Immortal Lions

It is said that they have forsaken the very essence of mortality in exchange for untold power...

Soulless beasts, free to act with the blessings of the Empire...

The Immortals is an organization whose sole purpose is to protect the Empress of Aht Urhgan. To ensure victory over even the most savage foes, these implacable men and women have spent long years researching a sorcerous technique with unlimited potential--the art of blue magic.

Clothed in distinctive blue-and-black jubbahs and wielding curved blades, the Immortals are feared for their ability to harness a creature's strength and add it to their own. Let us delve into the blood-soaked history of this reviled magical practice...

Memories of Azure Blood

A fire to fight a fire...
A thief to catch a thief...
A beast to kill a beast...
- The Scriptures of Balrahn

Emperor Balrahn, the then ruler of Aht Urhgan, was shocked by the futility of his veteran palace guards and mages in the face of a chimera rebellion--an incident in which his son, the crown prince, was assassinated.

The alchemists responsible for creating the chimeras (organic weapons) were charged with discovering a means to defeat them. They eventually came to the conclusion that the guards themselves had to become monsters to stand a chance at victory. Without delay, the most loyal and physically sound members of the palace guard were chosen to be the subjects for monstrous experiments.
However, the initial attempts to graft beastly appendages ended in disaster. One subject's face erupted in a mass of thrashing feelers. Another was transformed into a horrific mound of quivering flesh. Even if rejection of the transplants was somehow overcome, the subject's blood was eventually tainted by the blood of the monster.

In a final attempt, the alchemists devised a brutal new technique utilizing the power of magic that fused the essence of a creature directly to the mortal spirit.
And thus blue magic was born.

The Forbidden Art

"Blue is the color of monster's blood, and the color of our future. Assuming we have a future..."
- From the diary of an Immortal

Blue magic is an art that allows a person to mimic the awesome powers of monsters and far exceed the normal boundaries of mortals.
However, a blue mage uses the techniques of beasts in the form of a person, placing enormous strain on his or her physical self. And while the magical process of absorbing a monster's essence into oneself has reduced the occurrence of physical incidents, there is an increased danger of a blue mage succumbing mentally and spiritually to the beast within...
No Immortal in history has ever reached the end of his natural lifespan, and this speaks eloquently of the pain they endure despite improvements to their art. There is even talk of an Immortal who absorbed the essence of an undead creature and can no longer be released from his mortal coil...

Only those with the strength of spirit to resist the savage call of the beast within--and those willing to sacrifice a future to carry out their duty--have the necessary qualities to walk the path of the blue mage.

Illustration by Mitsuhiro Arita