"It begins with the advent of the Founders, mysterious extraterrestrial with the power to manipulate time and space. They used their gifts to terraform an arid, unbreathable planet, and turn it into the paradise we enjoy today. We, the Progeny, their decedents watched in wonder as they built a utopian commonwealth. We were bound together as one family, and we prospered for generations.
A time came when the Founders
yearned to return to the stars; but, before they departed they wanted to ensure
their legacy would endure till the Families were ready to follow them out into
the cosmos.. To that end, they inscribed
the sources of their power into a series of advanced equations which they
placed in an impenetrable repository, the 'Archive'. The Founders designated one of their own race
to be Protector of the Archive. Over time he became known simply as, the
Sentinel. He hid the Founder's Archive in an inaccessible place; where it would
rest undisturbed until the time of our greatest need. Only then, would we be
worthy to interpret the Archive's contents and claim our birthright, mastery of
the stars."
The Minister applauded,
"Very well told, Dag. So, do you think the Order seeks the Archive for its
fabled power to transform us into gods?"
Dag shrugged. "They'd be
fools to try. It doesn't exist. Have you convinced the Abbot of its whereabouts
with some tantalizing bits of disinformation?
You're not above pulling a dirty trick like that, you old fox."
The Minister eased himself into
a bench hewn from two blocks of red marble and laughed, "My boy, the
Archive's location has never been a mystery to me. The Founders equations are
all up here" he said tapping his silver mane.
"I am the Founder's
Archive! You see, over the centuries, I
have assumed and discarded countless personas: occasionally playing multiple
roles at the same time; such as the Prior General of the Cenobites, or now as
the Director of Public Safety, and later as the Abbot of the Order of the
Crescent. They're all characters I use in the game of guarding the Families
survival."
Dag's bright expression had
imploded. The Minister took little notice and gazed wistfully at the trees.
"I was given a mandate to
protect the Progeny from misusing the gifts of the Archive and protecting them
from outside harm. My greatest failure was not an external threat, but an
internal one, the Families themselves. During the Great Clan Wars, two-fifths
of the Progeny were lost in fifteen bloody years of ceaseless conflict. I won't
dignify my neglect with excuses. The simple fact is I allowed the Families to
devour themselves in a pointless exercise of cruelty because I swore an oath
not to interfere in your politics."
Dag sat awe struck. "Who
are you?"
The Minister's eyes softened as
they returned to Dag's face "I'm a
very old fairy tale trying to turn the tide of history."
"But the Sentinel is a legend; a fable we
made up to help us face the angst of existence in an uncaring Universe."
The old man appeared not to hear
him. "The Sentinel is real. I am many things, but I am not infallible. I
thought I could hand pick the Clans who would lead the Families back to the
stars. But all I did was set the groundwork for genocide, followed by a corrupt
government of decadent oligarchs. So, I
began to act against my oath, and I intervened directly in your post war
affairs. I began by insuring the establishment
of the Office of Public Safety, to prevent insurgents from reigniting fratricide.
Later, I began the Cenobite Movement among dissident academics and aesthetes
who sought the sciences of the mind as a pathway to reunion with the Founders.
Later, I taught them to refine their cognitive energy to influence members of
the Collegium. Eventually, it became chic to have a Cenobite consultant
attached to the staff of each member of the Guardian Council. Some Cenobites
were tasked with becoming intimate with
members of the elite."
Dag nodded, "I see,
Celestine and her lover, for example. So, just to be clear. The rivalry between
the Priory and the Directorate has been a charade from the beginning?"
"Yes, I deeply regret the
deception. But it was necessary to keep the Collegium from focusing its
collective paranoia on Directorate activities. Consequently, we needed to
maintain the illusion that the Priory was an adversary worthy of our attention.
Again, your efforts were crucial in keeping the deception plausible. I am
grateful." Dag suppressed his anger at this confession of betrayals, and
focused on what the Sentinel was not telling him.
"A third piece remains
unaccounted for, the Order of the Crescent. What is its role in your drama of
shadows?"
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