Jaxus's homebrew: J'Qeju

J'Qeju

The Glacier that Preserves, Yozi of Crippled Souls, Demon King of Winter

The Primordial Iakiju had the prime desire to preserve thing. He preserved Creation from the Wyld and the ravages of time, ensuring that all was the same from day to day. Iakiju was a Lahar made of Uneroding Steel, Purified Resin and Mercury-slaying Salt, granting Immortality to favourites and setting whole cities in never ending days so they could relive the same moments over and over again.

But then the Primordial War came, and every moment hurting Iakiju: with mortals Exalting above their nature, ancient races turned to dust and Primordials being Warped by the Death of Daeva - all being acts of change and thus bane to Iakiju. This all made the Primordial sick, meaning the Exalted host easily defeated and captured his souls to force Iakiju to surrender. One of his souls, Segoy - Kingdom of All the Names -, was chosen for execution, turning the Primordial Iakiju into the Yozi J'Qeju. This moment had horrific consequences for the new Yozi, as his steel rusted, resin melted and salt diluted due to fresh water bleeding out of diplomatic wounds. As this now demonic lahar tumbled into Malfeas, J'Qeju tried to halt his change. But it was too late, his body was now made of freezing water. J'Qeju choose to freeze and accept his new fate over changing any more, becoming the Glacier that Preserves.

J'Qeju would however face more tragedy, this time from Solar Sorcery. As the Exalted Host mastered this occult art, one of them discovered that the Yozi that preserves had no new 3rd circle demons, only his old, unchanged Daevas. Whether through malice or an earlier manifestation of the Great Curse, several Exalts, lead by the Eclipse who had taken J'Qeju's surrender oaths the moment he stopped being Iakiju. This Eclipse lead to the summoning of the entirety of the Yozi's 3rd circle souls over Calibration in order to hold a 'feast' in their honour. After using special alchemically made liquors to intoxicate the demons, the Exalts place them in magic circle created by Sorcerous Workings, binding them to their material forms and making any damage done to them permanent . The Eclipse lead her small band of Exalts in systematically maiming and scarring the demons, crippling them one by one. J'Qeju felt every moment of this torture, filling him with self-pity and rage, eventually spawning Hrimfurzar, the Flagellant Giant of Rime, out of these negative emotions. Eventual the torture of J'Qeju's demons end and they were sent back the Demon City, but he became known as the Yozi of Crippled Souls. The eventual fall out did see the Exalts involved in the acts of torture, called the Crippling, being punished to avoid some retribution from the Yozis (namely releasing various behemoths imprisoned with them). J'Qeju's response was to seal up most of his 3rd circle souls so they couldn't be summoned by Exalts or hurt in amongst the other demons of Malfeas.

J'Qeju represents constants, the permanent, eternal things, conservatism, tranquillity, peace, immortality, sloth, repetition, unwillingness to change and things staying the same. He also has association with Ice and snow, due to their preserving affects, although when he was Iakiju, the associations where to steel, to resist violence, resin, the hold and preserve, and salt, which keeps food safe to eat. His current elemental association means that J'Qeju takes the form of a great glacier, grinding against layers of Malfeas as he tries to stay perfectly still in an ever shifting city. All who touch his surface are stuck there by his freezing grip before being crystallized over, preserving them forever. Only extreme levels of strength or magically induced heat can break a victim free of J'Qeju's embrace, avoiding the fate of an eternal sleep encased in ice, a fate met by many 1st circle demons and at least half a dozen Fire Aspect Dragon Bloods.