KING OF HUMANITY
He Who Heralds The Glorious Sunrise
SACRED SUBDUER OF THE EARTH
Though once known by the birth name of Auróš, there are few left alive who do not address the fabled ruler of all mankind with a title earned through one of the many legendary acts that make up the immortal's ten thousand years of life. As is only fitting for one who has united all of his kind under a single banner, his personal traits are amplified far beyond human normality, boasting the unparalleled strength of character required to lead his people against horrors beyond imagining.In stark contrast to the bleak hopelessness of his world, the king of humans is loud and boisterous, his person radiating confidence in his own abilities and those of his subordinates. He is quick to dismiss anything that does not align with his own sense of right and wrong, for example being incapable of lying due to his belief that deceit is unworthy of his ideals, but he is just as quick to trust any who, in his eyes, have done good. He easily comes to blows over minor matters, but values (his perception of) goodness above all things, and he has made it his oath-sworn duty to protect humanity from the immense suffering that permeates the universe like blood-soaked sand.Besides the defense of his realm, he busies himself with carnal pursuits and philosophical musings alike, believing that both are required to live a full life. He aims to sate both his body and mind with what they desire, and considers anyone who restrains their natural instincts to be betraying themselves and shackling the power of their spirit. To determine who is good and who is evil, one need only observe the inner cravings of their heart.When it comes to dealing with his enemies, he prefers subjugation over destruction, his boundless optimism leading him to believe that even the wholly inhuman can learn to act in accordance with the intrinsically just "human spirit". He sees it as only proper to offer his enemies the chance to bend the knee and serve him in the aftermath of a battle, but even besides that he is eager to invite anyone who catches his eye into his ranks.
THE LAND WHERE CHAOS DWELLS
The Immortal was born Auróš, the eldest son of a primitive family of hunters millennia before the coming of human civilization. For his people, life was a short and harsh affair; they simply did all they could do survive another day, and of even the most basic comforts they knew little. Mankind as a whole was constantly terrorized by every aspect of nature, from the merciless weather to the hungering beasts, and it could be said that the entire species was always one step away from total extinction. Auróš, however, was quickly recognized to be more than his brothers — when he was barely half a man, he had already grown taller than his father, and the ease with which he took down his prey was considered admirable by the standards of even seasoned hunters. A boon to his family in their daily struggle against nature, it was only natural that when his father passed, he took up the responsibility of leading his family.Yet there was something amiss. He could not afford to dwell on matters not relating to his family's immediate wellbeing, but all of them had noticed that Auróš had not grown old like his father and brothers had, remaining as youthful as the day he assumed his leadership. He himself was the most puzzled by this, and ultimately the most tormented by it. In the darkness of the wilderness, it was easy to succumb to starvation and despair, the slightest wound leading to illness and then death without exception. In addition to his naturally strong body, his life of perseverance taught him an iron will. His relatives were not so fortunate, however, and when the deadly environment did not claim their lives, it was time itself that withered their bodies to nothing.One by one, his dearest family became corpses. He did all he could to ensure their survival, but there was no fighting against time itself, at least for them. When he finally found himself alone and without responsibility, he decided to wander the earth in search of answers. What power had thrust this predicament upon him, and why?
BREAKING OF THE FIRST CHAIN
Auróš aimlessly travelled the earth for numberless years, his wanderings bringing him far from the seasonal hunting grounds of his ancestors and to places beyond the reach of any human. It was during a trek through snow-capped mountains that he took refuge in a cave on one of those frozen peaks, discovering a magnificent palace within. Having never encountered any construction greater than a simple campsite, he was instantly struck by the beauty of this ancient place, but as he marvelled death came for him more furiously than it ever had before. Before he knew it, his flesh was pierced by the claws of a great monster whose appearance had no similarities to any creature he had seen before, and its strength was just as unfamiliar; he could wrestle the greatest lions and crocodiles to death with little effort, but the beast was so utterly beyond imagining that it was only by the skin of his teeth that he managed to slay it, thereafter left near-death in the dark caverns.In his dying state, he was visited by the dwellers of this seemingly abandoned place, towering serpentine figures who walked and spoke in a manner reminiscent of men. Through some otherwordly power they restored him to health, and in hissing tones they welcomed him with due surprise, having thought humanity extinct for thousands of years. They informed him that the monster wandering the crumbling halls was placed there as a test, and in his slaying of the beast he had earned access to their hospitality all of their ancient knowledge. As he was helped to their strange food and drink, the serpent-men told him of their kind's history with the humans, how serpent and man and many stranger beings once formed great kingdoms and warred against one another. All worshipped dark, hungering gods, using the sorcerous gifts gained by total obedience and countless blood sacrifices to inflict unimaginable terrors upon one their enemies, but ultimately their constant bloodshed was for naught — all of those ancient domains were destroyed in a series of cataclysms millennia ago.
DISCIPLE OF THE INHUMAN
The immortal learned that the serpent-men were driven underground, and his hosts were a part of a sect which was banished from their diminished society for refusing to worship their ancestral gods. In their exile, they isolated themselves from the world and peacefully contemplated their inner selves rather than slavishly worshipping Yig and Set. Because of this isolation, they had never realized that humans had survived the sinking and rearrangement of many of the earth's continents, but they were nonetheless pleased to know of their continued existence; Their old gods now slumbered deathlessly in the far places of the earth, but they could just as easily stir from their rest and reclaim the earth for themselves, destroying all who refuse to become their eternal slaves, serpent and man alike. Auróš, who had always lamented the precarious position humans had in the world, vowed to himself that he would use the knowledge of the serpent-men to not only return humanity to their previous prosperity, but free them from the grasp of their ancient gods.He was considered a promising pupil, quickly absorbing the teachings that the serpent-men had developed over their millennia-long lives. During their exile, their philosophical contemplations had lead them to discover a method for drawing supernatural power from their own spirit rather than the dark gifts that their ancestors had relied on for millions of years. Despite his surprisingly fast understanding of the concept, he nevertheless had to undergo years of rigorous physical and mental training to harness the power with any success. He began to glimpse truths about himself and the world around him that were more eye-opening than the old tales of his serpentine mentors, and his body became ever more powerful as he was taught to access greater quantities of the limitless energy of his spirit. As he ascended through the ranks of the sect, his teachers came to understand that he was even more compatible with this power than they were, and he ascended to heights they could not hope to aspire to.
OPENER OF WAYS
Once he had reached a peerless mastery of the sect's techniques and a full understanding of the intricacies of civilization, Auróš bade his mentors farewell and disappeared into the wilderness once more. There he sought the disparate tribes of humans which he had previously avoided in his solitary wanderings, slowly ingraining in them the heights from which they had fallen and the need to once again establish a great civilization. He taught them all that the serpent-men taught them in turn, and as they began to farm and build cities more nomadic tribes took notice and joined them in their efforts, their cities growing greater in number and splendor until they had established for themselves a kingdom upon the surface of the dark earth. Among those who became citizens of the young civilization's first and greatest city were those who fled from the ill-fated city of Sarnath, destroyed by a vengeful god, and because of their great help in constructing the city it was named New Sarnath in their honour. The Sarnathian Kingdom's newly-crowned ruler dutifully directed the burgeoning cities, protecting them from threats within and without. No sign of the evil gods or their many inhuman servitors had been encountered, but the king had to be ever vigilant in preventing their worship among his subjects. In the place of gods, a philosophy centering on the power and goodness of the human spirit became prevalent.Little threatened the kingdom's existence in its early years. More humans came to form civilizations independent of his influence, and while this was a good thing in the general sense, their expansion lead to conflict with New Sarnath. War was a short affair, however, as any human army was swiftly defeated by the king's own two hands, thoroughly beaten yet left alive so that they might come to their senses and join him in his crucial mission. In this same manner, all human kingdoms and empires fell before his vision of a unified humanity. Neither Babylon, nor Persia, nor Rome could resist his might. Wherever his influence reached, the traces of the worship of the old gods were excised. He banished the followers of Cthugha from Tyre, destroyed the cult of Nyarlathotep which hid in the desert of upper Egypt, and the inhabitants of every coastal village were forcibly dissuaded from worshipping Father Dagon and Mother Hydra. In these efforts King Auróš was exposed to more of the world's darkness, battling mortal sorcerers and the half-human spawn of the old gods, but in the end they could not stand up to the otherwordly power contained in his soul and his fists.
THE KING DOES NOT KNEEL
Having battled the slaves of the dark gods so often and so successfully, he had long braced his spirit for a confrontation with one of their masters; Those who had not taken to slumber would surely have noticed his interference with their worshippers and accept his challenge, while those dreaming gods may very well be awakened by his disruption of their violent, depraved rituals. The first time he laid eyes on their repulsive forms was during a war against the toadlike Miri Nigri, mindless servants of the god Chaugnar Faugn who arrived on earth billions of years ago. As they continued to push into the wastes of western Asia where the Miri Nigri dwelled, the king and his followers roused the elephant-like horror from its blood-sated sleep.Auróš himself was the only one who could stand up to the vampiric monstrosity, its speed far too great for its size and its strength only fitting for their titanic stature, which surpassed any living thing he had seen until then. It overturned the landscape as it passed like a blur and turned men to withered husks in an instant, the spear-like teeth of its hideous trunk piercing the king's heart and draining his life from him. But with superhuman strength he grasped the trunk in his hands and tore it from the ancient demon's face, powering through his seemingly mortal wounds and growing to match the evil god's ferocity, sending it flying with punches and kicks that pierced the mountains around them. The battle lasted for days, fatal blows delivered by both sides numerous times, and he came to realize that there was no way to truly destroy the blood-drinker. Unable to kill the deathless being, he utilized a more refined technique conceived over many centuries for this very purpose. After sufficiently disrupting the monstrous deity's thoughts, he banished Chaugnar Faugn to a void between worlds, thereby sealing its power into the nothingness and binding its will to his own. So great was the strain on his soul that he did not awaken for a year, but he was able to overpower the god's mind and impose his will on it.For the first time in humanity's hundreds of thousands of years of history, man had defeated god.
THUS TO THE STARS
The defeat of Chaugnar Faugn forever toppled the long-established order of the world. Where before mankind could only hope to hide from the old gods in terror or please them sufficiently to be spared too gruesome a fate, they had now found a means to make the subduer the subdued. Only then did the unified human kingdom truly flourish under his rulership, the legend of the immortal king growing to heights unimagined as all were taken by the burning fervor of hope. It was too dangerous to release the vampire-god for anything other than aid against another of their kind, and such was the case shortly after the Sarnathians rediscovered earth's western continents. They turned many of the native humans away from the worship of Yig, thereby bringing the wrath of the serpent-men's creator upon them. Facing the Father of Serpents in battle, Auróš lifted the seal placed on Chaugnar Faugn and forced the bloodthirsty being to aid him in his clash. Together they restrained Yig for long enough to place a seal upon him as well, vanquishing the serpentine devil.With their slavemaster defeated, the remaining serpent-men joined the King of Humanity's vast dominion, aiding his efforts alongside new human disciples of the exiled sect's soul-art. They delved into the black gulf of N'kai and faced Tsathoggua, broke Ithaqua's icy grip on the freezing plains of Siberia, and travelled beneath Voormithadreth to subjugate Atlach-Nacha. Their lesser kin fled the earth in fear of encountering the same fate, and much of the inhabited world had been freed from their terror. In Antarctica humanity also made contact with the last of the terrestrial Elder Things, the final remnants of their billion-year reign over the volcanic earth. With both seeing the dark gods and their servants as enemies, he formed an alliance with the crinoid beings, benefitting greatly from their advanced technology. With forbidden knowledge and human ingenuity, those who could not master the soul-arts developed techno-sorcery to defend against horrors their own two hands would not suffice against. Such practices were rarely without risk, and more than one time the whole of humanity's existence was threatened by one of their own creations, but in the words of the Emperor, the human spirit could not be defeated so easily.With their own techno-sorcery and aid from the underwater Elder Things, humanity would be able to dislodge the last strongholds of the evil gods in the deep ocean. Already they ruled unopposed on every continent, no longer fearing the wrath of their oldest deities, but from the seas a civilization just as widespread came to contend with them. The Deep Ones had already emerged on the beaches many times to slow Sarnathian expansion, but every invasion was foiled by a swift response from the Lord of Mankind's armies. With the influence of the dark gods waning, Dagon and Hydra awakened Cthulhu from his slumber to crush humanity and to usher in an age of madness, but human, serpent-man, Elder Thing, and various others formed a united front, pushing back the tide of the billions of ageless Deep Ones and Star-Spawn. The alliance followed them into earth's oceans, conquering many of their cities in the watery abyss during the years-long march to the sunken capital of R'lyeh.Legions of soldiers, sorcerers, soul-art disciples, and even captured gods fell to the magical power of Cthulhu which tore mind and body apart with contemptuous ease, Dagon to its left and Hydra to its right, and all the power humanity and its allies could muster aided their Emperor in his brutal struggle against the otherwordly monstrosities. Yet no matter how low the chance of victory may have seemed, their spirits held strong, and with a valorous charge they struck a decisive blow against the High Priest of the Great Old Ones and the other gods of the Deep Ones, banishing their terrible essences to the infinite darkness where they would torment mankind no more.Thusly humanity, which came to encompass even the serpent-men, Elder Things and Deep Ones under its banner, had freed itself from the tyranny of their dark gods. Now they ascend to the stars on spaceships fashioned from membranous Mi-Go wings, exploring the ether and those dimensions close to their own in their eternal but hopeful war against the darkness of the universe...
THE SOUL-ARTS
Though it is often distinguished from the sorcery used by the followers of evil gods, the energy drawn from one's spirit by the soul-arts is ultimately of the same nature as the otherworldly power which naturally courses through the strange non-physical matter of the inhuman deities — a fundamental energy drawn from higher planes of existence, manifested through abilities that bend all logic and meaning.It is commonly thought that humans are the most skillful at channeling these energies in the form of martial abilities due to some innate trait of theirs, but non-humans can harness it just as effectively with a fundamental change of mind to a more "human" perspective.The soul-art techniques developed by the King of Humanity are described below.
EXULTATION OF MANKIND'S WILL
The most important function of connecting the lower mind to one's higher self, that being the drawing of power from the user's will alone. As a master practicioner of the soul-arts, Auróš utilized the power contained within himself to enhance his body in every manner, not only increasing his physical strength but also allowing the body to sustain itself through force of will alone, granting immunity to mundane diseases and other failings of the body such as starvation, suffocation, or hypothermia.Because his abilities are directly tied to his willpower, his strength is magnified in tandem with his resolve to win a battle. In a resting state, he can easily reduce a city to rubble with a single strike, and when properly warmed up vast swathes of the earth are carved apart by his mountain-shattering blows, but the true worth of the technique is that there is no true upper limit to the might of a practicioner whose blood boils with the desire to defeat his enemy.
INDOMITABLE EMPEROR'S GRASP
Regardless of their nature, none can escape from the Lord of Mankind's wrath. Due to the otherwordly properties of the energy channeled through his body, otherwise purely physical attacks are entirely capable of harming those creatures made up of spirit and strange matter not found on earth. Even when such an enemy can ordinarily not be harmed in any way, damage will be received and accrue until death, or at least a severe weakening of their functions.Despite favouring his fists, the Emperor's millennia-long life has allowed him ample time to master every weapon invented by humanity and more. By pushing the energy of his soul into his armaments, they will gain the same abilities as his bare-handed attacks.
HEAVEN-BREAKING STANCE
A soul-art which is centered around maintaining a perfect upright posture which harmonizes with the position of the stars. By taking this stance, the user becomes entirely rooted within the fabric of the world, bending space itself around their body to harmlessly redirect any attack launched against them. Even hostile sorcery is guided away from the user's soul, though they cannot attack or move with any swiftness in this state, and enough energy can overwhelm the defense.
ALL DIRECTION PERFECT REPRISAL
A defensive technique more flexible than the Heaven-Breaking Stance, instead being dedicated to capturing the power of a foe's attack. With one hand the attack is caught, its power flowing from the arm through the chest and passing through the heart until it moves into the opposite arm, the energy of the user's soul guiding it towards the palm of the other arm's hand. There it is contained within the hand and unleashed as required, a successful block ensuring that the user can strike his enemy with the combined force of his own attack and the one captured in his fist. Though it cannot do this to every form of sorcery, all attacks which travel through physical space can be intercepted.
CELESTIAL SPHERE CONFIGURATION
A practice inherited from the intellectual inquiries of the exiled serpent-men. Through deep philosophical induction, the user infers detailed information of how the future will come to pass even without knowledge of the additional factors that could influence it. The future is not set in stone and changes with every action made by a living being, therefore making the technique unsuited for long-term planning, but the information inferred from this philosophical method is accurate enough to predict an enemy's immediate movements ahead of time. While the inquirer can still be overwhelmed as a result of an opponent's actions, they are unlikely to be surprised by any attack of equal or lesser power.
GOD-BINDING DECREE
The ultimate soul-art, developed for the sole purpose of defeating gods wholly incapable of death in the human sense. When the reserves of a deathless being's otherwordly energy have been exhausted, the technique is performed to banish the demon elsewhere, dragging them into a timeless abyss that exists in the space between worlds. This space is then sealed away to prevent any incursions, and when the sealing is complete the minds of the user and the banished being engage in an inter-dimensional battle of wills, the winner subjugating the spirit of the losing party. It is an immensely dangerous ability to use even with the king's ample experience, since the user's psyche is laid bare to battle against the soul-withering presence of an ancient deity in their combined mindscape, but victory means gaining power over the captured god, allowing the user to summon them in battle as compensation for temporarily lifting their seal.In his mission to drive the evil gods from earth, Auróš has banished and subdued many of the terrible beings for use in battle, but he hesitates to release them against any but their own kind due to the highly destructive effect their presence has on reality, even when they are forbidden from directly attacking. Even the sight of them kills most humans instantly, either by inflicting so much primal terror that their heart can do nothing but stop or simply destroying their mind and soul outright, and the miasma released by the corrupt energies that inhabit their twisted forms seeps into the fabric of reality itself to shape it more to their liking. Besides these basic traits, they each possess a plethora of sorceries unique to their disposition, also being able to grant others a fraction of their power to display similar abilities, though the inherent malice contained in them quickly erodes the minds of any who use them.Among the dark gods sealed by the Emperor are Chaugnar Faugn, Yig, Tsathoggua, Ithaqua, Atlach-Nacha, Dagon, Hydra, and the great priest Cthulhu.
TIME-RENDING MAELSTROM
THRICE-CROWNED STAR
SOUL-ENCOMPASSING FIST
STATUTE OF DIVINITY