The Shix

An attempt to answer perhaps
the least asked question in Bastion,
by Acolyte Lars Gufftison, 642 AL

The Conundrum

The first things almost any child of Bastion learns, after the basics of "momma" and "daddy," are that Alverion is our god and the Shix are our enemy. These two facts are conceivably more ingrained than that we need air to breathe. For the former, there can be no doubts and no mystery. Alverion's glory is visible to us always in the form of Arlethenon shining down on Bastion. Also, many citizens of Bastion take the opportunity to witness His magnificence in person on Revelation Day each year. The latter fact, regarding the Shix, certainly involves no doubt. They are our enemy, and all praise to Alverion for our salvation from them. There remains, however, mystery.
Before getting into the findings of my two years of research on the topic, I will address a worrying finding regarding the process itself. I was surprised to meet a considerable amount of resistance as I attempted to gather information from my colleagues in the church, and fellow scholars at large. There are no laws in the Illuminated Texts banning the discussion of the Shix. In fact, it is quite the opposite. The holy writings spend almost as much time on the evils of the Shix as they do the glory of Alverion. Despite this lack of official censure on the topic, it would seem there is quite the strong resistance to it. At times, which I briefly discuss later, I even feared for my life while simply asking questions on this subject.

The Illuminated Texts

The most obvious source of information on the Shix are the holy writings of the church. Indeed, the Shix are a focal point of much of the texts. Despite this, it will not take me long to list the things we can be certain of regarding the answer to this paper's title.
The Shix are

• "our enemy" - first in Chapter 2, Verse 2
• "darkness incarnate" - first in Chapter 2, Verse 2
• "not mindless beasts" - first in Chapter 2, Verse 2
• "keen and cunning" - first in Chapter 2, Verse 2
• "vile" (along with all synonyms thereof) - first in Chapter 2, Verse 5

That is the entire list. In the tens of thousands of words of the Illuminated Texts, all we are explicitly told regarding the nature of the Shix is covered within the first five verses of chapter two. Considering that chapter one exclusively pertains to the glory of Alverion and the heavenly realm He gave up to aid us, that means the full extent of our knowledge on the Shix does not extend beyond six and one quarter percent of the opening chapter of Bastion's history. Obviously, as an acolyte of Alverion's church, I had read the Illuminated Texts in their entirety multiple times, but I had never done so with an eye specifically on the question of the Shix. I must say, I was quite shocked when I completed my thorough examination for this paper.

Last Judgement, Hell by Fra Angelico

Viktor Helgason, Consumed by Shadow, c. 322,
Throne of Light Cathedral, Alalenora

Historical Documents

Beyond the Illuminated Texts we are left only with the few surviving documents from just prior to, and during, the Crusade of Light. To be clear, I am ever grateful to Alverion that we have no contemporary accounts to use. It is only by His grace that maintains our amazing world of Bastion. So, what is it we can learn from the documents available? I am afraid it is less than we learn in the Illuminated Texts. The bulk of the two years of this project were spent tracking down, and attempting to access writings from the and the Crusade of Light. I was not too proud to beg, and it is a tactic I was forced to use more than once.
The Dwarves are well known to be meticulous record keepers. Many Rezaanian nobles have been irritated to learn they would receive less than favorable trade arrangements with a Dwarven mountain because the Dwarves remembered an offense by the noble's ancestor from three centuries prior. It was with this in mind that I ventured to seek a meeting with Thane Grunnig Deepdelver. After much of the aforementioned begging I was finally granted an audience. I had assumed I would be given time during one of the Thane's weekly court hearings where the Dwarven citizens come to voice their concerns. Instead, I found myself alone with the Thane and two of his personal bannermen. As is only proper, I attempted to begin by expounding on the majesty of Thane Grunnig and his mountain. Instead, I was stopped and instructed by the Thane to speak my piece. When I informed him of my desire to learn more of the Shix, and to read any documents he may have regarding them, his reaction was grim. Had I insinuated heinous things about his mother, I am sure I would have felt less regret in that moment. I was certain the room was growing so cold that it was becoming hard to breathe. This was confirmed when I began to see frost crawling across the throne room floor, emanating from the throne--from Grunnig. No further words were spoken. Under the icy stare of the Thane I backed out of the room bowing and gasping my apologies as ice threatened to claim my lungs.
I do not know why my inquiry provoked such a reaction and I am certain I never will. In fact, I ams sure that were I to have descendants, none of them would ever be welcome in any of the mountain holds of Kem Boldahr. I relate this tale so that my fellow scholars can be confident I made every effort to find what information there is. I left no stone unturned, no lead ignored. While my time in Dun Morag was by far the most extreme example, that reaction was fairly consistent in my searching. I can confidently say that the following is the full extent of surviving knowledge about the Shix.
Nothing. We have scraps of journals from common soldiers during the Crusade of Light, and the Shix are often referenced. However, we gain no concrete information beyond what we already know from the Illuminated Texts. As is well known among learned peoples, we also have an extensive portion of Aeolith Zinwain's personal diary covering dates from the , through the war, and beyond. Again, the Shix are a common topic but in my meticulous reading, I found nothing I did not already know. Beyond that, the few records of the time are mostly logistical in nature. Bits of the mundane aspects of managing an army, preserved only because of the immense importance of the Crusade of Light, as opposed to being inherently interesting.

Conclusions

I have written numerous papers on a wide variety of scholarly topics, and never have I been so unfulfilled at the completion of a project. I must take solace in knowing that while I could not expand our collective knowledge, I can place a sign post for future scholars so they may know this path is not worth walking. I will end with my personal belief regarding the topic. The Shix are a horror beyond the mortal mind. Only through Alverion's divine guidance were able to face them.