The gleaming cover of this intricate arcanum strikes the mind and bewilders the senses – gems and metal glitter from within a heavy cover of twisting steel from which verdant emeralds, coldly glittering sapphires, bone-white ivory and garnet glitter in a mosaic amongst a panoply of other gemstones. A male and female viscanti twine in the centre of the book in a stylised figure-eight, nude but for the serpents that entwine their forms, silver and gold against their bone-white skin. Between them is encompassed an onyx portal set with glittering shards of diamond, in the lower half of the ouroborous – above, the horned heads of the viscanti are bowed, horns barely touching the golden key between them. On either side of the figure, landscapes may be seen, shifting in and out of each other; one, a landscape of twisting, impossible shapes that lean and merge together beneath an alien skyscape, the other, a flowering garden that breaks apart into the looming spires of a city. Above, the spheres of Highmagic collide with the spheres of Astronomy in a chaotic, yet orderly arrangement of platinum and black jade. The pages within the book are touched with a sheen of gold and onyx; black embellishments depict the oozing form of ourobori. A thick strap of gold inlaid with jade coins bearing the images of the figure eight secures the book, looping through a heavy lock pressed with garnet stars. The scent of strange, disturbing incenses rises from the book, tantalising and repelling.
Cartel: Gasflame | Designer: Sthai | Comment: Linaeve and Nariah only
