Alchemical Abominations

Earl Lanterm

Description

« “Intense flames, high pressures, constant beating, is the method, the only method that works for attaining perfection. It's painful, I know. You are all looking at someone who's been through it and returned, but pain is simply the dying breath of weakness, you have to stick it out until you don't feel it anymore.” He smiled ruefully at us, “But the important thing is to keep in mind what we can achieve, when we are willing to commit sacrifices.” With that he finished and everyone clapped once more. No one cheered or whistled this time, but they were moved nonetheless. But for me his final words had been chilling, they simply seemed to invite disaster. » Dark adventure filled with elves, goblins, cannibal monsters, demons, but also charismatic heroes whose true powers are rooted in a kind of insane wisdom, this epic novel plays with archetypes and manages to refresh the genre, providing a fun plot cloaked in the unexpected. Driven by strong character development, it's all about conflict and how we can experience it.

Sujets

• Fantasy épique
• Nouvelles de genre
• Romans de genre
• Fantasy (canción de Mariah Carey)
• Merveilleux
• Fiction
• Fantasy
• Épopée
• Littérature

Informations

• Publié par: Société des écrivains
• Date de parution: 04 août 2017
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9782342155013
• Langue: Français

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Alchemical Abominations
Earl Lanterm
Société des écrivains

Le Code de la propriété intellectuelle interdit les copies ou reproductions destinées à une utilisation collective. Toute représentation ou reproduction intégrale ou partielle faite par quelque procédé que ce soit, sans le consentement de l’auteur ou de ses ayants cause, est illicite et constitue une contrefaçon sanctionnée par les articles L 335-2 et suivants du Code de la propriété intellectuelle.


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Alchemical Abominations
 
Toutes les recherches ont été entreprises afin d’identifier les ayants droit. Les erreurs ou omissions éventuelles signalées à l’éditeur seront rectifiées lors des prochaines éditions.
 
This book is dedicated to all those who risk defamation, ridicule and death for politely voicing their thoughts and for committing themselves to the search for truth.
Table of Contents
Introduction
The pages you are about to read relay the most important events of the recent history of our nation. The moment the Arcanum Arcana of the oppressive Alchemist order was revealed, and how Guile Widdrick and his companions freed Glacialis from the insane tyranny of the Despot. These pages unite the compilation of pieces of Guile’s memoirs with the narrative records that I have written in order to detail the dealings of the young lady Iris, another prominent figure of our history. For each chapter, I have identified the author and cited the source text from which the chapter was taken so that the story may be read without confusion.
I pray that all of you who grace this story with your interest may leave with something good in return, for when I compiled these accounts I did so with the intent that we would never forget what happened, for when we forget the past we are doomed to repeat it. What the Order of Alchemists has done to us is unforgivable, and the triumph of Guile and Noelle over the evil they faced should be cherished forever by all of us who witnessed it. This is why I present you with this work to which I have dedicated much of my life, so that you could be a witness to what happened here no matter who you are or what land you hail from.
There might be moments where all may seem deeply obscure or confusing, but the very fabric of reality is brought into question here in the experiences of the men and women of these stories. They themselves got lost in the entanglement of perception of what is true or false, what is good or evil, and what is life or death. All the rules that govern our existence and that we take for granted were blurred into one shade of mortal frailty in this story. For a person is only as good as what he or she can understand, and those whose story I am telling did not comprehend entirely what was happening to them. It is up to you, reader, to untangle the mess of morality and reality and to arrive at your own judgment about what truly happened here, just as it is your own judgment that guides you to anywhere in your life.
I hope that when you read these pages, you will find yourself in a dance of concepts and ideas where your own interpretation decides the direction of this fateful tale.
Blessings to you…
Sincerely, Earl Lanterm
Book One: The Agony of Bearing Truth
Prologue: I am the Story
From the Memoirs of Guile Widdrick
My life began when it ended. Before then, I was nothing. If anyone could ever summarize my existence it would be in that sentence. It began when it ended. Though I find it difficult to explain, and I do not know if I will ever manage, I feel the overwhelming desire to let it all out.
I walked this world much like a walking corpse, I was as if frozen in time, a feeling nearly impossible to describe. I have tried to write the essence of my life in so many different ways, but I always failed.
I once attempted a philosophical treatise, but I could not expound on the nuances of my every breath, or even define my life. I tried poetry, but that would have never ended. Perhaps a story then, that is all I have left. I have decided to write down the series of events that led to where I am now. Maybe in this way I can peel back the layers of my life in a manner that helps me find meaning in my own existence.
Whether or not life has meaning to you depends on whether or not you find it, and I guess that this is what I look for with this piece, the meaning of my life through its narration.
I was born in a land you probably never heard of. We called it Glacialis, it was a frozen land, where the wind itself seemed to be our worst enemy. Biting cold snowstorms and harsh gales claimed many of us every winter, and we constantly engaged in a battle against the ice and snow in which we made our home. I was born in this cold world, in a town called Inmotus. It was as quaint and warm as it could be while surrounded by ice. At least its inhabitants were quite warm.
My father, a man named Jiordani Widdrick was one of the elders of the council and quite important in that town. He was at least powerful enough to ensure my education at the prestigious Academy known as the Schola Artium et Scienta that was located in the capital city, where I fulfilled my lifelong ambition of becoming a philosopher.
My name is Guile Widdrick, this is my story. Since it is one that began when it ended, I must start before the beginning, or before the end, depending on your viewpoint. The first moment where I believe I should begin my narrative must be… here:
Chapter 1: Snow Flakes in the Breeze
I stood in the middle of a large crowd, where thousands of people all over the capital city of Conscendo eagerly waited in the cold outdoors. We had gathered in the city centre, and swarmed the massive patio where pubs, fancy shops and other businesses surrounded us on three sides, but for the one where we were facing.
An enormous palace stood before us with lofty towers and long triangular rooftops adorned with shimmering gold tiles that gleamed in an almost divine way under the low sunlight. We were all under its shadow only to hear our Despot's mighty voice  and to catch a glimpse of the leader who freed us from the corrupt leadership of the Old Order known more commonly to scholars as the Oligarchy of Elders.
Along with the thousands of others all around me, I kept my eyes locked on the balcony above our heads. I was tall enough to see grand red double doors from which our leader was said to emerge. As we waited for time to pass, everything was quiet.
The doors opened and from them strode the Despot, dressed in ceremonial golden armour and a fine blue cloak of shimmering silk draped over his back. It was a fabric made especially for him by his loyal Alchemists, the blue representing his superior blood.
As the Despot stood at the very edge of his balcony with pale hands resting over the ivory railing and icy blue eyes gazing at all of us, a serene wind blew at his pointed beard and trimmed curly blond hair. A heat amulet hung from his neck, a red stone contained within a metal ampule that cast a wave of warmth to protect him from the cold. It was similar to the one I wore, though much more potent and expensive.
The crowd went hysterical at the very sight of him, and I must admit that I too was thrilled. For I spent a lifetime learning about this man and hearing whispers of his past exploits in the Alchemical Revolution centuries ago. Yet something about that sly satisfied smile and the contempt in his vibrant eyes bothered me in the back of my mind.
The cheering went on for more than twenty minutes, and the Despot waited while leaning over the railing as if taking it all in. Only when the masses had quieted did he look like he was ready to speak. He deliberately let the tension rise among the spectators, using an old demagogical skill that harnessed the emotions of the people.
“Throughout the entire history of man, one truth has always been obvious above all others.” His deep voice was amplified by a device beside his thin lips that was too small for anyone to see from where we stood. The way his serene tone was somehow loud enough for a crowd of thousands to hear added to the mystique of the moment, as if he had the voice of rumbling thunder. “It was a painfully evident truth whenever mankind looked up into the sky and saw the heavens, and realized…” a pause “that we men and women are wretched, pathetic beings. Miserable little creatures, destined to fade away.”
The crowd clung to every word and listened with reverence. The Despot’s pale hand calmly stroked his blond pointed beard while he resumed his speech.
“This truth is bitter, much like the cold that entraps us, but it is undeniable. The very fact that every single man, woman and child who I see before me now… you my children who look upon me with such devotion… will inevitably die, makes all of your lives totally meaningless. Because the undeniable truth is that everything we do, no matter how noble or evil, will eventually fade away, and it makes our choices and actions hollow and so too our existence. And everything about our lives will vanish, even if it had a glimmer of value, that value will die with our lives!” His voice gradually rose to a storm, his words washed over us and though most could not understand what he meant, all of us were captivated. Even I was, yet I was also deeply disturbed for reasons that eluded me.
“But there is one hope, one way that we human beings have found to make this life beautiful and free of such a truth.” He spoke again “From knowing our lives will end in death, we can also know about life itself. And thanks to brave men, like the members of the Alchemical Conclave, who dedicate their lives to that knowledge that the possibility of immortality enters our reach! Through that knowledge we can expel death! Preserve ourselves forever and bring prosperity and perfection to everyone!” He raised his hands dr