The Firstborn

The Firstborn
"The firstborn claims to be the first among hours, and whilst this is certainly not true,he has the power to wage war on those who contradict his vanity."
Origin	from flesh
Titles	His majesty the Fistborn, first among the hours, the beautiful, Apollon, etc
Names	The hundred-winged, the Secondborn
Aspects	Grail, Edge, Moth and Knock
Date of arrival	{{{arrival}}}
Owner(s)	Gwreet

Appearance

The firstborn appears as an almost irritatingly beautiful man in greek armor, but he is also known to appear as a firefly when he brings the new day.

Principles

Grail for pleasure and self-indulgence, edge for a hot temper and fighting prowess, and both for vanity. He is known for his pride, and the wrath that follows the injury of his pride.

History

The Firstborn is said to have originated from a small village in Phrygia, albeit it’s name has been forgotten by the histories, as was his original name. Beloved by all, men, women and even the creatures of the Mansus, he rapidly developed a highly narcissistic and dismissive personality, which ultimately proved to be his undoing: after being harshly turned down, a forest-seer laid a curse on him, that he „never shall leave his house, lest he die.“ Infuriated, he ran after the seer, but as soon as he set foot on the doorsteps, he felt himself weakening. Using his beauty as a bargaining chip, he slowly built up a cult, seeking ascension into the Mansus, because if he can't leave his house, he shall move to a bigger one. As the years passed by, he built up a cult, amassed a great hoard of treasures, incited strife between the hours, and directed his cultists in the flaying of Marsyas, the forest-seer who had cursed him. As the time had come and the hours were infighting more than ever, he seized his window of opportunity and ascended through the Sea Gate, in an monumental orgy in which he ultimately betrayed all his lovers, reciting the Formulae Excessive over and over.

He is a hot-headed hour, easily tricked into a fight, which he however will probably win. He both fights and loves with great passion, but most of all he loves himself. Sometimes, he is known to act erratically, but no affiliation with moth was ever proven.

Worship

The Firstborn is worshipped by the beautiful and the ugly alike, to preserve or improve and by those who wish to fight with a brutal and unrelenting strenght, as opposed to The Abbess Sunsets worshippers.

Strangely, he is also worshipped by the betrayed, and those who fear to be betrayed, but it is not known why.

There are two known ways to gain his attention, but both involve a sacrifice, which has to be given freely and for the sake of admiration: either you scar yourself, appealing to his aspect of edge, or you offer of your blood, for his aspect of grail.

Cults

His church is the Order of His Majesty the Firstborn, as one would have expected.

Mark

1. Temptation: Beauty: I have been informed that I hold the key to unearthly beauty.
2. Dedication: Beauty: I have decided to pursue unearthly beauty by all means.
3. Ascension: The skin‘s mark: I have scarred my skin with repetitions of the Formulae Excessive, to remember the Betrayed's sacrifice.
4. Ascension: The hairs‘s mark: I have shaven my hair and set it aflame, to remember the Betrayed's torment.
5. Ascension: The mouth‘s mark: I have sewn my lips together, to remember the Betrayed's acceptance.
6. Ascension: The eye‘s mark: I have gouged out my eyes, to remember the Betrayed's fascination. Now, the Firstborn will surely renew me, more beautiful then ever before.

Servants

He is served by the souls of those killed without honor , the Betrayed, which he sacrificed, which are his most fanatical and feared servants, and he gains power from all those who learn of the place behind desire. Other than that, he mainly seeks to corrupt other hours followers by offering them tokens of irresistible beauty, in the endless game of backstabbing and intrigue in the house, building up a network of informants, spies and traitors, and whilst he is not smart enough to play the great game to the fullest, he is clever enough to pose a threat to those who incur his wrath.

Locations

The Fansus

To this day, he still resides at and presides over the Sea Gate, where he built his fortress of unchartered pleasures, the Red Keep.

The Histories

His earliest notable involvement in the matters of the hours was his meddeling in their affairs to worsen their conflicts for a while, to create an window of opportunity for his ascension. He has been known to have played a part in the Extirpation, although no one really knows what exactly he did. The Weft might suspect something.

Items

Tools

A piece of Marsyas Skin (6 Grail, 6 Edge) Something that was taken forcefully, but with acceptance.

A pebble of his doorsteps (6 Grail) You desire to step on it, but something tells you that you shouldn’t.

A particular knive (2 Edge) Legend has it that knives like this one slit the throats of the betrayed.

Ingredients

A furious red (2 Grail, 2 Edge) (paints) It is really livid.

A vial of indefined proportions (8 Grail) (poison 2) Drink it! Drink it! Don’t.

Influences

(Wouldn’t those be generic grail/ edge influences?)

Books

The flaying of Marsyas Before the translation: An ecstatic poem, written in greek, supposedly translated from phrygian. After the translation: An ecstatic poem, re-telling the flaying of Marsyas from an unusual perspective.

Before the study: This poem, allegedly written by an unnamed exalted of the firstborn, describes the flaying from Marsyas perspective, which he claims to have taken in his dreams. After the Study: So I take your skin, and with it your power, to avenge our lord. (Expand?)

Yields: Grail 4 lore, Edge 4 lore, fascination

The Betrayal of the hundred Before the translation: Copied from a stele in the Artemision by Maxim Gladwell. Ciphered in Vak. After the translation: This is a copy from a much older inscription, allegedly an account of the legendary Betrayal of the hundred.

Before the study: The donor who paid for the stele claims to have seen "Apollon's ascent", and pleads for Artemis to protect him from "the hundred-winged." After the Study: The description itself is not much more than a traumatized man's stuttering, but he seems to remember the words that were spoken quite well.

Yields: Formulae Excessive (Grail 10 lore), the Rite of betrayal, dread

On the Firstborn Before the translation: Maxim Gladwell research notes on the Firstborn. Ciphered in Vak. After the translation: The longer you work, the more scared you get. So did Gladwell. You don't dare to read the last page yet.

Before the Study: You are not sure if you should read this. Gladwell, whilst increasingly incoherent throughout the book, seems to have been on some kind of lead. After the Study: Oh, the Glory! You don't know what you did after you read the last sentence. It must have been a horrible thing, since there is a lot of Blood on your clothes. But you remember you did well, and you remember a syllable of what you've read before you burned the book in horror.

Yields: A syllable of the Firstborns name (Grail 12 lore), Edge 12 lore, Moth 4 lore, one passion, two fascination, on dread, one notoriety

Rites

Rite of Betrayal

This rite is one of the hardest fullfill, due to the fact that it requires that the victim accepts it‘s death freely, re-enacting the Lovers betrayal. Other than that you requre a tool to slay them with, an influence to be consumed, and a piece of his lore.

About the Firstborn

How They Feel

He doesn’t talk about it often, but when he does, he expresses a truly unique piety and humility towards the gods from stone.

Who They Blame

No one. At least this is a bigger prison than before. But if he has to blame someone, he'll blame the Hill-Queen and the Omnipede, just out of spite.

What They Hide

He hides a trinity of secrets: his own name, a grand secret of betrayal, and what he did to the Weave before her body was woven.

Relationships

Due to his origin he generally dislikes lantern.

Positive: The Gilded Insect: "A brother in heart and mind, and he has a very clear view of the things as they are." (He is easily swayed by the golden words of The Gilded Insect, for he shares its principles.) The Warp: "I’m pretty sure she likes me. Who doesn't, after all? (He loves The Warp for the beauty of her histories, but also envies her for them.) The Piper: “It's business." (Weather it is some shared interest or genuine respect, he is often seen with him.) The Names of the Gods from Stone: He has good relations to them, and can be considered their ally, albeit not a reliable one. (They are a tool, that in time might be betrayed.) The Stillwater: “It looks pretty.” (He has no clue what it really is.) The Cantharide: “That’s more like it.” (He takes a certain interest in her, for similarities of alignment, theme, and “personal matters”.) The Dongolopticon: “Been there, done that.” (Obvious.)

Negative: The Omnipede: "Why does it always have to be bugs?" (He hates it for its appearance, and for it’s words.) The Hill-Queen: “You know what’s worse than bugs? Enigmatic bugs.” (He hates her for what she is.) The Distinguished: "Who rewards those you betray anyways? What an Idiot. Ehm... don't tell her I said that.” (He hates her for her power, which he fears, but also belittles her for her concept of betrayal.) The Abess Sunset: “Of all the people here, she is the one I’d not want fight in a one-on-one.” (He does not hate her, but he is wary of her might.) The Weft: "I don't like her. Way to strict and uptight." (She distrusts him, and he does not trust her, and her insistence on the rules.) The Captain: “Who does he think he is, to talk to ME it his way?” (He dislikes his attitude towards himself.) The Skinner Box: “What is it? Don’t know, don’t care.” (More of an indifferent, but there is no such category.) Brother Grimalkin: “Only a weakling preys on the weak.” (Whilst he does like betrayal and mutilation, he does not like a kid ho rips out butterfly wings.)