"As one might expect from a Chamber with such a lofty title, it seems that, to become a fellow of the Chamber Ascendant one must be in possession of a near pathological level of arrogance." - Mikael Remul, Esquire, chief editor and cleverest pundit of the Sanctuary Times
The extract below was discovered on a horrendously mauled corpse found in the slums of Hangside. The letter was magically enciphered within a badly water-damaged painting. It is a wonder that the painting survived at all and we can only thank the avaricious eyes of the Hangsiders, who must have quickly assessed the seeming worthlessness of the damaged painting, for its continued existence.
My Dear Friend and Fellow,
I am wiring to you on the eve of Founders Day to forewarn you of a recent and worrying trend within the Chamber Ascendant. I fear that we are seeing a drastic increase in the number of Fellows of the Chamber Ascendant who have close ties to the Church of the Holy Unification. But I fear that I must also be the bearer of even grimmer tidings. More worryingly still is my suspicion that some of these Fellows belong to the Church’s more extreme sects. I am yet to unearth viable evidence to attest to such dire circumstances, yet, from a chance whisper or unguarded comment made in passing, I must fear the worst.
As you know, the Great Chambers were set up to tackle matters of great philosophickal importance our Noble City and their independence of any other organisation is sacrosanct to their ability to neutrally assess the multiverse and uncover its hidden truths. Amongst the Great chambers, the Chamber Ascendant was founded to investigate the fundamental meaning of soul and the divine within the multiverse. For, unlike the ignorant dwellers of the realms we cannot simply think of the divine as something that exists elsewhere but exerts its powerful influence upon the realm. Rather we must think of the divine as something that lives alongside us. But, what then, is the divine? Have such powerful entities always existed or is it possible for a soul to ascend, to become more like these powerful entities?
It is this question that I fear has led to the interest of the Church falling upon the Chamber Ascendant. In particular, I believe that it is Yason Prennian’s current work that has drawn their attention. Before his disappearance, Prennian was working on a hypothesis called the Scales of Ascendancy. From what I have managed to piece together it appears that Prennian believed that a soul could ascend but, in order to do so, it must usurp another. Prennian’s investigation was trying to determine how one soul might ‘usurp’ another: must a soul permanently replace the higher or do the souls ‘swap’ places – one ascending whilst the other falls?
I am unclear why our mutual enemy should have an interest in such matters – does she seek to put a stop to such speculations, seeing them as blasphemous? Or, does she seek something else?
I can go no further in my current guise and, I must, my dear friend, delve deeper. Please take heed of this note and set the machinery of our great - but lumbering - society rotating. We must act now for I fear we are already too late. As you well know, I am not the heroic sort and plan to hide from drama, but should the worst occur, I entrust you to carry out my last will and testament and to care for my family.
Your Humble Servant.
unsigned letter, author unknownEditAdventure Seeds
- Prennial Matters: A mysterious contact in the Chamber Ascendant has tasked you with finding out where Yason Prennian is. It is unclear whether the contact means to protect, use or harm Prennian but the reward has helped quell some of your doubts.