From Kraid Icarus, Accounts of the Sermons

When Nicator returned from the jungle, three days later, his eyes were alight with holy fire… as was the golden six-foot staff in his right hand. In his last sermon as a prophet, and his first speech as a true king, he said:

People of Seleucar, Sarapis sends his blessing.

Three days ago, I was at a crossroads, and so was this entire tiny kingdom. You were all busy building and trading and healing and fighting, and I was very proud of you and still am… the crossroads was mine, because there was a decision I had not made. The decision was this: What are we? Are we to be just a town on a river in a jungle near the sea? Are we to sweep forth and conquer the world? Are we to distinguish ourselves as artists? As craftsmen? As seafaring merchants? Simply put, in what direction do I lead Seleucar, this ideal kingdom of justice and virtue? I could not come to a conclusion, and I did not want to lead you astray. And what's more, I knew that Seleucar faced deadly problems: the jungle beasts, the disease, the lack of clean water. How could we even survive? Lacking answers, I feared to make matters worse by issuing random orders.

I wandered in the jungle for a full day. It was quite by accident; I stepped into the jungle to smell the flowers, and before I had gone fifteen feet the jungle closed in behind me, and I could not find my way back. As the sun went down, I realized that I would probably be killed by jungle predators… and I wondered if this was a divine judgment for my impossible dream.

Then I came across an altar, nestled between two moss-covered boulders in the middle of the jungle. It was tiny, made of wood, humble and weak, but unmistakeably inscribed with the sigil of the Logos. Exhausted, I fell to my knees before it. The shrine was brand new, and so I assumed that it had been built by a zealous Priest of Seleucar. Although the shrine was carved of fine cedarwood, which does not grow in this jungle, I did not consider for a moment that the shrine itself might be of supernatural origin. Whoever the builder, I hoped that the holiness of the altar would protect me from the dangers of the jungle night. I didn't pray… I'm afraid that I've never been a terribly holy person in the past, even though I've been called a prophet.

It may sound strange, but even though I was tired, I didn't sleep that night. I stayed up by the shrine all night, staring into the implacable darkness of the deep jungle, thinking and wondering.

And the daylight came, and again I wandered around, trying to find my way back to Seleucar. But no matter which way I went, or how straight a path I took, I always came back to that same wooden altar. And by the time night fell, I realized that I was indeed at the mercy of the gods.

My entire life has been a story of self-reliance, and that has made my life difficult. The hardest choices are the ones a man makes for himself. The choice to be good, the choice to be evil, the choice to take a safe profession or a dangerous one, the choice to live or to die. I've never relied on the gods for my morality or ethics; I've always chosen my own path. But this once, I realized that I had no choice but to surrender.

So I prayed. At first it was difficult, because I was exercising a part of myself that I had never before used. I had never spoken with my spirit before, only with my mind and heart. The closest I ever came to spirit were my dreams of Seleucar. And after two sleepless days and nights of prayer, I came to realize that my dreams of Seleucar were sent by the gods, and that everything I had done in my life was by gift of Sarapis. And I was ashamed for ignoring him for so long. Although I was starving and thirsty, my greatest pain was the realization that I had achieved so much without ever paying tribute to the being who had given me the power to do so.

"Sarapis," I said at last, "I submit myself to you. From now, I will never act without your guidance. I beg of you now, now that my dreams of Seleucar are fulfilled, grant me another vision. Tell me what I must do next."

In the legends and myths, a god's appearance is always heralded with loud noises or flashes of light or mysterious portents. And even if the god appears quietly, he always projects a great aura of awe and mystery. Sarapis did none of this. He walked out from behind a tree, and his feet crunched in the undergrowth like any man's. He was dressed in a long gray cloak, and the cowl was drawn to hide his features. Except that he hid his face, there was nothing at all to distinguish him, but I knew him nonetheless. I cannot say how I was so sure, for he never even spoke his name, but it was Sarapis, and I am more sure of that than I am of my very existence.

He held a tall golden staff in his left hand, and a mossy black stone in his right. And he said, "Nikolas… I have what you seek. In my right hand I have survival. In the left, greatness. This stone is covered with a moss which I have created, called amar, which purifies the diseased waters of the air and chills them to the stone. Learn the secret of its growth, and your kingdom shall not perish.

"But survival is only the half of your question, is it not, Nikolas? You seek direction? You seek a vision? Then a vision you shall have!"

I saw a city on the shores of a great sea, and the city was full of white light, while the sea was pure blackness. And I saw the king of that city, holding the golden staff of Sarapis, and he held it high in the sky. And small lights traveled all along the ground toward the city, and I could see that each light on the ground was a soldier in armor. And as the lights traveled toward the city, the black sea rose higher and higher, and grew rougher and rougher. And finally, a great wave began to roll in from the sea, and the man with the golden staff commanded that all the lights of his city rise up to meet the wave and break it. The last thing I saw was the wave of darkness striking hard against the massed lights of the city. Did the city hold? I could not see.

"Nikolas. That city of light is Seleucar. The man with the golden staff is you, who will defend it. Will you gather the light? Will you build up Seleucar to stand against the Black Wave?"

"Yes, almighty Sarapis!" I replied. "What must I do?"

"Take this rock and this staff, for they hold your present and your future. With the rock, bring your people out of suffering, and establish them as noble landholders, freemen, creators of their own destiny. Teach them well in the ways of virtue. And with this staff, gather together a great army. All who see the staff and hear you speak will join with you; any who stand against you will lose their will to fight when they see you hold this staff aloft. You must gain dominion over all the land, Nikolas, and you must build the most powerful army the world has ever seen, for the Black Wave is even now rolling in toward the shore, and one hundred years from now it will strike, with a force you cannot imagine. Only your preparation can save the continent of Sapience. Will you do this? Will you conquer in my name?"

"I am not a conquerer…"

"Who is better suited to conquer wisely than one who does not wish conquest? Will you conquer in order to save this world?"

"If it is your will, I shall!"

"Then hear me clearly now, Nikolas! The man 'Nikolas' is no more! That young man who was prophet of no god but himself has done well, and now he goes to his rest. From this point onward, you have a new name, one worthy of a true emperor: You are Nicator! And understand well that although you serve me, you shall achieve your dominion of your own power. My staff shall aid you, but only through your own strength and will can you ever succeed. But I have seen that you have strength and will in you that will carry you well, if only you keep hope. Go, Nicator! Go and build; go and conquer!"

I was inspired, I was dazzled. And I went, as Sarapis had commanded, and here I am. So my people, listen well: the Logos is with us! Behold the staff that he has given us! With his words and our strong backs, we will overcome all the obstacles in our way… we will resist the Black Wave! Sarapis said that the threat would come in one hundred years; you and I may die before it comes, but our children will fight in our place! We will fight! We will fight and win! Who is with me? Who is with Seleucar?