Summary part 4

 Part IV - The Moral Reforms

The expansion to the stars increased the power of the Emperor. Together with with the five most important planetary Holder houses, the later Heirs, Heideran V (not to be confused with the more recent Heideran VII) contested the power of the Council of Apostles. It was a conflict that had been long in the making, but started more or less openly in 21875, five hundred years after the flight of the Sabik.

The civil war would last half a century, till roughly 21930. Heideran V's forces defeated the Council of Apostles. The Order of St. Tetrimon had sided with the Council during the conflict, but managed to remain active in small sects that continued to act against the Moral Reforms. Led by grand master Tetrimon IV they hid away the artifacts and records of the Council of Apostles.

This is probably the second moment in our history where a lot of relics and artefacts were hidden or taken away. I've conjectured earlier in this summary that Council of Apostles - in its ancient role of keeping the power of the Throne in check - was for many millennia the caretaker of the Ametat. During and after the Moral Reforms they would certainly want to keep this symbol out of the hand of Heideran V. 

In recent years, the Order of St. Tetrimon has made a comeback. Their return was encouraged by the recent Empresses Jamyl and Catiz. They now have built a magnificent headquarters, home to their growing fleet and their center of power. If they kept possession of the Ametat, this is the place where they'll keep it. The only other possibility is their Mother Chapter in the Kingdom, Fortress Teakh tak-Teakh on Ibani VI.

I haven't yet pursued that lead, although I was hopeful when one of the Tetrimon joined the ranks of LUMEN. But I haven't seen mr. Moon for a long time now.

This concludes the summary of my search till now.

Summary part 3

This post follows the two previous ones summazing my search thusfar.

Part III - Investigating the Takmahl lead

The Takmahl political organisation reflected what we had in Amarr, and at the head of their society stood an emperor. The possession of the stolen Avetat would have strengthened his claim to power and brought the wise rule necessary to make the Takmahl thrive well beyond any other Sabik colony. Under the emperor stood holders, with commoners under them, and finally slaves at the end of the chain of obedience. The Takmahl empire incorporated Talocan technology into their own science. 

I spent most of the year investigating several leads in connection with the Takmahl :

• I have not uncovered hard evidence that the Takmahl could reach Anoikis or any other far flung part of the cluster using Talocan jump gate technology. There are Takmahl artefacts in Anoikis, but it is not clear they were left there by the Takmahl themselves.

• I spent a lot of time investigating the Araz constellation and the surroundings of the Takmahl core worlds. During one of my expeditions I found a mummified corpse with intact cyberimplants (the Takmahl have developed advanced cybernetics). I keep that corpse in a stasis pod, I need to clone it to succesfully fool the cyberimplants and reactivate them.

• Given their attachment to the pentagram, I was intrigued that besides Araz there is only one other pentagram constellation in the cluster, in Deklein. I went there, beyond the borders of the civilized world, but was unable to find any traces of the Takmahl.

• The Bersirym system is another such place of interest outside or Araz. There is a high concentration of Takmahl relics there, and I found out that it was being used by gangsters to fund their activities. Although I found their space warehouse, I haven't really found the source of these relics, and this is a lead I must continue.

• Finally, I followed archeological reports that claimed there is a large temple or treasury on, let us call it "planet G". The Takmahl emperor would indeed have kept such a relic in a well guarded treasury, but it is not clear that their influence reached planet G. It is also not clear why they wouldn't keep them close at hand in Aphi - unless they got scared of them. There are certainly interesting things hidden there, guarded moreover by typical Jove tech (nanoswarms). However, this treasure is not accessible any more...

Ultimately, Takmahl society collapsed, for reasons not altogether clear. Their numbers dwindled from billions to a few hundred thousand that had reverted to barbary and ignorance by the time our explorers encountered them, as can be seen from the photograph below.

This means that any knowledge of where the Avetat was kept, if indeed it ended up in the possession of the Takmahl emperor, is now lost. Searching their ruins and wreckage will therefore remain an important part of my search.

However, there are still other leads to follow.

Summary part 2

Continuing my summary of what I learned in the first year of search for the Ametat and Avetat.

Part II - The Theft

Several sources - including Lunarisse's archeologist father - point to the great purges under Queron I as a possible time when the relics could have left Amarr.

Queron I ruled not that long after we took to the stars. Our first jump gate, to Hedion, had been built only thirty years before he ascended to the throne. We had not yet met any other intelligent life in the universe. He had inherited from his uncle Armani I an empire rife with heresy. Equilibrium of Mankind was operating from its hidden lair in space, and the Imperial institutions had been infiltrated by Sani Sabik. Queron I cleaned up the Empire.

Those Sabik that survided Queron's inquisitions (21310-21346) fled Amarr in cryoships. They took important relics and artefacts with them and set course to distant lands. I conjecture that they took with them also the Avetat (and possibly the Ametat too, but more on that later). Their cryoships -such as the well-preserved wreck shown in the picture below- were slower than light, and traveled many decades in the hope of finding a good world to start new colonies.

Most of these attempts failed, but at least one colonist fleet succeeded. They made it to the Araz constellation, probably arriving around 21400. There, they flourished - perhaps with the help of the stolen Avetat and its wisdom-granting powers. Certainly the Talocan artefacts that they found in Aphi helped. They would become known as the Takmahl, and their civilization would last for a millennium before collapsing.

The theft of the Avetat by the Sabik runaways must have been known in the highest circles of the Council of Apostles and the Speakers of Truth. A young religious reformer, Ilash Toth, was working with these institutions in their role of curbing the growing powers of the Emperor and the Holders with planetary holdings. The Imperial and Holder power grew through the interstellar expansion, and this planted the first seeds for the conflict between the Throne and the Council. Ilash Toth found out what happened to the Avetat. He organised his famous expedition to retrieve the artefact(s) - bringing his followers along - and left Amarr with his fleet in 21432, in pursuit of the Sabik thieves.

The Sabik colony in Araz -that would become the Takmahl empire- was a mere 30 or 40 years old only when Toth set a course to them. At this point the theories branch: did Toth succeed or not?

Let's first explore the theory that Toth did succeed, and was able to wrest the Avetat and maybe also the Ametat from the budding Takmahl. He sent word of his success back to Amarr, but did not turn his fleet back to our holy homeland. Famously, his fleet disappeared and presumably hasn't been found since.

The Goners, founded by Brother Sarachem after he found his truth in old texts long forgotten in the Hedion archives, believe that Toth flew to Eve Gate. Early last year, I spent a good deal of time in the New Eden system to study this and to talk to the Goners. The Goners believe the relics can open the gate, and devote themselves to flying subwarp to the gate. Maybe one day they will find Toth's lost expedition somewhere between the New Eden star and the gate, but thusfar they have not succeeded. They also mention legends that the Jove or some other ancients stopped Toth from opening Eve Gate and hid the relics in an asteroid belt in the now inaccessible Jove systems.

It is fair to say the Toth trail has gone cold for now. So, next we must look at the alternative: Toth did not succeed in retaking the relic(s?), and they remained with the Takmahl.

Summary part 1

It has been over a year since I started my search. So, it is time to take stock, and review where my investigations stand, and summarize what I’ve learnt. The report is a bit long, so I'm going to break it up in parts for my logbook.

Part I – Early history

The Ametat and Avetat disappeared from the Imperial Palace roughly 400 years after Emperor Amash Akura’s death.

If God sent the Sefrim to retrieve these gifts and bring them back to Him, then my quest would be pointless. Yet, I am devoted to the vision that I received, and must continue.

So, I assume they were moved from the Imperial Palace. If one translates the oldest reports - from the Court Chamberlain - in a strictly literal way then the only things they say for sure is that the Ametat and Avetat were no longer in the hands of the Imperial Family. 

At the time, the only entities with the power to remove them from the Imperial Family, would be the Council of Apostles and the Speakers of Truth. Petty thieves would stand no chance on the long run. Back in these early millennia, the Apostles and the Speakers had as their main role to keep the power of the Emperor in check – the concentration of power in the Throne that we know today is fairly new as it dates from the Moral Reforms.

The Ametat - the Sceptre - gives power and vigor, and its natural extension would be the Council of Apostles. They wielded power and continuity then, and elected the Emperor from their ranks. The Avetat - the Crown - gives wisdom and acumen, and its natural place would be with the Speakers of Truth, who dealt with justice. It makes sense that the trinity of Throne - Scepter - Crown , which in Amash Akura was unified in the Emperor as it is today, used to be split among the Emperor, the Council and the Speakers. 

Ancient jewelry represented this as three interlocking gold rings - they interlock in such a way that if you remove one ring, the other two also fall apart. Before the moral reforms, such trinity rings were inscribed with IMP - SEN - IUS (for Emperor, Council, Justice), and "UNITAS" at the center. After the reforms, these rings still appear, but the three rings are inscribed with "Scripture", "Grace", and "Faith". The message that remains is: leave out one ingredient and all falls apart.

Ah, but I'm digressing, and this was meant as a review. So, I should simply state that it is my firm belief, not proven but corroborated, that the holy relics were still sound and safe in the halls of power, except not with the Imperial Family. 

However, all that changed when Amarr took to the stars.