User:Bluesidra/Sandbox: Difference between revisions
Created page with "{{Character|image1 = Devil.png|caption1 = Fedora, not a trilby. Art from FL.|location = Hell<br> Parabola<br> Fallen London|allegiance = Independent|notable_members = The Brimstone Convention<br> Virginia<br> The Affectionate Devil<br> The Quiet Deviless<br> The Wistful Deviless<br> The Repentant Devil}}''"The Bazaar's conveniently located for Hell, and Hell's envoys keep stalls and warehouses here. Which is great if you want to buy brass, obs..." Tag: visualeditor |
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The Quiet Deviless<br> | The Quiet Deviless<br> | ||
[[The Wistful Deviless]]<br> | [[The Wistful Deviless]]<br> | ||
[[The Repentant Devil]]}}''"The Bazaar's conveniently located for Hell, and Hell's envoys keep stalls and warehouses here. Which is great if you want to buy brass, obsidian, sulphur, hydrogen, devilbone or any of Hell's other well-known exports. Or if you want to sell souls. But you shouldn't do that."'' | [[The Repentant Devil]]}}''"The Bazaar's conveniently located for Hell, and Hell's envoys keep stalls and warehouses here. Which is great if you want to buy brass, obsidian, sulphur, hydrogen, devilbone or any of Hell's other well-known exports. Or if you want to sell souls. But you shouldn't do that."''<ref><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Sidebar_Snippets#Devils_and_Hell|Sidebar Snippets|Fallen London|}} ''"The Bazaar's conveniently located for Hell, and Hell's envoys keep stalls and warehouses here. Which is great if you want to buy brass, obsidian, sulphur, hydrogen, devilbone or any of Hell's other well-known exports. Or if you want to sell souls. But you shouldn't do that."''</ref></ref> | ||
Courteous, rapacious, merciless, beguiling: '''devils''', the emissaries of [[Hell]], have come west to [[London]] for one purpose: [[souls]]. And perhaps the company, the sights, and a little chamber-music. They run and patronize several establishments in the vicinity of [[Ladybones Road]]; for example, Dante's Grill, the Long Spoon, Abbadon and Bael Trading Co., and their London headquarters, [[the Brass Embassy]]. | Courteous, rapacious, merciless, beguiling: '''devils''', the emissaries of [[Hell]], have come west to [[London]] for one purpose: [[souls]]. And perhaps the company, the sights, and a little chamber-music. They run and patronize several establishments in the vicinity of [[Ladybones Road]]; for example, Dante's Grill, the Long Spoon, Abbadon and Bael Trading Co., and their London headquarters, [[the Brass Embassy]]. | ||
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In the ''Sunless Skies'' timeline, devils also reside in the [[High Wilderness]]. Many can be found in the soul-spa of [[Carillon]], as well as in [[Caduceus]], [[the Well of the Wolf]], and as one of the factions in [[Pan]]. | In the ''Sunless Skies'' timeline, devils also reside in the [[High Wilderness]]. Many can be found in the soul-spa of [[Carillon]], as well as in [[Caduceus]], [[the Well of the Wolf]], and as one of the factions in [[Pan]]. | ||
==Anatomy== | ==Anatomy== | ||
Devils are generally humanlike, but with fangs and | Devils are generally humanlike, but with fangs<ref><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Keep_out_of_their_way|Keep out of their way|Fallen London|}} ''"The quarry passes you, panting heavily and straining against his brass hand-cuffs. He's a doctor, perhaps, or an accountant. Well, he was once. The pack is behind him by only a minute. They jog along lazily, splendid in their scarlet coats and silver fang-caps. They are gone. Time to attend to business."''</ref></ref> and red or amber eyes<ref><ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/An_Invitation_to_Linger|An Invitation to Linger|Fallen London|}} ''"Devils seem to be everywhere today. Everywhere you go, you see amber eyes."''</ref></ref> to set them apart. They appear to have a rather strange relationship with time; Fallen London is set in the 1890s, but the devils have become well-acquainted with 1920s fashion and technology. Furthermore, their body-temperature is unusually high, making their skin warm to the touch and their tears scalding hot. | ||
Although they require neither sleep nor food, they seem to value fine dining. Dante’s Grill, a devil-run, high-end restaurant, offers everything from steaks that are just a little too well-done for the human palate to outright poisonous. Devils prefer meat (a rarity in the Neath), alongside strong drinks like Amanita Sherry and Muscaria Brandy – both of which aren’t safe for human consumption. | Although they require neither sleep nor food, they seem to value fine dining. Dante’s Grill, a devil-run, high-end restaurant, offers everything from steaks that are just a little too well-done for the human palate to outright poisonous. Devils prefer meat (a rarity in the Neath), alongside strong drinks like Amanita Sherry and Muscaria Brandy – both of which aren’t safe for human consumption. | ||
Revision as of 20:21, 27 December 2023
"The Bazaar's conveniently located for Hell, and Hell's envoys keep stalls and warehouses here. Which is great if you want to buy brass, obsidian, sulphur, hydrogen, devilbone or any of Hell's other well-known exports. Or if you want to sell souls. But you shouldn't do that."Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag</ref>
Courteous, rapacious, merciless, beguiling: devils, the emissaries of Hell, have come west to London for one purpose: souls. And perhaps the company, the sights, and a little chamber-music. They run and patronize several establishments in the vicinity of Ladybones Road; for example, Dante's Grill, the Long Spoon, Abbadon and Bael Trading Co., and their London headquarters, the Brass Embassy.
In the Sunless Skies timeline, devils also reside in the High Wilderness. Many can be found in the soul-spa of Carillon, as well as in Caduceus, the Well of the Wolf, and as one of the factions in Pan.
Anatomy
Devils are generally humanlike, but with fangsCite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag</ref> and red or amber eyesCite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag</ref> to set them apart. They appear to have a rather strange relationship with time; Fallen London is set in the 1890s, but the devils have become well-acquainted with 1920s fashion and technology. Furthermore, their body-temperature is unusually high, making their skin warm to the touch and their tears scalding hot.
Although they require neither sleep nor food, they seem to value fine dining. Dante’s Grill, a devil-run, high-end restaurant, offers everything from steaks that are just a little too well-done for the human palate to outright poisonous. Devils prefer meat (a rarity in the Neath), alongside strong drinks like Amanita Sherry and Muscaria Brandy – both of which aren’t safe for human consumption.
Devils do possess a soul, but it is quickly changing, far less stable than a human one. They also have a knack for evaluating the worth of a soul quickly by just looking at one – no matter if it comes in a bottle or still attached to a human.
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A Devil. -
A Devil. -
A Deviless. -
The Affectionate Devil -
The Quiet Deviless -
The Green-Eyed Devil -
The Blind Pianist -
The Gilded Minister -
The Discerning Deviless -
-
-
The Exiled Antiquarian -
The Solicitor-Baroness -
The Presiding Deviless of Carillon. -
Milton
A Closer Look
These humanoid bodies are not their real bodies. Devils as a species originate from the High Wilderness, their body most closely resembling bees or other insects. The humanoid body is a disguise made from paper, that is controlled by a devil inside.
Since their body is self-made and replaceable, devils come in much more shapes and sizes than human – like the snake-like deviless in the Forgotten Quarter or the insectoid form of the Solicitor Baroness.
As for the real shape of devils: When described, common devils mostly share characteristics with bees and wasps – eusocial swarm-insects. The grand devils are described as explicitly not bee-like, most notably as having eight legs and carapaces (both things bees do not possess, but arachnids do.)
Little is known about the average age of a devil. However, there are devils around that were present during their days in the High Wilderness. That and the fact that they are neigh un-killable implies that devils are immortal.
The Solicitor-Baroness mentions that their reproduction rate is slow and that only few newborns make it through infancy. Devils themselves refer to infant devils as larvae and to adolescent devils as nymphs. Meeting a nymph is indeed a rarity.
Personality
Devils have a reputation for being charismatic bargainers, polite and always at the ready to help out – for the price of a soul. In the eyes of the church, and many a common Londoner, devils should not be trusted.
Devils are known to shift their entire personality to achieve their goals, and do so for extended periods of time, only to drop their allegiances the moment their goal has been reached. This can be seen in the Affectionate Devil and the Quiet Deviless, with their extended flirtations, only to then go cold the moment they have their soul in hand. Or in Virginia’s dealings with her paramour during the Season of Revolutions.
Similarly to how Londoners look down on Clay Men and Rubberies, devils look down on humans. To a devil, a human is first and foremost their main source of souls. So most interactions with humans involve trying to charm a soul out of them.
This makes them seem self-centred and devoid of empathy, which is not entirely true. Towards their own species, devils do display empathy – in Sunless Skies, one deviless even goes so far to let a fellow devil escape the consequences of his actions for nothing but nostalgic feelings for him.
Underneath their well-mannered disguise, devils are violent creatures. They positively enjoy hunting as a sport and all the fear this puts into its prey – mostly convicted humans. However, amongst each other, devils are similarly violent. Nonconforming members are hunted down, or shunned at best, while counter-revolutionaries are swiftly executed.
Observer Bias
Despite sharing broader strokes, devils are not a monolith. Not all devils are single mindedly looking for souls – occasionally, one might find a zee-going devil in a dock-side tavern simply minding his own business. Some have actively left the rigid bureaucracy of the Brass Embassy for life in the Upper River and the Absconding Devil seems to have harboured genuine feelings for a human.
When considering devils one needs to take into account the fact that the majority of the devils interacting with Londoners have been chosen by the Brass Embassy for this exact job. This job as emissary of Hell includes a quota on souls they have to meet.
History
The earliest mention of devils goes back to their role as sommeliers for the Judgments. Their ability to judge souls allowed them to tailor the meal to a Judgement’s tastes. This peace, however didn’t last. The devils rebelled against the Judgements and eventually had to flee the High Wilderness.
Under the leadership of the grand devil called the Eglantine Regent (The Piper) they reached Parabola via Caduceus, where the Regent formed a pact with a Fingerking-congregation known as the Parlous Knot. During their time as refugees in Parabola, far from the Judgements’ influence, the devils made plans for their new, permanent home – Hell.
The pact with the Fingerkings allowed the devils to stay in Parabola. In exchange the devils would have to give up their bodies to the Fingerkings once they traverse back into the Is. What the Fingerkings didn’t know: The chaotic nature of devils made their body impossible for a Fingerking to possess. The Parlous Knot learned this the hard way when it died in the process.
[some Iremi shenanigans]
Since the pact was technically fulfilled, the devils now roamed the Is – though their relationship with the Fingerkings was permanently damaged. They settled in the Neath, where they built up Hell and promptly overthrew their ruling class again. The ensuing civil war was called the Season of Revolution, and resulted in the Eglantine Regent, together with the other grand devils to be cast out of Hell.
No longer under the rule of nobility, Hell is now ruled by a chaotic state-wide bureaucracy, at the centre of which are the Law-Furnaces, who produce new laws by the second.
Society
Despite labelling themselves as a republic, the devils from Hell live in a post revolutionary society which demands a high level of political conformity and an unforgiving attitude towards nonconformity. And the Brass Embassy is as strictly run as Hell itself.
They have institutionalised their reverence for their revolution. The Brass Embassy houses a museum for the revolution. During the private soiree, a hymn from the old regime is performed only to be interrupted by revolutionary chorus in the same practised manner as a prayer spoken before dinner.
When the Absconding Devil went AWOL to elope with his lover, the Embassy hired bounty hunters to “get him back in the fold.”
Despite the Embassy’s polished brass glamour and expensive suits, the average working devil seems to be on the same monetary level as a middle-class Londoner. Lower functionaries occasionally have to loan out rooms from the Brass Embassy’s guests in order to impress clients. Without the backing of the Embassy, the Unlucky Devil is about as poor as the average newcomer to London.
As far as leisurely activities go, devils are often seen engaging in hunts or dance.
Dance
Being eusocial insects, their main channel of communication is body language, which they express in dance.
Devils enjoy brass-music and the free, expressive dances of jazz. Any dance-party with devils will leave humans with blistered feet (from the scorching hot dance floor) and burning eyes (from the correspondence expressed in their dance.) Among humans, this school of dance has gained the name “Terpsichorean.”
Opposed to the formalised nature of Victorian-era ballroom dance, the Terpsichorean style doesn’t require a set number of partners and can be danced by oneself, as a couple or as group of any size.
Hunting
Brass horns and terrified eyes. The devils are at their sport!
A hunt of devils is a regular sight in the Forgotten Quarter. They have an unmarked prison at the edge of the Quarter. The prisoners are Londoners who have, in some way, wronged the Embassy. Every so often, someone escapes. Hunting them down isn’t a matter of security, but a sport for the devils.
The Alphabets of Hell
“Your body has glimpsed what the rose giveth. It craves the knowledge of every step. You dream fitfully of brass tablets; ache for one upon which to carve your words. Inspiration – when it strikes – strikes red.”[1]
Devils speak many languages - around a hundred, all in all,[2] many of which may be lethal to learn or read.[3][4] They largely go unnamed and undifferentiated, but some alphabets are said to be invisible[5] while others glow bright enough to shine through several layers of cloth, making them useful for marking criminals.[6] These languages may also be spoken, which frequently brings strange memories or sensations,[7] and particularly grave words may even lead to sudden decay of objects around the speaker.[8]
The most frequently-mentioned language of devilkind is the Rose Giveth,[9] which is sometimes called the Rose Taketh[10] and said to be the best language of Hell.[11] It is unclear whether the two names designate some subtle distinction, or serve as synonyms. Regardless of its moniker, it is a dance-language: laboriously engraved into brass tablets,[12] and spoken through quick rhythmic motions that burn the floor and send sigil-sparks flying in their wake.[13] Ideally, it is performed with wings and six legs,[14] if not more - but even with four limbs, it is a difficult and demanding language.[15] Mistakes in the Rose Giveth lead to limbs bending in unnatural directions,[16] and novices may struggle to return to verbal speech as they instinctively attempt to dance what they want to say rather than voice it.[17] Even witnessing the Rose Giveth, either engraved or danced, leads to nightmares, aches across the body and even bleeding from the eyes.[18]
The Rose Taketh is, in truth, a variant of the Correspondence,[19] which explains another common complaint - singed eyebrows.[20] Other alphabets of Hell may share the same origins.[21]
Devils and Souls
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Devils and the Law
Due to their shared history, devils despise the Judgements and their laws. The Iron Republic takes this to an extreme. There, they abolished all laws, including – of course – the laws of nature. Time doesn’t flow in a straight line there, space is not to be trusted and in general, there’s a good chance of a live-ending new constellation of physics popping up and vanishing within an instance.
However, devils are seemingly unable to escape their origin. Hell is not an anarchy – it is a state-level bureaucracy which solely depends on laws to function. Infernal contracts are treated respectfully and followed to the word. If presented with a new law from a Law-Furnace, devils will happily follow it.
The dimorphism between the Grand Devils and the workers may hint at a reason: Nobility and the right to rule isn’t just a social construct for devils. It is ingrained in their DNA. Devils are, in fact, born to either rule or be ruled.
Like a swarm of bees in a beehive, devils are both deeply chaotic in nature and need laws to function.
To Kill a Devil
Devils are hard to kill – the campaign of ‘68, if nothing else, proved that. Any sort of injury inflicted on them will only damage their paper body, not the devil inside. They are immune to high temperatures and cannot be starved.
Indeed, the secret on how to kill a devil is closely guarded by Hell and its denizens. So closely that the Bishop of Southwark has sheltered a devil-informant for over thirty years only to learn it.
However, there exists a Correspondence sigil that is used in Hell’s execution of traitors. Its meaning is something like “The certainty of death. A demise that can no longer be delayed.” This sigil will kill the body of a devil if it comes into contact with it.
However, it seems to only kill their existence in the Is. In “Tauroktonos,” a group of formerly executed devils have continued their schemes after their death from Parabola. In fact, some devils seem to be eager to find out what awaits them after death.
References
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