Within the last couple of months someone left a letter just outside of
the gates of my home city of Antioch. As I reached down to pick it up I
had to quickly drop it because of the flame sigil that was attached. I
then knelt down to read the letter as it was lying on the ground.
Without reciting the whole letter word for word, it basically said that
Antioch was foolish for not allowing magick within her walls. It stated
that we stand by helplessly when faced with a crisis and pray to our
Gods while magick solves the problem. There was no name attached, so it
remains a mystery as to who wrote the letter. The only thing that is
clear is that it was probably not a Stavannite.

Now, I will be the first to admit that magick has been instrumental in
dealing with certain situations that have arisen in the past, but one
fact has been carelessly overlooked by the auther of this letter. It is
magick that causes these problems in the first place. Most recently, we
were plagued by zombies and ethereal storms. This was the work of a
necromancer whose thirst for power nearly brought calamity to us all.
Many who use magick are basically good people, but as long as it is
practiced these types of problems will continue to arise.

After all of the ethereal storms had been eliminated, everything
appeared to be returning to normal. I was standing at the shuk in my
city speaking with a friend when Risa from the Lamiran village in Aora
bay arrived begging us for assistance. A storm, much more powerful than
the others, had overtaken her home and was sure to destroy it and all
who dwelt there. A hole had been torn in the fabric of reality as a
direct result of the necromancer's magick. If it could not be stopped
then the whole world would be consumed. The stormslayer knives had no
effect on the storm and we did not know what to do. Many of us gathered
at Victory Circle and began to pray to the Gods for an answer. The
entire Pantheon of Antioch answered our prayers and blessed the sand of
the desert we call home and instructed us to drop it in the midst of the
storm. When we had done so the storm ended, and the rip in the fabric of
reality was repaired. The very Gods whom had been dismissed by the
writer of letter are solely responsible for the ultimate end of this
terrible chapter in Aetherian history. I think a little gratitude is in
order. Incidentally, magick was NOT required.

Magick is unpredictable, and because of recent events it has become even
more so. Mere mortals cannot understand this power that was meant only
for the Gods. Many who seek to control it and have only the best
intentions, but it cannot be controlled. Each time you cast a spell it
pokes a tiny hole in reality. You may not see it's effect, but it is
nonetheless there. The desert is made up of countless grains of sand
which are insignificant in and of themselves, but they combine to fill a
great expanse. Your well intentioned uses of magick are like those
grains of sand. They combine and slowly eat at the fabric of reality.
Antioch's stand is not based on bias or hate, but on the genuine desire
to see the world, as we know it, survive. I am confident that the letter
was written with the best interests of all at heart, but if Antioch were
to embrace magick then Aetherius would be doomed.

In humble regards, Kul

Penned by my hand on the 18th of Bellum, in the year 470 AD.