Flying Free: A Chronicle on the Fall of Elhoism

Every single bird started talking, their beaks opening and echoing a sound strikingly similar to that of the brass instruments used on the Malkovine Islands. Everybody on the streets, inside, or by the sea stopped what they were doing and turned their heads towards the temple at the center of the metropolis.

It's here, most thought, rushing towards the sanctuary as the birds began cawing in various languages and dialects. Sinners ran to their basements, hoping to avoid judgement while the righteous ones spread their arms open and tore off their clothes in religious fervor, donning sackcloths and laying themselves prostrate on the ground in the front of the statue of Elhier, the Wind God.

It had been prophesied for centuries how the god of the air would set ablaze the tongues of the winged, armageddon and judgement day following in suit. Millions of the beaked creatures had been stored in dozens of aviaries scattered around the island nation of Kibur, the capitol containing thousands of flocks alone. Now, every single bird in the country and planet was singing in a disturbingly humanoid voice, frightening the local pagans on nearby archipelagos.

A mob soon grew in front of the hundred-foot sculpture of Kidur's deity, the crowd swaying back and forth as they chanted some of the most popular hymns from the Book of Guddommelige Anemos. Several in the front of the crowd fell to their knees, pressing their faces to the ground in reverence as the statue opened its eyes for the first time since its creation nearly a millenium ago, scanning across the multitude of worshippers with a look of slight pity.

Standing up to his full height of one hundred thirty-seven feet, the bearded god raised its scepter up into the sky, winds almost as fast as tornadoes blowing past the giant and causing wisps of his granite hair to fly around. The masses continued their fanfare, applauding the display of power and stopping on cue as their beloved god lowered his trademark weapon to the ground. "I love you, Elhier!" Somebody shouted off to the side of the town's square, and the god simply grinned in that general direction before returning to his look of deep concentration that had been etched into his face. The statue had been created with that expression, yet many of the people present were unsettled by the intimidated by the new life behind these features.

Silence hung in the air for several minutes, nobody daring to interrupt their god's musings. Finally, with a gusty sigh that rustled the broad-leafed palm trees surrounding the square, Elhier looked up from the spot on the ground and addressed the people for the first time since the Chapter of Forvent was written.

"My children," he began, each word uttered breathy and echoed by the thousands of birds resting on the clay-shingled rooftops of nearby storefronts. "Your earthly families have been waiting centuries for this moment to come, when the faithful will be rewarded and the sinful punished in the stillness of the Lower Worlds, but I must tell you about what's been afflicting me for all of these years.

"I saw your tiny nation grow to rule almost a quarter of the planet, killing anybody that did not choose to follow my words. You even slaughetered your own people during your darker times for blasphemy, saying that it was all in my name. It's truly flattering; all of the other deities are quite envious of me because of this, but the whole devotional has made my soul weary."

"Whatever did we do to bring you grief, my Master?" St. Stratus asked, looking up at the gigantic incarnation of Elhier.

"Didn't I give all of you a book explaining that?" he asked rhetorically, causing a copy of Anemos the size of a Velari pygmy to drop open at his feet. "I tried to keep it simple: Don't sin, worship me, and don't fight. That's the Chapter of Kovoran right there in a nutshell, but somehow all of you managed to screw it up." dropping the holy vernacular, Elhier continued, "I had no idea that there were so many ways to do something wrong, but you people seem to be highly creative in that field. I won't try lecturing all of you on how you started this pointless tradition of not eating birds that I created specifically for that purpose and building statues that look nothing like me at all. I could go on for hours about how badly things were misinterpreted, but I don't like standing in this body at this size for too long."

The crowd in front of him began to sob, bowing to the ground in front of them as they tore their clothes in sorrow. "What can we do to please you once again?" they moaned, staring up at Elhier for guidance once again.

"Stop crying, for one thing," he began, lifting the robed arm of his right hand and causing thousands of handkerchiefs to pour from it. "I don't believe in last-minute make-ups, so don't bother trying. Even your little saints would be sent to the Lower Worlds for all sorts of crimes, but it's no use going into detail about that now."

"Does that mean we're gracefully saved then?" a voice from the back of the crowd asked.

"Of course not!" the deity replied, chuckling at the question for a couple of seconds before regaining composure. "Besides, it doesn't matter anymore since I'm resigning as the god or air.

Mutters of confusion raced through the crowd, forcing Elhier to boom from his pedastal atop the highest point in the city, "As of the year 1121 C.E., I formally dissolve the religion known as Elhoism and resign from my position as the Deity of Wind. For those still interested in being bound to rules that they're destined to break, some of the minor gods would be open to having a couple of discipleships around town, but Elhoism will be no more. Any attempts at reconstructing this system of belief will be met with severe failure, so it would be best to just accept its dissolution and move on. Do what a wise guy I once met said: 'eat, drink, and be happy.' Enjoy the rest of your lives, and don't worry about damnation; I'll just send all of you to Limbo or elsewhere. Goodbye, my children; I still have mixed feelings about what I think about all of you."

And with that final remark, Elhier shrank down to the size of a small old man, still made of stone, and walked down the steps of the temple and past the crowds of flabbergasted apostles. A few reached out to touch him, but they were met with gusts of wind that forcefully bounced their hands away from the retired god. Once he had walked down a back alleyway and past an ever-weary sinner, Elhier vanished with a gust of air after calling off judgement day and organized religion.