Book of Penitents "The Blight"
Selections collected from The Secret Revelation, author unknown, on the substance known as "The Blight."
The Secret Revelation is a somewhat confusing text that is one part secular investigation and examination of diverse subjects and one part mystical text rambling on various esoteric ideas. It has been described as a 'political manifesto' and 'prophecy' both. However its writing on the blight is notably succinct, forming much of the ideas in isolated chunks dubbed 'Dialogues' in which the author interjects descriptions or ideas in a conversation with an unknown party or reader. Often of subjects that its audience should be well aware already.
Dialogue 14
What is the Blight? Sin itself. The corruption that penetrates us all, the land and creation. It is a black oil that creeps, corrupts, infects and grows. Its nature is confounding, defying order, reason and logic. Its movements are erratic, its patterns inscrutable. Its song is a quiet hum that resonates in the most primal recesses of the mind. But most of all it is beautiful, does that answer you?
Dialogue 15
Foreign scholars describe it, falsely, as a cosmic cancer, a divine horror made of the whispers and dreams of the True God, an entity many of them fear, a blight that must be destroyed. You are correct that the notion is ridiculous, a product of a limited mind, of a foolish pawn. Oh, you are right, to the Church, to the Empire, it is a solemn duty. Some sects and writings imply it was the fault of our peoples. Others imply it is the reason we are burdened and blessed with knowledge of the true faith—something kept from many other people, as we must have a truer strength to struggle in this secret war against the corruption, against our sins. A battle that will outlast our existence and is older than time. We must measure its growth carefully, let it spread only as guided, and keep it as restrained as revelation tells us. Without us, it would swallow the world. Were we not there to protect it—it similarly would grow wild and without control. You don't agree? Of course you may be right. Maybe it should grow.
Dialogue 45
The blight is a blessing, and a curse. Infection is a burden and a power. Our sin is our strength, but it is also our damnation. Pray for us, for we have sinned. Thank you for your kind blessings, my friend. It's good of you to be so understanding.
Dialogue 51
You see it is slick to the touch. A firm, but pliant oil like substance that can harden into an obsidian-like glass. In the light it refracts most commonly green, violet, or a color closest to yellow. Other refractions have been seen, though their meaning, if any, is unknown. It has no unique reaction to heat nor cold. Though fire can force it to withdraw from its current location. The only thing it truly hates is magic. But even magic is corruptible. Though the struggle is eternal. The super-real towards the anti-real, a constant tug of war, a burning. But even the brightest of witchery, if given time, will be subsumed and devoured. Oh, the salts of the north? They are effective, an anathema, if a temporary one.
Dialogue 54
Its nature, its wants, its goals are as confounding now as when prophecy and whispers of divine revelation first revealed its purpose to the ancient tribes that would someday become the Holy Cellenic Empire. It's vague, confusing, and unclear. The Nahro's writings, at least available to this author are empty of details, and their oral legends refuse to even mention the subject. But we can observe its effects.
Dialogue 64
It penetrates, it spreads. It impregnates everything near it with a quiet corruption, mild, but capable of growing. When the fruits of madness, the buzzing in the back of the mind has grown great enough, it can spread and grow to this new subject. Land, plant, mineral or animal are all subject as much as the minds and bodies of onisi. There is no sound sweeter, no taste more beautiful. It is pleasure and it is pain. I hear it's buzzing, and it has never quieted.
Dialogue 66
Its effects are broad, persistent and nearly impossible to eradicate. It may be pushed back but attempts to destroy it completely often result in a sudden explosion, a mass-pressure of corruption spreading and forcibly corrupting at an increased rate. This was observed most clearly in the Dank in 801. Oh, you know about those little villages? Yes it's predictable what will soon occur. A crack in the wall. You can't wall out the hum. (Ediitor’s Note: It has been mistakenly assumed this refers to the rarini villages. The book was written before the arrival of the rarini. It likely refers to a currently unknown event.)
Dialogue 68
The black oil is a physical presence that creeps within a subject. It most often is seen as an intrusion in the blood, tears or other secretions of the subject, often staining fur or skin a black hue. Similarly, black veins or cartilage are a normal side effect. These effects can vary dramatically, as seen in subject 19 and 11 in the Appendix. (Editor's Note: there is no appendix in The Secret Revelation) Additional side effects include the whispers and intrusive thoughts and exceptionally vivid dreams of a different world. These are rare for the mildly infected, but become common for higher stages of corruption.
Dialogue 71
The phage, a consumer of the infection, often trains in the psychosomatic manipulation of the blight into tendrils, large or small, to gain control over the crystallization of the substance for defense or to project as weapons or utilization to impregnate materials and objects. Extremely high corruption results in bodily destruction, madness and death in almost all cases. The infernal machine let us jumpstart the process, and stabilize it. But it is now lost. The Nahro protect it. Destruction is a beautiful act, but horrible. With the correct methods you can form a seed, these unnatural seeds contain all of the phage who was, but are particularly useful to enhance another's powers. The cannibalistic urge, yet it is through divine grace we avoid such acts. The seeds of nature are more potent by far, but less easily utilized.
Dialogue 72
The mental effects are pronounced, you are right. Victims often speak of amazing visions, revelations, a grand muse, strange beliefs that often guide them along strange paths. More disturbingly an abnormal amount of these paths seem to lead to some kind of truth. Without proper guidance, it has also been noted the victims often turn predatory and dangerous towards similarly blighted persons, mild or major in strength. It is my belief that these are false revelations, a false understanding of the humming song. But the misinterpretation is a sweet taste, isn't it?
Dialogue 80
You can't ask that, the origins are not permitted to speak of. Truth is unknown to most, because truth would not be something they can hold in their hands. Truth is a danger greater than any other. Its name is and its voice is . Does that answer you? The sweetness is gone, the Blight's gifts fade for now from speaking even this. Forgive me.
Commentary on the Secret Revelation
The book’s excerpts are often utilized as an easy method of teaching basic ideas to foreigners about the Blight and other subjects often difficult for those foreign to the empire to grasp. It is an informal taboo to write authoritatively on the nature of the Blight, and religious texts are often impenetrable to those without an understanding of culture. The confused narrative, inconsistent narrative voice (seen in the broader dialogues) and occasional lack of adherence to strict topics has ensured it is considered a safe and acceptable communication by the Orthodoxy. Teaching secrets indirectly while teaching literal truths.
Despite this, the Vendari have long disliked its publication, claiming it is nothing but occluding words that prevent learning of the greater mysteries. Notable as their councils rarely have strong reactions to mystical texts, usually believing them to have secrets hidden within, even in falsehoods. But only a few texts, normally foreign, are designated truly ‘occluded’ within the Vendari churches.
The nature of its initial writing is also confusing. It has repeated references to events that seem as if they should be in common histories but are missing, yet they stand oddly hand in hand with common events that are widely known. Similarly confusing, it has a theological basis not overly different from the Sarl’siian order, yet lacks any of the common literary formatting of its writings, secret or otherwise.
The Inquisitor, Arlinn Fennario stated in 1503, two days before his suicide, that the book is not foreign, it was and is of Cellenic origin, but it cannot be assumed to have been written by any person within the Empire. The implication has since been debated.