Hand of Restoration

The Hand of Restoration is a religious order dedicated to the Deity of Healing, Neem. Well-loved and appreciated in nearly every corner of Empirica Sin, they focus on charity (particularly housing and food support for the poor) and healthcare. Their healing practices use both medical and magical methods.

The Hand is one of the oldest active orders, though its existence has been somewhat unsteady at times.

The Hand of Restoration was initially founded in 696 during the end stages of the Caelestise-Sura War. At the time, it could be seen less as a formal institution and more as a plea from the Mortal population of Gaean toward the Dei who represented well-being - a circle born of desperation as they were caught between two immensely powerful armies, having very little power of their own.

Neem, who was not deeply involved in the conflict, responded by accelerating the healing abilities of those who followed him, and so the circle began to grow.

With the rise of the Golden Cage, the war came to an end, and the focus moved from safety and well-being to rebuilding and advancement; as such, during the time of peace, the Hand became less prominent. Within a century, it seemed that the religious order might disappear entirely. Of course, ultimately, this did not occur.

In 716Y, an unnatural plague sweep Gaean. Its origin remains unknown, though contemporary research by both the Hand and later research by the Order of the Silver Tree has suggested the origin was a botched magical experiment. Regardless of its original source, the Rotting Plague spread through Gaean like a fire raging out of control, killing thousands.

This led to the reemergence of the Hand as a major force within Gaean life. It also led to the establishment of separate branches of healers: those focused on medical healing (the menders) and those focused on Od- or Void Energy-based healing techniques.

Over the course of the two millennia, attempts to stop or control the plague had varying results - at times, the illness would seem to rescind, only to reemerge in a new area - sometimes more contagious and destructive than ever.

In 2853, a breakthrough was made allowing treatment of the sickness through a mixture of enchanted elixirs and medicinal herbs. While this could not stop the spread and could not directly cure the plague, it did slow the damage and increase the chances of survivability as the host's body would often be able to fight it off with this support.

As a result, the rotting plague went from a catastrophic to a controllable. Perhaps this would have led to the Hand falling in prominence again... had the plague not then managed to make its way to Astrum.

By and large, the bodies of Aurali and Dei were far too strong to be affected by the rotting plague - an Aurali afflicted might feel under the weather but would soon shake it off... while Dei were largely immune. However, this did not protect the much weaker and more fragile Fey. Though the effects were not as pronounced as they were in the early days in Gaean, the plague did spread and cause substantial damage as the Hand struggled to adjust to treating the immortal fey.

This became the first time the Fey - immortals, mind you - were exposed to something that could kill them in a nonviolent way. Something that could not be stopped with their power, or the power of their allies. This, then, became the period known as The Terror.

As a side effect of this struggle, the Hand expanded as Fey began to join in the fight to protect their kin. Furthermore, Neem, who had been prevented from direct involvement by Nindinva's Spoken Edict Against Intervention, became more directly involved. It must be remembered that even the Dei are not omnipotent, and so the battle against the Rot continued for another decade before it was controlled in Astrum as it had been in Gaean.

The addition of Fey to the ranks of the Hand had another long-term effect: the organization became somewhat stabilized by the presence of immortals, whose interests tend to develop and shift more slowly.

In the many centuries since the Terror, The Hand has continued to evolve. In time, the Rot did spread to Incaendium, though it never took root in quite the same way it had in Gaean, or even in Astrum. Their work in Incaendium also expanded their membership to include some of the Sura, albeit almost entirely Debil.

In recent centuries, they have also expanded from healing exclusively to assistance with food and housing - all of which they deemed vital to well-being and recovery.

As of 30252Y, they have also formed an alliance with the Order of the Silver Tree focused on shared scholarship and potential magical techniques to be pursued in the advancement of healing and general well-being.

The Hand of Restoration remains the preeminent charitable force and provider of health support services in Empirica Sin.

In the aftermath of the Terror, it became clear that more organization and easier knowledge sharing and retention was necessary. The Hand began to develop the Five Paths that remain to this day:

People have been known to call these the hand's "fingers" for obvious reasons, but the Hand themselves never do.

The Hand of Restoration's leadership consists of the five heads of the various Paths. Each Path is responsible for choosing their own head in their own way. Major decisions are made through discussion and compromise - or voting - among the heads.

Typically, the leader of the Path of Organization is their primary public spokesperson, but this can vary depending on the circumstances and the situation.

Of course, the Hand's true leader is Neem himself, though he is limited in his direct interactions with them - mostly due to the continuing constraints of the Spoken Edict. Neem's presence is nonetheless felt in their day-to-day operations, and he has been known to communicate via dreams or visions to preserve the requirement of distance.