[Editor's note : the Journals contained in that part of the library made available to visitors are all rewritten as if for publication. Personal references are removed and the prose worked into a form closer to a conventional narrative]
I once asked a Sage to tell me the truth concerning the origins of the Spheres and those who dwell in them. He answered me thus : "I cannot tell you the truth. Only one who can tell the truth with a lie and tell a lie with the truth can do that". Thus it was, that years later I put the same question to Viper, the Dragon in a Bottle.
When Viper's Bottle was first brought to the Library of All Worlds, there was much excitement. The dragon was famous for it's wisdom and knowledge even though few of it's previous keepers had seemed to prosper greatly from their possession of the thing. After a few months some began to suspect that the dragon lied, although none could identify the precise nature of it's lies. As time passed these suspicions spread and hardened and the dragon was reduced to a curio to be gazed at. I believe I was the last to ask a serious question of the dragon before it's Bottle was stolen a few weeks later.
Knowing that Viper was fond of sweetmeats I had purchased what I considered to be an adequate supply before my visit. It seems that it's appetite was much greater than one would expect from it's size - fully half my supply had been devoured before the dragon consented to answer my first question.
"First there was Chaos, which by it's nature contains all that is, was and might be. Thus it contains itself, and itself within itself Thus it is both male and female. And thus within itself it contained it's absence, The Void which is both female and male.
"The Void coupled with itself and brought forth Spheres. But it could not make them live. So the Void coupled with Chaos and brought forth Fortune of the many faces.
"Fortune coupled with The Void and brought forth the Elders - the Dragons, the Bird Kings, the Beast Lords and many others. These descended into the Spheres and brought them to life"
At this point I cried out "but what of the Gods ? Surely it was they who made the Dragons and these others and all that lives ?"
Viper replied "if you know all this you do not need me to tell you what happened. Go away and answer your own questions". Fortunately with a little cajoling and the use of my rapidly dwindling supply of sweetmeats, I induced the dragon to speak again.
"Fortune also coupled with Chaos and from that coupling all the Gods were born. Since they were children of Fortune they had many faces, since they were children of Chaos they were neither one nor many and none can tell where one begins and another ends.
"The gods hated their state and hated their parents who had made them to be this way. They hated Fortune who was their father and mother and Chaos who was their mother and father"
"How can you say such things about the Gods !", I cried.
The dragon replied, "if you do not wish to hear what I say, I shall speak no more", and I had to feed it the last of the sweetmeats before I could persuade it to continue.
"Because the gods hated their parents they slew Fortune and built a cage for Chaos from her body. Since nothing that is perfect can contain Chaos they took part of Fortune and hurled it away, and so he is incomplete.
"That was the first evil committed by the gods. As to the second, well that is another story and one I may tell later. For now I am tired and I wish to rest".
I had nothing more to offer Viper and could not persuade it to tell me more, So it was that I returned home to write this entry.
Such is the story told me by Viper, the Dragon in a Bottle. Believe it if you will.
Everway is copyright Rubicon Games 1996. Everway is a trademark of Rubicon games. This document is not intended as a challenge to those rights.
This document is copyright Paul King 1997.