LUCIFER STELLAM - RED CLAN, KING

Tragedy

The past before the age of ten years is fuzzy for Lucifer, often time and again only remembering a raging inferno that threatened to consume him as he walked among the destruction and carnage of a village outside the City of Lilla. His birth parents had been brutally killed during a raid by a military force from another city. For what seemed like hours, he had wandered his now desolate home that had been laid to waste, the bodies of many friends and neighbors in crumpled, bloody heaps, if not having been charred black by the numerous flames that turned broken homes and stands to fuel for their fury.  At that moment, he had simply fallen over to his back, staring up into the sky that was becoming clouded with smoke and furious thunder, the rain soon starting to pour down upon his own broken form as he thought to himself, "It's all over. There's nothing left. Please, just let me die..." What else would a young boy think with everything taken from him in an instant? He was mentally broken, emotionally exhausted, and physically ready to let it all end.

However, in his darkest of moments, came a light of salvation. An elderly man draped in a red cloak came to him with men on horses and what appeared to be a man of Church found him lying there with those lifeless eyes, extending a hand and offering him a chance to live. "Thank the Heavens! There is a survivor! But dear God, you are still so young..." Who was this man? Had he come to help him? But why? And why now? Questions that faintly touched at the young boy's mind as he slowly faded into darkness.

A month later and he would awaken, finding himself in a bed, wounds dressed, and the warm rays of the sun shining down upon him through a stained-glass window, the sound of church bells tolling faintly overhead. Was he...in a Church? Yes, it seemed that he had somehow been taken to a Church, a familiar priest making his way over to him and explaining his situation. The man who had found him was one of many Kings of Raduga who had placed him under the care of the Church of Chrysos. Naturally, he would thank the holy man, soon attempting to make his way out upon noting that all of his injuries had healed. However, the priest would inform that the village he had been found in was completely annihilated, all those who lived in it having been slaughtered or burned down with it.

It is of no real surprise that Lucifer had a moment where his mind had gone blank, a whirlpool of negative emotions welling up inside of him. But just when it seemed like the news would send him over the deep end, he was offered something. A chance to start his life over. To move forward and live to serve a greater purpose bestowed upon him by God. It would certainly be much more beneficial than if he were to consider something drastic like suicide. At first, it seemed so strange, the concept of taking up the path of religion and faith, and it was certainly a struggle at first. However, the path which he would walk would involve much more hardship than he would have expected, with naught but the unwavering strength of will required to follow it.

The Trials of The Church

Normally for one to be a member of the Church, one would simply need to attend Mass and take part in the celebration of the faith in God, The Almighty One, for he was The Alpha and The Omega which created life for all living things in the world. However, The Church had other plans in store for Lucifer, as the young boy would soon discover all too soon from his point of view. No sooner had he agreed to begin his "pilgrimage" towards salvation through unwavering faith in The Lord, had he been thrown to a dark dungeon in which he would earn his human rights back in order to live properly once again. This time, the result would be for him to be reborn not only as a man, but as an agent of the Church who would serve in The King's name.

But the regimen was incredibly harsh, almost brutal to the point where the few attendees of the Church who knew of his existence within the Church would almost speak out against the priest and his acolytes on how it was even...inhumane, even sickening. Lucifer had lost track of how many scars he had acquired upon his body, or even how many bones had been broken, healed, then broken again. His once fiery-red hair had slowly transformed to the color of starlight-silver due to the immense amounts of stress placed upon him physically, and mentally. But through all of the hardship brought upon him by the Church, he had made progress much quicker than anyone could have anticipated, the priest claiming that it was a show of his extraordinary life force - his Aura, if you will.

After a few months of this grueling routine, his body would cease taking on wounds, only the scars that were already carved into his form the only evidence of what had transpired within the Church walls left to tell any tale of such injuries. His Aura showed to grant him remarkable healing power, and even god-like protection, if one were to label it as such. It were almost as though he had truly been blessed by God Himself. It was at this point that he was brought forth before the elderly man known as "The Red King" - Illas Flamma du Jugement. It was apparently under this man's orders that the Church had put him through the grueling ordeals of conditioning his body and teaching him the arts of combat, in order to prepare him for a life of servitude, and further down, prepare him as a potential candidate as heir to the throne. Though, young Lucifer would not hear of such things until he was older.

Fateful Meeting

It was also during this time that Lucifer would meet a very important person in his life. One whom he cherishes and has protected since their first meeting. Illas had a granddaughter by the name of Anise Agnelius, a girl five years younger than himself who possessed a spark that he could faintly sense within her spirit. She seemed somewhat timid, if not, distant while in Illas' presence, keeping quiet to herself unless she was alone with Lucifer. The two of them seemed to form a bond together rather quickly, one that could almost mark them as inseparable. It was abundantly clear to him that Anise and Illas did not get along, a bit of bad blood between them in terms of family history and something else that Lucifer couldn't quite put his finger on. Whatever it was, he believed that she would tell him when she was good and ready.

The closeness the two of them shared was enough to consider each other adopted siblings, if not something akin to the roles. But for Lucifer, it was a very pleasant change compared to how things at the Church had been. Being adopted into the King's family gave him a bit more of a lavish lifestyle in comparison to his life before, as well as the temporary life he'd been living under the Church. For a while, it felt as though he had a real family again. However, even with such a wonderful gift granted to him by the Red King, his training would continue, no longer to necessarily "condition" his body for the grueling tolls of war, but more-so to sharpen his newfound skills, making him what would soon be an undeniably powerful asset to Illas and The King as well.

The Red Priest is Born

Nine years would pass and Lucifer had already far exceeded the expectations held for him by the elder Red King and his superior, The King. Lucifer had carried out numerous missions as a full-fledged Divine Agent of the Church, whether it be so much as caring for the poor, giving a sermon to the masses, providing spiritual healing, or even carrying out assassinations with the utmost discretion. It was somewhere in the midst of it all that he soon came to awaken to his own power of his Aura, believing that perhaps it was a gifted miracle from God. Though, that was a short-lived belief as he would encounter numerous people who shared the ability to manifest their Aura as well. But it would not cause him to stray in the slightest from his newfound path. If it was the King and God's wishes to have him kill for for whatever the reason, he would do so without hesitation.

It was around this time that he would take on the role of a full-time Priest for the Church of Chrysos, but also around this time that he would take notice of Illas' health beginning to deteriorate. While it brought him some mild concern, Lucifer would not allow himself to become too focused on the matter, as he merely thought of it as a consequence that came with old age.At the same time, he was also busy keeping tabs on the people of the Kingdom, the tasks requested of The King, as well as Anise's recent behaviors and whereabouts. There were several occasions where he would tail her himself, discovering that she had been taking regular trips to the more underground parts of Chrysos. While this did raise concern, he would find that she was more than capable of taking care of herself. It was then that he thought that despite the fact that he would rather she remain safe at all times, she would probably serve as a great asset as well.

Three more years down the road, and he would take notice of Illas drinking rather heavily during certain days...no, certain weeks would be more accurate. He would drink among his advisers quite heavily, apparently mourning over his adopted sisters' mother and how much Anise looked and reminded him of her. Lucifer had already felt that Anise was someone he had to protect before. But upon hearing the man ranting and raving in his drunken sorrow, he couldn't help but feel an even stronger urge to do so. It would be a silent vow from that day forward, finding that he would fight much more intensely whenever sent out on assassinations, perhaps even changing his persona a bit. He would become somewhat colder, even apathetic when dealing with those who were either heretics against the Church, or usurpers against The Crown. All who would dare to oppose The King, God, or even his beloved sister would face the righteous fury burning deep within Lucifer's soul. At least, that's what he would sometimes tell himself, for he knew all too well the truth of what role he played. He was the darkness that hid behind the light. A shadow born to do the work which His Holiness and The King could not do themselves. In a way simply put in one word - he was a monster. And he...was perfectly content with that.

A New King Takes Rise

Two more years passed, and the time of Illas Flamma du Jugement had come to an end, the old man finally passing on due to old age, alcoholism, and terminal illness. Before his passing, the elderly man had already long since come to Lucifer to speak of his inheritance of the title, the Sword of Damocles, and the responsibility that the young man would have to shoulder. To be known as The Red King would mean leading much more than the citizens of Raduga, but the brotherhood of the Clan of Red as a whole, as well. It meant he would act as their leader, their judge, their hero, their savior! All of this wrapped into a label which would surely bare a heavy burden upon his shoulders. But Lucifer accepted it. He accepted every little bit of it, as though God had given him the privilege to drink from the Holy Grail that man had sought after for centuries. He'd drink it all in - the title of Red King, his tasks as Chrysos' Priest, his servitude as The King's personal assassin. All of it. He wasn't entirely sure what the future would bring with his acceptance into Kingship. But there was one thing he knew for certain. Only one thing he knew for certain during his rule as Red King - So long as he kept his purpose of serving God and The King, there would be bloodshed eternal, and he would take whatever price may come with it at the end of his life.

TIMELINE

AGE 00
> Born via maternal Mother and Father

AGE 10
>Village annihilated. Sole survivor, found by Red King Illas Flamma du Jugement, and taken under care of the Church of Chrysos to undergo training as a Divine Agent of the King
> Meets Anise Agnelius for the first time
> Unofficially adopts her as younger sister

AGE 15
>Manifested his powers over his Aura

AGE 19
>Officially dubbed "The Red Priest" and "The King's Guard Dog".
>Full-time Priest for the people of Raduga, King's personal assassin

AGE 22
>Notes Illas' alcoholism and terminal illness symptoms.
>Makes promise to protect Anise until the end of his life

AGE 24
>Illas Flamma du Jugement passes away, Lucifer is dubbed the new Red King