====== Sephar ======

===== Of Tales Told =====
//Ruwin tugs at the old man's sleeve.// "Tell us another story!"

"Oh, very well."

"One day, some loggers came to the forest. They talked to the bear, and the beavers, and the ants, and explained they needed wood for their library, as they had run out of books for their new ideas. And the bear said, 'yes, you may take wood from our forest. But you must plant new trees, and be kind to us who live here.' So the loggers agreed."

"But these loggers were a quarrelsome sort. They could never agree on which trees to cut down, and were much too jealous of their friends' piles of wood. So they grumbled, and they squabbled, and they stole from one another. Until," //his voice deepens, and he regards the children with an ominous look,// "in a terrible rage, one of them set the forest on fire."

//Ovis leans in, eyes wide.// "No! But what about the animals?!"

"No-one was hurt," //the old man smiles, all the warmth of the fireplace returning to his eyes.// "And the animals --- they all came to help put it out. The beavers scooped up water from the river, the ants carried it out on their leaves, and the bear hurled it all upon the inferno. Even the loggers helped out, cutting channels through the trees to halt the fire's advance. And once the last flame was doused, they all breathed a big sigh of relief."

//The children do too.//

"But," //he raises a finger,// "a young serpent had seen how the fire started. And he knew, if the quarrelling continued, the next one would be worse."

"So he hid in the back of their loggers' cart, all the way back to their library. And he slinked into the darkest corners, and slithered between their dustiest tomes, and studied their deepest fears. And he wrapped himself in them, those ancient pages, until they unfurled like wings."

"Like an Angel?" //Ruwin asks.//

"No," //says the old man.// "Not at all like an Angel. Like a //Dragon//. And the serpent roared: 'Stop your bickering! Or I shall burn you all!'"

//Ruwin giggles. She likes it when the old man tries to be scary. His face gets all wrinkly, and his eyes look very silly.//

"And they cowered at first, but then one sneered, and said 'let me show you of fire.' And," //his tone softens, sadder now,// "they did."

//He lets the silence hang for a while.//

//It's Ovis who breaks it.// "…What happened then?"

//With great purpose, the old man turns the page.// "The serpent would have died that day, wrapped in blazing parchment. But he hadn't come alone --- the birds of the forest had followed, and all the bees too. And they lifted him up ---" //he spreads his arms,// "--- and the Dragon flew --- and they carried him all the way home."

"It took the serpent many months to recover. But I think, at last, he understood. Because the next time he saw one of the loggers --- knocked over after a brawl --- he hung from a branch, and pulled them to their feet. And he started bringing them food, and listening when they were sad, and helping them find good trees."

"And the loggers understood too. They started helping each other. When they disagreed, they talked about it. And they became good friends with the bear, and the beavers, and the ants. And they all enjoyed the forest together."

//He pauses, gazing fondly down at little Ruwin and Ovis, both now fast asleep.//

"And there was peace."

--- //written by James P.//

===== The Final Voyage of Scholar Sephar =====
“Ease sheets!”

The cry goes out across the deck from the helmsman. The tumultuous wind that had waylaid the crew up until this point have now mostly abated, and it seems as if they are going to be set for a few days of clear skies.

The crew itself numbers some twenty people. Among them, sailors of varying experience attend to the boat. For some, it is their first time on the waters. For the youngest member of the crew, a twenty four year-old Ssar, this is their first proper time out of Dolom.

And yet, for much of the crew, there is one thing that they have in common: the organiser of the expedition. The oldest figure on the ship, Scholar Sephar, has been an educator in Dolom for several decades now. From the post-war orphans to those affected by personal tragedies, his life has been spent reading stories and training skills: teaching them to read and write, and to follow in their respective talents and interests.

Most of the people in his custodianship have since moved on. Some work their trades, others travel with their wares. One of them, the newly-elected Delegate Ava, even took a role in governance. But some have returned for this: one last expedition, set out to find the edge of the world.

Other people joined the group, those eager for the adventure. Amongst their number are a couple of veterans of the war, but most knew it only in their childhood, or never knew it at all. The second-oldest person, a Dragonblooded named Rui, was one of the small company of soldiers from Dolom assigned to protect the Guilds on Kythara from the siege of stone statues. Sometimes, he wonders if he recognises Sephar’s face, though under a different name, from the happenings on that island. After so much time, however, he does not pursue the line of investigation.

As the ship cuts through the now-still water, the sun begins to crest the horizon. Soon, the stars will be clearer, and their patterns will be studied and recorded. They are not particularly well-charted out here, far beyond the Corpunian peninsula. Nothing is, at least, when it comes to knowledge that is easily accessible in any area near the city. It took several years of planning to get this expedition to the point where it was ready, but the time could be delayed no longer. They set out from port a few weeks prior, and with a couple of stops around the Northern Kingdom, embarked on a course for the unknown. 

What they expect to find is unclear, but the important part of an adventure is never the ending.

It’s the journey.