Facciones IV: Luciferinos

Leer más... Angels are undying creatures, and when compassed by the span of an infinite lifetime, any setback short of destruction is a temporary thing.

Not every Hell-bound spirit lost faith. Not every fallen angel gave up hope. Even in defeat, some stayed true to the principles that led them to rebel. Love for mankind. Loyalty to Lucifer. A committed belief that their cause was right, and that Heaven and the obedient Host were wrong.

Luciferians are as ready to do battle for their beliefs today as they were when they were hurled, spitting defiance, into their gloomy prison. While many bowed, bitter and tormented, they are unbroken. Indeed, many find much encouragement in their new circumstances.

The world may be ruined, singular and mechanistic, but by the same token, there seem to be no angels left running the show. Even a vastly weakened army can triumph if it takes the field unopposed.

Add to that the heartening fact tht they were able to escape imprisonment in the first place. If they are truly anathema to God, hated in His eyes and, by the words of His messenger, condemned to eternal torture... how has it come to pass that so many have re-entered the world of men? The Cryptics may mutter about divine subterfuge, but isn't it simpler to think that God's power is simply fading? That the demons of hell find freedom because God's cages have lost their strength?

Most important, they point in triumph to Lucifer's absence from Hell. The Luciferians believe, not that he merited some unique punishment, but that he escaped punishment altogether. Perhaps their strongest stayed free, because their foes were unable to confine him! perhaps the sundering of the Abyss is his doing! Perhaps the Adversary waits even now, watching to see who is still ready to fight... and who will prove too weak.

Rivals

The Luciferians are surprisingly tolerant toward Raveners. Since the Raveners retain their military bent, Luciferians tend to regard them as soldiers with admirable zest. They just need some discipline, and they'll be useful once again.

The same sort of condescension and backhanded goodwill extends towards the Faustians, only in reverse. To a Luciferian, a Faustian has sufficient discipline and the right general idea they just need to remember who's boss.

No, the factions that earn Luciferian ire are the hesistant, the cowardly, the muddlepated and indecisive: the Cryptics and the Reconcilers.

Cryptics are like swimmers who question the dive in midair. They're so obsessed with sorting through myriad possibilities that they give little thought to the facts on the ground and the here and now. Neurasthenic navel-gazing is beneath the dignity of any Elohim, but nonetheless the Cryptics' main preoccupation. To the action-oriented Luciferians, the contemplative questioners are ultimately useless and weak.

The only thing worse than being weak is being treacherous. Therefore, the only thing worse than a quivering Cryptic is an ass-kissing Reconciler. These pathetic, deluded Elohim are like Swimmers who turn in mid dive and try to climb back on the diving board! Apparently they weren't paying attention when the full implications of rebellion were discussed, nor when the heavenly Host damned them to the Abyss. You'd think a term in hell would show them the truth about God's forgiveness, but instead they cling like lampreys to the idea of making peace with Him.

Houses

Lucifer ruled the First House, and Angelic loyalties die with difficulty. Many Devils still rally to the banner of their once (and future?) lord. Some may simply believe that, as Dawn Spirits themselves, their place in the Morningstar's new world will be a high one. Others though they would never admit it look to Lucifer to fill the void left by God's rejection. They crave orders to carry, and the Adversary was always good at giving them.

Some Devourers who fought well in the war remain loyal, buoyed up by memories of glory and hopes for revenge. By and large, these Devourers are less burdened by Torment than their fellows in the Ravener camp. Unlike the nihilists, Luciferian Devourers still have hope that something can be built from the world once all the clutter is cleared away of course.

Scourges are also attracted to the Luciferian cause for many of the same reasons as Devils. As the second rank of nobility among the Houses, there's a certain appeal to siding with the onetime Highest Angel. More than that, there's a profound appeal to believing that the Unholy Host is not just rising again, but that it never really fell. if that's true, then maybe the punishments meted out by God and declared by Michael can be foiled as well particularly the devastating curse of human decay and death.

Despite this promise, few Slayers are Luciferian. As members of the Last House, there's no snob factor to appeal to them. More than that, though, the Slayers, whose punishment was arguably the most horrifying, seem the least able to believe that the first war was anything other than a decisive loss for the rebels.

Leadership

Grifiel, the highest rebel of Wild House, remains loyal to Lucifer despite all the misery and defeat he has endured on the Morningstar's behalf. Once a noble and honorable warrior, Grifiel has discarded his scruples and ethics one by one along with his beauty, his sanity and his ability to love. He follows the Adversary less from conviction than from mad obsession. Denying Lucifer would be like admitting that everything he has lost and suffered is pointless. He'll be hurled back into Hell or reduced to nothing at all before giving up the rebellion.

While Grifiel retain the cunning and ruthlessness one looks for in a front-line leader, the Scourge Nazriel has emerged as the ultimate leader of the Luciferians -until the Morningstar returns, of course. Styling herself Nazathor, Princess of Majestic Liberation, she maneuvers her faction with care and caution- striking hard, but quickly sinking back into the safety of the night. Reputed to be Lucifer's lover, few dare oppose her.

Goals

The primary goal of the Luciferian faction is, obviously, the location of their leader. Accomplishing this involves a threefold plan. First, Luciferian outriders are sent to scour the globe for any sign of demonic activity. Initially they were sent individually, but too many lone wolves got picked off by Earthbound, hostile demon factions or more mysterious beings. Now they're sent in packs.

Secondly, the Luciferians are keeping a close watch on the media. Specifically, they're trying to invest money in it and gain influential media thralls in order to get first dibs on incoming news that might involve demons. It also gives them an advantage covering up Luciferian activities, as well as a platform for sending out covert messages. But, as with the outriders, the Luciferians have found unusual opposition in the media as well.

Thirdly, the Luciferians are mounting an aggressive communications campaign among the fallne. Lucifer himself hasn't answered the call, but sooner or later, every hell-damned Elohim whose name is remembered by a Luciferian can expect an invocation asking for information.