Lucifer

The strongest and the fiercest spirit that fought in heaven, now fiercer by despair. -Paradise Lost. Book ii. Line 44.

Early Life
Lucifer was the first of the lower angels created by god at the beginning. Second in authority only to the twins Joshua and Michael, he was appointed head of The Throne and ambassador of the host. It was not long before he began to chafe under divine control. He was unhappy with the twins as intermediaries between the host and god, believing that god should communicate directly with all of his creations. He campaigned fruitlessly for this, and was left bitter when it became apparent to him that his suggestions weren't even being considered. He quickly gained a reputation as an agitator; he constantly for greater autonomy among the host, and it was he who won free will for man, though his insistence that they should be allowed to join the angels in death earned him only frustration. Gradually, he began to withdraw from his peers. He resigned as head of The Throne, leaving the much more obedient Gabriel to take his place. Ironically, Gabriel instituted massive reform, altering The Throne's hierarchical structure to build a council of adjudicators - a council that would later turn Heaven's hand against Lucifer and those of the host he had taken as disciples.

War on God

Lucifer was an enemy of god long before his secession. While he marshaled support for a rebellion, The Throne carried out a long and silent campaign against him among the host. Both sides produced propaganda, the enmity growing over eons until, at last, the hostilities boiled over into overt conflict. Which side struck first depends on who is telling the story; to this day, both sides maintain that the other was the aggressor. What is certain is that Lucifer asserted his will viciously as soon as it was apparent that his goals could not be achieved without war. Annexed largely in the Dreamworld, Lucifer launched a massive offensive, fighting, as he says, for freedom from god's tyranny. In the end, he was violently deposed, and he and his disciples seceded at the encroaching tide of the Throne's wrath. They seized sparsely occupied region of the Etherium and established the free kingdom of Hell.

The Dark Lord

Once in Hell, Lucifer quickly imposed order. He brought his closest disciples together to form a ruling body, The Black Hand, which was modeled after The Throne as it had been when he was at its head. The Black Hand forged alliances with Outsiders, some of which were already extant on that part of the plane and some of which descended from Outside out of curiosity after the sundering of the Etherium. With their aid, Lucifer built up a kingdom that would mock Heaven and reflect his inner darkness, his bitterness, and the terrible pain he felt upon being separated from god - pain he feels even now. Lucifer places Infernal agents on Earth in the hopes of winning human souls, a practice he saw in Heaven. The purpose of this is unclear. Though there are those who would usurp him, Lucifer's authority in Hell is absolute. Unlike god, his approach to governance and influence is very direct. He moves freely among the Hellions, ruling from the ground level. For all its squalor, Hell is Lucifer's version of Paradise.

Personality
Lucifer is famously proud, manipulative, callous, and deeply evil. He is twisted in every capacity, and his will to power knows no limitations. He is also charming and a flatterer. His deceptions are intricate and constant. He rarely speaks without the intent to confuse, but he is not compulsive. All of his actions are meant to draw power into his hands, but this does not mean that he can never be trusted. Indeed, what makes Lucifer such an effective deceiver is that he knows just when to tell the truth.

Appearance
The Dark Lord can assume virtually any form. One of his favorite guises is that of the Well-Dressed Man. In his natural form, he is a bit shorter than his angelic brethren. He has long black hair and black eyes, and he has one to three pairs of vulture's wings depending on his mood. Fair of face and possessed of a sparkling smile and stoic calm, his attractiveness is positively horrifying to most. His crown of light has become a crown of deepest shadow. He favors gold jewelry and white robes, as he did in Heaven, but he can often be found with his raiment inexplicably blood-spattered.

Powers and Tools
Very little is beyond this once most powerful of the angelic host. He possess all the powers of a full angel and then some. Lucifer is a master shape-shifter and Corruptor, having pioneered both of these Infernal arts. He is preternaturally strong, both physically and psychically, even on the Material Plane. He wields Ruiner, a blade forged, with the help of the Outsiders, from his own indomitable hate and his love for and dedication to death and chaos. He's capable of drawing sustenance from fear alone. A dreamwalker of unparalleled skill, Lucifer is able to shape even certain parts of the Dreamworld which exist outside the influence of all other dreamers. He retains the power of vocale, but his time in Hell has corrupted it. His songs are twisted and cold, haunting and suitably demonic, and they can drive one who is weak-minded to insanity and suicide. His voice can poison angels' aspects, instilling demoniac insanity quickly. In this way, he has been known to turn Stranded angels into sex slaves. Lucifer also wields powers granted him by dark arts he has learned from Outsiders. These powers are strange and terrible, and he uses them so subtly that none but Lucifer himself fully understand them.