Dear Isune,

How are ye.

I hope your exploration of the stars is going well, boyo! I really
really miss Ye. Ye weren't the only bright thing in my life, but in a
sky full of stars, Ye was the brightest.

Boy, I'm getting old.

Anyway, I kind of wish ye was here. This has been a very interesting
couple of decades, so to speak. I wanted to give ye an update on it, so
I decided to write to ye. I don't know if Gods can see the news way out
in the void, but this is also a good way of getting my own thoughts down
and review them.

I'll tell ye about the stuff going on starting after the Gnafia attack
(just don't ask about that). Anyway, the year started out with a little
bit of excitement with a crazed monk killing people, giving into some
bloodlust. After I tried to help out with the mystery I suffered a
mortal attack from a holy book! It turned out to be the last book of the
History of the Elder Wars, completing the set. Very interesting stuff.
Turns out the Fates had commissioned Xyl to create the Portal of Fate,
and there was a major reason for the sharding of the Elders who
remained. Only thing about that was a possible contradiction--the Portal
was said to only have opened 100 years after the Coming of Estarra, but
it looks like it was actually opened back in ancient times. We'll have
to figure that out some other time--if was open during that time, who
closed the portal and why did it reopen.

The biggest thing worrying me, that I've had the most dealings with, is
the attack of the Ice Devils and the coming of the Forsaken. We're still
trying to figure out that mystery. It started on day during a big battle
between Hallifax and Gaudiguch, where Gaudiguch teamed up with Celest
and caused some kind of Paradigm flux, releasing lost Squonks. In any
event, I don't know if it was related, but creatures made of Ice invaded
the Basin of Life. It turns out that there creatures were called Ice
Devils, serving some beings known as the Forsaken! It was getting pretty
chilly in the Basin, but then a woman named Loranara helped us against
them, helping us drive them back.

A few years passed, and then the Arthar'rt Observatory, backed up by
scientists and professors from Hallifax, did a little experiment that
ended up bringing them back! So some of these creatures were wandering
around the Basin of Life. They first attack Master Quettle in the Tosha
Monastery, where we first heard some information of the Forsaken, and
then Quettle decided to repay us by introducing the secret art of
magical tatoos.

During a subsequent attack, apparently the Celestians were introduced to
an isolated monestary called Saint Gathlyn's orphanage. Apparently, the
Ice Devils were seeking some named Frost Spite. Yes, that is Spite, not
Sprite. Apparently he refered to some sort of cryptic pact with the
devils. Oh, ye would like to see this place, ye'd feel some of your
famed compassion (even though ye don't use that title anymore) towards
the little waifs.

The Ice Devils came back again, around the time Hoopah had dreams that
lead him to a new Quartrain of the Magnora Verses. After this, things
really began to get crazy. The Ice Devils first attacked villages
seeking commodites--they took a whole mass of steel, marble, and gems.
Then they kidnapped Jeremiah Gryphta. I don't know if ye know this boyo
but he sells a lot of magical items and had recently discovered
artifacts from the Czigany Coast.

Then things REALLY got crazy. Apparently we reached the second Szygy in
modern times. During this time, first the Ice Devils began attacking
tress and statues, pulping and crumbling them to break down their
components. Then they actually attacked the Astral Spheres, somehow
locking the nodes in some magical ice. And then--whamo--boy, ye are so
glad ye wasn't around, because the Elder Gods started acting crazy.
Eventru once again thought I was his boyo instead of one of his shards
(this is the second time that's happened--I wonder if Clangorum liked to
clean his axe a lot), and was seeking Lyreth (who vanished earlier, I'll
explain later). Morgfyre though he was Hajamin, Viravain and Nocht were
going crazy and troubling an associate of mine. Even Estarra was a
little troubled (though not crazy), but the only one who came through
without any problems, because he had secrets prepared earlier, was
Raezon. Apparently while ye siblings were going crazy, he built his own
tower of Obsidian, in the Easter mountains! I actually teleported there
out of curiosity and then got my head bashed in by his Avatar, though
soon the Managorans were overwhelmed, though unable to interfere with
Raezon's experiments. As the Szygy passed, however, Raezon along with
the other gods realized that the Ice Devils were causing problems and
implored us mortal to stop them, by using the facilities in the tower.
Eventually, the more adept warriors stopped them--after seeing a brief
glimpse of the marble tower the Devils created. However, this has
apparently somehow hurt the sky--weather patterns are abnormal and there
are some strange phenomena. The sky is morose and depressing and I wish
ye was here to help fix it.

A couple years later, a strange Miasma infected the Basin of Life,
foreshadowed by some strange dreams all of us mortals had. This Miasma
worked its way across the Basin of Life, even invading Celest. It turns
out this Miasma was seeking the Crystal Sphere left by Ice Angels, of
which we met a second member, Williki, who helped us battle them over
the course of several months. Another battle with the Ice Devils
occured, but we eventually defeated them.

The last recent occurance occured when both Druidic Guilds of the
Communes ended up receiving a vision from the Tree of Trees. They
planted a Giving Tree in front of the Seal of Nature on Avechna's Peak!
This attracted nymphs all over the mountain ranges who ended up giving
us holly branches to give to the tree.

Right now, things seem a little better now, with the Gnomes of Solstice
coming out, and both Ironbeard and Jolly Bundy coming out, but why the
Basin celebrates, I worry a little more.

What are these Ice Devils, who are the Forsaken, and how powerful are
they. It's interesting that the devils and angels are terms used before
the Celestian Empire and the creation of Nil. Also, why are they
building a tower of marble (and why did Raezon build one of Obsidian)?
Both these creatures come from the Icewynd, which I guess is what ye
Elders called the Icewyndkl? What connection do they have to Frost Spite
and Mount Wend? Why did they wound the sky and interfere with the Astral
Plane? Why do they want the Czigany curios? Do they have any connection
to the fae, especially since Frostica is a place where Tae and Bollikin
and others took some of the fae? Are Father Sun and Mother Moon (and
Night) being affected by the strangness of the sky? I wish ye was here,
because the sky was at least something ye had some dealings in.

As far as other stuff goes, well, like I said, it was an interesting
couple of decades. Lyreth seems to have vanished, perhaps sacrificing
himself like ye did against Ye Damn Squid a few centuries ago. Poor
Shulamit was distraught. But later Mysrai came back! Mysrai has settled
in Gaudiguch, and along with some famous warriors moving to Gaudiguch
the place seems to be having a revival. I had an interesting adventure
with Bodha, a pipe-maker in Zoaka, I observed the founding of Mysrai's
Godrealm, and I got to spend a little time with a few old friend who
came out of retirement briefly like Ialie and Ilyarin! I even
encountered Yrael at one point, though the Uber-Thief-Lich left very
quickly. While I miss several folk, new friends have come into my life.
I've had a few interesting adventures, such as assisting in translating
some ancient ur'Guard manuscripts about a secret weapon project, as well
as assisting a bard writer who now resides in the main stage on the
peak. I partook in a Teserra game sponsored by the Elder Gods (to please
Estarra), and I won a few items in auctions and lotteries this year.

I wonder if ye ever will come back. And if ye do, where will ye dwell, I
have to wonder sometimes if ye'd like the new city of Hallifax and it's
beautiful paintings and sculptures and operas. Would ye like to be
there, even though being in the same city as Elostian might make ye feel
strange (I know ye loved Lacostian, but was a bit jealous of his brother
Elcyrion, but now that they are "both and neither...). Or would ye go
back to Celest? I just hope ye time in the void doesn't affect ye
personality too much.

In any event, I hope ye can read this. Or if I'm talking to myself,
maybe writing all of this down is good for the soul.

Take Care Isune!




Penned by my hand on the 18th of Juliary, in the year 313 CE.