Just being a dark elf in Warhammer

The gods in the elven pantheon are divided into two categories: the Kadai pantheon and the Cytharai pantheon. The gods of the Kadai pantheon belong to the heavens, represented by Aisha, Kurnos, etc. The gods of the Cytharai pantheon belong to the underworld, represented by Hecate, Edraze, etc.

The religious history of the elves is very complicated. During the reign of the Everqueen, the elves would worship in the holy places of the gods, whether sacred caves, calm streams, or steep mountains. The elves would go to these places specifically for prayer or praise.

But as the scope of activities became larger and larger, Morathi changed the form of sacrifice and prayer. Instead of trekking through mountains and rivers to the temples or holy places of the gods, new temples were built on a large scale in settlements.

The emergence of the Cults of the Cytharai can be traced back to the time when Aenarion took up the Sword of Khaine, and the Cult of Khaine appeared from then on. But it's not so weird, and it's not in the category of cults. It's just that the manifestation is a little exaggerated. The believers have tattoos or scars on their faces, and sacrifice trophies, etc.

After that, Malekith left Ulthuan and went to Elsin Arwen. It was at this time that the Setharai sect flourished. The Setharai sect is a big basket that can hold everything. Cain, Anes Lema, Asati sect, etc. are all in it. As long as it involves the Setharai pantheon, it can be put in.

When Malekith was about to set off from Athos Talarian to the Chaos Wasteland, Morathi came. In addition to Morathi, there were many followers who came with Morathi. The appearance of these followers changed the city. From poets in the wine house to dancers and jugglers in the city square, hundreds of followers can be seen everywhere in Athos Talarian, but this is still normal.

What is abnormal is the religious personnel mixed in with the followers.

Malekith was disgusted with these changes, especially religion, which was related to his childhood experience. The priests showed uncooperative indifference to Aenarion more than once. When he came to Elsin Arwen, although he did not express opposition to the construction of any religious buildings in public, any priest who tried to build a temple in his territory almost had no good end.

Therefore, ordinary priests could not stand in his territory, but the priests brought by Morathi quickly broke this situation, and the priests quickly began large-scale missionary work in the city.

Because of the long-term lack of spiritual sustenance, Morathi's religious asylum was simply a savior for the elves of Athos Talarian, and there were a large number of elves coming to participate in religious activities.

Soon this behavior aroused Malekith's dissatisfaction, and a conversation between mother and son began.

"Your aversion to religion is unnatural. If you want to overcome this emotion, you must first admit your fear of religion."

"I am not afraid of those priests at all." Malekith responded calmly.

"But you have never prayed in the temple, nor have you performed any praise ceremony. Are you afraid of the gods?"

"Those gods have never favored Nagarys. I have no reason to do anything, let alone kowtow."

"Child, don't think that there are no gods in your life. Without Asuryan's recognition, your father cannot be the Phoenix King. It was the Sword of Cain that helped us defeat the demons. His first wife was the incarnation of Aisha."

"Sorry, I'm not interested."

"Even if it's not for your soul, for your power, religion is good. Controlling religion means controlling believers. Let them believe that you have received the grace of God, and they will unconditionally offer their loyalty."

"I'm not interested in this kind of scam. One day we won't need these gods anymore, and we will live better." Malekith sneered.

Silent Morathi was full of doubts about this.

As a result, the boomerang flew up.

In Har Ganthi, Malekith slowly rose from the blood cauldron under the gaze of Hellebron, declaring himself the incarnation of Khaine, the Son of Khaine...

--

While Malekith was still circling the Chaos Wastes, an event occurred in Lothern. When the Great Sundering ended and Malekith fled to Naggaroth, the Asur scholars saw this event as a sign that the Golden Age of the Elves had ended.

Lothern was shrouded in a lazy melancholy, just like the entire island. As supplies became more abundant, many elves in Ulthuan lost themselves in debauchery and extreme pleasure. The original aesthetic gatherings, readings of dark poems, and rituals of mutual comfort evolved into something more sinister. Through blood sacrifices and twisted blasphemous rituals, the cultists prayed to the forbidden power for relief from suffering.

Because the elves have always had a strong pursuit of sensation and emotion, the Cult of Thessarai attracted more elves by providing pure experience stimulation. Once freed from the polite etiquette of civilization, some elves begin to lose themselves in the cult's raw pleasures, indulging every depraved desire and indulging every forbidden thing.

Few realize the true extent of these cults' infiltration of elven society, or the secret motives behind the midnight plots of the shadowy leaders. Even fewer understand the true scale of these networks, for on the surface these cults appear to be independent, even forming unique and opposing cultures in various territories and cities, with no connection to each other.

Thus, Baelshana and the princes try to quell the cult's growing power through political and spiritual means, hoping to prevent the influx of new believers and restore the elves' uneasy spiritual balance.

In Prince Eltherin's mansion on the outskirts of Lothern, hidden among manicured orchards and perfectly laid out gardens, an unholy ritual was reaching its climax.

In the marble hall, purple and blue smoke swirled in the air, billowing from incense burners made of twisted animal bones. Elves, intoxicated by the hallucinogenic smoke, twisted their bodies on the red-carpeted floor, fishermen and nobles, servants and dignitaries lying decadently together. Some were immersed in nightmares that only they could see, crying, others were laughing hysterically, and others were intoxicated by ecstasy.

Around the crowd stood a dozen priestesses, topless, their exposed skin covered with symbols drawn with fox blood, their long hair combed into exaggerated spikes with fox fat.

High Priestess Damoren whispered a spell, her voice almost drowned out by the clamor of joy and pain. She wore the fur of a slain fox over her shoulders, and occasionally she paused in her chanting to stroke the fur with her hands. The anesthetic effect of the smoke sharpened her senses, and she felt the touch of the fur in her palms and fingertips, shuddering slightly.

As participants fell unconscious one by one, the hall gradually became quiet, some still sobbing, others sighing with satisfaction.

Damorian nodded and signaled a priestess to summon Prince Eltherin to participate in the final stage of the ceremony. Just as the priestess turned to walk towards the double doors of the hall, there was a noise outside, and a piercing cry that made all the priestesses turn to the door. She slid the jagged sacrificial knife from her belt, and at that moment, the door was thrown open.

Eltherin stumbled into the room, passing over the sleeping guests, blood gushing from the wound on his chest, and the bright red blood splashed on Damorian's face. He tripped over a person lying down and fell to the ground. Just as he was about to get up, the people outside the door rushed in.

Warriors wearing silver scale armor and white sashes rushed into the door, and the long swords in their hands flashed coldly. Their captain wore a towering helmet decorated with a leaping lion image with gold thread, and held a bloody long sword. The captain took out a scroll from his waist and showed the seal of Phoenix King Barshana.

"Prince Eltherin of Lothern! I am Cararel, the captain of the Lothern Sea Guard. I arrest you by the order of the Phoenix King. Surrender to the judgment of the Phoenix King!" The captain shouted loudly.

"Protect me." Eltherin crawled like a fish struggling on the river bank, passing over the unconscious elves on the ground, and looked at Damolin pleadingly.

"Put down your weapons and surrender! Hand it over to the Phoenix King for disposal, and mercy will favor you." Cararel said calmly.

"Kindness is the shelter of the weak!" Damorian smiled, her tongue slid out like a snake, licking the blood of Elserin on her lips. Then she whispered, lightly jumped over the elf lying on the ground, and rushed towards the intruder.

The other priestesses screamed like fierce women, followed Damorian's steps, their hands stretched out like claws, and their nails were sharpened into long spikes.

Karariel quickly retreated, avoiding Damorian's dagger, and the tip of the knife almost pierced his eyes. A soldier rushed forward, stretched out his arm, and stabbed the priest's body with a long sword. Damorian fell to the ground silently. But Damorian's death did not stop the other priests from continuing to attack.

These priestesses were extremely fierce. Two soldiers had their throats cut by their sharp nails and fell to the ground and died until other soldiers killed them with swords.

"Prince, you are injured. Come with us. We will treat your wound properly. Baalshana does not want to hurt you, but to help you." Kara Riel stepped over the sleeping debauchee with disgust, put away his sword, and reached out to Eltherin.

"Baalshana? A reckless man! A usurper! His judgment is like a crow pecking at a carrion. I curse him! May Nisu throw him into the darkest abyss!" Eltherin roared.

In his last struggle, Eltherin, once a hero and guardian, stood up with difficulty. With a contemptuous sneer on his lips, he grabbed a bone incense burner and sprinkled the burning coals on his robes. The thin fabric burned quickly like tinder, and the blue flames soon engulfed his whole body. The flames spread to the carpet, and the fire quickly spread to the tapestries hanging on the white walls.

Kara Riel and the warriors shuttled swiftly through the smoke and deadly flames, dragging as many unconscious cultists as possible to safety. But the fire became too fierce, and more than a dozen elves still fell helplessly in the sea of ​​fire. When a warrior tried to rush into the hall again, he grabbed the warrior's arm.

"It's too late, the flames will devour them, maybe they can now find the peace they have been pursuing."

--

(Chapter 234)

At the same time, something happened in Aesor Talarian. The Khaine sect led by Hellebron had already broken away from the scope of Morathi's version of religion. The Khaine sect that evolved to version 1.5 began to attack other Sesarai sects.

The massacre continued until late at night, and the smoke of the funeral poured out of the temple, covering the starry sky. Hundreds of voices echoed in the streets, and civilians huddled in their homes and dared not go out.

However, the followers of the Sesarai sect quickly fought back. The next night, the followers of the Khaine sect were attacked by believers from other temples and dragged to the altars of other gods for sacrifice. The homes of Khaine's followers were set on fire, and the flames illuminated the sky above the city, but the Cult of Thessarai did not approach Khaine's Temple or attack Hellebron.

When dawn arrived and the dead were counted, more than a hundred of Khaine's followers had been killed, and nearly half of the others had also died. Hellebron spoke to her followers, promising that Khaine would not let these crimes go unpunished, and that she was determined to make every unaffiliated citizen in the city fear Khaine, and would never allow any other sect to challenge her authority.

The next night, Khaine's followers appeared in the city, and fierce fighting broke out in the streets of the temple area. No one could match the cruelty of Khaine's followers. Hundreds of people died in the streets or were dragged to the altar and screamed.

Dawn did not bring peace, and the fighting continued. The sun rose, illuminating the blood-stained city, and the streets were filled with corpses. Hellebron stood in front of the temple door, with her sister standing beside her, and she encouraged her tired followers to continue fighting.

But the battle did not last. Alandrian took action, and the sound of horse hooves echoed in the square, and a team of knights appeared in sight. More than a hundred knights marched into the square, followed by neatly arranged archers and spearmen, and the army quickly spread to the surrounding streets.

"By order of Prince Alandrian, all sects and cults must immediately stop the riots, including you, your father is very unhappy with you."

"We are only fighting to protect ourselves!" Lyris retorted.

And Hellebron's heart was filled with anger, so angry that she couldn't speak at all. She couldn't believe that her father dared to intervene in her victory!

"There will be no more fighting, all temples will be closed, and a curfew will be imposed from dusk to dawn. Anyone who continues this kind of sectarian dispute will be arrested and tried as a traitor."

"I want to see my father!" Hellebron screamed.

"We have friends in the army!" Lyris echoed.

"Any Nagarys soldier who disobeys orders will be executed without appeal. As for your father, he sent me here to take you to see him." The captain smiled, and then his smile disappeared, "You are all arrested!"

The first year is the hardest.

Hellebron roared and vented, smashing the furniture a dozen times, breaking the gilded mirror, and even setting the expensive carpet on fire, but her father did not waver.

The second year.

Hellebron fell into deep thought, imagining hundreds of possible ways to escape. Her swordsmanship was superb enough to break out, but she was still half a day's journey from the city. There were no horses in the stables, and even if she was lucky enough to reach the city, it would be almost impossible to enter without being discovered. Another option was to flee eastward, but that kind of exile was no different from imprisonment and there was no comfort at all.

The third year.

Hellebron spent her time writing letters to Lyris, who was not imprisoned together, but one in the south and the other in the north. In her reply, Lyris described the cliffs where the prison stood and the sound of the waves crashing day and night. She knew that her letters would be opened and checked, and any suspicious content would be reported to her father, but this did not stop her from expressing her plans and wishes. The two sisters were in tune with each other and could capture the most subtle meanings in seemingly plain letters.

Lyris always advised Helleben to be patient, and Helleben encouraged Lyris to stay strong.

At first, Helleben refused to see Alandrian when he came frequently, and even threw objects out of the window to show her dissatisfaction. But when he stopped coming, Helleben wrote to him again to express her apologies and hope to make peace with him, perhaps touching his feelings and winning her freedom. But he did not waver, and he gave Helleben a simple choice: either give up her loyalty to Cain or continue to be imprisoned.

Helleben did not respond. She knew that she could not give up Cain. If she gave up her position as Cain's bride, it would mean admitting defeat and abandoning her deep ambition. She could not do this, and finally told her father reluctantly that she would not give up her love for Cain.

Alandrian did not persuade Helleben, but only told Helleben that the choice was always open.

For an elf, three years is just a blink of an eye, but for Helleben, it is a slow torture. Day by day, she realized that her dream was gradually fading.

While the sisters were imprisoned, Alandrian continued to use various means to make the sect surrender. He reopened the temples, including the temple of Cain. Without the two sisters, the power of Cain's followers was much less than before. For a moment, they returned to the past and became a military unit rather than a real sect. Occasionally, beastmen or greenskins, or even human raiders from the north were brought into the city to sacrifice to the God of Bloody Hand.

But things soon took a turn for the better.

"Civil war broke out in Nagaryth."

Helleben opened her mouth wide when she heard the news, and then shook her head. She thought she had heard it wrong.

"Prince Malekith returned from his journey in the north, but Morathi tried to prevent him from succeeding to the throne. I only learned of this news yesterday. The captain who brought the news said that he had entered Tar Anlek and Morathi would be sent to the court of the Phoenix King to be tried for treason." Alandrian's tone was stiff, as if he was reciting a letter.

"Morath will be judged by Barshana and the other princes?" Hellebron laughed so hard that tears streamed down her cheeks and she had to hold on to the edge of the table to keep herself steady. She laughed again, and the scene of Morath being humiliated appeared in her mind. "This is wonderful news, it's wonderful!"

Alandrian was confused about this. He looked at Hellebron with a puzzled look. He didn't understand why his daughter had such a big emotional fluctuation.

"Nagareth is fighting among itself, with factions still loyal to Morathi pitted against those who follow Malekith."

"These unrest will surely spread to Atho Talarian, your lieutenant to Malekith, who gave the city to you. In the past few years, the cult has been loyal to Morathi, and those priests are Morathi. Lackey's lackey and puppet, your enemies will take this opportunity to expel you." Heliben sat down again, her mind suddenly filled with possibilities, and then she began to analyze.

"I thought of this too." Alandrian said, sitting down again and waving for Heliben to sit next to him. He placed his gauntleted hand on the table in front of Helene and said in an earnest gesture, "I have a new proposal."

"You can ask for anything you want, no matter what, Father."

Then, Heliben waited for another two years. After Alandrian's layout was in place, the purge began. The Thesarai sect of Eshor Talarian was wiped out, the Cain sect flourished, and the 2.0 version of the Cain sect emerged.

Soon, the Great Schism began, and Alandrian responded to Malekith, abandoning Ertho Talarian and returning to Ulthuan. Due to the outstanding performance in hunting down the Shadow King and in various battles, Heliben's Cain Cult was recognized by Morathi, and the 2.0 version of the Cain Cult was upgraded to version 2.5.

When they came to Naggaroth, the remnants of the Thessa'ai sect from Ulthuan still had influence among the Druchi, but soon the 2.5 version of Khaine's sect in Heribon stood out and dominated the other sects. The smoke of pyres enveloped the cities of Naggaroth, and bloodthirsty thugs rampaged through the streets, killing and dismembering others in unprovoked outbreaks of violence.

Instead of calming down these extreme behaviors, Malekith tried to guide these Druchi's fanatical beliefs in a direction beneficial to himself. He declared that he was the incarnation of Kane and suppressed Hurley in the Kane sect system. Ben one.

At the same time, Morathi responded by gifting the death witches a sacred pool of boiling blood. Hal Goncy's death witches bathed in the blood of sacrifices and regained their youth. However, she hid a secret secret of the boiling blood pool, which resulted in the Death Witch's return to youth being only temporary.

Heliben and the Death Witches indulged in this bloody method, and eventually time passed and they grew old again. When they must bathe again to restore their beauty, they realize that Morathi has trapped them in dependence with the lure of eternal beauty. Heliben had refused this ritual baptism, and as a result she became old, withered, and even needed the blood of loyal believers to support her until she was bathed in the boiling blood pool again.

From this moment on, Heliben, who had old and new hatreds compounded, hated Morathi even more. With the emergence of the Boiling Blood Pool, the Sect of Kane was upgraded again and became version 3.0, which it has maintained until now.

However, this is only the Cain sect led by Heliben. Morathi also controls a Cain sect, but compared to Heliben's Cain sect, the Cain sect in Morathi's hands seems to be declining. It is only influential in Grond, and is still in power. Stay in the 1.0 era.

Heliben's Khaine sect is more of a radical sect, while Morathi's sect of Khaine is a conservative one. But there is no doubt that these two sects are cults, and neither is a good thing. Of course, there is also the Kane sect led by Malekith, mainly Kane assassins.

However, this is just the Cain sect.

Although sects such as Edreze, Nisu, Anes Lema, Hecate, and Marcelan are suppressed by the Cain sect, there is still room for activities. The Black Guard and some other warriors believe in Eldreze, the Dark Riders believe in Nisu, and the temples of Anes Lema are all over Krakarond and Cal Kalond, Hecate and Marcelan, not to mention .

Only the Assati Sect is somewhat special. The Assati Sect is very chaotic. There are many sects, such as the Cult of Excess, the Cult of Luxury, etc., but there is no Cult of Joy. Pleasure).

The Pleasure Cult has broken away from the category of Thessaly Cult. It is an upright Chaos Cult, dedicated to Slaanesh, who is in charge of pleasure, pain and extremes.

Very messy...

Assati is the elven god of pleasure and temptation, often depicted as a masked figure entwined with blood-red snakes. She has a deep rivalry with her sister Hecate, with both trying to kill the other multiple times. She is the mistress of all forms of temptation, and it is said that the mere sight of her causes mortals to collapse in utter and unquestionable humiliation.

For this reason, those Druchi who have infiltrated Assur society regard her as an important deity, for only she can unlock the Assur hearts and minds that the Druchi seeks to corrupt.

Although somewhat similar to Slaanesh, Assati does indeed exist. He is an upright elven god, not a trap or trumpet of Slaanesh. But the abilities possessed by Snake and He make the two look too similar. Without corruption detection, it is difficult to tell whether it is an Assati believer or a Slaanesh believer, or has already taken a step towards the embrace of Slaanesh. step.

There is a saying among Asur scholars that Slaanesh has been the most successful of the four Chaos Gods in corrupting and infiltrating Elven culture since the Elves first went to war with Chaos during the Great Invasion, offering great power to those who are determined to pursue it. The result was the creation of the Cult of Pleasure, which subsequently played a major role in a series of events leading to the Elven Civil War.

They categorize the Cults of Indulgence, the Cults of Luxury, and the Cults of Pleasure as one category: cults, which are targeted as a priority.

Of course, this is just the Asur's opinion. However, there is a reason why they believe this, and during the interrogation, the Swordmasters of Hoth obtained some information about the Cold Land.

After Duruki settled in Naggaroth, the Witch King Malekith issued an edict banning the Cult of Pleasure and replacing it with the Cult of Khaine. He believed that Khaine, the elven god of murder and war, could forge his people into a sharp sword and point it directly at Duruki's hated cousins ​​in Ulthuan. Desire and pleasure are endless. They do not respect any authority, even himself, and may backfire on him at any time.

The priests of the Cult of Pleasure were purged by Khaine's assassins, and a few fled to the Chaos Wastes or returned to Ulthuan.

Thanks to Drusala's previous identity, Dacuus learned a lot of unknown information. The Cult of Pleasure was officially banned, but Malekith's spies never completely destroyed the cult.

The Cult of Pleasure is still very active with the support and protection of Morathi. When these believers are secretly active in Naggaroth, they do not claim to be members of the Cult of Pleasure, but claim to be members of the Cult of Indulgence and the Cult of Luxury, putting on a layer of skin to confuse the public.

The members of the Cult of Pleasure lurking in Ulthuan are much more casual and flexible. When Asati is needed to deal with Asur, they will bring out Asati, and when not needed, they will use the name of Slaanesh. It is still one of the great scourges of Ulthuan. The Swordmaster of Hoth focuses on attacking it, but it has never been defeated because it is related to the elves themselves.

When Nakali escaped from the Great Vortex, he prayed to the great Slaanesh and sent soft dream fragments into the guide stone. Then these dream fragments floated throughout Ulthuan with the surge of magical winds.

In the southern Kingdom of Cosqui, a group of fanatical believers were touched by Nakali's magic. As they lay naked and performed crazy rituals, a strange desire entered their minds. This desire told them when and where to go to welcome a being who was about to come to the world.

In the Kingdom of Nagaryth, a group of lurking Duruchi received a message asking them to go to the east. To them, this seemed to be an order given to them by Morathi himself, and if they obeyed, they would be rewarded by Morathi.

In the Kingdom of Saphri, a long-time archmage who was dabbling in Slaanesh was driven by dreams and went to the west to explore a great secret.

Throughout Ulthuan, mages and Asur with second sight were trapped in the maze of dreams, and in their minds emerged the promises and threats displayed by the most powerful demons under Slaanesh.

Then a ragtag army of Slaanesh appeared around Nakali, which was why Slaanesh favored the elves.

Now, there are two obstacles in front of Dakwus, Morathi and Hellebron. After returning to Naggaroth, he must find an opportunity to knock Morathi out as soon as possible. The indulgent and extravagant sects are completely rotten. Even if they are not rotten, he dare not use this batch of Morathi's old team. He is ready to cut it off and directly let Agileth, Ren and Vethil come to thunder and sweep the holes.

Whether it is the Kadai pantheon or the Sesarai pantheon, he doesn't care. Today is different from the past. Asuryan's restrictions on the elven gods have loosened, and some things can be manipulated.

Not to mention that he owes some favors to the gods, religion is a very good tool in his eyes. It depends on how it is used and how it is operated. It is not good in Morathi's hands, but it is good in his hands. Lauren Loren's Cain Cult is good, and Naggaroth's Cain Cult is not good. Good is religion, and bad is illegal religion and cult, which needs to be banned and suppressed.

Strictly speaking, the Storm Weaver Cult is a legitimate sect of Sesarai. Who makes Maslan a Sesarai pantheon? It is a cult in the Asur society, but due to various reasons and needs, the Asur has always been flexible in this regard...

And the Storm Weaver Cult, which was newly established in Chapeiuto, is not in the category of cults at all. It is a religion that serves Duruchi and even the entire elven society in the future. It is good!

Elves have a strong pursuit of senses and emotions. This is the characteristic of elves and cannot be avoided.

As for Asati, he had no idea of ​​letting Hecate kill Asati, but in fact he had already done so... With the explosion of population, there will be more and more female sorcerers, and the result is that Hecate's power will increase. Then he also destroyed those sects that were closely related to Asati. As the situation changed, Asati might be killed by Hecate one day.

He had to protect Asati and let Asati exist to block Slaanesh. It was better to praise Asati than to praise Slaanesh. If Asati died, it would be a bit troublesome. He had to refer to Aida next door and copy and paste the tribe's system.

Reproduction was within the scope of Aisha, but sex could be included in the scope of Asati and be appropriately separated from Aisha.

He was going to start anew, referencing Lauren Loren's Indulgence Sect, extending from sex, and creating an Asati sect similar to a marriage agency or women's federation, doing some socializing, posting hyacinths and love ignorance, etc...

At least that's how it is now, let's run it for a while and see how it goes, because he owes Asati a favor. In the future, he didn't know if he would go too far, would Asuyan beat him up if he crossed the line? Or would he kill him directly? He couldn't say for sure. (End of this chapter)