The Lore Of Gods And Religion
Pre-Sundering Religion
Elanthia enjoyed a complex but relatively uniform religious structure before the Sundering. Despite the fact that Elanthian societies evolved separately, their belief in a central Creator remains a constant. And though some of the trappings of these beliefs may diverge, the Creator him-herself remained an unchanging constant.
The two races with the highest concentration of active believers and officiates are the Burian and Humans, who were fostered and influenced by the Creator. The Creator's direct guidance manifested through its most devout supplicants in the form of mystical healing, blessings, omens and (on rare occasions) the resurrection of the dead. Some of the Ilvari and Qwi, who came from a plane with a more subtle godhead, adopted the Creator when they realized their own deity could not reach them through the barriers of the planes. Yet another thing that was lost in their exile, many of these dedicants were more zealous than their Human and Burian counterparts.
Most Ilvari and Qwi, however, simply stopped trusting in religion at all; not so much denying that the Elanthian Creator existed, but refusing to find solace in his-her presence. A very few maintained their ties to their former practices, and the worship of the entity that is called Ialo by the Ilvari and Zegfen by the Qwi. Both names roughly translate to "Potentiality".
Post-Sundering, the perfect symmetry of the Creator was lost. In its place is a collection of belief systems with a loose association to one another. The most popular of these is the Triad, composed of the three deities who are believed to have come forth from the Creator when he-she was shattered. Over the course of this and subsequent articles, we will meet each one of the Triad, and get to know a little about them and the faiths of Elanthia.
Temsyne
Temsyne represents Nature, Growth and Decay. In most cases, Temsyne manifests as a leaf clad, mostly nude woman. Half of her face is youthful and beautiful, representing the regenerative power of Nature. The other half is an exposed skull, representing the natural process of death and decay. On both sides, her eyes are glowing yellow.
Temsyne is silent. Her manifestations never speak. She can, however, communicate through vessels of her choosing - usually priests or woodland animals. This curious behavior has led to frequent confusion as to when a "message from Temsyne" is the real thing or not.
Some temples have chosen to dress Temsyne in a form-fitting robe with a deep hood. If the temple is meant for healers, then the "whole" half of her face is visible and the "skull" half is in shadow. If the temple is mortuary in nature, then the reverse is true - skull exposed, whole face in shadow.
A common belief among Temsyne's priests is that she may transform herself into a tree for years at a time. This is the reason that superstitious foresters in Elanthia say a prayer before cutting down a tree.
One of Temsyne's other manifestations is as a wolf. Humans consider her their protector in this form, as the House of Quillmore (which has a wolf featured prominently in its livery and history) is the only Human House to have survived the Sundering and subsequent devastation intact.
Urwir and the Triad
In Elanthia's theology, the Triad can be viewed less as a well-defined triumvirate and more as a balance of ideologies within the cycle of life.
For instance, Temsyne exemplifies the natural progression from birth to death, a progression in which Urwir and Takut operate. Neither god is less important than Temsyne, but there are boundaries that must be respected... or at least diplomatically circumvented when the need arises.
As is often the case with multiple divinities, one personality emerges as the strongest link between what is concrete and what is divine. If Temsyne is the author of beginnings and endings, and Takut oversees all the possibilities in between, then Urwir can best be described as the fanciful governor of wants and needs. When you're in a serious bind and you're looking for someone to save your sorry self - someone who understands how you were stupid enough to get into this mess in the first place - Urwir's your man.
It is said that Urwir is the reason the Creator split into three. The world needed a strong protector to keep it from fragmenting further, so the Creator focused all her power into his manifestation. This may explain why Urwir is found so often in Elanthia; he is worshipped as both a champion and prophet.
By far the most "human" of the Triad, Urwir oscillates between awe-inspiring formality and hedonistic carousing, with a personality that is either painfully candid or maddeningly elusive. His flare for the dramatic is driven by a desire to evoke the greatest change in an individual, even if his motive is not immediately apparent. He's as apt to dispense unbridled truths as he is to turn mischievous on a moment's notice, much like a favorite uncle.
A traveling god, Urwir patrols Elanthia's borders and scans the horizon for the next great threat... and the next buxom beauty. Many archmagi have claimed to be the product of one of his late night flings, and in a few cases, there may be validity to these claims. All of Urwir's descendents are intensely powerful magicians whether they wish it or not.
Urwir loves a good meal and a good story - especially one where the ending is ambiguous. It is dangerous, however, to ask him to tell a good story, as inevitably, you'll find yourself in a darkened forest surrounded by man-sized spiders with nothing to ward them off but a pickle and a large cloth sack.
He is the patron of Quillmore, whose bittersweet state is a source of both great joy and fathomless sorrow for him.
Urwir himself dictated the design of his statues directly to his priests. Ironically, none of them look like him. He prefers to be depicted as young, virulent and heavily armored. He may be either Ilvari or Human... or somewhere in between. His sword, Wyrcarver, is wielded in his left hand. He is usually astride an armored destrier.
When he manifests himself in Elanthia, however, he is a bearded man with a withered left arm and a patch over his right eye - implying that his fight to keep Elanthia whole has resulted in permanent injury. He represents magic, victory, travel, mystery, protection and change, and is the benefactor of Wizards, Warriors and Bards.
Takut and the Triad
Picture, if you will, a flawless, steel-clad construct with glowing goggles for eyes, staring curiously at some activity off in the distance. You can't tell by its posture or the set of its jaw whether it is male or female, but for some reason it doesn't really matter.
The construct turns to look at you, goggles flickering slightly. It speaks with a mechanical homogeneity, neither passionate nor boring. What it relates to you is instantly recognizable as... an equation?
You are in the presence of Takut, third divinity of the Triad and lord over all that is Gear.
Takut is often misunderstood by those unfamiliar with the workings of widgetry. Since it is both insanely curious and fervently inventive, it is often considered unimpassioned, aloof, uncaring. Nothing could be further from the truth.
At the time Takut first appeared in the lore of the Stoneborn, Elanthia was fresh from the Sundering. Neither Magic nor Gear worked as expected, buffeted as they were by the continuing aftershock of the Gearsmiths' folly. The world was on the brink of flying apart, and though the people rose up to repair and rebuild, they were still of opposing schools of thought.
The priests who worshipped a single Creator pre-Sundering were now given to aligning themselves with one of three emerging and distinct archetypes: Temsyne, who was natural, Urwir, who was magical, and Takut, who was mechanical. This reflected a certain portfolio diversification, if you will, of the world's investment in things divine.
Takut represented the will of the people to pull themselves up by their bootstraps and get busy with mending. Through the centuries, its role has changed very little, so that in this day and age, it still represents inspiration, development and mathematics - tenets of physical progress that can only occur when one has hope.
From time to time, this deity has been known to throw its creative genius into overdrive. The frenzy by which it suddenly operates can often confound its worshippers, but there is a method to its madness and as it eventually decelerates, its intentions become clear. These moments of controlled madness have their mirror in the phenomenal technical achievements of its followers in fields like medicine, construction and commerce.
Takut is generally depicted by its worshippers as clad in steel or some other high-grade alloy. Its body is genderless. The most common characterization of this deity is as a large suit of armor with glowing goggle-eyes. Offerings to Takut are placed in a statue's mouth, and a lever is pulled. The mouth closes, reopens, and the offering is gone... presumably deposited in a hidden location either in or below the statue.
It manifests itself as a precision-crafted but nonetheless clearly mechanical Qwi female or Burian male. In this state, Takut's mouth has visible lines around it like those of a marionette, its limbs are carefully articulated, and its eyes click and whirr like camera lenses. It may move around on wheels.
Takut can create a body out of anything metallic or wooden; if one is destroyed, it can create a new one in a matter of seconds from the remnants... and will no doubt improve upon the design to keep it from being destroyed again.
Lorstra and the Soul Singers
As revered and influential as the gods of the Trium are among the scattered inhabitants of Elanthia, there is another charismatic deity whose worship infiltrated the lands roughly four years after the Sundering.
Considered the abiding spirit of a reconciled Elanthia by her followers, Lorstra, the Chantress, rose to prominence shortly after the Triad of Temsyne, Urwir and Takut. She is celestially distinct, however; her deistic agenda runs contrary to their very existence.
Though Lorstra herself is somewhat aloof and prudent, she is nevertheless regarded as the divine mother - one who constantly works toward reconciliation in all things. Whether it is the reuniting of a fractured plane or the repairing of a fractured family in one's neighborhood, Lorstra possesses the purity and empathy of heart to see the matter through. She is called the Chantress for the simple reason that music follows her wherever she wanders.
Worshippers of Lorstra, known as Soul Singers, are frugal and sectarian, dismissing the Triad as pretender numina that interfere with Lorstra's ability to return the world to its former, plenary existence. They reject the notion of the Inner and Outer Triangle, believing them to be an illusion created to separate one from the truth; that Elanthia needs neither Magic nor Gear, only the adoration and penitence of her children. They believe that the only way the world will heal is for the false gods to be cast aside, and for Magic and Gear to be abandoned.
The relationship between the Triumvirate and the Soul Singers is oftentimes tentative. Mutterings abound that the Soul Singers are simply biding their time before turning to violence to see their agendas imposed on all of Elanthia. Nothing can be proven, of course, and the leaders of the Soul Singers quickly react with shock and disgust when anyone suggests to them the very idea that their people might have ulterior motives. But rumors persist, and the powerful among the Triumvirate's council cannot completely disregard them. As much as they do not wish to support the Triumvirate, the Soul Singers still want to see Elanthia unified - they simply do not want to see this unity won using Gear and Magic. On the other hand, the Triumvirate cannot see any other way for Elanthia to be reunited but through the application of widgetry and wizardry. And yet, Soul Singers have their place in the Triumvirate, albeit as outsiders and advisors who add skeptical and critical advice to Triumvirate plans on world healing.
Younger Soul Singers are allowed more freedoms than their elders. As a Soul Singer ages and refines his or her wisdom, they are encouraged to gradually strip away their material needs and become ascetics. It is the belief of the Soul Singers, however, that this must be a choice, not an imposition. While the dress of Soul Singer elders may be simplistic, their views are anything but. Lorstra represents many things beyond the unification of Elanthia. She is therefore known by several names including the Reunited One, the Pure Lady, Queen of the Spheres, Heaven's Song, and Shining Muse.
There is some evidence that Lorstra may hearken back to the pre-Sundering world. Key facets of the Soul Singer faith, such as their practice of ancestral worship and their adherence to daily devotions, suggest that they are modeled on an obscure sect loyal to the one Creator. This may explain why the Soul Singers have managed to take hold so quickly and firmly in a cosmos that otherwise dismisses their beliefs as spurious and idyllic. The one person who may know for certain is the so-called Favored Son, the Human leader of the Soul Singers. Some consider him to be a living god. Others would not go that far, insisting he is nothing more than an intelligent (and politically well-connected) zealot.
Theg and the Rakshaal
We mortals are generally hard pressed to consider that our actions have devastating effects on worlds unseen, for our understanding of the universe is limited to those things that are plainly in our sight. What lives beyond the gossamer membrane that envelops the physical plane is pretty much left to fend for itself, though quite often, it "fends" by doing what is necessary to repair the damage we've done.
Such is the case with the Rakshaal, that dastardly legion of immortal beings intent on destroying Elanthia. We have the Sundering to thank for their jaunt across the celestial interstice. If it weren't for those 10 seconds in time, they would have had no reason to migrate.
As Elanthia itself began to unravel, three delicately balanced dimensions also derailed, tipping from their synergistic existence to collide with one another. Eisa, the precinct of pure darkness from which the Rakshaal hail, found itself suddenly flooded with light. Frankly, it hurts them. They want no more of it.
Their single-minded purpose is to snuff out the Elanthian sun so their realm can return to its former, caliginous state. To this end, they are willing to wipe out every living thing that stands in their way. In their collective judgment, dealing a hastened death is an act of mercy considering the pain and suffering they must endure. The Rakshaal are a twisted, tormented breed that would just as soon get their job done quickly so they can return to the business of (literally) being in the dark.
Powerful magic radiates from their bodies, and they have a communal consciousness much like that of a hive. The Rakshaal are created by their powerful overlord, Theg, to serve whatever purpose is required. They therefore lack the ability to second guess Theg's directives, so they perform their duty with unfailing resolve. In truth, their alliance with The Pack is far less about political positioning than it is about getting the heck out of the light; if kindred beings are willing to further the Rakshaals' prime directive, more power to 'em!
But for all the pillaging and killing for which they are now known, they once served a more noble purpose, one that has always confounded and confused mere mortals. The Rakshaal are Theg's ambassadors of chaos, promoters of evolution via discord and destruction. If war, pestilence and famine have a redeeming quality, it is this - they evoke drastic change.
The Rakshaal do not worship Theg as much as recognize his supremacy. Neither is he really worshipped by Elanthians as much as esteemed for the power he wields. Known as the Dreaded Shambler, the Destroyer of Souls, or the Devourer of Hope, Theg orchestrates all manner of pandemonium in order to move mortals, kicking and screaming (and retching and dying), from one point to the next. He delights in the taste of rotting flesh and fresh souls, but this lack of dietary discretion hardly deters his followers. His thousand and one eyes, once trained upon the abominable brutality of his enterprise, are now scorched and bleeding, and glaring at Elanthia.
