Classic Bestseller Edition: includes original author's notes!
Greetings, Dear Reader!
I am proud to present to you this collection of books on the topic of Forbidden Magicks, sanctified by the Magesterium themselves.
It was my utmost pleasure to traverse our lands, listen to folk tales and compile this repository of knowledge as means to educate and to warn the current and future generations of our glorious country about the magicks that have been deemed "forbidden" by the illustrious Magesterium.
We all know of the wonders of magick, about all of the amazing things it has done for the Empire, but we must also stay cognizant of the magicks that the Magesterium themselves forbade us from practicing, as they care about all of us greatly.
Creativity is humanity's greatest quality, but it is also its downfall. The magicks described in this collection are examples of people's hubris and perverted thirst for knowledge, as they stray away from the Shapeless and toy with unknown forces.
As this is the first book in the series, I would like to go over some of the despicable Forbidden Magicks, as to not bore You, Dear Reader! Please note that these tales are in no particular order. I am sure we will have splendid time together, delving deeper and deeper into the minds of the folks that turned their backs on the light of the Shapeless.
It is imperative for me to state that You, Dear Reader, must under no circumstances attempt to recreate any of the magicks mentioned in this collection!
Forbidden Magicks are known to tear your very own soul apart, tainting it, and twisting it beyond recognition, if not outright unravelling it. And with a tainted soul, a broken soul, you have no chance for the afterlife that the Shapeless promises you.
Please, Dear Reader, heed my words and enjoy this knowledge that I am about to burden You with.
Let us begin!
Seal of Ativa
This Forbidden Magick, as the name suggests, was created by a woman named Ativa. I was led to believe that this individual, in her life, was a very secretive person. Numerous accounts have stated that she led a double life, but I find that hard to believe. After all, if people know your secrets, you're not that secretive.
In any case, Ativa attempted to craft a way to lock any object imaginable by using souls of others, by any means necessary. At the cost of tearing her own soul as well.
She was dooming her own salvation by doing this, after all. Tainting her own soul as a means to keep her secrets hidden. Despicable. Secrets that were revealed in due time after her death, however, as the people whose souls she used died, and her misdeeds were brought to light. As you can see, this was all for naught. Her soul gone, she herself ceased to exist from this world and the next.
Precious Sight
This Forbidden Magick, as I've learned, was supposed to grant the caster the ability to turn everything they see into precious jewels. Sadly, it didn't turn out that way for the founder of this spell, as they died, naturally, and the discovered body had diamonds in their eye sockets.
I haven't discovered much about this person in particular- there aren't many people who have recollection of these events, nor who knew this individual.
If I were to make an educated guess, I would say that this person was poor and wanted wealth, and so they decided to turn to developing Forbidden Magick. As You can imagine, Dear Reader, they got what they deserved. They wanted treasures, and all they got was eternal damnation.
Chamber of Elbaba
Elbaba was a well known figure of old throughout the Shapeless Empire. She was a very powerful Magester, whose empathy magicks had helped many people of our lustrous country.
Sadly, years and years of taking the negative emotions of others upon herself broke her. Through experimentation and dedication, she sought to craft a spell that could purge her of any and all emotions.
But, as You can imagine, Dear Reader, her fate was sealed the day she began this endeavor.
In her experimentation, she didn't just lose the ability to feel, she lost all of her senses. And living without the beauty of sight, the blessing of hearing, the allure of taste... without any of them at the same time, it was too much.
She was trapped in her own body, a chamber devoid of senses, with all of the accumulated emotions of the Empire, and no means to communicate with the world.
She took her own life, and her soul, tortured and pulled and torn, unravelled.
And while she forsook the chance for an eternal life in the great beyond, the Empire remembers her devotion to the people.
Let this be a cautionary tale.
Yarek's Wish
Yarek, as people who knew him have told me, was a gentle fellow who wouldn't have hurt even a fly. However, because You are reading about him in this book, Dear Reader, You can deduce that he was a foolish boy. Yarek was fed up with the wars that were ravaging Azaveyr at the time of his life, and all he wanted for people was "just to get along", as my sources tell me.
A very noble outlook on life, indeed.
And so, as a foolish but talented young mage, he tried to solve the problem himself.
He spent time locked away in his study, ignoring his mentor's commands, and wove a Forbidden Magick that would seal his fate. He attempted to create a wish magick with a very specific purpose.
He wished for peace in Azaveyr.
To this day, pieces of him are being discovered all over the country.
That's all that remained of him. The Shapeless couldn't save the soul that the boy himself so foolishly tainted. Dreams and wishes are to be pursued and worked for. There are no shortcuts in ambition.
Fool's Sacrifice
This Forbidden Magick may seem to some as useful, but it is of course, deadly. You see, Dear Reader, there was an age in our Empire's vast history, when magicks such as these described in this book were common and widely practiced.
The Magesterium did all they could to curtail the proliferation of such magicks, and as we now know, they were successful.
The horrors of that period are thankfully largely lost to time, save few, such as the one described here.
If I am to believe the rumors, during this time, a mage from a foreign country was staying in the Shapeless Empire's crown jewel, the glorious capitol, Nieboheim.
This foreign mage, as I was told by a source who claims that they are a descendant of someone who witnessed this, was studying Azaveyr's soul-based magicks. This mage, fascinated by our cultural and magickal advances, wished to bribe his way into the Magesterium by solving this "Forbidden Magick" problem.
I don't have to tell You, Dear Reader, how presumptuous this was. The mage, after believing he had learned enough, proceeded to develop a "magick to stop all magicks".
He attempted to create a Forbidden Magick that was able to completely nullify the magickal effects of any and all spells. "What utter nonsense!" wouldn't You say, Dear Reader? Well, this mage succeeded in his endeavor. He was able to nullify a single effect of a Forbidden Magick that had been plaguing the Empire (which I will describe in later books), but in doing so, his own soul was tainted. Violently and brutally. And though he was a foreigner, know that all pure souls go to the afterlife, guided through the directions of the Shapeless, as it does not discriminate.
But this fool, in order to impress the Magesterium, died, and faded into obscurity due to his hubris.
True, the Forbidden Magick that he was trying to dispel was indeed weakened, but he broke the taboo. The fool sacrificed his soul and afterlife not for the greater good, but for personal gain. And before You, Dear Reader, think that you may have what it takes to sacrifice yourself for the Empire, may I remind you that this is no longer the ancient past.
If you find yourself having such thoughts, locate a Magester and declare your intent. For they will be able to guide you into such service for the Empire, without resorting to these soul-destroying magicks.
Let this be a lesson in humility for all of us, Dear Reader.
And now, let's move onto the closing Forbidden Magick for this book!
Tanislav's Last Will
From the history books, we know the fate and stories of the "ghost town Mortem". About how the entire population of the town vanished one day. Of course, currently Mortem is a cozy little town in Tkaanie, bustling with life, but the events of that fateful day in our past shook even the Magesterium.
It wasn't known what exactly happened there back then until recently, and I shall share my findings with You, Dear Reader!
Recently resurfaced facts state that what happened in Mortem was, in fact, due to Forbidden Magicks!
The titular Tanislav was a ruler of Mortem, back then. Not many people remember him, and none can remember what sort of a person he was. But I have learned that he cast Forbidden Magick in order to save his child. "Was he justified in what he was doing?", You ask? The answer is: No, my Dear Reader. There are no justifications for using Forbidden Magicks.
I was not able to find out the exact nature of the Forbidden Magicks, but its effects are known by all. By casting it, he not only doomed his own life into non existence, but also doomed everyone in the town, every single person, even his friends. This magick was the cause of the "ghost town Mortem". He sacrificed his own life and the lives of all of the people of Mortem, for his son.
His son, who died shortly after what his father did for him. Those who do not heed the word of the Shapeless are led into misery, and thus perish.
I believe You are now starting to notice similarities in these magicks, Dear Reader. Forbidden Magick NEVER ends well. It always comes with a price.
Thank you for reading this first book in the collection about Forbidden Magicks!
I would like to also thank my good friend, Perci, as he was the final push I needed to start this series! Thank you, wherever you are! May our paths cross again one day.
As for You, Dear Reader, I am glad You chose to follow me on this journey, as I travel across the lands in search of Forbidden Magicks and inform people such as You about their dangers!
Til next time~
Olizabeth Danao
The Study of Forbidden Magicks
by Olizabeth Danao
