Saint Paedric's Monastery
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The writing is in Anglic, and reads:
The Brotherhood of Saint Paedric, an order of Adonist monks who specialized in scholarship and the healing arts, was founded in the second century by a advenus priest named Father Byron Tharrik. Father Tharrik envisioned the order as a means of ministering to the masses by caring for their bodies and minds as well as their souls. He established a small monastery in the western woods where the Brothers of Saint Paedric could be instructed in the arts of teaching and medicine in addition to the spiritual concerns of their calling.
The Brotherhood attracted many followers and in the third century, both the monastery and the tiny chapel that served as it's spiritual focus were expanded. It was around this time that a few of the brothers, led by Brother Michael Morrin, began to dabble in daemonology as well as other occult disciplines. In the beginning, they approached the occult as simply another intellectual excercise but as time passed Brother Morrin became more and more convinced that he could, in fact, summon and control demons.
It was also around this time that a young advenus by the name of Brendan O'Dhomnhal joined the Brotherhood. Though quiet and unassuming, it was clear to his superiors that the light of Yehovah burned brightly in the young initiate. He demonstrated true gifts for both healing and teaching and his faith was all consuming and unshakeable.
One of the requirements of the Brotherhood of Saint Paedric was that once training was complete, each brother must leave the monastery and travel abroad ministering to the needs of the general populace. And so, with little more than his robes and a sack of medical supplies and a profound faith, Brendan O'Dhomnhal, who was now known simply as Brother Brendan, left the peace and safety of monastic life for a life as a wandering minister.
Though life outside the monastery was difficult, Brother Brendan took great joy in his work and he rapidly developed a reputation as a skilled healer and a wise teacher. Stories began to circulate regarding acts he'd performed that some were calling miracles. One particular tale recalled O'Dhomnhal's encounter with the thondak master smith Allarin Stormbringer. Galan, the smith's only child had taken ill and none of the remedies the child's doctor had prescribed had improved the boy's condition. In desparation, the smith begged the young monk to examine the boy. As the monk approached the smith's home, he was met at the door by the boy's mother. Her tear stained face told the monk all he needed to know. Still, he asked to be taken to the boy's bedside. The boy's body was already growing cold when the monk examined him. O'Dhomnhal began to pray over the body and according to several onlookers, the monk began to glow with a pure white light. He laid his hands upon the boy's forehead and to the wonder and amazement of the boy's family, the boy's eyes opened and he sat up in bed. In gratitude, the smith gifted O'Dhomnhal with a silver ring inlaid with red gold.
For five years, Brother Brendan travelled from town to town ministering to the spiritual and physical needs of the people he encountered and his legend grew. At the end of the five years, O'Dhomnhal returned to the monastery to begin training for his ordination as a priest. In the meantime, Brother Michael and his followers had enjoyed considerable success in summoning lesser demons. But Brother Michael was an ambitious man and he saw his work as a way of gaining power and prestige. So, armed with years of research and the confidence of his past accomplishments, Brother Michael Morrin began making preparations for the summoning of a greater demon.
Late one night a few weeks after his return, Brendan retreated to the burial chambers below the monastery in search of solitude. While wandering about the chamber, he noticed a curious light coming from beneath the door of one of the private crypts reserved for important figures within the order. Cautiously, he pushed the door open a crack and found Brother Michael and his followers in the middle of the ritual of demon summoning.
The chanting grew louder and faster and, as O'Dhomnhal looked on in horrified fascination, a softly glowing purple mist began to form in the center of the circle. Gradually, the amorphous cloud began to take the form of a man. The man who came to stand before Morrin was at once both the most compelling and terrifying sight Brendan had ever seen. Physically, he resembled a human male, bronzed and muscular, his features so perfectly formed that had he been female he would have been considered beautiful. However, where his eyes should have been were empty sockets from which a dull red glow shone and the arrogant sneer that tugged at the corners of the demon's mouth seemed disturbingly out of place on the almost angelic face.
The demon laughed distainfully at Morrin and his followers. "You can't really believe that your circle can hold me...", said the demon in a voice as smooth as silk.
For the first time since his very first summoning, Michael Morrin knew fear. He addressed the demon with what he hoped at least sounded like authority. "In the name of Yehovah I have summoned you and in the name of Yehovah I command you serve me."
The demon laughed, a cold brittle sound, and said, "I know you, Michael Morrin. Your heart is as black as mine. You don't serve Yehovah any more than I do. The only thing you're capable of serving is yourself. We're very much alike, you and I...both cold and calculating, both self-serving. The difference between us is that I know what I am...I take pride in it. You hide behind your pathetic god and pretend, even to yourself, that you're something you're not. Had it been convenient for me, I might have even allowed you to believe I served you for a time. But you're far to weak to ever be of any use to me so, unfortunately for you, it's not convenient."
The demon turned slightly to face one of the monks in the circle. He gestured at the monk who immediately burst into flames. He nodded at another who also burst into flames. The demon made an expansive gesture and several more monks burned. Now, there was only Morrin, the demon and O'Dhomnhal who was still hiding in the shadows. The demon grinned evilly at Morrin. "Never fear, you'll not burn. I've got something else in mind for you. But first, I've a bit of business to attend to."
The demon called out to O'Dhomnhal, "I know you're out there so there's no point in hiding. It would be much easier for both of us if you don't fight me. After all, you can't possibly defeat me."
O'Dhomnhal was drawn from his hiding place by a force beyond his comprehension. His mind screamed in terror but his body made no response. Without knowing how he got there, he now stood before the demon. The demon examined him appraisingly. He could feel the demon's eyes cut through his very soul. Finally, satisfied, the demon spoke. "Brendan O'Dhomnhal, I've been waiting for you...waiting a very long time.", he purred. "Many, like this one", he made a dismissive gesture toward Morrin, "beg to serve me, but they're weak and cowardly. You though, you're strong... I feel the strength flowing through you and I will have you. In return for your faithful service I will give you dominion over all that exists on this plane. Every man, every beast, even nature itself will bow before you and pay you homage. All you must do is pledge yourself to me."
O'Dhomnhal struggled against the mental shackles that held him with the intensity and desparation of a wild animal but to no avail. But it was at this moment that Morrin, sensing the demon's attention was no longer on him, tried to flee. The demon, reacting with lightning speed, intercepted Morrin with a howl so unnatural and unholy that it would haunt O'Dhomnhal for the rest of his life. The demon effortlessly tore Morrin's head from his shoulders in much the same way a child might pull a daisy from it's stem. For just an instant O'Dhomnhal felt his bonds loosend and he gathered what remained of his strength and made one last valiant effort to free himself. This time, however, the bonds shattered and he was free.
No longer imprisoned, O'Dhomnhal felt the power of Yehovah flow into him. He was filled with a holy wrath so powerful that it nearly blinded him. He began to glow with a brilliant white light and his voice reverberated like thunder as he addressed the demon. "By the power of Yehovah and all that is good and just I command you return from whence you came." He gestured at the demon who was slammed against the wall by the force of the blow. Again and again he struck the demon until, broken and bleeding, the demon lay at his feet. Quietly, O'Dhomnhal murmured an invocation banishing the demon from this plane. With the demon gone, he collapsed to the ground exhausted.
O'Dhomnhal was still unconscious the following morning when he was discovered by two initiates. It was several more days before he was well enough to relate the events of that horrible night. After hearing the tale, the abbot ordered all of Brother Morrin's notes burned and, under penalty of banishment, forbid the brothers of Saint Paedric any further study of the occult arts. O'Dhomnhal went on to finish his studies and was ordained a priest. Later, he became the abbot of Saint Paedric's Monastery and held the position until his death. He was laid to rest in a crypt beneath the monastery. After his death, there were numerous reports of visitations and miracles performed in his name and he was later canonized.
It was widely believed that all of Michael Morrin's followers had perished that night in the crypt and that all his notes had been destroyed. It was, however, an erroneous assumption. A young initiate by the name of Janrus Teshian had salvaged much of Morrin's research. Nearly a century after Saint Brendan's death those notes were found by a monk named Loric Phage. Secretly, he revived Morrin's work. This time though, once been a bastion of purity is now tainted and evil. The demons reign here, feeding off the souls of the living and corrupting everything they touch. They are attended to by mortal servants who provide them with victims in return for a taste of their masters' power.
And so Saint Paedric's Monastery waits for a new champion who can defeat the demons once and for all and restore the holy light that had once burned so brightly here. In the meantime, the demons continue to grow more powerful as they claim more victims.
- Note: Reading this book will give you some experience and boost your history and legend lore skills.
