[x] Claim the authority of the divine; preach an apocalypse, a revelation of change. (Culture roll.) These are extraordinary times, and even the divine mandate of kings may be questioned. You may gain a reputation as a prophet, or for madness; possibly both.
You sit at the desk full of records, mind racing, as subtly the room begins to split into two camps. On your right, the side of law, headed by a minor official named Hepu; on your left, several of the louder community leaders of the delta.
You marshal your thoughts to prepare an argument that will overrule them both. This is a time of strife and ruin, the old orders are breaking down, and
you can be the herald of change, if only you can make them
understand.
What can you say? You touch the feather of truth in your hair; the token of service Rekhet gave you, heavy as a crown. Here is your authority, if you can speak a truth that will shake their world. What do you know, or guess?
{Scholarship: Partial; +1 XP}
This is not the first time the river has failed; legend says that in ancient days Satat-Mehet punished the kings of the Old Kingdom for their hubris, drying up the river and bringing their lands to ruin. It was the downfall of an empire, the ending of the world as it was known, but also the beginning of a new world and the New Kingdoms, now themselves many centuries old.
You are still no closer to knowing why, how, or whom, but someone has set in motion a disaster of the same scale, and Rekhet sent you to seek the answers and set matters right. You stand, and drawing yourself to your full height, speak the words that will travel before you into the South.
{Culture: Success!}
"What did the Old Kingdom's laws avail them, when their kings were cursed for their hubris and all their lands became dust? I have been sent back from the Sea to seek the Truth, and I speak it to you now when I say that a great crime has been committed against the divine Order, and the Doom of Kingdoms is upon you! I charge you to take the measure of your own hearts, for only in Justice will the Waters of Life flow again, and any who stands against that inundation will bring ruin on their soul, the lives of their fellows, and upon the dying world that awaits its rebirth!"
The room falls silent. All eyes are upon you, until you meet their gazes and they shy away. Hepu has gone pale, and you see him for what he is; a man grasping for familiar structures to give him certainty in a changing world. In his eyes, you can see the pillars of his world tumbling. The world has so ended before, and he cannot deny the vision of its happening again.
Soon, men and carts are distributing grain across the delta, as a wind of change carries boats against the currents of tradition. And word travels with them.
{Ren 1: A prophet has arisen in the delta, who speaks of the doom of kingdoms, and of justice for a great crime against the heavens.}
You work continually, setting in motion the wheels that will continue to turn after your departure. Again and again you refill the flask of life as you work day and night to set a small part of the world to rights, at least for as long as the stores hold out. You are spending time to buy more time, but so long as the floods do not return, it can only ever delay the inevitable.
What will you do next?
[ ] Investigate the local banditry; you have hopefully already relieved the pressures that created it, though.
[ ] Investigate the dire omens that befell the Temple of Satat-Mehet, your only local lead on the fate of the waters.
[ ] Travel South to the capital, to investigate the war between the Lower and Middle Kingdoms. (This will leave the Delta Region)
[ ] Write in.
Introspection will resume next update, once you've left the labours of bureaucracy behind you. Comments, thoughts and questions are welcome, especially if they help populate the next Introspection vote!
