"Now dawns the Day of the Ayekal."
ZAKEL, God of War, upon the conclusion of the Battle of Yarmena, 25 IX 2501)
The Ayekal are dread Furies Who follow in the path of ZAKEL, God of War. Their names vary, but Their Aspects remain constant. By Their most common names They are:
They are Demigods, allied with ZAKEL and in the camp of the Gods of Hell, although FORTH is also closely associated with IGNE, God of Fire; representing Fire in its malevolent, destructive aspects.
Each of the Ayekal is known to maintain a Palace in the Seventh Circle of Hell, but They are all said to be active out in the World, preparing the ground for Their respective provinces, wherever these may be likely to appear. Their appearances are not, it seems, always in the wake of War, but it is the most common precondition for Their appearance. Sources as to Their appearances are (as is to be expected for Powers of Their order) mostly literary, and therefore to be treated with caution. It does seem that They do not appear in Hellish forces, even of God level, but do tend to follow close behind such forces.
Given this indirect role in campaigns, it is perhaps surprising that They should be the bearers of three out of the four known Evil / Chaotic Artifacts, the Weapons of War:
It should however be remembered that Artifacts are more commonly bestowed upon lesser (and therefore less threatening to the bestower) servants than Demigods. The background role of the Ayekal may therefore have been felt to make Them more appropriate for the wielding of Artifacts than the usual more high-profile kind of Demigod underling. But "what avails it to analyse the deeds of Chaotics?"
As befits Chaotic Artifacts, the Weapons Themselves vary in form, but They are always reported to appear in the shape of some kind of weapon (if construed loosely as such on occasion). One source says They can change form at the will of the user, or possibly even at Their own will.
They presumably give major bonuses in combat, and Their most-commonly reported power is to afflict anyone hit by Them with Fire, Famine or Pestilence (as appropriate). In addition They have considerable powers to spread the appropriate effect by magic over wide areas. It is unclear how much of this is by way of augmenting, or complementing, the Powers of Their wielders.
They certainly appear to be intelligent, and to have some degree of ability to operate independently of Their wielders, but the degree of control required in such cases is unclear. There are even unconfirmed rumours that They are able to shapechange into the forms of various beings, and walk the earth at will. This is probably untrue.
The Weapons of War are of ancient origin, but are said to have been given by ZAKEL to the Ayekal in exchange for Their fealty. This does not sound like Chaotics. Perhaps the Weapons bind Their wielders to the service of ZAKEL?
(Text adapted from "Artifacts and Extremism", a thesis by Csiero, Man of Heaven of the Palace of Love, written 16 II 2498)
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