Shard of Fractured Essence

Lesson 2 Summary:

1) Obtain a gemstone of size and quality that it could be used in the most wondorous of jewelcrafting.
2) Set the Gemstone into the blunt end of a large metal spike.
3) Obtain one still living human being. An anathema marked usually works best given the procedure.
4) Immobilize them.
5) Strip them naked.
6) Taking a brush and ink paint a circle around their heart.
7) Paint lines from all their extremities to the circle around the heart.
8) Put the spike into the center of the circle.
9) Push
10) Keep pushing until you penetrate the sternum and heart.
11) The gem will shatter. Collect the fragments of the gem.

Each fragment contains perfect charges. Three per fragment seems to be standard with the average anathema marked human soul able to be re-purposed into approximately thirty perfect charges. The charges may be retrieved by either normal channeling from those trained in the occult skill or by crushing the jewel shard and ingesting it. It may be possible for those with advanced healing skill to do other things with these fragments but if that is the case then what they can do with them is currently unknown. It should be noted that this procedure also causes a greatly accelerated rate of decay in the body it is used on. The body is very quickly rendered unusable for anything else. I [Marcus] wonder if a similar principle is the reason behind the Necropoli of the Dark Mountains are places of power.