John Leng
Mayor of Epitaph; Duskscape Regent of Hubs and Dreaming Cities
Duskscape Regent of hubs, branching paths and dreaming cities, John Leng is the “mayor” of Epitaph: the shifting, kaleidoscopic, mostly demonic city at the “centre” of the The Near Umbra. Otherwise, "he" carries too many identities to know which is accurate, or perhaps they all are in some twisted way.
John Leng's alignment is Lawful Evil.Appearance & Heraldry
See also: John Leng Image GalleryJohn Leng generally takes the form of a tall, lithe, well-dressed, androgynous humanoid, though occasionally he will take the form of a wizened and bearded old man in simple robes (even his sword cane Joyeuse appears as a gnarled old walking stick) or a colossal, ghostly skeleton, able to walk entire city blocks in one stride, but leaving no trace of his comings and goings. The skeleton carries a disguised Joyeuse in one hand and a fine hooded lantern of unknown make in the other, said to reveal any hidden thing, no matter how alien its method of obfuscation.
Worship
Worship of The Mayor by Waking mortals is rare: most of them are individuals whose dreaming souls are drawn to Epitaph in a much stronger way than others, whereupon their fascination with its enigmatic and seemingly omnipotent (at least, within the city's borders) ruler turns to obssession, then into a sort of twisted worship. Others pray to him as a muse in pursuit of wealth or political success.
Nonetheless, most of the respects paid to Leng come from the residents of the great Dreaming City itself. Most businesses have his likeness or one of his many heraldries on display, and once every Cycle (Near Umbral "seasons", more akin to moods than weather or climate), they are expected to offer a gift of their choice to the Mayor, collected by his legion of silent, hooded collectors. No one is punished directly if their gift is too mundane or unexciting for Leng, but those who gift weak offerings tend to find their businesses struggle more in the following Cycle.Aliases
All who know John Leng know the name John Leng.Domains
The Mayor's primary Domain is Wealth. His secondary domains are Cities, Law, Tyranny, Luck, Dreams and Vigil.Favoured Weapon
John Leng's favoured weapon is the sword cane. His Relic sword cane is the wondrous Joyeuse.Apocrypha
It is said the being that runs Epitaph is not the true John Leng, but rather a shadow reflection. The true John Leng lies dead in his tomb, at the centre of an infinitely vast labyrinth beneath the City of Auspices. He may be woken up be shouting very loudly, and will then ask his visitor a question. If answered incorrectly, he will lapse back into death. If answered correctly, he will speak the Final Thirteen Words of the Book of Nod, thus ending the current multiverse, that a new one may be ushered in.
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