type: character
description: banished to the shadow realm for eternity
aliases:
- Aeghan
tags:
- oc
- published
pagelink: https://mernolan.neocities.org/oc-database/everking/eiriogh.html
Eiriogh
Race | Gender | Background |
Fomorian |
Male |
Fire God, Warrior King, Tyrannt & Demon |
appears anywhere between 30 to 60 years old
6' (1.82m) not including horns
Fire Spiter, Lord of the Bonfire, Aodhán, Ei Riogh, Everking
A wrathful deity of primordial fire who's been imprisoned for a millenia for traitorous deeds against humanity - at least that is what people believed before he was forgotten and his prison lost to time entirely. Centuries of being exiled and forgotten has reduced him to a dark, single minded creature that waits for the opportunity for someone to make contact and free him from his chains.
Not only controls, but IS element of fire in all its related forms (smoke, molten rock, ash, the sun and concepts such as summer, enlightenment, the spark of life from time to time); he is a shapeshifter that can take on many forms, but seems to reflect his current mental/emotional state and attitude towards others.
Centuries later in the current era, Eiriogh is awakened by a reckless youth Eric Brennus who agrees to let Eiriogh hitch a ride (poses) him in exchange for being brought back from the brink of death. This exchange results in Eric becoming the steward of fire in Eiriogh's place, granting him Eiriogh's control/power over the element of fire.
Eiriogh is motivated to seek and destroy those who betrayed him and regain his former power. However, he is having a hard time convincing Eric to do that and spends most of his mental faculties trying to manipulate Eric into letting him have control.
Eiriogh is centuries to millennia old and takes multiple forms throughout his long life. How human he appears is directly linked to the amount of humanity he has in him at any given time.
In the current era, he primarily takes on a monstrous hybrid form while occasionally manifesting as a smokey entity when communicating with Eric Brennus on the material plane.
Has acquired many names and titles, most recently (and the only name he remembers) is Eiriogh (pronounced "EHR-ROG") or Everking. Has been the man Aodhán, an entity known only as Lord of the Bonfire, and before that, simply the aspect of fire, smoke and ash.
Eiriogh uses the element "ei" and the name "rioghan" with the diminutive suffix -an dropped since "ever king" is an ironic insulting title, not an affectionate pet name.
When taking on a human form, Eiriogh appears to be between 30-40 years old, around 6' (1.82m) tall with pitch black hair, piercing gold eyes and pointed ears. Always has horns which are sometimes interchangeable with a crown - horns are a symbol of power among the Formori and Fae, representative of a crown or the right to rule. He was knowns as Aodhán in this form during the ancient days (roughly equivalent of neolithic to bronze age), but this identity was forgotten to time and superseded by the infamous Riogh Aodhán which was still mostly human in appearance but took on more fae like features - scales, claws and occasionally wings and a tail.
Other hybrid forms were a sliding scale between mostly human looking to mostly monstrous in shape and side.
As a dragon or beast, stands about 15-20 ft (4-6m) at the head, gray to dark gray scales with gilded "hot spots" which do in fact, give off heat. Scales have the texture of charcoal or molten rock; has a "mane" of smoke the seeps out between his scales. This could either be a creature seemingly of flesh and bone or something more ethereal. This form is manic and single minded which reflected his mental state during the last days of his rule and represents the height of his elemental power - the beast cannot be reasoned with and will destroy most things in its path.
This creature is likely the first form taken and is tied to a more chaotic age before the appearance of human civilizations, a time where Eiriogh was a king of beasts and the elements.
His elemental forms (fire, smoke, ash, molten rock) have limited sentience and power, they are more like extensions of himself. This is mainly how he manifests to interact with Eric Brennus since his physical being is trapped on another plane of existence. As long as the element of primordial fire exists, Eiriogh can reform from it.
⟡ using time periods to give a close approximation of where humanity was at with things, but I think the timelines wouldn't be one for one.
Pre History
In the beginning, he was merely a formless, nameless primordial being of fire, born from molten rock, playing its part in chaotic cycle of pre history. Emerges and takes on a likeness to different creatures in order to walk amongst them.
Paleolithic to
Neolithic
Control of fire by early humans is what initially draws Eiriogh's attention and ire towards humanity in the form of volcanoes, wild fires and a terrible fire spitting beast. Humans come to fear and respect this entity, attempting to appease it with offerings/sacrifices in exchange for their safetey. Humans came to call these entities Fomorians, "the great underworld ones."
Bronze to
Iron Age
People would call upon the Lord of the Bonfire to protect them from the dangers of the night. It was said that the Lord had flown into the heavens to capture the fire of the sun so that it may be a light in the dark, believed the Lord carried the sunfire in its belly. The Lord was a fae-like entity, that could be helpful when appeased with offerings, but otherwise had to be outwitted or tricked. Whether bound into servitude or willingly chosing to protect, The Lord of the Bonfire turned into something of a guardian spirit and not the feared Fomorian he once was.
Aodhán (and others) would fight against the Fomorians who sought to destroy humanity by ravaging the planet. He would be remembered a traitor to his own kind, but a beloved folk hero to those he protected. His wisedom and prowess in battle in adition to power over fire meant he was percieved as a fierce leader amongst the people.
Aeghan is crowed high king, Riogh Aeghan, in the new era of peace ushered in by the defeat of the Fomorians. He is one of three high rulers who would rule the known world in tandem: himself a Fomor, one of the Aos Shide and a representative of humanity. A golden age follows, the center of civilization built in part by the sunfire Aeghan poseses.
After a time, Aodhán begins to sympathize with the suffering of his fomorian kin at the hands of humans, who have in turn sought to control the Formorian's power for their own means. Guilt at his own part in tipping the odds against Fomorians drives him to work against these policies of the other high rulers.
Aodhán's loyalties are called into question, he is accused of favoring his monstrous kin over others, loosing public favor (what is a god king if they are not beloved by the people?). Aeghan becomes increasingly withdrawn, believes the other high rulers seek to control him and his power as well. Turns into a cruel and cunning tyrant, something monstrous.
As things come to a head with the other two high rulers, Aodhán in his mania slays them and takes the capital city by force. He names himself Ei Riogh, the forever ruler. After a long bloody siege, Ei Riogh is eventually laid low by powerful magicians who extract the sunfire from his belly, thus reducing him to a weakend state.
Killing a fomorian is impossible without destroying their element in totality, so instead they magically shackle and imprison Eiriogh in the space between worlds, giving them control over his element and preventing Eiriogh from regenerating and to enact revenge.
Bronze Age Collapse
to Present
Centuries of isolation drives Eiriogh mad, forgetting himself and those he once protected. While still connected to the element of fire on the material plane he is unable to sway or control it. The only name he remembers is Eiriogh the "ever king," the title bequeethed to him as an insult.
Present Day
Eric takes on Eiriogh's power which turns him into something neither human nor fomor. This effectively breaks Eiriogh out of his prison, however his essences is now attached to Eric.