Letter from Professor Emeline Duvall to Dr. Adrian Northcott, Department of History, New Albion Academy of Technology

Nova Aurora
Landfall Region, Colonial Alliance
April 7, 2512

Dear Adrian,

I hope this letter finds you well, and that the recent storms in New Albion have not delayed your research expeditions. I am writing to you not only as a colleague but as a confidant, for I wish to discuss a matter that has been weighing on my mind for some months now. It concerns our mutual friend and one-time mentor, Dr. Roland St. Clair.

You will recall Roland from our student days at the Nova Aurora Institute. Even then, his lectures on ancient Pre-Event history and material cultures of the past were the talk of the university. He has always possessed a rare combination of scholarly rigor and restless curiosity. Over the years, this has led him on many celebrated expeditions, from the tunnels beneath the Cinder Plateau to the ruins of Varezia. His contribution to our understanding of the early settlement era is, as you know, without peer.

Yet I fear for him now, Adrian. Roland is 57, but he seems to have aged more in the past three years than in the two decades before. His eyes, once so lively, now carry the shadow of sleepless nights and unspoken burdens. He continues to teach and publish, but his focus has narrowed almost obsessively to the mystery of The Event. It is all he wishes to discuss, whether over tea in the faculty lounge or during his public lectures.

He has confided in me that he now believes the answer to The Event is rooted not only in forgotten archives or lost technology, but in the emergence of something far more enigmatic. He often speaks of the “Daimones,” a name I first assumed to be a poetic reference or metaphor. Roland is convinced that these are real entities, inmaterial intelligences that appeared in the immediate aftermath of The Event. He argues that, although their origins remain obscure, they are inextricably linked to what befell humanity that night and have continued to influence our fate ever since. He claims to have traced references to their presence in obscure journals and has identified encoded symbols in ancient machinery and architecture. More unsettling, he suggests that supernatural phenomena, so-called miracles, and other inexplicable events, are evidence of their ongoing influence.

Adrian, I do not know what to make of this. I have seen some of his notes and sketches, and while they are detailed, they lack the kind of evidence that would satisfy a rational mind. The faculty board murmurs that Roland is chasing phantoms, and the younger students whisper that he is half-mad. He is not, of course, but I do worry that his search for answers has become a private torment. He will not let the matter rest. He journeys far afield, often alone, into dangerous ruins and wild places, always seeking new clues. He speaks of feeling “haunted,” as if something glimpsed in the margins of his discoveries refuses to yield its secrets.

I want to help, but I am unsure how. If I dismiss his theories, I risk losing his trust. If I indulge them too far, I fear I may encourage his obsession to the detriment of his health and reputation. He has become more withdrawn, and I suspect he has few friends left with whom he can speak freely. Yet his brilliance remains undimmed, and I cannot help but wonder if there is something, some kernel of truth, in what he seeks, even if the form is not what he imagines.

You have always been more patient and less skeptical than I. I hope you might correspond with Roland, or perhaps visit Nova Aurora and speak with him yourself. I believe he would benefit from the company of someone who respects his intellect but can also gently guide him back from these more perilous edges. Perhaps together we can help him find a balance, so that his gifts are not lost to fear or isolation.

Please write soon, and let me know your thoughts. I value your perspective, and I trust you will keep this letter confidential. Roland has given so much to our field. I hope we are not too late to give something back.

With warm regards,

Emeline Duvall
Professor of History
Faraday University