Zahhak

Introduction

“This is no place… to die. This is no place… to end. Get. Up. FIGHT.”

Considered the Father to All within his realm, Zahhak is the Eidolon who found the balance between Life and Destruction. Despite all four of Rhyst’s Dragons seeing one another as equals, a large fraction of mortal myths have painted him as the figurehead of the collective. A red and gold dragon of formidable presence, Zahhak is a patron to all spirits of fire and marks his true domain as the Sun itself.

Background

In the time of the Endless Void, Zahhak fought alongside those of his kind who wished to alter the status quo. The Red Dragon believed there was little purpose to dwindle on in darkness, and when he managed to craft the first spark of life, he found that it extinguished the shadows all around him. In this way, some say Zahhak was the Eidolon responsible for igniting the schism that would escalate into the Shattering of the Infinite Void, though the Dragon did not lead any charge to battle, at least not initially.

Instead Zahhak’s discovery went on to spread, and though it illuminated much of his surroundings, it continued to burn them away as well, leaving a cold ash in its wake. Its warmth was enticing, and its crafter was too mesmerized by its glow to see what it would lead toward. By the time the first fires dwindled, the fighting had already begun, for what reason none could say, but Zahhak would carry this guilt into eternity. Even with this burden, however, he chose to defend those who believed in his newfound creation, and so the Red Dragon fought those who would defend the darkness that he could not permit to continue.

Once the fighting had culminated into death and disarray and the division of the planes, Zahhak opted not to follow those of more extreme ideals into the Faewild, but rather settled upon a central realm where he could tend to that very element that had started it all. Here he guided three others of his kind, those who would come to forge balance among the other elements as well. Zahhak breathed life into this realm and conjured the Sun, an eternal collection of his fires that might bring light and warmth to every realm, though Rhyst most of all.

Alongside the other Dragons, Zahhak assisted in the grand designs regarding the Cycle of Souls and the Convergence of the Planes, and with the wars ended, he and the other Dragons brought the concept of mortality into being. Though the spirits were instructed to instill these ephemeral creatures with their blessings and their influence, it was by the planning of the Dragons that their grander purpose was decided.

Zahhak settled not within his realm of the Sun when he chose to slumber, but within his coil beneath the Dessica Desert. It was here where he was found by a tribe of mortals that would be given his favor as the first of the Draconians, and later where Balin Sketch and his followers would meet the Red Dragon. As time passed and the Aiphe Emperor’s desires grew, Zahhak humored Balin’s requests and shared some of his life giving fires. Balin wished for godhood and immortality, and despite Zahhak’s warnings that both would take a large amount of time to achieve, he did partner with Balin in this endeavor. And yet, mankind’s hubris proved disastrous even for an Eidolon. In listening to Nevanerro’s whispers, Balin and the Betrayer bound Zahhak’s flame within what would be called the Emerald Heart, and through this potent spell, Zahhak was imprisoned within the Apheiron of Fire and taken away from the world he had shaped. He would only be returned upon the event of the Emerald Moon’s arrival in Rhyst, and even then he and the other three Dragons still had their power instilled within these strange constructs.

After they were freed, Zahhak listened to Melusine’s advisements regarding the end of the Convergence. He agreed that life deserved to flourish, and that Rhyst’s fires deserved to burn for as long as they could on their own, but only just that. It would be Zahhak who insisted that the planar overlap caused by the Last Convergence be made permanent, and despite Fah'nadir’s anger, agreed to end the catastrophic resetting of Rhyst.

Zahhak has since returned to Sol to oversee his dragon flight and the Seraphim there. He has positioned himself to be the carrier of Eden’s Directive now that Nevanerro has completely cast off the responsibility, and the Red Dragon has vowed to see the devils of Sheol destroyed for their crimes against the cosmos.

Trivia

• Zahhak’s fire is said to be golden or almost white instead of a dim orange, though it is believed to be the very same element as the one anyone on Rhyst may ignite

• The Apheiron of Fire is instilled with Zahhak’s influence, and as such it is almost warm to the touch and filled with the essence of of his element

• Given Eden cannot leave Limbo, Zahhak is now the primary Eidolon meant to hold Nevanerro accountable for his evils

• The Heart in Isegrad is still blessed with the flames of the Red Dragon, and as such the Empyrean born of it are true and living beings, reborn like anyone else from the natural Cycle of Souls

Credit

Tattles https://forum.verdict.dev/showthread.php?tid=3121