A Preface to the Encyclopedia Imperium

The following document is the preface to the first draft of the Encyclopedia Imperia, which lies undisturbed in the deepest vaults of the Academy of Saldan. It was placed there (along with a scattering of Lucia Lianor's notes) by Maeve Keith-Levin in honor of her mother.

## Encyclopedia Imperium, Preface

> Since this book, which I hope will one day stretch volumes, is intended to be a repository for the many secrets of the Imperium, left for generations to come so that the efforts of the thousands of brilliant men and women of the empire will not be lost forever, I believe an introduction to the architect of this work is in order.
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> My name is Petra Keith.
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> I was born on the planet Milgar to Lady Astrid Keith, whom the history books will no doubt by now have branded a traitor to the Imperium. I know that not to be the case. My mother fought for the restoration of the Empire's glory. She believed in a new 'Grand Imperium,' based on free thought, intellectual excellence, and an all-encompassing passion for knowledge. She believed that we could be free of Adalna, free of racist imperialism, free of the tyranny of family politics. Alas for my mother, she also believed that it could be accomplished in her time, by the force of her will, and by the products of her intellect. She was killed attempting to enact that will.
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> I am not so sanguine. I have loved the Imperium for my whole life, but it is clear to me now that it cannot be saved from itself. My fellow citizens of the Empire have taken away my friends, my family, my safety, even my dear love. If this is the course we are on, then millions will burn and perish, and much that I thought beautiful will be scoured from the cosmos. A Dark Millenium of savagery and death is all that awaits the Empire. There is only one way to avert this crisis - to rebuild the empire from its base and eliminate the core rottenness that plagues it. To build a new Foundation, far from harm.
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> For this foundation to flower into a new Imperium, it must find two vital elements: A source of knowledge that would allow the society to quickly grow and progress beyond even the wildest dreams of the original empire, and a safe home to grow to a great size and wait for the right moment to fill the vacuum.
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> This first pillar, the Encyclopedia Imperia, will be a massive, galaxy spanning project to preserve the knowledge of the mage princes.
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> The second pillar, the Foundation project, will be an expedition to the edge of the cosmos to create a new society to rise from the ashes of the old. It will be put into place upon the completion (within reason) of the first.
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> Though it will not be clear in the final version of the Encyclopedia (and indeed, this passage will almost certainly be excised from the print document in any case), it is perhaps necessary to explain why these pages have been bowed and arched by a stream of tears.
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> You must permit me some autobiography here. I grew up amidst civil strife. My mother was married to the heir to Milgar's governorship - a marriage she detested. My stepfather was a well meaning, but otherwise mediocre mage prince. My true father was my mother's Telranian bodyguard, a proud and wise warrior of the wastes. From my mother I received my dreams, from my step-father, my pride, and from my true father, my skills and determination.
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> The record of the Milgaran civil war requires too much to explain here, but suffice it to say that I did not come out unscathed. The man who I had at the time assumed to be my father was dead, alongside many of the people I had been raised by. I had hoped that this would be the end of my suffering. But that was only the beginning.
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> When I arrived on Aeldrum to complete my education, the trouble with the Oracular Council had only just begun. I had enough time to make friends and become close with many more before the first wave of arrests began. In the name of defending the honor of the Seers, dozens of my friends were arrested, some for wondering about the truth of the council's connection to Adalna, some for protesting the actions of the council, all for arbitrary and pointless reasons.
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> I pray that the teachers and students I knew remain safe. I did what I could to save whom I could... including my dearest Lucia. She had gotten herself caught up in a protest, and with her timid disposition, she could not get herself out. I... extricated her from that mess and she sort of started following me around. She's an endearing and persistent one, much more brilliant than anyone gives her credit for.
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> I have gained so much comfort from poor Lucia... sometimes I wonder if I am taking advantage of her. She's such a delicate girl; her lithe frame, her slender arms, her soft, yet often fearful face, they give me nothing less than an absolute desire to cover her in warmth and love. Gazing into the great depths of her eyes as she breathes softly beneath me... it is the most sublime that I think I could ever dare to feel.
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> The point is, it hasn't been all bad. Just a lot.
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> Since returning, I have done what I can to fight the injustice of the Imperium. I met Fitzgammon, who is a fine man, and whom I hope is okay. He and I were very close, and though it was only a few times that I was really able to get away from my duties, things did at times become... rather passionate.
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> *sweet Adalna, you know what, this whole section is definitely not getting into the final edition. This is supposed to be a founding document, not some sordid account of my lovers.*
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> But soon after, events moved beyond my control. My mother took control of the sector with her ally, that fool Drumpf. Now though, they're both dead. Uncle Clarence may join them soon, though I hope he comes to us instead of letting his life end in pride and despair.
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> And Dante... I grieve to have lost him too. Yet I lost him to his father long before he died. The innocent and curious boy who saved my life on Milgar fell into the damning rut of jingoism and butchery. And though I deceived myself into thinking I might get the boy I knew back, I should have known that flirting with such an idea and such a man could only lead to heartbreak.
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> *ugh. last thoughts for the night*
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> Thinking about it, mom really did pass to me her ideals. Perhaps she did not live by them, and perhaps she was too pragmatic to think that all of them could be carried out. But she risked everything to keep the people she respected - the greatest minds she met - safe and happy. It must have tortured her, to be trapped by her past. What could an idealist do if the only thing she knows how to do is scheme, fight, and slaughter? But she was their sword and shield, and she gave her life that they might live on to bring about a better world... that I might live to bring about a better world.
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> I wish you were here with me, mother. I want to tell you that I understand now. You were a tyrant, but you never wavered from the principles you held. I wish you had explained it all to me. But I guess I wouldn't have believed you. Death clarifies so much that I wish I had understood when you were alive. But you wanted to keep me safe by separating me from your people. But you could never separate me from yourself, and you shouldn't have tried.
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> That's enough for today. The preamble is more than finished. Now the work begins.
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