The Organization, also known as the Soshiki and the Agon Teos Cult, is a cult and cabal found in the world of Battle Arena Toshinden, and are the primary antagonists of Battle Arena Toshinden 3. Into the 1990s, they were lead by Abel.
Story[]
Backstory[]
Said to be "those whom the world must be protected against" by the Secret Society, the Organization is a blood magic and human sacrifice mystery religion cult revolving around the worship of the forsaken Olympian god of conflict, Agon Teos. Much like the Secret Society, the Organization has long worked in the shadows of everyday society and within obscurity, but with ties and enterprises in some of mankind's darker enterprises and conquests, including the slavery trade, the imperial conquest of the Americas, and the genocide of the Native Americans, and even to the fields of human resources and social services, including orphan caretaking and troubled youth outreach programs around the world. As such, they are the heated rivals and enemies of the Secret Society, long opposed and countered by them since their conception to avoid a world controlled by their beliefs and inhumane ways.
Though originating as the worship of the God of Conflict and Competition, including not just combat, but the Olympic games, the worship of Agon Teos was soon turned to dark ways upon the founding of a secret cabal whose members claimed themselves as only "the strongest in Grecian society" gathered to decide the direction of their civilization. However, upon being found by the authorities, the remains of the original cult exiled and driven out found their way northeast to Thrace, having heard of territory inhabited by violent warring barbarian tribes ruled over by the descendant of Ares, the God of War, Thrax. Having established their new domain in secrecy, the cult was able to maneuver through both Ancient Greece and the outlander barbarian tribes of the Thracians and the Dii; their rise to power was soon made known upon the Peloponnesian War, where they were able to convince hiring Thracian mercenaries on both sides and further cement their power with the end of the Golden Age of Greek Civilization.
For ages since the Dark Ages of Greek Civilization, the Agon Teos Cult then tried to infiltrate and take root in Europe during the Roman Empire and the Germanic and Macromannic Wars with the Germanic and Scythian tribes like the Goths and the Huns, but to no avail, and their time among barbarian tribes would end upon the rise of Alexander The Great and enforcing the Great Walls of Alexander. Greater obscurity would come upon the spread of Christianity, but this obscurity would be to the Organization's benefit, as the simultaneous rise of Greco-Roman mystery religions into the 2nd Century allowed them to solidify their core beliefs, unify their followers, and act as the foundation which the current Organization's incarnation now exists into today.
Into the Medieval period upon the rise and fall of the Holy Roman Empire, the Organization's practices further spurred paranoia of the dark arts by their savage practices, violently triggering the Witch Hunts of Europe. It is believed, though not yet proven, that the occurrence of blight and plague such as the Black Death were the result of some of their evil rituals having gone terribly wrong and wreaking havoc upon the world.
Balga's ancestors were some of those aligned with the cult, until they were unveiled as traitors to France by the Ramberts and banished to England and Norway during the end of the Hundred Years War.
The Organization's early reaches were not just located entirely in Europe; it is believed they journeyed with the Mongol Empire, and through the retellings of the Fengshen Yanyi, were responsible for some of the Chinese Dynasty's most atrocious emperors and figures, like Pu Yi and King Zhou. Their significance was considered so dangerous at that time, it is believed this was responsible for the theft of the Four Sacred Weapons of the Yaki Clan in Japan, in order to combat their influence. Though they were able to go far and wide with the Macedonian Empire, their global incarnation would not happen until the European Age of Discovery triggered by Christopher Columbus.
Furthermore, in light of the human condition, they would also be thwarted time and time again by heroic and courageous figures of the civilizations and communities whom they managed to infiltrate. Thus, the Agon Teos Cult, despite every atrocity committed upon their periodic resurgence in history, were always regulated to the fringes of society, among those who could be truly called despicable and reprehensible.
Upon the dawn of the Renaissance Period which came to lessen the hold of superstition and the simultaneous rise of Sir Gerard and the Gerard Foundation in the late 15th Century after the Black Plague, was the Organization seemingly eradicated.
Battle Arena Toshinden[]
Preceding the existence of the Gerard Foundation and the Secret Society, and hence the Toshindaibukai, the Organization held their own fighting tournaments since their founding, which they called "The Legend of the Fighting God". Rounding up and gathering the strongest, they invited them all to fight to the death to spill their blood, before their leader would kill the winner and sacrifice their body to manifest Agon Teos into the world. These ways did not work however, and this is what spurred them to conduct their evil experiments and sacrificial magic.
It is believed Sir Gerard witnessed these brutal tournaments first hand, and deliberately named the closest followers and executives as the first Master of the Divine Four after the Greek Titans to showcase his adamant discretion against the ways and wills of the Organization, as both his wills through the Secret Society and for his purpose of "the establishment of the ideal state" through the Gerard Foundation. Learning of the Silk Road and of the gods of war of the far east, Sir Gerard further termed his underground fighting tournaments the Toshindaibukai or the Toshinden as further defiance against the perversion and debauchery that Agon Teos and his followers accumulated over the centuries to the ways of the warrior. Through the Toshindaibukai, Sir Gerard was able to host a way to outlet the human inclination towards fighting with duels and combat without affecting the "everyday world", and properly confront those of the Organization without letting anyone know of their diabolical existence.
As the centuries would pass, his legacy would soon wane as his successors would pale at the rise of power the Organization began to harbor and to devolve into eventually ruling all of the world with an iron fist over all walks of life into the 21st Century. Upon the mutiny of Gaia against the Master and Uranus and their plans, and their defeat by the Toshinden warriors, the Organization soon took over the coffers of the Secret Society and hence Gaia's Toshindendaibukai for their purposes of reenacting the dark rituals of the "Legend of the Fighting God" and calling down their evil god Agon Teos to rule the world with. Having learned from Vermilion that the Toshinden warriors are those who they seek to bring about the descent of their Overlord, and that the "pure one", whose pure of heart nature and ability to host Agon Teos' immense spiritual power will only follow the "strongest", the Organization sends out their "shadows" to hunt them down and enact the Legend of the Fighting God to its ultimate conclusion.
However, the Toshinden warriors who came to stop Abel and his followers soon come to be more than they expected in terms of motivation and strength. Like those time before who felled the Organization, they fought off their shadows successfully. To many of those unrepentant and steeped too far in their ways, the Toshinden warriors slew them in order to survive, succeeding them in some way or form that their shadows lacked, while some were able to realize the evil influences of the Organization and left upon defeat. This did not deter Abel however, and knowing that he was strong, he planned to kill the one who spearheaded and rallied the warriors to fight back: Eiji Shinjo. Seeking his allies after he had gotten through with Eiji, Abel however fell in combat. Before victory could be had however, the one known as Veil made himself known. The prior leader of the Organization and experimented upon as an impure spiritual body from Agon Teos was granted and sealed within him, Veil sought to continue where Abel left off and to usher in the destruction of the world after Eiji's defeat. After a long and close battle, Veil was felled and so was the demon within him, ushering in the collapse of the Organization.
Little did anyone know, Vermilion survived his injuries after his battle with Nagisa Iwashiro, and sought to resurrect the Organization and Agon Teos once again.
Beliefs and Practices[]
"When the seas of the world are dyed red with blood, the Overlord shall descend to the earth. Upon the descent of the Overlord, new lives shall be reborn."
"Eternal life and ultimate power belong to he who is reborn!"
Core Beliefs[]
The Organization is a fringe mystery religion based cult whose beliefs are perverse takes to the Greek God of Competition and Competition, Agon. In contrast to the traditional view of Agon as a divine spirit of competition that manifests itself upon contests and trials of men, the Organization's belief in Agon Teos sees the traditional view of Agon as a spirit of competition are but emanations and lesser manifestations as spiritual bodies, as opposed to Agon Teos itself, an empowered "true god" considered to truly rule over competition and victory.
Holding strong to the Ancient Grecian belief that life is but like that of struggle and an eternal fight, the Organization's fervent worship of Agon Teos hinges on a more perverse take on this belief in that life is but extreme conflict, and in turn nothing but a place for the strong, where there are only "winners" and "losers", and "the strong" and "the weak". From this hostile perspective, death and destruction is considered "the ultimate service" to Agon Teos, and to prey upon and kill other men, and to view one's fellow man not as other human beings but in suspicion as competition and enemies in the making, is considered the "true" face of humanity.
Believing that the lives lost in conflict and competition beholds connection to the mysteries and mystical workings of the world, the Organization long believes that the blood and life force shed from those lives claimed is blessed and elevated by Agon Teos's spiritual emanations to be akin to that of ichor, the mythical blood of the gods within Greek religion. As such, their followers fanatically believe by their savage faith that the affairs of the gods and even life itself is built upon ruthless fighting, violence, and death, that the blood of the weak and slain shed upon the earth and into the seas of the world are what brings about the change all creation comes to see, and ultimately, the carnage and conflict the world sees is but a natural result of its cycle of life.
Into the present day, the Organization sees the modern world as but a place where "weakness has been allowed to be made manifest" and "to where it shall lead to the world's end". Believing that humanity needs to be subjected to the horrors of war, struggle, death, and chaos by mankind's darker history to "become strong again" and that "this world of weakness must be reborn", the Organization seeks the "rebirth of the world" by their hand lead through their twisted beliefs. It is out of these twisted creeds of savage faith that the Organization seeks to fulfill the rituals of the "Descent of the Overlord" and "The Legend of the Fighting God".
Ritual Sacrifice[]
Born from these beliefs, the Organization has long practiced and studied the dark arts of ritual sacrifice and blood magic to utilize and harness the great powers and energy from the blood of their victims and captives, believing the moribund release of life by brutal death should not go to waste as tribute to Agon Teos and to "bring benefice change to this impure world". With their aims being "the attainment of eternal life and ultimate power" and "the ultimate rebirth of the world", the purpose of such lurid practices include the act of "the rebirth of humans through magic" to empower and perfect their worshipers with mystical rituals and to try and manifest Agon Teos into the physical world.
Rooted from more occult and forsaken practices of Ancient Grecian magic twisted towards left hand paths and the dark arts, the Organization often needs human sacrifices for their rituals. Blood is not the only resource they treasure in their evil rituals, valuing those whose hearts are pure and souls have allowed them to shape themselves and grow strong, believing in the "ripeness" and "purity" of desired sacrifices by strength and will equally made body and spirit. To these ends, they are willing to target the young, whom they believe are "strong" due to being at the peak of physical condition by age, and fighters who do not willingly want to associate themselves with the Organization, and come to harvest their flock by many processes, from a world scale human trafficking operation, the manipulation of legal social processes to orphanages under their control, to planning wide scale waves of kidnapping, and hiring assassins and murderers to hunt and track down their targets.
The Legend of the Fighting God[]
The Legend of the Fighting God is the Organization's main and long coveted ritual, whose practice is entirely meant for "The Descent of the Overlord". By summoning and gathering "the strongest", the followers of Agon Teos then pit them to the death, forcing them to fight until their very last breath. Through this stimulating of their fighting spirit to channel into their blood and life force, their blood is made "ready" by being "blessed" by Agon Teos in combat. Out of all the chosen fighters, the last is made the vessel to host Agon Teos. Making Agon Teos manifest, the Organization believes that his presence shall bestow upon them the blessings of ultimate power and eternal life.
In the past, these rituals did not work, resulting in disastrous effects counter to what they intended. For this reason the Organization continues its practices of kidnapping and experimentation on victims to realize the success of The Legend of the Fighting God.
Syncretization of Beliefs throughout the world[]
Though their beliefs are unwavering, the Organization's outward practices are said to be embracing enough to synchronize and adapt to anything new that doesn't threaten their faith. As such, the current incarnation of the Organization is a far cry from its original incarnation. Some synchronistic practices include the acceptance of other faiths and individuals from societies that practice human sacrifice, such as the Vikings and the Goths, to where their cultural practices are acknowledged and incorporated in the blood sacrifice magic research within the Organization, although historically the Organization has also been known to practice cultural domination and appropriation by warfare and genocide as guided by their dark faith; this includes the destruction of Aztec civilization and the adoption of their religious human sacrificial rituals through members within the armies of Hernán Cortés.
Others come from being inspired by various practices and trends outside of the Organzation throughout human civilization and history, from not just the religious but the social. A few examples include adopting the rigid dualism found within Christianity upon the rise of Greek Orthodoxy, including the perverted belief that Agon Teos is the one true god, to the disturbingly growing idea and social conditioning of Social Darwinism and how "the weak are meat, the strong eat" upon the growth of modern civilization and sociocultural affection of city infrastructure, especially to those strongly affected within the poor and working class, from street gangs and the socially isolated, to the disenchanted working man and the rich and famous. Thus, their members are not only great in number, but of varied backgrounds and personalities with whom the Organization is able to easily infiltrate society with.
That which drives them to fight[]
It goes without saying that fighting and battle are highly valued in the Organization as per their beliefs. From having instigated wars and civil conflict throughout the world within history at greater instances than the Secret Society, so are their members warriors and fighters who value victory at any cost and with the guiding belief that Agon Teos blesses their way to their salvation and ascension through the demise of their opponents, or at least pay them as mercenaries and assassins with their grisly trade for hire. Their relation to the Toshinden tournaments held by their fiercest nemesis is how the tournament is seen as the next pinnacle of the culmination of those with powerful fighting spirit throughout the world gather and where the strongest change occurs in its bloody spectacles, the new battleground of the new age and where its champion commands the course of the future of humanity. As such, for generations, the Organization has long infiltrated and attempted to win the Battle Arena Toshinden for themselves to proudly host, but with thwarted failure at every participation. This would last until the ironic collapse of the Secret Society itself, where the vacuum of power within the criminal underworld would leave it ripe for the taking.
Though prominent and having infiltrated the ranks of civilization, the Organization has long understood the compassion and aspects of mercy and non violence by the populace, but out of a means of survival. Knowing well that should they reveal themselves and their practices to the light of the everyday world, they dare to draw the wrath of the people and the authorities of the land to wipe them off the face of the earth for their atrocities and inhumane practices, and as such, the Organization has long kept to themselves, hoping for a new time in human history of an age where they are able to convince the world of their beliefs and make them wide spread for a new age and the coming of a new world remade by Agon Teos and his followers. In preparation for this long believed promised day, this is what drives the Organization to target the Toshindendaibukai champions and utilize their blood to make manifest Agon Teos into the mortal realm, and make their influence mightier for "the rebirth of the world and human beings" by their God of Fighting.
Members and Fates[]
- Abel - Current leader of the Organization. Killed by Eiji Shinjo during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Vermilion - Second-in-command of the Organization. In charge of major assassinations and information gathering. Survived the events of the third Toshindaibukai, but killed by Eiji Shinjo at the end of the fourth Toshindaibukai.
- Miss Til - Third-in-command of the Organization. Practitioner of magic and fortune teller of the Organization. Killed by Shizuku Fuji during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Schultz - Fourth-in-command of the Organization. Master ritualist of the Organization's magic division. Killed by Chaos during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Ten Count - Assassin loyal to the Organization; one of the highest skilled. Killed by Kayin Amoh during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Zola - Assassin loyal to the Organization; opera singer and high society navigator. Killed by Sofia during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Leon - New assassin of the Organization; modern-day pirate and wanted criminal. Killed by Eiji Shinjo during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Adam - Android made specifically for the Organization. Destroyed by Rungo Iron during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Rachael - Hired assassin for the Organization; American mercenary. Spared by her twin sister Tracy and completely disappearing without a trace afterwards. Her eventual whereabouts and final fate unknown.
- Cuiling - Hired assassin for the Organization; hired from the Rising Dragon Triad of Hong Kong. Defected from the Organization while switching sides via personal morality in order to join up with and help Eiji Shinjo and the rest of the Toshinden fighters out after killing Bayhou and avenging Fo Fai's past death.
- Judgement - Black magic empowered killer for the Organization; an experiment in the removal of "humanity" through blood magic sorcery. Killed by David during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Atahua - Aide of the Organization; Incan Empire heir. Forfeited his match to Ellis through the advice of his adoptive father and guardian Tau. Resumed a normal and peaceful life with Tau back in South America.
- Tau - Aide of the Organization; Atahua's adoptive father and guardian. Forfeited his match to Gaia after learning and knowing of Gaia's personal resolve and determination to defend and protect his daughter Ellis. Resumed a normal and peaceful life with Atahua back in South America.
- Toujin - Aide of the Organization; veteran assassin from Japan. Killed by Mondo during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Balga - Aide of the Organization; Norwegian knight. Killed by Duke B. Rambert during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Veil - Former leader of the Organization; experiment subject. Killed by Eiji Shinjo during the events of the third Toshindaibukai.
- Amoh - Assassin once loyal to the Organization and Kayin Amoh's foster father. Killed by Sho Shinjo in the finals of a previous Toshindaibukai prior to the events of the first game.
Trivia[]
- Their villainous nature as the "shadows" of the "heroes" of the Toshinden series draws further upon Greek philosophy on the deity of Agon, where it is believed that each thing in the world had two dualistic yet competing sides to themselves that strove to exist within the world. In regards to Toshinden's Cult of Agon Teos, the ritual of pharmakos comes to mind, in where deliberate choosing and sacrifice of those who embodied society's ills, from those considered ugly to the wayward and marginalized, to "cure" such "afflictions" with their brutalizing were practiced.
- Their Grecian origins, along with themes of sacrifice, the coming of a new world, and its relevance within Grecian mysticism may perhaps be a historic and anecdotal analogy to the real world. While Ancient Greek civilization is among the first and most influential of advanced civilizations in humankind's history, and is the basis of modern day civilization and its foundations, Ancient Greece was also known to have practiced customs still considered barbaric to this day, from animal and even human sacrifice to the Olympian Gods, to the organized practice of human slavery, the earliest forms of eugenics, and a lack of introspection to the human condition within its spiritual practices. Even within modern day civilization's advancements, the ills of society of old can be seen as merely taking on new incarnations today, demanding the question of where society is going without reflecting on the mistakes of the past.
- Being more unsavory characters and embodying those molded by mankind's and society's faults brings to mind to the apocryphal Christian European legends of Gog and Magog, being infernal tribes of cannibals and warmongering savages believed to have been sealed away by Alexander the Great, and are believed to come about upon the apocalypse to reign terror on mankind. Along with outer European barbarian tribes such as the Thracians and Scythians said to have further shaped their imagery upon contributing to the downfall of Ancient Greek and Roman civilization, they, like Cain and Eunoch, are said to embody more allegorical representations of human fault, and can be interpreted to signify the more unrepentant vicious and evil of men of any era who await to freely do as they wish. In their lore, Gog and Magog were said to feast upon the flesh of the young they deemed to be cattle and dwelled in their secluded realm with horrors too awful to be imagined, perhaps referenced by how the Organization seeks the blood of the young and dwell secretly in the criminal underworld.
- The Organization's nature as a cult may likely be inspired by end times paranoia and the prevalence of sect and cult activity in Japan and throughout the globe during the 1990s; accelerationism or "self prophecy fulfilling" fringe sects of popular religions were also beginning to act during these times, hoping to initiate a self decreed apocalypse to bring about their vision of a world molded by their dogma and beliefs.
- Being a human sacrifice cult that worships battle and conflict is evocative of libel paranoia claims of secret Satanists and black magic Santaria practitioners said to have infiltrated schools and day cares to kidnap and sacrifice children, while being in a fighting video game may further reference and jab back at political and morality group panics over violent fighting games such as Mortal Kombat and Killer Instinct throughout the western world in the 1990s.