The Asherlux Society

Started from descendants of the Bleteshazzar, the Society was originally concerned with awakening their blood's true power so that they would have another immortal ruler. Their primary goal was to master the gift and make it a science so that their people would be able to have a more predictable line of succession. While their research was permitted under Harasin, it was not tolerated by Haman when he came to power and the people who would later become the Asherlux Society were hunted and repressed. Some however managed to flee Kmet-Tha and returned to the continent to practice their arts in peace. To this day they are bitter enemies of Haman and should they encounter his agents they make it their first priority to wipe them out. The opposite is also true, however and Haman has set a notable amount of resources into finding and wiping out the remaining adherents.

History

Before and During the time of Narem-Kumat (-2,250 to 0 CA)

After the Belteshazzar and their servants fled the devastation of Shahar-khet they began a nomadic life the was not ended for millenia. During this time they tried to settle several places but without a strong leader they were quickly overwhelmed and driven off by local humans who (while weaker) outnumbered them and knew their lands better. These failed conquests took their toll and the Belteshazzar bloodline became dangerously thin. To combat this a number of Belteshazzar were asked by their brethren to keep track of the bloodline and make certain that the geneologies were kept in tact. These Garderners of the Blood or (Sumak Arush) were the beginnings of the Asherlux Society.

Through careful record keeping and shrewd match making, the Sumak kept the line strong without the detrimental effects of inbreeding. One way they did this was the creation of a psuedo-caste of Belteshazzar who were deliberately bred with non-Belteshazzar humans and then at periodic intervals were carefully mated with full fledged Belteshazzar. The importance of their work brought the Sumak a great amount of prestige, and when their population was finally at such a level as to no longer need their constant tending they set their minds to another task that they deemed vital to their people.

For the millenia that the Belteshazzar wandered as vagabonds none of their children had been born with the gift of their bloodline. The Sumak and many other Belteshazzar believed that this was because of their diluted bloodline and now that their population was sustainable and with the recent subjugation of Narem-Kumat in -2,050 CA, they began to experiment with the differing bloodlines to see if they could breed those in whom the gift would manifest.

Beginning their work in earnest in -1,568 CA they finally met with seeming success in Harasin, a prime candidate that managed to awaken his powers in -1,093 CA. However, Harasin's children could not awaken their gifts and it was at that time that many of the Belteshazzar wondered if it were only possible for one immortal to exist at a time. Despite this growing thesis, the Sumak continued their program, this time adding in new experimental mental and physical training drawn from multiple cultures to enhance the candidates' potential.

Harasin believed that he owed his power to the Sumak's breeding and he shared their desire for a stable succession should anything happen to him. However, when he was killed during the Lataneran occupation, the Sumak's official sanction died with him. They were still accepted by the Belteshazzar and were supported by all the noble families who wanted their children to either be or birth the next immortal, but their continuing failures caused their influence to wane.