Fayana - Deity of Nature

[Mellie]

Fayana

Some call her the mother of all life, some view her as the supreme deity. Whatever anyone chooses to see her as, none can deny that without Fayana, Setsuwa would not be what it is this very day.

Table of Content
1. History
- A Meeting of the Minds
- A Knife to the Back
- Why, Rona'cque, why?
- The Wicked Shall Know No Peace
2. Personality
3. The Druids' Conclave
- The Seven Matrons
- Druids of Fayana
- Rangers of the Glaive

History

A Meeting of the Minds
We all know the creation story, I'm sure, so there is no need to go into that. This chronicles the single most important incident in Fayana's life. Fayana had many travels and saw many things, but perhaps the thing that hit her psyche with the most powerful of effects was her with a Kinaroe with the name of Rona'cque.

One of Fayana's first acts was to establish the conclave, a safe place in a hidden location where her most devout followers may stay if they are found worthy by the matrons.

After facing the humiliation of defeat by the goddess Diassei, Fayana disappeared for a time. During this period, spent traveling, not on the surfact, but in fact through the soils of Setsuwa, she came across an interesting personage. It was a sorceress, a Kinaroe named Rona'cque, with no known last name. The goddess, rather than approach this Kinaroe, instead decided to watch and observe her actions. The Kinorae Rona'cque spent almost all her days in intense study and meditation, always practicing, always researching, always doing all she could to increase her magical prowess. Fayana watched with fascination this woman, observing as she grew over two decades from an average spellcaster, to a sorceress of spectacular proportions. Fayana never got bored in these two decades she spent around the small cottage, either as a part of the soil, or occasionally taking the form of a small bean plant.

Eventually, she decided this woman had earned enough of her respect and admiration for them to meet face to face, and one day, when Rona'cque was outside, tending to her garden -for she grew her own food- Fayana appeared to her. Rona'cque was caught off guard, and immediately went to work laying upon herself several defensive spells, as she watched what could be a potential enemy. The soil swam up, moving in a clockwise motion as it slowly began to take human shape. In a matter of minutes, before Rona'cque stood a being of utter perfection, clad in silky green robes and with hair so smooth it flowed even in the lightest of breezes. Rona'cque stared in awe at this being, almost entranced by the spectacular green eyes, so much like the dewey leaves of the spring. It was extremely rare for Fayana to take any form but her true one, and this human shape had not been seen by any person throughout the Continents.

When she gathered enough of her wits about herself, she got to her feet and greeted her visitor, now sure that this was no enemy. Had it been an enemy, surely an attack would have been made by now. She invited the glorious woman into her house, and they sat and spoke of many, many things. They discussed the complexities of life, and Rona'cque was especially thrilled to discover that there was another individual who knew just as much about magic and spell construction as did she. Her liking for the strange woman grew intensely after this, and she invited the woman to stay.

The woman agreed, and they both delved into the makings and intricacies of magic. This event would serve as the first time a goddess would befriend a mortal for purely innocent reasons, and it had it's consequences. There is nothing that does not come without consequences... one of which came to pass when Rona'cque came to understand the true identity of Fayana.

A Knife to the Back
In the time that Rona'cque spent with Fayana, her ageing process was slowed, in fact, almost stopped entirely. Of all the goddesses, Fayana was the only one who unconsciously released vitality and youth from her person every where she went, so much so that it seeped into those who would be around her, effectively making them immortal or extremely long lived as long as she stayed with them. Rona'cque observed this, and began her own little investigations into the past of her new found 'friend'.

Rona'cque's familiar, a dove, was the one who went out seeking information on the woman. It was not easy information to come by, as the dove had to travel far to even begin to pick up the smallest hint of information on the possible origins of the woman. The dove went to the Realm of Beginnings, where it came into contact with a sentient being unlike that it had ever seen or heard of. The intelligent bird, capable of complicated thought as well as of speech, began to describe Fayana to the being, and though the familiar was at first skeptical, it described to the bird where it needed to go to find more information.

All the while this was happening, Rona'cque and Fayana remained behind, studying deeper into the sections of magic Rona'cque was delving into. Fayana already knew all the answers to the questions Rona'cque pondered, but she enjoyed the time they spent together. It took a full year for the bird to return, and while Fayana did notice the absence of the bird, she decided not to comment on it, and let it be. As far as she was concerned, the issues of her friend should be her friends issues alone, and she should be allowed her privacy. The goddess had grossly underestimated the diabolical and selfish nature of a majority of the lesser races, as she was about to learn in quite the harsh manner.

The bird returned to Rona'cque, and explained to her the possibility that Fayana was in fact a deity, or at the very least a demi-god, but her exact identity still remained to be uncovered. Rona'cque considered Fayana to be a friend... her only friend in fact, other than Crystal. However, she had been married to the lore and art of magic long before Fayana came to her life, and despite her desire to be faithful and loyal to her friend, her lust for power overcame her own positive emotions, and Rona'cque began plans to harvest the greatest power Setsuwa has ever known. The power of a deity.

Fayana, while in no way a foolish or naive woman, had let her guard down in the two decades she had spent with the woman. Rarely had a divine being laid their complete trust in a mortal entity, but not even the gods are immune to emotion. Fayana had made her first true friend, and her lack of experience when it came to the difficulties of emotion left her as vulnerable as a child just learning her ways. The following event would forever change the way the goddess looked at her creations.

Why, Rona'cque, why?
Rona'cque created a doppleganger of herself, which went out to the farthest reaches of the nations. Rona'cque may not have had any friends, but she did have quite the large number of acquaintances, a lot of which had assisted her in her journey up the ladder of magic. She did not explain to these men and women that the one staying with her was a possible deity, but instead simply told them she was of a great power and assistance would be needed.

Thirteen of them, Rona'cque included, created a small faction dedicated to the downfall of Fayana. They had no name, and because they had come together for this one goal, they had decided it was in their best interest to leave no trace of their objective behind, not even so much as a name. Many of the wizards there, despite their knowing each other, almost all had public feuds, and it would be viewed as abnormal if they were to suddenly begin meeting in secret locations to have discreet conversations with each other.

Their plan required the construction of a new type of spell altogether. One that broke all the previously set boundaries when it came to the ways magic should work, and though an individual could never hope to achieve something like this, the combined magic of the thirteen spellcasters was amazing and intense, allowing them to weave a new magic into the system altogether. This magic was supposedly able to pull the magic energy from the body of a being, and if used on a deity would allow them harvest the immortal power contained within her.

These magicians, having amassed so much power in and of themselves that they could very well have been regarded as magical creatures themselves, were able to implement the spell. The thirteen of them were invited by Rona'cque for a dinner, Fayana thinking it was just Rona'cque inviting her colleagues over for a dinner to discuss the certain aspects that Rona'cque had been having trouble with. From this point, things went terribly wrong for the goddess, as the thirteen of them reacted immediately, unleashing the full power of their prepared spell on an unsuspecting Fayana.

The spell pinned the goddess to her seat, and while it would have held down a dragon for days on end, Fayana was able to burst out of it in less than ten seconds flat. Lunging forward as one might do to pull away from a lash of ropes holding her back, she tore through the bounds of the spell, and it became instantly clear to her what was happening here. Rona'cque, having done nothing to stop the attack, even looking on with eagerness in her eyes, panicked. It seemed they had all grossly underestimated the power contained within this woman, and reaching out, she plucked the skull from the shoulders of one of the wizards.

The others had all prepared spells in case a situation like this would come to be, most of which were spells that could swiftly carry them off to a safe location, but with a wave of her hand, Fayana compressed the magical energies in the air and shut down all functional magical forms of travel for several miles wide. The wizards pulled out all in their arsenals, from the summoning of violent beasts to the manipulation of attempting to make the very weather fight against the very furious goddess. It was all a waste of effort, and merely a small foot stone in the path as far as she was concerned... a minor obstacle that could be bypassed without too much trouble.

The skies darkened and the ground twisted. Creatures from several realms and the unexplored parts of the planet leaped out in attempts to attack and destroy Fayana, but these creatures easily fell before the might of Nature itself. When the ground opened in an effort to take her into it's bowels, she simply hovered, and when lightning and fire came down from the sky to destroy her body, they would alter their direction like they had a mind of their own, and end up doing more damage to the area at large than to the initial target.

The battle was over in a matter of minutes, the self proclaimed lords of magic defeated and laying pathetically at the feet of Fayana, whose clothes were not even dirty. From the craggy and damaged soil, green began to display itself, as leaves and new plantlife flourished immediately. The plants, thorns in particular, wrapped around the mauled bodies of the wizards, digging into their flesh and lifting the still near-dead individuals and propping them up on powerful vines. Rona'cque watched in awe at the utter might of this being who was able to swat away the preparations that had taken them a full year to conclude. For she was the only one of the group Fayana had not incapacitated. She wanted Rona'cque to watch before she joined her accomplices in the punishment set up for them.

The Wicked Shall Know No Peace
The Thirteen of them were dragged across the globe, and tossed into Submiere. Underneath the surface of the water, a huge mountain-like structure arose, moving higher than any constructs that had ever been built by mortal hands. It is the largest mountain on the entire planet - but most have never seen it as it is at the very bottom of the ocean, but it is not the height of this place that makes it so... unique. No, what makes it unique is what is at the very tip of the formation.

Right at the tip, tied down by vines powered with the divine strength of Fayana herself, are the thirteen spellcasters, including one who she'd had to reattach his head and give him life. Having been granted immortality by Fayana, they have been there for so long that not only have they completely lost their minds, they have also been utterly lost to time. Their names have even been removed from the history books, and almost none remember them today, but their surviving descendants, for those that had any.

The water surrounding them is at an intensely high temperature, so that it burns the skin right off the flesh of the magicians, leaving them as naught but muscle and bone. However, due to the life giving qualities of the vines, their flesh and organs are revitalized before any permanent or life threatening damage can be done. They have been there for so long they have completely lost track of time, their consciousness having long since lost to the eternal pain they are doomed to suffer, for making such a foolish attempt at bringing down one who could be said to be the venerable creator.

At the bottom of the mountain is Rona'cque, but her punishment is a different one. Her punishment is far worse, for not only was she the one who pulled together all the traitors, she was the first person Fayana had allowed herself to love. She had loved Rona'cque, like a sister, and she had been betrayed. For this, Rona'cque is pinned to the bottom by a long spear. This spear has been driven through her breast and imbedded into the rock, and it pumps a blood burning acid through her system every second of every day. She may scream, and scream, but all that would happen is more water filling her lungs. She wishes the water would drown her so her blood may stop boiling, but it is as if the water refuses to kill her. She is doomed to this terrible fate.

This incident has forever scarred the way Fayana not only looks at Kinaroe, but at all mortal individuals in general. Not only did she never allow a member of the lesser races to ever get close to her, she watched with intense scrutiny for a while. She is ready to rain down the divine wrath of nature on even her followers if she is feeling threatened.

She is especially dismayed, because this was not how she intended her world to be. When she and Moann created Setsuwa, they had not planned for things to happen this way. They wanted a beautiful world where their races could prosper in peace and tranquillity, why did it all turn out like this?

Disappearing into the heavenly planes and shutting herself in a private realm, Fayana sits in her own misery, sometimes weeping over the fate of her friend Rona'cque, while contemplating how she could somehow change the ways of the beings of Setsuwa, without having to destroy them all. From the incident with Diassei to this, she was gradually beginning to lose hope.

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Personality

Fayana is a very deep and thoughtful individual. She does not like to move into a certain action without first thinking through all the possible advantages and disadvantages of said action. She sees things on a different spectrum than would most others, because she knows and remembers -unlike most people- that nothing on this world is absolute, and every action has a reaction. This has ensured overtime that she has typically made the right decisions - at least as far as the people of Setsuwa know.

Having never ventured into emotional exploits before, she was particularly confused by the emotions she had felt for Rona'cque, which was led her to make mistakes. Assuming she had been in a clear state of mind, she would never have even been betrayed, for she would have seen the action long before it had come into being. Maybe if that had happened she would have been able to handle how crushed her heart felt by the incident. Assuming she had seen the betrayal before it came for her, she would very likely have not been as damaged or felt as foolish as when she had sat down at s table with thirteen people intent on her own downfall.

Her lack of trust for any individual now is so great that she trusts not even the matrons as she used to. Tempted as she was to pull away the powers she had granted to them, she decided to leave it be, but with an ever watchful eye in their presence. Molded from earth and sand, she created a spy for herself, one she could trust utterly as it developed no consciousness of it's own. This spy would keep an eye on the leaders of her own followers and inform her of any possible betrayal.

Fayana prefers now to keep no contact with anyone at all, not even her fellow goddesses. Being betrayed by a member of the lesser races would have caused her to put faith only in her sisters, but that was not so. The actions of Diassei had shown her that not even the divine were beyond rampant emotions. Ayniea falling in love with a human man should have taught Fayana that they were not above such things, but she had simply felt she had a stronger will. Now she sees she did not.

She has left the world to it's own devices until she may come up with a solution to the problem of uncontrollable emotion and greed.

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The Druid's Conclave

The Druid's Conclave is a safe haven for those who enjoy the subtle beauties of nature, and would like to escape the noisy and violent ways of city life. The conclave is located in Niseca, but not within plain view. If one were to move deep into the forests of the nation, there is the small likelihood that they will come across the Conclave, but it is not a high possibility.

The people of Niseca know of the conclave, as do many others from different nations around the world. However, it's location has never been discerned by any particular person. It is said that the conclave is not even in just one location, but that it is possible to find it in almost every single forest within the nation of Niseca. Yet, though it is in more than one place at once, it is in fact the same conclave, and not a collection of different settlements like some believe.

While no one can pinpoint where it is exactly, a truly devout follower of Fayana who truly wishes to delve into the beauties of the world and ignore the annoyances that come from living in chaotic commercialized environments may just be lucky to stumble across the majestic Conclave, and be allowed to join it's ranks.

The conclave is a massive place, almost as big as a city in it's own right, occupied not just by animals, but also by those races who are more inclined to be follower's of Fayana, such as Abatwa. While large, it has no unseemly concrete buildings or steel bars, as every accommodation is made from wood and strengthened with magic so they are surprisingly firm and powerful even in times of heavy storms. The conclave is ruled over by the seven matrons of the natural world.

The Seven Matrons
The Seven Matrons are the leaders of the Druid's Conclave, but their power only stretches this far. There are others who choose to worship Fayana that are not citizens of the conclave, but these are left to do their own bidding. Yes, while there are churches to Fayana, none of these churches have priests with any kind of noticeable power stemming from Fayana herself, but are simply those who have not discovered the conclave as of yet, for Fayana's true faith lies with them.

The Seven Matrons are all Terrin, and none of their faces have ever been seen. They are said to all be beautiful, but this is not taken into account by worshippers of Fayana, as they see the inner beauty and not the outer (supposedly).

Druids of Fayana
The Druids of Fayana could be seen as the priests of the religion. While a majority of them stay in the Conclave, some choose to wander the nations, preaching the glories and wonders of Fayana wherever they go, attempting to convert others to their religion. Surprisingly enough, they succeed more often than not.

The Druids of Fayana must not value material possessions. The only things they should have with them on their evangelical journeys are those things which are absolutely necessary for a person's survival, such as food, water, and clothing. Anything else is considered a luxury. Once a person is blessed by the matrons, they no longer need weapons, for if they are attacked, nature itself will rise to protect them.

Druids are able to manipulate nature to a certain extent, and those druids who have had many years to master their abilities have developed uncanny skills that some consider to be in the supernatural realm. Perhaps the best known druid, a man named Caleb, has displayed incredible abilities when it comes to manipulating the environment about him. Gardens have flourished and forests have brightened simply from his presence. Some believe he can even sway the inhibitions of the weather, but that remains to be seen.

Rangers of the Glaive
Not even the Conclave is beyond badly behaved citizens, and that is where the Rangers come into play. The Rangers of the Glaive serve as the law enforcement sect of the Conclave, but that is not their only duty, for a majority of the Rangers are not even present at the conclave, because there are many troubles that need to be attended to in the world. The Matrons put the plight of nature and life ahead of everything else, and they understand that there are more than a few problems on Setsuwa that need attending to.

Probably the primary problem that the Rangers combat is the threat that demons pose. Of almost all the races on Setsuwa, the Matrons view demons as being one of the major threats that need to be combated, like a disease spreading across the globe. Other than law enforcers, the Rangers could also be viewed more or less as demon hunters.

The Rangers are trained in a variety of skills, and while they do not practise magic, they are extremely versatile when it comes to physical combat, with the veterans being able to survive even the most intense of fights with powerful demons. The rangers are trained immediately when they sign up in the ways of using a glaive to fight, developing incredible skills with the weapon that are unheard of even by most. Able to adapt to the harshest wildernesses or frozen tundras, they are the Conclave's ultimate weapon when it comes to combat without the use of magic.