Good Evening, welcome to the latest in my series of doing daily writing exercises. Hope you enjoy! Please leave your feedback and your own responses to the prompt. If you like what you are reading here, I would encourage you to check out not only my other Writing Prompts, but also my books as well!
The Lost Scroll: A scribe in ancient Alexandria finds a scroll that could change history.
Genre: History/Historical Fiction
Source: 105 Creative Writing Prompts to Try Out · PrepScholar
Time Spent: 60 minutes (I got pretty into this one)
Word Count: 1532
The Lost Scroll: A scribe in ancient Alexandria finds a scroll that could change history.
Whenever Athenais grew bored of her own writing, she enjoyed exploring the archives of the Library of Alexandria. She had found some interesting things buried there, likely for centuries, including a lost work of Aristotle and a record of a Greek traveler that detailed the early days of Rome. Her explorations had, on one occasion, gotten her quite lost, and on two others she had become so absorbed in reading that the keepers of the library had sent others in search of her. It also annoyed Chrysanthe to no end
On a warm spring afternoon, Athenais found herself idly scratching words into one of her wax tablets and daydreaming about her time on the most recent feast day, honoring the latest victory of their Basileus, with Chrysanthe. When her attention returned finally returned to what she was doing and realized that what she had written was not only barely legible, but barely sensible. Certainly nothing worthy of recording more permanently.
Athenais sighed and put her stylus down and took a drink from a cup of wine she had nearby. She had hoped to get more work on her latest project, a philosophical treatise calling for greater acts of charity and assisting those around you, but her attention was just not in it. Remembering that her beloved was tending to her mother and would not be home for several days, she decided to take one of her trips into the depths of the library.
Putting her materials away safely and lighting a lantern, she started to wander. As was her habit, she made decisions to turn, and in what direction, seemingly at random. She tried to keep those turns in mind, but did hope that she didn’t get lost, again. It had been an embarrassing experience. Left, Right, Right, Straight, Left, on and on she went.
She was not sure how long she had been wandering when she came upon something that she had not seen, or even heard of, before. A stairwell down into the bedrock the library had been built into, which was so well hidden that she found it by almost tumbling down it. The narrow stones steps seemed to wind down into the darkness and judging by the level of dust upon them, none had trod upon this ground in many a year.
Athenais looked around for some indication as to what this staircase was or where it lead to, but with the fading light of day, her lantern and some hanging lamps, were not enough to allow a proper search. With a smile of curiosity, she held up her lamp and proceeded down the stairs.
Only just being able to see down the steps, and focusing on not slipping in the dust and loose stones, she was not sure how far down or how long she had descended, but in the end the staircase came out into what looked like a natural cave could not have been more than a dozen feet on each side. A desk, several chairs, and some other odds and ends seemed to be scattered along the floor. Seeing some torches on either side of the room, she managed to get them lit from her lantern, and surveying the room gave a jump of surprise.
A skeleton wrapped in a robe and tunic sat in one of the chairs and was hunched over the desk. Approaching the figure carefully, and peering around it, a scrap of papyrus, practically crumbled to dust itself, was under the skeletons hand. Athenais feared moving anything, but was able to see enough by the limited light that there was writing that looked to her like Hebrew, or maybe Aramaic, she wasn’t sure and could not read it regardless. A few other scraps of much ages papyrus and a few faded tablets laying around the room as well, in various languages. The only thing that seemed whole and undamaged was a roll of papyrus which lay upon a short plinth in the center of the room.
Approaching the scrolls carefully, she saw writing etched around the plinth in as many, if not more, languages than she had had already identified from the palimpsest around her. She finally found an inscription in Greek “Βίβλος τῆς Ἀληθείας” -the Scroll of Truth. While everything else in the room was ruined and decayed and covered in dust, this scroll was pristine, as if fresh written, and unblemished.
Athenais was reaching out for the scroll when she heard the distinctive slap of a sandal hitting stone and she turned toward the stairs. Serapion, the curator of the library made the final of the stairs. In one hand was clutched, trembling, a small torch, which he soon set down in an empty bracket by the steps, and in the other his walking cane. The bent old man, almost like a father to her, took a moment to catch his breath before focusing in on her face and coming forward.
“My dear, Athenais, if anyone of your generation was going to discovered this place, I should have known it would be you.”
Athenais gave a small bow in thanks and responded ,”What is this place, I have never seen this or heard of it before.”
Serapion nodded, “This chamber has been around since the Egyptians ruled their own affairs, some say even so far back as when they were building pyramids, although few ever knew about it or found it. We build the Library around it when it was found when Alexander built this city.”
Athenais was puzzled, “why is it hidden? Surely that is something that many would be fascinated to learn about.”
The old man nodded slowly, “perhaps, but I don’t think they would be prepared for that scroll.”
“What is it? What is the Scroll of Truth?”
Serapion shrugged, “No one who has read it has been able to report what it says. They speak only of truth and some revelation about life they are bound to share. More than a few have gone mad, and a few never recover.”
“Have you read it?”
“Yes, when I was a young man. I took to wandering the library much as you do now, I suspect that somehow people of a curious disposition are drawn here, and I found this chamber. I spent several days trying to understand the various scraps around us, but finally my curiosity could not resist reading the strange scroll.”
“What did you see?” asked Athenais with eager curiosity.
Serapion gave a small smile, “I don’t know, I was found wandering the library in a daze and would not speak to anyone for several weeks. When I came back to my senses the curator at the time shared with me what I did with you. I also found I had both the inspiration to begin my great history of the dynasty of the Ptolemy’s, which spared the library during the strife a few decades ago”
Athenais turned and stared at the scroll, feeling a strange urges to go read it, although she could not tell whether or not it was her own curiosity. At last, she asked, “must I read it?”
Serapion shrugged, “there are a few who have resisted the temptation and as far as I know nothing ill has happened to them. The real question is can your curiosity live with it?”
Athenais sighed and approached the roll of papyrus and carefully picked it up. Before unrolling it, she said, as much to herself as Serapion, “Chrysanthe is going to kill me.” And she read.
Athenais awoke with a scream and it took her a moment to realize that she was in her own bed and it was daylight. Judging by the fact that Chrysanthe was both there and looking extremely concerned, it had probably been several days since she had read the scroll. When she thought on what she had seen and read, her mind was a blank. But she could not shake the feeling of being burdened with a knowledge that she could not shake. She found herself weeping.
Chrysanthe gathered her up in her arms and kissed her forehead. “What is it my love, what did you see?”
Athenais shook her head and, almost compelled as if the words she was about the speak had been seared into her mind, she managed to choke out, “The Romans are coming, there will be a battle in the city. The Library will burn.”
It took her a moment to realize that Chrysanthe had frozen and the color had drained from her face. At least her beloved managed, “Athenais, the day you read. . .whatever it was, Serapion was cryptic, even for him. . .the Roman Consul Julius Caesar arrived in Alexandria. There are more rumors than birds in the sky, but it is said that the cohort he brought with him is now besieged within the palace.”
It was Athenais’ turn to be shocked. After a moment she jumped up, kissed her beloved, and said, “My love, I am sorry for what I put you through, but I must have been drawn there for the purpose of preserving what knowledge we can. Come on, we must get back to the library.”
I hope that you enjoyed! I would love to read your response to this prompt as well and also what you think of what I wrote! Also, please check out my books and socials! Following my page would also be greatly appreciated!
I hope you all have a wonderful day, get the chance to do or experience something creative, and I’ll catch you on the next one.
– Jon
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