The Fanatical Mystic

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Latest revision as of 02:38, 18 July 2025

The Fanatical Mystic

by Tempest of HDG

The room was lit by a sole candlestick set in a worn bronze sconce. As the enslaved flame danced on its wick, shadows danced eerily on the flagstone walls. A figure, enshrouded in ashen robes and cowl, sat silently at the center of a Yew-wood desk, parchment and tomes strewn about its surface haphazardly.

The hands that protruded from within the folds of its cloth were bony, the skin taught and pale. The owner commanded them diligently, willing them to transfer thought into reality. Their only tools in this endeavor were a quill made of a phoenix's feather and the long slender bone of some indistinguishable donor, coated in a black ichor.

The brilliant red feather fluttered as its ivory companion etched the symbols of human thought onto the parchment beneath it. The symbols became words... and the words became legend....

"I had once thought I had seen the face of evil in all of its manifestations. I had once thought I had read every ancient grimoire and tome written about such things. Now I know I have been wrong all along.

"Perhaps one of the most perverse, twisted, and dangerous souls I have encountered has been that of the fanatical mystic. Possessed of a single-minded belief and goal, this paragon of evil poses a definitive threat to all it encounters. With mere words, born of true passion and faith, this being is capable of twisting the thoughts and emotions of the unfortunate, capable of unimaginable powers of persuasion.

"Typically, the fanatical mystic is blessed (or cursed) with the power of persuasion and glibness of tongue. They become experts in the art of politics and charismatic persuasion. With this comes the yearning for more physical control over their environment, this being the pursuit of the dark arts of the arcane (or necromancy for the truly wicked of heart), learning how to use its power to shape and alter the events and objects that appear before them when words may fail.

"At some point, they find their abilities of persuasion and control are without sufficient focus. Having been ardent pursuers of knowledge, they inevitably happen across a legend or tale of some unspoken entity or power or object that enthralls them... becomes their obsession... their sole purpose. Thus is born the 'fanatical mystic.' Their entire life is consumed in the single-minded pursuit of this, as well as any who associate with them. They can, and are, willing do anything necessary to achieve their goals, all the while rationalizing their behavior as 'just,' or 'righteous.'

"They have, within their grasp, the ability to change the very face of the world around them. Be wary of these tormented souls, for they are rarely discernible from one's friends... or enemies."

The grizzled sage paused. His haunted eyes, distant beneath the shadows of his cowl, bore holes into the paper... and through it. His thoughts were of the woman who had been the inspiration of his scrawling script. For what seemed an eternity, he agonized over the decision to mate the parchment with the candle flame, feelings of guilt and betrayal stirring his soul.

The author's hands trembled as he delicately placed the quill off to the side. Staring at the freshly writ parchment before him for a moment longer, he commanded himself to pick the delicate material up. He mumbled a mantra to himself, "Guardian forgive me," and centered the document over the dancing flame, which immediately burst into flame.

The sage watched as the fire consumed his last, desperate, attempt at freedom. He spoke to the shadows around him, "The gods help us all."

The Fanatical Mystic

100 Strength

100 Intelligence

25 Dexterity

Enticement

Evaluate Intelligence

Inscription

Magery

Meditation

Musicianship

(Necromancy)

Spirit Speak