The Mendicant Without

The Mendicant Without
"Allow yourself no rest."
Origin	Nowhere
Titles	The Mendicant Without The Loss-Unknown
Names	None
Aspects
Date of arrival	1714 C.E.
Owner(s)	Lyrositor

The Mendicant Without, also known as the Loss-Unknown, is one of the Hours of the Fansus, created by Lyrositor. It is a God-From-Nowhere who arrived in the early 18th century. Its primary aspect is Grail, with a secondary aspect of Moth.

History

The Mendicant fled Nowhere long ago, seeking to satiate a hunger it did not yet understand. It beseeched the Hours of the Mansus to be allowed within, and its request was granted, but for a price that meant nothing to it. The Mansus Hours came to regret their decision in time, and it was cast out for reasons which did not make any sense to it. It mourns its loss to this day, as it craves what it never had to lose in the first place. It fears the Wood, and the wilder Hours that reside within, and dares not leave the Gates, should they ever open for it again.

The Fourth History

In the year 1723 the Mendicant Without made its entrance into the Fourth History, wholly unaware of the millennia-long truce that had preserved it from greater influence until then. With no Names, no followers and little power of its own, it sought to establish a power base that would cement its presence among the older Hours, intervening much more personally than most Hours usually did. Donning a form that was passably human, it drew to itself the hungry, the destitute and the skeptics, asking the right questions but providing few answers. Instead, it urged its followers to spread the questioning, instilling a sense of longing and unrest for which there were no earthly remedies. In exchange, it offered greater glimpses of the skin beneath the world than any in this History had yet witnessed, further fueling the hunger and drive of occultists throughout the world.

In Europe especially this coincidentally tied in over time with the Enlightenment movement, diverting some of its proponents away from a quest for scientific and philosophical answers to solutions of a more unusual nature. Towards the second half of the century, this precipitated several crises from both the top and the bottom of society. Events quickly began to spiral out of the Mendicant's control as it repeatedly failed to gain influence over royals, who hungered for little, and revolutions proliferated throughout Europe in quick succession.

This finally drew the attention of the other Hours to the Mendicant itself, who had managed to remain in the shadows until then, but whose name was now loudly proclaimed in the streets as the people marched. The Deceiver's lie was uncovered, as no curse had befallen the Mendicant, but this did not spare it from the Hours' judgement, and so it was cast out from the Mansus. Seething at the injustice and its own ignorance, the Mendicant redoubled its efforts in the Fourth History, determined to do everything it could to claim it as its own. It succeeded in very little other than furthering unrest until older, more experienced Hours stepped in over the ensuing decades with defter hands to snatch what it had accomplished from under its nose, leaving it with little power to speak of. Still, even as the Hours slowly began to further extend into the Fourth History, the Mendicant was never quite displaced from its position.

To this day, the Mendicant remains a figure of note among occultists in this History, though no active cult wields any particular influence. Symbols of its worship are still occasionally openly displayed in many places, despite the stigma against the occult, even though actual worship of the Hours is forbidden. As a result, the Mendicant still pays occasional visits to the Fourth History, though it has largely given up on its greater plans for it.

Description

Appearance

The Mendicant could almost be mistaken for human at first glance, before its anomalous conjunction of limbs, flesh and bone becomes apparent. It shuffles along the outskirts of the Mansus, dressed in ragged clothing, a pitiable thing stripped of much of its former glory. Yet should one speak to it, the improper angles and dissembling shapes resolve into a being of incommensurate beauty, one which lingers in the mind as an impression but never a memory.

Principles

It can be difficult for the uninitiated to understand what the Mendicant desires; indeed, it was and remains difficult for many of the other Hours. It may be that the Mendicant itself does not know, but yearns for it nonetheless. It can be as beguiling as it wishes, whispering words of velvet to those who would listen, only for it to change its mind by the next sentence. It is commonly understood that it desires pleasure, at any cost, but possesses only notional knowledge of what it entails. Its followers quickly find themselves seeking ever greater extreme thrills, always finding satisfaction in the short-term, but unable to quench their desire for more. All agree that it can be very persuasive, at least until one realizes that its words are empty. Many also affirm that it is the most beautiful Hour, though none can ever say why.

Worship

The Mendicant is rarely directly worshiped, as it offers little in the way of answers or assistance. As such, cults formed around the Mendicant are rare and usually very specialized, with the notable exception of the Fourth History. Worshipers of the Mendicant Without instead usually see it as an embodiment of their desires, a personification of their deepest passions and of their willingness to embrace them.

It is most commonly worshiped by the desperate, the hungry, the discontent. It appoints no leaders, no prophets, no representatives, and offers little in the way of rewards. In the city of Glort, the Long who still honor the Mendicant live on the fringes, their immortality having long turned into a curse that they can't help but cling to. Most have a not-undeserved reputation for depravity and madness (there are, as always, exceptions).

Servants

The Mendicant permits no Name and recognizes no servants officially. Despite this, several of its worshipers have risen to some degree of prominence, though none have gone beyond the rank of Long.

Locations

The Mansus

Near the edges of the Mansus, particularly its Gates. As a result of its reduced status, it is one of the more accessible Hours, often delighting in conversing with mortals, who rarely remember its words.

Relationships

• The Anaconda: After the Mendicant disobeyed the Great Serpent's decree, breaking the truce within the Fourth History, the Anaconda was the Hour which exiled the Mendicant from the Fansus. Only the Delver's interference prevented the Anaconda from slaying the Mendicant on the spot; if the Delver was to be harmed by the Mendicant, that safety would surely be nullified.
• The Elder Sister: The Witch-of-the-Woods sees in the Mendicant the same intriguing qualities that give her a fondness for humans. She would love to invite it into her Court, and never allow it to leave.
• The Apple-of-the-Eye: Once permitted to the topmost parts of the House, now loathed and exiled for an unknown slight. Never again will the Apple permit him.
• The Bright-Delver: The Delver interceded on the Mendicant's behalf to prevent its death by Anaconda, and is doing her best to teach it how to be a proper Hour.
• The Insidious: The Insidious is on good terms with the Mendicant, having formed a secret alliance with it for mutual protection against some of the older, more established Hours.
• The Snow-Stained: The Bully's Stick has no strong feelings about the Mendicant one way or another, but as in all things, it finds the separation of walls dissatisfying. It has attempted in the past to create a hole through which the Mendicant could pass, and will likely do so again in the future.
• The Fanged Bramble: The Mendicant fears this Hour greatly, as it is the primary reason why it never dares enter the Wood.
• The Aged Bones: The Mendicant Without has been witnessed wandering by the Aged Bones' stained glass windows, where they occasionally hold a brief conversation. Sometimes the Aged Bones passes on secrets that she allows the Mendicant to spread among its followers.

See Also

• The Fourth History