"Tomes of the Fragmentation"
Tomes of the Fragmentation
The Sultan stood on the balcony of his palace, admiring the sunset out over the ocean. The vibrant reds and oranges in the sky were equally met by fires in the streets. A rebellion amongst the servants and slaves on the island had begun to break out, with several gathering in the streets. The Sultan sighed as he took a candle off of a table and used it to light his pipe. After a few puffs, his gaze turned once again to the sea. Out on the horizon, the masts of several ships could be seen approaching. The Sultan set his pipe down, picked up his spyglass and looked out over the horizon at the dozens of ships bearing the crest of King Blackthorn. After several moments of observing the incoming fleet, the Sultan slowly lowered the spyglass, took his pipe, and returned to the inside of his chambers.
Once inside, the Sultan looked across the room to his two personal servants. He then spoke:
“Maria, Luchiani. Both of you, I thank you for your many years of service. You are free of servitude.”
The Sultan then reached into his pocket, took out several large sapphires, and motioned for the two servants to help themselves. Maria and Luchiani bowed and thanked the Sultan as they each scooped up some of the gems and exited the Sultan’s chamber.
The Sultan then walked across the room, sat down at a table, and set down a tome that he had removed from his pouch. He then turned to one of the last pages. As he sat and admired the runes, pagan imagery and the writings in long lost languages, the words seemed to glow as he read them. Sounds of whispers could be heard all around the room. After several minutes of staring at the glow trying to decipher its meaning, the Sultan picked up his pipe and a candle to relight it. As soon as he took his first puff, he noticed a shadowy silhouette standing at the entrance to the balcony. The Sultan set his pipe down, and spoke:
“All of these years of waiting. Years of searching. Years of wondering. It was right here in front of me the whole time.”
The shadowy figure replied:
“May I come in? If you know the tome as well as I do, there is nothing that can be done.”
The Sultan pondered for a moment before nodding in acceptance and motioning for the figure to come in and have a seat opposite side of the table. The shadowy figure removed his hood and set his own tome down onto the table. He then opened the tome to the first few pages. To the amazement of both of the men, the runes, and symbols in both glowed as if someone was reading them.
“How did you find it Anumi?” Inquired the Sultan.
Anumi smirked and replied:
“It found us. It came to me several years ago. As… as I read through the pages, they revealed themselves to me. The knowledge of events to come, revealed as if I had already lived through them. I am curious, with your tome at the end, and mine at the beginning, what did you see?”
The Sultan glared across the table at Anumi for a few moments, recollecting the many thoughts and images his tome had showed him over the years of his life.
“As I have come to realize over the years, there is nothing I can do to change the events of the tome. Several times I wish I could have, but no matter how I tried to intervene, they still happened.”
The Sultan puffed on his pipe and then continued:
“Fire. Death. Townsfolk burning the city… And at the very end, an assassin appears on my balcony.”
Anumi sat back a moment in his chair, as he watched the writings in his tome glow. He then looked up at the Sultan, who had a strong look of relief and acceptance in his eyes as if he already knew his fate.
“In the past several years, I have taken up to painting the images I have seen. My last work is in the basement.” Said the Sultan as he motioned to the outside, where the night sky was glowing orange from all of the fires outside the palace. Anumi grinned and replied:
“I had often wondered over all of these years, was there another tome. If there was, what did it contain?” Anumi thought for a few moments about the Sultan’s painting, and how he himself kept a book with sketches of images he had seen. He then continued:
“Not only is there more than one, but there are three in all. They are quite old as well… some say dating back to before the Great Cataclysm. Thus, the languages and symbols contained within.”
The Sultan sat in amazement and pondered just how old the tomes could truly be. After a few moments, Anumi closed his tome, stood up and walked over to the side of the Sultan. He then continued:
“One thing that I have come to learn over my many years of studying the tome, the three are connected somehow. Your tome is about to end. My tome is about to begin.”
The Sultan looked up and met Anumi’s gaze as he inquired:
“What were to happen, should someone acquire all three of the tomes?”
Anumi looked up for a moment as he thought about what sorts of magics could come into being if the three tomes were united. He then replied:
“I am not sure what would happen if all three volumes were together. However, I do know that whoever possesses the sequential tomes, continues the prophecy.”
The Sultan thought for a few moments about what Anumi had stated… how his tome was coming to an end, and Anumi’s was just beginning. He then came to his senses and sprang into action as he attempted to reach across the table and take the tome. The Sultan could only feel the pain of the large dagger that was now embedded in his chest.
A bright flash of light from the tome brought the attention of the Sultan back to the table he was sitting at, tome in front. He pondered for a few moments about the images he had just seen as clear as day. He then reached across the table, took his pipe and a candle to light it. As he puffed on it, he looked out to the balcony where he saw the shadowy figure of a man standing…