The Damned
History
We were once great . . . in the favor of the gods. Only a step below them in knowledge and power . . . but no more. They betrayed us, turned their backs on us. They denied us what was rightfully ours, gave it to the lesser beings, the humans . . . humans . . . creatures literally created to serve us. We taught them everything; agriculture, smithing, architecture, the basic fundamentals of life! And how did the gods repay us for caring for these 'precious' humans? They ordered that we bow to these creatures. That we, so near gods ourselves, bow to creatures that don't even deserve the life given to them.
Many of our brothers did bow, but not Him, not The Dark One. He was the first of us to understand. To understand that there are some things even gods cannot demand. Those of us who followed him were cursed by our brothers. The gods no longer looked upon us with favor, but with anger and contempt. We embraced this, and so we became The Damned. With The Damned behind him, The Dark One led the war against the gods and his former brothers. A war that came to be known as the Clash of the Titans.
We were defeated. The Dark One fell imprisoned, and the army crumbled. The gods created the Marids to hunt us down. Those who stayed together died, the Marids excelled at tracking groups. We who survived had to isolate ourselves, but that wasn't enough, the Marids could sense us. It left us with only one choice, we had to give up the majority of our powers. We kept only the powers that were necessary to our survival: our ability to conceal ourselves in humanoid shells, our longevity, and our resistance to fire (as creatures of fire we had grown accustomed to dwelling in some rather warm places, such as volcanoes). It was a great sacrifice, as now we could be harmed by mortal weapons and forces; but we soon discovered several benefits to it. We were left with no more traces of magic than the common human, so the Marids could no longer track us. In addition, we could no longer be bound to servitude as easily as our brethren.
And so we lived for many years. Being forced to live among the humans made every day seem an eternity. How long was it? Centuries? Millenia? Countless years living for what . . . for The Vision. Though there were few of us remaining, word spread quickly of what The Light's Prophet had seen. The return of The Dark One, and the demise of the humans and our brothers who would protect them. And since that day, we have waited; training our mortal bodies. So that we may once again fight at the side of our leader. So that the human civilization will finally come to the end it is so deserving of. So that we may finally see the rise of the darkness.
Character
Originally, The Damned considered any sentient creature that wasn't one of them deserving of death. After the war, their views changed. After giving up their power and being forced into hiding, The Damned hold contempt for only two races: the humans who stole their destiny, and their brothers who helped them do it.
In order to survive as long as they have, The Damned who remain have been careful in the way they fight their battles. If forced to fight in a large battle, they are likely to wait until the numbers have been cut down before making their move. They prefer sneak attacks and ambushes over frontal assaults. However, if engaging small numbers they favor the opposite (they were born warriors after all). They rush their enemies, counting on shock and skill to win them the fight.
Appearance
Through great effort, The Damned are able to put on a relatively realistic human form for some time. However, their long years of isolation and anger has taken its toll on their eyes. Most Damned are incapable of conjuring human-like eyes, even when in disguise. Their inner fire spirit shows itself with red, yellow, orange, or black pupils; which can be tiny slits or encompass the entire eye. With minimal effort, The Damned are able to contain their spirits to a humanoid shell. The fact that they hid in places like volcanoes for so long has taken its toll on this shell though. Their skin has been damaged by the extreme heat; usually ranging between a dull white, ashen gray, or even charred black.
Garb
It is possible to see The Damned wearing anything imaginable. Since their goal has been to blend in with other races, and since maintaining a convincing human form is so difficult, they will often cover up as much of their body as possible. This is especially true with their faces, which are the easiest part of the body to see and the hardest to maintain.
With almost all of the remaining Damned being Afrit-class warriors, it is also possible to see them in armor. However, due to their natural lifespan being basically endless, and to the harshness of their preferred living environments, their armor wears out long before they do; causing them to replace it piece by piece. As such, it is unlikely that their armor will be matching or complete.
Other Miscellaneous Lore
It is said that before the Djinn were forced to serve the hairless apes, they possessed abilities beyond imagination. They could supposedly poison their victims with just a touch, and send them into a deep slumber while the Djinn slowly drained their life essence. While in this slumber, the victim would have their greatest dreams come true, though it was said that there was always a horrible twist within the dream. Some Djinn would poison their prey and cause dreams of terror, causing the victim to essentially die of fear.
These abilities were stripped from The Damned, but for their more fortunate and cowardly brethren, the abilities simply lie dormant; their means of activation long forgotten over the centuries, never to be used again.
Known Damned
Other Race Names
Djinn, Immortals, Precursor's