The matter lies before the eyes of all; everybody sees it, touches it, loves it, but knows it not. It is glorious and vile, precious and of small account, and is found everywhere... But, to be brief, our Matter has as many names as there are things in this world; that is why the foolish know it not.
- The Golden Tract


To most, the word "alchemy" calls up the picture of a medieval and slightly sinister laboratory in which an aged, black-robed wizard broods over the crucibles and alembics that are to bring within his reach the Philosopher's Stone, and with that discovery, the formula for the Elixir of life and the transmutation of metals. One would be a fool to dismiss so lightly the science -- or art, if you will --that won to its service the lifelong devotion of men of culture and attainment from every race and clime over a period of thousands of years, for the beginnings of alchemy are hidden in the mists of time. Such a science is something far more than an outlet for a few eccentric old men in their dotage.

I am an alchemist. What is the motive behind my constant striving, my patience in the unraveling of the mysteries, the tenacity of purpose in the face of persecution and ridicule that has led me to pursue undaunted my appointed way? Something far greater than a mere vainglorious desire to transmute the base metals into gold, or to brew a potion to prolong a little longer this earthly span, I cared nothing for these things and still do not. I did not become a vampire to live longer.

I have always been concerned with things spiritual rather than with things temporal. I am inspired by a vision, a vision of man perfected, of man freed from disease and the limitations of warring faculties both mental and physical, standing godlike in the realization of a power that even at this very moment of time lies hidden in the deeper strata of consciousness, a vision of man, made truly in the image and likeness of the One Divine Mind in its Perfection, Beauty, and Harmony.

I have no desire to rehash my past; it is always best to look forward. I cannot, however, discount what has shaped my existence. My father was a simpleton, not understanding anything outside his little world. My twin brother was most certainly his son, suited well for the title and with the complete lack of understanding it requires to play aristocrat. My mother was a dreamer, well learned by the standards of the time. She was the one to encourage me.

My brother, Benoit, is all of my family that is left. It has taken all of my cunning and skill to keep him out of the grave. He is a thorn in my side and yet I deny him little of what he requests. It is a phenomenon that I ponder.

He brought me to the one that made me and I eventually returned the favor. Neither of our turnings was done without thought on my part. I cannot fault my brother for his transgression as he unwittingly brought me to an item that was of interest to my study of alchemy. I have spent centuries studying the crystal my creator owned. He would not tell me where he acquired it, but I still have suppositions that it may be a relation to the coveted Philosopher’s Stone. The crystal did not transfigure metals but it did assist in our transfiguration to this immortal life.

I have come to realize its application to the human body. I believe the essential agent of this crystal is the sublime heat of the soul, which fuses the emotions, consumes the prison of leaden form and allows entry into the higher world. I have come to learn through my studies that the modest men who held in their hands the magical Emerald Formula that makes a man master of the world, a formula that they took as much trouble to hide as they had taken to discover it were correct. For however dazzling and bright the obverse of the alchemical medallion, its reverse is dark as night. The way of good is the same as the way of evil, and when a man has crossed the threshold of knowledge, he has more intelligence but no more capacity for love. For with knowledge comes pride, and egotism is created by the desire to uphold the development of qualities that he considers necessary. Through egotism he returns to the evil that he has tried to escape. My brother has taught me this by his actions. It is perhaps the irony of the Divine that he of all people has taught me the lesson.

It is also my brother that caused the change in our lives to come to America. Someone with ties to this city attempted to kill my brother. I will find them and they will be dealt with in a very fitting way.

Nature is full of traps, and the higher a man rises in the hierarchy of men, the more numerous and the better hidden are the traps.