Martyr Ten

The **Martyr Ten**, also known as 'the riders' was a group of mighty cursed individuals that had their powers and titles passed on through millennia. Created through Gohdumsin's ten favorite emotions, they had no choice but to obey and carry out his malicious will. The last incarnation of the riders had their cursed magic nullified by the Heralds of Retha, ending their curses and permanently destroying the group.

## History

The original Martyr Ten curses were created by Gohdumsin sometime before the Voidal Wars in the 3rd dawn These 'riders' of evil were Gohdumsin's agents of chaos, battling and taking Vetrill, Pagrenoe Bokila, Thundraik, and Melgoron. Most riders began as inhabitants of the Mirror World but would later pass their curses onto other individuals throughout Starr.

After Gohdumsin's imprisonment to the Chaos Core, these riders remained in the Mirror World and largely went rogue. They passed on their powers through the generations, all while watching over the residents of the dimension.

In the 12th dusk Gohdumsin was released, prompting him to recollect and repurpose his Martyr Ten. Fear, Fury, and Grief were sent into Senoption to retrieve Estna and defeat the Heralds of Retha. Grief managed to disobey his master and attempted to aid the heroes, ultimately being destroyed and having the Grief Curse returned to Gohdumsin.

After this, the remaining nine riders were stationed in the Element Dimension to protect Dimiourgia's Conception and ensure his awakening. Certain riders still aided Gohdumsin, such as when Bliss played a role in the Kin of Time's assassination. Despair and Sorrow accompanied Bliss and failed in their attempt to subdue the Dragon Lord.

At the height of Gohdumsin's plans, the nine riders were taken into the Sea of Time post-Dimiourgia's awakening and remained ready to disrupt the time ocean while Gohdumsin taunted the Heralds of Retha. The Heralds soon received blessings from Father Estic, and Eljenai Alminak used his temporary cursed magic nullification to permanently destroy the Rider Curses, fully eliminating all riders from existence.

## Former Members

#### Fear Rider

* **Race-** Human Husk
* **Classification-** Martyr of Fear
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Fear Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was Zashrir (UT) who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around fear. He could use residual voodoo magic and blind others with fear. His curse made him completely obedient to his master, following his every command until the end. He wielded his scythe to battle the Heralds of Retha and ultimately attempted to disrupt the Sea of Time. His cursed magic was nullified, permanently destroying the Fear Rider entity.

#### Despair Rider

* **Race-** Aarakocra
* **Classification-** Martyr of Despair
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Despair Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was an Aarakocra who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around despair. He could drain the hope out of his target and slowly turn them mad. His curse made him completely obedient to his master, following his every command until the end. He wielded his wings to protect Dimiourgia and ultimately attempted to disrupt the Sea of Time. His cursed magic was nullified, permanently destroying the Despair Rider entity.

#### Fury Rider

* **Race-** Orc
* **Classification-** Martyr of Fury
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Fury Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was a traitorous Orc who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around fury. He could fly and instill others with uncontrollable rage. His curse made him completely obedient to his master, following his every command until the end. He wielded his maces to battle the Heralds of Retha and ultimately attempted to disrupt the Sea of Time. His cursed magic was nullified, permanently destroying the Fury Rider entity.

#### Grief Rider

* **Race-** Human
* **Classification-** Martyr of Grief
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Grief Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was a Human who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around grief. He could use grief-related attacks to mess with the wellbeing of his opponents. His curse supposedly made him completely obedient to his master, but was later able to deviate and help the Heralds of Retha. He wielded his halberd to battle the Heralds against his will and was ultimately destroyed which returned his curse to Gohdumsin.

#### Bliss Rider

* **Race-** Angel
* **Classification-** Martyr of Bliss
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Bliss Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was an Angel healer who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around bliss. She could use powerful magic to create illusions and mess with the minds of others. Her curse made her completely obedient to her master, following his every command until the end. She wielded her powers to protect Dimiourgia, capture the Kin of Time, and ultimately attempted to disrupt the Sea of Time. Her cursed magic was nullified, permanently destroying the Bliss Rider entity.

#### Sorrow Rider

* **Race-** Human
* **Classification-** Martyr of Sorrow
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Sorrow Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was a Human who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around sorrow. He could feed emotions of sorrow to his targets and break down their will. His curse made him completely obedient to his master, following his every command until the end. He wielded his blades to protect Dimiourgia and ultimately attempted to disrupt the Sea of Time. His cursed magic was nullified, permanently destroying the Sorrow Rider entity.

#### Guilt Rider

* **Race-** Human
* **Classification-** Martyr of Guilt
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Guilt Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was a Human who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around guilt. He could fill and weaken his opponents with powerful feelings of guilt. His curse made him completely obedient to his master, following his every command until the end. He wielded his powers to protect Dimiourgia and ultimately attempted to disrupt the Sea of Time. His cursed magic was nullified, permanently destroying the Guilt Rider entity.

#### Hatred Rider

* **Race-** Magic Elf
* **Classification-** Martyr of Hatred
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Hatred Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was a Magic Elf who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around hatred. He could cloud the minds of his opponents and empower himself with unconditional hatred. His curse made him completely obedient to his master, following his every command until the end. He wielded his powers to protect Dimiourgia and ultimately attempted to disrupt the Sea of Time. His cursed magic was nullified, permanently destroying the Hatred Rider entity.

#### Distrust Rider

* **Race-** Dwarf
* **Classification-** Martyr of Distrust
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Distrust Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was a Dwarf who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around distrust. He could incite uncertainty between allies and disrupt his targets. His curse made him completely obedient to his master, following his every command until the end. He wielded his powers to protect Dimiourgia and ultimately attempted to disrupt the Sea of Time. His cursed magic was nullified, permanently destroying the Distrust Rider entity.

#### Regret Rider

* **Race-** Human
* **Classification-** Martyr of Regret
* **Status-** Deceased
* **Description-** The Regret Rider was one of Gohdumsin's ten riders. The last incarnation of this rider was a Human who now possessed great dark powers that revolved around regret. He could use regret magic to fill his opponents with uncertainty and turn battles in his favor. His curse made him completely obedient to his master, following his every command until the end. He wielded his powers to protect Dimiourgia and ultimately attempted to disrupt the Sea of Time. His cursed magic was nullified, permanently destroying the Regret Rider entity.

## Bases of Operations

The Martyr Ten were sent to operate out of different places over the course of their time as a group. Transported by Gohdumsin, they had two very notable locations.

* **Mirror World-** The most bizarre dimension in Starr, this was Gohdumsin's central headquarters. The riders spent many chaos days in the sanctuary while Gohdumsin was sealed away; However, their mirror-versions were much weaker.
* **Element Dimension-** Tasked with protecting Dimiourgia's Conception, nine of the riders were stationed in the Element Dimension to oversee and protect the developing creation. They dispelled the Heralds of Retha but left once Dimiourgia had awoken.

## Affiliations

The riders had very few mutually-malicious entities that were willing to cooperate with the Martyr's in order to achieve their mutual goals.

* **Gohdumsin-** The King of Darkness created and founded the Martyr Ten. Gohdumsin would continue to control his creations and manipulate them as he saw fit. The riders could not disobey and lived to serve their master.
* **Voidal Knights-** Gohdumsin was a member of the Voidal Knights and used his riders to aid other knights, such as sending them to protect Senoption and weaken the Dragon Lord for Dimiourgia.

## Enemies

Most of Gohdumsin's enemies translate over to the riders, and more often than not, have to face them on behalf of their master. The Martyr Ten are infamous throughout Starr for their collective power and curse transfer ability.

* **Heralds of Retha-** A group of heroes from Senothia, the Heralds made it their mission to destroy Gohdumsin and the Martyr Ten, eventually succeeding. They began to have numerous encounters with the riders after Gohdumsin's release and always found ways to defeat them without cursing themselves.
* **Kin of Law-** Protectors of the Plane of Law, the Kin were highly wary of the Martyr Ten. The Kin of Minds was able to protect his teammates, but in his moment of weakness, the Kin of Time was captured and killed by Gohdumsin and the riders.
* **Estna-** Daughter of Nurmor, the riders were initially sent into Senoption to make sure Estna fulfill her goal and kill her if she didn't. The Martyr Ten were cautious of the half-goddess, as she had immunity to all of their powers and curses.
* **Dragon Lord-** Multiple riders were sent to weaken the Dragon Lord, and initially succeeded in the original timeline. This wasn't the alternative case as the Dragon Lord managed to protect his mind until the riders were destroyed.