The Begotten

The Begotten refers to an order of demonic entities led by the Undergod.

History and Origins
In the first age, when the empires of Sol attained their pinnacle of decadence and ruin, the one true God tore Himself asunder, ushering in an era of eternal darkness - taking His place was the birth of the New God, the Render of Worlds, the Divine Purifier - the Undergod.

At the very height of fattening hubris and complacency among the great empires of Humanity, the mantles of Gaia suffered a disturbance which caught the attention of leading clergy authorities worldwide - great quakes shook the necropolises of the ancient world to their core, enormous cracks within the ground giving way and blistering with the bubbling pools of magma and brimstone which came fountaining into the atmosphere, polluting the clean air and fertile grounds in every corner of the Earth. Tranquil and serene vignettes of rummaging fauna and plant life were immediately covered in ash, blackened carbon polluting the lungs of animals and inhabitants alike. Mothers and their children cried for help from the Imperials they had entrusted with their lives, ignorant to the coming despair.

As the ravines deepened, ridges and canyons filled with bubbling magma soon gave way to unearthed tusks of flesh, bone, and sinew - thrashing limbs, gibbering mouths and faces were visible within, screaming in flavorful tongues of death and calamity to be wrought upon all of mankind. Onlookers hastily retreated to their great palaces and forts, those Holy men servile to their government displaying the first and only instance of true mortal terror to the debauchers who held their leash - pigs of men, spilling over with cheeses and wines, with the first inclination to backhand their servitors for their panicked drivel, soon flushing white as the plates upon which they dined - many officials indeed resigned themselves to their chambers under guard, while the few men of honor who had found themselves among the living steeled themselves and their brethren.

The onslaught began, as apparitions incomprehensible to the very nightmares of men appeared within the villages, towns, and homes of humanity, their sulfur-slicked skin burning the ground wherever they touched - the peasant breadwinners and their innocent wives and children made easy prey to the thralls, as their final moments were punctuated by the sheer revulsion of horror which befell the most dreaded of fates. Residents were poked, punctured, and picked apart in the most unholy and inhumane ways, the thralls savoring their wails of pain and mercy until their souls were fully consumed. Millions across the world, regardless of empirical affiliation, were harvested and brutalized. Those who managed to seek respite in fortified areas were soon struck by the blight upon the air they breathed - the black, choking smoke and a plague that seemed to affect those men unsteady in their faith systems the most. Many simply gave up, cursing their God and abandoning their faith entirely - they themselves would find their bodies splintering apart and rotting before their families and friends, transforming into a demonic apparition themselves. The district residents begged their Holy Empires, impossibly preoccupied with holding against the invasion, for salvation - their reply was to kill themselves, before the demons killed them first.

As the swarm of malevolent monstrosities barreled towards the secure gates of the inner districts, the men of honor - individuals of Holy esteem and Noble Stature - rose above their corrupt negligence in their last moments to give out a rallying cry for their military brethren to take up arms. For many, a life of pious servitude had to culminate in a prophetic crusade just as this - and so, war was waged on every front against the advancing demons. Musket-wielding privateers in echelon cut down thousands of the hordes, while great marvels of engineering fired cannons from secure moving pillboxes and airborne contraptions rained down fire from the sky. Warlords rejoiced, assuring their followers - these unholy beasts shed blood, and if they did so, then they could be killed just as well.

In a matter of days, these Lords would find themselves and their families cornered in their fortress chambers, surrounded by the manifestation of beings from a place worse than Hell, forced to watch as their innards were slowly torn apart from one another and expressed upon the marble walls as sacraments to a new faith. For all too late the lesson was learned - no one escapes the Begotten.

Physiology & Behavior
Begotten demons, despite being fairly common in the apocalyptic days of the First Age, are now few and far between. Clergy interpreters of Begotten etymology have determined that many Begotten thralls have migrated in accordance with creeds passed directly upon them from their master, the Divine Purifier - the new frontier of Begotten consumption is the Hell of Satan, in the efforts of the Undergod to usurp and reign dominion of the inferno.

Begotten demons come in many forms, however, the most common warring variant takes the appearance of shambling, rotting carcasses of men - these apparitions are deceptive in their territorialism, for they are capable of pursuing their prey for days on end with an almost insatiable bloodlust, without a need for rest or sustenance. Although Begotten thralls are aptly capable of using their hands or claws to pry apart their victims, many have been reported to use weaponry devised by Man, such as knives, hammers, cleavers, and even powered chainsaws - these strange bastardizations of modern technology are inscribed with unholy runes which singe to the touch, imbuing these weapons with hexing properties which dramatically escalate the pain, blood loss, and healing process of even the smallest of wounds inflicted by them.

Wanderers of the wasteland universally understand that Begotten thralls pose an astronomical threat, even when travelling in numbers - their persistence, lack of inhibition, and hardiness make them a reckoning to contend with.

Faith Systems
Begotten, unlike other faiths, do not desire human worship to sustain their demonic prowess. Rather, it is said that they thrive on the lack of worship, the very fabric of despair sustaining their lifeblood. Only the foolish would attempt to give the Undergod or any Begotten demon payment, in credence or penance alike - those who do so would invariably find themselves victims of the next harvest.

Individuals who find themselves of already waning faith are susceptible to otherworldly plagues and diseases wrought upon by the great rending of Gaia by the Begotten incursion - spore clusters sprung from the most elusive corners of Earth's mantle take root within the bodies of men and begin the utmost deterioration of the individual, resulting in an exponentially painful demise. Men who abandon their faith entirely, turning their backs on their Gods and choosing instead to put stake in the belief of nonexistence, will invariably undergo a twisted transformation as their bodies distort and splinter, any semblance of humanity and holiness expunged from their mortal coils as the dullness of pure bloodlust and misanthropy overtakes their minds, becoming yet another thrall subservient to the Undergod's every whim.

When Begotten demons complete the conquest of all human life in a particular area, the thralls will manifest primitive stone structures which can tower hundreds of meters in height - these pillars seem to spurn the emergence of more Begotten demons from deep below the Earth, in great abundance. The structures, aptly named "Pillars of Creation" by Church authorities, appear quickly and with no discernable method behind their construction. Many have theorized that destruction of these pillars could slow or halt the incursion of Begotten thralls, however, no demolition attempts have been successful on account of the massive resources necessary to perform such an undertaking. Still, the pillars remain looming over the wasteland, a solemn and foreboding reminder of Begotten dominion over these lands.