Sitheus
Portfolio: Undeath, punishment, jealousy, obedience, decay, exile
History in Avendar
Of Fenthira's two immortal children, the second was Sitheus, chosen of the Serpent. Deft and intelligent, Sitheus quickly established Himself within Sythtys, the great swamp which sheltered the srryn race. He coveted the power of His brother, Sythrak; this envy would grow as Sythrak's might with the magics of Fire increased. The greatest insult to Him was when Fenthira chose Sythrak over Him for dominance over the srryn race. The War of Fire was sparked by Sythrak's ambition and self-assurance, inciting Sitheus and flaring His jealousy ever greater. Angered by His own impotence, Sitheus embraced His natural guile to settle the score.
As Sythrak's war waned and His following scattered, Sitheus struck. His own power had grown substantially in Sythrak's absence; the chosen of the Flame had little power to oppose Sitheus' might. Although He had the opportunity to banish Sythrak from the swamps, He held back; the greatest punishment Sitheus could imagine was the long, painful, and maddening impotence He had felt during Sythrak's rise. With Sythrak's power broken, Sitheus encouraged the srryn to hone their natural speed and strength. As well, He was the first of the race to realize the power of Void. How He came to that revelation remains a mystery; Sythrak's chosen assert it was gained through cavorting with warmbloods.
Sythrak, however, would not remain defeated. His rage at His brother's backstabbing drove Him to greater and greater command of Fire. At the dawn of the modern era, Sythrak returned with a vengeance. The battle of Fenthira's chosen was protracted and spectacular; srryn shaman say that fire rained down over Sythtys for seven months as they struggled for supremacy. Sythrak, however, was no longer weakened by war. He smote Sitheus, utterly destroying His brother's body and banishing His undying spirit from Sythtys. Sitheus' undying specter roamed in exile, mad with jealousy and defeat. Reveling in death, His spirit drifted, eventually crossing into the cursed Plains of Shargob. It was here that Sitheus first saw the fruits of undeath, and felt the otherworldly intrusion of Gamaloth.
Inspired, Sitheus fashioned for Himself a body from the decaying remains of dead srryn, rotting plant life, and brackish slime. Reveling in His new undead form, Sitheus began to create His own and utterly obedient following of undead. He sought ever greater command of negative energy, raising more and more bone horrors to serve Him. Soon, His undead srryn warriors would seige human settlements; as well, His own Sept, known as the Thissa, forged a permanent presence within Sythtys itself. Sitheus continues to seek greater power in undeath, asserting His own twisted brand of srryn dominance upon mortal Avendar.
[The Vindictive Serpent] “You will suffer greatly for your transgressions!â€
Relentlessly pursuing their own plots of vengeance, the vindictive serpent seeks the most punishing way to deliver their revenge. They spend time in dark meditation meticulously contriving their sinister ideals and are averse to following through with any plan until it is thoroughly reviewed. They revel in the suffering they produce and yearn for it again once the feeling has subsided. Their ultimate goal involves the breaking of their enemy’s will, punishing them, and instilling an unquestioned obedience. They are driven by this goal, sometimes to the point of madness, and focus all their available energies on actualizing their desire. It is rare for serpents to work together, as each has their own idea of how to best achieve their fruition, but they are not usually opposed to outside help, particularly from previously “broken†subjects.
[The Scales of Covetousness] “Why should your life be better than mine?â€
These self-loathing individuals find their amusement in the loss of others’ wealth, dignity, and reputations. The world that the Scales view has become twisted and obscured to them, appearing condescending and indignant. They often contrive fabulous plots to humiliate social leaders and drag them down to their feeling of ostracism. Many develop an animosity to life itself, feeling that it is a constant reminder of others’ success and livelihood which they themselves could never attain.
Sitheus prefers srryn, but will take what he can get. If you are not srryn, he will turn you into a srryn, but he is not able to turn you into a live srryn... so as you go on in the faith, you will have body parts turning into necrotized srryn parts, and you will start having your (max)stats changed to be more srryn-y.
sigils are coloured serpents. t3 is the black serpent? (12571/13832)
Contrast his manipulation of undead to Rveyelhi's golemancy (shuddeni have no real problem with his rotting, animated corpses crudely stitched together, but do disdain it as crude; they like the refinement of technique, building a better undead monstrosity, etc)
From the almost original helpfile:
/---------------------------------------------------------------------\ | Sitheus | \---------------------------------------------------------------------/ Sitheus The followers of the Srryn God, Sitheus, are known for their notable lack of concern for anything or anyone they deem weak. The weak deserve nothing, in the world of Avendar, that they cannot attain themselves. The protection that the Light bestows upon these unfortunate individuals is merely an obstacle that the culling process of the natural forces of the land needs to overcome. By giving this protection, the followers of the Light become as weak of mind, will, and body as the peons they try to save.
Devoid of compassion, the members of the Saurian Sept are a merciless crew of individuals. Their interactions between themselves, secret plots to gain the favor of Lord Sitheus and make other members look worse in his eyes, are numerous and cause much tension amongst the Sept. This is as Sitheus wants it. Forever searching for those worthy to bear the mark of the Saurian Eye and Fist, the two highest Sigils which name the High Saurian Warlord and Priest, is a infinite process which always brings new faces into the roles as Sitheus judges fit. The Saurian Claw marks those that have attained Dark Saurian Lord status while the Tooth is the sign of the Servants of these Dark Lods.
