An Indepth Look at the VIII
Jadaron: First Emperor of Rome, and leader of the Bellator's who arrived on Earth. He instituted reforms that are now considered the foundations of the Empire. During his reign the Empire conquered all the lands from Hibernia to India, and deeper into African than the Empire had ever been. Rather than die, he ascended to Godhood as a minor deity. His deeds are recorded in The Declarations of Jadaron
Meriole: The healer, who later became the wife of Jadaron. She brought forth medical advancements that were so revolutionary, within her lifetime the population of the Empire almost doubled, due to the extended lifespans. She founded the traiteurs and taught those who sought her medical knowledge. She bore Eln, the second Emperor, and died in her sleep. She is entombed in the Temple of Jadaron. Her deeds are recorded in The Healings.
Constel: Not much is known of Constel. He never wrote any Sacred Scroll himself, but is mentioned many times in the Scrolls, but even then he is shrouded in mystery. Some say he founded the Umbra, a spy organization that hasn't even been confirmed to exist, but the only account we have of him is that he was the last of the original Bellators to pass, and that he ventured into the wilderness never to be seen again. He is mentioned in The Wisdom of Moab, The Mercies of Vasha, The Meditations of Givos, The Burden of Eln, and The Revelation of the VIII. Some say he wrote the Sacred Scroll The Songs of Pluto. But it is has never been confirmed that these are indeed his writings.
Moab: The scientist, his genius is perhaps one of the most important aspects of Man's ascent to the stars. His innovations in engineering, astronomy, and indeed all the sciences led humanity to go from iron age primitives, to a spacefaring people in a mere century. He is entombed in the Temple of Vulcan on Terra Nova. His teachings are recorded in The Wisdom of Moab
Ruden: Probably the most unfortunate of the Sons of Mars, he sustained injuries from the Messosum that never healed. Despite these injuries he was able to take control of the military and personally train the first of the Centurions, his military genius is what enable the Empire to succeed in it's conquest of Terra. Later in life he took Nilrine as his bride, and she bore his son Vactom. Unfortunately he was the first of the Bellator to pass. He is Entombed in the Temple of Jadaron, and his teachings are recorded in the Sacred Scroll Ruden
Sfigoson: The calm, he was instrumental in curbing the agression of the centurions and teaching them to think with their heads, and hearts through meditations. But do not be mistaken for he was also a great warrior, who through strategy was able to aid in humanities conquest of Terra. He and Vasha soon started a courtship that lasted many years, but eventually they wed, and had a daughter who they named Miritola. He is entombed in the Temple of Minerva in Greece. His teachings are derived from Minerva's blessings
Nilrine: The Amazon, Nilrine was a true Bellator. Not the smartest or the most cunning, but she was dedicated none the less. She proved to Rome the value that women could play in the Military. She, and Ruden later married, and she bore Vactom. She is entombed in the Temple of Jadaron, and she is mentioned in The Mercies of Vasha, Ruden, and The Revelation of the VIII.
Vasha: The merciful, he called the anger in the Romans and taught us not to enact revenge on those who mistreat us, but to show mercy and forgive. She taught that culture can be just as powerful as any weapon. Because of her actions the separated brethren of Earth were able to united under the banner of the Empire. Mother of Miritola, and husband of Sfigoson, no one knows exactly what happened to Vasha. Some interpret the Sacred Scrolls as her becoming the virtue mercy incarnate, but others suggest she might have disappeared diliberately. Whatever the case her teachings are probably some of the most followed in the Empire, and they are recorded in The Mercies of Vasha.
The Foundations of Faith
Contrary to what some believe, the Faith of Olympus teaches that Jadaron is the only Bellator to ascend to Godhood and even then he is considered a minor deity. Since the reforms of Givos these are the Major Gods of the Faith.
Jupiter: Jupiter was the son of Ops, the universe mother and Saturn, the prevailing God who ruled over the rest of the Gods. Saturn had usurped his oppressive father Caelus in order to assume the position of supremacy, however he quickly became tyrannical himself, heeding a prophecy claiming that one of his own sons would overthrow him. In order to prevent this from occurring, Saturn devoured all of his children as soon as they were born. Realizing that her next child, Jupiter, would be susceptible to the same treatment, Ops hid him as soon as he was born and offered Saturn a large stone wrapped in swaddling clothes in his place. Saturn swallowed the stone, and was forced to disgorge Jupiter's siblings in the process of ridding it from his digestive system. Jupiter returned from hiding to overthrow Saturn, assuming leadership over the cosmos and forcing Saturn to flee. Some believe he created the Messosum.
Considering his status as the supreme god in the Pantheon, it is not surprising that Jupiter enjoyed numerous romantic episodes and thereby sired many offspring. By Juno he fathered Mars, and Vulcan, by Maia he is the father of Mercury, the god of commerce, by Dione, he fathered Venus, goddess of love, and by Ceres Proserpine, goddess of the spring. Diana bore Jupiter a son and a daughter Apollo, God of stars, and Diana, Goddess of moons, respectively. He is also considered to be the father of Minerva, goddess of wisdom.
Juno: Juno is the goddess of marriage and childbirth. Sister and wife the Jupiter, it is ironic that she represents marriage as her own marriage is plagued by the numerous affairs of her husband. Despite the behaviour of her husband she is faultless in her fidelity as a wife. She bore two sons Mars and Vulcan
Mars: The God of war, and one of the most prominent and worshipped Gods. Creator of the warrior race Bellators, after they fail, he instructs the VIII to bestow upon Humanity the Mandate.
Venus: The Goddess of Love and Beauty. The Husband of Vulcan and the lover of Mars.
Minerva: She is the goddess of wisdom, learning, art crafts and industry. Her symbol is the owl.
Neptune: He is the powerful God of the sea and starships. His symbol is the trident.
Ceres: She was the goddess of the harvest, always depicted carrying a bundle of grain. A favorite among the colonial farmers.
Vulcan: He is the blacksmith of the Gods and a God of the underworld. If he stokes his furness too hard volcanos might erupt and stars might go supernova. He was the god of blacksmiths, engineers, and volcanos.
Diana: She is theGgoddess of hunting and a Goddess of the moons.
Baccus: He is the God of alcohol and partying. Naturally, he is one of the Empire's most popular gods.
Mercury: He is the messenger of the Gods. He was the god of travellers and tradesmen.
Vesta: She is the Goddess of the hearth and home. She is very important to Imperials. In her temple a flame is always kept burning as in the 'hearth of Rome' the flame should never go out.
These are the twelve major Gods of the Faith of Olympus, but there are many minor Gods, but these are the most important to pray to. There are also the house spirits.
In the Faith of Olympus every household has its own personal spirits which protect it. The lares are the spirits of the family's ancestors. Little figurines of these spirits are kept in a small household shrine, called the lararium. The spirits are worshipped by the family on special days. Bits of food or wine may be sacrificed to them.
With the vast size of the Empire, there are of course many new gods from distant civilizations which we have learned about over the centuries. We don't tend to think that only our Gods are the right ones. If we hear of other peoples' Gods we believe that these were real Gods who watch over other parts of the universe and whom we have simply not yet heard about. And so as we learn about these new Gods, new temples are built to these new arrivals in our Pantheon. Consider Athame, she has grown quite a following within the Empire, and the Gods of the Drell have blended in quite nicely into the Pantheon.
The Sacred Scrolls
The Sacred Scrolls are arguably the most important factor in our faith. They are as follows:
The Titanomachy: It tells of the Creation of the Universe and the war between the Gods and the Titans
The Elysian Fields: Tells of the dwelling place of all heroes and those who do good in life
The Songs of Pluto: Tells of Death and what awaits all to all beings, according to their deeds in life
Minerva's blessings: Minerva's wisdom, and blessings are listed in this scroll
The Revelation of the VIII: Tells us of the Bellators, and their war with the Messosum
The Declarations of Jadaron: A listing of Jadaron's declarations to Man
The Wisdom of Moab: Moab's deeds, and teachings are recorded
Ruden: How to conduct war is transcribed in this scroll
The Mercies of Vasha: How to show kindness to the world
The Healings: The miracles of Meriole
The Burden of Eln: Eln's struggle to continue his father's legacy
The Meditations of Givos: Givos' outlook on life as the last of the line of Mars
Would you like to know more?
A/N: Thanks for the Reviews, Follows, and Favs beautiful readers, and please keep them coming. Also I need some help determining Roman tech, and weaponry and such. I am not really good with tech and such and would REALLY appreaciate PM's with your ideas!