The Temptation of Mortals, sometimes known as Temptation of Man or Immortality's Lure, was a deep but treacherous desire suffered by many mortals.

Theology

In theological canon, immortality was a condition unattainable by mere mortals. Mortals could cheat death, for example by binding their souls to objects or reincarnating themselves, but this did not equate to the true immortality of celestials. However, the attraction of achieving true immortality - in other words, ascending to some form of godhood - was very strong for many people. Some wanted to use this power to do good, others to protect their own, and yet others simply to amass more power.

Problematically, ascending to godhood or becoming a true celestial was strictly impossible. That is why many sages tried dissuading mythical heroes and powerful spellcasters from attempting to achieve it, because it is a false lure - a temptation that must be withstood.

As a worse consequence, whenever mortals failed to become immortals the celestial way, they looked for alternative options. Angelhood - eternal pain, servitude - was not often an attractive option, whereas devils knew to offer interesting but ultimately treacherous alternatives. By far the greatest threat of the Temptation was that it motivated mortals to make deals with fiends and end up either as anti-angels or to outright sell their souls to the underworld.

Illustrations

The best example of the Temptation of Mortals' negative effect were angels: they were living embodiments of failed ascensions. In exchange for their pseudo-immortality, angels had to live in eternal pain and sadness, and in a sense completely abandon their life. Some sages, notably Gyon - one of Thozeia's prime authorities on the subject - saw seeking angelhood as a self-defeating pursuit. "You won't live forever if you have to die, and the fragments of the being live in constant despair.". Engerrand's Tale was also used to illustrate this point.

The Promised Brethren were initially a group of mortal heroes, who through great power and alliances managed to become de facto demigods with an immortality equivalent to that of true celestials. However, because of the risk they could be seen as a successful example of mortals attaining immortality and that others would attempt to follow in their footsteps only to end up as angels or worse, the Brethren instead were treated as true gods.