Nuitari

Sornieth is filled with fools who only recognize the power of the Eleven. It is a shame that they cannot see past the grandeur of the primary gods, cannot recognize that there is more at work than the great elemental powers. And why the world worships the same gods that have so many times brought ruin remains a mystery. Why trust the beings that could bring total annihilation just as quickly as prosperity? That is a terrible gamble, one that need not be taken in the worship of lesser deities. A luck god here, a fauna god there, some being of stars, and another of streams. Lesser gods have lesser power, but they are many, and unless they band together for some common cause, they are far less likely to bring ruin upon the world.

Besides, Nuitari misses being worshiped. It was never popular in its early days, simply by virtue of its domain, but it had followers long, long ago, followers that have since died out and disappeared. So few remember the names it use to bear. No one has called it the God of Thorns in eons, and Certheai has become nothing but a jumble of letters, no longer a name anyone would bother to use. Its titles are lost to the ages, some of them even lost to Nuitari, and they have left a gaping hole in what might even be the old god's heart.

How true it is that all things crave to be wanted.

But the next best thing to being wanted is being useful, and so that is what Nuitari has become. It is useful mostly to its own amusement, of course; why would a god stoop to following the whims of mortals? But still, feeling purpose has granted it a sliver of life that reminds it of that glorious Second Age when it was still revered. Resuming its activities of old makes it feel rejuvenated, revived.

Most often, it takes the form of a dragon and makes itself appear simple and without magic. Sometimes it is a merchant, sometimes it is a lost wanderer. Sometimes it is even a hatchling, lost in the deep dark woods. No matter the form, though, it deals in exchange. It has always had a talent for reading the hearts of others and teasing out their deepest desires as easily as pulling water from the well, and this knowledge is powerful. There are dragons that will sell their very souls to achieve the things they long for, dragons that find that cost is nothing at all compared to the reward, and it is one of Nuitari's greatest delights to behold the consequences of such a trade. What happens when a dragon loses its soul? What happens when they trade the life of a loved one for the life of another? What happens, what happens, what happens? Nuitari is not a god of clairvoyance, cannot see all the possibilities. It must test the waters for itself, observe the consequences alone.

Of course, not every mark is easy, and Nuitari relishes these challenges. To dragons that guard their hearts carefully, that fight back against even the strongest temptation, Nuitari sheds its monstrous skin and slips into the shape of something more benign. To appear harmless is to shape oneself into a great and terrible weapon, after all, able to slip past the defenses of the good and kind by allowing them to believe all is well. How easy it is to place curses upon the welcoming if they do not realize their walls have been breached! At least the skeptics provide more of a challenge, so resistant to the idea that anything in the universe could possibly work out favorably for them. It is the good dragons, the kind dragons that fall most readily for a sweet facade. It is these dragons Nuitari most enjoys placing curses on.

But then, curses are not the only thing it places, and trades are not the only thing it offers. For Nuitari is a god of vengeance, as well. Sornieth is full of the wronged, those individuals brought down to nothing by others, who yearn to return the favor, who hunger to make others suffer as they did. It hears their inward cries of pain; it feels their burning sense of injustice, and it comes with a gentle smile to set the wronged against those who brought them their pain. Wherethe hunter becomes the hunted, when the slaves turn on the slaver, when the dog finally bites back, Nuitari is there (in spirit if not in body), smiling from the shadows.

Maybe one day, it will place curses with as much wild abandon as it did in days of old, when it was worship as a god of thorns and trade. Maybe one day, great uprisings will be conducted in its name as they once were, and oppressors will tremble with every passing raven. Maybe the vines of the Tangled Wood will grow sharp and hungry for blood when it passes by, and maybe Sornieth will begin to revere its power once again. Maybe it will even grant wishes like it used to, help clans prosper instead of infecting them with the urge to mindlessly slaughter. Name a god that can give mortals such knowledge, such love, such power! Name one!

There is only one. There can only be one. It is Nuitari, always and forever. The Eleven could never compare.

Bio by Tues. Everything in italics added by slp0001.

-nuitari is but one of its many names, though one of its favorites

-certheai, ghenthuolmm, yngisil, xerthion, daziritich, the dark one, the masked god, lord of thorns, the raven demon, the black-winged serpent, patron of vengeance, etc., etc.

-it/its mainly, but he/him is also acceptable

-pansexual

-spirit? unseelie? demon? minor deity? shade fragment? something completely other, from outside Sornieth altogether? We Just Don't Know

-while it is not anywhere near the level of the Eleven in terms of power, it is still quite powerful. though its power has waxed and waned over the years, it has been around for a very, very long time, and that's not likely to change any time soon

-although it often manifests in a mortal body, killing said body will most certainly not kill it, just perhaps force it to remain incorporeal for a while and anger it

-the extent of its powers are unknown, though it has been known to place curses, control thorns, appear and disappear in shadows, make itself invisible, inaudible, and intangible to some while not to others, and change its form to an extent

-seems to be interested and amused by mortals, and apparently likes to watch how different dragons react to different curses; has been known to experiment on dragons with inventive curses without their knowledge, or to curse random items with 'fun' effects for the next dragon unfortunate enough to pick them up or use them

-has also been known to pose as a simple traveling merchant to sell cursed items to unsuspecting individuals

-it's impossible to predict how it will act or react in any situation, as it seems to understand conventional morality, but doesn't always feel that it applies to it

-though it's usually fairly harmless, perhaps even seeming friendly or kind, it is not unknown to behave cruelly or sadistically

-probably the embodiment of It Amused Me

-while its main deal is curses, it can offer other things, like information, power, wealth... whatever a dragon wants, to an extent, but of course, there's almost always a price to pay. it is no genie, after all

info by slp0001