
Umato
The Silence
“Any victory you have over her is only temporary”
-Otamu
Biography
For centuries, elders have foretold the final moments after one’s inevitable death. After one’s physical form decays or perishes, they notice their world has suddenly turned gray and lonesome. All living mortals who were present at the place the death took place vanish, all who are left is the one poor soul who has entered the veil between the mortal realm and the valley of the dead. A remote place where the abrupt silence often causes pain and dread. They are often trapped here for hours, sometimes days, drifting through this husk grave of what used to be called home, now withering into a memory.
It is only then after the soul finally understands what has happened, a flock of lifeless crows soar over you as the primordial face of death finally arrives through the fathomless void, Umato; the Serpent Empress of the Dead. In fables, she is described as a giant half-woman half serpent with white hair and ink-black skin, wielding a long scabbard which is said to hold the blade that severs your soul from this mortal realm and into a quiet sanctuary located deep within Kindao. Some may actually escape her or never be found, and roam through Kudao as lost souls.
Unfortunate fools who deny their inevitable dispatch see her as an ill omen, and will try to flee, or cry in anger. Those who have accepted their fate would welcome her and sometimes, ask for one last wish for which she may or may not accept. These final wishes vary from last meals, melodies, messages to the living, and maybe even a second shot at life if you are able to convince her. In Shilon and old Tekkanese proverbs, willingly accepting her presence in respect is the way to prove your true heritage. In Monkhu tradition, those who meet Umato will spit in her face and challenge her with the weapon that they held as they died to show their true courage. After these final moments, she allows the soul to deliver its final words before Umato unsheathes her sword and gives the soul a swift release from the bounds of this mortal realm.
Umato is often portrayed as a goddess of malevolent cruelty that is to be feared by all. But even in this grim reality, she is nothing more than a living representation of the inevitable end found in all who walk the very soil. Trapped in this chamber of eternal sorrow. The same elders who foretold these encounters with Umato also suggest she was once human shackled by love. To this day she listens to the melodies that are called to her by her lover from all the way up the heavens, hoping one day she can reunite with him.

Otamu.




Trivia
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The previous concept of Umato had her entwined with Omatu as a single but duo entity.
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Umato’s older concept also portrayed her as a relentless hunter rather than a peaceful reaper.
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Umato and Otamu's names are palindromes of each other
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The concepts of Umato and Otamu's were inspired by Kindred from League of Legends.
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Umato resembles the Yin symbol, both with her female identity, dark skin, white hair, and her representation of death.
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Umato (Along with Otamu) also serves as an adaptation of the Chinese deity Xiwangmu, The Queen mother of all life and death.
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The narrative of Umato is influenced by my reaction to the depiction of the Greek god Hades in popular culture.
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Hades is almost always at least the antagonist and/or the evil villain in most Greek Mythology-related movies, novels, or video games. When in reality he was actually a much more reasonable god than those on Olympus. I want the entity of Death to be not a bad nor a good presence but a neutral one. Umato may represent the darkness of Yin, ruler of Kindao, but she's no villain, not even a misunderstood one. Death is something that is natural among the circle of life, like birth, eating, sleeping, etc.
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