Tall, lithe, handsome. All things that would have described Elias before the Loas trapped him. Perhaps it still applies, though not in his eyes. To himself, Elias is just short of looking like a monster wrapped in silk and feathers. Trapped in his body's prime, Elias is still strong and powerful. A man who is a combination of refinement and the wilds; royalty and tribesmen. He bears athletic limbs, broad shoulders with a solid chest, and strong hindquarters. Elias is not overly bulky and masculine, nor is he inherently feminine. The witch doctor seems to toe a fine line of androgyny.
His coat is compromised of a dark sooty grullo, with black stockings running high up all four of his legs. His face is darkened as well, though it is hard to discern due to his other markings. Bone white markings run along his neck and fade around his withers. His handsome visage bears a white skull "mask" with teeth. Bone white ticks along his lips and high upon his cheeks with the skull mask upon his face. His mane and tail are heavy straight sheets of black silk that never seem to frizz; the ends of them are teal and seem to glow and ripple like water. His mane and tail seem to pulsate along with his other more...striking features.
Cracks run along Elias's sides revealing teal-colored glowing "ribs" that pulse. A crack cuts in the middle of his chest that leaves a gaping hole where his heart should be that also pulses like his ribs. Elias's eyes glow like his cracked ribs, though they almost appear to glow so much that they having a smoking effect on them. A very faint pupil can be seen, though to a less attentive eye it may appear Elias has no pupils.
A black silk collar is wrapped around Elias's neck while a caplet drapes across his back. Delicate bracers are wrapped around his front legs. His collar and caplet are trimmed in slick fine black feathers, fur, raven skulls, and alligator teeth. His mane and tail are bound about halfway with fine strands of gems, delicate silver chains, alligator teeth, and raven skulls. Black silk is wrapped around the dock of his tail. Two small curved bones are pierced through the bridge of Elias's nose while small silver earrings are pierced through each of his ears. A small black leather satchel is always seen strapped to his side, though what is in it is a mystery.
Perhaps his most precious possession is the talisman strapped to his chest. It pulses as if it has a heartbeat...and in a way, it does. The talisman Elias carries with him is the thing that is keeping him alive. Without it, Elias would crumble to ash.
The stallion is complex. His looks are entirely deceiving; ever-feeling despite his lack of heart, Elias is compassionate and empathetic. He is a gracious host, offering tea and finger foods with a serene smile and perhaps a touch too much enthusiasm. But who could blame him? The ageless guardian of the underworld doesn't get to host guests very often. Those that are welcomed into his home will find themselves pampered and treated like royalty with an ear to listen or a shoulder to cry on. Elias is patient and soft-spoken. Rage seems eerily absent from him, as though it never existed in his bones. Ethereal and enigmatic, discovering anything about Elias is like walking through a labyrinth.
Melancholy often weighs on Elias like an old worn blanket, bearing down upon his shoulders heavily as if he carried the world's burdens. Despair and loss are all Elias has known throughout the centuries. Often he finds comfort in the sorrow that plagues him; other emotions can confuse him. Frustrate him. Never anger, though. It is the only emotion Elias has never rediscovered. Everything else - joy, excitement, overall fulfillment - are foreign to him nowadays. Elias does not let his melancholy keep him from being cordial. Though some may seem to think a dark cloud hangs about his head, the stallion still puts on a polite smile and is ever the refined gentleman.
But beware, for even the most beautiful smiles have a darker side to them.
The only other emotion Elias feels strongly is spite. Perhaps the closest he'll ever get to rage, Elias has let his own unforgiving nature get the best of him at times. Those at the wrong end of it will find themselves hexed, cursed, or perhaps a fate far worse than a temporary spell. He has driven some to madness, some to drink, some to death. Even if he could feel and understand guilt, Elias would say he felt none. He reasoned that they deserved it all, in the end.
A leftover trait from his original life, Elias tends to favor the finer things in life. Fine silks and precious gems, though all of the dark colors to reflect his status as a guardian of the underworld and his own widowhood.
There is little Elias would share of his beginnings, but they were humble. Beyond humble. Nearly cruel, if one looked too hard. His mother was a slave and his sire was her master who had forced himself upon her. The Master, as his sire was called, did as he pleased with all his slaves. Elias's mother, a sweet mare named Claudine, was The Master's favorite in particular. Claudine had also been the child of a master and his slave, thus more desirable than the rest of the female slaves in The Master's household. But there was more to Claudine than a pretty face. She could see the future. To The Master, she was priceless. When Elias was born, Claudine wept for days. For the son she had forcibly borne into slavery. For his future and all that was to come. For the man he would turn himself into.
Knowing an inkling of Elias's future, Claudine was desperate to be free. The Master's wife was also eager to rid of her and Elias who looked too much like her husband for comfort. There were whispers of a son he refused to acknowledge. The resemblance was too close, having Elias and his mother around made the betrayal much more real. Little did The Master know both mares went to the same witch doctor for a solution. Rather than despise each other, Claudine and The Master's wife realized they were sisters in arms; both victims of a cruel man who took his pleasure from everyone and everything. They struck an accord: Claudine would assist in dispatching The Master and his wife would free her and Elias. The Master's death was swift but excruciating. Most thought a sickness had taken him, some whispered that something more sinister was afoot. But overall no one missed him. The wife, now a widow, kept to her end of the bargain. Claudine and Elias found themselves freed with the other slaves while the widow disappeared into the sunset.
Claudine set up shop as a midwife, telling futures at night with her tarot cards. A good man of equally humble beginnings came into their lives, stepping into a paternal role for Elias without hesitation. They raised Elias into a strong, capable man who took no shit but was soft and empathetic. With a good head on his shoulders, Elias made a niche for himself in the city as a merchant. He became a rich man, having carved a large portion of the silk trade for himself before it began to boom. He took care of his parents in their old age, gave to charities, attended balls. He was, in every sense of the word, a high society gentleman. Yet he didn't have a name beyond his birth name.
Elias. It gave away his slave beginnings. Those of the high society had at least a surname, if not multiple names. He was barred from events despite his wealth and power. It was only through a gracious gift by an aristocratic friend that Elias found himself gifted with a name - and more. Granted a desirable estate, Elias suddenly found himself one of the city's most eligible bachelors with a name for himself. Elias du Laurent. Master of the Laurent Estate. It was also the first time Elias's eyes fell upon Nanette. Determined to win her, Elias did everything he could to woo the governor's daughter. Their courtship was a whirlwind and short and though Elias clearly loved her...the same could not be said for Nanette. But Elias was a man blinded by love, which would become his downfall in the years to come.
It didn't take long for Elias's idyllic life to crack. Despite being happily married and offered everything he could give her, Nanette was found in the arms of another. Despite his pleas, Nanette refused to return to him. Ever a foolish man in love, Elias turned to his last resort.
The Loas. Dangerous gods his mother made him swear to avoid, to never try to bargain with. They promised many things but expected high prices for their gifts.
The price didn't matter to Elias. While most of the Loas mocked Elias for his folly, only one Loa listened. The Loa of Death. It should have been a warning to Elias, but he was a man stricken by grief. He asked the Loa to return his wife to him. The Loa agreed to drive Nanette back to Elias's waiting arms, for a price. Elias agreed, albeit hesitantly. An emotion for his love was an absurd price, but Elias did not question the Loa's intention. Elias returned home to find Nanette waiting for him, tearfully asking for his forgiveness. She had realized her wrongdoings and loved only him. What should have been a joyous occasion turned into something far more bittersweet as Elias realized the Loa had taken his sense of joy from him. It had been a bitter pill to swallow, but his love for Nanette still shone brightly. It would be enough, he believed.
Elias grew sick over time, fragile and knocking on death's door. Yet he was still young and so much more to live for, he thought. One night in his sickbed, Elias called to the Loa of Death. Eager for another deal, the Loa wasted little time in answering. He listened to Elias plea for his life, for more time with his beloved Nanette. A deal to let him live, make him better, so he may continue to be with her. The Loa warned him that the price for such a gift is steep, but Elias agreed to it blindly. He doesn't need to know the price if it will allow him to continue living. It is only when a sick grin slips across the Loa's face, splitting into something too wide and too sinister, that Elias realizes his error. The Loa tapped his staff twice allowing spirits and shadows to swarm the room, eager to gather his payment. As the shadows swarmed Elias and his screams pierced the night air, the Loa laughed.
"Den live, boy. But ya shall know what true suffering is. All magic 'as a price, ya know."
Elias awakened to a different life. His physical beauty had morphed into something hideous, so he believed. Physically marked by the Loa himself, Elias now bore skull markings and cracked skin that revealed glowing ribs. While he might be alive, Elias realized that the Loa's gift and power have corrupted him. Changed him into something he never was. His wife still loved him, though she was now frightened by him. Being so openly claimed by a Loa forced him into a life of secrecy and ruling his silk trade from his estate. No one trusted those marked by Loa. But he was alive and that was what mattered most. Elias had little idea just how far-reaching the Loa's gift was. He watched his parents wither and die, but he did not age. He watched his beloved Nanette grow old, loved her even though she forgot who he was, and then die as well. Her death made him call the Loa a third time, crying to be with her. What good was this life if she was not in it?
The Loa took Elias into the underworld. The second part of his gift had come to fruition: Elias would serve as a guardian of the underworld, communicating with the living and the dead. In exchange for this, Elias could remain with Nanette's spirit. Centuries trickled by while Elias watched the city become the scion of wealth before crumbling to ash, becoming nothing but ruins of lust and greed. He watched thousands die and thousands grieve, some making deals with the Loa as he had. It was bearable, for some centuries. He had Nanette with him, wasn't that enough? Yet it wasn't, not anymore. Not when his wife was nothing but a listless ghost that obediently trailed behind him...saying nothing and doing less than that. He finally understood she would never truly come back to him.
And so he left the underworld, remerging into Life not knowing where he would go or what he would do...But being free once more was enough.
For now.
words
Although a master of herbs and hexes, Elias’s true strength is in his ability to communicate and manipulate the dead. A gift - and a curse - given to him by the Loa, Elias has borne this burden for centuries.
Elias has the ability to summon, communicate, or manipulate the dead...to an extent. He cannot resurrect the dead, despite his best wishes. (He learned this the hard way with his wife, y’all, so don’t bother asking.) Elias is limited to controlling or summoning spirits of those who have passed, or can put wayward souls to peace by sending them to the great beyond.
He can summon spirits from beyond the grave in order to commune with them or serve him in some capacity, though both of these abilities are not infinite. He can maintain his control over a soul for a long period of time, but will eventually have to send it back to the great beyond or to where it came from. If a soul doesn't want to be summoned, they might resist the summoning and cause Elias grief.
Elias treats the summoned souls with great care, knowing that each soul he brings forth may have a mind of their own. Though a master of the dead, he treats souls with great respect as long as they do not try him.
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