ECO

ECO

### Current Members

Barbara Blythe, Belphegor, Lyuben Plunder, Silvestre Barros, Dragan Nükaum, Hoggish Greedly

## History

ECO are a Hebdomad formed from the remnants of the Order of Ancient Mysteries known as the Eurybian College of the Occult, or "ECO". They have many objectives but one involves possession of the five rings and the overthrow of Gaia.

### Origins

Approximately 5.9 Million years ago, the Titans' overthrew their father Ouranos. Following this, the Titans began to impose their own designs on the Earth, weakening their mother Gaia. One example of this was damming the Strait of Gibraltar, causing the slow evaporation of the sea which was a symbol of their mother's power and bore her name.

If Gaia were to ever reclaim the Earth from her usurping children, she would need to restore the Mediterranean Sea — not only for to restore the esoteric balance, but also a symbolic act of defiance against the Titans.

A daimon named Pontus agreed to help the Primordial mother in this pursuit, in exchange for being named God of the Sea. Once a deal was reached, the two daimons engaged in an intimate ritual with her that gave rise to a storm so powerful that the dam broke and the basin was flooded.

With the Zanclean Deluge which restored the Mediterranean, a new age began. Eurybia's birth would soon follow, born of Gaia in the depths of the restored sea. Knowing the Titans would retaliate for her act of defiance, Gaia feared for the safety of her primordial daughter.

To protect Eurybia, Gaia has implanted a heartstone upon her young daughter. it was smaller stone than those of the Titans, but still potent. It was Gaia's hope that by giving her such a stone the Titans would not see Eurybia as a threat, but would consider her useful enough to keep close.

Before the Titans found their mother, Gaia instructed Eurybia in the lessons she would need to know to survive among the Titans. She taught her daughter to feign weakness while consolidating power, to lie so boldly that none would question her, and to do whatever it took to survive.

When Gaia was captured, she was imprisoned by Tartarus, the prison created from the esoteric remains of Ouranos. Meanwhile Eurybia was sent off to marry the Titan Krios in order to bring him back into the fold.

After the seduction of Krios, Eurybia discovered the Titan had kept his distance with other Titans out of guilt for his part in slaying Ouranos. Eurybia saw him as a powerful ally to use against the other Titans and so instead of bringing him back, she stayed in isolation with him. The two had children, some of which Eurybia sent to infiltrate the Titans.

The Titans' war with the Olympians unsettled Eurybia's plans. Krios wrestled with helping his siblings or leaving them to the punishment they deserved. Meanwhile, Eurybia tried to sway Krios to ally himself with the Olympians. She failed to convince Krios until it was too late.

Eurybia likely struck down Krios herself before surrendering to the Olympians. She was allowed to keep her freedom, but have five of the six souls of her heartstone harvested. But what the Olympians did not know, is that she was not a true Titan and her primordial body was able to retain the power of souls. She may have given up five souls, but she had combined Krios' twelve souls with her own dozens of primordial souls.

With her immense, Eurybia explored the cosmos. She eventually returned to Earth when the Olympians' powers was waning. Eurybia did not expect them to free Gaia when they abandoned Earth. Changing her plan, Eurybia began recruiting powerful allies and organizing an agenda to overthrow her mother. So was born the Eurybian College of the Occult.

### Modern times

Following the Manhattaning there was a huge uptick in magical power. This was caused by Earth's ley lines being jumpstarted by the Intrinsic radiation, in addition to the massive amount of residual psionic energy released by all that instant death. The College of the Occult decided it needed new members to allow the society to make better use of the opportunity to engage in more powerful rituals.

While the College existed for some time, in the 1990's the organization gained a base in Kasnia thanks to Lyuben Plunder. He began to study the occult after finding an occult library in one of his families more remote properties. When he turned eighteen he convinced his uncle, King Gustav to grant him the residence.

In October 2015 the Planeteers were invited to speak before the United Nations and brought Gaia with them. Gaia's speech would be seen by the College as an act of war.

### Members

Eurybia is a Titaness of myth described as "having a heart of flint within her." She is the bastard daughter of Pontus and Gaia. She was known as having power over the elements. During the Titanomachy she chose not to choose any sides in the conflict. However, as she did not support the victorious Olympians and was a Titaness herself, a punishment was required. In lieu of being imprisoned with the other Titans, five of her six souls were extracted from her heart stone. Rings were forged from the five shards of her heart. These rings were given to Zeus' throne guard, but were later left with Gaia upon the Olympians' departure from Earth. Eurybia's remaining soul was still immortal and with that immortality, she slowly built a base of power, gathering allies and resources, patiently waiting for the day Gaia would leave her hidden island. Eurybia is the namesake of the ECO and its leader... or she was until recently...

Khaos is a Primordial being, the sister of Erebus, Pontus, Gaia, Ouranos, and Nyx. She has explored the cosmos for a great expanse of time only to return recently, eager to reap the power of Earth at the dawn of the Fifth World. She seeks to usurp her sister Gaia as the Spirit of Earth to become the avatar of the planet upon its elevation in the aftermath of an event brought upon by their other sister Nyx, an event known as the Blackest Night.

Dr. Barbara "Babs" Blythe is an Irish scientist and technomancer. She is a former student of Gerhardt Gestern and is usually accompanied by "Mal", her assistant automaton.

Belphegor is a demon prince of Hell who often uses the name Verminous Skumm while on Earth. As an archdemon, he is capable of a physical manifestation as a horde of rats or a rat-like man. He feeds off souls while sedating victims with telepathically induced euphoric sensations.

Lyuben Plunder is a Kasnian oligarch, arms dealer, and all around bad dude. He has political connections that run even deeper than his bank account. Unbeknownst to many is his secret background as an occultist. He has a number of minions to do his bidding, including Argos Bleak and his team of private security operators known as Slaughter Security.

Silvestre Barros is the commander of a band of mercenaries known as the Mudmen. He has grown wealthy and powerful by selling his services to conflict areas and using this as a cover to extract mystical relics and obtain esoteric knowledge, often by force.

Herceg Dragan Nükaum is a Vlatavan aristocrat who had a long history of being a secret occultist. Not only did he support Werner Zytle's coup, but he also killed his own father so he could inherit his hereditary title as Herceg (Vlatavan equivalent of Duke) to help Zytle get enough votes in the Chamber of Lords to secure a coronation. In turn, when it was discovered Nükaum killed his father, a royal pardon was meant to clear him. But politics at the time complicated matters. A number of documents had been leaked by a hacker that showed proof Nükaum and the king's conspiracy. In order to quell concerns, the king stayed his hand from the pardon papers and Nükaum was promptly executed, but not before his conspirators in the Eurybian College of the Occult prepared a ritual to transfer his soul into a golem. The rage that consumed Nükaum upon his death rained his soul and that often bleeds into the environment with entropic influence.

Babi Ngepet is the descendant of the legendary boar Erymanthos and the fabled sow Henwen. He is a werepig, a rare breed of therianthrope, and a powerful practitioner of black magic. He is also known as the Greedy Hog or Hoggish Greedly, a name taken to disguise his true name.

## Trivia and Notes

### Trivia

* Barbara Blythe's expertise was vital in the joining of Herceg Nükaum to his new body.
* One of the most notorious subsidiaries of LP Investments is SLTR which stands for "Secure, Licensed, Trained, & Ready" according to the website but actually stands for 'Sentinel Legion of Tenacious Resolve' - a reference to a depraved ritual for creating unquestionably loyal soldiers, taken straight from the texts of the Order of Ancient Mysteries. Whatever you think it stands for, SLTR is more often known and advertised as "Slaughter Security" and bills itself, depending on the region, as either a mercenary company, private military contractor, corporate security firm, or courier service. Though it is a subsidiary of LP Investments, most of the group's mobilization and activity is acting as the dedicated muscle and martial force of the Eurybian College. If you see any members of ECO's inner circle, it's safe to assume that there is an armed brigade of SLTR nearby as well. The commander of SLTR is Silvestre Barros with Argos Bleak and Min-Jun Plunder ("Mame Slaughter" herself) as lieutenants.
* Hoggish is ECO's taskmaster. As Eurybia's oldest ally, he is trusted with overseeing projects that the grandmistress considers of paramount importance.

### Notes

* ECO are the adaptation of the Eco-Villains from the *Captain Planet* animated series.
* While most of the villains are reimaginings of the original characters, Eurybia and Khaos are essentially stand-ins for Captain Pollution and Zarm, respectively.

## Links and References

* Appearances of ECO
* Team Gallery: ECO
* Membership of ECO

1. ↑ Network Files: Eurybia
2. ↑ Network Files: Dragan Nükaum
3. ↑ ECO
4. ↑ Network Files: Dr. Blight
5. ↑ Network Files: Lyuben Plunder
6. ↑ Network Files: Hoggish Greedly