The Veil

The Mysterious and Curiosity - The Veil Core Alignment: Creative Neutral Domains: Death, Grave, Moon, Mystery, Fate, Arcana   While gods like the Watcher fade to darkness, and gods like the Mind of Source seem aliens and strange, none seem as non-Kalian as the Veil. This god formed around a misshapen piece of foggy Onyx, and followed around the Mother for many years, chasing her like a Little Brother chases their siblings. When the Mother disappeared into the Everwilds, seeking the Fae and their eternal beauty and wilderness, they left the Trailing Veil behind in Kalio. The Veil searched for their missing sibling like a lost puppy for months at a time, before they found themselves deep in the wandering forests of Kast. The Veil lost themselves among the trees endlessly, learning to speak their language, and understanding how they moved and traveled, before speaking to the oldest of their kin, a Treant named Sableroot, the same that now forms the capital of the Region. He told the Veil of something hidden deep within the forests, a thin crack between us and a pale imitation of Kalio. No paths lasted to this crack, and maps only failed explorers, but if one was truly lost, they could find their way to the Shadow. This plane proved difficult to find, even for the Veil, who spent months further exploring and trying to get lost enough to find this thin split in the world’s fabric. The Shadow though, when found, proved to be a truly pale and hollow reflection of Kalio. It lacked color and vibrant magic. It seemed like the arcane was non-existent, and the creatures that existed here seemed alien and near mechanical. It was here that the Veil found the residents of the Shadow were immune to the Cycles of Terminus, and many of those who died, simply lived on dead, still possessing their mind and spirit, but that faint connection to their soul was often missing entirely, or stored in objects of import to the living dead, shackled from escaping the plane. When the Veil returned from the shadow with the occult rituals of Necromancy, there was a pause, as they had returned to Kalio much later, in the middle of the Void war. The Shadow’s time was utterly Asynchronous to Kalios, but the knowledge the Veil brought, allowed for soldiers to return to the front, even if dead,, and the first of the Undead hoped to prove that even losing your way to Terminus could lead to Kalio’s survival. When Kalio fell, the Veil proposed the Ritual of the Tears, and many of the gods argued with their fellow god, abhorred at the ritual based on Necromantic practices, even if it was meant to protect their mother’s body from disappearing into the void, but it was the Sage who saw the necessity, and they were the first to volunteer their heart to save Ephox from the darkness, and the others followed suit one by one. As the Veil detailed out the ritual to each god, they returned to Kast to give away their own heart. Many people know little of what happened from there, but a common belief is that they gave their hearts to Kalio, let their souls travel on to Terminus… but they bound their body and Spirit to the world, and became the first Lich of Kalio, before disappearing back into the Shadow. Even fewer feverishly believe that the Veil’s original body and spirit may yet still live, deep in the Shadow, but if this is true, the Veil has hidden themselves well. Modern Mantle Holders have always found an air of mystery and taboo surrounding themselves, as their progenitor broke many of the unwritten rules of the world, and did that what felt so wrong to so many. They are often viewed with suspicion and concern from those who are superstitious, and treated with utmost reverence by occultists and those whose life continues through the power of necromancy, that pervert the power and laws of Terminus.     Core Tenants of the Faith surrounding the Veil: Sometimes strength comes from sources that are strange, alien, foreign. It is your decision on what you do with it, but there will always be judgement from those who witness you. Sometimes knowledge will never come. Understanding a repeatable result may simply be beyond your ability to process, but it does not invalidate the power of the result. Doing what is right is not the same as what is acceptable. Darkness and evil can be acceptable if the masses agree. Sometimes, you simply must do what is right.