E. A. Koetting - staticfly.net

WORKS OF
DARKNlSS
The power that demons have is due in a large part to the
knowledge they have gained over endless time. Although the essence
of the Black Magician has existed as long if not longer, the translation of
Its experiences to the frail consciousness of the human vessel is distorted,
if not altogether absent. Not moving from one identity to another, not
having to transfer whatever knowledge they can and relearn the
remainder, the knowledge of demons is eternal.
As touched upon previously, grimoires list incredible feats that
the demon may perform on behalf of the Evocator, as well as the
unimaginable information that can be obtained through the evocation
and conversation with the demon. Some of the demonic powers listed
are obvious and practical, like Bechard's ability to bestow great wealth
or Guland's power to cause all varieties of disease.
Some professed demonic abilities, however, are more obscure,
requiring creative thought, intuitive glimpsing, and personal
interaction with the demon to understand. Can Duke Berith, the
twenty-eighth demon of the Goetia, turn any metal to gold, or can the
Goetic President Foras impart invincibility to the Sorcerer? While these
things can be brought to pass through the evocation of Berith or President
Foras, they are gh'en more as analogous capacities, equivalencies to
the greater powers that they ha\·e. While gold can be turned to lead,
Berith is more apt at teaching the student of the Dark Arts the method
of distorted the illusion of reality to meet his desires, or erasing the
illusion altogether in the form of a spiritual alchemy that would refine
the dross consciousness of the human being to the point of perfection ­
self godhood. Likewise, the President Foras may shroud the Summoner
in an astral light that would dissuade others from harming him, and
perhaps even bending the threads of fate, a more potent effect of evoking
him would be to master the ability of conscious immortality, cementing
that which is Eternal here and now, and carrying that beyond the
flesh.
The greatest power of the demons is their ability to tutor the
Black Magician in the Arts, to guide his every step towards Mastery. A
time will come for each Evocator when words will no longer do, and
information must be passed from one to the other through pure flow of
intelligence. This, as well as every other superhuman ability, may be
learned, practiced, and Mastered. All that the demons do and know can
and will be the Black Magician' s, in time.
94