An Account of the Rift Expedition

The following is an account of the 4851 expedition to the Rift, generously donated to the University of Dreiton by Dvr. Winslow on behalf of the Millennium Society and the Sphere of Military Science, and then converted to reproducible audiograph tapes. These tapes are on loan for academic purposes only, and shall not be damaged or otherwise edited without the express consent of SMS.
"The Unbroken Thread"
I - 3rd dusk, Brightstar, 4851
The Rift. Nova Vulturia. The Farlands. The dark continent. This mysterious and dangerous continent which sits just off the charts has many names, though as far as the world is concerned the only reality of that beautiful and infernal land is that none who set out for it have ever returned. Tales most outrageous and haunting surround the Rift – Maelstroms of blood claiming merchant ships that venture too close, vengeful spirits from the Vulturian era emerging from the black waters and claiming the soul of any poor fool unfortunate enough to be spotted, brain-eating mites falling from the sky at random – the list goes on. A state expedition to its forsaken coasts would have been lunacy a matter of years ago, but charting the dark continent seems to be nothing less than a grave and exciting necessity as of this dusk.
When the Society’s lithostratigraphical corps re-calculated the composition of Aquila’s core taking into the account the new developments of the Incursion, we discovered something most concerning. If our calculations are correct, not only are natural deposits of the miracle Aetherium ore contained within the charted world incomprehensibly rare, but they account for less than 10% of its total distribution on Aquila. We were forced to come to terms with the unfortunate fact that a hundred generations of Dreitonian debtors exhuming the entire core of this shard and smelting every ore and fossil down to its base wouldn’t give us enough pure Aetherium to fill a single chest. The Commonwealth could mine enough diamonds and emeralds to purchase the Celestial Palace from the Khotani and the lives of every miserable Silurian, and our wealth would hardly measure up to a fraction of what it would cost to purchase a full block of this amazing substance which will one day elevate us beyond the gods. Our allies in Akhtamar are in the process of digging up the entire Ertdorian desert, and I don’t believe I would have the heart to tell them it’s a complete waste of their time. No: If the Commonwealth is to secure enough Aetherium for me to complete my Project, we will have to find it in either the northern or southern antipodes; we are more likely to conjure up the daemon-sultan himself by throwing an emerald into the River Dreiton and dancing a jig than to secure excavation rights in the burning hovel that is Khotan at the moment, and so the choice is clear: It is time for us to do what our ancestors could not and tame the untamable.
Attempts to cross the Aetherial sea by nether tunneling proved fruitless, as it appears that a similar barrier exists there, and we simply lack the funds to engage in a quantum meta-tunneling project comprehensive enough to cross it. The initial idea was to approach the Rift by military airship, but atmospheric activities beyond the Starfall are much too volatile to risk aerial travel with current technology. We decided that we would sail for the dark continent by steamship, manned by a select crew equal parts soldier and scientist. If we were going to do this right for the sake of the country – I was the first to say – we would need to summon nothing less than the most capable men and women in the Commonwealth. Our captain, the famous Khotani expat Zhang Windforth, is a capable and worldly woman who has more than proven herself in the nautical field, and so I trust her completely. Our lead navigator, however – I cannot help but feel he is to be this expedition’s weak link. Not that I believe in such superstition, but rumors of affiliation with certain occult elements surround the man, and I find myself averse to his unnaturally gaunt and awkward disposition. Still, for reasons that escape me, Jennings has it on good word that the man actually traveled to the Rift once and returned intact, which would, admittedly, make him the greatest authority on the dark continent in all Aquila by default. I shall keep my four eyes upon him nonetheless. The good gentleman and family friend who produced those fascinating interviews with veterans of the War, Messr. John Reed, shall also be accompanying us, insisting that if one man is to be trusted to write the official account of the expedition, the finest pressman in the greater Commonwealth should be the one to do so.
I myself shall be keeping this audiographical account as an additional primary source, mostly for personal reasons, but perhaps the University may have some use for it once all is done and said. We embark at first light tomorrow. If the Martyr’s eyes are upon us, I pray he grant us safe passage.
TBC
Category:Invidere