Editing The Marut Cult

[[Image:Rudra.JPG|frame|A statue of Rudra, the mythic father of the Maruts]]To the Hindu religion, the [http://www.pantheon.org/articles/m/maruts.html Maruts] were lesser storm gods, violent sons of the Vedic god of storms and death, Rudra.  These brothers accompanied their father into battle and fired arrows of sickness at men, demons and gods alike.  The cult that bears their name and style is of ancient and secret lineage.  Each brother shaves his head bald and wears nothing but black monastic robes and straw sandals.  They train heavily in the use of their namesakes' trademark weapon, the bow, and use khatar for close fighting.  Every member of the order is fanatical to a fault, willing to sacrifice his life for his beliefs.  Exactly what those beliefs are, however, is subject to some speculation.  

Whispered of only in the darkest corners of India, travelers know that the cult protects artifacts like the [[Naga Crown]] against outsiders, but none are sure to what end.  Rumors frequently connect connect the Maruts with the older [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thuggee Thugee], whose power was broken by the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Raj British Raj] in the 1830s, there's no concrete evidence to support such a link.  Like the Thugee, the Maruts have crept down from their mountain temples for stealthy attacks on the unsuspecting, but their targets have always been wealthy officials of the Raj, museums and Hindu temples.  The only evidence the Maruts leave behind are their black-fletched arrows and a peculiar poison that seems to share properties with the venom of the cobra.  It's an open question as to whether, like the Thugee, they kill in an attempt to ward off apocalypse or if they have other, more sinister motives for their crimes.  


----
[[Terra Occulta]]