Avash-Nil

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! class="wikia-infobox-header" colspan="2" | Avash-Nil
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! Species
| Certoen/Ancient One (Possessed)
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! Gender
| Male
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! Age
| Unknown
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! Status
| Deceased
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! Occupation
| Miner/General of the Ancient Ones
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! Affiliation
| Ancient Ones
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|}Avash-Nil is an Ancient One general who possessed a Certoen slave as a host and tried to bring humanity to Acension upon his corporeal return. He is a primary antagonist of Black Hearts: Darkness Rising. 
==Ancient One==
Avash-Nil revealed very little about himself to the people that he came to bring salvation to. He stated that he was a general and a very prominent Ancient One. He was friends with or an accomplice of the Keeper, another Ancient One. 
He was a major preacher of Acension, and, according to himself, 'oversaw the magical transition into the Blessed Realm of Aaru'. The Keeper denies this, and explains that Avash-Nil watched his race get slaughtered through civil war, the power of magic too much to bear. It is possible that Avash-Nil went delusional or was so blinded by power and magic that he did not realize what was happening. 
As the Ancient Ones were going extinct, Avash-Nil confronted the Keeper, who was rebelling against Avash-Nil. The two fought, and the Keeper ultimately subdued Avash-Nil by forcing him into the Anamnesus, the machine that converted living organisms into memories (which, later, the Keeper himself would use).
The Keeper, understanding that Avash-Nil was far too dangerous as a memory, used the Vortex ring to exile the memory deep in the Andromeda galaxy. However, it was still too late for the Ancient Ones, who were all but deceased. While Avash-Nil was imprisoned for ages, new species rose in the universe, and the Ancient Ones were lost to time. 
==Return==
The Kelim Hierarchy unknowingly stumbled onto what they thought was a simple Ancient One artifact at an unknown date in the Andromeda galaxy. The captain of the Hierarchy Lightning eventually gained possession of this artifact as a trophy, only to be defeated by Captain Omar. This meant that the artifact would be sent out into space, drifting in the Fringe-worlds for months. 
The events between this and the final revelation of Avash-Nil are still not properly understood. However, it is assumed that the memory came into orbit of a Velconi mining operation on the moon of an unnamed gas planet in the Tagynhal sector. The Host must have unknowingly discovered the memory, which proved itself to be extremely dangerous, as it still contained a fraction of Avash-Nil's magic.
The memory latched onto the Host, eventually overcoming all of the brainpower of the malnourished Certoen slave and controlling the body. The Certoen got some of Avash-Nil's magical powers, which may have been the means of escape for the Host. Escaping the moon may have involved going to a scientific testing program being run on Certoen (by the AI Sentient), and then hijacking a cruiser that could take Avash-Nil to planets with Ancient One ruins, where he could stay and plot for a while.
==Ascension==
The Kelim Hierarchy, investigating one of three major disturbances, discovered the reboot of an Ancient One ruin on the planet Korros. The Justice, under the direct command of the Elders, was sent with an elite Rovoen squadron to find out who was responsible for this act. The Justice entered the ruin, and encountered a disillusioned Avash-Nil, who decimated the squadron and overwhelmed the Justice with ancient knowledge. Avash-Nil then took the Justice hostage with the intention of drawing out the galactic powers, but the Justice managed to send out messages to warn other ships not to look for or follow him.
Eventually, Avash-Nil made contact with the famous human Captain Zemuk and his escorts (including the Velconi revolutionary Escaan) after they tried to find the Vos Traversi, a Rentauri artifact on Pious Major that could bring back magic to any species. Avash-Nil had stolen this artifact beforehand, and left behind a message ordering Zemuk to activate an Ancient One beacon on the planet X-533 if he wished to save the Justice. 
Once the beacon was activated, Avash-Nil regathered some more of his power, and he ordered Zemuk to meet him at the Sun, where he would make his dramatic appearance to the galaxy.