Eye of the Stargazer

Lost Amongst the Stars

Written by Endrise

All I know this is some advanced prank of a bunch of fake astronomers, or the discovery of a lifetime. Or both, both can be true.

— Astronomer

The Eye of the Stargazer is an artefact found on the shores of Inselreich, although it goes by many names. A metallic orb that holds a star map to an unknown region of the sky.

It is a question what it is a map of, or even what its original purpose might have been. As the original creators are long gone, only assumptions can be made.

Guide to the Unknown

The spherical artefact is big enough to be held in both hands, hefty for its somewhat relative size. Its outer shell is a pure metallic mineral, showing signs of erosion and some forms of rust.

The name comes from its lens on top, giving it the appearance of a large eyeball. When inactive, it remains shut until activation. Doing so requires one to press a button on the side. Once pressed, it projects a holographic map of several unknown stars.

No current star map on Fabulae has any of said stars, nor does any older map either. Which seems to imply that it is not from any current known night sky.

The Map's details

In the decades since the map got discovered, people tried deciphering its writing. Scholars cannot identify any known stars, but they were able to identify some patterns.

There are fifteen constellations noted down for navigational purposes, and they also use a north star as the center of the map. Beyond that, any named stars are unreadable.

Discovery

The artefact was first discovered at the southern regions of Inselreich's mainland, having washed ashore. Recovered by a few locals, they quickly discovered its star map.

The object got brought to the Stargazer Peak Observatory and handled by the astronomers. Finding no clear collocation with their own maps, they kept it there for further study. Though getting closer to naming the stars recorded in the object’s database, not all are deciphered yet.

Item type

Unique Artifact

Weight

5 kilo

Dimensions

30cm x 30cm x 30cm

The Star Map

Its origins are still vague, though in the 40 years since its discovery people tie it to the Myopsian race. The language used seems to be a variation of Old Myopsian, or at least a variation that came from it.

Recent theories propose it to be their homeworld’s night sky with some evidence pointing towards it. Some constellations appear in older records that survived. Though with little knowledge existing about their world, only assumptions can be made.