pushed through reforms of the Church, though those were later recognised as necessary; he redistributed available or conquered lands among his friends and allies; and he remade the bureaucracy as his father had done for the hereditary nobility yet our service here was more limited, and most of all we advised the Order of Faith.
So what came after Ayasi Fifth-Frei struck us all like lightning that came out of a clear sky although perhaps the signs were already there, and we simply dismissed them as outrageous gossip and idle talk. For the new ruler, Ayasi First-Lerai, was not a man of religion or culture. He was, they said, in comfort at the saddle, never on the throne so much that some alleged he was a bastard child of the now Dowager Empress Laira-Freia and a Tamed Satar bodyguard, though surely that was nonsense. Yet it was true that he disdained the court, its celebrations and its ceremonies, and when not traveling in the Empire, had begun to cut down on its extravagance. Yet even then, we did not think that he would count us among it, or that he would decide to close what Fourth-Gaci had opened!
Ours was a treasury of knowledge and a repository of ancient honour; despite our individual failings and vices, our office as a whole was a bastion of scholarly, courtly and human virtues. That was a great thing, to be proud of; a great gift from Opporia and the Ayasi that we were to take care of. So with trepidation yet also with resolve I accepted the Ayasis offer, though I know not why he had chosen me. The historiographers were dismissed, but history was not over, and I needed to write it down. And the Ayasi told me to do just that, for apparently he did have need for at least one historian as he left the capital once again to inspect his fortifications. Thus I was told to go with him and record what I saw and heard what he said and did. And so, without passion or prejudice, and in devotion to Opporias Truth and the Ayasi, I began writing this.
It is the middle of nothing and a tight breeze, the only breeze that day, flings her long skirts out like those of a dancing girl; yet not even this serves to loose the dust that clings to her damp hair and sweat smeared clothes. Several hours ago now, the night fled routed by Haiao's smile which soon turned the world to water that she knows she will never reach.
She has seen deserts before. She grew up in one, she thinks. But this, this is no desert, nothing but silence and sand. The first night she heard wolves and it gave her heart but she has not heard wolves since then. The second day vultures rose about her to hover in anticipation of a meal. But on the third day she saw no vultures and on this her sixth day she has not seen any life; not even a wind that might when it breathes trick her mind into hearing life.
For miles around, perhaps hundreds of miles, there is not a living thing save she.
This breeze which blew her is not a natural thing she knows. She sees no movement on the dunes, the sand of which has it seems charred under Haiao's gaze. The silence where sound should be is one of the signs. She stops and begins to sing the songs that tame the winds.
She has seen deserts before. She grew up in one, she thinks. But this, this is no desert, nothing but silence and sand. The first night she heard wolves and it gave her heart but she has not heard wolves since then. The second day vultures rose about her to hover in anticipation of a meal. But on the third day she saw no vultures and on this her sixth day she has not seen any life; not even a wind that might when it breathes trick her mind into hearing life.
For miles around, perhaps hundreds of miles, there is not a living thing save she.
This breeze which blew her is not a natural thing she knows. She sees no movement on the dunes, the sand of which has it seems charred under Haiao's gaze. The silence where sound should be is one of the signs. She stops and begins to sing the songs that tame the winds.
To: World
From: The Empire of Trahana
After negotiations conducted at our behest, we are proud to announce the Peace of Ther, agreed to by the nations of the Dulama, Naran, Noaunnaha and Ther. May all be one in Machai.
From: The Empire of Trahana
After negotiations conducted at our behest, we are proud to announce the Peace of Ther, agreed to by the nations of the Dulama, Naran, Noaunnaha and Ther. May all be one in Machai.
The Peace of Ther
1. The nations of the Dulama, Naran, Noaunnaha and Ther agree to cease all hostilities between their peoples.
2. Naran agrees to withdraw its forces from the pre-war boundaries of the Dulama Empire.
3. Noaunnaha agrees to withdraw its forces from the pre-war boundaries of the Dulama Empire, and to cease its blockade of Dulama ports and trade.
4. The Dulama Empire agrees to withdraw its forces from the pre-war boundaries of Ther, and to return the city of Ther to control of its people.
5. The Dulama, Naran, Noaunnaha and Ther agree to strive together for peace and prosperity in the region.
6. The Empire of Trahana, having assisted in the negotiations of this peace between our friends and fellows in the Machai, guarantees its effect.
Let all be agreed.
1. The nations of the Dulama, Naran, Noaunnaha and Ther agree to cease all hostilities between their peoples.
2. Naran agrees to withdraw its forces from the pre-war boundaries of the Dulama Empire.
3. Noaunnaha agrees to withdraw its forces from the pre-war boundaries of the Dulama Empire, and to cease its blockade of Dulama ports and trade.
4. The Dulama Empire agrees to withdraw its forces from the pre-war boundaries of Ther, and to return the city of Ther to control of its people.
5. The Dulama, Naran, Noaunnaha and Ther agree to strive together for peace and prosperity in the region.
6. The Empire of Trahana, having assisted in the negotiations of this peace between our friends and fellows in the Machai, guarantees its effect.
Let all be agreed.
Tambien
Theseus, Duke of Athens
OOC: This is but one purpose among many. 
Terrance888
Discord Reigns
You shake a bit in your loose breeches and tight armbands. You tried justifying what you see. They are barbarians, they are copying civilized institutions... quite inaccurately, or so you mentally sputter. The few scrolls your master gave you for this journey felt light, insignificant compared to the massive warehouses and circular, well-like halls. Hopefully, the knowledge you have gathered in your head is worth enough to catch the attention of the Archivers.
As you walk towards your destination you take a closer look at your fellow Archivers. Merchants come to read records of their competitors. Great speculators and lords attempt to wrest the future from documents of past harvests, betting on the rise and fall of spice prices in a side alley against an imposing wall. A troop of cadets marched out, bearing briefings and old war tales in their arms. Their faces range from smugness, to slight confusion on these likely illiterate.
As you near the Great Hall itself, you begun hearing readers, calling out the stories of the past in various languages, mixing together in a strange harmony. From stale records of harvests, disasters, kings, and diseases arose narratives of a war between gods and spirits, great gigantic enemies of the ancients, of treachery, betrayal, and magic.
Magic! Indeed, they are barbaric... Magic isn't real. Is it?
An Archiver greets you and welcomes you into the building itself. The Archives were a hum of activity. Men and women mingled, bags full of scrolls and tablets. Scribes scratched furiously in another room, while the overseer checked for mistakes. Outside, storage buildings... schools actually, which have grew around the original edifice and throbbing with masses of clerks, priests, youths and aged. On one stairway you can see a salt-worn man telling a gripping story about his journey to the far North. Against the wall, several youths scribbled mathematical problems, watched over by a knowing senior.
The Archiver shakes you back into reality. He speaks your language, leaving you somewhat disoriented. At least glad you need not wrap your mind around the complexities of Parthecan any longer, you reply. Whatever the Archives stand for, you are here to represent your Master from the distant west, bring new knowledge in scrolls and lectures purchased, and perhaps... perhaps learn something from these barbarians. Something to bring home, and teach his fellow academics.
Perhaps... they aren't barbarians at all.
As you walk towards your destination you take a closer look at your fellow Archivers. Merchants come to read records of their competitors. Great speculators and lords attempt to wrest the future from documents of past harvests, betting on the rise and fall of spice prices in a side alley against an imposing wall. A troop of cadets marched out, bearing briefings and old war tales in their arms. Their faces range from smugness, to slight confusion on these likely illiterate.
As you near the Great Hall itself, you begun hearing readers, calling out the stories of the past in various languages, mixing together in a strange harmony. From stale records of harvests, disasters, kings, and diseases arose narratives of a war between gods and spirits, great gigantic enemies of the ancients, of treachery, betrayal, and magic.
Magic! Indeed, they are barbaric... Magic isn't real. Is it?
An Archiver greets you and welcomes you into the building itself. The Archives were a hum of activity. Men and women mingled, bags full of scrolls and tablets. Scribes scratched furiously in another room, while the overseer checked for mistakes. Outside, storage buildings... schools actually, which have grew around the original edifice and throbbing with masses of clerks, priests, youths and aged. On one stairway you can see a salt-worn man telling a gripping story about his journey to the far North. Against the wall, several youths scribbled mathematical problems, watched over by a knowing senior.
The Archiver shakes you back into reality. He speaks your language, leaving you somewhat disoriented. At least glad you need not wrap your mind around the complexities of Parthecan any longer, you reply. Whatever the Archives stand for, you are here to represent your Master from the distant west, bring new knowledge in scrolls and lectures purchased, and perhaps... perhaps learn something from these barbarians. Something to bring home, and teach his fellow academics.
Perhaps... they aren't barbarians at all.
