Eyris

[Gossamer]

Eyris The Goddess Eyris is considered one of the true 'ancients' because she is indeed the source of all wisdom and knowledge. It is said that to look into her eyes is to catch a lucid moment of total and complete understanding about Mizahar and the world as a whole. Eryis is one of the few immortals that moves between the deities of good and evil without taking sides or making enemies. Eyris simply knows things. Her realm of understanding includes familiarity, awareness, or understanding gained through experience or study. Queen of learning, Eyris holds the sum or range of what has been perceived, discovered, or learned well within her grasp. Her followers are equally wise. What makes Eyris even more powerful is that she has the ability to to discern or judge what is true, right, or lasting; her whole realm consists of having insight. Other than having a gaze that people must not meet, Eyris is perceived as a young and beautiful woman. If a Benshira gazes upon her, she appears Benshira. If a Myrian gazes upon her, that Myrian will swear he or she saw the goddess as Myrian. Eyris takes on some important aspect of whomever she appears too. If a person is a Syliran Knight, the Goddess will almost always appear to be a uniformed knight as well. It is said that Eyris knows all things, as well as understands those things, that have come to pass and those that worship her have acute insight in their own lives and in the world itself as well. The people who follow Eyris tend to be naturally gifted with acute clarity of thought, higher intelligence, and a passion for knowledge. They are the questioners, the seekers, the ones who willingly face the truths in the world to overcome ignorance and the lack of skill. These followers often found splinter cells of the Lykata Cult, an organization dedicated to the retrieval and preservation of advanced knowledge. The most powerful of these followers, now deceased, was a mage by the name of Thomas Lormar who dwelled in Sylira on the boarder of Taldera in the wilds pre-Valterrian.

[Erekez]

5th Day of Spring, 513 AV Eyris, goddess of wisdom and knowledge, I hope you can forgive any informalities that I may address you with, but after the way you saved me one year ago today, I find it difficult to only follow you for what you stand for. Instead, I follow you for who you are. You asked me back then only have faith in you, and I continue to do so, but I do not feel as though I have repaid my debt to you. Perhaps I am doing more for you by doing as you ask than I can believe. It is most likely that there is something that you know that I do not. I still am grateful for the gift you gave me, and continue to use it with the intent of learning, even if I choose to learn topics different to what one would expect of a follower of Eyris, but I still uphold your belief that all knowledge is valuable, and anything learnt is not wasted. I shall continue to have faith in you, but also wish to let you know that I am here, as your follower, to do as you ask of me, if it is within my power. But then, I suppose you already knew that.

[Wrenmae]

Spring 1, 513 AV

Leth was shy tonight, hiding behind a low-hanging bank of clouds, but shards of his light still pierced the gloom, falling like translucent silver spears to the street of Zeltiva below. Wrenmae had left Philomena’s home but moments before, and his heart hung somewhere far away. Here, but years ago, when he was weak and small…when he had never heard the name Vayt. Pausing here in the moonlight, wearing a face that was not his own, he looked up into the sky, tasted the sea on the still-cool air, and then closed his eyes.
When had he prayed last? To who? The gods in their eternal struggle rumbled and roiled above him. Perhaps they stalked the streets, perhaps they lived within his mind. The two marks of Vayt on his back tugged him in a faint direction, the place their maker was…distant or closer than he’d like to think. As always, the Rhysol mark bid him continue on, come to the beck and call of the god who had summoned him to Ravok. And yes, he would go…he would present himself before that Lord of Betrayal for a reward.
He would use his soul as the hitching post where gods left their plans, trading his life away in seconds and years. Currency…every bit as valuable as a Miza and perhaps moreso.

Around him, Zeltiva suffered. The infirmary was filled with the dead and dying. In his blindness, his conviction to the cause he had chosen for himself, he had never visited them. Why look upon his handywork when he knew his heart would quail beneath that weight? He had faked his death, effectively blinded himself from the people of Zeltiva. Tomorrow morning he would go upon the tide to Sahova, then Nyka, a path…he was told, that would lead straightest to Ravok.

But he had time now, but moments, but time all the same. The only gods who had ever answered his prayers were dark. They laughed at him, scolded him, made light of his suffering. They abused and underestimated him, cursed him and required him. No god of goodly or even muddled intent had ever sought him out, shown him much more than the disapproving curse of Laviku. There was no reason to think any would hear his call now, but he did so regardless.

He tempted the very fates by conspiring, although never in so specific a language. He would ask the god of knowledge, Eyris, of whom he had been introduced by a mage named Hadrian…how to kill a god.

The words, once spoken, could not be taken back. And he knew from experience in Sahova that the gods listened, and listened intently when one invoked their name. Would he be surprised by her? Or would Vayt and Rhysol descend together, doubt his intentions, and obliterate him on the spot?

Risk, as always, was the nature of his life. If he stayed in Zeltiva, the only home he’d truly known, he would kill it. If he left, his soul would die. Bit by bit this callous spreading of Vayt’s will would make his reality Wren’s reality…the strong only lived, the weak only died. But what of the weak who wanted to live? What of him, alone in those mountain ranges, sickly and alone? Will there be a Vayt for those children, or will he be their undoing?

Hatred always begets hatred and Zan had stumbled on a truth about Wren in Sahova that only worsened as the days went by.

Wren was losing his soul.

The warning of the ghost boy in the sepulcher where Vayt had marked him haunted his intentions now. For he had taken a blade to the mark on the small of his back, tried to tear it away only for it to reappear. He was marked. His soul was marked. And he would be cursed for all time unless he swore his allegiance to Vayt, his slavery for a reprieve from his poisonous touch.

And Wrenmae was no slave.

“Eyris,” he said, and his voice sounded strange, alone in the alleys of Zeltiva, at once mightier and weaker than it had ever been to his ears before. He tried again. “Eyris, hear me.” Silence met his demand, and hanging his head, the mage went on. “You may know me, as your purview is knowledge. I met a servant of yours, Hadrian, who briefly showed me the mark of your favor upon him.” Zan was silent, in his own world thinking his own things. Wren was alone in this placation. “I do not ask you for that now, but for knowledge…knowledge no god is likely to give to a mortal.” His tongued darted out, wetted his lips. He could almost feel the cowl of Vayt around him, the smoky chaos of Rhysol. He almost tremored when he spoke again and his voice was a strangled whisper. “I seek…I seek the knowledge of how to kill a God.”

Perhaps it was coincidence, or even his overactive imagination. But the Bonesnapper wind whistled down the alley and tugged at his cloak, sent it flapping in the last dying snarl of winter. Wrenmae whirled on his foot, at once his eyes seeking others in every shadow and every eave beneath the white buildings around him. He sought the gods he knew could be there…

Finally, he turned again, the wind dying and a silence as profound as the most stirring speech fell upon him. “I will not use this knowledge without understanding full well the consequences,” he offered to the darkness, “But time never stands still and I need to do something. I will not be a tool, I will be the hand that moves it. I want to take control of my own destiny, my own fate. Please.”

The wind seemed to whisper, “No hope. No hope.”

“I need your help...and I will do whatever you ask of me for this knowledge.”

[Delani Denusk]

Timestamp: Summer 41, 513

Syna shone bright in the clear sky over Endrykas, her warm rays a welcome embrace to those who sought her. But darkness had fallen on one drykas' heart and mind as she began the task of breaking down her tent and packing things on and into the yvas bags. The bright rays did not shed light on the woman's troubled thoughts. Delani was alone between the pavilions, the busy life of the drykas going on around her as she prayed and prepared to depart from the place she thought would always be her home.

"My Lady Eyris, I beseech your wisdom now..." Coram stood patiently nearby, waiting for more of the bags to be attached to the yvas that did not truly belong to him. He was a good horse; Dela was lucky to have him.

"Your eyes see all, your mind knows all, and I am but a humble servant lost in the sea for which you observe. Your gift saw me through the worst of the last year, showed me much of the world I did not know or understand and provided me an opportunity to learn more. But I confess confusion now in the light of the people for which I am a part of. I am conflicted and do not know if what I do now is out of embarassment for my kinsmen; the opportunity Mathias Syka gives to me is immeasurable. How could I repay such a chance at honoring you? And yet, is this pursuit made in true reverence of your might, that what I might learn on this journey truly for you? Or am I simply leaving, abandoning all that I knew in this land for the ignoble choice the ones who are supposed to be leading us made. I fail to comprehend the worth of enslaving those the Drykas have long traded with peaceably. And for what? To repopulate? Are these poor traders and civilians of Sylira to be no more than breed-stock for the Drykas? How is that right? How is that noble? It lowers us to the wretchedness of Zith, my lady! Using free men as nothing but hounds to mount and...and petch!"

The woman turned her head to the side and spit in disgust, frustrated as she tightened a bag onto the Yvas, Coram shifting and snorting briefly at the aggressive air his rider wielded.

"How can they justify it? What now separates the proud and honorable drykas from...bah, I cannot even find the word." She shook her head again and closed her eyes, resting her head against the stallion.

"I need your guidance, my lady...If I stay, it is with near hatred for what occurs, but I would still have my family whom I thought lost..."

"If I go, greater knowledge will be gained, an experience that few are being offered, and fewer allowed; but it is at the cost of those I love and the land...the land that I loved. I may never see them again and no legacy that can be returned to them to share the knowledge that may be gained. For all accounts and purposes, I will walk the path alone. To which is the greater gain, then, my lady? I pray for your guidance...show me the road that I must take."

x

[Delani Denusk]

Timestamp: Spring 28, 512 (evening)

There was only pain. Delani could not say why she called to the one who had Marked her. Perhaps it was the delirium pulsing through her body from the furnace of her ruined hand. Nonetheless, the prayers were sent, pleading, as she did the only thing she could think by the dying fire that spring night. The dead threads of flesh were slowly being carved away under the light of a supermoon, Leth absurdly huge in the evening sky.

"Eyris, please, show me what I can use. Show me what will help. Lift this fog from my mind and help me see what will cleanse this from my body." Dela prayed this was not a test of her goddess; if it was, she feared she may fail...

x

[Brodon Windriver]

OOC - stemming from this.

49th of Summer, 513

The young man dropped so fast to his knees on the polished stone that he slid with head bowed and hands folded for several feet. The other Rivarians in the Library were not that surprised at this odd behavior considering the somewhat disruptive laughing and pumping of fists he had been indulging in just prior to it. The pure joy of his exuberance made the distraction not unpleasant for them, so they tolerated it, some shaking their heads with a chuckle and resuming their own studies, some stopping to watch.

'Lady Eyris, though you have been largely unknown to me, you extend this miracle to me through your servant, Delani Denusk. I now understand so much more of my purpose and I find my words insufficient to express my thanks. I can only hope you can read the words of my heart and find them satisfactory. Blessed be your name, my gracious Lady of knowledge and wisdom. You have extended the knowledge I need. Zulrav and Yahal gave me the direction to find you. And now I trust to Laviku to extend passage to the next stage of my atonement. Wisdom to act correctly I hope to find once I get there. I pray you smile upon Delani as you have smiled upon me now. I am forever in your debt.

In respect and reverence,

Brodon of the Windriver clan.'

He rose and took a few steps with a satisfied smile. He seemed suddenly to remember something and, with his smile waning only from the effort of breaking into a run, charged out of the Academy building into the streets of Riverfall.

[Eleret]

OOCFound this in my notes, apparently forgot to post it. Oops! Spring 1, 513 AV occurs in Sightseeing and Sea Kings "Wise One, my regards to You on this first day of the new year. I would ask for Your blessing as I continue on my journey through Mizahar and through life. I have barely begun, or so it seems, and yet already I find there is so much I do not know, so much that I still need to learn. I ask You not for a gift of knowledge, but for the blessing of opportunity, because knowledge is not truly understood unless it is earned. May I in this year have the opportunities to learn the knowledge I need, and may I have the wisdom to use both opportunities and knowledge well."

[Fallon]

Excerpt taken from and Occurs in:
[SO-Sylira] So here we are
88th Winter 514 AV

"I don't ever pray, you above that should know. So, forgive if I'm all informal with you, never did quite get formal praying down," her voice was but a whisper, barely audible but there so clearly to herself. A speaking of words and thoughts as purely as she could muster, "Actions over words any day, don't just peak the part, be the part. Still, I guess it doesn't explain on why starting now of all things. Though, this is you, Lady Eyris who sees all and knows all. You probably know already what has happened - I failed, I failed everyone. I did though, no two ways to look at it. I petched up." Her lips pulled back into a weak curl, a self depreciating action, "I couldn't make it happen. I tried though, but I couldn't change it. Couldn't change any of it. I ruined the dream."

"I wasn't wise enough, I wasn't quick enough. And now? Well now I'm lost," Another exhale, her brow creased with thought as she considered the next few words. It was a fight for self control, to keep a level head on what was before her. It was a feeble attempt, why would Eyris help her now? Gods after all were not handymen. But still, she tried, her entire form pleading for an answer back, "I don't know what to do any more," she pressed her left hand across her eyes then, "I'm lost, and I need guidance. Anything. A point. A sign. A way to learn. I just please... instruct me your will." She released a sniff, "You told me. You told me all those years ago to have fun finding those discoveries and those hidden links in history, I was foolish thinking it would all just come to me. Then I just blew it all away... And now it's gone, and now, now I need your wisdom more than ever. I just don't know any more. Please... I'm begging you..."

[Rhydian Lamoze]

"Eyris, the keeper of knowledge, I simply wish to inform you of my appreciation. It is thanks to you that I am capable of growing each day and coming to understand the world bit by bit. I know that it will take a great deal of time before I am as well versed as some of your disciples, if I ever reach that point, but I intend to further my skills and knowledge with each passing day. The day that we encounter one another in the great beyond shall be a wonderous one. Thank you."

Found Here: Prayers to the Monolith