Ancient Text

James resumed his decent, eager to distance himself from the smothering civilization above and longing to feel the calm flow of the steady waters below. As his legs and lungs began to burn again with the exertion, wind cooled the sweat on his body. He relished every sensation his body created while running here. Clean air flowed in and out smelling of the plants of the forest. The green forest below continued to raise closer promising a shady diminishing of the heat. The only sounds besides the wind and the sound of his decent were the distant cries of the black birds above and distant sounds of the river below. He thought of the quiet there by the water where he could study the ancient texts on the age of magic he had brought along. Normally appointees didn’t have access to these documents but James had pulled a couple of the family political strings to get the copies the ancient myths.

Descending down past the towering monolithic walls rock by rock, stride by stride, James finally ducked into the trees. He could feel the increased humidity as he sucked deep breaths of the river moistened air. Around him were the chirps of insects and birds and occasional rustles as small animals fled the sound of his running feet. When he neared the river he slowed his pace to a quick walk and slowly let his breathing return to normal. Then he turned left off the trail and headed upriver to a placed he liked to go where a weathered lichen covered boulder sloped into the water. Moss grew on the massive rock where it created a pool of still water that reflected the clouds in the sky above. He pulled off the elastic straps of his pack, unlaced his shoes, and then dipped bare feet into the cool water and let out a satisfied sigh. It was times like these that made him feel as though he wasn't wasting his time studying ancient history. Unfortunately these times were few and far between.

He frowned at the thought and pulled out the School Controlled Reader and Office Ledger (SCROL) he had brought along. It was thin, square, and translucent green in color. It always reminded him of cheap glass. He set the 9X9 nich SCROL on his lap and pressed the dark black spot in one corner to activate it. Words flashed up beneath his fingers. The Last Age of Magic: The Great War and the Sealing; Translated from book #L015 dated Cycle 207 OTR. Book inscription translated: Ancestors Gone.

The date placed it as one of the earliest records of history just 307 cycles after the foundation of The Republic. It began: “I Oltic Leader of the Republic herein write the true history of my people as a future counter to our necessary propaganda against the remnants of the rebel Zolar.” As James read, a story began to unfold about 2 civilizations. The Neutal he recognized as the Ancients and the Zolar he recognized as the nation of magic using witch’s brood that were defeated by the Ancients. (There was also a group that he had never heard of before called the Ancestors.) The Zolar and the Ancients had long disagreed on the consequences of the use of magic. He noted that magic correctly translated was the forces unseen.

The Ancients believed that extensive uncontrolled use of magic would cause great upheavals in their planet such as earthquakes, volcanoes, and other “natural” disasters. The Zolar, who thrived on the use of magic, believed that the opposite was the case. They taught that the forces of magic, if left unused and uncontrolled, would cause natural disasters. The Ancestors, a group new to James, warned that neither view was completely correct but did favor the limitation of magic use.

The Ancients thought that their beliefs were substantiated when a series of great earthquakes destroyed several cities of both civilizations. These earthquakes coincided with what was described as a “large magical experiment” in the heart of Zolar. The Ancients immediately demanded the cessation of all high volume magical operation. This was apparently found unacceptable to the Zolar who declared war on the Ancients and began to wreak devastation. Here the text described the terrible atrocities caused by both sides in the war. The magic of the Zolar was used to create volcanoes, hurricanes, sweeping fires, earthquakes, and floods. The weapons of the Ancients destroyed both civilians and advancing armies with a flash, leaving only ash behind. Those of the Ancients who were able to use magic attempted to counter the Zolar but were far too few. Through the use of technology given to the Ancients by the Ancestors, the Zolar were held at bay.

It was during this time that the Ancients discovered the means to cleanse the world of magic. They developed “The Device” which was capable of obliterating all magical forces. After an unheeded warning to the Zolar, the Ancients saw no choice but to use the Device. The text ended with “And so the Zolar civilization was defeated. The Device was put to rest in a chamber next to the Great River and the Ancestors left for they would die without magic.”

James sat back, pondering the meaning of the last few sentences and their author. Oltic had led The Republic during a period known as the Consolidation. During this time The Republic expanded its territory and solidified its governing structure. Several points of Oltic’s account differed with the common history that was taught today. For starters even three hundred years after they were defeated, the descendants of the Zolar were still causing trouble. Most people believed that the Zolar all died when The Device was used. Oltic also spoke of evils committed by the Ancients who were always hailed today as heroic defenders. James had never heard of these mysterious Ancestors either. Who where they? Where the Ancients their descendants?

He also wondered which river was the Great River. If he could find The Device he might find the answer to some of his questions. Even if he didn’t get any answers, he would certainly have made a great discovery. He decided he would have to search the records for any mention of the Great River that might link to current geography.

James looked up at the sky and for the first time noticed that the sun had set, the last vestiges of its light fading from deep purple to black and star flecked. He was about to start digging in his pack for a blanket when he heard someone moving towards him from further down the Delvar. It was one of the Preserve wardens. In the daylight James would have seen a man dressed entirely in uniform dark green from hat to boots with a flash rifle strapped to his back and side arm on his belt along with other outdoors equipment. In the darkness he only saw a bluish white light swiveling about. As the warden approached James recognized him as one of his father’s acquaintances.

“Your father asked me to come and get you,” he stated bluntly without preamble. “There’s been an emergency at the Schools that’s called him and your sisters away.”

“What does he need me for?”

“He said that he would leave you instructions. Please follow me as soon as you are ready.” The man’s tone seemed to indicate that he already felt his time was being wasted. James threw on his shoes again and stuffed his bottles and SCROL into his mini pack and told the warden he was ready.