Travels Through Telara

By Padraic

The Story So
Far: href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week1">Part
1 | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week2">Part
2 | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week3">Part
3 | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week4">Part
4 | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week5">Part
5 | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week6">Part
6 | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week7">Part
7 | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week8">Part
8 | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week9">Part
9 | href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/features/travels/week10">Part
10

Greetings, dear reader. Today you find myself and Bran going through
something of a rough patch. I am still angry at him for his actions
last week, actions that had us both hiding up a tree for some hours
while the husband of a barmaid Bran had taken a fancy to hunted us like
game.

While stuck up that tree, I discussed the Gods of the Blood Storm, so
it only makes sense that this week I would talk a bit about their
opposite number, the Vigil. The Vigil is a sort of conglomerate made up
of the five Gods of Telara. After the Blood Storm Wars they created the
Ward to help protect the world from these attacking Dragon Gods. But
since then they have been worryingly silent. The Guardians think they
will one day return to save us all, while the Defiant think they have
abandoned us and left us to fight by our-selves. I do not know the
truth of this. Nobody does.

The first of the gods is Thedeor, the god of war. Thedeor
cuts an imposing figure, clad in intricate plate armor, a massive
two-handed sword gripped in his hands. He is Justice incarnate. He
defends those too small and weak to defend themselves, (Like Bran, for
instance.) He looks favorably on bravery, self-sacrifice, and fighting
for the greater good of all mankind. He is also an unforgiving God. He
abhors cowardice in all its forms. Even a moments weakness will earn
you his ire. Thedeor is also known as the God of Swords, for reasons
that should be rather obvious.

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style="border: 0px solid ; width: 275px; height: 392px;"
alt="Thedeor"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/204984">

style="font-style: italic;">Thedeor

Next up is Bahralt. Bahralt is known as the builder, the god of
craftsmen, ingenuity, and civilization. He is the spirit of modern man,
the spirit of the city, if you will. He wants his followers to study,
to learn everything, from trades, to crafts, to well, style="font-style: italic;">anything really.
Gaining new knowledge is like saying prayers to him. The more you
learn, the more you know, and the more favorably he will look upon you.
He wants everyone to improve their minds, and then to share that with
our neighbors, to spread the wonder that is learning. Of all the Gods,
it is Bahralt who I look upon most favorably. I understand what he
stands for.

Thontic is something of an enigma. Many people look on him as their
patron saint, but these people range across a wide variety of
lifestyles. From thieves, to sailors, to traders, to travelers to
spies. Thontic is known as the God of the Sea, the God of Mystery. I
suppose one can see the link between the two. Nothing is more
mysterious than what lurks beneath the dark depths of the ocean.
People pray to Thontic when they are setting out on long journeys,
hoping the God will watch over and protect them. But scholars also
worship him, those who study the mysteries of magic.

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style="border: 0px solid ; width: 550px; height: 199px;"
alt="Thontic"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/204982">

style="font-style: italic;">Thontic

Strangely, so do those who enforce our laws. They are known to ask him
for guidance in uncovering crimes. Actually, perhaps it is not so
strange. A mystery is a mystery, yes? Whether it is uncovering the
secrets of magic, or trying to find out who murdered the man lying in
the street.

In the city of Sanctum, most commerce
takes place in Thontic Square, where every exchange, every barter,
every haggled price, is said to bring him great pleasure.

Tavril
is the goddess of nature. She is the earth mother, the glint of
sunshine on a lake one summers afternoon, the rustle of crisp autumn
leaves blown about in a blustery grey sky, the frigid kiss of
cheek-numbing wind in the depths of winter. She is the protector of the
wilds of Telara. She is the fickleness of nature. Those who are at one
with nature will be treated favorably. But those who destroy, those who
cut back and try to tame the wilds of the worlds, will be looked upon
as her enemy.

Before the Vigil formed , she was the patron of
the High Elves. She shared a special bond with them. She was their
protector, and they were hers.

border="0">

style="border: 0px solid ; width: 479px; height: 421px;"
alt="Tavril" src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/204983">

style="font-style: italic;">Tavril

I get the feeling that other gods and their worshipers underestimate
Tavril, that they see it as their duty to protect her (and, by
extension, Telara itself). But I see this as slightly conceited. After
mankind has gone. After the Elves have gone. After the dwarves have all
died out, and the gods have no one left to worship them, who will
remain? Tavril. And she will be stronger than ever because in the end,
nature will reclaim all. Cities will crumble beneath her patient touch.
Objects made by dwarf hands will rot and become absorbed into her
being.

Personally, I think Tavril is the most powerful of all the gods.

Lastly we have Mariel-Taun. She is the goddess of love and beauty, the
patron of lovers, healers, and the arts. She is the heart of the Vigil.
She wants nothing more than for her followers to make things, to tap
into their creative sides. She encourages her followers to dream, to
reach out and attempt anything they want to. She wants her followers to
show compassion, to protect and improve Telara. She is the goddess of
community and compassion.

War is anathema to Mariel-Taun. War is the destruction of everything
she holds dear. Even in these dark times she wishes us all to pause, to
find beauty in the world around us. And although this may seem
difficult, when we do find something worthy of Mariel-Taun, it is all
the more powerful for being so hard-won. The heart of the Vigil wants
us to find love wherever we can find it, and to share it joyfully.

I sigh. Who am I to condemn Bran for following his heart. He is young,
romantic. Not for him the heavy cynicism of middle age. By his actions
yesterday, Bran opened his heart to Mariel-Taun. By judging him,
condemning him, I opened my heart to the Blood Storm.

It is I who was in the wrong, not Bran.

Bugger. That means I have to apologize. Never been much good at that.

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Last Updated: Mar 29, 2016

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