Summary
This new book contains many notes on a variety of blood magics, curses, and the loup-garou in particular. Interspersed were rants about the arrogance of men and the destruction wrought by the Cataclysm.
Physical Description
More a folio than an actual book. The outer case was of a black leather that glittered under strong light. It had been worked by a competent, yet inexpert hand and there were borders of wolf paw prints as well as a large triskele knot on front and back. The papers within were of a variety of sizes, while some of the pages are dated, not all are and those that do are often out of date. Some of the pages had spills of unknowable substances and a few even had charred edges. While some of the pages are dated, not all are and those are often out of date. Much of it appeared to be written in Common, but there are also large sections of witchtongue, all the sharp, angular handwriting of the ancient witch.
Contents
As the foreword explains, Nora organized these in particular order, collecting like research, a sort of textbook for a future witch. Yet on the other hand she had not included the final ritual, this Nora explains is because she doesn't want anyone to be able to undo the first spell. Only a true witch, the elder hoped, could read what had been left behind with the expectation you can put the pieces together and find your own solution.
First Section
The first section lays out information on a variety of subjects, representing much of Nora's research as she sought for a solution for the loup-garou's curse.
Research on the loup-garou
Much of this is actually familiar and is clearly the basis for the family knowledge on the subject. What is new is the clarity and explanation of the curse laid on them by Pancorin, the archfey who laid the curse. More than that, the elder witch had been able to construct a sketch or layout of the spell, including highlighting the changes caused by the Cataclysm and the resultant scrambling of magic. With the death of
Kelveren Darkhold, some portion of the madness and volatility was reduced, but still there was no amount of control.
Curses in general
This section is also quite informative and makes clear that Nora had done considerable research on the subject of curses. She outlines the various were-races and how each came forth and lays out the differences between curses bestowed by god-like entities, archfey, hags, witches, and so forth. Nora is also particularly interested in what she calls Change-Children, people who were changed magically after the Cataclysm. Some of these were either directly from the explosion and the resultant mage storms, but even more were from wandering into areas called Change Circles, foreign pieces of land and twisted magic that appeared in the wake of the storms. Interestingly she also mentions a vampire, an actual blood sucker who called himself Xestial who came down from the north and set up on the far side of the new lake (aka the crater). He was killed by a group of holy knights before she had a chance to learn more, but she did visit the ruins where he had been brought down.
Blood Magic
Reading through this, two things are very clear. First is that Nora was very much a baleful witch and secondly, quite a bit of the practical applications sound like things taught by Baba Yaga. Nora also makes clear that blood magic was one of the few types of magic that still worked after the Cataclysm. As she describes it, the Weave was like a series of streams and rivers that were sucked into the sky and returned as a fine mist that covered everything. This made it next to impossible for wizards, witches, druids, and others to gather enough power to perform spells. While most of the teachings that Nora describes are ways to use one's own blood or perhaps the lifeforce of willing sacrifices, she does describe how some few had turned to coercive blood-letting of others to power their magics.
Second Section
Throughout her research Nora found ways to effect the loup-garou's curse including a potion that would let her charges sleep without shifting. But it was not a long term solution, being both energy intensive to create and needing to be taken daily. It's long term effects were also toxic and could be deadly if taken from more than a year. Having exhausted her resources, she was convinced that a suppression of the curse was possible, if not a breaking. But she was missing several key pieces and she knew it, so she turned to those who stood beyond the Material Plane, the weird sisters.
Matron of Fate
She first traveled to the Latchsano Wood and sought the Eye of the Needle. She found
Istus working the loom of fate and told the goddess of her plan and of her need. The Weaver looked into the future and told Nora that such a thing was possible, but that she was not the one who would find the final solution. The spell that Nora proposed would last for a time, but it would fail and a time would come when the spell would fail and a descendent would have to choose what happens next. Nora is trying to build the Tells of a visit to the Weaver Queen on the isle of Arachnia
The Fateweaver told Nora to visit the Weaver Queen on the isle of Arachnia at the edge of her domain. It was an enlightening, if unnerving, experience as the Weaver Queen was a two-foot long spider and a black widow as well, with a golden hourglass on her thorax. This worthy was more than happy to greet the witch and taught her the art of spell-webs, the physical constructs that could be used to hold larger spells, either for long term effects or for spells held in abeyance. The webs of the denizens of Arachnia often held dreams, illusions, and curses. While these creatures used their own webbing for such spells, Nora learned that she could use other materials. When the witch explained what she was trying to accomplish the Weaver Queen suggested that unicorn hair would be the appropriate medium.
Mother of Testing
Nora next went to visit the Mother of Testing, or rather she extended an invitation to the goddess, and was not surprised when she was walking through her own woods one day and came upon a large hut on chicken legs. As it settled down to the ground, the front door opened and Nora went inside, stopping to bow in polite respect to the Baba Yaga. Upon hearing Nora's proposal the Mother of Bones scowled and asked why Nora had chosen to simply bind the madness and lack of control, surely it would be more straightforward to just suppress the entire shapechange. Nora politely objects to this for two reasons. The first is that the ability of the loup-garou were not inherently evil, it was only the rage and mindlessness that were the problem. Her second objection was that she had already worked out how to do it both ways and there wasn't a significant change in the power requirements...which were still more than she had.
Baba Yaga laughs at this and acknowledges that Nora had the right to practice her witchcraft as she saw fit. As for the power, Baba Yaga suggested that while the magic of this part of the Material world was damaged, elsewhere it was not. Where once the witch could have gathered and channeled power from the Weave, now she must find some external power source. For what Nora is attempting the Yaga suggests the heart of an ancient fire elemental, a red dragon, firewyrm or something of the like.
Maiden of Death
Nora's final visit was to the Court of Remembrance where she sought the advice of the Shepherd of Souls. The Raven Queen tells her that the only thing to truly break the curse is with death, either at the loup's death or with the death and blood of Kelveren in one of his incarnations. This last was suspicion, because as she explains that his soul had not passed through her realm and this generally meant that a person had found a way to hide their soul, generally with the hope of returning in some manner.
The Mistress of Shadows was pleased to discover the depth of Nora's expertise in blood magics and taught her how to use the blood of the loup-garou to tie both themselves and any descendants of the bloodline into the suppression spell. This was the final piece that Nora needed, a way to connect the spell to future generations.
