Lessons of Shadow, Volume II [Ready for BoT] [Added OB]

[Orix]

Lessons of Shadow
By Skelos Undriel

Volume II

In the previous volume, I explored the basic history of Shadow Magic, the purpose being to warn future practitioners of its profound dangers.

This volume will cover the basic principles of the art and teach the reader how to first begin exploring the powers contained within them.

The very basic and most important principle behind Shadow Magic is that all forces in existence are trapped in a constant conflict. For example, if you see light hitting a rock, what do you really perceive? That light is the one thing keeping darkness at bay, yet when it hits an obstruction, the forces clash. The rock’s material prevents light from passing through, causing a shadow behind the rock. The light seeks to counter this shadow by reflecting off other surfaces in the area. The very essence of a shadow is the equilibrium of forces in conflict. However, the shadow isn’t just mere equilibrium, it is also a reflection of alternate realities. Using the previous example, know that without the rock and all other obstructions there would be blinding light, and without any light, darkness would veil all. It would seem that Nirn is the only plane of existence where all forces are equal in this manner.

Once the conceptual complexity of shadows is learnt, the first lesson on practical use of Shadow Magic may be imparted to the reader. We begin with the simplest form of the magic, which is reading the shadows themselves. While some may have the natural ability to perceive shadows and all they contain, as Azra did, others must be taught. One must see the shadow in its entirety and use not just one's eyes, but all one's senses and mental energies to pierce the outer fabric of the shadow and unveil the rich nebula within. Seeing inside an object’s shadow for the first time is an unequalled experience, for in that time the practioner is disembodied like never before, surrounded by a grey swirling void of light and dark. In this place is the connection to the very history of the material, how it has physically changed, what it's experienced, and how it thinks. No doubt you, dear student, cannot yet comprehend the experience, and no doubt the experience itself will lead to further questions.

A while back, when I was lecturing in the order, a student commented, “Well, if that’s the case, wouldn’t reading the shadow of a rock be boring and pointless? They never move or think or change.â€Â￾ Yet, this student couldn’t have been more wrong. I took him to Azra’s Crossing and made him study a piece of stone from there. The next day, I found the student deep in thought. He told me of all the battles that had been fought near what was once a huge boulder, how many children had sat upon it when it was a sizable rock and looked up at the stars, how the smaller stones around it had been gradually chipped and weathered off the main body of the rock. And, the stone had told him of the fateful day Azra had unearthed it again in the explosion that had consumed him. Now, it had come to the student, who had become part of its existence.

[At this point in the manual, Skelos Undriel goes into great depth on how to focus magical and mental energies into percieving shadows and eventually reading them. You feel enlightened by what you have read. New doors have been opened to you.]

While this exploration of realities will be a wondrous revelation to the practitioner, it is dangerous to read a shadow for too long, since the body is unprotected. However, one cannot help but explore when the experience is novel. Unfortunately, the very reading of shadows is not without its dangers for the inexperienced. A young and eager student of mine attempted to peer into the more complex shadow of a person before she was ready. I can only assume that she became overwhelmed by the experience and delved too deeply into the shadow, too soon. The student could not separate herself from the other person’s shadow and became forever lost in it, her consciousness becoming part of the void. Her body soon died, unable to take in nourishment and unable to think or move without a mind. Yet, the student’s consciousness did surface in the person she peered into, and his personality became a confused mixture of the two minds. Sadly, I was not able to separate them without a spare living body. They escaped and killed themselves before I had chance to try and to resolve the matter.

This concludes the first practical lesson of shadows. I urge the reader and practitioner to use shadow magic with an open and stable mind. Before reading the next volume, be sure to fully understand the nuances of reading shadows. The sooner you understand those, the easier it will be when it comes time to manipulate them.

[Nanu]

2.B.General.
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