Philip wasn't quite sure what had just happened. He wanted to ask more questions, but the Titan wasn't speaking to him anymore. He went back home and went to bed. While he was drifting off, he couldn't stop wondering about what the Titan meant by him being the key. He wasn't sure what his purpose to the Titan was, or whether it was a good...or bad thing...
The next morning, Philip was in the marketplace to buy some food when he came across a seller of mysterious goods. He noticed something of interest to him. There was a book of spells. He opened it and saw that there was a spell to stay youthful and live forever. Humans throughout history have always tried to find the fountain of youth, but in this realm, it seemed to be but a simple spell. He wondered why more witches didn't use this type of spell. He bought the book and put it in his bag.
He came home and greeted his wife Elizabeth in the living room.
"So, I found this book," Philip said. "There's a lot of interesting spells in here. One can make people live forever."
Elizabeth looked at it. "Huh, I don't know..."
"It'll be okay...I'm sure that if we do the spell correctly, no harm will be done."
"I still think it's a bad idea to blindly trust this book...there's a lot of sketchy items at that marketplace."
Philip sighed. "I suppose you may be right..."
He gave her a kiss and went to put the book in his study. He wanted to figure it out later, but for now, he was gonna spend some time with his wife and son. But he couldn't keep his mind off the prospect of him and his family possibly living forever. Perhaps it was in part due to not wanting either of them to grow old and die before the other, leaving the other to live their remaining days alone. Perhaps it was in part due to knowing what it was like to lose a family. But whatever the reason, he felt that this would be the best thing for his family...
Maybe if I test it on myself first...
He immediately tried to get rid of that thought. If something happened to him, he wouldn't be able to be there for Elizabeth and Alexander. He had to be there for them.
Then he thought about having some sort of test subject. But what would he test it on? Palismen were out because they don't seem to have lifespans. Assuming they aren't killed by an outside force, they can exist indefinitely, so testing the spell on them would be redundant. So he had to think of some other test subjects, but he couldn't think of anything.
"What's wrong dear?" Elizabeth said. "You're spacing out." It turned out Elizabeth was trying to get his attention.
"Oh, uh, it's...nothing important..."
"You're still thinking about that spell, aren't you?"
Philip sighed. "Yeah...I would need a test subject, but I don't know what...if I am to test the effects of this spell, I need to do it in a way that ensures all of our safety."
Elizabeth looked worried. "I get that you want to persue that knowledge...but maybe it's better we don't know..."
"And miss the chance to live a longer and more fulfilled life? Don't you know the kind of things we can do? We can go anywhere our hearts desire, with no limits..."
"I get what you're saying...but...what if living forever ends up being more of a curse? What if...you end up wanting to die, but can't?"
Philip was about to respond to that, but couldn't think of a rebuttal. He hadn't thought about it that way.
Elizabeth sighed. "Please...just be careful..."
"I will..."
Philip went out to go look for a test subject. Fairies seemed to have shorter lifespans, so perhaps if he found an older fairy and tested the spell on them, he could get some results. He walked through the nearby woods and looked around, but couldn't find much.
He turned around to go home...but then the voice spoke to him again...
Philip...you must fulfill your purpose...
Philip stood in place. What purpose? Is doing this spell part of my purpose? He looked out towards the Titan's skull and realized what he must do...
I must do the spell on myself, then...
He walked back home and went into his study. He opened the book and flipped to the page that contains the spell. It gave a list of ingredients he needed to properly perform the spell. He soon went out, searched around and gathered these ingredients. When he returned, he put the ingredients together and read the book outloud.
"To achieve immortality, mix these ingredients together and drink."
He got a cup and took a spoon and mashed the ingredients together until it was in liquid form. It smelled...pretty nasty. He hesitated for a moment...but if the price for immortality is drinking some nasty liquid...
He took a sip.
Ugh, it tastes worse than it smells...
He downed the liquid in one go. He nearly gagged, but managed to get it down. He could still taste it, so he took a drink of water. It seemed to help a bit. He started to feel odd, so he went out to the living room and sat down.
After a bit, he started to feel normal again. Unfortunately, it could take a while for him to know if it worked or not. Years even. But he was willing to wait years in order to see if it had some sort of effect. It was getting late, so he turned in for the night.
The next morning, he felt...more energized...more youthful...he hadn't felt this good in ages. He walked past the mirror and noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He looked...younger...like he was 20 years old again. He couldn't believe how fast it worked. He excitedly went to tell Elizabeth the good news, but realized she was already at the tavern. He decided to wait until she got back home to let her know that it worked.
But wouldn't she be mad at me for testing it on myself? I did say I wouldn't, and that I would be careful...
He figured she might be, but once she saw how young he looked, he figured she'd want to try it too. An opportunity like this was too good to pass up. If he could live an eternity with his love, he absolutely would, and he had the means to achieve that now. He just needed to convince her to do it too.
He sat in the living room, waiting for Elizabeth to come home...
