PENDANT of PARACELSUS
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Classification:
Magic
item (Talisman of Mystic Power)
Creator: Paracelsus
User/Possessors: Day Tripper (Jimaine Szardos, aka Amanda Sefton), Dracula, Paracelsus
First Appearance: X-Men: Soul Killer (1999)
Powers/Abilities/Functions: The
Pendant of Paracelsus is in the form of an oval golden pendant with a
black piece of onyx in its center. It is connected to a chain, about
which little was mentioned.
The Pendant allegedly contains a sort of simulacrum of Paracelsus' mind.
It sometimes at least seems to
glow, and those with mystic sensitivities can sense the potent
mystical forces flowing through the metal and the gem. Physical contact
with the pendant intensifies awareness of its magical nature.
The pendant's power almost hypnotically draws sorcerers to wish to possess it.
According to Dracula, it augments a mage's innate abilities. In particular, it facilitates the acquisition of arcane lore, allowing one to rapidly assimilate a new spell that might otherwise take hours to learn.
Though not specified, the pendant
appears to dull awareness of magical threats and to relax its wearer,
"like the moment when a headache stopped throbbing, or a glass of wine
began to influence one's mood."
History:
(X-Men: Soul Killer: Chapter 7 (fb) - BTS) - The Pendant of Paracelsus was created by 15th century physician,
alchemist, and astrologer Paracelsus.
( X-Men: Soul Killer: Chapter 7) - En route to Natchez, Mississippi, USA via the Midnight Runner ship, Dracula -- who had formed a temporarily alliance with Excalibur to oppose a plot of the demon-sorcerer Belasco that threatened all of Earth -- sought to manipulate the sorceress Amanda Sefton to invoke black magic in order to enhance her powers and thus more effectively oppose Belasco. After mocking her meager abilities, he pulled the Pendant of Paracelsus from within his garments and instructed her to take it. Sensing the potent mystic power flowing through it, she resisted the urge to harness its power and queried Dracula on its nature.
After Dracula explained its origins and abilities, he proposed to instruct her in some glamors and conjurations potent enough to give Belasco pause; he further explained that these spells were reserved for the living and, though he had memorized them, he could not perform them himself. Feeling she could sense if Dracula was playing her falsely or if the amulet was cursed she would be able to detect it, Amanda claimed it with her gloved hand. Her awareness of its magical nature slightly intensified by physical contact, but not so much as to concern her, Amanda placed it over her head. As the amulet settled on her chest, she felt a subtle, relaxing shift in the quality of her thoughts; uncertain of the exact change, Amanda nonetheless told Dracula she was well and ready to proceed.
Amanda accepted Dracula's offer to teach her a spell of divination that would allow her to lead them directly to Belasco, and he mentally showed her a pentagram that she had to memorize and visualize during the divination. Placing herself in a state of meditation, Amanda received the image, and she resisted her instinctive urge to thrust it out of her head, suspecting that it was associated with the baser forces of the metaphysical realms. She further sensed that via the pendant, it had only required 30 seconds to commit the intricate patterns of the three-dimensional pentagram to memory.
Once Amanda was visualizing the pentagram on her own, Dracula instructed her to repeat after him to perform the invocation. As she did so, the rest of the physical universe seemed to fade, and Amanda was only aware of pentagram and Dracula's voice. After Amanda had invoked Nox (either the Fear-Lord Nox or the Olympian goddess Nyx) and Hecate, around the borders of the pentagram, something squirmed, "amorphous shapes like those that appeared when a person closed his eyes and pressed on the lids." As she continued, the writhing around the magical design became more energetic and eager, while a pinpoint of pure darkness appeared in the heart of the figure. Paradoxically, Amanda sensed that its extreme darkness was as conducive to vision as light: If she successfully completed the spell, it would open like an iris, and she would see Belasco inside it.
Amanda was so captivated by the mote of blackness
at the core of the pentagram, so intent on recapitulating the proper
cadence and inflection of the incantation, that she automatically began
to repeat Dracula's words after he stated, "Demons of Denak, unbar the gates of perception. Thog! Shuma-Gorath! Satannish! Lend me your strength!"
However, as she started to say, "Th--", with a
jolt of horror, she realized that she was about to invoke three
powerful and malevolent demon lords who would demand payment -- that
she welcome a measure of their corruption with her -- for their
assistance, and their names continued to caught in her throat.
However, as Amanda tried to stop visualizing the
pentagram, it instead burned brighter than ever, while the shadowy
shapes shifting about it resolved into a gaunt, scaly creatures with
talons, long simian arms, and lashing tails. The pentagram seemed to
lunge at her, stamping itself into her essence, searing her like a
branding iron. Gibbering and cackling, the spirits ran riot through the
corridors and chambers of her mind, clawing at everything at everything
they found there. Simply by commencing the spell, she'd opened herself
to evil, and it had no intention of allowing her to escape from it
unscathed.
Fighting to expel the malevolence from her mind, Amanda instinctively invoked the Vishanti -- the supreme trinity of benevolent magical entities -- at which point the pentagram and the magical goblins vanished. Alarmed by her cry, Amanda's teammates rushed to her side, and they ultimately refused to invoke black magic against Belasco due to the risk of Amanda's soul. Advising the others that they might regret having a wasted an opportunity to strike at their enemy, Dracula took the onyx pendant and tucked it away inside his garments.
(X-Men: Soul Killer: Chapter 14 - BTS) - After Wolverine had had Jean Grey and Storm (Ororo Munroe) indicate the areas where they most sensed the mystically-shielded Belasco's presence on a map, he requested Amanda's guidance in identifying mystic locations that Belasco might choose. After considering that ley lines (mystic currents allegedly running through the Earth) might help pinpoint such locations, Amanda noted that a pendulum would help her identify these locations.
(X-Men: Soul Killer: Chapter 14) - In response, Dracula produced the Pendant of Paracelsus, noting Amanda might as well use it for something. Amanda took the pendant, feeling its slumbering power tingling up her fingers, after which she focused herself and poised the pendant over the map, silently bidding it to reveal what she wished to know.
As her magic guided Amanda's hand an inch farther down the map, the glittering onyx abruptly swept back and forth on its chain, slashing from southwest to northeast and back again. Amanda sensed there was more to detect and the pendant ceased its vigorous, purposeful swinging, after which her magic guided her hand almost to the top of the map. The black gem then swept back and forth once again, this time defining a line that ran due east and west. Finally, the motion in the pendant abated, and Amanda sensed that the divination had concluded.
Amanda then handed the pendant back to Dracula
before the power inside it, singing to the magic in her own soul, could
further tempt her to hang on to it. Dracula smiled as he reclaimed the
pendant, apparently indicating he knew why she was giving it back so
quickly.
(X-Men: Soul Killer: Chapter 14 - BTS) - As the two ley lines did not intersect within the overlapping region of Jean Grey and Storm's search areas, the X-Men split up into two groups and investigated the two lines as they passed within the overlapping area.
This search was successful in locating Belasco.
Comments: Created by Richard Lee Byers and Leonard Manco.
The pendant is not specifically named in X-Men:
Soul Killer. However, as it most frequently described as a pendant and
it was created by Paracelsus, I think the "Pendant of Paracelsus" is a
safe call.
The Pendant is involved in events occurring on pg. 97-106 and 244-245
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
The Pendant of Paracelsus should be distinguished from:
images: (without ads)
There aren't any...
Appearances:
X-Men: Soul Killer (1999) - Richard Lee Byers (writer), Leonard Manco (art), Keith R.A. Candido (editor)
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
First posted: 06/08/2019
Last Updated: 06/08/2019
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