The Cryptograph
In the early days of the year 714, a group of city workers on the outskirts of Kassaan made a strange discovery. The workers had been in the process of cutting down one of the massive, ancient trees that stood near the city's north side; the tree had become infected with an infestation of beetles, and city officials had decided to cut it down to spare the other trees in the grove. But as workers felled the massive tree, they discovered that there was something inscribed upon the stump: a message, a single line of text, headed by the numeral "IV." This text was written in inlaid turquoise, so perfect that it could not possibly have been the work of anything other than a craftsman's hand, and yet it was upon the stump of the ancient tree, only moments after the tree above it had been laid to the ground. The strange, vaguely ominous text puzzled the workers and drew crowds to the site to observe it and speculate upon it.
Three days later, the Severing struck. The crisis drew attention away from the strange finding in northern Kassaan.
Nearly a year went by, and people had largely forgotten about the message in the stump. But then a group of miners farther south in Toraan found another single line of text, inlaid in turquoise, writ upon the wall of a small air pocket deep underground, unearthed only by the progress of the mine. This one bore the numeral "VII." The text was different, but its craftsmanship was identical.
When the third message, numbered "X." was found on a boulder underwater in the Lake of the Singer, it cemented the existing pattern. Scholars, theorists, and others came from all over Aotra to study the mysterious messages and to attempt to piece together their meaning. The Cryptograph, as it was labelled, became, to different people, all manner of things: a divine prophecy, a warning, a ploy from the Other. Hunts ensued to find additional pieces of the Cryptograph; as the known parts were numbered 4, 7, and 10, people presumed there would be more to fill in the gaps, and an unknown number of parts beyond.
The Cryptograph, though widely known as a yet-unfolding mystery, remains largely the domain of expertise of niche theorists and devoted scholars.
The known sections of the Cryptograph are:
Three days later, the Severing struck. The crisis drew attention away from the strange finding in northern Kassaan.
Nearly a year went by, and people had largely forgotten about the message in the stump. But then a group of miners farther south in Toraan found another single line of text, inlaid in turquoise, writ upon the wall of a small air pocket deep underground, unearthed only by the progress of the mine. This one bore the numeral "VII." The text was different, but its craftsmanship was identical.
When the third message, numbered "X." was found on a boulder underwater in the Lake of the Singer, it cemented the existing pattern. Scholars, theorists, and others came from all over Aotra to study the mysterious messages and to attempt to piece together their meaning. The Cryptograph, as it was labelled, became, to different people, all manner of things: a divine prophecy, a warning, a ploy from the Other. Hunts ensued to find additional pieces of the Cryptograph; as the known parts were numbered 4, 7, and 10, people presumed there would be more to fill in the gaps, and an unknown number of parts beyond.
The Cryptograph, though widely known as a yet-unfolding mystery, remains largely the domain of expertise of niche theorists and devoted scholars.
The known sections of the Cryptograph are:
IV.
SICKENED AND FAITHFUL WE UNFOLD UPON THE ALTAR IN THE FACE OF THE SINGLE SUN AND THE MONUMENT
VII.
SMILE DOWN WHILE WE REND THE PIECES OF OUR FRAGILE AND FALTERING LORE AND LEARN TO RESENT THEM
X.
AND NAME ANY WHOSE PALE LIVES COULD STAND IN THE TWILIGHT OF THE SHATTERING STAR AS YOU WILL
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