Yatavo

Yatavo is an enigmatic figure from Age Zero and the Zakhemite Star Empire. According to fragmented accounts, Yatavo was among the greatest sorcerers of the Azlan. He was called the 'Snakestaff' for the staff her carried, which was an ascended Hesha whom Yatavo had defeated in a magical contest and then bound into the form of a staff. Yatavo's mastery of the arcane was immense, and he apparently lived for several centuries, advising the rulers of Vathram and working many incredible enchantments. When Irud arose among enslaved humanity, Yatavo devised the creation of Sivar as a counter. Even after Sivar failed, Yatavo refused to surrender. He gathered together Adantu's mightiest sorcerers and offered to perform the Tower Spell for Queen Akhei-Bel. In desperation, the queen agreed, and the ritual in the Brass Tower triggered the first Timedeath. The catastrophic backlash hurled almost all maedi into the Abyss and tore the spirits from the bodies of those who remained in Orbis. Yatavo, during the height of the Tower Spell, had mystically linked himself to all maedi and had drawn on their collective anima to fuel the spell, and thus the spell effected all maedi. Had Yatavo's magic succeeded, he would have seized temporary control of the Tapestry of Fate, able to reweave it as he willed. Per Queen Akhei-Bel's desires, the Snakestaff intended to remove the possibility of mankind ever existing, thus erasing Irud and all his followers. However, some wonder if Yatavo in fact tricked the queen, and that the Tower Spell was never intended to eliminate the myth-echo of humanity. Instead, Yatavo intended to make himself a god and eliminate all rivals to his apotheosis. At the moment of the Timedeath, Vala was placed outside of Creation, in a realm of 'untime,' and here Yatavo was free to do as he pleased. He joined himself to the Skein, merging with it and achieving near-infinite magical potential. As he was now part of the Skein, Ystarte could not remove him without recreating the entire web, which would have been a dangerous undertaking indeed. So Yatavo Snakestaff, once the grand magus of Zakhema, was remade as the Lord of Patterns, master of the weave and immortal spirit of pure magic. Yatavo continues to exist within the Skein, it is believed, and can manifest anywhere that the Skein touches, drawing on its power as he wills. He cannot be too flagrant, for even he must be careful with the Skein's volatile potential, but the Lord of Patterns is a mighty force indeed, and many have sought out his wisdom. Few have returned satisfied. Few, in fact, return from their quests at all. For Yatavo, never the most hospitable individual, is now an alien and incomprehensible being, shifting and changing as the Skein does.
Category:Heroes