In direct contravention of the laws of the city, over the past week I’ve begun penning a map of the area. I don’t plan on selling it or sharing it with anyone, so what’s the harm? I’ve been working on it at night, after my days of studying and exploration. Now, maps of the city do exist. But as I said, local law prevents any from leaving the premises – turns out they’re all embedded with chips and possibly other security measures. I don’t know if they’d actually self-destruct upon leaving the area, but they would certainly notify the authorities. So I’ve been working on my own, in secret.
I have the nagging feeling I’m betraying the trust of everyone here who’s been kind to me, but I feel compelled to continue working on it nonetheless. Maybe I’ll destroy it at the end of my stay, like a mandala.
In any case, I’m hoping this map will be of use in studying the history of the city. I’ve got the rough layout of the several districts and estimated the locations of all the major temples. Based on the relative ages of buildings and roads, I should be able to infer the growth of the city, and possibly get a clearer idea of its origins. I do know that the core pantheon has changed over time, but details are scant as to when and how it has changed. Possibly even I’ll come across ruins of a temple devoted to a forgotten god.