Codex - Foundation's Fancies

Section 4
"The Ruddy Beezer - Ship's manifest and inventory as of month of Lopus 14th, year 2724"

"3 dozen quart sugarcorn biscuit. 5 beast & bird, jellibles removed. 1 tinderling of Vegetables, herbs and nanban fruit. 1 tinderling of cook's materials. Sufficient water for one man."

"Crew - Just me, Ede Cedabrassus of Momoros"

"Captain's note. Maiden flight test of the Beezer. See if she's as brave in the air as she was in the water. Nervous but steady hands. Told that stones are charged and ready, wind minimal and cloud thin. Bad weather caused failed flight on Perimola 23rd and death to my darling Hermaine. This flight dedicated to her, and quick may she rise above the waves, to take her place in Aetherium. Farewell my love."

Section 5
"c.2740 A poem in a children's book from the golden age." "Children everywhere listen do. This story is old, it concerns you!" "Little girls or little boys, stop with your things, stop with your toys." "Drift back to Foundation past, when life was sour, like an apple just cast." "Fall asleep beneath that tree, the arbor of life, whose yield are we." "For though we fruit now are golden, once we were green, to the tree beholden." "From Koinos we came, where the slitherers glide; 'Twy-Ni-Banda!'" "that's what we cried, and the serpents bit, and our brethren died." "'A jungle's no place for us,' they said, how silly to have a tree for a bed!" "So we sailed and we paddled, wretched and addled, unsure of what might await;" "Monsters lurked beneath the deep, the four winds determined our fate." "But our seed prevailed, and came to land, not far from the tree, upon the sand." "With a little water, we came to be what we should've oughtta." "Up came Sabor, up came Gall. Others too, though some did fall -" "For that was the trouble, there was no peace; nations fought and wouldn't cease." "So how did those seedlings chance to turn, and from which teacher did they learn?" "The answer's easy! You already know! Atlas is this story's hero!" "- Anonymous"

Section 8
"Minutes from the meeting of the Saborian Assembly 19th of Cob, 2789."

"This meeting was held at the newly-erected Stalk tower, Redusa."

"We are gods. Let us celebrate awakening. We are gods. Let us work closely. We alone are gods. For Sabor!"

"The following laws and amendments were made:"

"1. No citizen shall complain of poverty, sickness or misery and not receive immediate aid. The godhands shall gather information and effect this transition. 2. Pilipai beyond the walls will receive same support, albeit with the chance of delays in remote areas. 3. Non-Saborians shall not have this support, they are mortal, and we can offer them nothing but our pity. 4. The tenets of Apotheosis are now engraved in Redusa square for all to see. 5. A fifth tenet has been imagined for greater enjoyment of our godliness. The age at which we rise, should now be middle age. A true god needs no more time than that to succeed. 6. We are gods. Every task shall be shared for equal duration. Aptitude must make way for adaptitude, for the benefit of society. 7. Let the academies be levitated, so that the children can see the world below. 8. Atlas shall be circulated as and when required by the Utopian and The Committee. The Utopian shall decide how this marvel will perfect our perfection."

"Other matters;"

"Committee motion passed: A skyway shall be erected over the coming five years. The skyway shall allow all Saborians to travel between Momoros and Redusa, and will circuit both cities. The skyway will be operated free of charge. Passengers will need to display a citizen's ticket, and accompanying Book of Entitlement to use the service."

"Committee motion passed: The godhand livery shall now be silver, the colours of old Redusa, so that they are easy to discern from others. They shall continue to assist those in need, and encourage those not of Sabor to return beyond the walls."

Section 12
"Verduban theological tract - from the year 2998." "And so in the Mellifluan canon, the god Shabo used her gigantic claws to life a rock from beneath the warm sea, and roll it atop the centipede-god Agonon. Agonon had been her lover, but had an affair with Baliandri, multi-gendered god of dualities. This, therefore, was Shabo's revenge." "Agonon was completely covered by the boulder (which was believed to have formed Melliflua), and unable to move. Agonon was the most cunning of all the gods, and having spent a thousand years motionless in thought, a plan came to him." "Agonon summoned tree trunks unto each of his hundred hands, and having done so, beat a rhythm upon the underside of the boulder. After a further thousand years, the drumming had reached such resonance that the rock shook. A crack appeared and Agonon squeezed his body out. She had an even larger boulder ready which she dropped immediately on his head. It is said that this second boulder formed the lands where the Chabuti now live. The Mellifuans and Chabuti still refer to their continent as 'Shabo' in her honour."

Section 13
"Verduban theological tract - continued" "Agonon tried in vain to summon the trees to his hands again, but he was too weak from his drumming. Still he tried to wriggle free, and they say his efforts caused the Korchis mountains to form. Whenever a temblor is felt in Melliflua, it is supposedly his tail twitching, as he dies his eternal death. His death is creation, preservation and destruction embodied. When he finally dies, it is believed the world will enter a state of dark limbo." "This story tells us a little about the primative Mellifluans, and how they used their fantastical gods to explain natural phenomena such as earthquakes. The question remains, however, of why these earthquakes seem now to be growing stronger each year. Needless to say, the one true god will show us in due course. Don't waste your strength cracking the icy lake, when spring, given time, will melt it."

Section 14
"Account of a Chabuti circus performer near Ten-Rui 3020" "'Oh, what will become of me? Once a person in my outsize shoes would have had fine prospects. But everything I do is catastrophic." "It's the first time we've had Shabo's Honour off the ground for two years. It's a tired and filthy boat, but they say we've one last hurrah to give." "Every time I go on stage I am made to feel worthless. The crowd's patience is short, and as the curtain drops, they reach for their pockets as if to reward us. Instead, they dig out nanban peels, and heaven-knows-what-else, and fling them at the stage. I can see they enjoy this more than our performances." "But yesterday, I did something terrible. I was leaning over the side, all the while thanking providence I was high above, and that as yet, I had no reason to take up some unseemly low-town enterprise. So I wished that should I ever lose my beautiful looks, or my talent, that the darkness should take me. Then one-by-one I dropped the petals of the flower overboard to seal my wish." "I heard a popping and screech, and clouds of rubble shoot the ship and blotted the sun. I staggered below deck, coughing into my 'kerchief. I joined the other faces at the observation glass. The upper city gleamed blithely in the evening light, while giants fought with fire below it. It was vile, oh truly it was!" "If I never look in a mirror again, I shall not see myself, but the monster who consumed the low-town. I ran away to cry. I cried and cried, and when I had dried my tears, I saw that our ship was floating high above the dust, up to where the merchant vessels were moored."

Section 16
"Damaged Saborian schoolbook from 3027"

"...major foreign crisis...3021. Bandinia was our major Supplier...embargoed. Iniustice...ships to investigate...occupation. 3023...over-mined Darat, in the hope of keeping both supplied...breach of our equitable and long-standing... In the end, Bandinia's ambition destroyed...their...we looked elsewhere... Melliflua... Chabuti ... offered to help, in exchange for Atlas... where god and mortal differ... instead of upholding promise ...put own the weapons we gave them...Kioki jealousy of our resplendent cities...scandalous alliance. Kioki the evil mogul Tangana... lies...technologies...the black isle curse, its Rebus remains intact... We decided to advance upon the Melligluans first...stone...conserved for proper use. not fripperies... great Telemon, respect the godhands, do their bidding."

Section 18
"Extract from 'The Floating Fires' a fiction, written by the Ishgiruan Capon Ndoye in 2991." "'BAM BAM BAM,' comes the guns of Thunderlord. The great skyhulk raises its leg into a coil, and jabs it down, crushing another Saborian skyship factory underfoot. But Nemesis appears from below, in ambush, and for a ponderous moment their arms and antennae lock. There is a great screech of metal on metal as the struggles tumbles both to the ground, and they are unable to right themselves. This fight was going to go on for a long time." "'I can't keep the engines running dry, you gotta get some oil in 'em,' says Chanla, expertly navigating between the burning wreckages of the two fleets." "'I'm busy!' shouts Zenon, spinning the transcom cannons around at the ship in pursuit. He pulls his binoculars and clocks the flags on the mast." "'Saborian!' he says. The plate on the bowspirit reads White Phantom." "'PAPAPAPAPATATA' Zenon's dual cable guns are unleased. Direct hit. White Phantom implodes in mid-air behind them. The explosion engulfs another three ships, and one falls like a teardrop of lava into the nether."

Section 19
"Extract from 'The Floating Fires' a fiction, continued..."

"'Are we ok Zenon? Are we gonna make it?'"

"'Sure you're gonna make it Chanla. Just hang on. One of us has to see this through - for the Unity. You are more a goddess than they'll ever be.'"

"They kiss passionately for a moment, but Zenon opens the cargo door, and his cape flaps in the night air."

"'I've gotta get to the command ship.'"

"'Zenon, no, don't go.'"

"'Keep safe Chanla.'"

"With that, he is gone, the Atlas glow of his hoversack scorching upwards. Above, the stars are too faint to see among the floating fires. They will still be ablaze come morning, when the whine of flame-licked timber meets the dawn."

"Chanla wasn't going to do like the rest of the crew. She wasn't throwing herself off into the hole below. Who knew what was down here? Chances were, it wasn't a better world."

"She'd stick it out up here no matter what. This place, what was left of it, would always be her home, and no smug Saborian was ever gonna take that away."

Section 20
"Saborian war Poem 3036."

"Black Isle, uncrumbled. Secrets fumbled. Keys, chains, and stocks. Their Rebus mocks us. runic laughing locks us."

"So we face the enemy, and they us. We the faceless, face ourselves. We fight and we fight, They fight and they fight. Nothing can put it right, this ungodly sickness."

"The godhands chide us. Divide us. The children weep, and through the growing cracks. Pilipai seep."

"At first for the stones - rising to heaven. At last for the stones, without which we tall. We fight and we fight. They fight and they fight. Nothing can put it right, this ungodly sickness."