Janus

### Theme Song

"Believer" - Imagine Dragons"The Shadow of the Past" - Howard Shore (Instrumental)

"Son of the Harpy" - Ramin Djawadi (Instrumental)

## Application Sheet

Janus was Lord Cobra of Vektren, the second consort to Mistress Hekate, and father to numerous children. Black-furred, with mismatched eyes (one red, one blue), Janus was an unpredictable zealot who, ultimately, would serve Vektren to his death (if the Cobra is dead at all, that is...) He was created and RP'd by WynBird.

His children are Epione, Ravka, Persephone, Helh, Hestia, Orpheus, Thanatos, Phaeton, Renae, Alastor, and Honiahaka (though it would be no surprise if further unnamed bastard children are out there!)

## Personality

* ***Ambitious.*** Selfish ambition brought Janus into the Dread Father's fold, but now the Cobra serves for the ambition of his gods. Through weeks of bloody torture and manipulation, Janus's selfish materialism has been scrubbed out, silenced. His devotion to Senisteros is based on the belief that nothing in the universe is more powerful than the god (and by extension, herald Hekate, who speaks for him). He will do anything to further the gain of Xibalten, and that really does mean *anything.* There is nothing and no one that Janus would not sacrifice for his gods.
* ***Awakened*** - Once the void in him left Janus desperate for recognition, for the favour of the gods. Since his reeducation, this void is filled and overflowing. Janus hears voices in his head, which he believes to be the spirits that serve Xibalten. He has developed a particular addiction to the psychoactive drugs that bring him "closer" to these ghosts. The Cobra will not openly speak about his time in the pits or his scarred eye, attempting to prod him on the matter is another excellent way to get one's self dismembered. The eye, he believes, was a gift from the gods, and Janus is under the impression that it gives him special discernment. He trusts himself now - or at the very least, trusts the ghosts who whisper in his head.
* ***Menacing*** - Jay *oozes* a menacing vibe, going about his affairs in much the same manner as a venomous serpent. He always seems to be up to no good, but that silver tongue of his is always eager to convince you of his good intentions.
* ***Perfectionist***- If Janus sees something as necessary, he will do it, and he will do it *right*. Moreover, he expects the same of others and is utterly unforgiving of any failure on the part of another to do their duty. Working under him might literally be hell.
* ***Sadistic*** - He's prone to sadistic behavior, deriving a tainted sense of joy from inflicting physical suffering on others. You need someone mutilated? No problem. Janus will even brag about doing it later. He considers suffering to be the righteous punishment for those who have failed Senisteros, and considers torture an act of piety in this regard.
* ***Self-righteous*** - Janus is perfectionistic, orderly, and quick to cast a condescending glare. He has passed through the gauntlet, seen and experienced the true faces of the gods and their powers. Lesser wolves are worthy only of his scorn for their weakness. The dark wolf is constantly striving to obtain what *he* believes he deserves as both an individual and a leader.
* ***Two-Faced*** - There are few Janus trusts, and though he can be quite the socialite when called for Jay's true self is a mystery, perhaps even to himself. Most of "Him" has been replaced by Hekate's careful programming in the pits. He enjoys playing a role - endearing himself to those around him, being their friend - or even lover - while it suits him. And all too quick to stab his 'friends' in the back when the relationship is no longer beneficial. This makes him an excellent agent and interrogator; Janus's ability to wear a mask is rarely matched.
* ***Zealot*** – Janus's shortcomings have been remolded into terrorism and fanatical devotion to the Dread Father. The wolf's subconscious desperation for recognition and respectability are what drew him to Vektren in the first place, and he feels he had achieved all he desired, and more. He knows that only Death is inescapable, and considers it both practical and wise to serve the gods of death in turn. He performs his duties wholeheartedly, without question or hesitation. In many aspects Janus is the perfect solider, or executioner. He is intolerant of questioning, demanding total obedience from others with no qualms about exacting righteous wrath on those who fail to meet this standard. His lust for Hekate has evolved into something even more obsessive. Janus's mind, body, and soul are entirely at his Mistress's disposal.

## Pre-Group History

Born to heathen parents Kali and Brutus, Janus was not well attended as a child. Having never raised a litter to adulthood, his mother and father were frequently absent and overly preoccupied with matters which were not their needy, temperamental son. Along with some others, they had claimed a permanent territory near the Vektren of old. Brutus led the pack with his strength, exemplifying the aphorism "Might makes right." Often on the brink of starvation, they scrounged up meals wherever they could. During particularly scarce seasons, infighting was especially common, and even cannibalism. As a cub, Janus was frequently targeted by the more aggressive members of the pack, bullied mercilessly and learning that violence was the easiest way to solve most issues. He came to despise the chaos of this rankless system he lived in. He did everything he could to make an impression on his parents, and show that he was worthy as a leader as well as a follower, though nothing seemed to catch their eye. Until...

Brutus was aging, and his weakness would soon be taken advantage of by the younger, stronger wolves. It occurred to the Alpha that the loyalty of his son could potentially extend his own life and power. Now old enough that it seemed unlikely the child would die, Janus's parents began to take more of an interest. He was crude and hostile, but not without potential. Brutus reached out to his son, and Kali began to dote on Janus like never before. Their sudden attachment to him confused Janus, but he was eager for an opportunity to form some sort of bond with Brutus and Kali, and quickly fell into line as their bodyguard and enforcer. He was not happy with this lot as a crude hunk of muscle, but his parents assured him that they appreciated what he did for them, and that seemed like it should be enough.

Life continued this way for some time, until Brutus's pack and others nearby decided that their neighbor, the cult of Vektren, had become too great a threat. A sinister plot was formed, and the packs succeeded in infecting Vektren with rabies. It didn't take long before the madness claimed the servands of the Dread Father; many fled, most died. But Brutus could not be satisfied with victory alone. He wished to gloat. When his pack captured one fo the fleeing Vektreni, they imprisoned the fugitive. The creature's pelt what ghostly white, and her eyes a bloody red. Janus had never seen such a creature. She spewed many things about a wrathful god and spoke as if death itself were an entity to be served. She had been a Cleric, *a Divine*, and she claimed many things Janus was intrigued by. But his pack only laughed at her false god, and set upon her with the ferocity of base animals. They committed many atrocities against her, finally killing her. But not before she told Janus of Senisteros, and the wrath Xibalten exacted upon the unworthy.

Over the next three days, the pack feasted upon the Vektreni's corpse and celebrated their 'victory', all except for Janus, who had taken no part in any of it. His disappointment that her god had not shown himself vanished as very soon, blood sickness began to spread through the pack. Those who had partaken in the revelry grew feverish, erratic, *rabid.* Janus was awestruck and fearful as even the mighty Brutus succumbed to the very plague he had inflicted upon Vektren. His pack turned on itself, destroyed itself. Just as the Divine had promised.

When the nightmare was over and Janus alone survived, he knew where he needed to go, and who's service to pledge himself to. Brutus had been weak, but Senisteros...  *Senisteros was powerful.*

## Group History

Janus traveled for a long time, trying to find the wolves Xibalten was leading him to. Ultimately, he came upon a she-wolf named Rabbit, who was excited to join him on the way to Vektren. When they arrived, Hekate was the first to greet them, intrigued and curious to hear what they had to say. Janus quickly fell in among the ranks, proving himself to be quite adept as a Viper. He was charged with Octavia's reeducation in the pits.

Janus encountered Nadina one night, and she immediately believed that he was the most wrathful of Havir's deities - Adetunji. Terrified, she begged him to spare her pack and punish *her* instead. Janus, seeking some fun of his own, decided to take advantage of Nadina in her position, and he had his way with her. He didn't know it, but the results of this night's affair would lead to two children being born between the dark Vektreni and the silver Havirian - Renae and Alastor.

But that was not of Janus's concern. After all, he'd gotten what he wanted, and returned to Vektren free of any burden of responsibility.

He feared his secret was out, though, when Iris approached him one night. She had gone to Janus to confront him about his open disdain towards her, and he dismissed her for having dreams she believed to be from the gods (impossible, they would never speak to *her*, Janus decided). He became increasingly alarmed as Iris made up a story to get under his skin - a story about a dark-scaled snake eating hatchlings and waiting for an unhatched egg to hatch. Janus was incensed, and, fearing she was plotting against him, lashed out at her. She fled, running to higher ground, but it gave way. As a result, Iris was seemingly swallowed in a rockfall by the mountain, and the Viper was injured, too. Janus was uncertain of what to do, and eventually decided to approach Hekate and inform her that her adoptive daughter had died in a rockslide, twisting the story to make it seem like he had been acting heroically, trying to *stop* her from running into the mountains.

Having proven himself one of her most reliable wolves, Hekate asked Janus to spy on enemy packs. But before sending him off, she made him a proposition he simply *couldn't* refuse - to do as Andras had once done, and sire Hekate's heirs. Delighted, he helped his mistress to do just that before setting off on his dangerous missions of subterfuge and trickery. Hekate bore his children - Epione, Ravka, Persephone, and Thanatos.

Upon his return, he approached Hekate with a proposition of his own. Shaken by the distance he felt between himself and the gods, he asked Hekate to reshape him, re-create him as a devout Vektreni, a servant of the gods. Hekate agreed to this, and Janus was taken to the pits. Janus was not a weak-minded wolf, and he rebelled viciously against the re-education that occurred down there. In the darkness, Janus was mentally ripped apart - the gods *knew* of his mistakes and transgressions, and made him to pay for it. They knew of Nadina and Iris, the biggest of his transgressions.

Janus was down in the pits for a long time. He was there to greet young Merrill, when she was dropped into the pits to be reshaped herself. She was terrified as Janus wrestled with his demons, shaking her to her core as he raved and twitched and cursed. Janus was being reshaped, oh, yes. But it would cost him *everything* - his security, his sanity, his calm and cool demeanor. His reemergence granted him a blind eye (which he claimed allowed him to see the hearts of other wolves), an obsessive fanaticism about the gods, and an obsession and idolization of Hekate - mind, soul, and body all belonged to *her.*

However, that didn't mean he couldn't satisfy himself in the presence of other females. He formed a connection with Belladonna, the pair routinely meeting for midnight escapades. Unfortunately for Bella, this relationship would lead to terrible consequences. One morning, as the pair were getting ready to return to their duties, they discovered a loner had wandered into Vektren lands. Janus told Bella to kill the loner - a sacrifice to the gods - but Bella was willing to let the wolf go with a warning. Janus was *outraged* at the treachery and reported her to Hekate. Belladonna fled, a bounty on her head as a result of the black wolf's ire.

Janus washed his paws of Bella.

After his reeducation in the pits, Janus was plagued by bad dreams. He spoke to Miron, hoping to understand what the dreams *meant*, and Miron's suggestion was that Janus speak to wolves who were not strong believers in Sinisteros and Xibalten. If he could encourage their faith, perhaps the gods would be pleased. Janus was given the name of Solitaire as a starting point, and left Miron in peace.

Janus traipsed into Arynian lands, seeking to find information (or a heart, he wasn't picky). Much to his delight, he discovered young female Riga, who was wary of his approach. When he attacked her, she was convinced that he was the Deceiver. She did her best to fight him off, but Janus may have been able to kill her, if Athena hadn't come running. Janus escaped without being caught by Athena, and returned delightedly to Vektren, having stolen Riga's catch of a hare.

Janus helped Hekate to have a second litter of potential heirs, and he took a bit more of a vested interest in these pups (as he was not in the pits as they grew up). Helh - the little white pup - was considered a blessing, and when she told her father that she saw ghosts, Janus *demanded* that she be confident around the specters, and demand their respect. He managed to do nothing but scare poor Helh, and Hekate witnessed the whole thing, and reprimanded Janus *firmly.*

Janus had high expectations for the entire brood. Phaeton believed he could never live up to his father's standards, while Hestia was excited to be a Viper like her father. He had high hopes that his children would succeed Hekate. Ultimately, however, he felt his chance at having his children rise to power was threatened when Silvanus arrived, clearly attracting the attention of *his* Herald Hekate.

Janus worked harder than ever to prove himself to Hekate. He helped Miron by placing bone charms around Aryn, to wage war on a spiritual plane. He actually listened to his son Thanatos as he provided information on a secret tunnel into Aryn. He worked with his packmates to subdue an Arynian patrol and take captive Nero, Raghaalr, and Tzuriel. He chased off wolves who encroached on the territory, such as Elisabet. He and Thanatos even hunted for sacrificial offerings to the gods - he did *everything* in his power to prove himself to Hekate and the gods.

Perhaps it wasn't enough, for the pack was stricken by a series of plagues shortly thereafter. Janus was contaminated by the first sickness of sulphur poisoning, but it did not stop him from performing his duties. When the second plague - boils - struck, he was spared the worst of it, and watched as his packmates suffered, helpless to do anything. By the time the third plague rolled through, Janus fell completely insane, and ultimately attacked Vieste in a panic, robbing her of half her tail when he bit it off.

Needless to say, Vieste was not shy about reminding him of this feat further down the line, with aggressive butt-wiggling and scowls.

However, the plagues abated, and Vektren continued its war efforts. An Arynian even approached Janus one day, to get revenge upon her father. Hera offered her life as collateral, in exchange for Janus casting out Silvanus. Ultimately, however, nothing came of this - neither the collateral payment of Hera's life, nor the killing of Silvanus. Janus, to be honest, had better things to do.

His Mistress decided it was time. Time to end the war with Aryn by using the pawn they'd placed there in the beginning - Merrill. Janus joined Hekate, Nimh, and Hellion in killing Lady Athena and Lord Alcatraz, battling viciously against Alcatraz, ultimately killing Aryn's Lord before rushing to help Hekate when she and Athena plunged from the edge of the cliff. Then, everyone returned home with their prizes. Janus was briefly diverted to kill Lycan, when Lycan tried to intercept the party.

By some accounts, Vektren won the war. But the cost was immeasurable.

Hekate was injured, and plunged deeper into paranoia and insanity. When Janus discovered Hellion had betrayed Hekate by meeting with an outsider - Liss - he took the she-wolf captive and brought her to Hekate, who took her to the mount to make her a sacrifice.

In an instant, everything changed: Hekate was killed by her own son, and Janus, outraged, attacked Hellion. The pair fell from the summit, and while Hellion escaped with his life, Janus's ultimate fate was unknown. He is presumed to be deceased, joining his Mistress in the afterlife, to continue serving at her side, but ultimately, nobody knows. All we know is that he hasn't been seen since.

## Trivia

* As a parent to his offspring with Hekate, Janus considers their indoctrination into Vektren to be of the utmost importance. They are a valuable political tool, something which ensures his prominence within the pack and a living testament to Hekate's favour. Though he is not particularly fatherly or in any sense affectionate, his perfectionist nature drives Janus to ensure that his heirs are well-equipped and formidable in their own right.
	+ Moreover, he desires to see one of his own direct line succeed Hekate rather than Hellion, considering his offspring to be more divine than those of the "traitor" Andras. Janus expends a great deal of political energy to securing a bright future for his offspring. That being said, he tolerates no divergence from this path. And while he would never seriously harm them (that would be impractical) Janus is a talented manipulator, and he is not hesitant to apply this method of control to his own 'family.'
	+ With his female cubs, Janus's new predicament is taking on the role of father rather than rogue, and he is bitterly suspicious of any suitors who might seek their affections. Quite simply, there are none alive good enough for Janus's daughters.
	+ Regarding Janus's bastard children (of which there may be many), he will neither claim them nor is he inclined intercede on their behalf. They are not his concern, they are a liability. He would be more likely to kill them for the past sin they represent, and make their hearts and offering to the gods who have redeemed Janus.
		- The two who reside in the Domain are Renae and Honi.
* You know when you're home alone late at night and you hear a noise, and suddenly there's a monster in every corner and you're pretty sure tonight is the night you're getting murdered? That's what Janus's voice makes you feel like.
* Janus bit off half of Vieste's tail.
* He has a beautiful blind eye now thanks to banging his head into rocks during his reeducation, trying to chase away the demons in his head. He considers it a gift from Xibalten that gives him "special powers" so he can see into the hearts of other wolves.

## Quotes

* "To emulate a serpent is something of a compliment, don't you think? They are, after all, some the most adaptable and fearsome hunters... Even the greatest of beasts keeps a wide berth from a viper." (to Octavia, *The Taming of the Shrew*)
* "I tire of relying on lesser wolves to tell me the ways of our Dread Father. I wish to know them, as you do. I wish for their convictions to burn like poison in my bones - venom, boiling in my blood! Remake me, Herald, into a viper that none would dare question! I know that you can. Rend these scales from my eyes, let me see beyond the veil into the accursed Dark, and let none question whether my service to you is the will of the gods!" (to Hekate, *Remake Me*)
* “I begged them to rend the veil! To share their power with me! And they did. Oh - they did. (*But not without a price*.) That is why I am being punished, you see? I denied them their due! I tried to take what wasn’t mine! You think *we* are monsters, girl? *You don’t know the meaning of the word.”* (to Merrill, *Monster*)

## External Links

* Official Application Sheet
* WynBird's deviantART Gallery