Journal Entry #15

Helio'Ra 1003 YAR

Never before have I seen an item wrapped so delicately and securely. It makes my careful work of wrapping and protecting Matron Seven's swords look ike the work of a drunken woman.

I will call them simply “The Scholars”, for they wished their identity to not be disclosed in any form. They hail from Eredet, where they have guarded a set of “artifacts” for many years – though only this one remained firmly in their possession. Per instructions from Grand Priest Ihyesult himself, this map was to be given only to one who inquired. Even if the instructions are over a thousand years old, I am still inclined to believe them.

I was immediately drawn to it once it was revealed. As I held the parchment delicately in my hands... I was struck by such a strong conviction that this was pivotal. Important. Is this what I was missing earlier? Will this quest into both past and future be what binds us? What closes the chasm I feel that has opened between Judas and I? A chasm of my own making.

Forgive my interlude of musing. The map itself is… old, and perhaps out of date, though I am no geographer. It is devoid of all features besides the continent outline and those of the regions. Within each region, there exists a single symbol: a religious symbol associated with the primary deity of that region. Most notably, a shimmering line surrounds the continent. I surmise this is the Barrier.

—

It took me far too long to pin down the god known to walk among his people. Upon my approach, it was there. That… different aura. I’m afraid I still fail to find a clearer way to describe it. Upon revealing the map…. That sensation faded. Judas was as excited as I had anticipated. He spoke in that almost childish exuberance I have grown to accustomed to. He claims The One created this! And how the Barrier shines!

Judas tends to get headaches when he speak of the Barrier for too long… I have come to suspect that the toll in its creation may be the lingering source of such side effects. It is not normal, but also not unusual. He entrusted me with the map. As his hand brushed mine… his eyes… I don’t remember them ever affecting me so. Before I could do or say anything more, he was gone. Perhaps in time, I will unravel both the puzzle of this map… and this new puzzle of Judas.

Dysis Judas

Hastily Scrawled in the corner: Does this map emphasize the journey or the end? That question is a plague on my mind. It has fallen out of common practice to undertake the trials of the various gods. I, however, felt it fitting to do so for Judas, as I was entering a new service and not raised amidst his tenets. A rite of passage or proof of my faith, so to speak… it was by chance that I had knocked the Fortune’s Boon onto the map… and then it changed. The region of Judas now lies illuminated before me. Perhaps I will speak with Soyolmaa. I am not fit for such travel, nor would I be allowed… but she has the skill, my faith, and my

complete trust.