Day 77

Well, this is interesting. It seems something DID happen to Isibis. The writings I found were by a small band of survivors that sought shelter underground as something swept over the region from the north “Like the darkest nightmare”.
One piece of graffiti is a note saying that “Nothing remains here but ash. The Totem walks. We shall go south.”
Obviously a last message. There are no other references to this “Totem”
I’m going to return to the Lighthouse tomorrow, but I shall travel by land rather than sea, walking north of the Warden Stone.

Day 76

I’ve found a cellar beneath one of the ancient houses in Isibis. This in turn connects to a, rather cool, cave. It must have been used as a cold store.
Surprisingly, there’s quite a bit of debris left here. Not the kind of material you would expect in a cold store. It’s as though people had lived down here at one point.
There is some scattered writings on the walls. Graffiti, mostly, but it’s in the same language as the Hyss Valley writings.

Day 75

Well, I’ve found Isibis…..what’s left of it. I’d actually let myself think that there might still be some kind of settlement here. That the foundations of it may well have been laid down thousands of years ago, but that they were still used today.
No such thing can be seen.
Isibis is a collection of uninhabited ruins.
The story-teller in me wants to say that; with their defender gone, whatever they were fearful of finally reached the people of Isibis.
The realist in me says that it was probably drought that drove them away. There are plenty of greener placed to build a home than this dustbowl.

Day 73

The last two useful pieces of information I can glean from the Hyss Valley texts are as follows: First, Tutkin and his people lived in a city called Isibis, which lies somewhere east of Hyss Valley.
Second; The spire over the north entrance to the Hyss Valley tomb is called the “Warden Stone”. It was built after Tutkin’s death, partly as tribute but partly in the hope that he would continue to watch over his people from there.
If Isibis is to the south of this monument, it makes me think that whatever Tutkin defended his people from lay to the north.
I shall be mounting another expedition to Hyss Valley, and from there I shall travel east, in the hope that I will find Isibis.

Day 72

This Tutkin chap seems to have been a bit of everything. Part priest, part knight, part diplomat. He travelled some distance in this world, too, visiting many cities and sacred sites that I have yet to find, but his home was in the deserts around Hyss Valley, where he was referred to simply as “The Defender”, which hints that the people of this land must have had enemies somewhere, traces of whom I am yet to find.

Day 71

Initial translations hint that the tomb at Hyss Valley is indeed for an important figure in society, one by the name of “Tutkin”. Though high-profile, he does not appear to have been a leader. “Revered by all” is in the description, but the rest of it implies that he was an advisor of some kind. Perhaps a prominent religious figure?

Day 69

The books I require now fill the library. I’m most eager to decipher just what the Hyss writings say. Will it identify who is buried there? Will it give an account of their life in this land and, in turn, hint as to the people that lived here long before my arrival?