Children of Lün’e

## Common Knowledge

Lunar Elves and denizens of Everspring and Sol Oas (albeit to a lesser extent) would be familiar with the Children of Lün’e.

## Further Description

Made up largely of war orphans, the Children of Lün’e (also known as Korays) are considered the chosen Lunar Elves of Lün’e. They are raised by the church, and divided into two groups: the *sa mira* and the *sa imar,* meaning the Moon’s Blade or the Moon’s Light. The *sa mira* are holy assassins sent to deal with the most difficult conflicts in the Lunar/Solar Elf war, and the *sa imar* are the holy clergy who preserve religious and cultural knowledge.

## Purpose and Practices

The *sa imar* lead all religious ceremonies, and act as scholars and scribes, particularly of important religious texts and on chronicling the war. They also stay in various towns and cities and do civil work, such as healing, rebuilding, or teaching. They often report to Umbra Clerics, and can become Umbra Clerics themselves. Particularly in the capitol, almost all important religious ceremonies are run by *sa imar,* and almost all religious teaching is also performed by them. The High Zenith, Purnama Koray, was once a *sa imar* Child of Lün’e.

The *sa mira* are religious assassins. Like the *sa imar*, they are raised and trained together. They are still taught religious studies, but otherwise their education revolves around anatomy, strategy, etc. until they reach an age at which real combat training becomes appropriate. Once they reach maturity they still mainly stay with the church like the *sa imar* during down time, but are sent out into the battlefield or Sol Oas to carry out their missions. They kill exclusively during the night, usually working in pairs of two, and carry out a ritualistic cleansing upon returning to Everspring.

*Sa mira* are the main advantage Everspring has over Sol Oas. They are completely loyal, highly trained, and, due to the number of assassinations of high ranking officials, they keep Sol Oas is in a semi-constant state of political unrest. They are also the only Lunar Elves allowed to enter Sol Oas and return. This is why they are a part of the Lunar Elf religious structure: they are heavily indoctrinated, and highly monitored, believing themselves to be directly carrying out Lün’e’s will, and so can be completely trusted by the government and church not to betray their people.

## History

### Founding

The exact founding of the Children of Lün’e as an organization is slightly unclear. Since shortly after the times of the Tribal Elves, the Lunar Elves of Everspring have always had cleric-like figures. Similarly, as long as the war between them and the Solar Elves has been waged, there have been war orphans, and the church had begun to take them in. It is likely that the Children of Lün’e became a distinct group around the time that Everspring closed its borders— when the population rates of their people first started to drop. Most likely, fearing a loss of religious or cultural history, the clerics and priests of the church began to teach the orphans in their care that cultural history above regular education.

The advantages of having young minds for the church to fully shape quickly became clear. As the political situation became increasingly tense and the war increasingly brutal, desperation won out over morality. Although this would never be discussed in the public sphere, a combination of religious indoctrination and psionic magic shifted the war orphans looked after by the church into a distinct religious group. The concept that the children were directly chosen and blessed by Lün’e was introduced and then rapidly treated as fact. The Children of Lün’e became recognized as holy, just as their freedom and self determination was nearly completely taken away.

The distinction between the *sa imar* and the *sa mira* developed shortly after. No records currently exist of when the *sa mira* were formed— it seems likely that a few individual officials of the church or government experimented independently with the creation of assassins raised to serve the church nearly from birth. Finding it a successful formula, it seems to have spread and become entwined with the Children of Lün’e. The first assassinations in Sol Oas are also undocumented.

### Loyalty and Indoctrination

The result of this development, although unclear at times, is a group of clergy members and assassins who are absolutely loyal to the church and government of Everspring. There are a few methods through which the church makes and keeps them this way. Firstly is childhood indoctrination. The children are orphaned, sometimes injured or traumatized, missing their parents and the stability of their former lives. There are told that they are special, chosen and loved by their goddess above all others. They receive individual attention, and are well cared for. Until the age of 10, they are all kept together and taught mainly cultural history— songs, stories, etc.

At age 10, the children are separated between the *sa imar* and *sa mira*. Those with any inclination for athletics, acrobatics, or stealth begin training on subjects such as anatomy and basic strength and flexibility building. The others, particularly any with physical impairments, begin more intense training in history and culture. The *sa imar* are taught to read and write, and made to memorize any important cultural texts. *Sa mira* are never taught to read.

Past the basic indoctrination, there is heavy monitoring. After their separation into two groups, they are sent away from whatever church they were raised in and to one of the larger churches. There, they are separated again into small groups called ‘clusters’. One cluster contains 8-12 young Children of Lün’e, all about the same age, and a few older Children of Lün’e who are in charge of training them. There is a significant emphasis on the collective over the individual. All members of a cluster live together, dress the same, take the same classes, and receive the same privileges. Emotional openness within each on is *highly* emphasized. For the assassins this is ostensibly because their purpose can be very stressful and potentially damaging, so being open and receiving support from your cluster members is important to keep them healthy and stable. In reality this is true, but it is also so that the church and the government can monitor all the Children of Lün’e and ensure that they are loyal.

If the monitoring fails or detects that any Child of Lün’e is doubting their purpose or orders, the phantasmal magic comes into play. Highly trained psions working for the government are assigned to various churches where Children of Lün’e are being trained, and they can use their magic to ensure that no dissent lasts long among them.

### Modern Life and Training

#### The *sa imar*

Once they have reached adulthood, the *sa imar* take over most religious positions not filled by Umbra Clerics. They run schools and do public works projects, both funded by the church/government. This is essential in modern Everspring, as the population continues to rapidly decline. The *sa imar* repair lands and structures destroyed in battles or raids, heal the sick and injured from battle, and ensure that those who need care and are unable to receive it because so much of the population is fighting in the war still receive that care.

Their highest purpose is to preserve the culture of Lunar Elves. The church is desperate to keep the war from completely eradicating their culture, but also don’t wish for certain historical texts to become public knowledge and potentially cause the public to rebel against the church/government. Because the Children of Lün’e are so thoroughly indoctrinated, the s*a imar* can be trusted to preserve these texts without using them to go against the rules.

#### The *sa mira*

Once the *sa mira* have reached adulthood, they don’t tend to live much longer. The oldest *sa mira* are around 100 years old, and those who reach that age have mostly been retired to teach the younger assassins. The job of an assassin is to carry out political assassinations in Sol Oas, taking out important political players and destabilizing their government, and it is to deal with threats in battle that ordinary soldiers are unable to overcome without significant risk. Assassinations are always done at night, and the *sa mira* always work in groups of two or more. Both members of a duo will monitor the other, ensuring they follow orders and that the mental state of their companion is stable. Every life a *sa mira* takes is considered a holy act in the name of Lün’e. They are treated highly ritualistically. Even so, it is not uncommon for a holy assassin to crack under the pressure of the constant danger and killing. Some become cruel and sadistic, others give up the will to live. It is expected that if a *sa mira* determines that their partner has broken, it is their duty to take their life in the name of Lün’e.

The *sa mira* are the only citizens of Everspring besides a few select politicians who are allowed to enter Sol Oas. They are trusted to do this and return because of how heavily they are indoctrinated. This is also why they are not taught to read— so they can transport important information for the church/government.

#### Locations

The Children of Lün’e live in various churches across Everspring, much as an ordinary clergy might. The *sa mira* tend to stay in the largest and most politically important churches, while the *sa imar* are distributed across Everspring.

#### Children

Because an increase in population is so important to Lunar Elf survival, the nation cannot afford to have any group of the correct age fail to have as many children as possible. Children of Lün’e are not permitted to raise their own children because of the distraction it would serve from their duties, but they are still expected to have them. Their children are then either raised by local families or as Children of Lün’e themselves, never knowing of their specific parentage. Romantic relationships are discouraged, particularly among the *sa mira*, which is part of the reason they are all assigned partners within their cluster. No matter their relationship, partners are either expected to produce children together or find someone else to do the same with.

## Structure

In order of power and importance

1. Umbra Clerics (not always Children of Lün’e)
2. Head Teachers/Scholars (not always Children of Lün’e)
3. *Sa imar* elders
4. *Sa mira* elders
5. *Sa imar*
6. *Sa imar* trainees
7. *Sa mira*
8. *Sa mira* trainees
9. Misc. Trainees

## Further Information

* Everspring
* Lunar Elf
* Sol Oas
* Solar Elf