Chronicles of a Mage, Book One

Chapter 20: Religion

(This is the author writing again. I don't think this chapter is anywhere near as bad as the nothing burger I wrote earlier but at the same time it doesn't really add anything. It's just world building and exposition. Skipping this chapter won't affect your enjoyment or understanding of the plot so feel free to do so.)

We were in the church district, passing by the many shrines and temples of the various deities worshiped on Itaer. We've been past this place so many times that I've become somewhat familiar with the gods purely through osmosis.
First we went by the chapel of Qetnos, god of fertility, farms and hunts. Qetnos worshippers often preach about the importance of community and that people should provide for their family. As such, they are knowledgeable on hunting and farming (many Qetnites even know how to use bows and throwing spears) and their clerics often help the many farms outside Thele City. I'd wager that if it weren't for them, this country would've starved to death long ago, or at least it wouldn't have as much food as it does today. The chapel itself had a coat of green paint and had vines growing all over it. The amount of green was a little overpowering on my eyes.
Then we passed the chapel of Otuna, godess of beauty and art. The front of the building was a stunning array of colours and shapes, but to call it a chapel would be falsifying it a bit. It was more like a public art gallery where people can go and admire the music, paintings and poetry that the clerics work on. It is rumoured that the clergy there devote both day and night to creating art in all of it's forms.
It is for this reason why Otunites get along with their neighbours, the Eionites who worship Eionos, god of forges. Their chapel was, you guessed it, a forge where they make not only weapons and armour but anything else that metal can be shaped in to. They sell their high quality weapons and armour to anyone willing to pay for it (it is said that the silver knights, the king's private army obtain their titular silver armor from the Eionites.). Eionites ultimately believe in making their creations functional and practical whereas Otunites make their works of art appeal to soul. I might have to go there to get a new dagger, seeing as how I lost mine when the spider bit me. I suppose if I had to make a distinction between the two gods then Eionos is the god of creation and Otuna is the goddess of art.
On the other side of the church district, there was the temple to Ghiva, goddess of mercy, redemption and the sun. Her followers are infamously known by common folk for preaching on the street all day long, about how we should forgive those who have wronged and that we should never deny people the sun's warmth. On occasion I've seen her followers being chased off the street by beleaguered guards, even if what they preach is harmless advice. Also, a concerning number of their clergy is made up of former criminals. Practice what you preach I suppose.
Next to that was the temple of Ethna, goddess of freedom, dreams and the moon. She often chooses to interfere in mortal affairs by giving people dreams, unlike most gods who simply grant a fraction of power to their followers (this is what divine magic is, by the way). Her followers are as mysterious as she is so I'm not too sure what they do. All I can say for sure is that they are reclusive. And it is because of this mysteriousness that followers of Ethna are looked at with much skepticism almost anywhere they go, especially in times of war. Even if Ethna is considered one of the so called 'good gods', it's hard  to trust her followers when they keep to themselves and go skulking around at night all the time.
There was also the temple of Setoros, god of self perfection and duty. Once a mortal, Setoros spent everyday of his life (from birth, if the stories are to be believed. It's actually rather amusing to think of a newborn doing pull ups) training and living under strict rules until one day he ascended to godhood. It is because of this that his followers strive to be like Setoros and venerate him rather than worship him. Setoros is also as god that very rarely hands out his power to mortals and supposedly he barely even communicates to the other gods. Not that his followers need any handouts from him though, I've seen one of them break adamantine with their bare hands.

Lastly, there was the place I was most familiar with, the church of Yishna, godess of crusaders and righteousness, and the deity most worshipped in Thele. Yishna was also once a mortal who ascended by leading a great crusade against evil forces and saving the world (No one's too sure what this evil force was, though scholars say it was either demons or undead or both). Upon her ascension she became the queen of heaven (it is also a prevailing theory that she was actually reborn as an angel and slowly rose up the ranks of heaven to become an actual god) and now watches over mortals, sometimes even coming down herself if things get too out of hand. Everyone in this country has heard at least some of her preachings, like always do the right thing and strive to fight evil and whatever but what's baffling to me is that the archbishop of her very church is a complete bastard and a coward. He is also a powerful divine spellcaster. Oft I find myself questioning what that goddess was thinking when she gave Dedaim such power. Even among his fellow clergyman he is known for his abuse of power and cruel, sometimes depraved treatment of mages. I shudder to think what he may have done to mages in the past but I've heard whispers from Liselle that I'm lucky he hasn't thrown me off the choir balcony and that my luck will run out very soon.