Jariel: The Archon
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The time has finally come. As the Nexus Project begins, we embark on the greatest scientific experiment in the long history of our people. And if we are successful? Then we will have achieved what others have only dreamed of. We will have altered the destiny not just of the Eldan, but of the universe itself.
Quick Facts
Faction: Exile
Type: Datacube
(This rough leather-bound journal is next to the corpse of an Oghra poacher.)
DAY 1
Lots ‘o animals down planetside, like big furry sacks ‘o money waitin’ to be shot, killed, ‘n skinned. Plenty ‘o hides, furs, ‘n ivory to be had. By the Code, we’ll be rich when we’re through with this haul.
DAY 3
Plu’Tha got drug off last night. Not sure what got ‘im, but it weren’t pretty what we found in the grass when the sun come up. Couldn’t tell if it were really Plu’Tha or not… weren’t enough of him left. He’s gone all the same.
DAY 5
Lost another one, this time that fathead Higa. Probably fell asleep on guard duty. Serves the lout right. None of the Grund’re gonna sleep on watch after this!
DAY 6
They come out of the grass after dark, like ghosts. Took Gizu off, one on each ‘o his legs. He screamed ‘n screamed. Was sorta funny, ’til the screams stopped and they come back lookin’ for someone else. We done some shootin’ but didn’t hit nothin’.
DAY 7
They ain’t natural, these pumera what come after us. Ain’t afraid ‘o guns… ain’t afraid ‘o nothin’. I keep tellin’ Hrogh we better get back to the Fat Molly and put this place behind us. Hrogh says I’m a yellow-back coward, he does. I’d cut ‘is ugly throat if I didn’t want ‘im ‘tween me and them pumera so much.
DAY 8
Just me ‘n Hrogh left now. Only place left to go is camp, but it’s a good haul to get there with them two demons after us. Them Dommie bastards are thick as flies ’round here. If we ain’t careful, the Draken’ll chop us to ribbons… if them bloody pumera don’t tear us up first.
DAY 9
Movin’ out after dark. Should be back at camp ‘fore long, then back to the Fat Molly. Hrogh’s got first watch. I’d stay up if I weren’t so tired. If Hrogh nods off, I’ll kill ‘is Grund arse and sneak back by myself.
(The Oghra’s journal ends abruptly.)
Quick Facts
Faction: Dominion
Type: Journal
Dr. Rendin Howe, Chief Medical Officer, M-13 Mining Complex
1030.15.6
Travor Thiess came to me after his shift complaining of nausea, abdominal pain, and loose bowels. My initial impression is that he suffers from food poisoning, but he also admits to memory loss while in the mines. I drew blood and collected other samples for testing.
Travor is on bed rest until further notice.
1845.15.6
Other miners are exhibiting Travor’s symptoms. Still waiting for conclusive test results. His samples seem to have been contaminated somehow.
0200.16.6
Travor has become belligerent and unruly. He intended to return to the mine, though he gave no concrete indication as to why he might want to. When denied his request, he became violent and injured two fellow miners along with Carli, my physician’s assistant. Administered a strong sedative but it has no effect.
Travor is currently restrained.
1000.16.6
Other miners have become violent. A number of by-standers have been injured attempting to keep them from leaving the complex. This looks to be some kind of epidemic, but I have no idea what’s causing it.
1425.16.6
Travor, in agony, began screaming this afternoon. Anesthetic in high doses had no immediate effect.
Before anything else could be done, a… creature… burst from Travor’s abdomen. It immediately attacked Carli, severing two of her fingers. A nearby security guard shot and killed the creature. I will perform an autopsy and see if I can determine its origin.
1810.16.6
Things have gone from bad to worse. Infected miners who left for the mines have returned to kidnap as-of-yet unaffected co-workers.
Those who we’ve restrained previously have been killed by emerging alien parasites, much as in Travor’s case.
I don’t know what to do.
2100.16.6
I attempted to surgically remove a parasite from Deemer Marsh, one of the miners. As the anesthetic had no effect, I was forced to conduct the operation while he was fully conscious.
During the surgery, the entire complex lost power.
The parasite emerged in the darkness, killing Deemer before attacking and killing Carli. It then escaped into a ventilation duct.
0545.17.6
I am starting to display symptoms of infection.
I can’t remember what happened last night… all I know is that I need to go to the mines. There’s something – or someone – there that I must see.
One of the guards will probably try to stop me. I can’t blame them – they can’t understand – but I’m taking a laser scalpel along… just in case.
Quick Facts
Faction: Dominion
Type: Journal
1230.10.6
The first of the accelerite is aboard and we’ll be setting out soon. The crew’s eager and the prospects of profit are undeniable. Our first stop is M-13, of course. Krause’s last report says they’ve hit the mother lode. Another good investment, ripe for the picking. Dad would be proud!
0900.15.6
Communication came from M-13 today. Krause says they’ve found something in the mine. He wasn’t real clear, but it sounds like it might be alive. Probably just another fraz or frizlet.
He sounded worried, but everyone knows Krause worries too much. The man needs to learn to relax!
Anyway, I told him to keep the info under his hat. I’d hate for the miners to get all panicked for no good reason.
1200.16.6
Some of the miners have gotten sick. Krause says it’s driving them crazy, making them violent. It’s probably just a virus, but I can’t be too careful.
We better step on it if we’re to get there in time.
2000.16.6
More bad news: Some of the miners are dead. There’s an alien parasite behind it all, Krause says. I talked to that group of mercs about earning a little hazard pay.
By Granny’s whiskers, they’re expensive! I can’t spend all my accelerite to get them motivated and still pay my crew. What to do?
1115.17.6
Not much longer now. The crew’s acting a little cagey, and even the mercenaries seem tense. I wish they’d just calm down. Maybe I’d better try and find some real experts to help me out.
Nexus isn’t far from M-13… I think I’ll drop by and see if I can hire some reputable freelancers to clean out the mine.
(End of log)
Quick Facts
Faction: Dominion
Type: Journal
(This small book is lovingly crafted from natural materials and smells faintly of flowers.)
And to think we came all the way from Arboria to this paradise, only to find the Dominion was here, too. Everything they touch is contaminated. All they hope to accomplish is antithetical to what is right and good.
I see no hope for Deradune as long as the Dominion’s roots delve so deeply into the fertile ground of the savannah.
It is the Draken, come to this place like demons of war, thirsty for blood. Dumb brutes. They know nothing of morality, nothing of their place in the natural cycle, nothing of the Weave that draws all living things together. They strive to kill all they encounter, finding glory in slaughter, waging war as a hobby.
How they disgust me!
Worse, my spies say the Draken have started a Great Hunt. The beasts of the savannah, even the most ferocious and deadly of them, stand no chance against a swarm of Draken hunters.
Some Draken may be killed – deservedly so – by the animals, but the savannah’s denizens will suffer nonetheless… all for sport… all for blood! It sickens me to think of such a thing!
Let us not forget the Chua, little fiends that they are. They, too, ply their technological cancer in Deradune, working in tandem with the horned devils in Bloodfire Village.
We must do what we can here, hoping we are not rooted out and brought to ground by our Dominion enemies. We can no more sit upon our tails and wait for the Dominion to leave than we can rise up against them in force and hope to drive them out.
No, ours must be a guerilla war, a conflict of quick strikes and hasty retreats.
[The entry ends.]
Quick Facts
Faction: Dominion
Type: Journal
(This ragged book looks to have been discarded by its owner.)
6.8
Father goads me. He wishes for me to bring him the honor he could never seize for himself. He will learn soon enough I am not his puppet to be jerked about.
Find the Lost Caverns, the old fool commands. How? I am Draken! I am not a jabbit to be digging in the earth!
8.8
My search for the Caverns begins. May Werza guide me!
22.8
Two weeks and nothing! I suspect my father is laughing at me as I write this! By Hazak! I curse his entrails, that they be knotted upon themselves like angry serpents!
24.8
I have found the Lost Caverns. While walking in the hills east of Bloodfire Village, the ground gave way beneath my feet. I am unhurt, but I find myself in a dark place. I must find my way out!
25.8
If these are the Lost Caverns, they are infested with prey! Moodies, razortail, and pumera all make their dens here beneath the savannah. The bones of some great beast, long dead, jut from the stone walls.
It is as if I have been swallowed….
29.8
I hunt in the shadows. Time loses its meaning. The Moodies fear me! The razortail scamper away at my approach! The pumera bend their necks in deference! Here in the darkness, I am a god!
Day Unknown
Swords? Shields? Who needs such toys? The weak! I am Vezaar, first of my name! My claws are deadly! My teeth are like daggers! My horns are stronger than spears!
Blood and bone! This is what life was meant to be!
My people are fools, toiling under the yokes of soft humans like pets bred for fighting! Never again will I bow my head to a Cassian weakling while uttering courteous words! Vezaar is finally HOME!
Day Unknown
My father tried to contact me on my datachron. I did not answer. I threw the cursed thing away! Let him think me lost. I will never return to the surface!
Day Unknown
This journal is tedious. No longer will I scribble between its covers. My time is better spent hunting Moodies and razortails and pumera, sating myself on their flesh. Soon, these pages will be kindling for my fires. I care nothing for these memories any longer!
(The last pages are torn and smudged by a reddish-brown substance.)
Quick Facts
Faction: Dominion
Type: Journal
(This computer tablet contains Giba Corli’s research notes.)
Mammodin most powerful animal on savannah. Explosive mammodin even more powerful! Kill many enemies simultaneously when detonated!
Dilemma: Mammodin not inherently explosive. Solution: High-grade explosives must be added!
Explosives acquired. Stability questionable. Must warn Biba.
Mammodin explosives harness design complete!
New dilemma: Fastening harness to mammodin may result in pulverized Chua. Solution: Will have Biba fasten harness to sleeping mammodin.
Control of mammodin problematic. Require mammodin mind control device.
Prototype mammodin mind control device complete! Require test subject!
Willing test subjects in short supply. Must bribe Draken to help.
Mammodin mind control device initial trials inconclusive.
Test Subject Alpha suffers from psyche exchange. Now thinks he is mammodin. Will have Biba euthanize him.
Test Subject Beta killed by biofeedback loop. Spectacular cranial explosion! Must have Biba clean brains and bone fragments from control device prior to finding new test subject.
Test Subject Gamma suffered seizure, now drooling idiot. Minor adjustments required. Perfection of mind control device imminent!
Seeking new test subject. Though bodies of prior subjects have been disposed of in river, remaining Draken suspicious. Unwilling to help. Unacceptable!
Priority! Must locate new test subject with sub-par intellect!
(The research log ends.)
Quick Facts
Faction: Dominion
Type: Journal
