Of Light and Shadows, I
+ Approximately Five Years Ago
+ Phent, Empire of Nod
Deep within the northeastern reaches of Nod, in the small town of Phent a man strode across the border with a sense of grim determination. Only one article was carried by the man, a book held with care in his right hand. He seemed familiar with the land, and on the same hand an absolute foreigner. No, he didn’t belong in the land of Nod at all, but that was precisely the reason why he chose it.
The residents of Phent went about their daily business. Some tended to the fields, while others carted up merchandise to take to Krell for the seasonal market. Youngsters ran underfoot, screaming and tossing a rugged leather ball around the working adults. Shielded from the sun by a canopy of lush trees sat the town elders, their eyes alert and vibrant. At first the unknown man’s presence went largely unnoticed, but as he made his way through the town, each of the elders lifted their head and fell silent as he approached.
Approaching the group, he asked if they would mind his joining them, using the excuse that he needed some time out of the bright sunlight. Far from being the oldest of the group, but certainly a born leader, one woman cheerfully welcomed the stranger and bid him to take a seat. Initiating a conversation with the man, Dianni sublimely questioned his reasoning for passing through Phent, and where he began his travels. The man’s answers were enigmatic at best, all the while touching the book that he had set on his lap.
Hours crept by, and the conversation long departed from the topic of the newcomer, his voice falling into the rhythm of the elders with ease. He spoke of crops, births and deaths, the changing seasons, the phases of the moon and the might of the Gods with the elders, blending into their circle with ease. When the women announced that supper was prepared, the man rose and turned to another one of the seasoned elders, offering to him the book.
While he spoke not specifically of its importance, he did say that one day it would be much desired by others. The elder was not to risk his life for the book, and that if the fates wished to withdraw it from his presence that it was simply meant to be.
Still unnamed, the stranger stated his farewells to the elders of Phent and turned back upon the path which brought him into town. With the curiosity of children, the elders turned their attention upon the book, but the one in possession of it—a man by the name of Edgar—shook his head and rose from his chair. Before attending to supper, he returned to his home and hid it away, where it would remain for a handful of years.
Years later, after Edgar had passed on and left his worldly possessions to his children, his son was sifting through his father’s belongings. The books were amassed into a crate, which was sent to the national library in the capital city of Neo-Krell. A simple farmer, he cared not for the written word and knew that the library could always have a few more books for the people.
So it came to pass that the most important artifact in all of Havenlore—the one and only Book of Infinity—resided within the borders of Nod for more years than any one person would wish to acknowledge.