Port Calling

Built to the north and east of the Chapel of Seth’s Calling, Port Calling is the largest city on
the Piety of Seth. Linking the starport with the Chapel, it’s
the initial destination for the shiploads of pilgrims that visit
every year. The starport of Port Calling is a broad expanse
of rockcrete, landing bays, fuel depots, and repair centers,
dedicated to servicing the immense shuttles that descend from
orbiting spaceships. Situated on a long peninsula and bordered
by ocean to the north, east, and south, the starport is connected
to Port Calling by a broad multi-lane thoroughfare that runs
southeast along a narrow isthmus. The thoroughfare is lined
with statues of Seth and other saints of the Imperium and
connects the starport to the center of Port Calling. Normally
empty, the thoroughfare becomes crowded with transports as
well as long processions of pilgrims making the journey into
the city on foot whenever a starship discharges passengers.
Port Calling is a mixture of ancient buildings that date to
the construction of the original Chapel, ringed with modern
pre-fab hab-blocks. As the number of pilgrims grows each year,
so do the hab-blocks, resulting in the steady expansion of Port
Calling. Due to the proximity of the Chapel of Seth’s Calling,
Seth’s Tomb, and the surrounding cemetery, this tends to be to
the north, and the south-east, along the ocean’s shore.
Pilgrims who disembark in the city center are often somewhat
stunned by the noise and bustle, akin almost to a hive city in
its intensity. Unlike many other shrine worlds, Seth is honored
not by silent prayer and quiet contemplation, but through highly
public displays of veneration. Many passion plays demonstrating
the sufferings of Seth (and other saints) are performed in the open
air for all to see. Pilgrims show their piety through programs of
corporal mortification, many of which are patterned after the
tortures Seth himself was subjected to. Pilgrims who wish to
attend such a program should pay heed to the many signs about
the city which direct them to only visit Ministorum-approved
confessors to receive their penance.
Although Port Calling is the center of the Seth cult, and
home to the Sons of Seth, not all of the city’s citizens are
devout followers of the law (and thus, the Emperor). Despite
attempts to eradicate it, a criminal underworld exists. While
not exactly heretical or agnostic, the criminals are certainly
hypocritical. Most of this criminal element is happy to
indulge in petty theft, usually by duping naïve pilgrims out
of their scant Thrones through the sale of fake indulgences
(writs that allow the bearer to literally ‘buy off ’ sins). Others
go to greater lengths and trap their victims in corporal
mortification devices, keeping them there until the victim
(or his or her companions) can pay a ransom. Finally, there
are rumors of even darker rites, where unwary pilgrims are
snatched off of the streets and subjected to far too real reenactments
of Seth’s tortures for purposes unknown. While
some suspect jaded nobles in search of a release, others point
to possible heretical cults, xenos involvement (some whisper
that the debased Eldar are to blame), or even the influence of
the Ruinous Powers. Occasionally the missing pilgrims are
found, usually weeks or months later. Most have been ritually
mutilated, their faces frozen in a rictus of utter terror.
==Daily Life in Port Calling==
Life in Port Calling is one of constant worship and devotion.
Every day is dedicated to Seth, the Emperor, other saints of the
Sector and the Imperium, and the Ecclesiarchy (in that order).
The day begins early in the city. Sunrise is accompanied
by calls to prayer broadcast via vox across the city. Bells ring,
music plays, and the faithful add their chants and songs to the
din. Afterwards, there is a break for the morning meal, and then
the devotions begin in earnest. Great calendars are consulted,
to determine what notable events happened that day and who
in the hierarchy of saints and other pious heroes performed
them. Mystery and passion players are then assembled to reenact
these events, either from mobile stages out in the streets
or from far more elaborate permanent theatres.
For those who don’t wish to attend a play and be educated
in the glories of the Imperium’s past, there are various
forms of corporal mortification available. The simplest is to
rent a scoriada for the day and engage in self-flagellation.
Often great lines of pilgrims will be seen, making their way
down the streets of Port Calling, lashing their naked backs
nearly raw. Others may wish to subject themselves to more
extreme measures, such as re-enactments of the tortures
Seth experienced. As noted before, it is recommend that
pilgrims only attend Ministorum-sanctioned confession and
purification stations, as otherwise the pilgrim may find the
torture far too real.
As the sun sets, there’s another call to prayer, the break
for the evening meal, and then another round of plays which
run far into the night. Once dawn breaks on the next day, the
cycle begins again.
The daily routine is interrupted to observe special feast
and holy days (such as the Feast of the Emperor’s Ascension).
The longest break is for Seth’s Calling, a week-long festival in
which people across the globe set aside their normal duties to
contemplate Seth’s life and the lessons to be learned from it. It
is marked by long periods spent in prayer, followed by feasts of
thanks to Seth for his sacrifices so that the people of the Piety of
Seth can continue to serve the Imperium and the God-Emperor.
It ends with a re-enactment of Seth’s Progress, and more prayer
and contemplation at the Chapel of Seth’s Calling.
==Major Landmarks==
The center of Port Calling is marked by a large open square.
It is flanked on all four sides by the following buildings.
To the north is the residence of the Planetary Governor,
Cardinal Praetus Catullas Halaby. A massive edifice, it serves
Halaby as a place of residence, worship, and administration.
Running the full length of the square, the complex contains
a cathedral, dormitories for low-ranked clergy, and the great
hall where Cardinal Halaby, his fellow clergy, and select
members of the trade federations meet to discuss policy.
To the south is the traditional mansion for Port Calling’s
mayor. Currently this position is occupied by one Quint Gotoval.
Gotoval recognizes implicitly the extent to which his position
is a merely ceremonial one, but doesn’t let that stop him from
constantly petitioning Cardinal Halaby with suggestions for
improvements to Port Calling and the Piety of Seth in general.
To the east of the square is the Hospital of Saint Elena.
Maintained by Sisters of the Orders Hospitaller, the hospital
looks after the medical needs of both the residents of Port
Calling and the multitude of pilgrims. The care, as one
might expect from a hospital in a town filled with people
busily flagellating themselves, is excellent. As for the hospital
itself, it’s constantly under construction, in order to meet the
demands placed on it by the sheer number of pilgrims who
arrive every year.
To the west is the primary precinct-fortress for the
Adeptus Arbites. They’ve taken Seth to be their virtual patron
saint, and his visage adorns many parts of the building. The
Arbitrators are always at the forefront of any walk of Seth’s
Progress, and provide the bulk of the maintenance for his
Chapel and tomb, both located to the south.
The center of the square is marked with a huge statue of
Seth, looking benevolently out over his city. He faces south
towards his tomb, and holds a hammer in one hand and a
broken length of chain in the other. Surrounding the statue is
a ring of tall pillars to which the truly penitent can be chained
in order to undergo public displays of corporal mortification.
Between the city square and the starport is Piety of Seth
Trade Hall. A sprawling structure, the hall holds thousands of
clerks who track all of the goods coming in to Port Calling
and out via Port Hadley.
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of theatres in Port
Calling. The largest (and oldest) is known simply as Advoco’s,
and is a huge gothic hexagonal structure. The stage is in the
center of the building, and is surrounded on all sides by
seating for spectators in the upper galleries, while the floor
around the stage is standing room only. Advoco’s is dedicated
to portraying the life of Seth, and runs week-long passions
which depict (often in gruesome detail) every aspect of his
capture, torment, progress, and death.
==Notable Locations==
The single most sacred spot on the Piety of Seth is the Chapel of
Seth’s Calling. Originally a simple stone structure, it has grown
over time as the devout have added various improvements.
These days, the Chapel is surrounded by an immense cathedral
(far larger then Cardinal Halaby’s), which contains seating
for thousands of pilgrims to attend services. Entrance to the
Chapel is through a series of galleries lined with stained glass
windows depicting the life, torment, and death of Seth.
The actual Chapel is found deep within the somewhat
haphazard arrangement of buildings. It has long since been
cordoned off, with entrance limited only to ranking members
of the Holy Ordos or their esteemed guests.
Those who do wish to enter are usually there to see the stained
flagstones in front of the altar. Tradition states the stains are from
Seth’s lifeblood, spilled when he finally collapsed and died. These
stones are never washed, much less stepped on or even touched.
At the south-eastern edge of the Chapel complex is the
elaborate tomb of Seth the Arbitrator. As with the Chapel,
the original tomb is hidden deep inside multiple outer shells.
Currently, the tomb resides in the middle of a circular viewing
gallery, guarded day and night by a contingent of Adeptus
Arbites. According to rumor, prayers have been heard in
and around the tomb, usually late at night when the area is
otherwise empty aside from its honor guard.
Further to the southwest of the Chapel, its associated
structures, and the Tomb of Seth is a slowly growing
cemetery. Pilgrims who die while on Piety of Seth, whether
from accident, corporal mortification, or re-enacting Seth’s
Progress, are placed in tombs near the outskirts of the chapel.
In addition, many of the sector faithful have started to
come to the shrine world specifically to be interred there.
Curiously, you will never find a Piety of Seth native buried
in the cemetery. Instead, when a Sethian dies, he or she will
be rendered down into fertilizer and spread over the fields,
giving back to the world what they took from it during life.
Running from the Chapel, past the Tomb of Seth, and through
the cemetery, ending at an otherwise unremarkable spot far to
the south of Port Calling is a rutted dirt road known as Seth’s
Progress. This is the route Seth walked after his rescue from the
Sons of Drusus. Tradition has it that no one can wear shoes on
the Progress (since Seth himself was barefoot) and the Progress
must be walked without any sort of outside assistance (such as a
cane, crutch, or even a vial of water). Many who take the Progress
during the course of Seth’s Calling do so dressed only in symbolic
rags. As the whole point of the Progress is to complete it despite
all hindrances, those who fall during the Progress are left to lie
in the mud (in the hopes they my find the strength to rise and
complete the walk) and aren’t pulled off of the road until the next
day when the Progress is officially over.
Seth’s Progress is the Piety of Seth’s second most sacred
landmark. It is never walked on until the day of the Progress, and
is kept clear year around through the use of long-handled rakes
and similar instruments. A line of deep-set footprints that runs
along the center of the Progress are reputed to be those of Seth
himself. They are thus avoided by anyone following the route.
Those who have walked the Progress have reported hearing
words of encouragement when encountering difficult sections
of the road, and some have even reported being helped up by
invisible hands after stumbling.
==Important Locations==
*Abbey Of Saint Elena’s Mount