Field Report: The Mysterious Case of Leyton - 26 May, 1619
Field Report: The Mysterious Case of Leyton
The mining homestead of Leyton was established early in 1616, as an expansionary outpost to the colony of Flint. It is at the base of the Cadmar Mountains, on the western side of the Levantra Pass. It is physically isolated, and potentially cut off if the Pass suffers damage, collapse, or foul weather. Leyton depends on regular supply caravans from Flint proper in order to survive, due to both their geographical location and the primary focus of mining precluding most major agriculture in the area. In exchange, Flint receives minerals and metallic resources to both further its own existence and ship abroad to Sobukand. Of particular note is the unnaturally high amount of wellstones produced by the mines of Leyton, which are almost exclusively shipped to the Imperial capital of Casere. The mines themselves are a short walk north of town, and were opened in the fall of 1616 in what was assessed at the time to be a virgin vein. In October, 1618, the miners of Leyton discovered an antechamber in the primary mine. The chamber was deemed to be man-made, almost like a pre-existing room within the stone. The chamber contained a vault with text and formula inscribed on its door, in a dialect of the Imperial Common Tongue that has not been used for hundreds of years. Even stranger was a disassembled device with instructions on how to restore it. The miners took these pieces to the surface and began the process of assembly. Fully constructed, the device is approximately 10 feet tall, ten feet wide, and shaped like a dodecahedron. Its composition is almost entirely copper plating upon the ivory from the creature known as a Grootslang. Records from the chamber indicate this was a great tusked beast with a long trunk and serpentine hind-quarters. It can only be assessed that this creature is native to Torakand, and no record of contact with such a creature exists from modern day colonists. The citizens of Leyton completed reconstruction of the device in February 1619 and attempted to activate it. Unfortunately, those in Leyton at the time had not completed the formula that was discovered along with it, and thus did not fully understand how to operate it. They placed a single wellstone into its receiving box and activated it. When this proved insufficient, they placed three (03) more wellstones into the device. This overload and pouring of energy into an already running engine caused an arcane backlash. This backlash was in the form of a wave of spiritually dissonant energy that completely enveloped Leyton and dimensionally shifted all living residents to a spiritual parallel realm. They existed in this realm in a semi-spiritual status, unable to interact with the physical world, but not entirely aware anything was amiss. Once Flint realized contact had been lost with the Leyton homestead, it sent military support and field experts to investigate; escorting a regularly scheduled supply caravan. Flint's citizens immediately perceived the walking spiritual echoes upon arrival, but were unable to meaningfully interact with them. The rescue party was also beset by Leyton mega-fauna intermittently, mostly by abnormally huge and aggressive Ahool. Through investigation, document analysis, and spiritual consultation, Flint discovered the following: • The device, which dubbed the Psionic Esotery by some, could be charged by twelve (12) total wellstones, in three (03) groups of four (04). Each group could charge the device for 30 minutes. All stones needed to be inserted simultaneously, and prior to activation. • The device bridges the gap between the physical and some sort of unknown spiritual shadow realm that lies parallel to our own. The Psionic Esotery acts as a sort of two-way gate between the two. • If the gate was opened, the residents of Leyton were able to be brought back to the physical realm with the presentation of an item they had imprinted on; a loved object or cherished heirloom. These objects acted as both spiritual lures as well as a way of realigning their spirits with physical reality. • Creatures of animated shadows harried rescue attempts by feeding on our memories and essence. The shades of the realm also whispered to us while we inhabited their realm during the rescue operation, claiming the residents of Leyton were "theirs". It is assessed that this device is incredibly powerful and equally dangerous. Most peculiar still is its unknown origin and the antechamber found in the mine, which pre-dates the settlement of Leyton by centuries. More peculiar is that as of the writing of this report, the intended function of the Psionic Esotery is still unknown. For the moment, Leyton is back to its previous status as a mining settlement. However, this entire matter and key details of this case will require future investigation and study. The device will remain in Leyton for the time being; unused, but near its power source.Purpose
This document was copied and sent to the following:
Jon Cuinn for local archives and dissemination
Governor Cornelius Bixby
A copy to be sent back to Sobukand for reporting purposes
Type
Report, Incident
Medium
Paper
Authors
Signatories (Organizations)
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