Rohese (prime)/Forgotten Ink

This is a creative work set in the world of Elanthia, attributed to its original author(s). It does not necessarily represent the official lore of GemStone IV.

Title: Forgotten Ink

Author: Rohese Bayvel

This article is a work in progress!

Alawien Calelith
Created by Rohese's player using Midjourney AI.

Forgotten Ink was a player-run storyline set in Ta'Illistim during the summer of 2025. It began as a continuation of Rohese's story; more specifically her research into the Bayvel lineage and the sentience of trees. What followed was an interactive quest involving other player characters.

Summary

Setting

[Library Aies, Restricted Section]
The library's inner foyer is fully panelled in rich, dark maoral. Pale creamy marble covers the expansive floor, punctuated occasionally by a small golden tesserae set at cross-angles with the tiles. Large antique tapestries cover the wall behind the scribe's desk, illuminated by a series of candle-lit wall sconces. You also see a spectacled elven scribe.

You see Alawien Calelith Illistim.
She appears to be an Elf.
She is average height.  She appears to be aged, carrying wisdom and grace in equal measure.  She has rheumy teal green eyes and wrinkled, fair skin.  She has mid back-length, straight salt-and-pepper grey hair tucked neatly behind her ears.  She has a pinched face and a thin mouth.
A long silver feather quill is tucked behind her ear.
She is wearing a pair of half moon spectacles, a silver-bound open tome pin, a gentian velvet robe graced by a crossed quill and inkwell, and a pair of soft leather slippers.

Prologue

Who decides what must remain hidden? Who deems knowledge unworthy of illumination?

The scent of parchment and aged ink lingered in the halls of Library Aies. Rohese found this comforting and regularly sought out a quiet corner in which to continue her research into the Bayvel lineage. She was particularly interested in finding out more about the glowbark tree in the Veythorne Manor grounds because of her family connection to it: was it an Anienaeun - a remembrance tree - and, if so, when was it planted and by whom?

Scholars in gentian velvet robes moved in hushed contemplation around her, their whispered debates punctuated by the scratching of quills at various writing desks dotted around the vast hall. Rohese was seated at one of these small desks poring over some old texts when an anxious elven woman approached her, her ink-stained fingers trembling around a rolled parchment. It was Scribe Alawien Calelith. Rohese knew her well as she was the scribe that often helped her to access material in the library's restricted section. Alawien glanced around nervously before pressing the parchment urgently into Rohese's hands.

"I was transcribing a passage from a book I discovered that I thought might help you when the ink changed before my eyes. The words rewrote themselves, revealing a passage that I had never seen before. Then, the book slammed shut and vanished entirely."

Her voice dropped to a tremulous whisper.

"I fear I may have uncovered something that was meant to stay hidden."

13th day of Koaratos, 5125

Alawien met with a small gathering of scholars and friends of Rohese and introduced herself. She mentioned that she had found a book entitled, "The Veythorne Glowbark: History and Study," and went on to explain that on opening the book and reading a passage about the gardens, the text shimmered before her eyes and revealed an additional passage but the book promptly slammed shut and vanished before she could read more than a few lines.

Alawien gave out transcript copies of both passages for further study, highlighting the reference to a treatise.

Extract transcribed from “The Veythorne Glowbark: History and Study.”
Author: Unknown

The Veythorne family gardens are widely regarded as one of the most well-maintained private botanical collections in Ta'Illistim.  Featuring carefully arranged topiaries, imported flora from across Elanthia, and a variety of native species, the gardens serve as both a place of quiet contemplation and an example of meticulous elven horticulture.  Shaded paths lined with trees lead visitors through carefully curated sections, each designed to highlight the beauty of seasonal blooms.
	

Text of unknown origin discovered by Scribe Alawien Calelith.

I was a scholar before I was a heretic. I walked the halls of Library Aies with reverence, my hands untainted by ambition. But books have voices, and some whisper louder than others.  A forgotten treatise, its black leather cover warped with age, fell from a high shelf into my hands.  No title. No author.  The script within - archaic, tangled.  Yet as I read, I understood. As if the knowledge had always been waiting for me to claim it.  They call it ‘forbidden,’ I call it incomplete scholarship.  Who decides what must remain hidden? Who deems knowledge unworthy of illumination?

Cast of Characters

• Scribe Alawien Calelith Illistim: Of indeterminate age, Alawien is the last known member of the Calelith family. With the family's ancestral home in the Glydemar Forest long abandoned, she resides alone within the Ta'Illistim city walls and has worked as a Scribe in the restricted section of the Library Aies for several centuries so knows it well. Her reputation and experience in the field of elven botany - in particular arboriculture - have earned her the honorary title of Student of Lore.
• Loremaster Rohese Bayvel

Key Objectives

1. Track down the missing book and, if possible, find out more about the treatise mentioned in the revealed passage.
2. To follow

Research

Library Aies Research
Source Title	Excerpt	Insight
Book title	Extract / passage from book	What insight it can give the reader