Aurellis
The Gods
Pater Deorum Roland - Creator of all worlds, father of the gods
All worlds and realms which are 'Inside' were created by Roland, when he constructed that which grants the power to the gods. During this process of creation, Randol was created, when Roland was split into two opposing aspects of his personality. While Roland is honourable, Randol is corrupt, yet Roland is irritable and easily angered, while Randol is tolerant and forgiving.
Roland's early life was spent in an orphanage, where he learned the value of family, the lack of it, and of money, and the lack of it. Eventually he was discovered to have sorcerous Talent, and was given a scholarship to Mage School. He graduated and went into Theatrical Effects Magic, before going on to become a renown Theatrical Director. Eventually, having learned of his real family heritage, he entered politics, and was widely involved in the activities of the outside realm of his ancestors. He studied Mathematics, and Architecture, and also travelled widely in the outside, learning the nature of many civilisations and cultures, before undertaking the creation of Aurellis.
Since the creation of Aurellis the Outside has been closed, and can only be reached by the Pilots. Inside, the many realms and worlds which make up Aurellis all fall under the sway of either Roland, Randol, or certain of the other deities.
Roland only accepts males as his priests, though both males and females serve in his temples. A priest is one through whom a deity can directly speak, and of whom a deity has the potential to be continually aware. Therefore anything said or done in the presence of a priest, may have been seen and heard by the deity also.
The priests of Roland perform marriages within Aurellis, and hear and forswear other partnerships of honour and loyalty also. Roland is very concerned with honour and betrayal, and the concept of crime as a debt comes from him.
Roland had extensively studied the natures of magic in all its forms and techniques, and has incorporated much that is sorcerous into the fabric of Aurellis. This has caused several implications. Firstly, the talent to do magic appears randomly in less that one person in a thousand, and is not governed by heredity. Secondly, Roland abhorred the use of blood magic to power those forms of ritual sorcery that are the most powerful. He therefore nullified this, invoking the mark of doom to come on all who performed what he calls 'death' magic. Instead he instituted that 'life' magic was to be the nature of ritual, with sexual magic providing the fuel for the most powerful sorceries.
Mater Deorum Sian - mother of the gods, guardian of women
During the time when Roland was Prime Minister of a realm in the Outside, he met, courted, rescued and eventually married Sian, Duchess of House Celestine. When he created Aurellis, he invited Sian to become his partner as a deity, and she accepted, taking charge of the part of Aurellis which she determined he was least able, namely the feminine.
Sian realised that the contrasts of Roland's beliefs regarding the nature of sexuality and marriage would place an intolerable burden upon women, unless she acted to prevent this. Therefore, she granted to all females who wished to accept it, her blessing, such that the female may never conceive of an unwanted child. In fact, unless a woman who has received this blessing takes her chosen male before a priestess of Sian to affirm that her choice to conceive with that man is free and true, or undertakes an elaborate ritual to Sian, then no conception will happen. Thus can women partake freely in the sexuality which men take for granted. Sian will not condemn any women for her choice of partner, and will accept any unions, even those that are condemned by others as criminal.
Sian accepts only women as priestesses, and only women may serve in her Temples. It is generally assumed that Sian is bisexual, as some of the rituals of her temples are sexual in nature, with resulting effects that appear sorcerous in nature.
King Divine Robert - Creator of Sable, god of Truth, and Teaching
Robert is hailed as a god in Eboracum, and it has just been announced that he has taken up the aspect of Teaching. It is rumoured that he has connections with the Colleges of Magic, and particularly with mind magics, though this is not confirmed, and officially such matters are the purview of Medea. Sable is a land so far away that few in the Empire ever have anything to do with it, and years of dedicated journeying would be needed to find one's way there. For many years there were no Pilot runs into Sable, but that has now changed with the introduction of a Sable Pilot's Guild.
During the Chaos of year 759, Robert also became God of Truth, in opposition to the Goddess of Deception. This seems to have been an expansion of the former aspect of Investigation which he previously held.
Queen Divine Claire - the hospitaler,
she who closes wounds and banishes disease
Claire is the younger sister of Sian, also born in the Outside, before Aurellis was created. She ascended after Aurellis was created, at the appeal of her sister to Roland.
All descendants of the gods and a good proportion of other people have the ability to alter their basic shape, either between a few specific forms, or more freely. Claire extends this ability among her initiates, to allow them to force physical change upon another person, to provide healing. It is an extremely personal and invasive procedure, in its fullest forms. As such, Claire only allows it rarely, and her initiates are few and far between. However, through her temples she also provides ministry to more mundane healers, and to those who heal using magic, allowing initiates to be called by the rest of the priesthood, when needed. She accepts either males or females into her priesthood, and this is the first stage to becoming an initiate.
Claire is married to Robert the Good, creator of Sable. She is rarely seen in the Empire, living with her husband in the realm of Sable. Nevertheless, her Temples flourish, as she is obviously active in her support of them.
Prime Interface Divine Andrew - God of Knowledge, Advocate of Victims
The creator of the Technocracy was always recognised as a god in the Empire by holy law. However, he has recently ascended to the aspect of Knowledge, and has also adopted the aspect of 'Advocate of Victims', though it is not really understood what that actually means at this time.
Reichsführer-SS Divine Rupert - Herzog von Bremen, god of Communications
With the recent acceptance of the Reich by the Empire as a diplomatic partner, the Emperor decided that he could no longer justify not recognising the co-creator of Sable in the same way that Robert the Good is recognised. He therefore decreed the naming of Rupert as a honorary deity in 747.
Shortly following the ascension of Robert in 756, Rupert took upon himself the aspect of Protection, and began the founding of a priesthood and the building of temples.
Then in 759, it all changed. Circumstances had conspired to mean that Robert and Rupert embarked upon a re-taking of the Aurellis by both of them at the same time. But in the Chaos of this process, certain of their aspects were shifted. Rupert thus became God of Communications, while losing the aspect of Protection. Considering where the aspect of Protection went, and the potential of being god of Communications, Rupert wasn't particularly upset by how it turned out.
Gruppenführer Divine Rikart - The Great Protector
So, there he was in 759, simply trying to do his job as head of Rupert's bodyguard detail. Rupert had decided to go into the Aurellis at the same time as Robert de Lacy, and there was no way Rikart would allow that without him going along just to keep an eye on things.
Roland did warn Rikart that the likely outcome was his death - not being of the right bloodline to survive ascension, and how he (Roland) would need all his efforts to keep Robert and Rupert alive, due to neither of them being of the right bloodline either. What Roland failed to mention was what would happen if for some reason Rikart didn't manage to die.
Rikart decided to ignore the warnings, and put his faith in the Great Protector, and entered the Aurellis anyway. The Aurellis decided that someone who was willing to freely sacrifice themselves to protect another was far more deserving of the aspect of Protection than it's current holder. Thus there was some changing done.
The Divine Gregory - protector of mankind, patron of lawyers, friend of defenders
Gregory is the eldest son of Roland and Sian, born Outside, before Roland began the construction of Aurellis. When Roland invited him to join the pantheon of Aurellis, he quickly realised that while Roland had arranged for all the momentous things to be watched and guided, he had not looked to the nature of real people. In general, while society conforms through fear of not conforming, nevertheless people will often abuse those who they think they can get away with abusing, and thus he adopted the role of protector of mankind.
Gregory is unmarried, though he has a mistress, and is generally assumed heterosexual. He accepts both men and women into his priesthood. His temples are the refuges of the victims of injustice, and his priests are charged to defend the oppressed. He is one of the more powerful gods, and individual prayers offered to him, even without the hearing of a priest, can be answered, if they are honestly stated and justified.
The Divine Alastyr - god of travellers, patron of the Pilots
Alastyr is the second eldest son of Roland and Sian, born before the creation of Aurellis. He was given charge of the doorways between the Outside and the Inside, and those doorways are his temples. Even Randol and Dorlan acknowledge Alastyr as master of the links between their realms and the outside.
The power to transport people and material from inside to outside, and between the realms inside, is the gift which Alastyr gives to his initiates. However, he does not accept priests or priestesses as such. His initiates have the authority to practice their art in any realm or jurisdiction they choose. In the Empire, they practice this through the Guild of Pilots, which in effect is his Temple structure.
All the gods are believed to have the pilot ability, with probably even more power than the Grand Pilots. However, un-ascended children of the gods do not seem to have this ability unless they become initiates of Alastyr.
The Divine Marik & The Divine Maryse - gods of war,
patrons of the military
Marik and Maryse were born after the creation of Aurellis. Born as twins, they have been lifelong companions, and were married in the days before the laws were made.
Three times they conceived a child, and each time the child was born so deformed of either body or mind that they had to kill their child, either to prevent its suffering, or to prevent the horrors it would do in the world.
As each child was born and then killed, the twins hatred for peace and gentleness was eroded, until by the third they willingly took up together the mantle of war. Their final speech before they broke their wedding rings and forged them into weapons, was to intone the holy law against incest, such that no other would ever have to kill their own child as they had.
Marik and Maryse go hand in hand to battle, lovers still, yet also killers. Their temples are closed to all but declared soldiers, and their priests are taken from amongst those ranks.
The twins have never raised hand in hatred against each other, and look with great scorn and anger on fighting or discontent within the ranks who fight together. Similarly, mutiny is a capital crime within their followers at all levels. Also cowardice is a capital crime.
The twins are both bisexual, and since taking the mantle of war, are well known to act with a high degree of promiscuity. They have Spoken the words 'Those who die tomorrow must live tonight' as a moral guide for the life of a soldier, and both now teach that the pleasures of physical union are separate from those of spiritual union. They also teach that the having and nurturing of children is not conducive to the life of a soldier, and any unions of the heart or dependants, must take second place to duty.
The Divine Morgan - keeper of the naked flame,
that which inflames the senses
The origins of Morgan are not known, and the nature of Morgan is only vaguely understood outside the priesthood. Morgan is the ultimate party animal, and preaches the doctrine of pleasure. Morgan has the shape changing ability and appears as both male and female. This makes the assigning of pronouns somewhat difficult. When depicted in the temples, Morgan is portrayed as a transsexual, possessed of both male and female genitalia, and a generally female face and figure.
The priests of Morgan guide the people in the pursuit of pleasure through sex, drugs, alcohol, or any other means that inflames or excites. Nothing is too outrageous, and nothing is condemned until it is first tried and found to be not pleasurable. The female aspect of Morgan is the goddess of courtesans. It is thought that there may be many children of Morgan, because s/he delights in the arts of disguise, often assuming male aspect to sleep with women in the guise of their husband. Equally, fooling men by impersonating their wives and mistresses. Few such children are identified, which is just how the Emperor prefers it.
The Divine Larabelle - goddess of True Love
Larabelle used to be the Black God Randol's wife. She is a former striptease artist from Florida, who gives all the appearance of having an IQ slightly smaller than her usually well displayed bust. Regardless of this, men throughout Federal America would lay down there lives to win her smiles, and women throughout the Federation idolised and imitated her, supporting their chosen men the way she supported Randol. She was the ultimate trophy wife, tokenising a lifestyle and a culture that was both cheap yet enduring and strong. She was rumoured to be a major power behind the presidency, and it was generally thought that if you had a cause, winning Larabelle towards it would usually get it done much more effectively than trying to bribe the president.
Unknown and unrealised by most people is the fact that when Larabelle ascended, the mantle of true love fell upon her. This in part came out of the very deep love she felt for her husband. For those who do know, the fact that her name was blackened by the Senate did not stop a network of underground temples and priestesses from existing in the Empire.
All of this changed however, when Randol abandoned her to pursue an alliance with Swayvanna - divorcing Larabelle and exiling her. Made homeless, she was accepted into the Empire, forgiven by Roland, and her name un-blackened. It is now believed that Larabelle may be Roland's mistress.
The Divine Leyton - the smith, patron of craftsmen and engineers, master of the celestial mechanics
Leyton is a child born of Roland and Sian with destiny in mind. He was given understanding of the underlying psycial nature of the world, and how to work it without use of magic, and his patronage spreads this knowledge amongst the people. He is a generally uncomplicated deity, asexual in nature, dedicated to his crafts much as Medea and Claire are to there's. He accepts both male and female priests, and his temples are usually sited within universities and colleges of higher education, even though his worshippers are as likely to be found in workshops and smithies.
The Divine Medea - goddess of sorcery, guardian of magic, custodian of the spirit
Sorcery is found in all aspects of life in Aurellis. Medea, who was born of Roland and Sian after the creation, with destiny in mind, is the greatest acknowledged sorcerer after Roland himself. It is generally assumed that she is the one who scatters the Talent amongst the populace, and she provides the inspiration for the fundamental laws which govern the use of magic. The health and well-being of the mind is a province particularly suited to the practice of sorcery, through the spells of mental communication and investigation. Medea has taken also the mantle of mental health as part of her ministry, through mind magics.
Much great magic can only be performed through the use of sexual ritual, since the condemnation of death magic by Roland when the creation took place. Medea partakes in great magic as part of her work, but seems strangely indifferent to it. She has sought no spiritual partners, and does not engage in any recreational sexual activity. It is as if she considers such things merely a tool of the art.
Medea accepts both priests and priestesses, but all her priesthood are Talented, and are trained in magic. Within the Empire, this means that they are also members of the Guild of Mages. Aequor and Caelum have also acceded control of sorcery to Medea in their realms, and she is believed to serve as Magister of the Washington State College of Magic in the Federation of American States. This is the only openly known example of bridging of the gulf between the realms of Roland and Randol - particularly extraordinary when considering that battle magics are widely used by both sides in the war between the Federation and the Empire.
The Divine Noelani - goddess of the skies, bringer of storms and rain, keeper of the suns
Noelani is also a child born for destiny by Roland and Sian. Though born female, and generally accepting a female aspect, the nature of the sky realms and the natural creatures who live there have dissolved the generally accepted definitions of gender.
All who live in the open spaces between the planets must be able to freely and instinctively alter the nature and shape of their bodies in ways far more extreme than are ever seen in the other realms. Noelani through her blessing, forces this ability on all who ask it, so that they may go into the skies without concern or harm. Sexuality as it is generally accepted becomes irrelevant when such a freedom of nature and form is available. The nature of procreation in the skies is unique to the individual event.
Noelani accepts both males and females to train as servants in her Temples. However, to attain priesthood, a servant must accept the full aspect of her blessing, and thus become androgynous. The peoples of the sky realms are somewhat confusingly known as 'The Host.'
The Divine Georgina - goddess of vengeance
Georgina is the only daughter of Marcus, one of the early gods who was killed. Due to the extreme gynophobia of her father, she was expelled from the city of Aequor at the age of 2, and she had to journey 2000 miles to the female city of Aequar to find safety. During that journey her foot was bitten off and eaten by a shark, and when she was aged 12, the shark was hunted down by her and killed. She wears a shark tooth necklace, as a reminder that “Payback is a bitch, and it’s called Georgina”.
In 752, aged 470, with the help of forces from the Reich, Georgina marshalled the armies of Aequar, and marched on Aequor, conquering the city, and capturing her father, who she imprisoned for a while, awaiting her choice of chilled cuisine (revenge being a dish best served cold). His escape with the aid of the Federation, simply meant that final vengeance would be that much colder still.
However, in 758, an attack on the transformed deity formerly known as Marcus, was successful in assassinating him. Unfortunately for Georgina, Marcelle's death curse was directed against her and as a result, she lost the aspect of the Seas, and also lost the throne of the Realm of Aequor, being cast out of the city, and washed up on the shores of Britannia.
The Divine Tallia - goddess of the hunt, guardian of wild spirits,
she who pursues
Tallia is the daughter of the twin gods Marik and Maryse, by a woman called Lania. Lania was a famous warrior, renown for her ability to seek out enemies who hid from her. Her love for the twins and her sorrow that they could never have the child they so wished led her to offer her own body as a vessel for Maryse, so that the twins could have a child.
The twins accepted her offer, but Maryse, out of respect for Lania, let her share the events of the time which followed, the two of them inhabiting the same body throughout the pregnancy and the birth. Once Maryse withdrew from Lania, Lania was so overcome with both love and grief at being alone, that she offered herself as a sacrifice to feed the infant and let it truly rise to greatness.
Thus the twins cut open Lania, and placed the new born baby within her body, and it in turn took her into itself, growing instantly into a young and beautiful woman, having the aspects both of the fighter from the twins, and the seeker from Lania.
Tallia is a lone creature, and her priestesses keep no temple buildings. They wander in the wild places of the world, living on that which they can catch in the land. Tallia is bisexual, and her followers find warmth and friendship in any bed, but are rarely still there the next morning. Nevertheless, once those who follow Tallia get on a trail, nothing can hide from them.
Tallia has dark skin, and many describe this as being because of the way in which Lania ended her days. Death rituals are nullified, and a mark of doom imposed on all who do them, and it is believed that Lania suffered this mark as she was cut open. The baby, upon eating her, took this mark within itself. It is believed that there is a curse on Tallia from this mark that she can never find lasting companionship. This may account for the nature and lifestyle choices of her priestesses.
The Divine Royce - god of free will
The ascendancy of Royce has only recently been announced, and almost nothing is known about his background. Religious experts are baffled, mostly because the existence of any further holy children had previously not even been hinted at.
His youth is obvious. How his temple will develop remains to be seen.
The Divine Lisu - the blind one, keeper of secrets
Lisu was created by Alastyr & Medea to be the leader of a religious order that would administer and run a central depository that the two of them constructed with the help of Noelani, using both of the lesser Aurellis of Caelum. It is this new intermediate Aurellis that is the means of initiation for Lisu's servants. By appeal to Roland the depository was located in a special place only reachable by Lisu and her initiates.
Like all goddesses, Lisu is a stunningly beautiful woman, but to all intents and purposes, she is blind, as are her initiates. It is said that Lisu and her initiates do see something, but on a different level of existence to normal.
In Lisu is merged some of the aspects of the craft of Alastyr, namely the ability to initiate followers to a method of transportation, and the crafts of Medea, namely the ability grant to her initiates the power to 'Identify' people uniquely, and to therefore know exactly where in the depository their vault is located. The only price paid by her initiates for these powers is that they too must surrender their normal sight and join their mistress' world.
It is assumed that Lisu also has the power to grant some great reward to her initiates, as a life of service accompanied by blindness would not be very tempting otherwise.
Lisu's initiates will grant anyone a vault in the depository, free or slave. No-one has ever successfully robbed the depository. There are two ranks of initiates - 'Seeker of Secrets' who are found at the temples of Lisu, and take people to their vaults, and 'Maker of Secrets', who are rarely seen outside the depository, and who open up new vaults for applicants. Shielded transportation is not required to reach the depository from anywhere on the inside.
There is no defined price for a vault - the Maker of Secrets will ask a price on an individual basis. A person can put whatever they wish in a vault within the ability of a Courier Pilot to carry, and can visit it whenever they wish, if they can find a Keeper of Secrets to take them there.
The vault is theirs for life, and the initiates seem to know when it is necessary to locate an heir and hand the vault on. This service provided by Lisu's temples is independant of the fledgling Imperial banking system, and is Empire wide.
Another service which the temple of Lisu provides, is that of confidential counsellors. Lisu has Spoken, such that none of her priesthood can be requested or required to divulge any information which is told to them in their capacity as 'Keepers of Secrets', and it has thus far proved impossible to force her priests to reveal such information.
The Divine Phoebe - goddess of beauty, keeper of eternal youth,
mistress of vanity, matron of art
Phoebe is a daughter of Morgan. Without question, she is the most beautiful woman in existence. She knows it too. While Morgan revels in the 'dirty' side of sexuality, Phoebe is all that is clean, good and pure about the female aspect, and particularly about maintaining that aspect against the ravages of time.
Phoebe is a shape-shifter like her mother, and requires this ability of her priestesses. She also empowers higher initiates with power similar to that of Claire's except that all they can affect is the outward appearance. What lies within is unreachable. This work can be done to men or women, though it is offered most freely to women..
Phoebe is bisexual - such beauty as possessed by a woman cannot be resisted, and yet attracting men is the real purpose of it all. She is generally thought of as fairly shallow in personality, though her matronage of the visual arts belies this somewhat. She has no children, and it is said that she despises the changes that pregnancy bring upon a woman's appearance. Her temples consider art portraying pregnant women to be pornographic and offensive. Art involving wild copulation between beautiful people is beautiful art.
The Divine Seline - guardian of slaves
Seline is the daughter of Gregory and a priestess named Dreana, who Gregory took as mistress. She was born after the aristocracy laws, and lived the life of an Honoured Princess for some time, attending law school and becoming a defence lawyer, before realising that while her father does much good work, she could also do more.
Gregory refused her request to ascend to her chosen mantle, saying that slaves have received the justice they deserve once they become slaves. She defied him and sought her grandfather Roland, making the case that in the exact same way her father defends people against the nature of people, was there not so much more need to defend those for whom no-one else would speak against that same threat?
Roland accepted her case, and she ascended, taking on the guardianship of slaves. She accepts both a male and female priesthood, and has a temple sited near most of the slave markets. Her priesthood wear a collar similar to that of a slave, except it is gold, where a slave's is black. Her priests go amongst slaves, and seem to be able to enter any place where slaves are kept. Her temples are a sanctuary for abused slaves, and many of her priesthood are former slaves, some bought by the temple while still in slavery.
It is also the case that her temples provide refuge's for the conscious minds of voluntary slaves who are abused or who's sanity is at risk by the events of their time as slaves. The consciousness of such people is removed from their bodies, and goes to some other place that Selene has provided for the purpose, and a basic artificial consciousness occupies the body to allow it to complete it's time as a slave. At the request of her grandfather, Selene has thus far decided not extend this refuge to slaves who are discharging a debt to society as a punishment for crime.
The Divine Joscelin - god of the Seas, Channelling and the Appellate of the Curse
Joscelin has only recently ascended, and seems to have taken control of ritual magic and energy channelling, which were matters in which he was particularly expert already. Of dual heritage with the Empire and Sable, it would appear that the late goddess Terrea had borne him for the purpose of stabilising the junction of the two realms, but Andrew de Lacy had already done that. Joscelin's temple is complex in that he was married before ascension, and also seems to have a Rock of Creation out in shadow, and both of these things now form part of his temple.
Joscelin has been given charge of the Great Curse - formerly under the control of Medea, and has the ability to lift the curse under appeal.
After the recent upheavals as Georgina lost control of the Seas, Joscelin has gone down intop the Realm of Aequor to attempt to take control of that aspect, and of the undersea kindoms. Thus far, success has not been assured.
The Divine Gaia - goddess of the Land, bringer of spring,
guardian of farmers, goddess of fertility
Gaia was born of Roland and Sian after the creation, with destiny in mind. In her the care of the land and all that grows in it, or feeds upon it, rests. As such she ministers to the needs of agriculture, and farming.
Gaia has questioned in the past the paradox between her responsibilities regarding fertility, breeding, procreation, growth and increase, with the ministry of her mother, Sian, who has promised infertility to all women who do not specifically request otherwise. It is believed she has found little to help her unravel this paradox, and this probably contributes to the nature of the rituals used to invoke her ministry.
Gaia is clearly heterosexual, and accepts both males and females into her priesthood. Many of her rituals are performed in the open countryside where the desired effects will be manifested, and are nearly all of a highly sexual nature. Gaia herself was supposedly a strong, beautiful, very well endowed woman, who lactated freely. Many of her priestesses also lactate, and their milk figures in many of the rituals of her temples.
Gaia herself no longer manifests in physical form, and is only reached through her priesthood. As the number of shadows falling under the control of Aurellis increased, so the needs of Gaia's ministry to these shadows grew, and she designed a unique ritual to respond to this. Her priesthood went out amongst the people selecting potent men, and Gaia herself prepared a place directly beside the Aurellis of Eboracum. First invoking the ceremony of fertility to Sian in the place she had prepared, she then started with her own brothers, and proceeded to spend nine months engaged constantly in sexual activity with the succession of potent men. She naturally became pregnant, and continued to copulate endlessly throughout the pregnancy, taking no nourishment expect from the bodies of her lovers. By the time she was due to give birth, it is without doubt that her mind was no longer functioning in tandem with her body, and the surplus of ritual energy which had built up in her as a result of the sexual activity was astronomical. At the moment the birth was due to take place, Gaia walked forth into the Aurellis, and has never returned. However, her priesthood remain convinced that she is still both alive, and very definitely active, and also speak of the daughter of Gaia, who is rumoured to manifest at times of great need.
There were rumours of the death of Gaia began to circulate during the year 760. However, these continue to be strongly denied by her priesthood, and clearly prayers to Gaia are still being answered. There does hoever appear to have been a change recently in the way that Gaia is depicted in the newer statues and artwork around her temples - a woman with a lighter build and less musculature - what this actually means is not yet clear.
The Divine Alexis - goddess of Divine Protection
Alexis is a relatively new goddess to have been revealed. She was introduced by Roland recently in a place far away, and little explanation has yet been given regarding what her aspect actually means.
The Divine Sanja - goddess of Dreams
Sanja is another relatively new goddess to have been revealed. In fact, there has been no formal introduction of her. However, her name has started to appear in discussions by other priests of other temples, and it would seem that she has Power over dreams, and that prayers to her can result in pleasant refreshing untroubled sleep.
The Grey Gods
Dorlan the Grey - judge of the dead, master of the underworld
After the creation of Aurellis, Roland and Randol could not agree as to the terms by which those who died within the realm were to be assessed and ultimately punished, rewarded, or recycled. After a period, they agreed that the matter could not be left to them to decide. Therefore, together they constructed Dorlan from out of themselves.
Dorlan embodies aspects of both Roland and Randol. When he judges the ultimate weight of a spirit, it is from both frames of reference. Thus all who die in the realm come to him, and he will either retain them in punishment, and his torments are truly extreme, or give them reward, or return them to life in new birth.
Dorlan accepts priests or priestesses, but to serve him they must first die, by their own hand, in a ritual, thus accepting the curse of doom. His priesthood have the power to call the reluctant to death, and can walk unseen amongst the living, guiding those near death to the destined path. It is said that Dorlan is occasionally inclined to go fishing in the Outside realms, for the souls of people who are about to die before their time, to offer them a second chance at life on the Inside. Both Roland and Randol have declared such practice illegal, but they have no jurisdiction over Dorlan, since they gave him authority over his domain. Nevertheless, they do all they can to make such fishing expeditions difficult.
Don Mathias Arnold - the godfather
Nobody knows for sure where Don Mathias came from. Some say he is a child of Randol's, but he is definitely not Larabelle's. Others say he may be a by-blow of Alastyr from his days on the outside. Either way, he is a crime lord. If it can be done outside the law, he is organising to do it on a grand scale.
Interestingly, it is rumoured that the Don has followers and links within the Federation as well as in the Empire. Crime respects no boundaries, he says, when asked. Money is money, whether it’s a dollar or a denarius.
There are no statues, and few pictures of the Don. The Don respects his privacy. The Don also is rumoured to be particularly interested in crime that spans realms and nations, and even from Inside to Outside.
There are persons the Don has inducted to the Pilot power, through the use of the various Transport Logri. He uses the same marker system as Alastyr, with unique real carved stone tablets to mark shadows of interest to his minions, both inside and out. Parts of his organisation are now finding favour in some outside realms where they have sold their services to the governments of those realms in return for recognition and freedom from prosecution.
There are whole countries within shadows below the 60th parallel that acclaim the Don's version of Pater Familias as the chosen form of civic administration, rather than formal governments. Both the Empire and the Federation are in conflict with this view.
The Don was the first of the gods to undertake wholesale genetic research, and is accredited (if that is the best word) for designing the species of creature known as a Handmaiden of the Gods. These creatures are bound to a diety, inheriting their moral and ethical code, and doing their bidding without question. Don Mathias originally had twelve such creatures, and having suffered some losses has now restored his group to that number, but by now several of the other deities are also being served by a Handmaiden.
The Divine Lucidia - goddess of oaths, pledges and noble sacrifices
Lucidia was the eldest handmaiden daughter of the Don, the original prototype for the handmaidens, possessed of free will. She ascended only very recently, in Caelum, and immediately declared that she was still a loyal follower of the Don, and demanded that her name be written in Black until such time as the Don's name was not also written in black. This caused the Senate to begin discussing whether to un-blacken the Don, and they eventually declared that both the Don and Lucidia should be named in Grey.
The Blackened Gods
Randol Yorke -
First President of the Federation
The flip side of Roland, Randol declared independence from the Empire, when he realised he could no longer cope with Roland's way of doing things. Since then, there has been more or less continuous conflict between the two, and Randol was the first god to have his name written in black.
He set up shop in America, and was president of the Federation. He got re-elected every five years. His government is so bent, it is said that a corkscrew is used to draw straight lines, yet a thriving broken economy and structure exist there, enough that they are still fighting after several hundred years of war with the Empire. Perhaps this is because Randol doesn't use religion, but rules directly and personally. He also delegates authority through a power structure rather than through closed priesthoods. Either way, he's still there, and so is the Federation.
Somewhat to everyone's surprise, on the spring equinox of the year 760, it was announced that Randol had passed away after a long illness. The Vice President quickly called a new election, and was successful in his election campaign. However, he is not thought to be a deity.
Mendacity - Goddess of Deception
Mendacity, also known as Mindy, is a daughter of the late Swayvanna, who herself was the daughter of a very old King of Thelbane, from the Outside. During Randol's search for access to more power for the war, he encountered and was swept up by Swayvanna, and after divorcing his then wife Larabelle, he married Swayvanna, and brought her to the Federation, using his own power to help her to ascend. She then gave birth to Mindy, and brought her up to be the Emmisary of her aspect on the Inside, while Swayvanna went to the Outside to aid Randol in his ambitions there.
After the short term death of Randol, Swayvanna continued to pursue her own ambitions to take the throne of Thelbane, which eventually resulted in a failed terrorist insurrection against King Mandor and Queen Hera, in which Swayvanna died. This has left Mindy as the sole diety with the aspect of Deception, and it is yet to be known what she will do from here.
Larsen - god of Thieves
Nobody knows for sure where Larsen came from - his existence has only just been discovered in the year 758.
It would appear that there is also a
new Power through which Larsen can grant the abilities of
Larceny to his priesthood, though the location of this power is
as yet unknown, as are the requirements necessary to allow
initiation to it.
Mære - goddess of Nightmares
Mære has recentlycome onto the radar as a goddess who features heavily in people's nightmares. She appears to have the power to cause and enter into nightmares, and prayers to her can inflict nightmares on others.
Luna-Lei - goddess of
Incest
Luna-lei Jaygirl has a pedigree that is well know, being that she has always maintained that she is the love chold of Janis Joplin, and this has never been disputed. Her association with the forces of Randol has been long established, and it would appear that she has reached new heights in that organisation, having been allowed to ascend by Randol.
She has chosen an aspect supporting a practice already declared to be illegal in the Empire, thus ensuring that her name would be blackened as soon as her ascension was discovered, as an expression of support for Randol who also remains blackened, despite him no longer being President of the Federation. It is believed that through prayer to Luna-Lei, incestuous couplings can produce superior offspring.
It is believed that Luna-Lei was also the hostess for the Goa'uld symbiote Heqet, Goddess of Fertility and Childbirth, for a while. The connection between that aspect and her chosen Aurellis aspect was not insignificant, but rumours exist that Heqet was stolen from her and now resides elsewhere..