Flowing like a River

Many things have been afoot for the last few months. There have been wars, the rise of the Drifter threat, strange observatories appearing, Catherines star has become..Lord knows what.. I've presented at conferences and spread myself thin across multiple projects. At time I have felt like I have spread myself too thin and almost reached breaking point.

But I get ahead of myself, as I am want to do I know. The events of Catherines Star and the Jove observatories have been subject of sufficient conjecture that I need not go into that here. I have however become increasingly interested in what has been going on with them and any possible links with my project. With my investigations in to the Takmahl site known as the Labyrinth I had become interested in similarities between spatial anomalies there an images I had seen from Talocan sites in Caldari space. I delved deeper into these and went somewhere outside my main purview. At this time they opened submissions for the fourth Seyllin Conference or SeyCon 4 as some call it. I submitted and, lo and behold, I was selected to present.

This was a great honour and if interested the transcripts can be found in the The Synenose Accord archives. I was fortunate enough that this was widely publicised which has helped with access to many things since. It was here that further issues were raised. I was handed a note from the same Dr Valate, whose name seems to arise on many of these situations, which questioned whether  there was a possibility of links between the disappearance of the Takmahl and what we are seeing with these drifters and our own civilisation. This has proved most intriguing and is something I shall follow further.

On top of that our Society has been attacked by Pirates on several occasions, but fortunately there was no significant harm done.

So I find myself with my original quest seeking the Crown and Scepter; investigating links between the Talocan and Takmahl, seeking links between the drifters, the Talocan and the extinction of the Takmahl. In addition to my normal duties of the Society. It is just as well I am one of the Immortal for I fear any shorter a period of time may not be sufficient. However, time flows like a river it is I who must navigate her currents and eddys to avoid being swamped and sinking beneath her dark waves. 

Life Carries On

Things have started to settle down once more and I have been able to progress my research.

I have reestablished my observation posts within the Labyrinth to monitor the spatial anomalies and gather more data to compare with the Talocan structures. I have Three observation stations  at various locations reporting back to a data collection station near the Sun.

Data collector in orbit of the Aphi Star

 These stations are equipped with Camera drones, gravimetric sensors, a range of advanced sensors and advanced transmitters to ensure all activity is monitored and transmitted back to the primary collation point.

The collation point has an Anema Bluechip in case anything untoward should occur. At least that should retain all the data, provided I can secure it from the site.

With these in place I should be able to get a good continuous feed of data and, as various ships pass through see the changes that entail.

I then intend to locate some of the Talocan Static gates and set up a similar group of units and compare.

This should enable me to answer some of the questions on the possible links between the two anomalies and further see if there are potential links between the Talocan and Takmahl.

Rift Observatory and Anomaly

In addition to that have obtained one of the new Entosis links that were released by the Carthum Conglomerate. These are Reverse engineered from Sleeper and Drifter technology and enable a capsuleer to "inject" their consciousness into a structures control system also like a capsule. I have attempted to do this with the spatial anomalies but without success. I did attempt to also access the site at the centre of the Labyrinth but was driven off by raiders. I shall need to attempt this again with some assistance.

I find myself also thinking of the words of Dr Valate, that maybe the Takmahl came across the remains of the Talocan and this is what drove them to their levels so quickly. However, in turn she postulates that could have Talocan or sleepers have returned to destroy the Takmahl.

I have been thinking of the events surrounding the rise and fall of the warped empire of Sansha Kuvakei. Are their parallels there to the sudden rise and fall. Could this give a hint to the fate of the Takmahl? Could this even be a lead into my search for the Scepter and Crown?

Prisoner of the mundane

JI have not progressed the project. For the past few weeks I have been caught in running the Societies industrial program. The production of ships and items enables us to take on our better works. This makes it Important Works and I do enjoy such. However, it does keep me from the project.

Further the events of the last wee while have further taken my attention. The strange goings on with Hilen Tukoss and the Arek'jaalan project was one thing. Then the discovery of the bright star being called Catherine's Star. I recall this just before the reappearance of of the Empress and her deliverance of the Empire from the depredation of the tribals

All these events have me pouring over news ACN, galnet forums and archives. What this means and what may become have me enthralled.

Lastly the events in the war zone have been the final distraction. The liberation of Huola by our forces is truly magnificent. I recall a discussion with Alexa about the horror that those living in the conditions on planet deal with. I find myself thinking of what I can do to ease the pain they endure.

By God there are so many things I should be doing but I stead I am sitting reading Galnet and crunching production numbers. What to do.

Strive and Providence will provide

The abstract of Project Theseus

I had been in a period of some despair and have not been active in my search but instead thrown myself into prayer and work on our production star base. Then I was viewing the Intergalactic Summit forum and sorting the usual capsuleer chest beating and diatribe from the useful posts and discovered what I have been looking for.

A post from a past member of the Arek'Jaalan group had posted seeking to reactivate the research group. Furthermore Dr Valate had posted that she was prepared for  taking up her role as archivist again. This had given me the opening I have been praying for.

Then shortly after the Empire issued a request for Capsuleers to obtain various items from Sleeper stations and their ships. I had a number of these from my time living in Anoikis and surged back into wormholes to obtain what more I could. Contributing to the cause.

I then had another meeting with the Directors of the Society seeking to be able to reestablish contact with Dr Valate in context of the restart of Arek'Jaalan and the links to the sleeper race. In light of the Empires call and the obvious inference that new lines of research and technology may be forthcoming It was approved!

I now have to recontact her and hope my abrupt break off has not caused any ructions.

A night at the Museum

The Museum Arcana- A site of the Takmahl 

I have again ventured in to the ancient site of the Museum Arcana, supervised under the watchful eyes of the Theology Council. While they watch over the sort of documents and artefacts that are dragged from the ruins of the area they do not step in when one researcher attacks another As such I was able to rely on the assistance of another capsuleer called Grease PaYN. I swear that the other races seem to have the most peculiar names.

After several hours of collection I had a wide range of data for further investigation. There were a number of items the Theology Council impounded but, on the surface they did not seem to hold any data on what i sought.

I have had several weeks to review that data and have learnt quite a bit about the society and culture of the Takmahl but no mention of the artefacts I am looking for. One of the papers I recovered from "Site One" of the Arek'Jaalan project mentions a site near the sun in Aphi which has a site believed to be of significance. It is called "the Labyrinth" Apparantly it is a vast site consisting of multiple connected gates through which a particulart path must be taken to reach the primary location. I feel this is the next logical step in my search, however there is a complication.

The archivist of the project which produced the paper is none other than Dr Valate, of whom I have had to cut myself off due to her associations with the Sabik. I must look into this site in more depth but the paper I obtained for the archives at Site One does not sufficient information for me to be comfortable with an attempt. I need to find greater information

I just hope this is not the end of my search.

Strength through Unity, Unity through Faith

I have had the meeting with my superiors in the Society. It went better than I had thought. It is not my search they have questioned but rather my dealings with Dr Valate. The texts she has sent me are classified as heretical by the Theology Council. This has the potential to raise issues for the Society and for myself.

I have been lucky in that Ms Aspenstar was once a Paladin in service to the Council dealing in just these kinds of issues. With her counsel on how these would be perceived and acted on I know this is accurate and not driven by over reaction. As a result I have turned over the text to the Theology Council for destruction. I have also publicly decried these texts on the Intergalactic Summit so any of the Councils watchers can see.

This does mean I do not have access to what it held but that is a small price to pay. I am sure through direct investigation of the sites in Araz I can discover information without being tainted by their teachings. I had hoped the council would see such ancient writings as beyond that but such is the way of things. However the Council has defended the Empire for this long with it's approach so who am I to question that!

I shall soon launch another expedition into the Museum Arcana and see what I can learn. From hereon I shall ensure to not lose sight of the responsibility I bear to protect the faith in all respects.

Any port in a storm

I have been making some headway. I feel I have gathered sufficient information to move on from the blood cults and pursue my primary hypothesis.

I have made some forays into known Takmahl archaeological sites unfortunately there seems to be a number of others also with an interest. These seem predominantly to be looters rather than true investigation s but that worries me more. I fear the information or items I seek may be taken by some ignorant foreigners or worse.

In searching for the information I have come across another capsuleer with an interest in the Takmahl.   I have had limited communication with her to date but she has provided a copy of some texts which appear to have been sacred to them. I have only just begun to work on them but they are fascinating.

However, this new contact is not without risk. She is a member of a capsuleer faction of the Sabik. They have the temerity to call themselves the church of the crimson savior. To date I have kept her at arms length dealing through the intergalactic summit and contracts. However in order to learn more I may need to take some risks. She is also dealing with a Khanid noble whom appears to be a member of the Tetrimon order. This may be a further contact to cultivate as they may have texts from lost from the scriptures in the past.

A further concern is I seem to have raised concerns amongst the Society. I have been called to a meeting by the Senior members as they wish to discuss what I am doing and the reasons behind. I must make them aware of the need for this search. There has not been a period in our History where we have needed these artifacts more. Having said that they are my betters and I must tread carefully and watch how I proceed. Here I was concerned about the Theology Council but it is a different quarter I needed to have been allaying.

One step forward two steps back

The Altar- A site sacred to the Fundamentalists of the Sabik

Recent events have taken an unusual turn but are lining up with what I've been working on.

I was taking some time in a facility on the Emperor Family station over Amarr with a colleague from the Society, Lunarisse Aspenstar. I had been working on some data when she came by and we were having a discussion about that, the action in Huola and things in general. She had come across some Sabik artifacts that might have been of interest as part of work for another party. During that discussion an Amarrian capsuleer and a Minmatar man entered the establishment. The Matari gentlemen recognised Lunarisse but not the reverse. The capsuleer, whom I shall not name, made the introductions which caused her a great deal of shock. After some explaining a plot like something out of a holofilm was laid out.

It was told that the Covenant had kidnapped this man, who was in fact an Amarr of quite some position within the Theology Council, and an acquaintance of some sort of Lunarisse from her time with them. In some twisted plot to gain access to his contacts and insert a spy into the Council they had skinned him and given his face to one of their men. It was a cosmetic process taken to the extremes. To add horror to horror they had given him a tribals face and skin. The capsuleer had rescued the man while working for the Council in raiding a covenant facility. How this man will ever fit back in Society nor how he can live with himself having been made to wear such a skin is beyond me.

As far fetched as such a scheme sounds, I can not disregard it with the things I have seen in my search covering the facilities of the Covenant. I only fear I may have wiped out such innocents in my cleansing of our space.

This then led me to a further area of my search. I had heard talk of a deadspace pocket with an outpost of strong Fundamentalist Sabik in Araz. This site held sacred and ancient texts which would be greatly beneficial to my work. These were deep within a known as the "Bastion of Blood". I managed to obtain a code which would enable me to access this area. Foolishly I attempted to raid this outpost alone. The initial areas were guarded by the Covenant and whilst numerous posed no significant threat. So when I warped to in the inner enclave I was cautious but not terribly concerned. I have seen that these heretics can not stand up to one entrusted with Faith in God.

The final goal was a building they called their "Altar". I was able to dispatch the patrol near by and send a boarding party to look for the texts. They were successful and returned with several copies of texts including one called "The Apocryphon". While my teams were securing these items I fired on and seriously damaged the temple. I then turned to the generator facility to destroy these heresies for good. However, the patrols guarding that, a mix of frigates and battleships overwhelmed me destroying my ship. I was able to escape in my pod but the ship, the texts and my crew were destroyed.

I have some information which had been backed up prior to the even but not all. I was staggered by the strength and ferocity of the attack and the ships. This is leading me to consider if the fundamentalists of the sabik are more separate from the Covenant than I had thought. Maybe this group holds ancient weapons of strength from the past, or maybe being separated from the depredations of the Covenant they have not been degraded to the same extent.

This is an area upon which I must think and study more. I fear what I have learnt and what I have lost may have set me back further more than I think.

The more we learn the less we know

Things have been chaotic lately. First I have been busy with the establishment of a Starbase for the Society. Once that was settled, research and mining various databases for information has taken much time.

I had established a few leads but the reformation had removed much information from the period I am investigating. I'm sure this is for good reason but it increases the challenge of my search somewhat. To that end I searched a number of sources for sites of significance to both the Blood Raiders and the Sani Sabik.

This I have had to do carefully. The last thing I wish to do is cause any alerts or flags by the Theology Council and Ministry of Internal Order for looking too hard at heretical texts or information on Galnet. I am a loyal and Pious man and have no desire to cause any such disruption. As such I am careful in my search terms and the way I couch my requests with any Archivists.

However I did start to raise some leads of a site of significance to the raiders. The site named "The Cauldron" seemed to appear in a number of recently intercepted messages and in writings going back into antiquity. All I could find about it seemed to indicate a high level of excitement about what went on there and the writers always seemed in awe of the activities. They were always couched in terms of holy significance and religious epiphany. It rested in the Araz Constellation, which again matched my belief that my search is tied with the exodus of the first Sabik. Throught the Constellation are many sites that link back into the past and some that continue to be used to this day, thousands of years later. I thought this site was promising and must give me some information on my search at the very least.

I raised my crew and voyaged to Araz and searched for the location. This took some days but at last I was able to detect a number of raider vessels coming and going from a site. It had strong magnetometric readings indicating a large station of some kind and metals indicative of an ancient structure. Awaiting a relatively quiet period I warped into site and was amazed and disgusted by what I found.

Rather than a site of a repository of heretical artifacts and information I was disgusted to discover the site was that of a giant fighting arena. From what I can tell captives would be made to fight to the death and then the blooders would take the victor and perform some act of barbarity in line with their sacrilegious beliefs. I despaired that these creatures would hold such an act so highly and obviously this has been going on for centuries at least. In my anger I destroyed the ships guarding the facility and wrecked as much damage as I could on the hell hole itself.

The Cauldron, a forsaken place of debauched slaughter

I returned to Amarr Prime to pray in the Basilica to cleanse myself of the horrors I had seen. For all that I am learning and discovering on the beliefs of these accursed people each time I am still horrified when I meet the level of depravity they are willing to go to. I begin to fear if I am mistaken, how could such Holy artifacts be in the possession of such evil? I must believe that the current depravities of the Raiders are somehow separate to that at least of the ancient Sabik and that my goals lie forgotten somewhere far from their grasp.

There is no education like adversity.

searching a site of some past destruction

My initial investigations have been underway. I have been searching the route between Amarr Prime and the Araz constellations searching for evidence of the migration of the Takmahl. After several days I was finding much of the detritus of thousands of years of space travel but little of the signs I sought.

At that point I began to look at where I have been travelling. The realisation that I had been in high security space the entire survey struck me. The route was one that has been laid down for centuries and well traveled. Could it be the sites along that way had been picked over in the intervening years? I put down any doubt of the discovery to my original hypothesis that if it had been found there would be tell.

So I decided to take to low security space to conduct my search. This did begin to lift my spirits as I found two sites of archaeological note. One site held the ruins of some past conflict but evidence did not seem to indicate the period I was interested in. The second however turned out to be an ancient cryoship. I have scanned this and taken footage from camera drones sent through the wreckage. This will require some greater analysis but at first look, may have been a later diaspora of the Sani Sabik rather than the original Takmahl.

Alas in my enthusiasm for the search I let down my guard for a moment. In the cutthroat world of the lawless territories this was all that was needed. Another capsuleer had tracked me down and I was attacked. A fierce battle between a pirate Proteus and my Legion ensued but alas I my ship was rigged for exploration with limited self defence. Despite this the "Omid" held up well but was lost.

While the Strategic cruisers that have come from the exploration of Anoikis have been a great boon they have a significant drawback. There is something about mating the capsule with their interface that causes a great neural shock on the occasion of the ships destruction. This feedback has left me unsteady so the last day I spent quietly visiting the trade hubs of Amarr and Jita to obtain a replacement for my ship and her equipment. This I have achieved and taken her out for a shake down trip. I discovered a wormhole to distant Aridia. On passing through the wormhole the unease and slight discomfort from the loss of my ship passed and I felt myself once more. I do not know why but have taken it as a sign of the Lord of his satisfaction that I have begun my search once more.

Scanning the remains of an ancient cryoship for information

I shall take some days to review the data I have obtained and review what I have discovered so far. While there has been some adversity I can not but feel elated that the background research is paying out and the physical steps down this path has begun.

Inquiry is fatal to certainty

I have made it to Site One. Crossing the war zone in the Bleak Lands was a challenge in both directions but I was able to avoid both the tribalists and Pirates despite their gate camps.

There were no capsuleers present but a considerable baseliner staff. They were most helpful finding me quarters and facilitating my research. I ended up staying at the for three days going over their libraries and the results of the many research teams that had once been busy here. It seemed that use of the facilities and the large scale research had petered off. I can only speculate if this is the result of the Empyrean war or some other aspect has drawn capsuleers away. I have obtained copies of all the research which pertains to the Takmahl, and more besides. You never know how one thing may lead to another. 

While I have not discovered any significant breakthrough in my search things do seem to indicate the Takmahl were indeed highly proficient in cybernetics and bioengineering. These support the possibilities that they had access to the Ametat and Avetat and have built this in building their own civilization. That they seemed to have progressed from a group of settlers to a high technology multi star system civilization implies, to me at least, that they had something to guide them. From their abhorrent practices it could not have been God, but perverting the gifts of the Sefrim? We shall see. Something has propelled them beyond their means, even if I do not find what I seek mayhaps I will find something that will help against the Sani sabik.

It appears the next stage of my journey is in the Araz constellation, I am planning some small scale investigation but I may soon need seek the aid of the Society. 

leaving Site One

Study the past if you would define the future

So it would appear I am not the only capsuleer with an interest in the Takmahl.  In my research I have discovered papers from a group calling themselves Project Revelation. This is, or possibly was, (given the gap since their last published paper) a group investigating many aspects of the Takmahl. 

From their writings it appears they only have a cursory interest in the artifacts. However what they have discovered may help me.Their group seems to be part of a larger group called Arek'Jaalan. I have heard something of this in passing. Something about a scientist who a defected from the state and ran to the tribalist regions. 

Such affiliations raise obvious concerns. I hope this group chose the region to pursue they're program as the lawlessness or the low levels of education provided them with some protection or anonymity. From what I have been able to discern they are based at a place they term "Site One" in the Eram system of the Metropolis Region. Traveling so far into the tribalist regions causes me no small amount of concern. An Amarrian going in those areas is always taking a risk but if I am to pursue this I shall be going into places of danger and I must trust in the Lord

A journey of a thousand light years begins with a single warp

Have begun the research in to where the Ametat and Avetat may have gone.

The scriptures report that they went missing around four hundred years after the death of Amish akura. There have been many whom have sought them since. The two most famous being IIash Toth  and Harr Indi. 

Indi was shown to have been a pretender but IIash has been source of much debate. There are stories that he had found them and disappeared into the void ranging to being wiped out by the Jovian's. Our experience since has certainly shown the Jovian's are capable of such an act. However Space is full of many dangers that could have affected him and his followers. So some forgotten outpost or colony site is certainly one of the possibilities.

I do not believe that any Amarr could find them and not make it known. No true Amarr would ever be able to do such a thing. However I found myself drawn to an event around the right time. This was a stage when the Sani Sabik were first going as a force. That such a group and the heretical beliefs were closely tied is an unusual coincidence. I also look at the desertion of the Empire by these heretics that became the people known as the Takmahl.

The Takmahl had a rapid rise to a technological level especially in the bio-engineering and cybernetics fields. These are precisely the fields that a group that had stolen the very artefacts I seek would be expected to pursue. Maybe their destruction was the result of God's intervention for their sins or maybe something else.

As such I feel these are the two areas I must begin with, the remains of lost and forgotten Amarr colonies and the realm and history of the Takmahl. Back to the Research

A Man without a goal is like a ship without thrusters

Welcome, I have decided to write this journal to help myself keep my ideas straight and provide a place to review. I have decided to keep this open so that others that may go through similar journeys may find a help and so those who are aware of my quest may know of what I seek.

For some time I had been following material goals. Things such as to obtain such and such a ship or amass so much Isk. I have achieved all these goals but each time it was a hollow victory, only to be replaced by reaching for more but not for substance. I hoped that to obtain the next would fill the nagging sense of need. I took leadership roles in some corporations and started my own leading them to success but still there was a nagging need for more. In the end I dropped my corporate push for wealth and joined the Societas Imperialis Sceptri Coronaeque. This Society was of like pious people working to support the Empire and do God's work. This gave me a new light but when asking for a goal I was told to "do what I must and follow the Lord will show the way." This left me wandering still

This reached a head and I had to take time to review what was going on. I took a leave of absence from the Society and went on a pilgrimage of the sites of the great war across the continent of Amarr of the great Emperor Amash-Akura against Molok the Deceiver.

By day I would trudge across the deserts of Amarr going from site to site and by night I would listen to the stories of the sacred brothers telling the history and discussing the scriptures. With each I would discuss my yearning and each would tell me to "do what I must and follow the Lord will show the way."

Over the three weeks I learned much of both our history and my own faith and beliefs. These weeks of having nothing more than what I could carry and that given by the monasteries and refuges along the way reminded me of the excess one can slip into as a capsuleer. Spending time with holy men showed me how despite being of faith that I had slipped into concerns over the mortal and mundane and lost touch with the greater needs of my faith.

It was at the final night as I stood at the site where Molok was executed I realised my calling.

Here I was, a pious man, a man with access to great wealth and resources. A man with a fleet of ships specifically designed and fitted for exploration of the great void and with dedicated laboratories and science staff for research. I can not die and no threat can stop my immortal drive. I had even been guided by the hand of God to the Imperial Society of Scepter and Crown. I knew then as the setting sun lit the sky red that my goal in life was to once more return the Ametat and Avetat, the Scepter and Crown to the Empire and our Empress. The strength and prosperity the return shall reestablish our rightful place in the cluster.

In this I shall not fail.