Ritual of Life Everlasting
From Istaria Lexica
The Ritual of Life Everlasting was the arcane ritual developed and performed by two of the Eight Mages of Istaria -- the leaders of the various magical arts within the world. The Ritual was originally designed as a means to bring arcane forces to bear in our struggle against the forces of Blight, as represented by the Withered Aegis. You could say that the Ritual was a failure, in that it did not do what it was originally intended, in stifling the power of Blight on the Prime. The amazing and permanent changes to our way of life propagated by the Ritual were unknown, and in fact quite a surprise once the final incantations were performed.
Once the final rites of Ritual were enacted, everything changed for Istaria's inhabitants, though we were none the wiser to this change. Today, scholars believe that the Ritual brought forth a subtle, yet all-encompassing element of the Realm of Energy on to the Prime itself. This element reacted to the strong infestation of the Realm of Blight upon the world by, as far as we have been able to determine, permeating the world's essence with a mix of energy and life magic. This in turn triggered a shift in the paradigm of existence of every living being on Istaria.
Not everyone was affected by the Ritual. Very few actually went through this change and even then the change was subtle. No one knew this was even happening, let alone to whom. The single biggest change was the gift of virtual immortality to those affected. Some believe that the Gift, as we now call it, is the spark of an infantile divinity; others feel it is just the next step in a continual evolutionary process for the Living Races. Whatever it is, the effects of the Gift are undeniable.
