Kell

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Kell
Skolas-defeated-grimoire.jpg
Biographical information

Species:

Fallen

Type:

Captain

House:

House of Devils
House of Judgment
House of Kings
House of Salvation
House of Stone
House of Winter
House of Wolves
House of Light
Revenant Scorn

Gender:

Various

Rank:

Political Leader
Ketch Commander

 

"In a world without Kells, Dreg strength will breed nothing but chaos."
— House of Rain proverb

A Kell is the political leader of a Fallen house and the commander of their House's Ketch.

Overview

"Without their Kell, Houses usually turn against each other."
— Ghost

Kells, or Kel in Eliksni culture, act as the political leader of their Fallen House, ruling their people and command their forces with an iron fist and usually commandeer their House's flagship Ketch.[1] Kells are also known for controling their Houses' Ether supply through the use of an Elder Cipher.[2]

They are mysterious figures rarely seen by lower ranks of the House and often viewed as mad, however, the Kells travel a delicate path toward understanding and in the Old ways of the Eliksni, sought guidance from the Elders of House Judgement on codes of dignity and law.[3][4][5][6]

Only the strongest Fallen warrior leads the pack.[7] Kells maintain order among the House, whose subjects can often be aggressive. Their first command is a word and if unheeded, then the Kell's second command is the blade, resulting in docking.[8] Shamed Eliksni may later redeem themselves through brutal ceremonial combats such as the Archon's Forge or other means to prove their might.[9][10] Since the Eliksni culture has a love for Honor, the weak are Honor-bond into subservience and respect their Kell's authority like that of a sniper.[11]

Kells also have access to better resources, eat better, sleep safer and live longer. A strong Kell's power is described to be like the wind: swift, howling and everywhere at once, comparable to the Guardians. Kells are stronger, faster, and more intelligent than the common Eliksni.[12][4] If a Kell dies, the House collapses into a civil war between their nobility vying for dominance and kellship. Only the most powerful contender or when all opposition is gone can a new claimant assume control.[13] When the Wolf Kell, Virixas, was killed by Mara Sov, three Barons fought against each other to become the new Kell of Wolves.[14]

However it is possible that a House can still function without a Kell, as an Archon, Prime Servitor, or another Kell from a different House can assume command of the House.[15][16][17] Their loss severely weakens a House and demoralizes its forces, so for this reason, Kells are a prime target for enemy forces.

After the fall of most of the Houses in the chaos that engulfed the Sol System following the Taken War, few Fallen remained who could claim the title of Kell as most Eliksni do away with the position along with most of the older functions of Houses entirely, with only Eramis and Mithrax leading the House of Salvation and House of Light under the title of Kell.

Kell of Kells Prophecy

"The Great Machine will marvel, moved by might, and come to crown him Kell of Kells."
— House of Rain proverb

According to a prophecy by the House of Rain, the Great Machine would crown a mighty warrior as the Kell of Kells, and rule over all houses. At first no one attempted to claim the title for themselves, but a few claimants would later rise.[18]

Kell of Kells Claimants

Skolas, the first to claim the title.

Skolas was the first prominent Fallen to proclaim themselves "Kell of Kells" following his release from Xur.[19] While it is easy to mistake Skolas for being egotistical, it was, however, a rally call to his people as he says "I am the first, Kell of Kells, and I am the last, the Dreg of Dregs". His proclamation as the "Dreg of Dregs" is spoken with the promise that the Fallen will regrow what is lost to them. Skolas became a key figurehead who understood how it felt to be conquered and started a movement where those who followed him were also named "Skolas" and fought for a common cause.[20]

Following the death of Skolas, Variks would agree with him that only the Kell of Kells was capable of ending the brutal Fallen bloodshed. He then searched for a Kell of Kells candidate through the use of the Crow surveillance network gifted to him by Petra.[21] At one point, Petra jokes to Variks that perhaps he is the Kell of Kells.[citation needed] Years later, when the Scorned Barons are imprisoned, Uldren questions Variks' loyalty to Mara Sov. Instead, Variks found himself thinking about the old House of Rain proverb of the Kell of Kells. After much thought, Variks decided that he would become the Kell of House Judgment, in the hope of unifying his race and also stylise himself as a new "Kell of Kells". Variks would later regret his decision to release all the Prison of Elders and state that the promise of Kell of Kells clouded his judgement.[22][23]

After the prison break, Variks found an ally in Eramis and was present in the formation of House of Salvation. This alliance soured after Variks discovered her dark ambitions to destroy the Traveler and sent a distress call to the Guardians.[24][25] He informed them that it was the Shipstealer who attacked him and proclaimed her as the "Kell of Kells" and unifier of the Houses. Eramis would do her best to live up to this claim from Variks and build a new military empire comprised of Fallen from the Houses of Devils, Wolves, Dusk and the Kell's Scourge. However, due to the losses of her Dark Council, and her dream of vengeance blinding her leadership, her house began to splinter, with some fleeing to either the House of Light or House of Dusk, while she would be encased in Stasis following her duel against the The Guardian, only to be freed when The Witness needed her for its plans. But her rule would be challenged once more following the continuing losses over searching for the relics of Nezarec by the City, and Salvation being subjugated by Xivu Arath, leading to her House dispersing once more.

Nearing the end of the Endless Night, Mithrax, Kell of Light and Saint-14 would defend the Eliksni Quarter from a Vex invasion brought on accidentally by Lakshmi-2 in a failed attempt to banish the House of Light. During this fight, Mithrax promised Saint-14 that if they fell there the Eliksni would tell the tale of the Saint fighting alongside them, not against them. To which Saint-14 replies that Mithrax was the Kell of Kells, saying that they together were enough to save the House of Light.[26] Mithrax now continues to be an exemplar of this title through the unification of the House of Spider into the House of Light and the constant refuging of other Eliksni fleeing the old crews.[citation needed]

During the zero hour of the Revenant Scorn uprising, Fikrul, the Fanatic would confront Crow, the Guardian, and Eramis, brandishing his new Echo which he'd then use to transform all the Eliksni within the Ketch attempting to rescue Eramis into Scorn. Fikrul would then claim that with the power of Darkness and now Light at his hands, all Ketches would bow to him as Kell of Kells.[27] Due to how powerful Fikrul has become, along with how many Eliksni have bowed to him willingly, through resurrection, or by corruption, and with Mithrax's declining health thanks to Nezarec's curse, he is currently a rising candidate for the prophecy's conclusion.

Notable Kells

Kell of House Salvation, Eramis

House of Devils

House of Kings

House of Light

House of Salvation

House of Stone

House of Winter

House of Wolves

Revenant Scorn

Unknown Affiliation

Claimants to Kellship

Houses without Kells

Mentioned Only

Gallery

Trivia

  • Kells have their own bodyguards in the form of Kell's Guard and Wolves' Guard for the Houses of Winter and Wolves, however, it's unknown if one of them is the true protector of a Kell.
  • For decades Riksis, Devil Archon and Sepiks Prime maintained authority over the House of Devils. This shows evidence that a House can function without a Kell.
  • The proper Fallen name for Kells lacks the second letter L.[34]
    • This is most likely a Human mispronunciation, as Kel sounds like Kell.
    • "-kel" also appears to be an honorific that Eliksni use to refer to their Kells. For instance, Phylaks, Kridis and Variks all refer to Eramis as "Eramiskel" at different points in Beyond Light. The same can be said for those, such as Mithrax, Kell of Light, referred to as Misraakskel.
  • Before getting his four arms docked by Fikrul, the Kell of Kings' final word to Uldren was Dreg, which resulted in the Last Kell demoting to a Dreg.[35]
  • In Maltese or Hungarian languages, Kell means to be necessary, need to, must, or be obligatory.[36]

List of appearances

References

  1. ^ Bungie (2014/9/9), Destiny - Grimoire: Sepiks Prime
  2. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Item Description: Elder Cipher
  3. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Grimoire: The Ruling House
  4. ^ a b Bungie (2018/9/4), Destiny 2: Forsaken - Item Description: Death to Kells
  5. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny : House of Wolves - Grimoire: Variks, The Loyal
  6. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Item Description: Kellbreaker's Path
  7. ^ Bungie (2016/4/12), Destiny: April Update - Item Description: Kells' Cloak
  8. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Item Description: Kellhunter's Rally
  9. ^ Bungie (2018/9/4), Destiny 2: Forsaken - Ghost Stories: From Fallen Ground
  10. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Grimoire: WANTED: Peekis, the Disavowed
  11. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Item Description: Kellhunter's Sight
  12. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Item Description: Kellhunter's Path
  13. ^ Bungie (2014/9/9), Destiny - Grimoire: Draksis, Winter Kell
  14. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Grimoire: WANTED: Skolas, Kell of Kells
  15. ^ Destiny.bungie.org: Transcript of the official English version of the cards
  16. ^ Bungie (2015/9/15), Destiny: The Taken King - Prime's Path
  17. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Grimoire: A Kell Rising
  18. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - House of Wolves: The Kell of Kells
  19. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Legends & Mysteries: Mystery: The Fate of Skolas
  20. ^ Bungie (2015/5/19), Destiny: House of Wolves - Fallen: Ghost Fragment: Fallen 3
  21. ^ Bungie (2015/9/15), Destiny: The Taken King - The Taken King: The Wolves of Mars
  22. ^ Bungie (2018/9/4), Destiny 2: Forsaken - Most Loyal: Where Loyalties Lie
  23. ^ Bungie (2020/11/10), Destiny 2: Beyond Light - The New Kell
  24. ^ Bungie (2020/11/10), Destiny 2: Beyond Light - The Once-Shipstealer: The Scribe
  25. ^ Bungie (2020/11/10), Destiny 2: Beyond Light - Darkness's Doorstep
  26. ^ Bungie (2021/5/11), Destiny 2: Season of the Splicer - Cornered
  27. ^ Bungie (2024/10/8), Destiny 2: Episode: Revenant - A Reunion and a Gift
  28. ^ Bungie (2020/11/10), Destiny 2: Beyond Light - Empire's Fall
  29. ^ Destiny Grimoire Anthology, Volume II, "Onslaught", 38 - 39
  30. ^ Bungie (2016/4/12), Destiny: April Update - Legends & Mysteries: Rezyl Azzir - War Without End
  31. ^ Bungie (2015/9/15), Destiny: The Taken King - Item Description: Does Not Bow
  32. ^ Bungie (2018/9/4), Destiny 2: Forsaken - Item Description: Cloak of Five Full Moons
  33. ^ Bungie (2017/9/8), Destiny 2 - Item Description: Gunslinger
  34. ^ Bungie (2018/9/4), Destiny 2: Forsaken - The Dreaming City: Misraaks
  35. ^ Bungie (2018/9/4), Destiny 2: Forsaken - The Forsaken Prince: Docking
  36. ^ https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/kell

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