Shadow And Bone season 2 introduces fans to the magical power known as Merzost but what exactly is it and what is the significance of using it?
*WARNING: Spoilers ahead for Shadow And Bone season 2*
As a fantasy series, Shadow And Bone takes place in a world full of conflicting factions, strange artifacts and magical abilities.
In season 2 of the Netflix series, Alina Starkov is forced to turn to a forbidden form of magic known as Merzost to help save her friend and love interest, Mal.
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Alina uses Merzost to bring Mal back from the dead
In her final confrontation with the Darkling in episodes 7 and 8, Alina uses the ability of the Cut to strike down Kirigan but in the process, the slash of power also hits Mal, leaving him wounded.
Already on the verge of death, Mal agrees to sacrifice himself so that Alina can use his powers as an amplifier to defeat the Darkling and destroy the Fold once and for all, which she does.
Once the Darkling is vanquished, Alina asks Nina the Heartrender to try and save Mal but she is unsuccessful.
That is until Alina does something that she shouldn’t, she taps into a dark force known as Merzost in order to bring her lover back to life.
As she does so, however, she recalls the warning that Baghra gave her about never using the dangerous magic.
What is Merzost in Shadow And Bone?
Merzost is a form of magic in Shadow And Bone that is seen as an abomination by the Grisha.
In Shadow And Bone, the magic-wielding Grisha describe their abilities as the Small Science as they can only manipulate what already exists.
They work within the laws of nature to manipulate things like fire, wind and water depending on their specific abilities.
Merzost, meanwhile, works outside the laws of nature and is essentially the power of creation itself, giving the user mastery over life and death itself.
However, while Merzost allows the user to wield untold power, it requires a sacrifice to be paid every time it is used.
While it isn’t clear what Alina will have to sacrifice for saving Mal, we do know that in the case of the Darkling, who used Merzost to create the Shadow Fold, every time he summons one of the nichevo’ya shadow creatures, it drains part of his life force.
It’s yet to be revealed what Alina will have to sacrifice for using Merzost, but as Baghra says, she will not know what price it demands until it is too late.
When was Merzost first discovered?
Within the world of Shadow And Bone, there have only ever been three people to use Merzost and aside from Alina and the Darkling, the first ever user of Merzost was Ilya Morozova, one of the first and most powerful Grisha to have ever existed.
The father of Baghra and grandfather of the Darkling, Morozova spent his days experimenting with all aspects of Small Science and pushed the boundaries to their limits.
In doing so, Morozova discovered a new and untapped well of power that granted him the ability of creation itself, allowing him to bring his daughter back from the dead.
Morozova’s use of Merzost also allowed him to create the three amplifiers that Alina has been searching for in Shadow And Bone that help to boost her powers.
Season 2 of Shadow And Bone is available to stream on Netflix after releasing on Thursday, March 16, 2023.
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