Sek'hai Khigal

Sek'hai Khigal (October 9, 6204 - July 14, 6248) was a former Astrusian mage who was exiled from Erebia Village for treason and practicing dark magic, and later became a master of Fatusian sorcery and founder of the Wraiths of Carul. Before his exile, he took Amadeus Morgan as his student and tried to convince Amadeus to follow him in learning dark magic. Instead, Amadeus betrayed his master and caused his exile. Later in life he would take Ural Lukroft as his new apprentice to help him get revenge against Erebia Village and Dee's family.

Early Life
While not much is known about Sek'hai's life, it is clear that at some point after becoming a full mage he became disillusioned with the ideals of the Astrusian religion and became interested in the dark arts. His goal became to take control of Erebia Village and convert it to a society that worshiped Fatum. He kept his true intentions secret and appeared to be one of the most respected mages in the village, ultimately being chosen as the master for Amadeus Morgan.

Exile
Sek'hai trained Amadeus in the tradition Astrusian manner, but subtly included teachings of the dark arts in the hopes he could slowly corrupt the boy. Following Amadeus' Carnea, Sek'hai revealed his plans to overthrow Baraluneska Repaltia to the boy in hopes that Amadeus would assist him. Instead, Amadeus, who was also very close to Alkim Gatti, went to Baraluneska with the truth. She was prepared when Sek'hai launched his coup and he was quickly defeated, having his staff destroyed. Sek'hai was imprisoned and found guilty, being sentenced to exile from the village. He was dragged out as the villagers watched, and swore he would get revenge against Erebia and Baraluneska.

Sek'hai travelled south into the Allied Tribes of Carul, having disdain for the Human Kingdoms which rejected his philosophies as much as Erebia Village. Over the next decade he continued to move around the beast man territories. One night he encountered a human wagon train that was attacked by beast man raiders. After killing the creatures, he found the only survivor was a young boy name Ural. Seeing potential in the boy, Sek'hai took Ural as his apprentice in Fatusian sorcery and taught him to hate the Astrusians with extreme prejudice. Eventually the two discovered the Withered Lands and remained there.

About nine months prior to the events of To Touch the Sky, Amadeus, slowly losing his humanity to the demon within him, arrived at Sek'hai's tower in hopes his former master may know of a way to save him. Though he felt contempt towards the one who betrayed him, Sek'hai's curiosity led him to investigate and find no cure for the possession. It was at this point that the idea of channeling a demon into his own body, one weak enough he could control, came to Sek'hai. He no longer had his old book, but was able to find the proper incantation for bringing the demon into him. However, the bottom of the inscription was stolen by a beast man shaman called Oki the Wise who sought to prevent Sek'hai from achieving his goal. Oki went into hiding so that Sek'hai could not reclaim the rest of the incantation.

The Wraiths of Carul
In order to find Oki, Sek'hai utilized a spell that would allow him to pull lesser spirits from the shadows to serve as his minions. They were nothing more than animated shadows that needed to be protected from the sun by thick black cloaks. These spirits became known as the Wraiths of Carul, and Sek'hai sent them to scour the Allied Tribes in search of Oki. During this time, they caused a great deal of misfortune to the residents of the villages and towns they visited. The beast men mistakenly took the Wraiths to be humans because of their shape, further adding to the contention between their races.

Oki was able to avoid the Wraiths for some time, but was soon cornered in the town of Dreshval. Realizing he could not run anymore, he put the incantation into a pocket watch and placed a spell on it that would magically seal the watch when a death occurred near it. That night, Oki was killed by the Wraiths. The watch fell into the hands of Diatyallah Gatti, who was able to fend the Wraiths off. When Ural, who was among the Wraiths fighting Diatyallah, reported an Astrusian mage had taken the watch, Sek'hai began to suspect Amadeus' involvement. It was only later that he realized it was Baraluneska's granddaughter, and targeted her as the first victim in his revenge plot.

He ordered Ural to retrieve the watch and kill Dee as his final task as an apprentice sorceror. When Ural failed, Sek'hai took the watch from Dee himself and tried to burn both of them to death. Dee and her allies escaped, and with Ural's help found Sek'hai's tower and staged an attack. Having discovered that the watch was sealed with a life spell, Sek'hai set a pack of lesser demons on Fenris Bartok, knowing that Dee would use magic to save his life and break the seal on the watch. After obtaining the full incantation, he was confronted by Duncan Cairn who gravely wounded his body, which was decaying from practicing such evil magic. Sek'hai mortally wounded Duncan and used the incantation before he could bleed to death. He channeled a demon into him, transforming him into a disfigured monster. Despite his addition powers, he was beaten by Dee after she drew power from the stars. At this point, the demon took full control of Sek'hai, consuming his soul and taking it into itself. The demon was finally killed with the efforts of Dee, Ural, and Krop. At its death, the remains of Sek'hai's monstrous body changed into charcoal and crumbled apart.