As Colmarr is putting the box away, a piece of obscure lore pops into his mind. Perhaps it was the meeting with Dietrich earlier today that has his thoughts turning to the gods, but the contents of this box are beyond his ken.
In the beginning, there were many gods, but one was more powerful than the others. His name was Shaimon, and he was beautiful to behold. The gods created the world and gave birth to life and light and all the creatures of the earth. Shaimon refused to share his power for fear it would be diluted. The other gods begged him to join them. They tried enticements. The world was beautiful and full of life, they said. They offered warnings. Some of the creatures they created were very willful and headstrong. Finally, Shaimon decided he did have something to offer the world. He gave the people Death. He gave them Darkness and Despair. And as the gods tended to their creations, Shaimon grew more powerful.
The god Serap grew angry, and she called for sanctions against Shaimon. She met with the god Gahbrael and sent him to five of the other most powerful gods, Mighail, Melindra, Baroph, and Algor. The lore books are silent on the identity of the fifth god. Under Mighail's leadership, the gods overpowered Shaimon, and the God of Darkness was forced to stand trial before Baroph. Though Shaimon was pursuasive with a serpant's tongue, Serap was relentless in her prosecution. In the end, Shaimon was found guilty -- of what, exactly, is unclear. Working against his fellow gods, perhaps? He was sentenced to be bound from all realms of existence, outside of even time, until he had repented of his sins. A box, a prison, was commisioned of the god Algor. Inside it, Serap placed a holy fire which would burn for as long as Shaimon's being was black. Then Shaimon was placed into the box. Algor turnd to the Gnomish Archmage Magistrade to craft seven keys, one key in the likeness of each of the seven gods responsible for Shaimon's imprisonment. These seven keys were sent to the ends of the earth where, in the physical realm, it was believed they would be more difficult for Shaimon's sympathizers to recover prematurely. Each key was specially shielded, and only the god responsible for the key could know its location. The box itself was placed into Melindra's care and soon disappeared forever, though it is said to reside on Melindra's Isle, a floating island, always in motion, which consistently removes itself from the path of discovery.
After the trial, the gods returned to the world they had ignored for too long. It was in chaos. Slowly, they began to rebuild the paradise lost, but the will of their created beings worked against them. There are other tales after that, but why did Shaimon's Trial stick in Colmarr's mind? Is it pure vanity to suppose that they, the crew, now have an artifact of godly power in their hands? No accurate descriptions of the prison or the keys survive, so it is impossible to say with any certainty.
