#Lore24 – Entry #240 – Helica Month #28 – The Third Scroll

Excerpt from the Journals of Azita Gaji, Explorer of Helica, Seeker of Knowledge, Blessed of Saghirah

It took us several weeks in the demon-infested seas to make significant headway on our excavations, for the Transgressor had been spotted before our arrival and had stirred them up.  Still, one must work hard for their rewards upon Helica, and my goal was clear.  Once we had reached the ancient city and surveyed it properly, I identified another shrine complex.  This time I would not be alone when venturing into it, for the seas were still dangerous.  Fortunately, I had a group of Drakonae warriors with me, and they were of a breed that were able to breathe underwater, so they were able to assist me in staying down much longer than usual with my work by carrying extra air tanks for me and were quite adept at fending off the demons. 

This shrine complex was mostly intact, though partially buried in centuries of silt and debris, so took some time to excavate, requiring multiple trips down.  I think the presence of Saghirah was somewhat unnerving to my dive-mates, especially when the eyes of her statue began to glow once they were uncovered.  We would later go on to uncover other shrines, and for those of the Amaranths that were still in existence, I could feel their presence now as well, though not as strongly as that of Saghirah.  With their return to this underwater shrine, the demon activity in the area lessened significantly. 

Soon enough, I would find the sacred chamber hidden beneath Saghirah’s shrine, sealed away from the accumulation of silt.  Even though it remained underwater for so long, the third scroll case was unmarred and seemingly as out of place in time as I am, appearing pristine in the gloomy water.  I would nonetheless work carefully to secure it within my pack for the return to the surface and would fight through my fatigue of the dive to see its secrets revealed before I would rest.  I had retrieved some of my previously cached knowledge in the short visits I had made to the mainland in the intervening years, and quickly added the new revelations of this scroll to my previous notes.  The picture has become much clearer now, and I know with absolute certainty that Helica has only so much longer left to live before the Transgressor is ultimately successful in its desire to see it utterly destroyed. 

All will be revealed elsewhere, however, for I have but one more scroll to find, though I know not where as of yet.  My work in assisting the Ketzeryn will continue in the meantime, until I can discern the final scroll’s resting place.  We have found knowledge that, if we are able to bring it into being, would change the face of Helica and potentially deliver a major blow to the iron-fisted control of the Church, though for now it is but a dream.