The Device

The Device featured in Blood Omen 2. It was an ancient weapon, built by the Hylden prior to their banishment from Nosgoth. Its purpose was destroy all creatures in the land except members of their race, and it comprised of three major parts: the Mass (an animal that could kill beings with a single thought), the Device itself (a machine to attune the Mass' mental energy against the Hylden's enemies), and a network (needed to channel the mental energy from the Device and onto Nosgoth).[1,2]

The Device in Blood Omen 2

Outside the Device
Outside the Device

Kain first heard about the Device from the traitor vampire Sebastian, who was confident it would spell Kain's doom. In the Industrial Quarter of Meridian, the Nexus Stone had opened a portal to this "ancient device, deep underground".[3]

Later, Kain visited the Seer to learn more. The Seer told him that the Device had "lain dormant beneath Meridian for time beyond time", but the Sarafan Lord had now "empowered the machine to unleash its destruction upon the land". She agreed to help Kain destroy it, and to this end she offered her blood to him. This granted Kain the Dark Gift 'Telekinesis', enabling him to enter the Device.[4]

The Device, concealed in the Upper City
The Device, concealed in the Upper City

The entrance to the Device was located in the Upper City of Meridan, "under the very noses of the aristocracy". It was actually quite close to the cathedral where Kain fought Marcus, disguised to look like a rather unremarkable building. However, as Kain used his new telekinetic ability to enter it, this façade melted away.[4]

A short way inside, Kain encountered the Beast. The Beast - who was actually Janos Audron in a devolved form - told Kain it was enslaved to feed the machine with his life. The Device was too large for Kain to destroy, as it was city-sized and descended far underground. However, the Hylden who created it - the Builder - was imprisoned in the Eternal Prison, and he could stop it from working.[5,6,7]

Kain found the Builder. Luckily, the Builder was willing to aid him. Kain learned that the Device was constructed when "two races warred with each other for dominance of Nosgoth", but its network was never finished. The Hylden race had been exiled into the Demon Realm before it could be completed. Kain suddenly realized the true purpose of the Glyph Energy [BO2] pipes installed by the Sarafan; the Sarafan Lord was intending to use that network. The Device was nearly ready to be used. At the Builders insistence, Kain killed the Builder and drank his blood. This would allow him to poison the Mass, and thus render the Device useless.[1,8,9]

Kain returned to the Device after fighting Magnus in the Eternal Prison. The Beast warned Kain that the Hylden he would encounter within were very dangerous. Kain certainly ran into a lot of them as he made his way towards the Mass. They appeared to be performing lots of experiments in the Device, making use of the place until it could fulfill its deadly potential. Humans, obviously slaves, could be found in many rooms, serving the whims of their Hylden masters. Kain also encountered Lesser Demons, and saw that the Hylden had a measure of control over them. The Device was a highly technological environment, and it seemed very alien compared to Nosgoth's usual locations.[10]

Kain eventually found his way into the heart of the Device and killed the Mass. With the Mass dead, the Sarafan Lord's trump card - his master weapon - was gone. By the time Kain got back to the Beast's cell, Janos Audron had regained his natural form, and also recovered enough strength to teleport them both to Sanctuary.

Further Observations

In Blood Omen 2, it was left unexplained how Janos had come to be imprisoned in the Device. Based on the events of Defiance, it is likely that the Hylden Lord (who later became the Sarafan Lord) took Janos there while he was still possessing Janos. It would have been a simple matter to have Janos walk into the cell area, so the Ward Gate barrier could be activated around him.

References

  1. [BO2] The Builder to Kain: "The Device was built as a weapon aeons ago when two races warred with each other for dominance of Nosgoth. It houses an ancient creature, whose very mind is capable of killing any living thing with but a thought.
    The Device was to channel the mental energy of this creature, and direct it onto Nosgoth. It would attune the creature's mind to kill all living creatures except for my race. Before it could be completed, however, I was imprisoned here, and the rest of my race was banished to another, far more terrible realm."
  2. [BO2] The Builder to Kain: "It was dubbed 'The Mass'. It is eternal and deadly, yet harmless without a channel for its mind. But we never completed the weapon. We needed a way to send its energy out of the Device and into the land itself. We needed a conduit throughout the cities - a network, if you will. Once this network was created, the Device would channel the mental energy of the Mass, and send death upon our enemies."
  3. [BO2] Sebastian to Kain: "The Nexus Stone's portal leads to an ancient device, deep underground, that will spell your destruction, Kain. A new reign will begin in Nosgoth."
  4. [BO2] The Seer to Kain: "I shall help you. If Nosgoth is ever to be healed, the Device must be destroyed. And you, of all men, could be the one to do it.
    Know this, the Device has lain dormant beneath Meridian for time beyond time. But now the Sarafan Lord has empowered the machine to unleash its destruction upon the land. The entrance to the Device lies in the heart of the city itself, under the very noses of the aristocracy."
  5. [BO2] The Beast to Kain: "Have no fear of me. I am enslaved by the beings that built this monstrosity, to feed this machine with my life."
  6. [BO2] The Beast to Kain: "That which you seek is too great for you to destroy alone. It descends far underground. It rivals a city in its size. To destroy the Device, you must seek out the being that built it."
  7. [BO2] The Beast to Kain: "The Eternal Prison. The wretches imprisoned there, paying for their crimes for eternity. The Builder is there.
  8. [BO2] The Builder: "We never completed the network. We never used the Device."
    Kain: "But the Sarafan Lord will. The Glyphs. He is using the Glyphs to channel the Mass to wipe out the city, humans and vampires alike. That must be his plan."
    The Builder: "If this is indeed true, you must act quickly. It will be too large a task to destroy the Device itself. You must kill the Mass itself."
  9. [BO2] The Builder to Kain: "Drink from me, vampire, and use my life's blood to kill that which I created out of arrogance and pride. Kill me so that the Mass will die, and the Device will be destroyed."
  10. [BO2] The Beast to Kain (referring to the Hylden): "They are powerful creatures, Kain. You will encounter them below. Beware their magic."

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