#bezoar

Now this was a curious package.

The items inside seemed randomly chosen, yet all interacted with each other in a way that made him suspect that it wasn’t.

The dice were the most curious one.

Meant for some kind of game? Was he currently in the midst of a game he didn’t even know he was playing?

Sometimes life definitely felt that way.

Was he supposed to start studying alchemy? Or perhaps that was a personal compulsion, ignited by the curious items?

What could he make with a little bit of everything?

GENERAL — 7/262 — Bezoar

The word bezoar originates from Persian and means protection against poison. Known as a bezoar stone, it is an animal formation created from indigestible food remnants and other materials in the stomach of herbivores or omnivores. Gradually accumulated and compressed residues form a ball the size of a pea or sometimes even an egg. The largest specimens have been found in the intestines of chamois, gazelles and camels. Since ancient times, it was believed that this formation possessed magical healing properties. It was used either ground into powder or soaked in liquid and was considered a powerful remedy against various poisons, nausea, pain, digestive disorders, epilepsy and even evil spirits. Thus, in the Middle Ages, bezoars attracted the attention of the wealthy and were often set into gold, richly decorated jewellery or other everyday objects.

TRIVIA

— In the courts of medieval and Renaissance Europe, bezoars were so highly prized as antidotes that they were sometimes put to the test in front of horrified audiences. One of the most famous trials took place in 1575 at the court of Emperor Rudolf II in Prague, where a condemned cook accused of theft was given the choice of hanging or being poisoned and then treated with a bezoar. He chose the bezoar. Unfortunately for him, the experiment proved that not every bezoar was miraculous: after swallowing the poison and the supposed cure, he died in agony within hours. The grisly test did little to dampen the mystique surrounding these objects though, and bezoars continued to be mounted in gold and silver and displayed as protective talismans and luxury curiosities in aristocratic collections.

Ironically, later medical research confirmed that bezoars can neutralize certain poisons, like arsenic, because the calcium and magnesium compounds they contain bind with the toxin. In that sense, the belief in their power wasn’t entirely misplaced, even if it failed to save Rudolf’s unfortunate cook.

Epizkon’s flight from the burning Palace of Milk and Miren allowed her to save an armload of divine artifacts and holy texts tied to Miteras, which would become the few precious remnants of the Celebrants to survive the Church’s purge. Amongst this hasty collection were a few Olisboi, the objects Miteras had used on herself to birth the Teraknon. While some would view such items as nothing more than toys of pleasure, the Celebrants revered them and saw them as the “fathers” of the Allmother’s monstrous children. A part of it came from the fact that these objects had been granted a hint of Miteras’ own essence, infused into them from her lone rituals of self stimulation. This granted them power and divinity, and thus the Celebrants held them as precious relics. So when the Palace of Milk and Miren was sieged, and all evidence of Miteras was being put to the torch, her followers were sure to include the Olisboi in this last ditch attempt at preservation. Unfortunately, not all could be saved, as some Olisboi had fell to ruin well before the Palace was destroyed. Some of the objects she had used had been fleshy and fresh, like the tentacle that created Hecto or the clam siphon that birthed Glochi. These items could not be properly preserved and their use in the ritual caused them to degrade. Thus, a few of these “fathers” didn’t last long. While plenty did survive to this point, the attack on the palace and the Church’s raiders made it impossible to grab them all. The Celebrants would have to take what they could get in these vital moments, lest their hesitation lead to complete failure. As a result, only five Olisboi were saved from the flames, taken away by Epizkon has she escaped the death of the Celebrants. 

Of course the most obvious Olisboi that survived to this day is the corrupted arm of Saint Dennius, who serves as staff, preacher and crazed compatriot of Epizkon. Yet, four more were saved and are kept safe in the shoddy underground church of this lost faith. In the beginning, they were seen only as relics and reminders of Miteras, objects to be worshipped and prayed to. As the last remnants of the Celebrants, one could not be picky on what divine artifacts they had. They would be viewed as fertility idols, with the hopes that touching one could bless a parent with a sage birth and healthy offspring. But as the years went on, and Epizkon slowly fell to despair and madness, she would eventually discover the potential still held within the Olisboi. One night, after she had finished with her sermon and work, a crazed follower of her pitiful faith crept in to claim one of the Olisboi for themselves. They had grown obsessed with Miteras and these artifacts, and desired to get closer to the goddess through one of these profane objects. They took an Oliboi that had been fashioned from a bezoar, but before they could flee with their prize, a strange desire seized their mind. Without care for stealth or their surroundings, they suddenly became infatuated with the relic and had an incredible need to use it on themselves. The sounds of this forbidden ritual alerted Epizkon to the thief, but before she could reclaim the artifact, the deed was done. She was ready to kill the defiler and robber for this blasphemy, but paused when they began to convulse. In horrified wonder, she beheld as the follower’s stomach swelled up, their flesh writhing and gurgling with life. Within minutes, their belly split open, and a familiar creature of stony shell sat within the ruptured corpse. The gray solid sphere, the long stretchy tendrils, there was no denying what stood before her. It was Umbol, but….not. This creature was much smaller and not exactly like her. But even with it a shadow of the former Teraknon, Epizkon knew a miracle when she saw it.