Index Blasphemous Vol III: Apostles of Gizos Gragios

GEAR

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FOREWORD:
Esteemed Postulant of Rasmuno Lasfitot,

The golden, benign sunlight of Carcossa welcomes all who wish to study, and learn our ways of tranquility. It is our way to seek order in all things, and to subject them to the scales of balance, finding their place in the cosmos. Yet, many are those who refuse our offer, who revel in the discord and chaos of the outside world, seeking greater highs and lowest lows in and endless quest for satisfaction...

But chief, and most dangerous among them, are those closest to our own.

Our "family", so to speak.

Much has been said already of the accursed followers of Volkruss, bringers of destruction and pandemonium. Their unforgivable sin of sinking our beloved Carcossa into the sea, through which we were only saved by the intervention of our patron, shall forever be etched into our hearts...

But, this tome sets its eyes on our patron's other sibling, who peddles a different, yet no less abhorrent form of disruption and distortion. We speak of course, of the adherents of Gizos Gragios, Evil God of Creation.

While the archives of Carcossa are filled with the learnings of our great sages, insights and words of wisdom seeking harmony in all things, those who follow Gragios horde information ravenously. All that is lost exists merely to be reclaimed. All that dies will live again. Gragios is the patron of scientists, artists, and those in the deepest despair, yet who cling to the most important thing of all.

"Hope".

To the unwary, this may sound innocuous - perhaps, even, benign. The promise of "hope", the dream of something better, or to reclaim one's youth, a lost love, or avenge an ancient wrong, is as alluring as the sweetest honey.

Yet make no mistake: to resign one's soul to Gragios' clutches is to invite the deepest and most profound despair imaginable.

Tread with great care in your learning, for even among our kind, the God of Creation's power over others is not to be underestimated.

Blessed be the peacemakers.

Signed,
Pontiff Cassilda
 

GEAR

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SCHOLARS OF THE GOD OF CREATION: THE CULT OF GIZOS GRAGIOS

SUMMARY:

The Cult of Gizos Gragios are those who've thrown their lot in the with the most powerful, and yet enigmatic of the three Evil Gods. Possessing unmatched fervor, ancient engines of destruction, and twisted by the horrors of forbidden knowledge, the scholars emerge from their pocket dimension, a sprawling library of unthinkable size said to contain all knowledge that has ever existed, to spread the word of their patron by fire and sword.

BELIEFS:

Gragios primary emotion, upon which it draws strength, is "Hope". The ability to grasp this even in times of deep adversity is the quality most admired and desired by the Evil God, and this sort of resilience being so difficult to find also makes their numbers considerably lesser than their peers.

As the God of Creation, Gragios initially sounds and appears to be the most harmless of its fellows. Yet, it is feared by other cultists as the most subversive and terrifying of the three - a malignant cancer that, once unleashed and fully on the warpath, becomes increasingly difficult to stop. Gragios, if resurrected, still seeks the annihilation of the existing world, such that it may rebuild it once again in its image. In this way, Gragios is less a God of Creation, and more the "God that will create a new world from here on now" after its rebirth.

RECRUITMENT:

While Volkruss demands a fairly straightforward "deal with the devil", and Lasfitot a deep-seated desire for obliteration, Gragios is privately courted at a superficial level by academics across the world in secret societies and trade associations, where it subtly lends its power to those whose professions demand creativity, ingenuity, and innovation.

Those blessed by Gragios find their fears and anxieties melting away, touched by a fountain of new ideas and inspiration that allows them to overcome any blockage or obstacle - but the tradeoff, often unbeknownst to the participant, is that any knowledge gained will be tributed to Gragios, stored away in its vaults jealously, where it will be used for propagation of even further ideas.

Yes, what Gragios desires more than anything else is "growth" - endless, unstoppable creation, like creeping vines. It plants in others seeds of hope... and the most fertile soil is those in the depths of personal crisis. In this sense, Gragios will sow and till a soul, wringing it dry of all the ideas it may offer, leaving it little more than a discarded husk, bereft of personality.

Those, however, are the fortunate ones.

The drive to create demands that the mysteries of the universe be plumbed to their blackest depths. Experimental rituals, concoctions, and weapons are pulled from the aether with varying degrees of safety and success, extracting a mental, physical, and spiritual toll on the devotee. Those who delve too deep may lose themselves in the darker corners, warped irreversibly into puppets of malevolent spirits, monstrous abominations, or meet other, soul-rending fates too horrific to be described here in detail.
 

GEAR

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Name: Flint Scathelocke
Age: 22 (Aging has ceased)
Gender: Male
Height: 5’11
Weight: 132 lbs
Eye Color: Green
Hair Color: Blonde
Ethnicity: Crescentian Descent, Mixed European
Appearance: F1B3CE57-0A33-46EA-8D45-1C5E654002F4.png
Other Information: Highly talented alchemist and fearsome wielder of Prana. Seemingly immortal, as a result of Gragios’ blessing.

Biography:

A prodigy of the Directory Alchemical Academy, Flint Scathelocke seemed destined for greatness. Whatever he touched turned to gold - he excelled in the arts, sciences, and athletics, bringing considerable renown to the fledgling institute, which at the time was struggling to be recognized as a legitimate place of learning.

So it was, and desirous of more knowledge, to continue to expand his horizons, that Scathelocke fell under the direct tutelage of Lao Xi Feng, the Archbishop of the Cult of Volkruss.

Scathelocke’s mastery of the arcane grew by leaps and bounds, and he sank ever deeper into his studies until, with time, he became regarded as even as formidable as his teacher. Yet despite Lao’s dire warnings not to plumb the depths of the abyss too deep, Flint continued heedlessly, never once sensing that a gnarled, phantom claw was silently closing itself about his mind.

One day, Lao visited his understudy’s laboratory, only to find him vanished without a trace.

Scathelocke had elected to venture into the library of Gragios, seeking the answers to the great mysteries of the ages - and what he would find there ensnared him, shattering his mind with cosmic truths that Gragios was all too happy to provide.

Many years passed before Lao took a second apprentice, by the name of Tian Di - and since, Scathelocke has resurfaced, now as the chosen prophet of Gizos Gragios itself.

Having glimpsed ultimate despair, the end of all things, and the Black Knowledge at the heart of existence, he believes now more than ever that what mankind needs is “hope”. That no matter how dark things may be, so long as “hope” remains, they are inextinguishable.

But to raise others up, first, he knows, they must be laid low…

Mobile Weapon: Nagzart Kai
Affiliation: Cult of Gragios

Combat Style: Implacable
Strengths:
Animated by Gragios’ arcane might, Scathelocke is a mage beyond compare, capable of inflicting pain in a thousand ways - but what sets him apart is his ability to bounce back effortlessly even from seemingly impossible odds. If anything, the worse things get, the brighter he seems to shine, allowing him to continue to battle on.
Weaknesses: Scathelocke’s mental state has long since fallen into utter insanity. While physically he can be remade, the effect of death and rebirth on his mental state has only become more pronounced with time. Prodigy or not, he mostly excels at making use of and modifying what others have created, which can make him vulnerable to a particularly creative foe that can abuse his weak spots.