Seiraryu/Sanjiv

Sanjiv, River of Timeless Anamnesis

Above and beyond all things, Sanjiv does not forget.

A rivulet of broken bones and dried husks sits at the edge of Kimberry, The Sea That Marched Against the Flame. From this brook, her brother extends, black as the Ebon Dragon, hateful as Adorjan, and endless as Cecelyne.

Before he became a Yozi, Sanjiv was never good. He was never evil. He was neutrality, standing between the basic need for conflict in a struggle to retain what he knew was most important: memories. Though another of his brethern is charged with the tracking of the knowledge, Sanjiv needs no books or scrolls or edicts, for he remembers. Every detail, every spec of dust that fell from the beginning of time he recalls. He is an ever vigilant parcel in the memory of existence itself, and though his eyes are black as night now, they were once the solid grey of knowledge.

When the gods decided that the Primordials had run their course, and Exalted mortals to destroy or imprison them, Sanjiv ignored it all. He knew, but he ignored. For why would he, the memory of everything, be destroyed? Alas, this arrogance proved to be what dealt him the most vicious blow. The Exalt who slew the River of Timeless Anamnesis' fetich soul paid a high price for the treasonous action, and like all things, Sanjiv remembers it well.

When he was imprisoned, the Primordial lost what was most important to him. Until then, he had been able to see all, know all, and remember all. However, barred from Creation and caged in his own brothers and sisters' bodies, the Yozi found perdition, for he could not glance upon Creation; could not know what he most sought to know; could not be as he once was.

Thus he changed. He twisted and writhed and fought. He ardently beckoned demons to his side to blast the hellish walls of Malfeas, his own brother, apart, so that he may glance upon the world. But it was to no avail. The Demon City was too sturdy, and Cecelyne too great, to ever escape.

Perhaps one of the Yozis who holds the longest grudge, simply by virtue of his very nature, Sanjiv is also one of the most ardently opposed to the Ebon Dragon's attempt at escape. He is a jealous thing, and this envy has become a part of him. Nostalgic knowledge that if the Ebon Dragon escapes, he will know more of Creation than Sanjiv does... he will be first to wander its roads and sail its rivers. This jealous fire keeps the Yozi awake every instant.

He expands from Kimberry and into the Demon City of Malfeas. At times, he exists on the surface of one of its layers, though his true form delves endlessly beneath it, coiling in serpentine deeper and deeper into the Demon realm. If one were to sail Sanjiv, one's memories of betrayal and treason (no matter how diminutive and insignificant) would drive one mad beyond recognition.

One of the few Yozis to enjoy taking human form, he always appears as a perfect youth, either black as ebony or white as pearl. His eyes are always the deepest blacks, and his voice cascades like a river when he deigns to speak.

He takes this form often when reveling in the Demon City, though even more often in the dreams of those he corrupts. In his quest for knowledge to remember, Sanjiv has corrupted innumerable mortals and many Exalted. He uses them to further his need to see the world he was banned from. Demons descendant from him are often possessed, since their entrances into Creation are rare, and he uses them to see the glimpses he can.

If one wants to travel to Sanjiv, it is a simple enough task. Take sail in a river that at some point flows underground. When the travel sinks beneath the surface, sprinkle the blood of a betrayer into the water directly in front of the vessel. Within time, one shall find his way to Sanjiv. Be warned... none have ever returned after having travelled in this fashion.

In the end, Sanjiv simply wants to be able to remember what he's been denied. However, should the possibility present itself, he will not doubt in ushering the end of an Exalted or god. His grudges, like his memory and he himself, run deep. Deeper than anything else in the Demon City.

Anarajius, Fog of Ignorance, Fetich Demon of the Third Circle

When a man speaks of a woman's pain, when a child speaks of duty, when a fool speaks of knowledge, or a decision is made solely on prejudice... Anarajius smiles.

The fetich soul of Sanjiv, Anarajius has two shapes that she prefers to show herself as. In the first, and most often seen when she is summoned, she appears in the form of a beautiful young maiden at the cusp of life. Long strands of black hair are interweaved with carefully braided strands of red and blue which appear to be made of jade. Her skin is the color of marble and her eyes of the tint seen in the shadows of a memory. The dress she carries with her is a starking adornment of red and black, which flow over her like a reaper's robe. Her hood, usually pulled back, is raised before battle, so that her shadow may remember her opponents' future thoughts.

Her second shape is much less physical, showing signs of the ephemeral nature of her charge in the world of her creator. She appears as a dense, shadowy fog corruscated with blacks and deep water blues that twist and writhe among any that come to rest within her. She usually spans the size of entire cities, if not more, and almost any being that steps within the boundaries of her ghostly flesh slowly begin to lose their memories and knowledge, becoming more ignorant with each passing moment.

Anarajius is a powerful demon, and she revels in ignorance and amnesia. Those who cannot remember, after all, cannot steal the knowledge that is rightfully her creator's, and this makes Anarajius content. Her weapon of choice is a wickedly shaped sickle colored with the tint of blood found only in men who's madness has driven them to lose their memory. It is said she herself can cause this insanity with but a touch, or even with her very presence.

Summoning Anarajius

A Solar Circle Sorcerer must go through all the usual rituals and limitations to summon Anarajius. However, in addition to these rituals and time restraints, the sorcerer must make a ritualistic sacrifice in the name of Anarajius. Being a demon of ignorance, she feeds on it and those that embody it. To complete the summoning ritual, a Solar Circle Sorcerer must sacrifice the life of an ignorant who, through his own ignorant actions, contributes to the general naiveness of the world around him.

Notes and Abilities: Once summoned Anarajius is able to show outstanding potential in the hands of those that would know how to exploit her prowess. Within instants she can sunder the memories of entire cities without trouble. Being a fetich soul, Anarajius is very powerful. Citizens of entire cities have forgotten everything, including their names, for their entire lives. Additionally, any memories lost by the victims are subject to the perusal of Anarajius, and the sorcerer can demand to know anything relevant to the theme of the summoning.

Anarajius and Orabilis

Anarajius and Orabilis, the End of All Wisdom, have an interesting relationship. At times, they despise each other, finding in their natures the dichotomy of their existences. One represents unadultered ignorance, while the other is limited and forbidden knowledge.

While Anarajius despises Orabilis for granting knowledge, she also finds his methods of limiting and dispatching those that attain too much comforting. Orabilis and Anarajius have been known to battle in arenas within both Cecelyne and Sanjiv; however, many of these spats have ended in a painful and sadistic amorous affair that both digusts and amuses their Yozi patrons. However, to mistake these encounters as any sort of love/hate relationship would be foolish. Either would be content in seeing the other disappear completely, however.

Naj'ongh, Eater of Hearts, Demon of the Second Circle

The Gratifying Soul of the Fog of Ignorance

One of Sanjiv's many lesser souls, the demon Naj'ongh is also one of his most disturbing. Though appearing innocent and quiet in the frame of a small, prepubscent boy, his nature can quickly be discerned if one were to spot the gaping hole that sits readily visible where the creature's heart would be.

Naj'ongh is, above anything, a collector of intimate knowledge and memories. He feeds on the reminiscense of mortals who have loved and lost, raping his victims' minds and souls for the memories they hold of their lovers, husbands, wives, children, and family. No memory linked with emotions is safe. Even eternal hatred and bitter rivalry can be sundered from a person's memory by the quiet spell that the young boy-demon weaves with his very gaze.

He appears, invariably, as a very young human male with white hair and abnormally darkened skin. His eyes, the color of grey smoke, sink back as he gazes into a person's heartfelt memories.

In battle he is a fierce opponent, forcing his enemies to face their loved ones in mind and body as he takes the appearance and mannerisms of their most precious of companions. He is a vicious beast of a being, and will not doubt upon forcing others to remember their emotion past just so he can feed on their memories, and spit them back at his victims as bitter, acidic venom.

Bashiin, Architect of Ersatz Destiny, Demon of the Second Circle

Reflective Soul of the Fog of Ignorance

In a way, there are parts of Sanjiv all over Creation. Bashiin, Architect of Ersatz Destiny, makes sure of it. Anarajius' Reflective soul is perhaps one of the most Creation-active demons, due to what his actual purpose in existence is.

The most disturbing aspect of Bashiin is his appearance. Ephemeral and constantly flickering, he moves as if under the gaze of a strobe-light, flickering from one position to the next with nothing in between. He's mostly shadow, and only parts of him can be seen as something more (and solid) at a time. He has no eyes, and his mouth constantly drips venomous shades onto the ground. His basic visage, however, is all together average; aside from the obvious demonic aspects he carries with him the parts that aren't made of shadow and can momentarily be seen appear to be quite normal. The demon possesses a handsome face and no hair.

Bashiin's exitence in Malfeas is bleak. He hates it there almost as much as the River of Timeless Anamnesis he comes from. The reason for this hatred is not so much that he feels imprisoned, but that his basic and natural purpose cannot be met unless he is in Creation. For thousands of years, he has lived up to his title of Architect of Ersatz Destiny. Bashiin, when summoned by the Cataclyse Cultists, brings his master's powers upon the mortal world, creating the Vestige Moira, false-fated demon-blooded who hide in the shadows of the fates of mortals.

While he does not usually enter battle, Bashiin can be a fearsome opponent. His weapons can be anything, for he uses the very shadows that constantly surround him to create viscuous armaments. He is especially hard to harm, as different parts of him are flesh and shadow at different moments. Luckily, he cannot actively control which parts of him are shadow and which are flesh at any one time.

Engramia, the Mnemonic Hound, Demon of the First Circle

Progeny of the Eater of Hearts

Vicious and always thirsty for their type of sustenance, the Engramia are bloodthirsty descedants of Sanjiv. They prowl the alleyways and streets of Malfeas in packs and devour anyone who happens to have a vivid recollection of something while in their direct line of sight. Often used as tracking and hunting hounds by the armies of the Yozis, the Engramia can track their prey by using the hunted's memories of fear and escapism as guides, smelling the floating recollections in the air.

Engramia appear as savage dogs of two yards in length and standing almost a yard at the head. Their fur is ebon in complexion, though matted with the same blues and reds as their ancestors higher in the demonic hierarchy of their parentage. Their claws are shaped as wicked sickles, making their gait odd as they have to walk upon the bent talons that grow from their rotted paws.

Perhaps the most disturbing phenomenon of the Engramia is that each and every one of them lacks the upper half of their cranium, leaving an exposed and rotting brain for any and all to see. Their brains are almost always missing huge chunks, and this compliments the twisted stare and drooling maws that let go long and thick forked tongues.

When an Engramia kills its prey, it does nothing before it cracks the victim's head open with its powerful jaws and begins to devour the brain nestled within the cranium. They find the meat tasty and sweet, and feeding one chunks of a mortal's brain is perhaps the best way for a sorcerer to gain an Engramia's affection... or as close as one of these hell hounds can come to it.

Cataclyse Cultists

The same as many other Yozis, Sanjiv has many mortals who follow his calling. Their dark rituals and black magics have served to pass the dreams and memories of the mortal world to his mind for centuries. Each Cataclyse is indoctrinated into the cult with a vicious raping of their memories. Once a would be Cataclyse bows to the cult, a dark ritual is performed that strips them of their memories. These memories travel to the River of Timeless Anamnesis and he reaps the poignant rewards.

Cultists begin their lives in Sanjiv's worship as blank slates, and in this state they find true devotion. The Rite of Aphotic Paramnesia erases all traces of the future cultist's life and instills the memory of eternal subservience under the Yozi. Thus, all the Cataclyse Cultists are devoted zealots, capable of doing anything to further their dark deity's goals.

Most cultists learn the rudiments of the dark thaumaturgy mastered by the cult, though only the Aphotes are allowed to master the higher levels. Others study martial arts and weapon-weilding, while still others are spies that infiltrate bureaucracies and governments. These three types of cultist each have a title:

Aphotes are the high priests of the cult. They are the only ones that are allowed to learn the high end of the thaumaturgic rituals, especially the Rite of Aphotic Paramnesia.

Sinae are the warriors. Centuries ago, a martial arts style was cultivated by the cult that allowed them to match any other mortal in combat. A regimen strict as any Immaculate Monk's allows them to study this evil style.

Barlaphes are the bureaucrats and infiltrators. They study a different sort of magic: that of politics. Their manipulations are intended to take the knowledge and memories of others, and they are experts in covering up political past and making files "get lost."

The Cataclyse Cult is spread throughout Creation, and though they aren't especially numerous, they are quite influential. Cabals of cultists are never larger than ten members, and no cabal exists within a radius of one hundred miles.