The Veiled One

Chapter Two: In which I almost punch a priest

The village is dark and deserted after sunset, everyone busy celebrating their holy meals. I make my way to the largest building in the village, the temple. No one knows the priest's true identity; it is forbidden knowledge for all but the priest's family. The story goes that the gods do not want the priest to abuse his powers for his own good. But really, I just think it's easier to pass judgment if no one knows who's doing the judging.

I pause before stepping up to the front door of the temple. I knock on the door, my fist falling decidedly on the wood like a nail into a coffin. That's essentially what I'm doing, anyway.

It takes a long moment before the door is opened by an apprentice. There are six of them, sent from various parts of the kingdom. The apprentices' jobs are to catalog the holy libraries and to make sure that the priest's identity is kept secret. Apprentices are primarily sons from wealthy families in the cities whose fathers have too few riches to split amongst too many children.

"State your name and purpose," the apprentice says to me, his voice just barely edging into that of a man's.

"I'm Sylas, and I must speak with the priest. I wish to volunteer to be the bridegroom."

"Sylas what?" the apprentice questions, apparently unfazed by my suicidal request.

"Just Sylas. That's all I go by."

I don't dare use my last name for fear of the ridicule it would bring on. Who I am and who I once was do not exactly coincide. And I would receive twice the hatred from twice the people.

"Sylas, you may enter. I will retrieve the priest and be back shortly."

The apprentice leads me into the temple itself, and I marvel at its high, peaked ceiling and the rows of cushions set out for kneeling for prayer. Endor finds himself here on his knees at least once a week, praying for our parents' souls, but I prefer to avoid this building if I can help it. There was once a time when I placed far too much faith in all the wrong people.

I seat myself on one of the cushions, staring at the circular mural on the wall opposite me, beneath which the priest's altar rests. The circle is divided into six pieces, each painted with a symbol to represent the Arcana, our Divine Six, the gods to whom everyone but me prays. There are dozens of minor deities, of course, and I'm sure Endor knows every single one of them, but these six even I know.

In the largest portion, the top section, there is painted a single bloodied teardrop. This is the symbol for Agramina, the High Goddess. She is the goddess of pain and sorrow. Why the entire kingdom chooses to worship a goddess who represents that which is best forgotten, I will never understand. Next to her is a loaf of bread, representative of Agor, the god of harvest and of merriment. Beside him is a child, the symbol for Ailen, wife of Agor and goddess of marriage, new life, children, and fertility. I have to say, of all the Arcana, Ailen is my favorite. She gives me license to try a great many naughty things.

Directly beneath Agramina is Fulmenarius, the god of storms and thunder. His sigil is a storm cloud bursting with lightning. He is Agramina's lover, the father of a great many of the minor gods. Legend has it that it is Fulmenarius who made the Veiled One's castle, and that she was intended to be his bride. It feels strange, the idea of taking a god's place in marriage. Beside Fulmenarius is a head which is half flesh, half skull. This is the sign for his brother Mor. Mor is the lord of both the dead and the living. He determines how long we are to live, and then he judges us in the underworld once we have died. I think I fear Mor the most, even though I don't really believe in any of them. Because, should they turn out to be real, blasphemy might land me in a pretty tight spot in the Land Down Under.

The last spot on the circle is a mere black blur. This is the symbol for Lisentia, the goddess of magic and mystery. No one knows anything about Lisentia, most likely because, if you believe the stories, she is the only goddess who was chosen from among the mortals. The legends say that Lisentia was a maiden gifted with magic, back in the old days when magic still ruled the earth. The gods were at war with the giants, and supposedly Lisentia used her powers to turn the giants into mountains, the Arcan Mountains that protect us from the borders of our rival kingdoms. Tragically, in the process of transforming the giants, Lisentia used too much magic and died. But Mor demanded she be spared, and the gods made her one of them instead.