Inalia: I thought you said your dad was a clerk?
Keta: He is, but your mother seemed busy, so I did not want to bother her with an overly long explanation.
Inalia: So you just... Lied?
Keta: Yes?
Inalia: But...
Keta: You are silly, Inalia. What’s the harm? I just saved her time.
Inalia: Well, I guess that’s true…
Keta: Indeed, it is. So what do you do? Other than help in the tavern.
Inalia: Other than the tavern? Well, my dad is a doctor, so that’s really my vocation. He trains me on days when my mom isn’t super busy, and it’s a lot of fun! I think.
Keta: So you want to be a doctor?
Inalia: Yeah! I mean, it’s definitely better than running some tavern (sorry mom), and I’m hoping that one day I can be a travelling medic like he was. So, I guess, that's really what I want to do. The doctor part is kinda just a means to an end.
Keta: I have never personally held a great desire to travel, but we certainly do not all choose our lots in life.
Inalia: Now that you mention it, why are you all out here? I heard something about the governor expelling you from the city, but I didn’t really get much detail. Something about corruption?
Keta: Yes, that governor certainly was very corrupt.
Inalia: Oh, no, I meant I heard, like-
Keta: I know what you heard. We all know what they say about us. Well, I can tell you it’s entirely untrue.
Inalia: Yeah, I mean, duh, who would believe some stupid rumors like that? Haha.
Keta: Right, who would believe such things? If those foolish Gelenians would speak to us a single time they would realize we want the same things as them.
Inalia: The same things?
Keta: Food. A roof. Family. And water. Why would we poison the city wells every few months?
Inalia: Wait, that’s what they say you did? That’s ridiculous, right?
Keta: Yes! If we poison the wells, what will we drink?
Inalia: Yeah, that’s insane! Poison the wells, sheesh. Just wait until I start poisoning my dad’s medicine. Let’s hope I don’t catch a cold any time soon!
Keta: giggle. Didn’t that happen in the book of Scorpion?
Inalia: Mayyyybe.
Keta: You are so lame. I’m not even Gelenian, why did you expect me to get that joke?
Inalia: Oh, wait. Ohhhhhhh, you don’t read the Book?
Keta: Well obviously I read it. But no, most Renad do not.
Inalia: Then what are your scriptures?
Keta: They are a part of our scriptures, only a more minor one. The more important scripture comes from the great peninsula, far to the west. My grandfather could explain this better, but we believe the sorcerers did not ascend to godhood. Rather, the constellations are natural, and the birth/death of the sorcerers coincide with the creation of a new constellation.
Inalia: But doesn’t the Book describe them ascending?
Keta: Have you fully read it?
Inalia: No. I’ve only read the important bits.
Keta: But you have read one of these purported ascensions, yes?
Inalia: Hah, yeah, that’s definitely one of the important bits.
Keta: I see. Then please tell me where the Book says, “And then the sorcerer ascended to the heavens and became a god”?
Inalia: I mean, it doesn’t say that, but it’s kinda implied?
Keta: Inalia, our whole thing is that we think it is not implied. Every single one of those books ends with the death of the sorcerer in question-
Inalia: Except for the Tree and Ouroboros-
Keta: Except for the Tree and Ouroboros, the latter of which ascended under peculiar circumstances and was the literal sorcerer of eternity, while the former of which is a story recorded by the Pen a thousand years after it was told by the Traveller a thousand years after the Tree actually lived. The others all die, explicitly.
Inalia: I mean... guess that’s true.
Keta: Indeed. Things for you to think about, silly Inalia.
Inalia: What, why am I silly this time?!
Keta: All Gelenians are silly. They read words that do not exist and say we know nothing about the world.
Inalia: Okay, fine, but what about the Witch and Ouroboros?! Surely you can’t say those are just stars when one makes witches all the time and we know the Prophet Marek has lived for at least 150 years.
Keta: Oh no, not this topic.
Inalia: What’s wrong with this topic?
Keta: You will not like my opinions on the subject. Even many Renad do not like my opinion on this subject.
Inalia: I mean, you don’t have to say if you don’t wanna! I just actually thought this was, like, actually a really interesting conversation.
Keta: Hmmm. You find this interesting?
Inalia: Yeah.
Keta: You are not upset with me for saying these things?
Inalia: I mean not really. I think Kenik would probably fight you over this stuff, but I mean, my dad always says it’s okay for people to disagree with each other.
Keta: Huh. Well, I suppose I can tell you.
Uh oh. This conversation’s about to get intense, I can already feel it. If you’re following along with all this religious philosophy talk, you might want to head to the Primary Source Documents part of the Extras page and pull up the excerpt from The Divine Charge that I listed there. It isn’t necessary, but it might be helpful for cross-referencing the information I’ve given you up to this point.
Keta: So, for now, I am going to speak on three people: Ouroboros the sorcerer (who wrote the book of Ouroboros), Ouroboros the constellation/god (who established the firmament), and the Prophet Marek (who wrote the Divine Charge and hunts witches). Right?
Inalia: Yeah, Ouroboros the sorcerer ascended to Ouroboros the god. Then he established the firmament to prevent any future ascensions and separate the heavens from the earth such that the two realms would no longer form corruption by mingling. When the daughter (who is also the Witch the sorcerer) convinced the boy to cut open the Wound, Ouroboros the god gave Prophet Marek the boon of eternity so he could devote his endless life to killing all witches so that the Wound would be given time to heal and the firmament could be repaired.
Keta: Right. Well, on the contrary, some of us Renad believe the Prophet Marek to be Ouroboros the sorcerer himself. After all, he never died in the book of Ouroboros, and we already believe the sorcerers do not ascend. The Prophet Marek is eternal, Ouroboros the sorcerer was eternal, so it seems likely to me that they are the same person.
Inalia: But... why? Why would he lie about his identity like that? He says he’s the Prophet of Ouroboros.
Keta: I don’t know. Do you know why the nomads raid the northern part of this kingdom one year and trade the next? Do you know why the kings and queens of this land wage war against each other?
Inalia: Well, yeah! There’s always a reason.
Keta: But do you think you know the full reason? Do you think they are telling you everything?
Inalia: Well, probably not, it’s not like I’m in the court itself.
Keta: Exactly. Why would you think the Prophet is not hiding anything, then?
Inalia: I just... I don’t want the Prophet to be a liar. He’s kinda like a second king. Or he’s kinda like... better than a king. He tells the kings what to do sometimes. If he’s a liar then why do we call ourselves Gelenian?
Keta: Perhaps you could start calling yourself Renad?
Inalia: Oh, whatever. eye roll.
Keta: You opened that gate to me, how could I resist entering?
Inalia: Pft, yeah, okay, you're soo smart for referencing the book of the King. So, sure, let’s say the Prophet Marek is Ouroboros the sorcerer and the constellation just kinda popped up sometime after he became a sorcerer. What about the witches?
Keta: How do you know their magic comes from the Witch?
Inalia: Uh, what?
Keta: Their magic comes from the stars, right? Why does it have to be specifically from the Witch?
Inalia: Oh, well because the book of the Witch describes the Witch (sorcerer) doing the exact same stuff as the witches that the Prophet currently hunts.
Keta: Have you ever read the book of the Witch?
Inalia: Of course not, only the witch hunters are allowed to. I’ve read The Divine Charge’s summary of it, though.
Keta: So how do you know these things for certain?
Inalia: Oh come on, really? Sure, maybe the Prophet could be hiding something from us, but would every single witch hunter be in on it? Really?
Keta: Or perhaps the Witch was not merely a sorcerer, but a “witch” as well. Perhaps she both drew upon the power of sorcery and the magic that people now call “the magic of the Witch.”
Inalia: But the Wound didn’t exist yet! Everyone knows “witches” didn’t exist before the Wound!
Keta: Everyone says that, but do you recall the exact wording from The Divine Charge?
Inalia: Not really.
Keta: “There was also the daughter, born signless, and the first witch to ever live.” This is, of course, the author of the book of the Witch and the woman who would later ascend (according to you Gelenians) after the boy cut open the Wound and pulled out the fruit of life.
Inalia: Uh, yeah. So?
Keta: Well, notice how she’s not just born signless, or born signless and yet awakened as the sorcerer of the Witch. She’s both signless and the first witch to ever live.
Inalia: I’m not following.
Keta: How do I word this..? The common tongue can be so awkward when it comes to meaningful conversation. Ah, I’ve got it. To be a sorcerer, one must first be born signless and then awaken, yes?
Inalia: Right. The firmament was supposed to prevent the awakening part, but the Witch got around it somehow.
Keta: Indeed. To be a witch, one must draw upon the power of the stars, yes?
Inalia: Well, yeah. The Witch gives people her boons the same way Ouroboros gave Marek a boon.
Keta: So you say. This would mean that the daughter, born signless, would at some point awaken and become a witch?
Inalia: Well, become the Witch, but yeah.
Keta: And yet, look closely at the wording. The Divine Charge does not say, “the daughter, born signless, awoke and became the first witch.” It says, “There was also the daughter, born signless, and the first witch to ever live.” Even the very words of the Prophet imply that the daughter being a “witch” is in addition to the daughter being signless/a sorcerer.
Inalia: That-! Woah. That’s true. I never thought of that.
Keta: And you could say something like, “Well, being a sorcerer of the Witch is synonymous with being a “witch,” and therefore the Prophet is just pointing out that she is a sorcerer of the Witch.” And you might be right. However, that is not my point. The books of the Elder Constellations, that being all of the books directly transcribed by the Pen, from before the firmament was established, are all very neatly written and tell a consistent tale. However! The book of Ouroboros, The Divine Charge, and this elusive book of the Witch just don’t add up. It’s more than what I just mentioned. What about the constellation of the Smith? Supposedly the father was born under the constellation of the Smith. It doesn’t exist anymore, but we know it definitely used to. We have tons of records observing it and referencing it, beyond just religious texts. Does that mean gods can die? Was he killed?
Keta: And the questions just go on. I could raise a million little questions. Do you see what I mean?
Inalia: Yeah. That’s... I’m gonna have to think about that.
Keta: giggle. “I’m gonna have to think about that.”
Inalia: Heyyyyyy! Sheesh. Sorry for taking you seriously.
Keta: giggle giggle.
Inalia: Whatever. Whatever!
