The Siblings of Chaos (The Nyxaris Family)
Yello Madlings, welcome again to another random thought in the Madhouse as we continue to build the Lego blocks that will be the foundation for our universe. The last two weeks focused on the Kingdom of Luna while hinting at the other Sovereign nations, Erebus and Drakeskar. Today, we begin our march forward and discuss where it all started. The Obsidian Wail is the original starting point where two chat rooms. The Black Forest Inn and The Sacred Glade gave birth to characters like Belial, Lysandria, and Perlysia; the list continues.
It will take at least this week to get through all the major characters in the Obsidian Wail. I apologize for not pumping out content faster. Life is a bit busy, and I even added another Biweekly DnD game to spend more time with the nerds. Between my responsibilities as a parent and a mother in questionable health, I can't focus on posting more than 3k words twice a week. The dream is to be able to focus on the Madhouse full-time, but first, we need to do the work. We will likely keep the four-character per page style as it seems to be an easy benchmark that I can adjust.
Madlings, I am super excited to talk about the Nyxaris Family. Belial was the first character I ever roleplayed, and it was a terrible abomination of Dracula and a Saiyan (RIP Akira Toriyama). It was a compelling character to play, and pulling on Belial's story threads gave me Lilith, Rath (Alcmene), and Malice (Atius). Eventually, Belial found someone to tame the madness in his head, and that gave birth to Lucian and Adriana Nyxaris.
These names and characters are different now, but their origins were way more cringe than the tropes I write today. I have always expressed the darkest sides of the Madhouse in the Obsidian Wail. The original incarnation was the Umbra Arborum, a mutated enchanted forest of darkness. We have evolved that space into a chaotic place where multiple factions fight over the ultimate prize. One thousand years later, everyone is searching for the path Lilith walked. Lilith "blessed immortality" over her homeland, but no one remembers exactly how that happened. The subject of how Lilith pulled it off is a mystery Lucian Nyxaris intends to solve.
Lucian Nyxaris
Lucian got bored of life about two hundred years ago, roughly a hundred years into his "privileged" existence. It was a privilege to be seen by eighty percent of the population as a monster. Privilege allowed Lucian's "father" to chain him in a cellar for an undetermined length of time. Lucian had lost track of time when they stopped feeding him, and human contact became non-existent. Three hundred years ago, the Erebus Castle had terrible foundations, and the waters of The Crimson Nexus leaked from the walls. Licking this fluid from the stone like a rabid wolf is how Lucian survived his captivity.
To understand why Lucian was locked in a cell like a rabid wolf, you need to rewind to the years before his birth. His mother, Kharys Nyxaris, embodied the night itself, an ethereal beauty desired by all. The man who claimed Kharys was Vorath Nyxaris, a member of the Sons of Cain. This was long ago when Erebus had a council leadership like the Skar Collective. The Sons of Cain had enough to deal with the Arborant on their plates. Now, a newly formed cult calling themselves the Twilight Orthodoxy is hunting them like monsters.
What does any of this have to do with Lucian? You see, Vorath claimed Kharys as his own; the problem was that her heart belonged to another monster. Kharys loved Belial Blackravens. Their affair would ripple consequences far beyond Lucian being locked in a cell. Yet, Lucian was locked in a cell nonetheless for the simple crime of being born. Perhaps it would have been better if Lucian wasn't born? Vorath could have strangled his mother, slit her throat. It wouldn't have mattered anything not to be born. Maybe if Vorath was smart enough to have figured the puzzle out himself? No...She solved it for him.
It was Lucian's privilege that turned his eyes into violent swirls of dark blood. The longer he remained in the cell, the more he lost his senses. Lucian pitied the poor soul who opened that cell door to discover the wolf waiting, or he would have if he had known who that unfortunate individual was. A few hundred years ago, he cared about what that poor, unfortunate soul thought of him: That naive Lucian was dead now.
The world Lucian woke up in was unfamiliar to him. Even before the madness, Lucian was never close to either of his parents. When Adriana informed him that Kharys and Vorath were worm mulch, he didn't shed a tear. All Lucian felt as he awoke to the sight of his younger sister at the foot of his bed was rage. The Nyxaris family always prided itself on being the true descendants of Lilith. The family built dominion over the Obsidian Wail, believing that they alone were Lilith's destined children of blood. Vorath wasn't pleased to learn the truth Adriana had revealed to him.
Adriana had already gained control of the chaos she had started before Lucian awakened from his blood rage. Lucian let Adriana believe the fantasy she spun to him this day of the outcome and how she manipulated everyone's freedom from a gilded cage. It would take years to find the truth, but what Adriana told him was a lie; he had proof. Regardless, in this new disgusting life of Lucian Nyxaris, "Crown Prince of Chaos," he hated it, but Adriana loved her lofty titles. The Chaos siblings will rule Erebus for nearly one hundred years before the birth of Perlysia.
The siblings were content controlling The Obsidian Wail; their ambitions never stretched past the forest borders. If the same could be said for the Twilight Orthodoxy, perhaps there would be more peace between the three kingdoms. However, to the Orthodoxy, Lucian will always be a monster to be exorcised from the world. The Prince of Chaos never engaged in conflicts but was proficient at defending his home. Being privileged and blessed by Lilith meant being forever tied to the Obsidian Wail; Lucian could never leave Erebus for a few weeks before his senses devolved.
Lucian spent nearly two hundred years defending his homeland from the religious doctrine of Twilight that condemned the Obsidian Wail. Much of Lucian's attention and focus was spent on a mystery in his study. He combed through ceiling-tall bookshelves and worked with an unexpected ally to discover a long-lost secret about Lilith. The Obsidian Wail was "Cursed" when Lilith entered The Sacred Glade, and Lucian's only proof was in a journal the newly gained acquaintance handed to him. Lucian's library had an ancient journal that belonged to Lilith before the curse spread across the Obsidian Wail. Suppose the lady who gave it to him the journal could be trusted. This new journal was written after the formation of Luna after the Twilight Cult spread across the world.
Oddly enough, the journal spoke of Adriana and Lucian as children of Belial, musing about how the madness would manifest in each of them. Lucian was more intrigued when he discovered that the handwriting matched Lilith's Journal from over one thousand years prior. This is an exciting development because the last known sighting of Lilith was during the days leading to Luminara's death. According to the Twilight Orthodoxy, Luminara sacrificed herself to rid Luna of Lilith's evil influence, a darkness that corrupted her for years. A convenient lie that Typhon had built a zealous, fearful cult around.
Since being freed from his cell, Lucian has learned many exciting developments in his family history. First, while his family has claimed to be ancestors of Lilith, the family tree is relatively small. Lucian was only two generations removed from Lilith herself. To his dismay, he and Adriana were Lilith's Grandchildren. This was a sprout of a tree compared to Luna's bloodline. There had been seven documented Lunar Queens; missing records and gaps in time assured Lucian there were others.
The journal explained how Belial was "created" and how Kharys briefly tamed that monster. Another not surprising detail was how Adriana was "Queen" for half a century while Lucian was locked in a cell. Adriana's ambition meant nothing to Lucian, and an attempt on his life was no real offense; Lucian was only disappointed it failed. Lilith's time in Sirensong was the cradle of knowledge Lucian had been searching for.
It was a revelation that Lilith could leave the Obsidian Wail for decades and had returned after the birth of the Twilight Orthodoxy. How could Lilith leave the forest for decades without the physical and mental degradation? If Lilith returned to the Obsidian Wail, how would no one have noticed her in centuries? How does the author know so much about Belial and Adriana that Lucian is clueless about? The journal given to him by the girl Alcmene raised more questions than provided the answers Lucian sought. One question kept Lucian locked away in his study: Who is Lysandria Belladonna? How was there no record that Lilith birthed a child in Drakeskar? Where had Lilith's daughter hidden away?
Adriana Nyxaris
The younger sister of Lucian and "Goddess of Chaos," Adriana Nyxaris, has constantly been intoxicated by the darkness of their family line. Adriana was every bit the child of Belial, psychotic, manipulative, blood-crazed, and unpredictable. Most days, Adriana loved her brother with whom she shared a womb; other days, she attempted to kill him. These chaotic swings in emotions were an everyday part of dealing with Adriana. Lucky for Adriana, she always had Lucian at her side to clean up the fallout. Their relationship was symbiotic, and they depended on each other from birth.
Everyone in Erebus worshiped Lilith, a dark goddess who blessed her faithful homeland with essential immortality. That immortality came with many conditions but was achievable... in theory. The children of Lilith were long-lived, this was true, but every one of the Sons of Cain died. Adriana herself had disposed of at least two of the Sons of Cain. No one was immortal; even Lilith died in Luna. This knowledge drove Adriana to find the Sacred Glade. Lilith found power there, power Adriana wished to claim.
Adriana had always known that Belial Blackravens was their birth father. Kharys freely told her daughter the secret in the end. Knowledge that Lucian didn't need to know, Adriana kept the gem to herself. Lucian would believe the lie that Vorath was their father until it was convenient for Adriana to use that information. Even in their youth, Lucian hated the destiny Adriana believed was theirs to claim. Lucian was misguided and too kind-hearted for the work to be done. Adriana would do anything to claim Lilith's legacy, even if she had to remove her "family."
Kharys would be Adriana's first target in her ambitious plan. The Queen of Erebus never believed her daughter could have ill intent towards her. They were teenagers when Kharys proved their immortality was a lie to Adriana. Not a single tear would fall from Adriana's eyes as the ceremony to honor her mother passed with the customary fanfare befitting a Queen. Flowing fake tears would be saved for the following day when Adriana would have to enact the next part of her plan.
Lucian was generally cautious and intelligent but always had a blind spot regarding Adriana. Poisoning the food was easy, but convincing Lucian & Kharys to occupy the same space for a "family meal" was challenging. Lucian, always the solitary, reclusive wolf, loved his family, but sharing any interaction with them was exhausting. Everyone had their expectations of who Lucian was, and it kept him isolated from them all. Adriana wonders how it felt for Lucian to watch their mother die in front of him at breakfast. Such a blissful experience Adriana wish she could have witnessed.
A few weeks passed before Adriana confessed all of "Lucian's sins" to their father. Adriana had convinced Vorath that Lucian had poisoned their mother because they were the only ones at that meal, so it had to be him. Simple lies were told to a simple man who believed in his precious daughter. Vorath spent too much time outside The Obsidian Wail fighting the Twilight Orthodoxy, which had taken its toll on his mind and body. Clueless, pathetic Vorath hadn't realized Kharys continued her affair with Belial. Vorath believed Adriana was loyal for opening his eyes to the corruption.
Vorath tasked Adriana with a test of loyalty; she would determine Lucian's punishment. Adriana gleefully convinced her gullible father that Lucian did it out of love for the family, perhaps to spare the family's reputation. Lucian was always so busy with the appearance of things and the optics of the people, so Adriana swore that much be the reason. Adriana couldn't let Lucian die; she needed him for plans. Lucian would be caged like a rabid wolf and kept there until he was docile and controllable. There was too much pride in Lucian for him to be manipulated; therefore, Lucian must be broken.
For a while, Lucian was fed and provided with books, different spaces, and the same privileges, making him perfectly fine in isolation. Adriana was furious. She needed Lucian to lose that carefree attitude. Ironically, the ruthless Vorath leader of the Sons of Cain didn't have the stomach to order the necessary measures to cripple Lucian. Vorath had proved more competent than expected and prohibited Adriana from knowing about her brothers' prison. She didn't know where Lucian was held, nor was she allowed to communicate with him.
Adriana knew Vorath would need to go next and that he would prove a more challenging target than her mother. Vorath had been a war-hardened King of Erebus; between fighting in the Umbra Arborum or at sea fighting the Twilight, Vorath was skilled and well-defended at all times. As much as she hated to admit it, she would have to make a deal with an outside interest to deal with Vorath. Adriana would sacrifice anything to gain her actual prize. Selling her soul to a swamp witch meant nothing to her. It was intriguing to meet her birth father during the exchange finally. Such a docile creature hyped up to Adriana by Kharys was nothing more than a vessel for a swamp witch.
Removing Vorath from his arrogant seat as the believed King of Erebus was more difficult than Adriana expected. The witch's spell had left Adriana as weak and vulnerable as Vorath. With her blood magic sealed, Vorath quickly overpowered Adriana. Sheer luck saved Adriana from a gruesome death that evening. Adriana sacrificed much in the Undercroft to defeat her father, including quite a bit of her pride. Ultimately, Adriana would crawl out of the Undercroft and claim the crown of Erebus.
Adriana soon discovered that Lucian had not been kept in the castle but in a hastily made prison cell buried along the Crimson Nexus. Adriana only had one more obstacle in her way of having total dominion over the Obsidian Wail, her pesky brother. The solution Adriana devised was to forget about Lucian, so she did. Adriana tore up any record of Lucian and left him in the cell, hoping that he would fade away into nothing. It was a beautiful fifty years of being Queen before an armored soldier dropped Lucian on the doorsteps of Erebus. Some annoying adventurer stumbled across his cell and returned the hairy, scraggly creature "home."
Adriana could have killed her brother then and there. However, the Queen of Chaos hated the few people around her, and she was losing the war against the Twilight. As much as Adriana hated to admit it, Lucian could be used as a boon. The returning prince will bolster the hope of the common fools, while Lucian might provide knowledge to help. Manipulating your family to do what you want in the shadows was easy, but commanding an army to fight an invading threat was difficult. Adriana could use her broken sibling to further her agenda. Lucian had always been so naive that Adriana would use that to control him. The Sacred Glade was all that mattered to Adriana. She was promised true immortality; Lilith's immortality rested in that hidden mountain shrine.
Madlings, I apologize for the short post, which only had two characters. The plan was to stick with four characters per blog post, but Adriana and Lucian are the only Nyxaris family members that will matter in Perlysia's timeline. I still have characters to introduce that are tied to each sibling, like Doloma Aetos. Doloma is Lucian's bodyguard and a stoic, loyal character. There is also Valencia Sanguinoire, a courtesan and friend of Adriana Nyxaris. I will be giving the Obsidian Wail more time than expected. I apologize.
I have been thinking about how these stories have some essential intersections. First is Lilith's life before her actions in the Sacred Glade cursed the Obsidian Wail. Second is Lilith's time in Sirensong, about four hundred years before Perlysia. Third, Luminara's treacherous journey north to form the Kingdom of Luna. Luminara passed about three hundred years before Perlysia was born. Fourth, we discussed the timeline between three and two hundred years before Perlysia. Finally, pushing forward to around one thousand years after the curse, Perlysia is born. I will try to build a timeline to represent all the chaos in my brain visually.
Once again, Madlings, I want to apologize. It has been a chaotic week, and between parent-teacher conferences for my children, starting a new DnD game, and just life, I didn't get as much down as planned. Old Maiden would see this as a failure, but two Lego blocks are better than no Lego blocks. Next time, we will discuss the people close to the Chaos Siblings. Thank you, as always, for taking the time to read my little space here. Blessed Be Madlings
Extra art teases cause I’m bad <3
