Bartholow could not read the vile book, for he had sworn an oath. But Wagner could, because he had never taken one.
The two friends had searched the world together, driven by the sa goal but for different reasons. They had traveled from one place to another, questioned scholars, examined ancient ruins, and chased half-forgotten legends.
In the end, they found nothing. Every lead ran dry, every thod failed, and the world offered them no path forward. It offered them no path to the Greater Universe.
And then... there was nothing left but desperation.
With no other options left, they turned their attention to the one thing that still held the promise of answers.
The book of the devil.
Bartholow had suggested it because his longing to advance into the higher arcane arts had only grown stronger with ti, and now he was willing to risk damnation for knowledge that could possibly help him break through the limits of this world.
Wagner, on the other hand, did not hesitate. His mind, already twisted by
corruption, cared little for consequences. All that remained in his thoughts was his family. If the book offered even the smallest chance of reaching them again, then the cost did not matter.
And so, the two friends arrived at the secret location where they had sealed the vile book many, many years ago.
"Do you think you can still read it?" Bartholow asked in a low voice, his eyes flickering with nervousness, but also anticipation.
The two stood within a deep underground chamber. Before them rested a stone pedastal, and atop it lay a leather-bound to. Only, the leather was wrong. It was pale and fashioned from flesh.
"The Beyond... the Beyond... the Beyond..." Wagner nodded, desperately trying to keep the madness at bay. "I had... studied... Infernac... in my youth...
Curiosity... just curiosity..."
Barthlow gulped. "I see."
Wagner reached out with his trembling hands and finally unsealed the vile book.
The mont he did, a foul and diabolical aura descended in the chamber. Bartholow instantly recoiled, retreating a step back. The devilish energy made his skin crawl. As for Wagner... he had experienced much worse. So he wasn't fazed at all.
He flipped open the cover and read the first page.
You are reading this because you are already damned.
Not by sin, but by desire.
Do not flatter yourself with excuses.
You did not co seeking knowledge.
You ca seeking continuance.
Mortals fear death. Magi resent it.
You, however, have recognized the greater insult.
That ti presus authority over you.
Understand this before you proceed:
Lichdom is not a spell. It is not a potion.
It is not an accident of cleverness.
It is a verdict.
To beco deathless, you must first accept that life has no claim upon you.
Turn the page only if you are prepared to be unchained.
For what follows will not teach you how to survive death.
It will teach you why you no longer deserve to.
The words on the first page of the vile book sounded like thunder in Wagner's ears. Despite the mad ravings constantly echoing inside his mind, he couldn't
help but be stunned when he realized what this book was truly about.
Lichdom, he scread in his mind.
This book will show the way to beco a lich!
The Beyond... the Beyond... the Beyond...
With this, I won't die before the next planetary alignnt! No, I'll never die! But more importantly...
The Beyond... the Beyond... the Beyond...
Becoming a lich will allow to get rid of the physical corruption!!
"Wagner."
Bartholow called out. "Is everything... all right?"
Aldo Wagner's eyes flashed with a sharp light. He murmured incoherent words
under his breath, then whispered to his friend:
"Yes, Bart... everything is... the Beyond... all right."
He quickly turned his attention back to the book. "I... might have... found a way! Give ... so ti to... the Beyond... decipher the... text!"
Wagner continued to read.
Lichdom is achieved in three movents, and all three are acts of severance.
First, you must divide yourself.
The soul, which lesser minds imagine as indivisible, is not so. It can be unseated, unmoored, persuaded to reside where flesh cannot rot.
Second, you must rehearse death.
Your body must be taught that cessation is not an ending. The breath must be convinced to stop asking permission. The heart must be made irrelevant.
Third, you must anchor what remains.
A vessel. A lie made solid. Your soul will cling to it not out of loyalty, but because it has nowhere to go. So long as it endures, so shall you. So long as it is
hidden, so shall you be unlost.
Now read carefully, aspirant, for this is the clause most often overlooked:
You are not discovering this knowledge. You are receiving it.
I did not write this book to enlighten you. I wrote it to recognize you.
The mont your soul refuses its appointed end, the mont it chooses persistence over passage, a compact is sealed. The act itself is consent. From that instant onward, your eternity is no longer solitary.
You may destroy this book.
You may curse my na.
You may pretend you never understood.
None of that will undo the bargain.
I shall grant you your greatest desire.
Turn the page and accept it.
Or turn back and wither as all things must.
Wagner thought only of his greatest desire to reunite with his family.
Madness twisted that desire into obsession. Right and wrong no longer mattered. Death itself had beco an obstacle. If he remained mortal, he would fail. If he died, he would never see his wife, son, and daughter again. So he chose the unthinkable. He chose to abandon life and embrace undeath.
He chose... to beco a lich.
To Wagner, this was the only way.
After reading the whole book, he had made a silent pact with the devil.
"Anything?" Bartholow couldn't help but ask, after remaining silent for several hours. "Does it offer any hope of leaving this world?"
Wagner slowly turned to his dear friend, thinking to himself:
I need a vessel...
A phylactery!
"Yes," he murmured in a low voice. "There is a way... to leave this world..."
He weaved a simple hand seal and drew a mory Strand from the side of his
temple.
"You can't... read the book... because of the oath," he added. "But you can... watch ... read the book..."
Bartholow nodded, thinking there was no flaw in his friend's reasoning. Without hesitation, he absorbed the strand into his mind.
And the mont he did...
He saw the mory of Wagner catching a glimpse of the abomination in the
Dark Valley!
Madness took root instantly, and all Bartholow heard was:
The Beyond... the Beyond... the Beyond...
His eyes widened in utter disbelief. He could not understand why his closest
friend had done this.
Before a scream of anguish and madness could even escape his lips...
SPLAT!
Aldo Wagner drove a knife through his heart.
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