User:IceFireWarden/Lost Spirits
During my time living here amongst the Bat Elves of the Yneslean isles, within the sprawling walls and beautiful streets of Imperium, I have found myself taking a fancy to their “religious” texts. Not to the point of sacrilege, mind you, but I have always been intrigued by the multitude of faiths held by the different peoples of the Empire and try to study them whenever I can. Of course, I rarely have time for personal hobbies anymore due to helping repair the Imperial Cult’s rapport with the Yneslean Directorate in regards to the Stormdrake Crusades that damaged our reputation; but I note things where I can, when I can, and conversations with their presbyters and suffragans often yield interesting knowledge to a purveyor of such like myself.
Just recently I had been reading a book titled Spirits of the House that was written specifically with Westerners in mind, so that we may come to know the divine entities that the Echmer considered favorable. I particularly enjoyed the fact that I recognized gods that resembled the Nine Divines (like Kynareth) in this pantheon, but I also couldn’t help but feel frustrated and alienated when I discovered that their dragon-god was not only borderline blasphemous by Imperial standards, but also considered a deity to be scorned and ill-mentioned as well!
Truly an odd people, these Echmer―they vehemently swear that they do not worship any of the gods and only venerate their ancestors, but their own practices and culture seems to imply otherwise. For example, the depiction of the All-Goddess P’hanoikhei and the youngest (but most important) of her children N’urnani the World-Goddess and Aryus the Fire-God throughout multiple aspects of their society suggests reverence. And I cannot forget Hrahndeyl, the literal living goddess of the chiropterans, and her antithesis found in the malicious entity known as Lyednharh, who I’d argue serve as and are treated as “tangible” and “living” aspects of P’hanoikhei as well.
In the end, however, I suppose gods are just gods and that every civilized culture has the right to pray (or not pray) to the deities that best express their values, whether I personally approve of it or not. Because of this, I began to scour the ancient texts of the Pleonastic Spire in hopes of finding more evidence of higher powers that the Echmer once venerated more than their ancestors (as in earlier times, the Bat Elves were a very devout people). The candelabra librarium of Hrahndeyl is as beautiful as described, eternally lit and host to hundreds of books that tickled my fancy and made me wonder about ancient Echmer theology (in particular, I have developed a fascination with their “afterlife”; perhaps I will write a book on that at a later time).
What lies below me are a few “minor” gods that fell out of favor with the Echmer as the centuries marched onward into the present, some of them even fading away into obscurity.
Duiiad’al, Jasihai, & Teshi’raki-ral | The Gerents of Time (Wraith-Gods): Although Akkrahz is the god of time, he is often a fickle and destructive deity whose machinations often cause more harm than good in the Mundex for mortals. He is, however, aware of his maddening state and had children with ancient, mortallic goddesses of the land so that they may assert dominance and control over his more malicious feats. Duiiad’al is the god of drakes and the end of time, who eats the worldly songs of N’urnani that Aryus doesn’t burn so that new ones can be sung. Jasihai is the goddess of jills and loss time, whose duty is to fix the errors created within the Auribex House when Sheu’gilag’s Curse takes considerable hold on her father’s mind. And Teshi’raki-ral is the god of khimeras and time-yet-to-come, who travels beyond what his father can see to defeat the tenebrous creatures that would bring harm to the worlds of mortals. Although the Gerents were never traditionally worshipped outside of some strange hermetic groups, iconography depicting them can be found in ancient Nemer temples to Akkrahz and on idols constructed by the Deepseekers around Portentous Whelm.
Haerokii | Spear of the Heavens (Birth-God): The son of Laorghatu and Yra'fenna, who escaped his parents' doom. Also known as the Antlered Drake, who runs around in pelts to hide his presence from his corpse-uncle Akkrahz. He is the god of metamorphosis, hunting and gathering, and the primal instinct of all living things. Back in the ancient days, his worship and recognition were popular until the Li'kaan Crusades that ended the harsh rule of the Cakaphon Dynasty. Now, only ranger guilds and beastmasters can be found acknowledging him openly through charms and regulated rites of passage. Commonly associated with the moons, as N'urnani gave them to him so he could guard the eternal epitaphs of his parents; he honors the anniversary of their deaths with the Great Hunt, as a celebration of the fruit that is mortality, and signifies it by turning the lunar red.
Dru-A’gaa | Petal-Queen of Heirac (???): As described in the book Hrahanti’s Many Mentors, the eponymous ever-wandering scholar (in the years before her apotheosis) spent time in the western land of Ta’dastan and encountered many strange, divine powers and spirits. Once she returned from her voyages as the goddess Hrahndeyl, she shared stories of these foreign beings with her people and some of them became quite popular for a time. Dru-A’gaa was a star-god that abandoned the heavens to help cultivate the earth, becoming the goddess of flowers, gardens, and the essence of spring who served as the chief handmaiden of Yra’fenna. Haerokii was enamored with her and the two of them traveled the Auribex House frequently. Unfortunately, after the death of Yra’fenna and Laorghatu, Dru-A’gaa became tragically ill and her form slowly turned to stone as a manifestation of her heartache. Haerokii honored her by placing her stilled form within a peaceful grove of his favored hunting grounds, and taught mortals the art of sculpting so that she could see through the eyes of the statues placed in their gardens and admire their beauty. During the Great Hunts, Dru-A’gaa is said to return to normal and accompanies Haerokii in his search for interesting game. *
Iridieen | Charioteer of the Light (Birth-God): The result of a fleeting tryst between Invighna and his mistress Noyx, and one of the ateda known collectively as the star-gods (possibly being the strongest of them). Birth-Mother of Baracalis, the Wishmaster and Spirit-Gambler, and Foster-Mother of Le’pergon, who she nurtured after finding him orphaned in an abandoned world. In the old tales, it is unclear if she is the sole spouse of Gralmoghal or if she is his greatest enemy (although in some of these tales, both interpretations are equally valid). She is the goddess of constellations, greed, wealth, and the purification of foul spirits (which is why exorcists often emblazon their tools with hymns and symbols relating to her). The Cakaphon Dynasty might have suffered the loss of Haerokii, but they ensured the damnation of Iridieen’s worship by forcing her Incandescent Wanderers to reveal her Assault on the Firmament, which led to their public executions during the Great Drownings.
Baracalis | Riddler of the Caves (Birth-God): It is said that in the olden days when the Mundex was still new and the Dreaming Sleeve had yet to activate, Iridieen (whose hoarding knew no limits) spirited away the souls of the fallen from the Death God and organized them in her Luminous Halls. Gralmoghal, who wished to use these souls for his experiments, demanded them from her and so Iridieen offered him a deal—if the Drake-Eater could seize her before the sun went down, she would give them to him. And so did Iridieen flee across the Eithent, aloft on an emerald bird, but at the end of her journey laid a smug and irritated Gralmoghal, who had cheated his way through eternity to make it to the end of time. The result of their union was the god Baracalis, who inherited his mother’s greedy nature and his father’s interest in souls. While a fun god (as he is the god of games, jests, deals, and wishes), he is more than naught a cruel god (as he is also the god of sacrifice, debt, contracts, and equivalent exchange) who will stop at nothing to receive his earned due. Signs of Baracalis and his faithful Hound are usually avoided at all costs outside of betting houses, where the phrase “baracaline gambit” is uttered quite often.
Le’pergon | Blade of Disaster (Outsider-God): The four-armed god of radicals and cataclysm was originally not of this world, having been a simple spirit that wished only to help those around him. When N’urnani’s tale of his world came to an end, Le’pergon was spurred on by Seiru’udac to plead with the end-god Duiiad’al so that his realm could be spared from the Eating; Duiiad’al almost agreed until he saw the chuckling figure of his corpse-uncle behind Le’pergon, and in his fury ate Le’pergon whole. Although the child survived, the otherworldly insides of the end-god had disfigured him badly and left him with a twisted view of protecting the worlds that came after—he would destroy them before Duiiad’al could get the chance to consume them. Armed with the Knife of Names gifted to him by his caretakers, he continues to wage war in the heavens and will not stop until mortal-kind is “liberated”. His complete disregard for societal norms always left him an ill-figure amongst the Echmer, but he is often quoted by revolutionists and agents of change.
Tjalon | Ever-Approaching-Conquest (???): An outsider-god (a term suffragans and diocesans use to refer to a god that emerged seemingly from nowhere), whose presence was first witnessed by the Deaf-Seer Belu Wu’hon in the late First Era. When Belu was crucified by a sect of hedge-mages dedicated to the wraith-god Seiru’udac, the prophet laughed a deep and disturbing laugh and told them: “soon will come the day the ground will shudder and quake, the sky will turn red, and the golden virus of the Last Heart-Kings will break the neck of your laughable god with the tip of a vengeful blade. Soon will come Tjalon, divine crystalline, and he will come for you.” Beyond this, not much else is known of Tjalon, other than the fact he is referred to as the “coming god of new ages, of righteous betrayal, and of the dragon’d moon” by self-proclaimed wise men and wild-beggars. *
Aelivaem | The Drowsy Omen (Birth-God): The goddess of sleep, dreams, absentmindedness, nightmares, and visions. She is the wife of Sh’aemi (for alcohol dulls the senses, and invites her embrace) and Noyx’s favorite little sister (as the darkness of the night serves as perpetual lullaby to the minds of mortals). Once, when N’urnani was telling a story Aelivaem grew upset when her favored character was excluded from the performance and got into a fight with her sister. This caused the story to become too malleable, too unstable, and it dripped into an incomprehensible mush of liquid words and metaphorical fluids. Stealing this bizarre mixture away, Aelivaem coveted and used it to create stories of her own that could be told at any time, and these stories became the sweet dreams and night terrors mortals experience upon rest. While puppetry magic is often associated with N’urnani, its darker aspects are associated with Aelivaem (for better or worse), and determined individuals can learn to make powerful charms with them at the risk of their health.
Sheu’gilag | Fool of the House (Wraith-God): The Random God, to whom the curse of unadulterated insanity belongs to and is unhesitant in preying on the minds of the young and old alike. His very existence advocates its own deprecation. When the horrors of the Underworld and its encroachment on the Dreaming Sleeve took its toll on Jaigorach, the depraved thoughts of his mind giggled and ripped its way out of his head to the utter disgust of the other Spirits of the House. Sheu'gilag's essence left him hated by all of his "kin", Akkrahz and Seiru'udac included, and his attempted murder of Mystara earned him the righteous fury of the star-gods that will stalk him to the end of time. It is wise to ignore him and not speak his name, for it is him who looks at the constant whirlpool of turmoil that is the Auribex and somehow finds a way to jeer at it all.
* Author’s Note: If I remember correctly, “Ta’dastan” is the Ek’hi word for Tamriel. If this is the case, then Heirac must be High Rock, as I remember reading about a minor flower goddess local to the province that was once worshipped by witchmen and druids.
** Author’s Note: I’m not entirely sure, but could this “Tjalon” be Talos, the God of Mankind and Eternal Imperator of Tamriel? The description makes me wonder, but at the same time, how could the Echmer—who had extremely limited contact and information about Tamriel prior to the Invasion of Akavir—know about him? I’m not sure these words spoken by the deafened seer are of utter truth either, as Tiber Septim didn’t become a god until… strange, utter strangeness. I can’t seem to recall the date, and now I have a headache! Perhaps I should rest and start anew on this matter in the morning.
*** Author’s Note: Two additional deities I discovered in old theological texts and folk tales (but was unable to fully research in order to add to this writing) were Raemoh and an entity only described as the Tenebrous God. The former is described as being a deity of undefined nature, it’s description referring to it as the “god of secrets, apocrypha, and uncertainty of wisdom that clouds the reading” who punishes the Echmer for the mistakes of the Noraken it failed to corrupt (which makes believe it might be Hermaeus Mora). The latter, however, seems to be a “censored” god associated with the Kítapoe and their strange Chaos Monoliths found in the archipelago. As this is the first time I’ve heard of a deity, aedric or otherwise, being censored in its entirety, I must learn more!
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