Librera

Overview

The Librera is divided into two sections, commonly called the first and second scriptures. The first section deals with the creation of the world of Crescent and some of the stories of early times. The second scripture deals specifically with the time after the birth of Malicean the Prophet.

Interestingly, serious study reveals some weird inconsistencies. For one thing, ORB is only named by name in the second scripture. The first scripture names "the God" but gives It no proper name.

Further, while the second scripture gives a pretty solid account of the first 650 years of the reign of the Church of the Sun and Moon, there are significant gaps in the stories before that time. The book is closed to new scripture after the beginning of the Shadow Era (roughly Sun Year 650, about 700 years ago).

Also, the first scripture has no author credits and no book names, only chapters. The second has both book names and author credits, which are usually written as Librera, Book Name, Author. The second scripture books vary wildly in style, depending on who wrote them, while the first scripture books are pretty consistent.

From the Librera

First Book, chapter I

"And the God is, and the God was, and the God shall always be, unto this world and unto all worlds, the maker of all and the keeper of all."

First Book, chapter II

"...And so the God said, 'Let there be five elements, Fire, Earth, Air, Water, and Spirit, each in its own domain, and of these five elements shall the world be composed.' And it was.

And the God said, 'let there be, running through this world, two threads of power, the Arcane and the Divine, like night and day, like dark and light, like female and male.' And there is.

And the God said 'Through each of these elements let there be creatures, great and small, and in the joining of these elements let the greatest of beings reside, that of elf and man, dwarf, halfling and gnome.' And there are..."

First Book, chapter III

"...And the God said to his creations, ‘Go forth, children, and let us discover the wonders of this world together, for We have wrought such wonders as even We are eager to discover. This world of Crescent We give to you, for your use and also for safekeeping. And as a symbol of this contract, shall you together come once every 2000 seasons, and share with Us your power and your discoveries, and We shall hold the world together..."

Fourth Book, chapter V

"Curse not those whose are forced into wakefulness after death, for their evil is not of their own doing. The measure of being ends with the passing of life, and by their living willful actions judge them..."

Fourth Book, chapter VI

"... and the God said, "Did not his life end, in fullness and in due time, as was meted out by time and fate?"

And Maura trembled before her Lord, and said, "Yes, he did, Lord."

And the God said, "Do you not know that it is an offense to your God, to deny his will, in matters great and small, but above all in the matter of life and death?"

And Maura fell to her knees and wailed, "I loved him Lord, and I could not live without him!"

And the God said, "And did you call him back from beyond life, with dark powers, and the force of mortal will?"

And Maura could not speak, so afraid was she, but her tears spoke eloquently.

And the God said, "Hear me, Maura, for you have disobeyed my will in this matter, and returned to life one whom I had called to my bosom, for which by all rights I should destroy you and your children and your children's children. But you disobeyed me for love, which I hold sacred, and so I deem that you shall not be parted from your husband by death, and your children shall be as my children." And at the word of the God there fell from the sky a star, and Maura and her husband, who walked but did not live, were destroyed by holy fire, together..."

Righteous Foretold

Righteous Foretold is the first book of the second scripture. A collection of prophesies and/or the ravings of madmen, it is the most cryptic of all the books of the Librera. Following are some passages from this section, also known as the Book of Divination or the Book of Prophecy.

...and Jaylynn the Mad fell into a fit, and his tongue took leave of his senses. Said he,

"On the longest day shall come one born of wickedness and walk in the light, and shall the child lead the forgotten to the mountain. And the sky will tremble afore the steel, and shadow cast be long..."

...And the God said to Elorn , who was of the elves their King,

"He who marks the end of your royal line shall be born of no woman... "

...Said Lumina the hermit,

"By the lives of the righteous shall the stars be numbered and counted, and shall each god have his place in the heavens..."

...and Benzo, possessed by a spirit, said many strange things...

"For Light shall come to dark the Lights, and all to Light be sworn, save those too that know no light, and then they too shall fall. And the mighty shall walk many centuries, and the vale blasted, and sand shall take place the green."

Mind of the Prophet

By Lynn the Elder

"...On the morning of the summer solstice, in a small fishing village on the Sae duChaad, a boy is born in jail to a young elven whore. Legend claims she turned her face to the wall and died of shame and despair when the midwife told her the child was half-human.

Local rumor claimed that the baby was fathered by the bishop of Phaelas (a stern and puritanical god of Death and Magic) in violation of his vow of chastity. Fueling this rumor, the priest took the boy in and christened him Malicean (from the elvish for "Malice's child"). Though the Race Wars have only distantly touched this sleepy village, the boy's name is a symbol of the enmity between the peoples.

...On reaching majority, Malicean leaves his childhood home, and moves to the Island of Lost Souls. He joins there a church of the Sun and Moon God, ORB. His passionate faith and accessible oratory skills stand him there in good stead. Faithful to ORB's doctrine of harmony between the races, he rises steadily within the ranks, and slowly begins to gain a number of followers.

...In the year of the moon 42, Malicean, now known as "the Chaste", is granted the leadership of the Church of the Sun and Moon. Under his guidance, the church swells in numbers, though their policy of taking in any refugees who seek them out, regardless of race, bleeds the coffers nearly as fast as they can be filled.

His most dedicated followers form the core of a new order within the church, swearing themselves to his protection. Calling themselves the Sword of Malicean, they seek to emulate both his purity of soul and vision, and his skill with arms and warcraft...

... Five years later, the first blow is struck in the Rising of the Sun, Malicean's righteous crusade to restore harmony between the races, and root out evil. Leading a ragtag bunch of refugees armed with nothing more than makeshift weaponry and ingenuity, Malicean takes control of the mainland port nearest the island temple. This battle is later to be known as the Battle of Wild's Reef.

...As his movement spreads, Malicean faces increased hostility and resistance. The first church to stand against him is, in a melancholy twist of fate, the Temple of Phaelas. The Church of Death and Life, fatted on the abundance of death in the wake of the Race Wars, sought to preserve the status quo. Underestimating the power of Malicean's movement, and his tactical genius, the church of Phaelas is for all intents and purposes wiped out when the Temple at Caervas is sacked, and the whole city razed. Malicean himself puts his (adopted?) father to the sword, after the old man refuses to forsake his god..."