Status: ACTIVE THREAT MONITORING
Warning: These entries contain cognitohazardous frequencies. If your Graft begins to vibrate in a rhythmic, melodic pattern while reading, initiate an immediate neural-purge.
The following individuals were once "Shepards" of the Silence—highly decorated N77 operatives who reached Frequency Collapse. Instead of seeking the mercy of the Hollow-Watch, they leaned into the noise. They were noticed by The Thing.
In the Great Game, they are no longer pieces played by the King; they are the Black Pieces moved by the Composer itself. Their power is vast, fueled by the direct attention of a cosmic parasite, but they are now merely "vessels" for a song that will never end.
Former ID: Rook-Prime "Valerius"
Current Designation: The Bastion of Discord
The Fall: During the defense of a civilian "Quiet-Zone" in the Ash-Heaps, Valerius’s gravity-well generator overloaded. Instead of collapsing, he chose to "anchor" the incoming Hollowing into his own bone marrow to spare the refugees.
The Transformation: The Thing noticed his self-sacrifice and found it hilarious. It filled the "void" of his gravity well with raw, pressurized Whisper-metal.
The Power: Valerius is now a walking fortress of liquid obsidian. He doesn't just stabilize the ground; he "Hardens" reality into jagged, non-Euclidean spikes.
The Chains: He can never stop moving. The moment he stands still, the attention of The Thing becomes so heavy that he begins to sink through the planetary crust toward the core. He is a guardian who must constantly destroy the ground he tries to protect.
Former ID: Bishop-4 "Lirra"
Current Designation: The Choir-Mistress
The Fall: Lirra was the N77’s foremost expert on "Mute-Tech." While attempting to decode a Pre-Vyrn Acoustic Cipher, she realized the "Silence" she loved was just a different kind of scream. She stopped muting the world and started "tuning" it.
The Transformation: The Thing found her "ear" for the music exquisite. It replaced her lungs with a series of resonant chambers made of "Ghost-Silver."
The Power: She can perform "The Harmonic Flay." By singing a specific note, she can cause the Whisper-metal Grafts of N77 operatives to vibrate so violently they liquefy the host’s internal organs.
The Chains: She is perpetually "Out of Sync" with time. Because the Thing’s attention is focused on her voice, she experiences every moment of her life—from birth to her eventual consumption—simultaneously. She is screaming because she can hear herself dying in a thousand different futures.
Former ID: Knight-9 "Vane"
Current Designation: The Vector of Ruin
The Fall: Vane was a master of the "Void-Skip." During a botched extraction in the Deep Chorus, his ship’s Null-Drive failed. He spent "six years" in the Pitch-Black FTL while only three seconds passed in real-space. When he emerged, he wasn't alone.
The Transformation: The Thing noticed his "indigestibility" in the dark and decided to wear him like a glove. He is now a flickering glitch in the world’s rendering.
The Power: Vane exists in the "Blind Spots." He can move through solid walls by simply "not being there" when the atoms collide. He strikes from the reflections in an operative's own visor.
The Chains: He has lost the ability to be "Real." He can only manifest in areas of high Hollowing resonance. If he enters a Muted Zone, he begins to fade out of existence entirely. He is a predator who is addicted to the very "Noise" that is erasing his soul.
Former ID: [REDACTED]
Current Designation: The Grandmaster of the Court
The Fall: Rumors persist of an N77 High-Commander who didn't just fall, but "Leapt." He realized that the King Protocol was a harvest and decided to start a rival feast.
The Transformation: He is the primary conduit for the Discordant Court. The Thing treats him as its "Lead Soloist."
The Power: He can "re-write" the board. He can force N77 operatives to change roles—turning a Rook into a Pawn or a Knight into a Bishop—scrambling their tactical training and rendering their Grafts useless.
The Chains: He is the "Anchor of Envy." Because the Thing’s gaze is fixed solely on him, he can never close his eyes. He sees through every Hollowed eye in the system. He is the most powerful piece on the board, but he has no "Turn" of his own; he only moves when the Great Composer hums.
When encountering a "Checkmate" entity, do not attempt to "Save" them. Their humanity has been repurposed as a cooling-unit for the Thing’s attention. They are the Black Pieces, and their only goal is to ensure the Great Game ends in a Stalemate—where everyone is Hollowed, and the music never stops.
The Obelisk squad has just picked up a "Ghost-Signal" on their comms. It sounds like Lirra’s voice, humming the N77 extraction anthem, but the frequency is... wrong. It’s coming from inside the Void-Base.