LINESII- Into the Darkness- Part III

[Thlayli]

From: The Republic of Neaveritas
To: The Empire of Guangfei

The Empire of Guangfei has offered to eliminate import duties for any item upon which its' neighbors are also willing to eliminate duties. Given the efforts of the Empire to enlighten her less advanced southern neighbors, we can only wish to return your generosity and seek to enlighten the noble people of Guangfei. Therefore, the item upon which we which to eliminate duties is literature. Many new, might we even say revolutionary ideas are being devised by our scholars almost daily, and we could not hope but to spread them with our dearest and closest neighbor.

With luck, Neaveritasan scholarship and ideas shall be provided at low cost to even the poorest of Guangfei's peasants. We hope this message reaches you in health and safety.

 

[alex994]

From: The Republic of Neaveritas
To: The Empire of Guangfei

The Empire of Guangfei has offered to eliminate import duties for any item upon which its' neighbors are also willing to eliminate duties. Given the efforts of the Empire to enlighten her less advanced southern neighbors, we can only wish to return your generosity and seek to enlighten the noble people of Guangfei. Therefore, the item upon which we which to eliminate duties is literature. Many new, might we even say revolutionary ideas are being devised by our scholars almost daily, and we could not hope but to spread them with our dearest and closest neighbor.

With luck, Neaveritasan scholarship and ideas shall be provided at low cost to even the poorest of Guangfei's peasants. We hope this message reaches you in health and safety.

To: The Republic of Neaveritas
From: The Han Empire of Guangfei

While Guangfei appreciates the warm gesture of Neaveritas and states unequivocally that there is much about the Valin race that Guangfei could learn from, Guangfei must state that the Valin offer is somewhat redundant. With the conclusion of the open border agreement by His Imperial Majesty between Guangfei and Neaveritas in the decades past, scholars can move with ease across our respective borders.

As such, it would be foolish for Guangfei to decline such an offer. The Han Empire of Guangfei would not only be receptive to contemporary Valin literature, but we are also receptive to the ancient Valin classics, the written histories of the Valin Republics and their doing, the collected wisdom of Veritas' leaders and all other sorts of knowledge found within the repertoire of Valin writings.

With luck, our populace will be able to understand the simplified and condensed versions, if not the originals, of what Neaveritas can provide to Guangfei. After all, His Imperial Majesty has only spent sums of monies greater than three times Neaveritas' annual tax rolls to educate his people.

His Imperial Majesty would welcome a mutual reduction of tariffs on all written and published works. After all, the Valin tome detailing the sack of Guanzhong by Stratikrator Vandrios and his army can be found within a short distance of His Majesty's bedchamber.

To: The Kingdoms of Rozan and Ecturin
From: The Empire of Guangfei

May our Peace last for ten thousand generations and never fade!

 

[Thlayli]

Novus Ordo

"Second Hexhi Pass was not a Valin victory. More than seventy five percent of the soldiers on that field were Khemran, and Khemran killed Khemran in the last battle of the Anabetan Civil War. In another way, it was the greatest Valin victory of that Age, a victory won by Valins where no purely Valin army had fought."

-High Scholar Evendarion Xenas, History of the Valin Republics

"The Valin people will soon discover that they are a bastion of reason, not superstition. We stand trembling at the dawn of this new era."

-Autorex Tactius

Prologue:

"Have you considered, Scholar Arvinia, that a mode of logic can be applied to moving bodies?"

The female scholar tilted her head, considering the point. "How so?"

"I find that all celestial bodies thus discovered are spheres. All those planets which we are able to observe, our moon Celestus, and our fair star Techné, have acquired a similar shape."

Arvinia considered this loftily. She was of proud birth; from one of the families that could trace their lineage back to the Second Exile. Her high cheekbones, blanched skin, and raven hair signified blood purity. It was the only reason she could pursue such questions here.

"The One established the order of the cosmos, so we must see the sphere as his selection of the most pleasing shape."

"Yes yes," her colleague said impatiently, "but the One Incarnate has removed from our world since the time of Pacian. Why do we observe no celestial cubes or pyramids?"

"Equidistant points," she finally pronounced.

"What?"

"Within the Unian framework of the physical, all points upon the surface of a sphere are equidistant from its' center. Consider how smaller bodies are attracted into the orbit of larger bodies. Upon a social, political, and celestial scale, this makes itself manifest."

"This reminds me of the Old Veritasan scrolls describing the world as a circle bounded by seas."

"The Ancients have led us to the truth!" she exclaimed excitedly. "Except instead of being bound by seas, celestial spheres are bound by..." she trailed off.

"By what? Bound by what?"

"By...force."

---

In Valin history, the period between 1000-2000 is often called the Lost Interregnum. [To some, the Interregnum is the period between the death of Strategius and the death of Tactius] While the Valin people expanded outward, the Sack of Veritas, destruction of the Old Veritasan libraries during the War of the White Rose, and the pillaging of Redemption and razing of Pax by Bladeist invaders made documentation of the cultural and social achievements of this period quite difficult.

The lack of documentation is due to the constant, all-consuming wars of the Republics, which de-prioritized education and literacy. The constant pressure on the Republics caused children to be sent to martial training instead of academies, and the need to defend one's home was considered more important than skills such as reading and writing. The fabled high literacy and culture of the Old Republic were lost.

The Second Autoregium changed this, as an army of clerks and scribes was recruited to set the finances and administration of Neaveritas in order. The Sophian Academy began as an effort to increase the number of literates serving the ruling class. After Tactius' death, it morphed into an elite gathering place for leading scholars to develop theories, debate philosophy in the traditional style, and enter into dialog with their wealthy patrons. This state of affairs would continue for some time.

 

[The Farow]

Lord Iggy for my project could you change it to 40 caravels instead of galleys? I do not mind if the project's cost increases to reflect the change.

 

[Thlayli]

From: The Republic of Neaveritas
To: The Empire of Guangfei

Yes, some choice items from the sack remain preserved in our Stratikrator's Citadel. We find them pleasing to occasionally present to Han emissaries.

That the Han people can be both so educated and so obedient is remarkable. Truly the lot of the numberless, endless plain of subservient subjects in the Empire of Guangfei is far superior to that of princes and lords in lesser nations. Qingdao shall see our finest books on political theory even as Guangzhong sees translations of our greatest tomes of Old Veritasan knowledge.

 

[alex994]

From: The Republic of Neaveritas
To: The Empire of Guangfei

Yes, some choice items from the sack remain preserved in our Stratikrator's Citadel. We find them pleasing to occasionally present to Han emissaries.

That the Han people can be both so educated and so obedient is remarkable. Truly the lot of the numberless, endless plain of subservient subjects in the Empire of Guangfei is far superior to that of princes and lords in lesser nations. Qingdao shall see our finest books on political theory even as Guangzhong sees translations of our greatest tomes of Old Veritasan knowledge.

To: The Republic of Neaveritas
From: The Han Empire of Guangfei

Nonsense! His Imperial Majesty insists that the finest books on political theory as well as translations of the tomes of Old Veritasian knowledge be made available to all of Guangfei.

 

[Thlayli]

We were using symbolism, a finer vocabularial finesse with which the Han may be unfamiliar. Obviously any books will be supplied where they are demanded.

 

[alex994]

We were using symbolism, a finer vocabularial finesse with which the Han may be unfamiliar. Obviously any books will be supplied where they are demanded.

Guangfei was only worried that Valin production capabilities may need additional time to produce the necessary books. Since that does not seem to be the case, Guangfei thanks Neaveritas.

 

[Lord_Iggy]

OOC: I'll keep that in mind.

A FYI to all of the nations south of Guangfei, Guangfei currently has scholars in Destre, Magland, Trinlin, and Rozan who are working to improve infrastructure, and generally help around with things. So if you have a change of minds, tell me moose

IC:

To: The Kingdoms of Ecturin and Tishan
From: Empire of Guangfei

Guangfei extends the same offer which she has extended to Destre, Magland, Trinlin and Rozan. We offer to send noted scholars and professions to your two Kingdoms and aid in your respective economic and political developments. Should your Kingdoms be receptive, Guangfei will immediately dispatch emissaries to your respective capitals to further discuss and show Guangfei's good will.

To: Emperor Diankang of Guangfei
From: King Merekmayan of Tishan

Your wisdom and generosity would be most welcome and appreciated. Your wisemen will be greeted with open arms.

Lord Iggy for my project could you change it to 40 caravels instead of galleys? I do not mind if the project's cost increases to reflect the change.

Certainly. It might increase the price slightly, however- I'll give it some consideration. Just mention it in your orders.

Awesome diplomacy guys! If jalapeno_dude does not post by tomorrow, I will take over command of the Citadel for this update, and further if necessary.

 

[Kraznaya]

Iggy, please address the PM I sent you.

 

[The Farow]

From Croyodon
To Dengarai

We purpose a defensive pact to ensure that the gains we have made in the conflict with Gorin are protected and to help promote stability in the region.

 

[Shadowbound]

From Croyodon
To Dengarai

We purpose a defensive pact to ensure that the gains we have made in the conflict with Gorin are protected and to help promote stability in the region.

The Council of Chera can readily agree with these goals. We so sign.

 

[Kentharu]

when are orders due

 

[Lord_Iggy]

Last summer I said that they'd be due at the end of May... so... today. I'm starting on the update with the orders that I already have, at any rate.

 

[Oruc]

Ahh crap I still have 3 stories to do.

 

[Thlayli]

Last summer I said that they'd be due at the end of May... so... today. I'm starting on the update with the orders that I already have, at any rate.

Oy vey Iggy, some people like reminders a year after the fact.

 

[Kentharu]

What Thy said >.>

I sent some anyway.

 

[Thlayli]

Also, it's really not fair to be starting the update without giving us ANY input as promised from the Citadel. We need something to go on if jal isn't around.

 

[Thlayli]

Novus Ordo

"Serve the principle, not the man."

-Autorex Strategius (apocryphal)

Part One:

Written in the two thousand one hundred and second year after the Exodus of the Valin Peoples and Foundation of Veritas.

Nikkal-Rae was a false god, an artificial god, and a political god. This god was not a deity as much as a symbol of the union between Khemri and Kehexou, and of the divinity of our ruler. In time, we allowed our practices to become hybrids and perversions of what they were, mixing elementalist Kehexou worship with old gnostic, knowledge-seeking traditions of Khemran polytheism. Even our OLDEST texts speak of Nikkal and Rae as separate deities, that were combined for the sake of simplicity in our rites!

It was a false union and a false god.

We repudiate this faith for what it was: a false manifestation. Under the Ptolemaic faith of Aegypt or Andues, as it is called, the King was the divine manifestation of order and light.

Why would a divine manifestation allow a plague to sweep through Khemran cities, a plague that left the Valin lands of Neaveritas untouched?

How could a divine manifestation become less powerful even than his lords, and rely on them for service, but in reality granting them independence in his lands?

Is it possible that a divine manifestation could be defeated in battle by Lord Anabet, imprisoned in a fortress under siege for many years, and finally captured and forced to flee to the Valin lands?

The Archos Ptolemaios, the god-man that we thought Nikkal-Rae embodied, was a sham. Prince Khoraeus, lord of men, has enlightened us with the true power of the One. His reign is one of logic and order, not the diverse, mystical traditions rooted in the gnostic polytheism that we have come to reject.

The Ptolemaics live, but they reside now in a Valin city, ruling over a Valin people. The old Lord Anabet, who claimed the legacy of the Kingdom and the embodiment of the divine has passed on, left no heir, and allowed his generals to be defeated and his lands occupied. All our physical leaders have failed us, except Lord Khoraeus, the magnificent prince who has restored Khadon to her capitoline glory.

We understand now that Nikkal-Rae was but a confusion and an echo of the One's Holy Presence, which has been known to us this many years, but obscured by our hatred of the Valins, and our wars with them. The divine cannot be incarnate in a human, but in the divine.

While we cannot agree with all the rites and customs of the Valins, they have freed us of our contempt for the One. We must re-examine our myths, dispose of all our false traditions and rituals, and convene to form a new, Aegyptian rite. No longer shall our faith be political, but spiritual.

I endorse and convert to the faith and worship of the One, and entreat my priests, hierophants, acolytes, and all ecclesiastes to do the same. We must begin the great task of establishing a new order, rooted in Khemran culture, but acknowledging Light, Truth, and Order. Nikkal-Rae is not simply dead. Nikkal-Rae never was.

Now we move from worshipping the shadow to worshipping the Light which has cast it. May we be forgiven for our age-old sins.

Kyklos Naphar, High Priest of Alexandria

 

[Kal'thzar]

Thats funny Thy.