Exemplars of Evil

Illus. by J. Chan
48
isten . . .”
“Yes, my love?”
“Do you hear them?”
“Yes. They crawl and writhe, endlessly muttering.”
“If you listen, they will drive you mad.”
“Ah, but if you serve them . . .”
—Edgar and Katarin Tolstoff
Transformed by the foul whispers heard through
the door of a sealed vault, Edgar and Katarin Tolstoff
work to liberate an ancient archmage—and to reinvigorate
the world-shattering Worm that Walks.
BACKGROUND
It was destiny. They had known since they were children
that they would be together forever. They shared an
uncommon connection: completing each other’s sentences,
experiencing the same dreams, and wailing when
the other was hurt. Their inexhaustible curiosity kept
them together—and their home and the surrounding
village gave them plenty of places to explore. They would
slip out of the keep and watch the peasants, but sharp
whispers and cold stares made them feel uncomfortable,
and they ventured forth less and less, turning their
attentions to their own crumbling demesne.
They prowled the cavernous corridors below the
keep, discovering hidden rooms, secret passages, and
many other oddities—but their strangest finding of all lay in
the catacombs, a place their mother had strictly forbidden them
from entering. Edgar and Katarin knew that the Tolstoff clan
had its secrets; knew that not all of their ancestors were kindly
or good, despite the self-conscious placidity of their official
family history. The catacombs held the evidence of the Tolstoffs’
corrupt past, and so had remained untouched for years. The
vaults within bore strange glyphs and dire warnings to leave
the dead alone. Aside from the occasional creak or susurrus
of webs, it was quiet. But one vault was not so silent.
The children heard a guttural whisper coming from
within, a demand for them to wait. Intrigued, Edgar and
Katarin stopped and listened. The male voice asked for their
company—just a small amount of their time—and offered
to teach them magic in exchange.
Katarin was thrilled; stories of sorcerers and wizard duels
had always captivated the girl. Edgar, on the other hand, was
fond of nature, hunting, and exploration, and he had little
use for intellectual pursuits—the voice made him frightened
and suspicious. He wanted to flee and never return,
but he loved his sister and indulged her every whim. With
some hesitation, he agreed to stay, and the pair took their
first steps on the path to damnation.
Over the next decade, the children descended into the
catacombs several times each week. They would relate their
experiences to the voice within, and little by little, they
learned magic. The master, as they called the voice, seemed
pleased and eager to teach them. Edgar never made a great