Ashelia's Antiquities

Once, long ago, there was a king by the name of Vendrick whose strength and wisdom was so great that he could command even the spirit world to do his bidding. His rule was long and prosperous, but even a ruler such as he must eventually relinquish his throne when death claims him, and as he grew old Vendrick began to fear that his great kingdom would falter and fade with his death. Thus he called upon all his authority and power to strike a deal with the gods: He would offer his life, his families life, and those of his most trusted retainers as a sacrifice to the gods, and in return his Kingdom would endure and spread to the ends of the earth. With his command over the spirit world he would be able to ensure that he, his family, and his retainers would be able to rule eternally from beyond the grave and allow his kingdom to bring prosperity to all.

One god answered his call, but all was not as it seemed. Unbeknownst to Vendrick, the god had in fact forged a pact with the king of a neighboring kingdom who was jealous of King Vendrick's success, and in return for his daughter's hand in marriage the deity would bring ruin to Vendrick's realm. Vendrick, unknowing, sacrificed himself and those close to him, and in short order the kingdom fell to chaos. With no ruler and no apparent heirs to the throne, the deity was free to sow dissent throughout the realm to ensure its fall. It was not long after that the neighboring king marched his troops across the border and declared that all that had once been Vendrick's was now his. King Vendrick's family was devastated, and in their grief they allowed their souls to fade away into nothingness.

However, the god's cruelty was not yet complete.

Even beyond his deal with the foreign king, the god possessed a malicious desire to punish Vendrick, a human, for daring to think he could forge an eternal kingdom beyond death. To ensure that none of his blood would ever reach so high, the god cursed all Vendrick's remaining descendants with a corruption that sank to their very soul. He then laid down a decree that so long as they walked the earth they would know no peace: no people shall welcome them, no home shall shelter them, and their hands shall bring only ruin. At that moment their bodies changed, taking on the likeness of demonic oni. Their skin turned red, horns grew from their foreheads, tails sprouted below their spines, and great claws formed where once they had hands. Satisfied, the god returned to the heavens with his new bride, and left those cursed souls to their fate.

And yet, where hope might have faltered, anger prevailed. Vendrick refused to accept such a fate for simply wanting the best for his people. Fueled by his fury, he sought out the strongest of his blood and fed on their curse, allowing them to lead normal lives while he bode his time and gathered strength. Every few generations he would lend one his power in return for their aid, growing further to his goal each time, a cycle which has reached it's culmination with Ashelia. As with the others Vendrick absorbs the curse within her, allowing her some semblance of normalcy while allowing her the use of his magic so that together, they may kill a god.