Elder God

"I am the Engine of Life, the source of Nosgoth's very existence. I am the hub of the Wheel, the origin of all Life, the devourer of Death."

- The Elder God

The Elder God is a major character in the Legacy of Kain series, first introduced in Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, and returning in Soul Reaver 2 and Legacy of Kain: Defiance. Though initially a mysterious benefactor and ally to Raziel, the Elder God's portrayal becomes increasingly malicious as the series progresses. By the conclusion of Legacy of Kain: Defiance, it is regarded as the cause of "all of the conflict and strife throughout history", and as the main antagonist of the series as a whole.

Depicted as a sentient, writhing mass of tentacles and eyes dwelling deep below the land of Nosgoth, the Elder God claimed to be the hub of the Wheel of Fate, the preternatural cycle of birth, death and rebirth to which all souls were drawn. However, Raziel later accused the Elder God of merely being a parasite on the Wheel, not its hub. Although this was not confirmed or denied, a consistent fact was that the Elder God was sustained by the Wheel's turning. Thus, as Vampires were immortal and their souls did not flow with the Wheel, they, and especially Kain, served as its greatest enemies.

The Echoes of a Tortured Mind
"The birth of one of Kain's abominations traps the essence of life. It is this soul that animates the corpse you ‘lived' in. And that Raziel, is the demise of Nosgoth. There is no balance. The souls of the dead remain trapped. I can not spin them in the wheel of fate. They can not complete their destinies."

- The Elder God

Dwelling coterminously within the Spectral Realm, where time was irrelevant, and the Material Realm, where time flowed linearly, the Elder God was capable of interacting with other entities in a chronologically-inconsistent manner. Its enormous body, typically shown submerged in subterranean water, appeared to thrive and expand as Nosgoth's eras passed, and in the Soul Reaver era, its expanse occupied the Lake of the Dead. When Raziel was condemned for pupating beyond his master Kain, the deified Vampire ordered Turel and Dumah to cast his "prodigal son" into the Abyss at the heart of the lake.

Though "an eternity passed" and the descent had effectively "destroyed" Raziel's body, he still "lived"; he awoke at the bottom of the Lake, now a wraith inhabiting the Spectral Realm. The Elder God seized the opportunity to address the being, proclaiming to him "I know you, Raziel. You are worthy". Raziel expressed petulant horror at his own transformation, but the Elder claimed it had "only spared [him] from total dissolution". As Raziel listened, it didactically explained the concept of the Wheel of Fate, and proclaimed that the existence of immortal Vampires imbalanced the world, preventing Nosgoth's souls from completing their destinies.

"For eons the Elder fed upon the souls of Nosgoth. Then Kain's vampire dynasty deprived the Elder of sustenance." The putative God offered Raziel a "solution to [his] sorry existence"; if Raziel returned to the Material Realm and destroyed his former brethren, reaving their souls, he could exact revenge upon Kain. Deeply intrigued and lusting for vengeance, Raziel silently consented to this bargain, becoming the Elder's so-called "angel of death"; his "soul reaver".

There is Only the Now
"Do not be insolent, Raziel. I am eternally present - here and everywhere; now and always. I am the still center of the turning wheel, the hub of this world's destiny."

- The Elder God

Communicating symbiotically with Raziel, the Elder God introduced its new servant to his capacities as a devourer of souls. Mentoring Raziel on Warp gates, soul devouring, Sluagh and Planar portals, it shepherded the wraith beyond the Lake of the Dead and into Nosgoth's barren wilderness. As he explored the land, Raziel encountered unfamiliar, monstrous creatures; the Elder explained that these were devolved Dumahim. Darkly bemused by Raziel's incredulity, the Elder chastized, "do you suppose that time stood still for you, Raziel? Much has changed since you passed from the world of men".

Five centuries had passed since Raziel's execution; at the Sanctuary of the Clans, he was assailed by violent tremors in the earth, prompting the Elder to explain that "this world is wracked with cataclysms - the earth strains to shrug off the pestilence of Kain's parasitic empire". Remarking on how Kain had refused to martyr himself to restore the Pillars of Nosgoth, it asserted that the world's "unraveling", invited by Kain's empire, had nearly played out. From then onward, it usually dispensed advice to Raziel following significant events only, or if its counsel was solicited in the Elder's Lair.

When Raziel battled and slaughtered Melchiah, the Elder congratulated him and dismissed his misgivings of fratricide, expressing that Raziel was "elevated" by consuming his brothers' souls. After Raziel fatefully claimed the Wraith Blade following his battle with Kain and the destruction of the Soul Reaver, it outlined the incorporeal weapon's uses, duplicitously stating Raziel had "liberated it from its corporeal prison, and restored it to its true form". At the Tomb of the Sarafan, it confirmed the revelation that Raziel was "born of the same force that all but destroyed [his] race", and freely volunteered the histories of the Drowned Abbey and the Ruined City. All the while, however, it left its servant unwitting and ignorant of his true, inevitable destiny.

Deep in the Heart of this World
"These are the fathomless truths, Raziel: The agony of birth and death and rebirth - this is the Wheel of Fate, the purifying cycle which sustains all life. Vampires are an abomination, a plague which leeches this land of its spiritual strength. They obstruct the flow of life and death - their souls stagnate in their wretched corpses. But the Wheel must turn; Death is inexorable and cannot be denied. Your destiny is irresistible, Raziel - you are my soul reaver, the scourge of the vampires, reaper of their apostate souls. Remain steadfast. End the vampires' parasitic curse, and restore Nosgoth. Kain's blood belongs on your hands."

- The Elder God

After Raziel battled Kain in the Chronoplast below the Oracle's Cave, he pursued his destroyer through the mechanism's portal, believing that by crossing the threshold, he was beyond the Elder's influence. He emerged in the Sarafan Stronghold of the much earlier pre-Blood Omen era, and, at first, encountered no evidence of the God's presence in this distant time period. However, while preparing to strike Moebius down with the Soul Reaver in William the Just's chapel, he uttered that "Death comes for us all"; the cowering Moebius replied that "the Wheel of Fate demands it".

Taken by surprise, Raziel stayed his hand as Moebius confirmed that he, too, served the Elder God. The Time Guardian warned him that "to strike me down would be striking God's own attendant, and I don't believe even you would take that risk". Disgusted by this new information, Raziel stalked away, spurning Moebius's pronouncements that he was "now most powerfully equipped to be His agent - His instrument of restoration and retribution". Based on Kain's "boasted exploits", he had already held a low opinion of Moebius, and the new context that the infamous Guardian was connected to the Elder instilled him with an intense distrust of both his co-conspirators.

In the Subterranean Pillars Chamber, the Elder God, its mass lodged in the waters deep below the surface and coiled around the Pillars, interrupted Raziel's study of the Ancient Vampire murals contained therein. Raziel had stayed his hand against Kain at the Pillars, and the two disputed, with the Elder admonishing Raziel that he owed it a debt, and Raziel questioning its candor, its relationship with Moebius and its supposed omnipotence, and avouching his own will. The Elder repeatedly encouraged Raziel to kill Kain, reiterating its opinion of the Vampires and stating that "to embrace a serpent is to invite poison into your heart", but Raziel - though still resentful of Kain - emphatically declared that "if and when I kill him, it will be for me, alone, to decide".

In a Shroud of Righteousness
"Merely the deceits of a failed civilization. You are being misled, Raziel. This Ancient race hoped to manipulate the future with these scrawled misdirections. You must tread carefully. There are dark forces at work in this world, bent on subverting your true destiny."

- The Elder God

As his quest to find Janos Audron progressed, Raziel returned to the Elder God in the Pillars grotto multiple times. Upon his return trip to the Sarafan Stronghold after solving the Dark Forge, the Elder acerbically acknowledged him as "my wayward child"; Raziel responded that he had "unearthed more than you'd like". He queried the Elder on the Ancients' ruins and murals, but it dismissed them as "the deceits of a failed civilization", one which "hoped to manipulate the future with these scrawled misdirections". It warned that dark forces were at work in Nosgoth, bent on subverting his destiny, to which Raziel vocally wondered, "am I in their presence right now?" Bristling, the Elder assured Raziel that his reach was longer than he realized, ominously concluding that he was playing "a very dangerous game".

The Elder God was next seen in the third timeline's post-Blood Omen era, following Raziel's refusal to murder Kain at the Sarafan Stronghold, which resulted in the second paradox. A century onward from their last encounter, Raziel was shocked to discover that the Elder's amorphous form appeared to thrive, despite the chaos in Nosgoth following the Collapse of the Pillars. It greeted Raziel with disdain, branding him "the failed assassin" and condemning Kain's actions, and its body had wound up and around the Pillars' shattered stumps in a "guilty scene" which prompted Raziel to note that "one would think you'd torn down the Pillars single-handedly".

He commented on its potential motives and its hunger for souls, disdainfully arguing that "the great adversary of the vampires turns out to be the biggest parasite of them all". Though the Elder threatened to unmake Raziel if he were so inclined, warning of "fates worse than death", Raziel mocked it and typified it as a cancer; "a spooling parasite burrowed deep in the heart of this world". When he next conversed with it, as he pursued the Sarafan Warrior Inquisitors in Nosgoth's early history following Janos Audron's death, it merely remarked with "ominous finality" that Raziel had failed it.

Embittered at having been "used by others time and again", Raziel speculated as to whether the Elder had been responsible for his revival at all; whether, perhaps, he had simply been "dropped in [its] lair by Kain, indestructible for some reason. A durable and gullible tool for [it] to manipulate". He suspected by now that there was much more to his own history and destiny than either of them knew, but whether in light of its own vexation at Raziel's transgressions or for other reasons, the Elder God was not prepared to divulge any insight it may have had.

Here in Eternity with Me
"Go now. Play out your pitiful rebellion, and take your place among the destroyed, the used, and the damned. But know this - you are mine for eternity. You have always been, and will always be, my soul reaver..."

- The Elder God

After slaying his own past incarnation at the Sarafan Stronghold, Raziel realized the destiny the Elder God and others had apparently hidden from him; he himself was the soul-devouring entity fated to become trapped within the Reaver. Though Kain managed to postpone this fate by pulling the weapon from Raziel's body - causing the third paradox, and spawning the fourth timeline - the ordeal weakened Raziel to the point of catastrophe, forcing him back into the Spectral Realm. He was next seen in the Elder God's custody, trapped within the Underworld in the Blood Omen era.

When Kain attempted to interrogate Moebius in the caverns below the Stronghold, a few years after the Slaughter of the Circle, he came upon the Time Streamer viewing this scene, and briefly conversing to the Elder via a shimmering pool. However, neither of them truly understood the Elder's nature, as Raziel did. It starved Raziel of souls in an attempt to force him to relinquish his will, but - convinced that the Elder was a "voracious parasite" - Raziel refused to submit to its entreaties, choosing to suffer.

The Elder accused Raziel of "cowardice", understanding that his rebellion was partially motivated by fear of the Reaver; lingering in the Underworld, the wraith was able to indefinitely postpone his "inevitable doom". Unable to deny this truth, Raziel feigned submission to his master, and was rewarded with a soul. Progressing through the Underworld under its domineering auspices, he eventually made an attempt to flee the place in one of the area's tall caverns. Though the "displeased" Elder raised blankets of lethal mist and sundered the chamber's masonry with its limbs, it was unable to prevent his narrow escape.

In the Pointless Round of Existence
"Surrender, Raziel. Abandon this petty rebellion. It was I who made you. Your life had played out, and in my grace, I spared you. You are my reaper of souls. You have no other purpose, no higher destiny - just this. Accept your calling, Raziel. Let go of these vain hopes. Relinquish your will, and feed."

- The Elder God

Emerging in the Cemetery, Raziel came upon a planar portal allowing him to enter the Material Realm, but the Elder intervened; it used its powers to withdraw all portals in Nosgoth, forcing Raziel to possess corpses to leave the spirit world. His restraints "had not been removed, only loosened". As he entered the Cemetery's courtyard, he was assailed by Reaper Archons - other agents of the Elder, "mindless hunters" which granted him a nightmarish vision of his master's plan for him. The Elder did not speak to him again for a considerable time, but its influence on Raziel's destiny did not end there.

When Kain succeeded in assembling the full Balance Emblem, he was able to enter a sealed chamber at the heart of the Vampire Citadel. A mural within depicted the Ancient Vampires' fall from grace, but before he could examine it thoroughly, Kain was addressed in a benevolent tone by the Elder God's voice, emanating from a pool within the room. Unaware of the Elder and its connection to Raziel, Kain suspiciously heeded its claim; that it was the "Oracle of [his] ancestors", and that it could offer knowledge of Raziel. Certain that he could not trust the so-called Oracle, Kain nevertheless felt it was imperative to prevent Raziel from resurrecting Janos Audron, and passed through the portal it generated, emerging in the Blood Omen era.

Before turning silent, the Elder spurred Kain to stop Raziel from obtaining the Heart of Darkness. Meanwhile, Raziel - also exploring the Citadel's chambers, and confronting the specters of the original Circle of Nine - began to unearth the mystery behind the Ancient Vampires' extinction. In the distant past, the Ancients had righteously worshipped the Wheel of Fate and the unseen Elder God; the sterility and immortality imposed upon them by the Hylden Blood Curse led the Elder to abandon them, which drove them to madness, and mass suicide. Raziel felt they, "the wisest, strongest, most noble race", had been "gulled by the voice of that old parasite".

With Ominous Finality
"Despair, Raziel. There is no escape."

- The Elder God

The Avernus Catacombs proffered the Hylden side of the story; the "god-ridden and righteous" Ancient Vampires had themselves started the Vampire-Hylden war, attempting to force the Hylden - who opposed the Elder God and the Wheel of Fate - into submission to its doctrine. As Raziel studied murals depicting the Hylden Champion, he was contacted by the Elder, who affirmed Raziel's suspicion that he was this messianic figure. Kain believed that he himself was both the Scion of Balance and the prophecied Vampire Champion, and both he and Raziel understood that the champions were destined to fatefully destroy one another.

Raziel and Kain confronted each other in Avernus Cathedral, with Raziel the victor, tearing the Heart of Darkness from Kain's chest. When he returned to Vorador's Mansion to resurrect Janos, ambivalently certain that he had "once again walked blindly" into his enemies' trap, Moebius awaited. The Time Streamer gloated that "for a true servant of the one God, death is never bitter", revealing that neither he nor the Elder had once been concerned over which of the champions either of them thought they were. All that had ever mattered to them was ensuring Kain's demise.

Upon his resurrection, Janos ratified much of the Ancients' history. Raziel reacted with disgust when Janos reverently spoke of the Elder as their God, and in the Spirit Forge, he was dismayed to see its body infested the entire chamber. It unveiled that "it was Kain's destiny that mattered all along", and tried to extinguish the Spirit Forge's fire. Though Raziel solved the Forge and obtained the Spirit Reaver, he was soon returned to his former captivity with the Elder when the Hylden Lord destroyed his body in combat, shortly after the Pillars' collapse. The Elder had, at last, abandoned all pretense, taunting that "there is nothing more for you to do".

The Prime Mover Exposed
"You cannot destroy me, Kain - I am the Engine of Life itself. The Wheel will turn... The plague of your kind will be purged from this world... And on that inevitable day, your wretched, stagnant soul will finally be mine."

- The Elder God

The Elder God resurrected Moebius, who had recently perished at the hands of the younger Kain, and recalled its servant to the Forge. They discussed the Hylden, whom Moebius referred to as "merely an inconvenient consequence" - "a small price to pay for Kain's death" - unaware that Kain had survived his ordeal in Avernus, and was about to slay him. As Moebius choked in pain and died, he revealed to Kain that he served "One who has power over life and death", sure that "all pain will fade, and my master will bring me life once more".

As Moebius's spirit emerged in the Spectral Realm, beseeching his God but unable to see it, Raziel suddenly impaled him with the Spirit Reaver. The room changed around them, purifying Moebius's sight, and enabling him to see the Elder's form. Before Raziel devoured his soul, Moebius recoiled in profound horror at "the monster that [he] served". While the Elder dismissed his actions and Kain's return, Raziel reflected on his newfound knowledge. "All the conflict and strife throughout history, all the fear and hatred, served but one purpose - to keep [his] master's Wheel turning. All souls were prisoners, trapped in the pointless round of existence, leading distracted, blunted lives until death returned them - always in ignorance - to the Wheel." He knew now that due to the Elder God's nature, "Moebius had never seen his master until the Soul Reaver purified his sight. Even the ancient Vampires had no idea what it was they so righteously worshiped."

While the Elder God pulled violently at the Vampire Citadel's foundations, Raziel attempted to "end this". Using Moebius's corpse as a vessel, he entered the Material Realm, and was impaled by an unwitting Kain on the Reaver. When Kain learned the truth, he attempted to resist Raziel's sacrifice, but the wraith - dispersing the wraith blade into Kain's body - purified Kain's sight, finally enabling him to see "the true enemy" before being consumed to create the Soul Reaver. Staggered by the sight of the monstrosity that was revealed to him, Kain agonized, "had I condemned Raziel to this nightmare when I cast him into the abyss?"

As the Forge tumbled, Kain challenged the Elder God with the newly-empowered Soul Reaver, dealing it spectacular damage for the first time in its existence; he cried to it that "you would not fear us unless we could truly do you harm". Flailing in fury and agony as Kain proceeded to escape the collapsing chamber, it impotently assured him that it could not be destroyed, and that Kain's death was inevitable. Despite its threats and the menace it still posed, Kain was unfazed. Looking out upon Nosgoth in silence, he knew now that "the strings of the puppets had become visible, and the hands of the prime mover exposed".

"In the meantime, you'd best burrow deep."

- Kain

Powers
The Elder God is an incredibly powerful entity. As it exists in both the Material and Spectral Realms simultaneously, it is nearly invincible and can only be harmed by the Soul Reaver. It is also "eternally present, here and everywhere, now and always," allowing it to communicate with and recognize Raziel throughout history.

The Elder also possesses incredible strength, able to use its tentacles to smash through walls and floors, even being able to drag the Spirit Forge underground. Furthermore, the Elder is telepathic, allowing it to mentally communicate with and read the minds of both Kain and Raziel.

Etymology
No given name has ever been attributed to the character, and the Elder God is never even formally referred to under this title in the characters' dialogue exchanges; the honorific is derived from a variety of other direct and supplementary official sources, including the games' bonus materials, dialogue scripts, casting credits and Prima guides. Within Legacy of Kain's universe, a Lovecraft's Diary floor texture in the Underworld (Defiance)|Underworld from Legacy of Kain: Defiance also utilizes this moniker for the character.

In Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver's manual, Raziel simply refers to it as "the Elder", while at one point in Soul Reaver 2, he names the creature "Old One", in apparent reference to the Cthulhu Mythos. Moebius regards it only as his master, and as "the One God". Legacy of Kain: Defiance introduces two alternate titles for the character; the ancient god, and the Oracle of the Ancient Vampires. In the same game, Kain scorns it as a "false god" and "the prime mover", metaphorically controlling Nosgoth's inhabitants like puppets.

The Elder God itself makes use of more bombastic titles when asserting its own role, naming itself "the Engine of Life", "the Origin of all Life", "the Devourer of Death", "the Circle of Life and Death" and "the Hub of the Wheel". However, both Raziel and Kain express their rejection of these appellations in the course of the story.



Appearances

 * Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver
 * Soul Reaver 2
 * Legacy of Kain: Defiance