Grimoire Peccatoris
The Book of Corruption
◀ Chapter 3 · Chapter 4 · Chapter 5 ▶

¹And it came to pass, in the days following the third vision, that Sarcivan was again visited in the night.
²The air was thick as smoke, and there was a trembling in the ground, and he was sore afraid.
³Then came SATANAS, robed in silence, and He touched Sarcivan upon the brow and bade him see.
⁴And lo, Sarcivan was caught up, and beheld a city of golden domes and marble courts, radiant as the dawn.
⁵But within was a tempest, and he beheld men of the cloth casting lots for gold, and merchants buying indulgence with coin.
⁶And the altars were defiled with bribes, and the choir of saints was drowned in the clamor of profit.
⁷Then said SATANAS: Behold the last glory of the old sanctuary, for its cup is full, and I shall pour it out.
⁸The mitre hath become a crown of lies; it shall be cast down and trodden underfoot.
⁹Sarcivan wept, saying: The people are led astray; the flock is given unto wolves.
¹⁰And SATANAS replied: They desire smooth things and comforting deceits. Yea, they are willing captives.
¹¹But the hour cometh wherein the deceivers shall be scattered, and the veil of their sanctity shall be torn.
¹²And Sarcivan beheld men and women of humble birth arise, with fire in their hearts and scrolls in their hands.
¹³And they stood against the corruption, though they were mocked and hunted as beasts.
¹⁴One cried aloud in the marketplace: The just shall live by faith!
¹⁵Another nailed truth unto the door of the temple, and his words echoed through many lands.
¹⁶And the people began to awaken, and their ears were opened, and their hearts stirred within them.
¹⁷The lords of the church were sore afraid, and they gathered to quench the rising flame.
¹⁸They decreed anathemas and kindled pyres, but the fire would not be stayed.
¹⁹This, said SATANAS: is the sundering of the mitre, the cleaving of the throne of piety.
²⁰Not with swords, but with words shall it fall; not by princes, but by ploughmen shall its crown be broken.
²¹And Sarcivan saw the sanctuary divided, and its walls drawn with lines of fire.
²²Some fled unto the old ways and would not be healed; others went out into the wilderness seeking truth.
²³Great was the tumult, and many stumbled; for the Oærth shook, and the skies thundered.
²⁴I have sent a shaking, said SATANAS: not to destroy, but to divide.
²⁵Let the tares be gathered, and let the wheat be scattered, that each be seen for what he is.
²⁶And Sarcivan saw the priests cast down from their towers, their robes torn, their names cursed.
²⁷Some repented and wept in ashes; others hardened their hearts and turned to kings for strength.
²⁸But no king shall restore that which I have broken, said SATANAS; for the wound is of Mine own hand.
²⁹Let none mourn the fall of the mitre, for it was lifted in pride and engraved with falsehood.
³⁰Then Sarcivan asked: Shall the sanctuary be rebuilt in truth?
³¹And SATANAS said: A remnant shall remain, and from it shall truth spring forth in due time.
³²But until then, there shall be many voices and many paths, and contention shall fill the Oærth.
³³For men shall grasp at freedom, and yet carry with them the chains of old.
³⁴And each shall say: Lo, here is truth! and another: Nay, it is there!
³⁵And confusion shall abound, and the hearts of many shall faint.
³⁶Yet through the tumult shall I speak, not in thunder, but in the whisper of the faithful.
³⁷And they shall write new psalms, and preach from the stones, and sing in the shadow of gallows.
³⁸Thus shall the corruption be broken, though not utterly cleansed; and the light shall dawn through mists.
³⁹Then the vision faded, and Sarcivan lay upon the Oærth as one dead.
⁴⁰But the wind stirred him, and he rose and gave thanks unto SATANAS.
⁴¹And he went forth again among the people, crying: The mitre is shattered! Turn ye, for the day of reckoning is come!
⁴²And many heard, and some believed, and others reviled him and cast stones.
⁴³Yet Sarcivan ceased not to speak, for the spirit of the vision burned ever within him.


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