Cathedral of Desecrations
One could fill books with tales of that pit of despondency and wickedness that is Ansitif’s forsaken fortress, I tells ya. Imagine, if you will, vast halls of ruinous grandeur, a veritable labyrinthine nest of corridors and chambers where the vilest ceremonies in the known and unknown planes took place.
You’ve got fragments of ruined churches scattered all across the fortress, decadent cathedrals with ceilings that almost seem to kiss the heavens, or would if the Abyss had any such concept. These halls have seen the most perverted of rites, a grotesque mockery of the holy ceremonies once held in reverence in the Prime. Twisted remnants of the divine lay scattered about; desecrated icons, tarnished relics of once revered saints now harbouring a dark power.Â
Deep within the bowels of this decrepit place, Ansitif’s perverted cults gather, a sinister parody of religious devotees, their ceremonies a macabre parody of religiosity, a cavalcade of sin and corruption designed to precisely cancel out the whispers of prayer reaching towards the heavens. Twisted, they are, orchestrating a never-ending concert of blasphemy, their unholy liturgies echoing through the halls, a chaotic symphony of screams and moans that seeks to drown out the very concept of faith itself. The cultists tend to focus on one power at a time, negating the prayers from their faithful in an attempt to bring the deity to their knees.
And in the midst of all this chaos and unholy revelry, you find a smattering of members of the Athar, those stubborn naysayers from Sigil. The more militant wing of the faction have come to love this pit of despair, they have, finding in its twisted halls a kind of sanctuary, a place where their hatred for the gods finds a welcome home. Extremists, some of ’em, fuelled by a hatred so pure it practically sizzles in the air, work with Ansitif’s cultists to formulate plots most devious, hatching schemes to bring down the powers that be, in a relentless pursuit of their godless philosophy. Since the imprisoning of Ansitif himself, the place feels slightly less unsafe. So recently the fortress, it’s become a sort of mecca for ’em, a pilgrimage site for those wishing to delve deep into the mysteries of the void, to court the darkness that resides in the very marrow of the Abyss.
And amidst all this darkness, this whirlpool of hatred and desecration, there lays the artefacts, objects of immense power, left scattered amidst the ruin. It’s veritable treasure trove for those willing to risk it all and delve deep into the fortress’ unhallowed halls in search of objects infused with the dark power of the Abyss. Relics twisted by the dark energies of the place, objects of power that could grant a berk untold abilities, or drive ’em mad in the attempt, a gamble of the highest order, it is.
Source: Jon Winter-Holt, mimir.net
