User blog:JackDread/The Undying Ones

To those reading this pay attention, piety to the gods alone will not save you on the battlefield. No you will need knowledge, the stone that we sharpen our minds on, to survive your encounters with the abominable forces that darken our world. For they will show you, a weapon of the gods, no mercy. All dullness in your piety, in your intellect, in all facets they will seek to exploit for their ends.

In this document I am going to teach you about three of the greatest evils our world faces, outside the demonic hordes of course. These beings are simply known as The Undying Ones. Now don't let this name fool you, they are very much killable by the noble heroes you will be serving.

Yes the Undying Ones are blasphemers who feared the death the gods had planned for them, turning instead away from the light they did not fall to demonic influences, finding instead even more profane, grotesque and even abhorrent methodologies to survive.

Now you will probably never face these monsters yourself, but you will have to fend off their minions as the gods champion slays these evils, as such you need to familiarize yourself with the three Grand Undying Ones. I have taken the time to draw up briefs for you to read. Study them, commit the information to memory so that you may serve the gods in your fullest capacity and maintain the peace of the realm.

The Lich
The lich, not to be confused with unholy liches, sorcerers and sorceresses who have achieved a state of undeath; is a being that has achieved a blasphemous state of simultaneously living and death. The exact nature of this state has remained a mystery, but it was the brave hero Izzac who discovered this information nearly a thousand and a half years ago.

There exists no records of where The Lich was born, where he lived, how he lived, or any details of his early life, leaving us only to speculate his age in the thousands of years. Roughly three thousand years ago he enters the first records, conquering villages in a vain attempt to form his own Kingdom. It was the Great Hero Vilgamesh who did battle with The Lich and drove him from the lands.

From time to time The Lich reappears, but for the most part he remains largely reclusive, but when he appears his sole aim to set into motion the darkest of plans. Know that he is the greatest threat the world faces outside Demonic Invasions, his goals are unknown, but often he attempts to overthrow monarchies, throw nations into chaos, and enslave the masses.

Be warned for The Lich is a master at conspiring and turning people. Several millennia of existence has given him time to master all forms of sorcery and arcane arts including demonic magic. With this knowledge he temps young mages too eager to reach great heights and lacking in patients to follow their journey. Rouge Covens, greedy merchants, and even corrupt politicians have all be found to be in The Lich's control and it is these elements that are his greatest weapons against the peace of the land.

Notable Traits: Master of Sorcery, Arcane Arts, and Demonic Magic. Only aids others in occurrence of his designs, does not have rotting flesh but rumors of shape shifting by scholars abound as he is never seen looking the same twice.

The Alchemist
Alchemy is a great gift from the gods, with it we can cure diseases, create new substances, and even transmogrify materials into new forms. Profaning the alchemy with yet to be discovered methods of transmutation, The Alchemist transmuted his body into an undying form. Immortality research in and of itself is not a sin. No god abiding alchemist should ever be persecuted for the action of the one, so long as their methodologies stay in accordance with holy law.

Unlike the silent always scheming Lich the Alchemist has been more active in our archival records. In the nearly thousand years he has been in our records, he has unleashed two plagues upon civilizations. What knights and Heroes alike saw as they cleansed the plagues from the world were horrid and ghastly Zombic abominations.

"...their minds and souls were as warped as their bodies, yet we cleansed the village as our duty demanded. Upon entry into the village proper we were held aghast when we beheld a two story monstrosity, a mesh of many bodies into a singular unholy form..."

More is known about The Alchemist's creations than the Alchemist himself I'm afraid. What little is known revolves around his master of various alchemic arts and his ability to take life from other creatures. Whenever found he is typically surrounded by his zombic creations.

Notable Traits: Master of Alchemy in all forms, master knowledge of plant life, primarily uses alchemic weapons. Capable of creating and controlling zombies through unknown methods.

The Biologist
Brave knights know that the study of life a high endeavour, do not discriminate against biologists for the insidious acts of the one. For she is the youngest of the Three Undying Ones, being born in the small nation of Hintle before it was overrun by demonic forces 588 years ago. Publicly she appeared to be an upstanding biologist, always endeavouring for the betterment of Hintle, but her actions against the gods were eventually uncovered. In her laboratory she was creating monsters, not like monsters of the present but like those of the past, nothing more than mindless killing machines following.

When the knights and a detachment of the city guard were dispatched to her apprehend her to be tried for her blasphemy she unleashed countless numbers of her creations escaping in the bloodbath that ensued among the guard and civilians alike. An entire city would have been wiped out that day were it not for the Noble Heroine Yaneria.

Later, seeking revenge against Yaneria and Hintle The Biologist returned, her body transformed into a monstrous form. (at the time it was largely humanoid with tentacles stretching out her back some 4-6 feet. Notably was the discoloration in her eyes, bright red surrounded by darkness that emanates from her soul). She attacked a small outlying settlement of a couple hundred, by the time Yaneria arrived the peasants, guards, and knights were either dead or worse transformed into monster..

From this point in history all of her appearances have been in the western region near her old state. The Order suspects she has a functional Laboratory in one of the mountain chains that cross the region. Although it has never been found every year a hero and a detachment of knights ventures into those forsaken lands to root it out and put an end to her evil forever.

Notable Traits: Never appears to have the same form, accompanied by monsters at all times, appears to have master some forms of demonic magic exact limits are unknown.

Final notes
The Undying are not like the Undead, they are far worse rivalling the demonic forces that invade the lands. Each of the Undying Ones is unique, but they do not work together or have the same motivations aside for the desire to hold their own territory. it is of the greatest importance that the undying ones are defeated as they pose a threat greater than the demonic hordes as they attack us from within our own lands rather than from without turning us against each other and destroying what we seek to protect.

-Darvyn Dumac, High inquisitor of the order