Ratvar, the Clockwork Justicar Vol. I: History

Penned by Wilson Stockwell.

Ratvar, the Clockwork Justicar
Vol. I: History

Many speak of the Justicar as a lesser god, but in truth, Ratvar possesses just as much power as the other Elders - U'ruu and Nar-Sie. While Nar-Sie writes in blood and U'ruu speaks through dreams, Ratvar forms machinery and conducts power. Ratvar is the second most worshipped Elder, being surpassed only by Nar-Sie and her brainwashed acolytes. During missions, Ratvar will also use similar methods, due to its relation to Nar-Sie.

Ratvar's origins are the only thing about the Clockwork Cult not shrouded in mystery. On Luna IX, a group of Nar-Sian cultists constructed an effigy of brass, wires, and mechanical parts. It was an abomination, and nobody knew entirely what it would do. Upon activation, the effigy gained sentience almost immediately. The activating Nar-Sians decided that this effigy held more power than Nar-Sie could ever, and were the beginnings of the Clockwork Cult.

From Luna IX, the Cult expanded to nearby systems. The Justicar's power was unrivaled, and entire systems fell in mere days to the besieging army, converting more to His cause as it progressed. The followers of the other Elders, seeing this, became panicked, and held a convention, putting aside their difference. In the end, they combined their powers and met the Ratvarians at the Fields of Agony on the magmatic planet Sooth. Using powerful rituals to shield their minds, the Nar-Sians called forth the Justicar, and the U'ruans banished the effigy to todash space in the Ark.

The Ark is a very large space - around the size of a small planet - where Ratvar resides currently. Lying in exile, the former effigy's power is but a fraction of what it used to be, but the Clockwork Cult still possess unimaginable machinations capable of harnessing this power. Though none are able to enter the Ark other than machinations built by Ratvar himself, theologists speculate that it is a mad realm full of countless machines working for various purposes. It is believed that Ratvar uses the Nar-Sian power imbued into it in order to keep these machines running, but the Justicar is dying.

The inevitable powering-down of Ratvar has resulted in some unsettling events. The Clockwork Cult, formerly vanishing into obscurity, has been rumored to be making a heavy-handed resurgence, invading space station and colonies to convert people to their cause. Power plants and energy relays have mysteriously fallen completely dark, and it is believed that this energy is somehow being redirected to Ratvar by his followers. Strange, unexplained machinery, coupled with small brass eyes appearing for small moments, suggests that Ratvar is attempting to break out of his prison in the Ark and escape to the material realm. This resurgence has made the Nar-Sian cult antsy and the U'ruans to attempt to fade even further into darkness.