![[ICOS]Eibon, Theophrastus: "My Hedonistic Voices" - [JNL][ONT][OCL] Empty](https://2img.net/i/empty.gif)
It is no surprise that no detailed accounts of the process by which curious minds become acquainted with potentially the darkest being in theology exist. The darkest studies are often the most dangerous, and danger often heralded great harm, such as insanity or death. I mention “insanity” in particular, as it is likely the ultimate price for what it is I am exploring. Greater men have likely failed attempting the same. What, then, could drive men of sound mind and body to degenerate health and delusion? What force could possibly take sages of unimaginable power and skill from strong scholars, to broken, withered, frenzied vestiges of their former selves? What information could possibly drive a man to murder or suicide with just a few thoughts? It is a concerning notion, that words and words alone carry the clout of the being I intend to examine, and I am undoubtedly qualified to write on this subject: I have already survived its invasion of my mind.
Perhaps I should begin with how I came to know this being, then. It is no grandiose story; simply a case of referral. It is no secret that I played a hand in the organization known as the Sinister Accords. It is also not a secret that I was, at one point, relatively close to a one Flamme Noire, the ruling body of the Dusk Imperium. The organization of the “infernal cabal” put me in a position of both servitude and fealty to Flamme Noire, and while my allegiance was to the whole of the Accords, it was to Noire who I answered. At some point, it dawned on me that I was wholly superior to the Fool King. If his epithets were any indication, he was often portrayed the Fool, and I, a very avid scholar, sought knowledge and understanding that the fool could not provide. But it was he who brought me into the cabal, and if I wanted access to the knowledge I wanted, then I would have to serve my tenure like a good boy.
So I did, and of course I ascended the steeple with relative quickness, and I eventually became acquainted with a one Azuhl’baizare. He was a being of great power… great intellect… I cannot say for sure where he has gone. Though, if I spoke honestly, it would be very convenient if Lord Arthur of Dartania, the veritable anti-thesis to the whole of the Accords, managed to subdue the beast. The Marquise, as he was also known, was undoubtedly a beast. Why the Marquise was what he was is debatable. There are few causal stimuli that can be accredited with the whole of his existence; however I cannot say that an overwhelming portion of what held him together was not intrinsically malign. What he carried in the seat of his power was, perhaps, one of the most potently alarming and corrupt powers I’d ever felt, and I never experienced or felt it all at once. I could not imagine what such an experience would be like, but I am rapidly approaching the ability to produce such a power myself. It is why I am qualified to write this.
Azuhl’baizare utilized a power that came from another being whose immense metaphysical clout is unfathomable. If one understands reality, and understands the limitations of sentient life, as I am so limited, then one recognizes that we are all limited in what we can perceive. It is often the goal of mystics, scholars, and philosophers to be able to understand the full scope of the cosmos. We would call this achievement “gnosis”. I would venture to say that even the Marquise in all his power was unable to fully grasp all that was reality. As a Philosopher, perpetually striving to understand all that is, and working with my Philosophic brethren, albeit chaotically, but with the strangest resonance of harmony, I aim to achieve “gnosis”, and for that reason I observe the steps of being such as the Marquise. But, I digress. IF one understands reality, and understands the limitations of sentient life, then one understands sentience’s limitations. Imagine, then, a being who could understand the whole of reality all at once, and whose existence in itself used to be a fixture in reality. If reality were an ocean, then this being would be the force that brings about waves. With this in mind, impart the idea that seeing the whole of the ocean at once is impossible; if seeing the whole of the ocean at once is impossible, then so is seeing every wave, and therefore so is seeing the force that is moving every wave. The extent of this beings power can only be understood and witnessed in parts, and attempts to take it in all at once is likely to result in my developed insanity. As I am quite fond of my grasp on reality, I’ve wisely chosen to choose select aspects to explore, as opposed to submerging myself fully into the world of The Worm.
It is said that the Worm manifests in “Hypraxis” (reality) as That Which Slumbers.
Perhaps I should begin with how I came to know this being, then. It is no grandiose story; simply a case of referral. It is no secret that I played a hand in the organization known as the Sinister Accords. It is also not a secret that I was, at one point, relatively close to a one Flamme Noire, the ruling body of the Dusk Imperium. The organization of the “infernal cabal” put me in a position of both servitude and fealty to Flamme Noire, and while my allegiance was to the whole of the Accords, it was to Noire who I answered. At some point, it dawned on me that I was wholly superior to the Fool King. If his epithets were any indication, he was often portrayed the Fool, and I, a very avid scholar, sought knowledge and understanding that the fool could not provide. But it was he who brought me into the cabal, and if I wanted access to the knowledge I wanted, then I would have to serve my tenure like a good boy.
So I did, and of course I ascended the steeple with relative quickness, and I eventually became acquainted with a one Azuhl’baizare. He was a being of great power… great intellect… I cannot say for sure where he has gone. Though, if I spoke honestly, it would be very convenient if Lord Arthur of Dartania, the veritable anti-thesis to the whole of the Accords, managed to subdue the beast. The Marquise, as he was also known, was undoubtedly a beast. Why the Marquise was what he was is debatable. There are few causal stimuli that can be accredited with the whole of his existence; however I cannot say that an overwhelming portion of what held him together was not intrinsically malign. What he carried in the seat of his power was, perhaps, one of the most potently alarming and corrupt powers I’d ever felt, and I never experienced or felt it all at once. I could not imagine what such an experience would be like, but I am rapidly approaching the ability to produce such a power myself. It is why I am qualified to write this.
Azuhl’baizare utilized a power that came from another being whose immense metaphysical clout is unfathomable. If one understands reality, and understands the limitations of sentient life, as I am so limited, then one recognizes that we are all limited in what we can perceive. It is often the goal of mystics, scholars, and philosophers to be able to understand the full scope of the cosmos. We would call this achievement “gnosis”. I would venture to say that even the Marquise in all his power was unable to fully grasp all that was reality. As a Philosopher, perpetually striving to understand all that is, and working with my Philosophic brethren, albeit chaotically, but with the strangest resonance of harmony, I aim to achieve “gnosis”, and for that reason I observe the steps of being such as the Marquise. But, I digress. IF one understands reality, and understands the limitations of sentient life, then one understands sentience’s limitations. Imagine, then, a being who could understand the whole of reality all at once, and whose existence in itself used to be a fixture in reality. If reality were an ocean, then this being would be the force that brings about waves. With this in mind, impart the idea that seeing the whole of the ocean at once is impossible; if seeing the whole of the ocean at once is impossible, then so is seeing every wave, and therefore so is seeing the force that is moving every wave. The extent of this beings power can only be understood and witnessed in parts, and attempts to take it in all at once is likely to result in my developed insanity. As I am quite fond of my grasp on reality, I’ve wisely chosen to choose select aspects to explore, as opposed to submerging myself fully into the world of The Worm.
It is said that the Worm manifests in “Hypraxis” (reality) as That Which Slumbers.
Knowing this, my decision to tackle the problem of the Worms overwhelming ousia in parts was not only proven wise, but proven possible. These writings I intend to lay out over the course of my exploration will be my treatise; my dissertation; my thesis. It will be as much a historical account as it is an exploration of metaphysical constants and theories; it will be as much an ontological inquiry as it is my anthology of personal experiences, thoughts, and prose. Should I not lose my mind in the process, I suspect this work will see a conclusion. However, should my mind be ousted, my soul shredded, and my body obliterated, perhaps this work will serve as a warning to those who wish to study it after me: should I fail in my goal, do not inquire further – less you think yourself among the greatest.“Though the Worm is a single entity, upon its absorption of so many concepts, so many primal desires, and so many instinctual urges, its unified ousia was partitioned, creating distinct aspects of its being. These beings – the Worm included – are unified under the second name of the deity of Ruin as a single, collection banner known as “That Which Slumbers.”
The name is a perplexing paradox, yet a simple concept that speaks volumes on the essence of the Worm. The Weaver, having set aside the Ruin from Hypraxis, explicitly forbade the Worm from ever wholly ascending itself to that level – or sphere – of existence. That Which Slumbers is a simple bypassing of this rule, for these individual demarcations are not “wholly the Worm,” but merely represent certain aspects or concepts within the collective being. Due to this, they are said to “sleep” within the Worm, and are only ever said to function within the Weave itself, entering it in some sort of “dream-like state,” where they can enact their own will toward furthering the goals of the Worm as a whole.” (Heirengeir, Blasphemous from Birth: A Treatise on the Worm)
