Byhatzael   Wherever someone lies. Wherever someone plans the betrayal of another. Wherever someone sows the seeds of another's downfall, I am there. — Byhatzael     Prying, spiteful, and sadistic, Byhatzael is the youngest of The Throne and Castle's seven sons. A possessor of men and edifices, he inhabits the role of The Castle's spymaster and saboteur. He is a voice who whispers from the walls, sowing paranoia and discord wherever he is allowed to take root, and seeks to reveal the evil he believes sleeps in the hearts of all men.     Table of Contents Backstory Personality Abilities Skills & Stats Usage Notes Gallery Author's Notes Backstory In the layers of Hell there stands a nation and a great demon Pantheon, and they are one and the same. She is the lands and the sea, the fields and the fortifications, and she is — perhaps most of all — the Throne and Castle. She is the shell of that which once ruled the world of men and gods alike; the trappings of royalty it shed as what it was burned away into what it is now.   From Her hateful heart of flame were seven sons born. Beings of brass and smokeless fire, they are the inheritors of Her will to blister and burn all who resist Her, seeking to judge and punish the kingdoms of men.   SPOILERS Kailios Arescotti is a falsehood; a convenient lie crafted by Byhatzael and his disciple Delim to allow him easy entry into the Bifrost Terminal. Here, they plan to conduct a ritual that, if successful, would allow the demon to slip into the skin of the building, putting it under his possession and — if Delim's theory is correct — every world it touches. But of course, the best laid plans often go awry, and neither of them were expecting the Terminal to already be occupied.   Byhatzael God of Lies and Betrayal Aliases/Nickname(s) The Eyes Within the Walls, The Observer, The Devil Profile Race Greater Demon Pronouns | Gender | Sex | Sexuality He/Him | Cis | Male | Asexual Age Ancient Weight | Height | Build Variable | Variable | Variable Hair | Eye | Skin Color Variable | Green | Variable Distinguishing Features ✦ Three eyes Job/Vocation Spymaster Hobbies ✦ Causing civil wars ✦ People-watching ✦ Card games Creator LyreLiar & Nikomancer Personality ✦ On the Surface When stripped of a cover to hide behind, Byhatzael is just as nasty a piece of work as one might expect. In his eyes, no love, no loyalty stands in the face of mortal desire. To him, the world is a cruel and ugly place, and driving it to its own self-inflicted destruction is something he takes great satisfaction in. Compassion and trust are largely foreign concepts to him — so antithetical to his nature are they that he is completely incapable of experiencing them in most circumstances. His dim view of humanity is informed both by what he is and the abuse he has been witness and subject to over the millennia of his existence. As such, shows of guilt or kindness are just that — a show, and one he will continue to put on even when his true identity has been revealed. He never stops trying to catch people unawares, and never stops plotting their downfalls. ✧ What Lies Beneath In truth, Byhatzael knows well what he is: A mirror held up to humanity, a reflection of all its treachery made manifest. He loathes himself as much as he loathes mankind for the cruelties it inflicts upon its own. He is a miserable and lonely creature, desperate for the world to prove him wrong but incapable of ever recognizing true selflessness should he bear witness to it. Only his connection to The Throne and Castle supersedes the cauterization of his ability to connect to others, and as such, only Her subjects might ever see another side to his personality — one even he is likely unaware of. In spite of his nature as a god of betrayal, Byhatzael is intensely loyal to his Nation and Her people, and though he will complain endlessly about his brothers when given the chance, he would lay his life down to avenge them were anything to happen to them. And in that same vein, though he has had very little opportunity to ruminate on it, Byhatzael also cares deeply for Delim. For better or (almost certainly) worse, the demon essentially raised him to be the man he is today. He loves to gloat when given the rare opportunity to do so without consequence, and will take it whenever presented to him — a mistake one might potentially exploit to bring about his downfall. ✦ Socializing & Relationships ✧ Outside Looking In A master manipulator, Byhatzael is whatever he needs to be to get what he wants from people. He knows just the right words to say and buttons to press to have them dancing on his strings. With few exceptions, his relationships are measured in how useful he finds an individual. He doesn't really think of people as, well, people; to him, they're pawns to be played as needed and discarded just as quickly. Even when his true identity is revealed, he will attempt to prey on people's sympathies, pretending that he's simply a wounded soul who can be brought around to their side with enough time and patience. ✧ Inside Looking Out Only other members of The Throne and Castle ever see Byhatzael's true self. Playful but volatile, and with a deep mean-streak, he has never felt the need to curtail his impulses to please others. To his brothers, he's bratty, needling, and whiny, his inferiority complex becoming painfully obvious around them or when speaking about them. But to Delim, he's playful, chatty, and genuinely helpful, though he still has a mean sense of humor and can be moody and bitter. Likes Watching people's lives fall apart Sour food Gossip Cheating at cards Delim Dislikes Being touched Self-righteousness Losing the upper hand His real brothers Everyone else Abilities ✦  Edifice Suborning Adornment  Byhatzael wears buildings as a human spy might wear a disguise. From a one-room hovel, to every building within a walled city, there is no structure too humble or grand for him to control. Once in possession of a building, his command over its structure is absolute, allowing him to twist its insides to suit his needs. From ground floor doors that lead off rooftops to ever-shifting labyrinths, he is able to mold spaces he possesses to his own design, making them infinitely large and complex on the inside. Byhatzael may gain control of a building by placing his mask upon its "heart". What constitutes the heart is different for each building, but he will be instinctively drawn to it upon entering. Once placed, he is considered to be “possessing” the structure, taking up residence within its walls. There is no limit to the size or complexity of the structure he is able to possess. However, in order to leave a building he is possessing, Byhatzael must relinquish his hold over it, retrieving his mask and placing it on his face once more. Byhatzael’s mask is really the skull of his demonic form. If his mask is ever stolen, be it off his face, or plucked from the thing he attached it to, he is forcibly ejected from any building and people he is currently possessing, and trapped in his human form until he can retrieve it. The mask cannot not be harmed by mortal weaponry, but can be damaged by magic. Destroying it will instantly banish him back to Hell. ✦ The Shape of Her Hate The Throne and Castle’s hate is multifaceted. But it is foremost obvious, bold, and indulgent; a manifestation of viridian flames that shreds matter to the smallest particles possible. A paroxysmal firestorm tearing across the fields and townships, slaying the unwelcome envoys of other nations outright and kilning the clay skin of her huddled citizens as they chant “Not upon us, oh Queen, not upon us." From within, Byhatzael burns with a smokeless, viridescent fire that blisters the air and sickens those who spend too long in its presence. This conflagration can wrap around his weapon, set things in his immediate vicinity ablaze, or be lobbed as a projectile to punish those foolish enough to think distance offers defense against this caustic flame. This flame is highly radioactive, and anyone unrelated to The Throne and Castle will take magic radiation damage if they're within around five feet of it or any fires started by it. This isn't as deadly or severe as real radiation sickness; it's more like getting a full-body sunburn that can progress to a real burn if you stay within the effect radius for too long. These flames can be put out as you would a normal fire, but if left unattended, will burn for seven days before snuffing themselves out. ✦ Of Brass and Smokeless Fire Made Byhatzael's demon form is that of a giant, horned brass skeleton animated by a green flame from within. Three hollow eye sockets align on his jawless skull, his ribcage open and jagged like a mouthful of teeth, continuing down past his four arms into a snakelike lower half. He rarely moves about freely in this form, instead emerging from the wall of a possessed building like some sort of monstrous growth. Like his mask, he is entirely immune to mortal weaponry in this form, only able to be harmed via magical means. In either form, Byhatzael is fire retardant and won’t be harmed by normal fire of any type. Fire created by supernatural means may harm him —however, he is still highly resistant to it, and it will do less damage than other forms of magical attack. Similar to the flames he uses for offense, being within ten feet of Byhatzael’s true form exposes individuals to the caustic aura of hatred that makes up his fire, burning them even at a distance. Those immune to radiation, fire, or both take decreased damage. ✦ The Only Truth That Matters When Byhatzael lies, he does so with the full authority of that which once was the Eternal Empress. No magical force can detect his lies, no matter how audacious or obviously false they may be. People may disprove his lies through mundane means, but even as they do, their better senses betray them and leave them with a gut feeling that they are making some miscalculation or mistake. If Byhatzael tells someone the sky is purple, they will walk outside, look at a blue sky, and their first thought will be, “What is wrong with my eyes?” ✦ No Stars Will Herald Him Divinations for the precise presence of Byhatzael fail. The Deceiver of Fools is announced instead by subtle omens. General divinations by tea leaves, coins, drawing bones, casting lots, cards, and more done in his presence all scream to bystanders about the tragedy to befall them. ✦ No Gates Shall Bar Him Byhatzael spites the notion that any fortification raised or gate lowered may halt him. Sometimes this takes the form of him flawlessly lockpicking the door or revealing that it was never locked at all. Even magic circles warded to repel demons do nothing to stop him. His ability to bypass barriers is a categorical truth of his existence.  The only exception to this rule he knows of is wards made with him targeted as a singular entity that bar no other. Such wards explore his lonesome role as the pariah, as such a ward welcomes all others besides him. Beyond that one singular limitation, no wall or gate can stop him… Which is why the fact that the Bifrost Terminal’s sealed gate constitutes a second exception to this rule is profoundly troubling to him. ✦ The Liar's Kingdom Come As a god, Byhatzael exerts a constant thematic gravity that pulls reality towards his center. A sort of narrative force that contorts the world to be more like him, to manifest his themes, reflect his dismal worldview, and draw all the nations of man into his web. In his presence, promises are broken, relationships conclude, secrets are kept and shared only when they can do the most damage, and the best-laid plans go astray. ✦ Laughing at the Damned Byhatzael's place is as witness to the atrocity of the human condition. Every lie, every betrayal, every failure of humanity to live up to their potential for goodness, he gazes upon from the Godplace. To witness the infinity of atrocity and nurture it by existing as the locus of the anima of deceit is a torturous existence. But Byhatzael takes cold comfort in watching people suffer from their own mistakes. Watching from afar as someone sows their own demise and reaps it gives Byhatzael an enormous boost to his anima, and so he pursues opportunities to orchestrate and observe such passion plays wherever he can. ✦ Separation and Isolation Byhatzael is a statement from the goddess that forged the universe to her human subjects that they may never truly know each other and they will find only pain in the attempt. Thus does Byhatzael rule over lies and secrets and the schism and isolation between people that they create. ✦ Sealing Lips With Flames Byhatzael observes somebody as they learn a secret. As soon as the weight of the information they learned sets in, Byhatzael appears beside them and hushes them with a chuckle. In that moment, they know that if they speak the secret they have learned, they will die in a spontaneous pyre of green fire. ✦ Keys to the Oubliette Byhatzael may banish people into an empty netherworld where they are beyond the reach of their friends and exist in total sensory isolation. Each time he does so, he leaves behind a single hot brass key. The temperature of the key ranges from uncomfortably hot to the touch to inflicting third-degree burns, depending on how much disdain he felt for the target of this power. This spells certain death for most mortals, but anybody who holds one of the Oubliette keys may free the person that key corresponds to. Furthermore, much to his frustration, this power doesn’t seem to be perfectly effective, and history is replete with individuals who, through trickery, willpower, clever magic, or other means, managed to break free from the oubliette. ✦ The Secretmost Secret During the closing days of a great civil war between the gods to decide the fate of the universe, the Eternal Empress struck her most beloved daughter with a spear that kills with certainty, dooming her to certain, eventual death. As she fell, she imagined the fate her daughter would face, and she dreamed a grey world of mourning for her daughter to rest within and a perfect Lead Prince to rule over this sunless and starless realm. Before the dream could be finished, she landed within the pit and kindled the fires of Hell with her own rage, and it burned and kilned whatever she once was away until she became the lesser thing she is today. She birthed six sons to punish and scourge the world that would dare make her dream such a bleak dream. Her daughter is yet to die, but one day she will. That portrait of a sunless land is yet to be completed, but one day it will be. And that Lead Prince who was to be her first son is yet to be born, but one day he shall be. Until that day, Byhatzael bears a grim secret: the name the Lead Prince of the Underworld, Byhatzael’s eldest brother, will one day have. Until that day, the word itself is the secretmost secret, a syllable of destruction that contains the Void within it and destroys the souls of those who hear it. Skills & Stats What does it mean to be a god? Ask a god from Alaia and they may tell you that to be a god is to dwell within your works. Ask someone less poetic and they will tell you the same thing more sensibly: “Gods are facts of the world.” They are not people — they are ideas, concepts, even entire philosophies made manifest. "Demon" is more a political distinction than a literal one. They are the losers of a cosmic civil war between the gods, punished and trapped in Hell for the rest of eternity. Weapons None ✦ General Stats ✦ Strengths ✧ Weaknesses Flawless liar Doesn't need sleep, food, or water Unaffected by extreme temperatures Cannot be vanquished by mortal (non-magical) weaponry Can become immaterial when wearing his mask Easily caught off guard by true acts of heroism and selflessness Likes to gloat Will risk destruction to protect Delim Pupils glow and give away his position in the dark Trapped in his human form without his mask Instantly banished if his mask is broken ✦ Psychological Stats ✦ Charisma ✦✦ ✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧ Kindness ✦ ✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧ Patience ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧ Intelligence ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ Confidence ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧✧ Perception ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ Discipline ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✧✧✧ Psych stamina ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ Courage ✦✦ ✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧ Caution ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧ Honesty ✦ ✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧ Loyalty ✦ ✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧✧ Maturity ✦✦✦✦✦ ✧✧✧✧✧ Creativity ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧✧ Cleanliness ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✧✧✧✧ Work ethic ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧ Physical Stats ✧ Physical Strength  ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✧✧✧ Speed  ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧ Magical Strength  ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧✧ Constitution  ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✧✧✧ Physical Defense  ✦✦✦✦✦ ✧✧✧✧✧ Dexterity  ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧ Magical Defense  ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✧✧✧ Stamina  ✦✦✦✦✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ Usage Notes ✦ BTOCT Byhatzael may be used in anyone's rounds if they wish, for whatever purpose they want, except for shipping or breaking the premise of the OCT. He may be banished, but not perma-killed without consulting us first. Gallery Human form with third eye visible. Byhatzael's Sigil [Art by  Tenitorme ] [etc] [etc] Author's Notes ✦ Character theme is Deceiver of Fools by Within Temptation .