EPISODE 7: Broderick Zayne
Long ago, as daylight bled to dusk and the sun retreated behind the horizon like a hunted thing, shadows would stretch their long limbs across the earth. Darkness wasn’t just absence, it was a presence. Creeping into homes, into hearts, into the wild places beyond where firelight could reach.
People would gather closely, huddled near flame and ember, weaving life from fear and memory. Speaking of things that lurked just beyond the trees, of eyes in the dark and voices that mimicked the dead. Passing tales that would travel far and wide creating myths, legends and folklore.
But these stories were never just aimless. They were a means of instruction, maps of danger meant for survival. The old ones didn’t just conjure monsters, they remembered them, as every myth...was once a memory.
The tale of Broderick Zayne was a caution. Told by keepers of the flame, meant for anyone who set out on a crooked path to find a book of magic. Chasing the promise of that type of power would only lead to pain, to misery, to death. And while his name served as a curse, a caution, a deterrent to many, time would make his story fade, becoming some outdated invention of fantasy...But Broderick Zayne was all too real. And his story was more complicated than just someone selfishly hunting powers for their own gain.
The Book of Amar had a long and winding march through history, planting seeds of intrigue along the way. The original surviving texts were becoming few and far between, but copies of copies were still circulating through the Middle Ages, into the Renaissance. But as literature was becoming a widely accepted form of entertainment and enlightenment, the Book of Amar retreated into the darkness. Going underground, the serious subject contained within was closely guarded by those who practiced the magic, a result of religion deeming it “Evil”.
In time, whispers of the Book of Amar slithered into cloistered halls, monasteries, and to the risen men of reason, but always in hushed tones and behind locked doors. Its secrets were uttered by candlelight, where only flickering shadows could hear. No mention of it passed in the open, as to speak its name aloud in public was to invite suspicion... or worse. Association with the book became perilous. A name linked could mean excommunication, imprisonment, or death...And yet, the danger only deepened the allure.
But in 1680, during the Scientific Revolution, when reason reigned and the world was being measured, charted, and dissected, a new breed of thinkers emerged, natural philosophers, alchemists turned empiricists, who sought to expose truth of the ever-evolving world, including the existence of magic...like the kind whispered of in the forbidden pages of the Book of Amar.
Englishman, Broderick Zayne, a philosopher, alchemist, and devout Catholic, saw the rise of occult fascination as a direct affront to both his faith and the natural laws he studied.
Through his research, Zayne heard rumblings of a blasphemous book authored by Satan, holding cryptic truths, apocalyptic visions, and clues to the end of the world. His journey against the shadows began when he was introduced to a degraded copy, known as the “De Diabolo”, given to him by his good friend and fellow researcher, Sir Isaac Newton.
Though remembered as a titan of science, Newton also researched the arcane, the occult, and mysticism, writing more on dark subjects, than on science and mathematics. Together, through their fervent study, Zayne and Newton came to a chilling conclusion -- the “De Diabolo” was no original work, but a corrupted, imperfect copy of something far older and infinitely more dangerous.
With the financial backing of the church, it was decided Zayne, a lifelong bachelor, would set out to find the origin of the “De Diabolo”, though his only hesitation would be leaving his mother, suffering from dementia, in the care of others. Knowing by the time he returned, she may not have enough of her mental faculties left to know who he was.
After tearful goodbyes, his journey began, hitting dead ends, chasing rumors, piecing together clues to the book’s lineage...But doing God’s work, he pushed onward. Though faithfully writing to his ailing mother - each letter a lifeline, a prayer inked in hope. Reminding her of his purpose, of the righteousness in his journey, and of his promise to return.
In 1684, while holding court with members of the Holy League, Zayne learned of the name of the original text he sought, The Book of Amar. Within two years, he'd tracked down three copies of the text, destroying them. And he was on the trail of the original volume, leading him to the ancient Indian city of Allahabad, where it was in the possession of a Hindu Brahmin named Uday.
Zayne attempted to appeal to Uday’s common sense, claiming the book as an evil entity that needed to be destroyed, but to no avail. He begged, promising to pay whatever price was asked, but it mattered not why Zayne wanted the book. Others had come seeking it, some for gain, others for the reason the Englishman was there, but the book held some sort of sway over Uday, and he could not be convinced to give it up. Leveling a threat if Zayne returned. Unable to give up on his long journey, at sundown, Zayne returned to the mosque and broke in, to steal the book. But the tome was under lock and key, and Zayne was caught by Uday’s young assistant, Gyan. The punishment for his crime would cost Zayne dearly.
Uday would recite a passage from the text, making Zayne vanish into thin air. His fate would remain unknown...
The first signs of Zayne’s disappearance would be evident in silence, as the flow of his letters home, suddenly ceased. No farewell. No final words. It's that the hand who wrote them was simply gone from the world. To his mother, though she was slowly losing her mind, her heart ached, it was as though her son had been swallowed whole by the very darkness he set out to confront...in time, his name faded from her lips, then the memory of him would slip away quietly, leaving her all alone.
As an aside...years later, in a cruel twist of justice, Uday was beheaded for placing a curse on a rival priest after being accused of associating with known Demons. An attempt by that priest to gain control of the fabled book. But upon his master’s death, Gyan fled with the Book of Amar. It was rumored that in the centuries following, while in possession of the book, Gyan lived well past his natural life, having made some sort of pact with the Devil.
TO BE CONTINUED…