As promised, the cleric of the Obeah Ecstasia was sighted at the expected time, journeying across Sapience until she reached the Dark Pyramid, where Sharbrena and others awaited her. The Obeah cleric, who called herself Emese, asked those assembled to bring the icon. She was also informed by those who had held the icon of the apparent missing shard, which Santos had discovered, buried in the Vashnar Mountains. Santos soon arrived with the shard, but bringing the icon proved to be more challenging. Not long after Emese's arrival, the icon came into the possession of Silverlock Moonflair. He was almost immediately assaulted with conflicting demands, as voices seemingly from the icon itself cried to him to not let the veiled cleric or her allies hold the icon, while Aspin, Cyre, and others sought to convince him to hand it over. Silverlock was suspicious of both sides, and warily held his ground for some time.

When at last Silverlock brought the icon to where Emese and the others had assembled, confusion reigned and tension was high as distinct spirits from within the icon began to appear, begging, threatening, and demanding. As onlookers watched, Emese began to communicate with the spirits by name, first one she called Cur, who emerged appearing as a child pleading with those assembled for protection from the Obeah cleric, Aspin, and Cyre. Two more spirits, who Emese called Alp and Dibbuk, also manifested briefly, but seemed to concentrate their efforts on Silverlock, who still held the icon, and by now was nearly drowning in the sea of conflicting voices. Of those assembled, only Cooper actively advocated slaying Emese throughout the events, though it appeared as if Khadeb might have a change of heart as Cur's pleas moved him.

Finally, Silverlock was convinced to let the shard and icon be reunited, and over the din of the protesting spirits, Emese began to chant ancient spells to fuse the pieces. In fury and desperation, the spirits lashed out violently one last time as the icon was sealed. The calm that followed was short-lived, as many questions remained to be answered, and so over the course of days, Emese shared her knowledge with those who came to her. The chronicler records here much of what was told.

What is the nature and purpose of the icon, many wished to know. The icon itself is an ancient creation by Valnurana, who placed inside of it four dangerous spirits who once inhabited the nightmares of mortals. While nightmares are among the natural forms of dreams, and can even be beneficial, these four spirits could turn nightmares into horrifyingly destructive forces, with experiences so vivid and powerful that the victim could lose their life, their mind, or even their soul. Thus, to protect mortalkind from these spirits, Valnurana created the icon and sealed them inside, entrusting it to the clerics of the Obeah Ecstasia, dream scholars whose bloodline was gifted with the magic to channel through the icon.

The icon held four spirits. There is Dibbuk, a spirit of madness, showing
his victim horrors and filling their mind with whisperings, even driving
some to commit murder. He sometimes manifests as a man, appearing
with his frequent partner, Cur. There is Erinyes, a vengeful spirit who will
search her victim's psyche for guilt and hold them hostage to it, driving some to suicide. There is Cur, who reaches to her victims' core to show them their fears, and is known to manifest as a child to some. The visions she gives would often have physical ill effects, capable in extreme cases of even killing the victim. And finally, there is Alp, a seductive and frighteningly powerful spirit with the capability to give the mortal mind a glimpse into the most savage of all nightmares, the infinite truth. The purest truth is a corrosive, melting away the apparent surfaces with which mortalkind surrounds itself in order to function in the complexity of the world. The strength of a single glimpse into the purest truth is enough to rip a mortal soul asunder. Her beauty, grace, and promise of truth beyond all mortal conception of knowledge have been a temptation to which many have lost their souls.

One other vision appeared to some who held the icon, seeming to try to speak to them, but always silenced, pulled away, concealed, or even slain by the other forces at work from within the icon. These, as Emese explained, were the times she channeled through the icon to try to warn its possessor of the danger. The furious spirits would soon sense her presence, though, and attempt to repel her from the icon through any means they could.

At last, Emese began the journey home, the icon whole and safe again, through the help of those who worked to solve its mysteries. Some of those who held it, however, still feel its lasting mark upon Sapience, left to ponder in the silence that remains.

Penned by my hand on the 4th of Glacian, in the year 271 AF.