[The Lyceum] Lesson: Gnosis Marks (Open)

[Louie Wein]

41st day of Fall 511 AV

One of the subjects Louie had to tackle before looking for one of his other leads to the prophecy which was Cian Noc is about the gnosis marks the healer and Theo had. Veldrys had suspected that the reason the duo got sick, and had the bloodied butterfly with them much like the murdered child at the Chapterhouse was because of the gnosis marks that thetwo had on them. Louie is not going to doubt the one who got the prophecy about it at least until he had something better to work with. Today will be the day he decides whether or not to pursue the topic of gnosis marks at all. While he did some research on his own already for the past few days, having more minds to help him think about the things that he could not or might have missed would help a lot. He might be supposed to teach this people but no one ever said that he could learn from them as well or to not trade ideas? That would be a lot of wasted resources if he allowed it. "So class, it is time for us to have a little forum." he announced to the students that have gathered.

"Today we are going to discuss about something which has influenced much of our life in Denval" he said heading over to the chalk board to scribble up details to show them what he meant.

Religion: The gods in Denval The Chapterhouse of the Order of Radiance: for the followers of Priskil The Opal Clinic: for the Opal Order of Rak'keli The Chapel: to worship Viratas and Aquiras The Temple of Nikali: if you cannot tell from the name, get the hell out of my class!

"Yes ladies and gentlemen, today's class is all about religion in our beloved city." pointing right at the title and slowly at the names of each god or goddess until he finally reached to the last point and raised his brow to see if there is anyone stupid and ignorant enough to admit it. Yes? No? "Good. Now does anyone have anything to say about this topic? Their thoughts on the gods we revere here or maybe even for those who came from outside Denval, the gods that you know about." The five gods that he listed out are just a small representation of them all and the only reason that he used them was because everyone in Denval should know at least a little bit about them. Louie gave a sigh with the initiative that his students are displaying to him and said "Fine. As the teacher I will start first." and headed over to the chalk board again to make some changes of his own.

Religion: The gods in Denval The Chapterhouse of the Order of Radiance: for the followers of Priskil (the goddess of hope, hope is what kept us going) The Opal Clinic: for the Opal Order of Rak'keli (a goddess which keeps us in good health) The Chapel: to worship Viratas (god of blood. He makes us what we are today) and Aquiras (god of travel. The one who made Denval what it is today) The Temple of Nikali: if you cannot tell from the name, get the hell out of my class! (the goddess who turns the children into the men and women of Denval)

Louie listed out what he could think of about these beings the best that he could in the shortest moment to make the rest of the class think. While the first four were listed pretty well in his opinion he had no choice but to do what he did for Nikali seeing that he had to try and keep the class respectable at least for those who were not of Denval. But for those who grew up in Denval especially through the adolescent years like Louie himself, they would know what he meant at least and he spotted that some of them gave a chuckle or two. "Excellent. It seems that we have some volunteers. I hope you don't mind sharing your thoughts on all this with the rest of the class?" he asked with an inviting smile. "Come on, don't be shy. None of the gods will smite you where you stand for doing a bad job though I can't say the same for your classmates." and after getting them up to the front held them as he brought his mouth closer to their ears to whisper"or myself..."

Giving his volunteers a piece of chalk each he would tell the rest of the class who was being quiet entertained to "pay attention! You should be commending on their bravery instead but don't worry..." he said with a menacing grin because "you will never know when you are next." Louie took out his book and a quill to take some notes of his own seeing that whatever information that he would get today will be used when he met with Cian Noc or Theo. "Go on then" he told his volunteer's gently. "Tell the rest of the class exactly what you think or know about religion and the gods." before telling the rest of the class harshly that "you better be taking notes!" just as he was. He was the teacher and frankly he could have taken the easy way out by springing in a quiz on them or getting some reports but nothing ever beats knowing something new by yourself.

OOCSomeone be a volunteer please? XD

[Xelhes]

Fall 41, 511 A.V.

After his meeting with Veldrys, learning about the Symenestra to an extent, as well as hearing about the god Viratas, Xelhes decided it was time to move on. Being scared to learn of the other gods was foolish, and keeping such rejecting such information was just arrogant. Learning of the gods would be useful for any place, as well as something simply fascinating to learn in general. It was for this reason that he had decided to attend a class at the Lyceum, one that was suppose to elaborate on the principal deities of Denval, as well as various things associated with them. That was the reason he was here, to try and learn, though he had no idea how it would work out.

Listening to the man talk, Xelhes had no real idea what to think of him. Louie seemed excited about his job, happily going on about about what he was discussing; yet Xelhes had no real opinion of him. It was odd, not being able to form a first impression on the man teaching him, but maybe it was better so that Xelhes could not judge him. Reading what was on the board, Xelhes already began to learn things he did not know. His knowledge of deities reached to Leth, Syna, and Viratas, but aside from that he had little to no information on the others. Nikali was an exception, to a degree. Xelhes knew of the Temple of Nikali, knew that it was a den of prostitutes; the idea of which repulsed him, and yet he knew very little of Nikali herself. Leth was the only deity he had decent knowledge on, with Syna in second, and Viratas third.

When Louie edited what he wrote on the board, Xelhes looked at it confused. Turns the children into the men and women of Denval? Did she have some role in the aging of individuals? It was only when someone beside him made an inappropriate comment that Xelhes realized the implications of what Louie wrote. Sexual interaction, or so that was what his fellow classmate had eluded towards. The very thought of it, of how Louie had wrote it on the board made Xelhes quietly laugh, though not in a good way. The sexual interactions were not what change a person from child to man or woman, it was mental maturity that did such a thing, as well as the amount of responsibility they could possess. Simply the notion of one sleeping with another as a right to adulthood was something Xelhes almost considered an insult, thought he did not say such.

When Louie mentioned volunteers, Xelhes was almost certain he was one of those for his quiet laugh. In all honest, he knew it was his own fault for acting like that, but still he did not regret it. With word of the gods smiting him, and Louie, Xelhes let out a small chuckle again, amused. No, the gods would not smite one simply for not knowing details about them, and he did not see Louie as being someone capable of smiting. Xelhes accepted the chalk from Louie with a smile, not one of a student trying to rebel, but one of someone who was simply enjoying themselves. After listening to how Louie was talking to the others, and just in general, Xelhes believed that Louie acted as he normally did, not changing himself simply because he was to be teaching a topic. He seemed like someone who was comfortable with himself, or am actor. With the chalk, Xelhes began to neatly write what he knew on the board, though trying to keep all his details vague.

Viratas - God of blood and the deity that many of the people that attend the Chapel pray to. Some consider him the god of life as well, due to his power over blood. Leth - God of the Moon, and the lover/protector of Syna. He would remove souls from the cycle of life and allow them to enter his domain based on properties they possessed, though what exactly a soul must have in unknown. Acting as a kind god, he still retain some of the properties of the darkness he exists in, being fierce and more than capable of destruction should the need arise. He protects us during the night, when his eyes are on the world we reside, and observes us as well. Syna - Goddess of the Sun, and the lover of Leth. She is the contrast to Leth, possessing the properties of the light she radiates, protecting us from what may lurk in the darkness.

Turning around, Xelhes returned the chalk to Louie, not wishing or able to write much more. Though he knew much of Leth, his memories were dampened in this form, so only the concepts that always remained in his psyche could be expressed. It would be sad most likely, but if one asked why he knew so little than Xelhes would simply reply with the truth. He was an Ethaefal, and having lost the god he considered a father, he had previously wished to avoid the subject, but no longer does now as he grow up. "This is all I am able to offer in terms of knowledge of the Gods. May I return to me seat now, professor?" The words were not one of challenge or insult, and were said almost monotonous. In all honesty, standing in front of the class made Xelhes uncomfortable, as some knew what he was already, and knowing such knowledge did not always mean they would be kind to him.

[Louie Wein]

This new volunteer which Louie brought in for laughing actually knew quite a bit and "it is good to see someone who has some in prepared" he told the rest of the class who probably would not like getting upstaged so easily. Gesturing to a new seat closer to the front Louie would tell his student that "yes, you may go to your seat..." student? It would not be a good enough title as the professor that he was called which was funny since Louie would not see himself as knowledgeable as a lot of other teachers in the Lyceum. Once he was the only person left standing in the class, Louie would take a few moments of pause to think as he looked back at the board to see what is already written. The pair of lovers being stated together is something to be expected but then "you seem to be a night person." The remark because Louie saw on the board that his student has written a lot more about the moon god compared to the others so "now we all also know a new fact that Leth is also a soul god right class? Right?" Louie waited for a few nods of acknowledgement of that fact before continuing so that he would not seem like a teacher who knew less of the subject that he was supposed to be teaching compared to a student.

Leth - God of the Moon, and the lover/protector of Syna. He would remove souls from the cycle of life and allow them to enter his domain based on properties they possessed, though what exactly a soul must have in unknown. Acting as a kind god, he still retain some of the properties of the darkness he exists in, being fierce and more than capable of destruction should the need arise. He protects us during the night, when his eyes are on the world we reside, and observes us as well.

After he underlined the new point in the board for all to see, Louie then continued on to talk about how "you can all see that different gods are important to different here. For our friend here it seems to be these three gods" pointing back to each of the newly written names on the board and the underlined part watching for his student's reactions to see if they all agreed and then moved towards Xelhes asking "maybe you would like to tell us why these names come out for our benefit so we may make a comparison?" The only one that is truly normal for the citizens of Denval of course was as on the board the god of life, "Viratas. If you would ask anyone of us here, like me, I would say that he makes me what I am today" gesturing to his whole body "from how I was brought up by my parents."

But if only things were as simple as "the chaplain was who allowed my parents to get together" because this statement had to heard together with the reminder that it was "after being scrutinized by the breeding program and getting the get go from Viratas." It was facts like this that made Louie think that "everything has been determined from the start..." especially after he had heard that prophecy from Veldrys which turned out true at least for the first few parts where he hoped that it will stay. A little bit lost in thought Xelhes would hear Louie asking himself softly whether "we can change it or are we stuck to it to the end..." with a pause at the end as he thought more until he remembered the topic he was on and told everyone "sorry, but yes I am sure that everyone is the result of this and will go through it at some point" if they continued to stay in the settlement.

Now that he has explained a little more about the role Viratas and the chaplain had in Denval he was done and looked expectantly at Xelhes to continue on answering whatever he had asked earlier about the gods he had put on the board and why he had put those three specifically among so many of the others known to the world.

[Xelhes]

Receiving praise from his teacher made Xelhes blink for a moment, surprised. He had barley given any knowledge on any of the deities he wrote down on the board; a basic outline if that. Still, when Louie said he could return to his seat Xelhes did not disagree, wanting to be removed from the spot light as quickly as he could. However, the lingering silence after giving Xelhes permission made the Ethaefal sigh before saying, "My name is Xelhes. With a small bow of his head Xelhes returned to his seat, listening to Louie speak again.

After sitting down and believing himself to be free from anymore questions, Louie's voice quickly smashed any hope the Ethaefal had. It seemed like he was going to be in the view of his peers for a lot longer than he had wanted. Considering Louie's question for a moment, he replied with, "I learned a little about Viratas from an acquaintance, and as for Leth and Syna, they are the deities I am most familiar with. The reason I know so much more about Leth is because I am one of his Ethaefal, though one with little knowledge."

While some people looked at Xelhes as if they never knew this fact, many did not react at all, having already known what Xelhes was. The Ethaefal did not try to hide his race from anyone and was very open about it, so it was natural for many to already know. Those that were shocked about the fact was probably because they simply did not recognize him, his Ethaefal form being very different from that of his mortal form.

Hearing Louie's words on where something could be change or if they were stuck to it until the end made Xelhes give him a confused look, the Ethaefal unsure of what his words meant. Unable to come to a conclusion on Louie's words, Xelhes simply sat and listened to what the man said, wondering if anymore questions would be directed towards the Ethaefal once again or if someone else would finally be asked instead.

[Louie Wein]

There are times where Louie preferred to teach adults over children. This was not one of them because the adults were all disappointing. If he was at the academy the bunch would be raising their hands happily to give their very wrong answers but at least they were doing something. Sighing since no one wanted to take any initiative especially when he was staring hard at someone he thought would have the answers, Louie turned back to the board where "as you can see right now, we have...one...three...five...seven, seven gods listed here. Is there anything else we can put? Plenty..." and there he went erasing the writings already there and putting down things "...like the relationship they have with one another and people" since he only went through a little bit at the start.

Religion: Relationships A: Aquiras P: Priskil S: Sagallius L: Leth S: Syna V: Viratas C: Cheva N: Nikali

It was not the best thing he could make but thinking back it was a good thing that he decided to use this topic for the adults who would "understand what this is?" if the title was not already a good clue. "As you can see I have taken the liberty of adding some names just to illustrate." Nothing too fantastic since it is anything a person might come across by spending some time in the Lyceum. The first part he pointed at the leftmost side of the board was "the lovers" that all of Denval would know "and their enemy" Sagallius. That wretched scumbag "who has taken Aquiras away from us" for now hopefully. "What does this tell us?" Anyone in the class at all? Regardless of what answer was given or not, Louie would at the end say before continuing to the next point that "it tells us that some gods might have good relations with one another and some might have bad relations as well. Just like us."

The strongest type of relationship that anyone might have is a family and here "Nikali and Cheva which I just added are siblings. No surprise that what they do are so much alive." Bonds of marriage or one night stands as far as Louie could tell himself since he did not have enough time to look through every book in the Lyceum just for one point. There were some books in there he really had to toss away like "controlling the Nikali in you" and "you don't need a Cheva to have a partner" because they were just so irrelevant but it did not stop Louie from making a very awkward opinion of things from it. His personal opinion of course had to be put on hold because it would be quite inappropriate and all he told his students were "these gods brings people and families together" all over MIzahar.

In a sense, Denval had another god which has this function and that was "Viratas" which Louie connected by pointing straight to the V right after "though he might not allow those who are incompatible to be together" for the good of the bloodline of course. The last two gods "I just put them there since Xelhes pointed them out but we see them everyday" or personifications of them anyway. Swirling his finger following the arrows "everyday and night am I right?" directing the question to the one who bought them up in today's lesson. Louie was not prepared for that at all and was only able to mention what everyone else should already know about the gods. In order to not seem like a useless teacher he had to unfortunately direct the attention of the class to Xelhes to see if he had anything else to say about them.

When Xelhes was done either by accepting or declining Louie would try to bring things forward by asking "we all experience what the gods have to do for us am I right? But is there anything else?" Now it was time for Louie to reach the meat of the discussion that he wanted to know about which was "there are some people who get a gift from these gods you see. To help them achieve their goals..." gods and mortals alike were the same. Louie had a really good conversation once, with a member of "...the Chapterhouse being a good example for you see as we all know the Order is a gathering of those marked by Priskil." For such an organization needing so many members and a place to gather in Denval and beyond as a safe assumption when those from Llhavit had to help with its construction, "what is it that these people do?" The great grand magnificent answer he found just as anyone would if they asked a member was "vanquish darkness" which is no big surprise "and that is why Sagallius is put down there on the board."

"I don't suppose anyone else has thoughts about this? No? There is no wrong answer here. You don't need to know anything, you only need to have an opinion so shoot away" Louie asked hoping to get something useful out of todays class since he already offered so much to his students. No one ever said it was a rule that a teacher cannot get anything out of his classes either.

[Xelhes]

The drawing that Louie made on the board caused Xelhes to have a confused look on his face, though only for a moment. It was not that he found the relations between the gods to be difficult, but rather that the drawing simply confused him. Crossing out the A as well as the arrow below it helped add to this confusion, as well as simply how it was drawn in general. It was only when Louie started explaining that it made more sense, yet even then the sense was partially fractured.Hearing Louie's words about how the gods had good and bad relations made Xelhes nod, already knowing this fact.

While the gods lived in a higher realm than Mizahar it did not mean they were not prone to problems; regardless of the being and what level of existence it was from, mistakes were bound to happen, there was no truly perfect being. Hearing Nikali spoken of brought a sour taste to the Ethaefal's mouth though he did not show how he felt on his face. Despite knowing virtually nothing about Cheva, Xelhes had heard plenty about Nikali; it was impossible not too. He knew of the temple and those that worked there, and the very idea of it did not settle with him well. To just give your body away to another to fulfill their needs, and possibly your own, was not a valid reason. Simply thinking about how many people the workers slept with made the Ethaefal shutter, thinking that they might as well sleep with all of Denval and throw what was left of their self dignity away.

It was only when his name was said that Xelhes focused completely on the lesson again, a look of distaste on his face at having to speak again. "Yes, the day and night are caused by Syna and Leth, one transitioning to the other when one of the two replaces the other in the sky." He said the words clearly though there was no enthusiasm behind them. If anything the Ethaefal almost sounded nervous, possibly even worried. Though he tried to act like what others said did not really affect him, Xelhes was still young and regardless of how hard he tried the voices of others always had an affect on him.

Conversation of the marks caused Xelhes to focus on Louie, his discomfort gone as he listened. Ever since he had seen Veldrys' mark and suffered from unforeseen side effects the Ethaefal had always wondered about the marks. He knew the Symenestra's was from Viratas and partially what it did, but that was it and the mystery of it made him want to know more. When Louie asked if anyone had any thoughts the Ethaefal raised his hand, noticing that very few others seemed to even be paying attention, let alone willing to speak.

After being allowed to speak, Xelhes said, "The marks, I am just wondering if the abilities they instill come from the mark itself, or if the mark acts as a way for the deity of that mark to lend their powers when needed. Also....I think the gnosis are possibly double edged. The abilities they bring about are extremely useful, but what if one who possesses a mark is shackled to serving the deity for the rest of their life?"

[Louie Wein]

The day was getting very interesting with this Xelhes person being able to discuss very well and what he had just mentioned would probably be what Louie saw as the finish line. It was not what everyone believed or already knew about Leth and Syna, or the little that they knew as shown by how some students sniggered hearing Louie's poor joke that "during the eclipse they are doing the dirty? Then its good Denval has the Temple of Nikali" just to keep their attention on the topic at hand. In bad taste perhaps but the gods would have had better things to bother about than Louie's methods to teach other people about them.

And how those same gods use the people that they have marked. Louie would never have suspected that both Xelhes and he had the same source for their concerns in the marks through the spider. The only thing that Louie could comment about was "who knows? The little documentation" that he has researched and the stories like the recent appearance of Viratas "shows that the gods would at least have to show themselves to their followers to give their mark" probably so that the marked ones would know what it is that they are getting into.

But after that, "after getting marked I think those individuals are left to their own devices" which was his conclusion the way he knew that Veldrys was left alone to work on that prophecy on his own with no help whatsoever from the one who gave it to him. However it was not that fact which he knew that allowed Louie to conclude "I believe the power comes from the gods" and not from the mark because "everyone in Denval knows about Aquiras and how without him there is no one around to further his works compared to his lover" with her entire order that he touched on earlier.

Grabbing and thrusting a piece of chalk forward, Louie explained that "a sword is never good. Just because you are holding it does not mean that you won't get stabbed by another or, it might break and stab yourself" as unlikely as it may be since it was only for the sake of illustration. "You may be right about that Xelhes but don't forget the stories about those who are hated by some of the gods. Those who are cursed with the not so useful abilities" which can be terrifying for some as he has read. That being said "those would be far worse off compared to those who can choose what they are shackled to am I right?"

"Does anyone else have anything else that they might want to add to this?"

[Xelhes]

Hearing Louie talk about the eclipse, not to mention Leth in such a way caused his cheeks to turn a shade of red; not from embarrassment, rather anger instead at the man's words. He was an Ethaefal of Leth, and yet someone thought it was ok to say something as rude and provocative as that. His teacher's comment about the Temple of Nikali only served to fuel how upset he was, hating the Temple and disgusted by what those that 'worked' there did. Bad taste indeed and an effective way to grab Xelhes' attention further, even if it was in a negative way.

Talk that the god or goddess appeared before someone who would be marked caused the Ethaefal's eyes to widen, shock and realization setting in. Veldrys had a mark of Viratas which meant the god himself had appeared before the Symenestra. Yet, it was a different idea that truly made him think; the idea that if he proved himself worthy of Leth's gnosis the god would appear before him. The chance was slim, but now he knew it was possible to see Leth again without having to die. A small chance, but one none the less. "Why would the individuals be left to their own devices? What if the deity said they were left to their own choice, yet actually still watched everything their chosen did? Would they really be left to their own devices then?"

Xelhes nodded as Louie continued to talk, though shook his head at the thought of someone breaking their sword and stabbing themselves. As skeptical of it as he was the thought made the Ethaefal chuckle inside, though it was more at his teacher rather than the idea itself. While he nodded at the statement of those that were cursed, the concept brought another question into his head, Xelhes asking, "What would one have to do to be hated by a god? I know cursed people exist, yet I cannot imagine what kind crime one would have to commit. Are they simply cursed in general, or are they people who had a gnosis but defied their god or committed treason against them?" The topic of gods and goddesses, along with their power had always fascinated Xelhes, and he always wanted to know more.

"Yes, and no," was his reply to the question on of those who were cursed tended to be worse off, because, "It would depend on the person. If it was someone who was simply cursed for what they did wrong, then yes, they are probably worse off. However, if it was someone who had chosen to reject those shackles and take the curse in return, I would say no. They choose to reject the power of the gods and live with their own strength, and even if it made them cursed I believe they considered themselves better off. It may have been a large price to pay, yet they managed to keep those shackles off and depending on the person, worth the price."

That was all he said on the topic, letting it die before he said something that may offended someone in the room. It was personal opinion mostly, yet still Xelhes believed it to be true. After all, the Ethaefal himself had little real freedom in the grand scheme of things. He wanted a family, a normal and plain life, yet that was something he probably never have. Despite how hard he may try, Xelhes felt that such a life was simply unobtainable for one who would never age.