Ancient Tome


 * Find in Ashbury Castle during quest Healthy Carrier.

Description
A thick tome containing many pages of William Marshal's memoirs.
 * 1217
 * An angel came to me... Blessed be to God! Michael appeared to me last night in all his
 * glory, shaped in glorious blood, to grant me eternal life at the dusk of my life. (...) The
 * apparition was so sublime and terrible that I could not help but lower my head and close
 * my eyes. Struck by the divine gift, I fell to the ground, only to awake the next night. "You
 * will serve me as you served your kings", said the angel before striking me with all his
 * power. "You will protect this land through the eons to come". (...) For all who knew me, I
 * should now hide and retreat, for they consider me dead. Soon, I will leave the company
 * of men to serve my new purpose. Blessed be God!
 * 1350
 * Michael appeared to me last night in my retreat under Temple Church and asked me to
 * prepare for battle. The land must be saved. Death is everywhere. The Black Death. An
 * epidemic sent by the Devil himself to punish mortals all over the world. My arm is
 * strong. In the name of God, I shall smite the enemies of mankind. England shall prevail.
 * 1569
 * It is almost twenty years since my fight started against the Devil and the end is uncertain.
 * From time to time, the plague, the Black Death reappears in a village, in a town, and
 * each time the vicious minions of Hell approach to get their share of the mortals suffering.
 * Vampires. Dreadful creatures. I won't let this land collapse. Until my last breath. I'll serve
 * and protect England.
 * 1578
 * Tonight, in the small village of Hoddesdon. I met the most delicate soul I've seen for a
 * long time. She was singing for the dead, singing for those she knew and loved, those
 * killed by a new plague outbreak, without fearing for her own life. Her voice moved me
 * so I chose to let her live. I offered her eternal life as a reward for her virtue and most
 * pious attitude. Her name is Elisabeth Englewood. I'm not alone anymore. Together, we
 * shall praise God in all His glory, for the eons to come.
 * 1618
 * My heart is breaking. My soul is bleeding. Tonight, my dear Elisabeth left me. I have
 * taught her I knew: all she needed to know. Now, she must walk her own path through
 * the ages. This is her wish and I will respect it. (...) Elisabeth Englewood, my sweet
 * daughter, is gone, for she now wants to be known as Elisabeth Blackwood. I made her a
 * promise: if she ever comes back to Hoddesdon, she will find me there, managing The
 * Bull Inn her parents owned before dying. (...) William Marshal shall disappear for a few
 * times too now that the Black Death is no more. Until we meet again. I shall be known as
 * William Thorne, waiting for my angel to come back.
 * 1665
 * The Devil is at work again. The Great Plague is back, reaping thousands of lives in
 * London. I must sell the Bull Inn and go there. Once more, William Marshal shall protect
 * the land.
 * 1666
 * What have I done? I let the Devil infect me. God, forgive me! The terrifying creature I
 * had to defeat was a demon straight from Hell, an abomination of the flesh, a walking
 * Apocalypse. I had to trap the dreadful creature in Saint Paul's church and set the
 * building on fire. Without the advice of Michael. I don't know if I could have defeated my
 * enemy. The flames cleansed the city of the demon's presence, but half of London burnt
 * down. Ever since, I have dreamt of a red flood, of slaughter and rage. It's like the
 * Disaster had tainted my blood, my very soul. For the first time in centuries, I am afraid. I
 * shall crawl back to my retreat, and pray to God for mercy for my infected soul.
 * 1667
 * Elisabeth came to me. She said she felt my pain and rushed to save me. My poor
 * daughter. Blinded by rage, intoxicated by the blood of hate, I bit her... She fled, shocked
 * by my betrayal. I laughed and cried as she cursed me. God, have I betrayed you? Have
 * you abandoned me?
 * 1712
 * My prayers have been heard. I have found the strength to resist the need for blood. The
 * never-ending hunger. My poor Elisabeth, will you ever forgive me? I've heard you now
 * kill and take pleasure in bloodbath with this new progeny of yours. You're a victim in all
 * this. What have I done? I swear I will find a way to make amends for what I have done to
 * you. I swear I shall only rest once I know how to appease the blood of hate.
 * 1785
 * The Brotherhood of the Saint Paul's Stole finally agreed to meet me in London (...) They
 * proposed to meet inside the new cathedral of Saint Paul. I like the wit and solemnity of
 * these men. What a symbol, to choose the place where I defeated this Disaster, but also
 * the place where I fell. I agreed to their proposition (...) There, in the sacred silence of the
 * church and under the eye of God, they respectfully listened to me. They acknowledged
 * my victory against this evil creature, the Dus-Astro, the "eater of stars" who only wished
 * to spread death and pestilence all around her. Since they acknowledged my will to save
 * London in 1666, they heard my request, my burning desire to stop the blood of hate.
 * Their Primate promised to come back to me with an answer (...) The Primate of Saint Paul
 * wrote back to me with just a name: the Tear of Angels. According to him, this ancient
 * artefact could heal anything. Cleanse any blackened soul and purify my blood. Blessed
 * be the Lord, it took me more than a hundred years to find a cure for the blood of hate.
 * but I may finally have found it. Soon, the rage shall end. Soon, I may repair the wrong I
 * did and cleanse my failures. Now all I need to do is retrieve the necessary ingredients to
 * create the artefact (...) Blood of the purest heart mixed with the blood of a king... To find
 * such rare ingredients is not what worries me the most, for time is on my side. It's the last
 * part that worries me: pure essence of garlic. I'm afraid it will literally hurt like hell when I
 * drink the antidote. But if that's the price to pay to cleanse my soul and correct my
 * mistakes, I am ready to endure this excruciating pain.
 * 1786
 * I finally managed to gather all the ingredients needed to concoct the Tear of Angels:
 * Blood of the purest heart for the fortitude, Blood of a king for courage, Garlic essence,
 * for the painful cleansing. After months of impatience, almost made mad by the hunger. I
 * waited again and again, until finally Elisabeth cautiously came to me. As promised, I had
 * chained myself to be sure I would not attack her again. I did not recognize my sweet
 * daughter at first, for she only was Lady Blackwood now, the dreadful mistress of the
 * dark who took delight in slaughter and carnage in France. She smirked as I spologized
 * and cried for what I had inflicted to her. She shouted at me when I tried to explain to her
 * that my bite had infected her, had given her the blood of hate, now burning in her veins,
 * in her soul. I told her I have found a cure, and that I had managed to create one dose of
 * antidote... I gave it to her, to give her back her preivous peaceful life. In exchange, I only
 * asked her to take care of me, for I intended to be locked down in my tomb, chained if
 * necessary, to impeach me from feeding on any mortal or immortal. She reluctantly took
 * the Tear of Angels and left. I hope to see her again soon, cured and at peace.
 * 1794
 * She came back to me finally. Cured. Healthy. Joyful. My Elisabeth. She told me she had
 * drunk the antidote about a year ago in France, after witnessing - and taking part in - the
 * massacre of an entire orphanage caused by the blood of hate. That's when the Lady
 * Blackwood died, she said. She promised she would take care of me, now. That's all I ask
 * as I repent for all the murdered souls caused by my negligence of more than a hundred
 * years.
 * 1795
 * My dearest daughter came back last week to tell me the good news. She has recently
 * bought a castle in Scotland. She will soon finance the renovation of the castle crypt to
 * provide me a new retreat. Far from temptation, far from the noisy, crowded cities. I can't
 * wait to embrace the solitude. Find the peace I need to refrain from killing. God, please
 * give me the strength to resist the urges during the journey from London to my new
 * domain. Before I leave, I should give a copy of these memoirs to the Brotherhood of
 * Saint Paul's Stole, without the most shameful and sensible information, of course. Soon, I
 * shall leave London to pursue my penance. There, I shall find peace at last, with the
 * support of my resuscitated Elisabeth.
 * Blackwood died, she said. She promised she would take care of me, now. That's all I ask
 * as I repent for all the murdered souls caused by my negligence of more than a hundred
 * years.
 * 1795
 * My dearest daughter came back last week to tell me the good news. She has recently
 * bought a castle in Scotland. She will soon finance the renovation of the castle crypt to
 * provide me a new retreat. Far from temptation, far from the noisy, crowded cities. I can't
 * wait to embrace the solitude. Find the peace I need to refrain from killing. God, please
 * give me the strength to resist the urges during the journey from London to my new
 * domain. Before I leave, I should give a copy of these memoirs to the Brotherhood of
 * Saint Paul's Stole, without the most shameful and sensible information, of course. Soon, I
 * shall leave London to pursue my penance. There, I shall find peace at last, with the
 * support of my resuscitated Elisabeth.
 * support of my resuscitated Elisabeth.