Church of Ezra

The Church's origin lies in ancient visions experienced by a prophet named Alyssa, who claimed Ezra appeared to her wreathed in silver mist, offering a covenant of protection against the darkness of the world. Over generations, her teachings spread, though never in unity. The Church fractured into multiple sects, each interpreting Ezra’s will differently—some as a divine protector of mortals, others as a stern warden of boundaries and order.

Each sect maintains its own Book of Ezra, with subtle but significant doctrinal variations. These branches sometimes cooperate in shared goals, but just as often act in isolation or mutual distrust.

The Church has footholds in many domains—Mordent, Dementlieu, Darkon, Borca, and beyond—but it always feels somewhat disconnected, never fully part of any land it inhabits. To followers, this is a sign of their goddess's otherworldly nature. To skeptics, it makes the Church suspect: a cult too friendly with the Mists, too quiet in the face of evil.

In some lands, the Church is respected as protectors; in others, it is mistrusted, especially when its teachings clash with local customs or when refugees vanish into Ezra’s bastions, never to be seen again.

At its heart, the Church teaches that the Mists are both trial and refuge. The world is beset by monstrous evils—tyrants, curses, undead horrors—and Ezra stands between humanity and annihilation. Her followers are taught to:

• Guard the innocent, especially from supernatural threats.
• Endure suffering with resolve, for life in the Mists is a crucible of the soul.
• Never stray into heresy or chaos, which can draw the attention of darker powers.
• Place faith in Ezra, even when she seems silent, for her will is mysterious but purposeful.

Though the Church reveres the Mists, they are not seen as purely benevolent; rather, the Mists are Ezra’s veil, within which evil is contained and through which the worthy might find sanctuary—or test.

Clerics of Ezra wear robes of gray, silver, or white, with symbols such as the rising mist, the tower on a cliff, or the shield of fog. Services are solemn and introspective, often marked by long silences, ritual prayers for protection, and the reading of Ezra’s prophecies. Many temples include high stone walls or overlook fog-choked valleys—symbols of Ezra’s vigilance and the ever-present Mists.

Her clergy are known for traveling dangerous roads, offering aid to the fearful, and founding refuges known as bastions, where people may seek shelter from supernatural threats. These are often fortified enclaves of quiet faith in otherwise haunted lands.

Ultimately, the Church of Ezra is a faith of quiet endurance and divine mystery. It does not promise salvation from the Mists—but it offers guidance through them. Her followers do not expect warmth or miracles, only vigilance, duty, and the faint hope that, in the end, Ezra will guide them to a place of safety beyond the reach of horror.

In a world where dread is ever-present and gods are often silent, Ezra is the whisper in the fog that says: Keep going. There is still a path.