From A Manuscript

By: Dortheron Posted on: March 31, 2016

The following is the remains of a once finely crafted manuscript found abandoned in the Dakhota hills. Given the nature of manuscripts and the diverse subject matters found, it is believed that it passed through several people’s possessions. The pages were made from the fine parchment and bound by thick strands of hemp. What is not damaged by exposure to the elements has been burned or torn away.

[The front cover and beginning pages are unaccounted for, thus starting on page six. The writing, where legible, is done in a tight, flowing script and few mistakes or ink blots are found. Several parts are unreadable, due to stains and exposure covering and obscuring any markings. This lasts for three pages]

…[Cau]da Pavonis thus reached out from the ether and revealed their intent. And thus helped shaped the world they had once abandoned after the Fall of the Empire that ruled the world (or as much as they cared to rule). This had a lingering effect of not only casting aside the dominance of herbal remedies, but reintroduced the serious study of the planes to those outside of the circles of Chaos and sha… [unlegible writing]… interesting aspect is the creation of the Rings surrounding Sapience, which not only strike the heartstrings of the poet, but also stir the curiosity of the those wanting to Know. I have often… [unrecoverable]… always been disinterested in the Divine; they have no concern for the Mundane workings of the world, for it has always been Their concerns that they squabble over. Thus I reject Them. Why should I concern myself for Them when they… [another page of indecipherable writings]

[The next section, lasting from approximately page ten to twelve, appears to be an attempt at poetry, possibly towards a lover. The script is long and loose, with long curls and extra flourishes added in. While the main portion is done in black ink, small scratches of colored etches are done of bright blues and greens, the undamaged ones having nautical themes.]

…the sway of the winds Carry me from to you

Spiced rum and tangy fruit Zanzibaar, our private retreat Where the sun-swept sands Held our radiant rendezvous

Zaphar was our second trip The sting of those beasts Were nothing to the pain Of your grasp on my heart

Tick tock of the passing time Landed us both at Clockwork The gears of our pas…

[Missing page]

…[Kar]baz Past-bound and iced You deserted me to remain Frozen in ice-capped seas

Left to the northern cold We visited the twin islands As we politely remembered Our private Ilyrean and Suliel; Regret and Despair

[For two pages (thirteen to fifteen) is a list of various herbs and minerals in a sloppy hand. Next to each name is a number and sometimes a check list written in either black, green, or yellow ink with no discernable pattern between the writing and the color of ink chosen, with ink changing color sometimes mid word. Numerous spelling and grammatical mistakes can be seen on both pages, several scratched out and corrected.]

[Starting on page sixteen until page twenty-one is suggestive drawings women of various races. Drawn in both ink and chalk, all of the women are plainly nude and in exposed poses atop pillows or beds. The edge of these pages are worn down, as if referenced multiple times. The art of the first pages is crude and smudged while the skill of the drawings changes on each page, suggesting that either a single artist’s skills grew or that multiple artists had a hand. There are no discernable names or symbols that would suggest that the drawings are anything more than fantasy, although the later drawings are much more life-like with visible imperfections: a birthmark on a Tsol’aa woman’s hand, the missing finger of a slender Siren, and a crooked nose on a buxom Rajamalan.]

[Page twenty-two is sliced from the manuscript with a clean edge, suggesting it was cut instead of torn. A few letters remained on the page in a blocky, childish manner. No further clues as to the meaning of the page were found.]

ASHTAN I
FOR I WILL
AND BY THE
CHAOS LORD

I PLEDGE M
SAVANTS AN
GLORY TO THE

THE IMPERA
WITH MY WH
SHALL NOT

HAIL THE SEAT
HAIL LORD BA
HAIL CHAOS!

[The last legible page found appears to be a letter home on pages twenty-three and twenty-four. Unevenly scribbled with a piece of coal, the writings is loose and shaky. The edge of the page is torn away leaving portions of the letter unknown.]

Dear Sis,

I’m sorry I couldn’t come home, but my captain insis[ted] […]

stay for another two month. I’ll say nothing more about him exce[pt] […]
he’d wouldn’t bother me an’ me mates anymore. But you know […]
with me having to hold back my temper. Anyways, that isn’t why […]
but that I just got your last letter, late as it came. How’s Ma sicken[ess] […]
cough that doesn’t want to go away. I remember Pa had something […]
down in the mines for somethin’ like thirty year and it was only […]
I would ask about more of her problems but I ain’t no medicine man […]
likely she’ll have gotten better or worse by the time you get this […]

We’ve just marched past that village in the Dakho[ta’s] […]
while the captain complains all the time underneath the blaz[ing] […]
why could’n we just take a dip in the river I don’ really know with […]
It would of raised all of our spirits, splashing in the Pachacacha while […]
They were ugly little things, with tufts of hair stick out here and […]
but I would not want to have them at our backs while we were […]

I’d wish I’d stayed home, after hearing about Ma, but you know […]
While my stipend helps feed the family and help Tamlin with his […]
I understand the Mhunna’s reasons, since Mhaldor will never surre[nder] […]
while any of us walks free, I don’ understand secrecy in all of […]
I’d just like to call up all the men, march down past the red fog and […]
that we would never survive, must lest stop them from chainin’ our […]

Will you tell Amaria that I’ve been thinkin’ of her? I would write […]
but you know how her Pa thinks of me. I’d rather no go poking the […]
I mean. Just…tell her, okay?

I need to go. The captain is calling muster and if I don’t make […]
have to do night duty and that would hurt with all of the marc[hing] […]
Takesh will be here soon to deliver the rest of the companies let[ters] [...]
and I know that you'll worry for me if you don't hear from me no[w] [...]

Pray to Aegis and the Logos for me? I’m not afraid, but it always […]
Divine on your side. Takesh will be here soon.

Your bro’,

Calli

[The rest of the manuscript appears to have been shredded by an animal and soaked in blood, leaving any remaining information beyond recovery.]