Mrtyu – The Titan of Death Death Personified For the Titans, death is a distant concept. Endowed with eternal life, these omnipotent beings represent such absolute principles as Earth, Chaos, Water, Sky, Fire, Darkness, or Light… The concept of life (from birth to death) is primarily the domain of the primordial Titan Terra. But with the arrival of Man, a new power has emerged: that of murder. Now death has become not only the end of a cycle, marking the beginning of another, but a tool in the hands of the powerful and the murderers. This death does not arise from the natural cycles of the universe; it is provoked, often with pleasure. It has become an expression of the hatred and fear of men. No Titan ruled the concept of death, it being the domain of the mortals, not the gods and their titanic parents. When the Titans were imprisoned by the gods, the Underworld was created to surround their prison, drawing in the souls of the dead. Death was a concept that belonged to no one. Of course, some gods took on the difficult task of enforcing order in these Underworlds, as is the case for such deities as Hades, Hel, or Osiris.
The Destroyer of Worlds Then, one day, mankind created their own Titan, or rather a concept so powerful and terrifying that it perfectly represented death and destruction in their most terrible forms.
On July 16th, 1945, at 5 :29 a.m., an unprecedented explosion swept aside the desert sands of Jornada del Muerto (the Path of the Dead Man) in New Mexico. The Manhattan Project had given birth to its first child, bringing the world into a new era. The first atomic bomb had been detonated in the middle of nowhere, under the code name Trinity. Despite the bomb’s low power level, a crater about three meters deep and more than three hundred meters in diameter was formed. The mushroom cloud rose to more than ten kilometers high, while the tremor was felt over a hundred miles away. One of the spectators at this first explosion, the scientific director of the Manhattan Project, Robert Oppenheimer, recited a passage from the sacred Hindu text the Bhagavad-Gita at the sight of this abomination: "Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." Although the passage referred to Shiva, the being "blessed" by these words was something very different. A titanic embryo, barely worthy of being termed titanspawn, a tiny outgrowth of Muspelheim, the primordial Titan of Fire, it was a creature devoid of form and mind, attracted by Fate… and caught in the center of the explosion. In an instant, this barely-conscious titanspawn became so powerful that it rivalled the demigods. Seconds later, the words of Robert Oppenheimer gave it a name and a role to play: "Death, the Destroyer of Worlds". It had become an entity dedicated to the destruction of everything that
existed in the three worlds – the realms of the mortals, the dead, and the gods themselves. Less than a month later, on August 6th and August 9th, the two atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki gave "Death" the power of a god, or rather of a Titan, through the inspiration of absolute and universal terror that they caused. The destructive power of the bombs swept hundreds of thousands of lives away in the blink of an eye. Many more died later of the radiation. The repercussions in the Underworld were so terrible that the walls of the prison of the Titans cracked, allowing the captive powers within to break down the walls shortly thereafter to spread again into the World and begin to besiege the Overworlds of the pantheons. Death (now called Mrtyu) embodies death in all its absolute finality. It is a destruction from which nothing can be reborn, signalling the end of men, gods, perhaps even the Titans themselves – which would probably involve the end of Creation as a whole.
Mrtyu, Titan of Death Associated Purviews: Chaos, Death, Fire, Health, Sun Restricted Purviews: Animal, Fertility, Guardian Mrtyu, which means "death" in Sanskrit, is the name by which the gods commonly called Death, though all names associated with the end of life are now direct references to the creature who became a Titan. It is also a direct reference to the origin of its name, from the texts of the Bhagavad-Gita. It is not a primordial Titan, born before men and gods. It is not a titanspawn, although it was born in Muspelheim. It became a full-fledged Titan in an instant, an almost omnipotent incarnation of the concepts of death and destruction. The gods are little concerned by it, because they believe it to be very low in power. Mrtyu embodies nuclear energy, but the latter is in the hands of mortals. Regardless of its actual personal power, the Titan can only trigger devastating atomic explosions, and embodies consequences and finality of doing so, as well as the fear that nuclear explosions inspire.
But the Titan’s vague awareness has also given birth to an avatar of great intelligence: Teleftaios (the "end" in Greek). Teleftaois, by directing the knowledge of mortals, can lead them to discover the secrets of creating even more destructive weapons. The proliferation of nuclear power is also good for him, and he has planted many such seeds of annihilation. Teleftaois has few servants, but he has many allies among the titanspawn of the other Titans. The servants of the Titan associated with the essence of Light (Akhetaten) appreciate the idea of destroying the world in a huge explosion of blinding light; the spawn of the essential Titan of Water (the Drowned Road) await with relish the thick black rain that will follow the explosions and flood the world. The servants of the Titan of Darkness (Soku-no-Kumi) are already dreaming of the infinite shades that will darknen the skies, and, naturally, those who serve the Titan of Fire (Muspelheim) are fully committed to his cause. Even the servants of the ancient Titan of Frost (dead Ymir) dream of the descent of the world into the great eternal winter of Fimbul (nuclear winter), marking the beginning of Ragnarok. With the demise of humanity, the gods would be no more, and the Titans could once more reign supreme in the Overworlds.
The World Within Mrtyu The world of the Titan of Death is a wide lunar plain, dotted with huge craters and petrified rock, ranging in color from black to the most unhealthy of greens. Winds of unprecedented power blow constantly, carrying a heat so intense that it instantly chars almost any subject. Of course, the radioactivity is extremely high and nothing at all can live in this place (this is one of the few completely lifeless Titan realms). Every traveler within it is subjected to the penalties for a Hazardous Environment (damage 10L/minute, Trauma 8). No supernatural power can truly resist such a dose of radiation, but a high Epic Stamina score allows resistance for a short time (provided, of course, that you also survive the volcanic heat).
THE POISONED SUN Created in the underworld of the Amatsukami (see Scion: Demigod, page 162) when the Hiroshima bomb exploded, the Poisoned Sun is a fraction of Mrtyu that can directly destroy everything that it touches with its sickly light. It is entirely possible that the Titan of Death does not yet have the power to kill the gods as it would crush ants, but through the Poisoned Sun it is attempting to absorb all of Yomi into itself, thus making the two one. If this were to happen, the consequenecs would be dire; until it does, Mrtyu remains "incomplete".
Prometheus represents fire when domesticated for the use of humanity – which does not necessarily mean the same thing as being domesticated for the good of humanity. Indeed, the only thing that matters to him is that fire is used in creative ways, including those uses that are malicious. Of course, he has heard about the discovery of the secrets of the atom and nuclear power, and hopes to soon bring these fires to even more intense temperatures and heights (see Scion: God, page XXX). Prometheus is thus directly competing with Teleftaios, although he does not consider the new Titan avatar a direct threat. As the Storyteller, you may decide that the two Titans are allies, or, on the contrary, that they oppose one another through proxies as each tries to guide humanity toward the destructive path of his choosing.
For each point of Epic Stamina he possesses, a Scion may ignore the radiation for a short time (see table below). Beyond that limit, death is almost inevitable, god or not. Epic Stamina 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Duration of Exposure 5 minutes 30 minutes 1 hour 2 hours 4 hours 12 hours 24 hours 36 hours 48 hours 72 hours
The Palace of Teleftaios In the heart of Mrytu stands the palace of Teleftaios. This structure, which resembles an ancient, domed Greek temple half-collapsed into ruins, is in the center of the largest crater. The palace shines with a strange, disquieting yellowish light. Huge, humanoid-seeming shadows drag along the walls, occasionally stopping to let out blood-curdling howls before disappearing to reappear later. This constant concert of screaming is so abominable that it is virtually impossible to move toward the palace without covering one’s ears. Inside, there is nothing but a huge circular room, in the center of which stands a gigantic throne of metal and stone. Upon closer inspection, it seems that the throne is made of multiple pieces of bombs and highly radioactive rocks. Any being within 10 meters of the throne of Teleftaois is considered to be operating in a Hazardous Environment (damage 15L/action, trauma 8). Touching the throne immediately deals 10 dice of damage per second (none of which can be soaked), while the flesh of the curious begins to boil with horrific lesions.
TELEFTAIOS Teleftaios is the only avatar of Mrtyu. He embodies corruption, both physical and spiritual, the power
that drives men to explore the secrets of the atom ever further until they reach the point of no return. He will then trigger the spark that will set fire to all of humanity… He appears as a man in his fifties. Very elegant, he easily inspires trust with his dark, affable sense of humor. Teleftaois has a dice pool of 24 for all actions. He favors the social attributes, as they allow him to manipulate people. Virtues: Ambition 5, Malice 3, Rapacity 2, Zealotry 3 Supernatural Powers: Avatars: The Devourer, The Reaper, The Glory Epic Attributes: All social Epic Attributes at 10 (with all appropriate abilities). All other Epic Attributes at 8 (with all appropriate abilities). Boons: All level one Boons, except those from the purviews of Animal, Fertility and Guardian, which are prohibited. Teleftaios also has all Boons from the Death, Fire, and Sun purviews.
Join Battle: 24 Attacks: Grapple: Accuracy 24, Damage 13A, PDV -, Speed 6 Brawl, light: Accuracy 25, Damage 13A, PDV 42, Speed 4 Brawl, heavy: Accuracy 23, Damage 16A, PDV 40, Speed 5 Soaks: 51B/45L/18A Health Levels: -0x40/Incap Dodge DV: 52 Willpower: 10 Legend: 12 Legend Points: 144 Other Notes: None.
Ken Hokori, Scion of Thor and Teleftaois Teleftaois has many servants, including titanspawn of truly frightening abilities. His best agent, however, is a demigod Scion, son of Thor: Ken Hokori. Ken has a unique history. In 1936, Germany and the Empire of Japan signed the anti-Comintern pact, in which they promised to aid one another against the Soviets. At this time, Michiko Hokori, a young Scion of Raiden, accompanied a Japanese delegation to Berlin. There she met what she thought was a powerful Scion of the Aesir, and, falling under his spell, gave herself to him, despite the inappropriateness of such a relationship. A few days later, back in Tokyo, Michiko realized that she was pregnant. Unfortunately, the child’s divine father denied his involvement, leaving him a pariah among
the gods, prey to titanspawn. She decided to move away from the city and settled in the small town of Kokura, in the southern part of the archipelago, to raise her only son, Ken. The boy was extremely unpopular because of his obviously mixed blood. A victim of the hatred and bullying of other children (and their parents), Ken’s hardships built character in him. While his mother had almost become "human" again from going so long without using her Legend, the boy, only eight years old, seemed to develop capabilities outside the norm, even for the grandson of one of the Amatsukami. On August 9th, 1945, rumors reached Kokura that an extraordinary bomb had wiped out the city of Hiroshima; the same day, the horizon to the east was tinged with a strange light. Nagasaki was the target of the second atomic bomb, but that day in history could have recalled the name of Kokura instead, for it was the latter city that was first intended to be the second bomb’s target. Only unfavorable weather conditions forced American pilots to change their target, instead selecting Nagasaki. Ken Hokori would have perished on August 9th, 1945, but Fate had other plans…
During the American occupation, young half-breeds and their mothers became more numerous, also suffering from the wrath of the rest of the population. Ken, now a young boy, decided to take these families under his wing, bringing them together in his neighborhood. He regularly came to blows to protect the weak until the fateful night when his mother was beaten to death by an angry mob, howling its hatred of the American invaders, the women who slept with them, and their "ignoble" offspring. Ken miraculously
survived the attack, thanks to his mother’s weakened powers, but unfortunately she saved his life at the price of her own. Sick at heart, the young man left the city, abandoning those he had "protected" to their fates, and headed to the capital to embark on a criminal career. In 1964, when the Summer Olympic Games took place for the first time in the continent of Asia in Tokyo, Ken met his father. The young man was aware that his mother was not like most people, even if she chose never to talk openly about the existence of gods or his grandfather. But Ken was in for a severe shock when a huge Western blonde told him that he was his father, especially when he was told that that father was none other than the god Thor himself. Of course, Ken’s reaction was even more violent than the force of the ichor awakening within him, transforming him with its fury. He flew into an indescribable rage (not surprising for the son of a god of thunder and a woman who was the daughter of another one), repudiating his father and accusing him of having abandoned himself and his mother to misery. Disappointed by Ken’s ingratitude, Thor became angry and departed, abandoning his son to his fate. But behind the scenes, someone, or rather something, was watching: Teleftaois. Quickly, the new Titan transformed the Scion into his perfect servant, one who commands his titanspawn onward to the destruction of the three worlds. Since then, Ken has bent all of his knowledge and abilities toward enabling humans to develop new nuclear weapons, even more terrifying than those already in existence. In a twist of fate, he has found, researchers are even forsaking the traditional fuels of plutonium and uranium (which take their names from the death god Hades/Pluto and the sky Titan Ouranos) in favor of testing a new nuclear fuel, thorium (named for the god Thor). The irony of the situation has not escaped him, and he hopes to use his Legend to encourage the use of this new metal and multiply its destructive powers. Attributes: Strength 8, Dexterity 7, Stamina 8, Charisma 5, Manipulation 5, Appearance 4, Perception 6, Intelligence 5, Wits 7 Virtues: Ambition 3, Malice 2, Rapacity 2, Zealotry 4 Abilities: Academics 2, Athletics 5, Awareness 4, Brawl 5, Command 3, Empathy 1, Fortitude 5, Integrity 4, Marksmanship 2, Melee 2, Occult 4, Presence 4 Birthrights: Relic 2 (ring with green stone; Fire, Health), Relic 2 (black ring; Sky, Sun), Relic 2 (medallion; Chaos, Death), Followers 5 (10 Ghosts Who Walk) Supernatural Powers: Epic Attributes: Epic Appearance 1 (Dreadful Mien), Epic Wits 3 (Instant Assessment, Opening Salvo, Eternal Vigilance), Epic Charisma 3 (Inspirational Figure, Pied Piper, Preach On), Epic Dexterity 6 (all Knacks from
Scion: Hero and Scion: Demigod), Epic Strength 7 (all Knacks from Scion: Hero and Scion: Demigod), Epic Perception 2 (Telescopic Senses, BroadSpectrum Reception), Epic Stamina 7 (all Knacks from Scion: Hero and Scion: Demigod) Martial Artist: Ken uses his fists when he fights. He is considered to be armed and can parry attacks with his bare hands. Moreover, any attacks he makes with his fists receive the following bonuses: Accuracy +3, Damage +5, Defense +2, Speed -1. Aura of Absolute Death: Any person within (Legend) meters of Ken must immediately make a (Stamina + Fortitude + Legend) roll against a difficulty of 8 or die after (Stamina + Epic Stamina of victim) minutes of excruciating pain (a -4 penalty dice to all rolls). This swift death can be avoided by the use of the Restore/Wither Boon (Health ••••• •). Ken can pause or resume the effects of this power at any time as a free action. This ability is a powerful form of radioactivity, but it does not register on Geiger counters. Boons: Blazing Weapon, Blessing of Health/Curse of Weakness, Inferno, Assess Health, Mother’s Touch, Heavenly Flare, Levin Fury, Sky’s Grace, Restore/Wither, Fire Immunity, Wind’s Freedom, Hornet’s Nest, Eye of the Storm, Solar
Prominence, Flare Missile, Divine Radiance, Penetrating Glare, Death Senses, Heal/Infect Radiation Immunity: Ken is totally immune to the deadly power of radiation (even if he sometimes bears its marks; see below). Incarnation of Corruption: Although it is inconvenient in many cases, and despite his great strength, Ken’s body shows signs of the destructive and corruptive powers that he wields. His flesh is always cracking and bleeding, as thin as parchment in some places. He may heal these injuries at any time – and for free – but they can often be useful for inspiring terror. If he leaves his injuries intact, he can use the Dreadful Mien knack without spending a point of Legend. Eternal Youth: Ken no longer ages. He remains eternally at an apparent age of thirty years. Destructive Touch: By spending a point of Legend, Ken can inflict aggravated damage with his bare hands for one action, and ignores all armor and non-supernatural protection. Join Battle: 9 Attacks: Grapple: Accuracy 10, Damage 9B (A), PDV -, Speed 6 Brawl, light: Accuracy 16, Damage 15B (A), PDV 24, Speed 3 Brawl, heavy: Accuracy 14, Damage 18B (A), PDV 22, Speed 4 Soaks: 30B/16L/7A Health Levels: -0x28/Incap Dodge DV: 26 (42) Willpower: 9 Legend: 8 Legend Points: 64 Other Notes: One of the rings Ken wears is adorned with a green stone taken from the site of the explosion of the first atomic bomb, tested under the code name Trinity. The second ring (the black one) he wears is made of rock found near the epicenter of the explosion of the Tsar Bomba, the most powerful hydrogen bomb ever tested by humanity. Finally, his stone medallion was created from one of the buildings blown apart by the Hiroshima bomb: a school.
The GHosts Who Walk The only titanspawn that serve Teleftaois and Ken are the terrible Ghosts Who Walk. Incorporeal, they take their name from the phrase "the ghost who walks", meaning the period of apparent good health before the inevitable death of a person exposed to massive doses of radiation. These creatures were once normal men and women, exposed to the destructive will of the Titan of Death. They are surrounded by a high level of
radioactivity that can kill those exposed to it within hours. Their bodies are so violently hot to the touch that they can disintegrate almost any organic matter by destroying its cells (unless they decide otherwise). Fortunately very rare, these creatures can inflict huge losses in a few hours or even a few minutes in a heavily populated area. Attributes: Strength 5, Dexterity 3, Stamina 5, Charisma 3, Manipulation 3, Appearace 3, Perception 3, Intelligence 3, Wits 3 Virtues: Ambition 1, Malice 3, Rapacity 1, Zealotry 4 Abilities: Athletics 2, Awareness 4, Brawl 4, Empathy 2, Fortitude 5, Integrity 5, Presence 2, Stealth 3 Supernatural Powers: Epic Attributes: Epic Strength 2 (Crushing Grip, Holy Rampage), Epic Stamina 3 (Self-Healing, Inner Furnace, Holy Fortitude) Aura of Death: Any person within (Legend) meters of a Ghost Who Walks must immediately roll (Stamina + Fortitude + Legend) against a difficulty of 5 (the Legend of a Ghost Who Walks) or die in a number of hours equal to the (Stamina + Epic Stamina) of the victim. This death is slow and painful, but may be avoided, for example through use of the Restore/Wither Boon (Health ••••• •). This power has no effect on beings with a higher Legend score than the Ghost Who Walks. In addition, it registers on Geiger counters. Destructive Touch: By spending a point of Legend, a Ghost Who Walks can inflict aggravated damage with its bare hands until the end of the scene. Characters who are immune to fire are not immune to the destructive touch of a Ghost Who Walks. More Human than Human: Ghosts Who Walk are extraordinarily normal… at least, in appearance. Join Battle: 7 Attacks: Grapple: Accuracy 7, Damage 6B (A), PDV -, Speed 6 Brawl, light: Accuracy 8, Damage 6B (A), PDV 4, Speed 4 Brawl, heavy: Accuracy 6, Damage 9B (A), PDV 3, Speed 5 Soaks: 9B/7L/4A Health Levels: -0x6/Incap Dodge DV: 5 Willpower: 7 Legend: 4 Legend Points: 16 Trophy: None Other Notes: --
