Bestiary

This sect is the inheritor of the original Order’s ideals. They do not seek the presence of the Infernal “in other things” (vampires, werewolves, etc.), but hunt the direct presence of the diabolic on earth. Some Michaelites study Theurgy (particularly Via Geniorum), but not to the extent of the Albertines. They do it with less intellectual curiosity and more pragmatism.

There are those who believed that the new Inquisitor-General, this Iron Maiden, would cleanse the Society of all Theurgists and mystics. Instead, she has made greater use of them as weapons. Perhaps this is to compensate for the recent and alarming erosion of True Faith in the Society’s ranks. Perhaps this fits in with the “duality” that Bauer claims. When asked, she says that the Original Sin, the eating of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, is the burden of humanity, but it is also part of our arsenal. “Undesirable trades are necessary, and just as we have the hooded executioner, so too do we have the magus.”

Bauer may utilize magical study, but she has taken stricter control of it. All Theurgists must register with the Office of the Censor. Some receive official sanction to perform the occult arts, the Sanctuary of the Disciplina Arcani, from the Inquisitor-General herself. These “Judas Witches” represent the supernatural turned against itself. They cannot be questioned or punished for their study of the occult (though other Inquisitors can request this sanction revoked if misconduct is proven). There are rumors that Bauer has given the sanction not only to Theurgists, but to non-Christian practitioners of Numina (and even supernatural creatures) whom the Society employs or controls.

Technically, practicing Theurgy without this sanction is not outlawed, but these are tumultuous times, and it is hard to know where the line lies before one crosses it. An unsanctioned mystic walks a dangerous path.