Mauretar

*Know your limits, so that you may break them.*

Common saying of the Mauretarian Path.

Mauretar is a chimeric being, the result of an Old Brethren attempting to gain the traits of the other main Weave denizens for themselves.

## Biography

The being that would become Mauretar was a mostly ordinary Bound living in one of the protectorates of the Weave's fringe civilisations. From the tender age of eight hundred, Mauretar wished to see the greater Weave and its inhabitants, with the ambition to surpass them.

Mauretar received his chance at becoming an acausal being when an Old Brethren travelled into their reality for the purpose of converting others to its kind. Making its intent clear, several wishing to have greater prospects took the chance to to become one, Mauretar among them. Mauretar threw himself into his studies and the honing of his newfound abilities, trying to surpass their peers. Being too engrossed in their studies and their obsession with gaining more power, Mauretar made few friends among his kin, and grew distant to them during their development. Upon reaching the stage of development where their Old Brethren parent was comfortable with letting them go, Mauretar left, alone, for the pursuit of power and self improvement.

In the years after leaving their parent, Mauretar continued to master different skills to pursue their ambition of surpassing all their peers. Due to the difficulty Old Brethren have in Transcending, Mauretar decided to pursue another path to power; a becoming a Shardbearer of the Silence. Millennia were spent in preparation for hunting down a fragment and fusing with it, gathering numerous technological artifacts and unique items for the task. Their attempts attempts to take a fragment came to a head in the year 12 336 812 when they tried to take a particularly large and powerful fragment of the Silence, left over from an earlier battle between an instance of the metaphysical force and several multiversal civilisations. Mauretar became crippled and nearly permanently died (alongside losing all of their gathered equipment) when they found their quarry to be far more resistant to their attempts than they had thought, quickly fleeing the site to the nearest universal outpost. Shaken by the experience, Mauretar entered a period of depression as they were nursed back to health. During these decades of recovery, Mauretar would have many conversations with the Elixir Immortal Umia about their past experiences.

Once recovered, Mauretar resolved to pursue their ambitions once more. Shortly after their recovery, they would travel the Weave to once again chase their goals of gaining power. This time, however, they were marred by hesitation and doubt, and some of the opportunities that came to them passed them by. Finding that the spectre of the experience still haunted them even after their recovery, Mauretar resolved to have closure on the matter by taking care of the wayward Shard once and for all. They spent several centuries reconnecting with their fellow sapients, making several companions and contacts in the process. They would do missions with their companions, stay with them during the lulls between tasks and assist them in their personal projects. When the time came, Mauretar told their companions of the trouble they had with the Shard and that this time, they would close the affair. Two hundred companions of Transcends, Shardbearers, Old Brethren and a few Exalts were gathered to capture the shard. In a mission that went seamlessly, the Shard was captured and gifted to one of the Exalts that landed the final blow.

Finally having closure on the Shard, Mauretar was at loss on what next to pursue. While no longer being marked by self doubt and hesitation, they found that they simply weren't as motivated to chase after their old goals after the battle with the Shard. After speaking with and taking advice from their companions, Mauretar headed back to the outpost where he had once recovered. They would consult with Umia regularly, to have another perspective on their troubles, as well as assisting her in her work of treating others' ills. Over time, Mauretar would revise their own ambitions and goals, shaped by the experiences with both Umia and their comrades.

Inspired by Umia's work, Mauretar set new goals for themselves. This time, they would go for the prospect of becoming a Transcended Exalt, something that is incredibly difficult for an Old Brethren, to realise their dreams. In a show of trust for Umia, Mauretar allowed her to perform the patterning required. Due to their nature as an Old Brethren, a much larger concentration of Void protoplasm (much greater than what can usually be considered safe to control for non-Transcends) was used to Pattern his mind and consciousness into the Void. During these centuries, Umia linked several AI to their mind to put them through several trials to reinforce their desire and thus increase the odds of becoming an Exalt. Mauretar's wish would become crystallised as he Exalted, forming into the Exaltation known as the Mantle of Perpetual Ascension. Their wish was for them to become an example for which others could strive to be, and lead the way in helping others in their self improvement and the achievement of their potential.

Following their Exaltation, Mauretar traveled the universes on the fringe of the Weave, helping others and spreading their new philosophy by leading through example. Mauretar encouraged others to pursue a path of self improvement, so that more would be inspired to do the same. They spread the power of their Exaltation to others, and encouraged its proliferation throughout those who would wish to strive for their own improvement.

Mauretar continued his work until the Scourge, when Adremer Tor attacked the Weave. Their last known whereabouts were in Weave Point 32 146 282, fighting off a Tor manifestation while their followers fled. Their fate is unknown; some speculate that they are now naught but a blightling, while others believe that they have continued their pre-Tor work.

## Exaltation

The Mantle of Perpetual Ascension was created from Mauretar's wish of realising the potential of others. The Exaltation fundamentally has to do with the concept of self improvement and the realisation of potential, and to this end the Exaltation can duplicate itself to grant others an instance of this power. Someone who has mastered an instance of this Exaltation can learn and master skills by observing them being done with only a glance, or, bereft of a teacher or practitioner, rapidly learn and take the skill to its limit through performing such a task from scratch. A user of this Exaltation find that they can break the existing limitations on their skills/powers/abilities through hard work and extended practice to a new threshold where they may repeat this process again. Those who master this exaltation will also find that they are able to perform at the absolute limit of their skill at all times.

## Legacy

The greatest legacies of Mauretar, was arguably their philosophy and their Exaltation. The Mauretarian Endeavour, named after them, has been spread and passed down to many of those living in the Weave remnants. The number of adherents took a drastic hit, nearly being wiped out by Tor, but have been experiencing a resurgence in the recent times.

The philosophy of the Mauretarian Endeavour has four central tenets.

* Strive to be the best one can possibly be in their chosen pursuits. Inspire others to do the same with one's success.

Adherents to the Endeavour will often learn and master as many skills as they can, and strive to always perform at the limits of their skill in such pursuits. They hope the results of doing so inspires others to do the same; e.g. a medical specialist would strive to master their appropriate skills and them to their limit, so that they might save more lives and spur others to do the same.

* Give freely. Share your gifts with others, so that they may do the same in turn.

The Mauretarian adherents freely share Mauretar's Exaltations with others, and also frequently take up teaching positions.

* Do not be afraid to dream. Do not hesitate to pursue one's desires. Do not be afraid of limits.

Adherents encourage both themselves and others to pursue their dreams and ambitions, and not to let their limits come in the way of achieving their goals. The open pursuit of one's desires should be an inspiration for others to do the same.

* Learn one's limits, so that one may break them.

A fundamental part of the Endeavour is the overcoming of one's limitations. After all, some dreams and ambitions are shackled by the limits of those who hold them. For this reason, adherents learn their limits, so that they may overcome them to reach their desires.