Marlu
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Often mistaken for one of the greater demons and frequently called the Demon Lord, Marlu delights in death, destruction, and the devouring of still-living prey.
Tales tell of Marlu being seen around ancient ruins, prying open old chambers and delving into all manner of spaces. Common legend has it that he seeks others of his kind to loose upon the innocents of Elanthia. Just as some believe Koar is actually the last Drake, there are those who hold that Marlu is a true Ur-Daemon who sought asylum with the Arkati when the rest of his kind were killed or driven out of this realm of existence.
Marlu derives power from the summoning of demons, one reason that such practices are frowned upon by many worshippers of the Light Gods. Whether his power comes in the same manner as other Arkati, or from the loosening of the portals between dimensions, is unknown. Marlu is also drawn to all manners of destruction. More than any other of the Dark Gods, Marlu seems bent on destruction of a scale so massive that it might actually eliminate the world and all his worshippers with it. While Eorgina personifies power over others, Marlu is the embodiment of personal destructive power.
Marlu's preferred manifestation is that of a gruesome creature with glistening black skin, leathery wings and barbed tentacles. In manner, he is demonic. His symbol is a black six tentacled "star" on a field of grey.
Shrines, Statuary, and Holy Places
Solhaven Cleric Guild
In the Hall of Lessons inside the Solhaven Cleric Guild was a holy shrine dedicated to Marlu.
[Cleric Guild, Hall of Lessons]
Only a single candle provides light in this cramped chamber, and the very air seems to reject your presence with a startlingly cold chill. Huge tentacles carved from stone fade in and out of the darkness as the candle flame flickers softly. As the shadows and light dance across their surfaces, it gives the impression of being within the writhing, living mass of some otherwordly creature. A statue of some horrible beast stands to the southeast, a squat obsidian altar crouching before it.
Obvious exits: northwest
>look Marlu
Barely humanoid in shape, Marlu squats on top of a stout chest. His long, leathery wings are folded on his back. In place of arms he has a pair of barbed tentacles, one of which is coiled around the chest on which he is perched. The other reaches out with serpentine grace in your direction.
>touch Marlu
You reach out and touch the statue of Marlu.
Tendrils of blackest power wrap about you, circling and growing and squeezing until the outside world cannot be seen. The power is cold, yet burning hot, filthier than the most disgusting slime the mortal world could ever produce. The smell of fire and rotten eggs is suffocating and somehow intoxicating. A voice more terrible than anything your darkest nightmares could imagine laughs, amused at a joke only he could possibly find funny. "You wish my power now, stupid mortal being. In time, you will wish for death, for only in death's realm could you find escape from me." Flowing off like immense disease-ridden snails, the tendrils disappear, leaving you shaken to the core.
>look altar
Crafted of dark obsidian, the altar is placed directly below the horrifying gaze of the statue of the creature. A grey-tentacled six pointed star is engraved upon the front of the altar, while a dark book lies open upon it.
>look book
The book appears to be bound in some sort of leathery, black skin that glistens as the candle flame's light plays across it. Its yellowed and cracked pages are scrawled with a small passage in black ink.
There appears to be something written on it.
>read book
In the Common language, it reads:
"Seek not the attentions of Marlu, for the Destroyer has a fate in store for you that makes death pale in comparison."
Wehnimer's Landing Cleric Guild
Located in the Antechamber of Lornon is a table inset with fist-sized seals depicting all of the Lornon arkati, including one for Marlu. This area is not considered a holy shrine.
A black six-tentacled star on a field of gray is painted on the golden seal of Marlu.
The Broken Lands
Located in the Dark Shrine where the vruul are found. It is a mixed allusion to two colossal stairs from the dreamlands of H.P. Lovecraft. The first is the abandoned castle of the gods, Nyarlathotep as a malevolent presence. The other is the tower of Koth (a terrible demon) in the vault of Zin, which has the bas relief of unknown meaning, with the portal leading to the ghoul forbidden enchanted woods. The evil presence as a "palpable force" might also allude to "The Devotee of Evil", where the cosmic evil made manifest by gongs freezes witnesses into ebon statues like Satan in Dante's Inferno.
[Dark Grotto, Dark Cavern]
Age seeps from the walls of this huge chamber, smothering everything with a dust laden blanket of silence. There is a huge relief carved into the wall at the end of the long chamber, opposite the opening to the south.
Obvious exits: south.
>look relief
The image is that of a dark beast with leathery wings and blood red claws. The inscription below the image is in a strange language, and reads "Marlu lyxatis kort. Thro dyar K'mur."
[puzzle]
You feel a tingling sensation run through your body and suddenly you see...
[Dark Shrine, Chapel]
Here, surrounded by dark frescoes presenting frightening images of terror, foul beasts and macabre rituals, confronted by the huge, ghastly statue that dominates the center of the chamber, the sense of evil is a palpable force that threatens to smother and consume all that it can.
Obvious exits: northeast, northwest.
>look statue
The statue is large, over twelve feet tall. The central figure is a huge, hideous beast with black skin, leathery wings and large red claws. It stands atop a pile of skulls, surrounded by three smaller figures, with pointed tails, blood red eyes, and small, leathery wings.
Related articles
- The Gods of Elanthia - Marlu, the Destroyer (official documentation)
- Concerning the Worship of Marlu (essay)
- The Temple of Darkness Poem
- A Popular History of the Broken Lands
- History of Fash'lo'nae (saved post)
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