Salvation
Goal: Salvation is a religious cult and secret society on the Nexus which secretly seeps into many branches of society as part of a conspiracy. Following something often called "The Will of The World", they dedicated to establishing a new, incorruptible world by any means possible - even if it means killing the vast majority of humanity.
In many cases, Salvation could be thought of as a terrorist organization because many of them have a "kill all of the non-believers!" philosophy. Many districts consider them to be terrorists, as they have committed acts of murder in order to silence those who know too much.
Scope: Following the "Will of The World", Salvation has amassed approximately around 8000 to 10 000 followers scattered throughout the many different districts, with various mundane occupations and a few notable higher-ups even leeching their way into politics, finance, education, corporations, media, entertainment, etc. For example, Salvation has a strong influence on CHEIRON pharmaceuticals, being one of their primary sponsors through indirect affiliates. The Myrmidons are the most elite members of Salvation, who act as its military branch.
As a secret society, their members (few of which are in influential positions of power throughout the world, others bribed with the promise of power and immortality as a superior being) attempts to keep its existence as hidden as possible, and members who are questioned deny involvement. They even use brainwashing and hypnotism tactics and use tools to manipulate the memories of those who join up in order to cover up Salvation's existence. They were believed to have been eliminated many, many years ago.... but they have started to resurface in a string of strange events. Told to wait for generations, finally, after all these years, they finally put their teachings into practice once more. The assault on Halloween Town was but one of them, but many gang territories and slave markets were also burned down to ashes, and there are rumors that even the assault on Halloween Town was a ploy set out by one of their Myrmidons.
Doctrine: Among many different supernatural abilities, granted to them by their "God", they claim to have the gift of prophecy, following the path set out for them. Whether it is true or a delusion, it is unknown. Their teachings were considered too profound for ordinary people to understand, but the core ideas (doctrine) were to separate one's self from worldliness, to destroy greed, free themselves of lust, and divorce the soul from the body in order to cleanse and purify it. Salvation also adopted a "survival of the fittest" mindset and eliminated the weak and only the fittest (the chosen ones) survived. They tried to create a world without conflict where only the chosen ones resided and succeeded.
Those who followed their teachings with discipline and devotion would be reborn as a "new race", in an equal world with no war, conflict, poverty or starvation. They aim to do what they thought was needed to be done to bring them closer to the new world that was promised, as a chosen immortal people with the powers of Gods. Their highest members are not even humans, instead of something closer to perfect organisms, with abilities drawn from what they call "The Old World". In order to be initiated, they must integrate a piece of the original founder in their own flesh, as to become one with their God.
Ability: While normally even the more powerful member is no challenge to fight on its own, as most of their powers are at best at the incredible range (an exception, as they are usually not specced for combat but reconnaissance) they are incredibly stealthy and underhanded and use every tool in the book in order to reach their Lord's wishes. They are also extremely difficult to kill, having something close to regeneration but far more twisted. It takes a lot of punishment to take even their lower members down. On the other hand, it is rumored that their higher-ups are truly immortal.
THE MYRMYDIONSSalvation's specialized military branch. They deal in assassination, reconnaissance, and direct warfare. They aim to do what they thought was needed to be done to bring them closer to the new world that Salvation promises. There were some people that might call them terrorists. For a Myrmidon, first, they have to be raised with the teachings of Salvation from birth. Next, they have to be chosen to join the ranks of the elite and achieve great things.
The Myrmidons believe that those who follow "The Will of The World's" teachings with discipline and devotion will be reborn as a new form of being. Only this new species would be able to live equally, in a world without war or starvation for eternity.
Working closely with CHEIRON, they researched and invested in cloning so that they could create the new species as foretold, vessels that could host the power and will of their God. They went as far as to abduct a team of scientists from a research facility and managed to have them create the first ten human clones from the original founder's DNA and artificial uteruses. Those ten clones were the first generation of Myrmidons and were all given the same name: Vanguard. These clones shared the blood of the original Vanguard, making them more receptive to his will.
But these experiments were a failure. Even though everyone was supposed to be created equal, there were some random deviations, and other factors could influence the clone's development. The project was thus discarded, instead of focusing on making these clones adequate enough to fight for Salvation's sake.
Notable MyrmidionsElysion - The Eye That Beckons The DestructionStrength: Human
Agility: Human
Durability: Human
Magic: Extremely High
Willpower: Zen
The de facto leader of the myrmidons. A defective clone born with a degenerative disease, struggling to find a cure he went as far as to experiment on himself. He infected himself with a myriad of dangerous diseases that affected his flesh and soul alike, and overcoming their effects, he still could never find his frail and weakened body in full health. Perhaps that is why he loathed humans and monsters alike, who can enjoy healthy bodies. His sickness is, in fact, an old-world organism that melded with his spirit at birth.
By now, he doesn't consider his sickness a curse, but a trial from God, a disease which communicates to him alone through the festering wound in his eye. He wields powerful necromancy. The dead and slain can be risen once more by his strange forbidden sorcery. They're only half as strong, fast and durable as in their life, and have no access to their powers... but they make fine fodder. That is not in fact his most terrifying ability, but his immortality.
Elysion simply cannot be killed conventionally. Any wound, magical attack or curse launched at him will ravage his body and spirit... but almost like a disease, it will reform once more. This is outside his will or control... as if it were divine providence.
Ironically, despite his defect, he is the clone with the greatest amount of dominant genes that the founder's DNA possessed. Because of his abilities, his wiles and his status as the man closest to the founder, he took upon himself to lead the Myrmidons as the perfect successor, in the absence of their true leader.
He also possesses a medallion containing a gauntlet's silver finger. This relic is powerful, and lets him unleash very high... even extremely high levels of lightning from his fingertips. This lightning is cannibalized from his soul... but thanks to his immortality and the fact he is already in near-constant agony... he really couldn't care less. It is also a gift from God.
Elysion has the rare gift of consumption for the sake of his powers... but this consumption draws inwards, cannibalizing his own spirit and self. At the same time, his immortality restores it, albeit warped. This eternal cycle is in a way yet another gift from God.
Intimacies:
Greater Cause: To bring about a new world.
Greater Principle: "The Will of The World is nature's providence. Those who go against it are rebels and must be purged."
Indra - The Children of The Night
Strength: Heroic
Agility: Heroic
Durability: Fantastic
Magic: Very High
Willpower: Zen
A collective rather than an individual, it is a melded reject of countless failed clones, infants that melded and merged together to form a stronger.... greater sum than any of its individual wholes. And yet, its heart was always empty. It yearns for something more, to be closer to its own ideal self. It adores battle and war and constantly seeks to crush strong foes. Its said that it uses some kind of connection to assimilate the knowledge and memories of old warriors... and incorporates them into his own martial skill. Basically, he is a chimera of over a million warriors, all forgotten children of devastating wars.... now forgotten to time itself. Due to this strong sense of self despite being a collective, it was able to harness a gift that made it closer to its founder than any other. It consumes the weak willed souls of the warriors it kills, and uses them to sustain itself, and can use them to regenerate superficial wounds quickly or slowly heal deeper ones in a matter of hours... or even days.
Its not only the soul's energy that it will consume, but its memories and experience. However, souls of Zen and beyond can sustain their individuallity, influence him in subtle ways... and perhaps even tear out of him in time.
So long as they die fighting.
Ultima. An ability that is destruction incarnate. By ingesting large amounts of energy, he then releases it all around him as a destructive heroic explosion that grinds everything around him to dust. A blinding light of God.
Intimacies:
Lesser Cause: To fight a truly strong warrior.
Lesser Cause: To bring about a world where only the truly strong exist.
Lesser Principle: "This world must change if it is to evolve. Such is the Will of The World."
Lesser Tie: Nidhogg (Hate)
Ana - Beast of DelusionStrength: Incredible/ Fantastic(Can reach Legendary strength in bursts if fused with her creator)
Agility: Incredible
Durability: Incredible/ Fantastic
Magic: None
Will: Average
Salvation's most recent myrmidon. However, in an extremely controversial move, she was actually brought in as one of them despite not being a clone at all. A complete outsider, she was brainwashed and corrupted against her will and reconstructed into one of them through forbidden magics. Because of this, she is shunned by everyone else in the organization... save her sire, who genuinely views her as a daughter. Her loyalty to the organization... no, her father.... is utterly unshakeable. And yet, sometimes she sheds tears, for no reason at all. How truly strange. No, she must not think of these things. Following orders diligently is enough.
She had no magical affinity in the slightest, and her soul was nothing special. But her physical potential was quite exceptional, nothing less could be expected from a monster plucked from the Hallow Queen's court... the Halloween Town. If the Queen were to face her... the consequences could be monstrous for Ana's psyche. If she absorbs enough organic biomass, she can use it to repair herself. This gives her a healing factor that's nothing to scoff at, which potentially heals most wounds in a matter of seconds, but grievous ones might take a bit longer, and she needs to reattach her limbs so regrowing them entirely isn't really an option.
She also will die if both her head and heart are torn off and crushed. When merged with her father, even partially she becomes even stronger... and can even reach legendary power in her strikes if she is hooked up to a powerful source, at the expense of her body's structural integrity and ultimately her life. Because of this, it's better if a powerful healer was also present in the case of such a fusion, to make sure she doesn't break down.
Intimacies:
Greater Tie: Her father (Paternal Love)
Lesser Tie: Serana (Dutiful Love)
Lesser Tie: Halloween Town (Nostalgia)
Lesser Tie: Hallow Queen (Sorrow)
Lesser Tie: Salvation (Fear)
Nidhogg - The Thousand Changes (Picture is a path)A mere vessel. A defective clone of the founder, who managed to still connect with the will of the world. At least, so he claims. If one would analyze his genetic code, he would indeed be the closest to the founder, even compared to Elysion. And yet, his behavior, personality.... everything he says or stands for is a pure insult and assault to the organization. be the truth, outside his cute daughter, no salvation member seems to like him. Every time he's nearby, every time he speaks, a sudden feeling of unease fills their hearts. It's as if there was no real way to tell what he was truly thinking if he was even on their side at all. In fact, the only reason he was chosen was for his strong abilities and only as a temporary replacement. Because of this, he has very little power or influence, and only acts as a direct weapon when necessary. But all is not as it seems.
During the affront in Halloween Town, he was also shot and seemingly died... only to reappear once more in the campus town. One might be mistaken to believe that that bullet was instead some kind of relic... or message. Currently, he is tasked with spying on the elven queen and enable her rise to power, to turn her into a tool to Salvation's ends.
Oh, if only they knew. Perhaps they shall be her puppets soon enough.
Tanathos - Vanguard of Apocalypse (Deceased, killed by Nidhogg)His corpse is somewhere deep within the depths of the forest.