Acquiring a demon made one a sorcerer much as acquiring a horse made one a rider, but whether skilled or poor was a more open question. Like a horse, a demon could run away with its master. Unlike a horse, there was no dismounting. To a soul's peril. - Ista dy Chalion, Paladin of Souls
When a demon entered a human, they became a sorcerer. An inexperienced demon needed time to learn from its host and thus could be controlled - for a while. The demon would try to tempt the human with magic, which generally made the demon stronger and allowed it to seize control of the relationship. The human could remain in control by having an overpowering purpose, or by carefully maintaining balance in their use of magic.
Demon magic could be very powerful. Examples included Cattilara keeping Arhys 'alive' by draining Illvin, Princess Joen harnessing other demons to her will, and the Roknari host destroying the water supply and setting fires within Porifors. If used carelessly, the cost of such magic was high. As Ista put it, "Two lives traded for one, then that one subtracted. Leaving, for all your efforts, nothing." However, Temple sorcerers could learn to use the demon magic for good.
Demons shed chaos like human radiated heat. Untrained sorcerers often died prematurely because of this; either the chaos caused something they were relying on (such as a climbing rope) to break, or the chaos infected their bodies, eventually becoming cancerous tumors. Traveling on a sea-fairing vessel was almost certain disaster for an untrained sorcerer, and most sailors would thus not allow sorcerers onto their ships. An important part of Temple training was teaching a new sorcerer how to constantly and carefully shed chaos into safe, allowable chaos sinks outside of themselves, avoiding that uncontrolled leakage.
Sorcerers in the World of Five Gods[]
- The great-souled demon, father of the Bastard
- Foix dy Gura
- Cattilara dy Lutez
- Princess Umerue of Jokona
- Prince Sordso of Jokona
- Princess Joen of Jokona
- Hallana
- Cumril
- Penric kin Jurald
- Learned Dubro
- Learned Ravana
- Alixtra
- Learned Tronio
Former sorcerers