EXCERPTS FROM THE OLD ONES
BY
GRINDILL, THE ARCHMAGE SOVEREIGN
"Foul things from Old Times still lurk in forgotten corners of Inzeladun. Horrible gates open to loose shapes created from the nightmares of Hell."
Page 1"There is a monstrous black monolith near Stregokar made of an unidentifiable stone and covered in ambiguous glyphs of indecipherable aspect. Avoid this artifact of eon-spanning history. To sleep near it will haunt the unfortunate person with monstrous nightmares for the rest of his natural life. But terrible secrets can be gleaned from this rock if...." (the rest of this page has been intentionally smeared by water)
Page 15"The demons and devils of the Lower Planes are not very powerful in Realms of Things. The gods men worship are not very powerful in the Realms of Things. There are powers greater than Odin and Zeus."
Page 22"I found out about these dark Powers in an ancient Temple of an unwholesome aspect. This temple, which lies on an uncharted oasis deep in Stygia, is so old that it predates the antiquity of the Stygian culture. Deep within the depths of this darksome edifice was a sealed chamber. Within this sealed chamber sat a mummy on his mouldering throne. The mummy, shrouded in the disintigrating regalia of his vile religion, was the last high priest of his people. Around his neck, on a gold chain, was a large red gemstone carved in the horrific appearance of an ugly toad. This stone is a Key. If you seek power, then seek this Key."
Page 23"Beware. When deciphering ancient blasphemous manuscripts, be aware that in the very act of decipheriment that you will become both prey and pawn of ultra-worldly powers beyond the comprehension of mere mortal man. I have deciphered many of these documents and scrolls. The knowledge therein will haunt me forever, yet it will give me power undreamt of."
Page 25"Dragons and Elves have inherited the power of the Old Ones. They are servants of these vile entities from beyond space and time."
Page 29, last paragrahPages 30 through 76 have been torn from the book. Page 77 begins "...place his corpse on the black table in his library, with seven black candles burning about him. Be sure the windows and doors and all means of egress are sealed. Then, in the darkness of night, read the formula from page 51 three times and inject the alchemical solution from the 56th page into the cadaver."
Page 77Page 78 has been removed and replaced with a blank page.
"The Tower of Magic, the source of magic for Inzeladun's mages, predates even the Narboneans, I am sure. With it I can resurrect the power of the Elder Things."Page 80
"They will serve and surrender the Secrets if given the proper sacrifices. The Black Stone of Ehr was taken from them. If it can be returned to Them, then awesome power can be pried from their unholy minds. The Black Stone is a Key."Page 81
"The terrible shadows of the night will stalk and kill. The Dead will writhe in their graves. Beware the shadows of these ancient temples and tombs. Beware these greater entities that cast their shadows upon our very gods. The sacriligous whisperings that these Monsters utter can blast the very souls of your humanity. The Narbonneans knew of these Shadows. The Angustions communed with these unhallowed Things. The Tower vibrates with Their malevolent power. The Elves hide from Their truths. The Dragons reflect Their glories and are Their guardians. And Catemar sings of Their knowledge."Page 82
"One of Them dwells deep within the mountains of Golgaryllgar. Present It with your sacrifice and pray It grants you a boon. It gibbers in the moonless darkness of the Abyss where It dwells. It is the Dweller of the Abyss. It knows Secrets. It is an unhallowed blasphemous Thing."Page 83
"If these Things could be destroyed or ejected from our plane, then perhaps Evil would lose power and the Things of the Night would cease to be. So to perhaps would magic cease. I think it would be better to gain control of the powers they offer and simply rule the world as a god."Page 84
"The Tower is a conduit."Page 85
