Malachite

Death. Discovery. Fascination. Fire. Ignition. Life. Melting. Pain. Prosperity. Sacrifice. Sanctuary. Toil. Transformation. Wealth.

A single highly mysterious god, its nature inscrutable, its purpose to guide its chosen people; Malathite or Ewolla goes by two different names, depending on where and how the god is worshiped.

Malachite is an ancient and highly obscure version of the deity, who's religious observance has long been lost to the mists of time. Recent scholarly research, however, has begun to uncover its existence by ancient long-abandoned dig-sites and occult discoveries allowing the tracing of the origin of any given bit of copper to these various ancient sites across the world.

In ancient times, before the rise of the Azlanti, possibly before humanity (it's unclear), an ancient primitive people first discovered the stone malachite. With skill, practice, and determination, this stone's secrets were uncovered - it held the mystical substance eventually known as "copper" -, as was a god whose essence seemed deeply tied to the rock and the copper that flowed from it.

This ancient spirit quickly became an incredibly powerful and necessary part of the every day life of those who discovered the rock and the copper within. Malachite led them, showed them where to dig, gave forth its untold wealth from within, and throw society into a weirdly stable cycle of change and revolution. Under the guidance of Malachite, powerful social upheaval was created, as elaborate (if primitive) social contracts were created between "finder" (or "possessor") and "digger" (or "worker") - an archetype for a now-accepted concept of the noble and her common people.

But Malachite demanded toil and hard work from both "finder" and "digger" - that possessors and workers alike put in many hours of labor and effort into a mutually beneficial cooperation; and Malachite was not shy about making its displeasure known with a leader, if it felt the social contract was not being upheld in a reasonable way. If a Finder was found wanting, Malachite was not shy about imposing harsh penalties or even deposition, collapse, or other deadly effects; a finder was always expected to be the absolute master, but also to know and understand everything about what they have found: there was no room for the foolish. Similarly, a Digger was expected to follow a wise Finder with absolute obedience - anything less was considered sacrilege; but it was equally sacrilegious to follow an excessively foolish Finder. Failing to live up to their end of the bargain could lead to the collapse or sudden flooding of the mines or destruction of the local area. Either Finder or Digger could experience severe poisoning and food and trade shortages, or perhaps suffocation from smoke inhalation, or death, injury, or serious setback by uncontrolled flames that escaped their containers.

For those who followed Malachite well, the rewards seemed effectively limitless, in terms of copper wealth drawn forth from the earth. Copper mines remained unflooded and unending, toil went quickly and rest and recuperation swift. Boar (and later Pigs) would find their way into pits - stuck and ready for becoming food. Donkeys would come to aid work and honor new masters. The very mining caves would become protective places and homes for those who made them. Fire was always contained and smoke quickly discovered outs and flutes to avoid suffocation. Powerful magical forces were channeled through pure or tempered copper works, and life would be good.

As Malachite, the deity often got along well with beings like Marzin or Erastil.

Eventually, the world moved on - copper became a tertiary concern, common as it was, and other, better things came along. In this, Malachite was effectively forgotten as an entity, though its legacy persists as a fundamentally important part of society even today - the most worthless coins of the realm.

How the first people who learned of Ewolla by that name did so is unknown; what is known is that the same deity that answers prayers to Malachite answers to Ewolla as well. Either way, Ewolla was discovered and imagined to be the personification of the various volcanoes whose shores and slopes were settled by the early people.

Ewolla is still worshiped by a number of disparate folks today. As Ewolla, the god is still a harsh, hard deity who, nonetheless, grants succor aid and guidance to those who follow it.

Ewolla's will establishes the presence of a voluntary absolute autocrat - a dictator and tyrant who holds absolute sway over the people, but who only does so for two decades (if human; a similar "relative" lifetime, if not), or until that ruler fails to uphold ancient laws or compacts of their duty. At the end of that time, the autocrat takes a long walk up the slopes of the volcano to enter the lake, vent, dome, or even caldera. Should the dictator fail to uphold their duties, it is the moral obligation of those under that ruler to select a new volunteer and enforce the ruler's exit into the 'centerpiece' of a given volcanic locale. In all cases, the dictator is not seen again; though their fates are varied, the most common result of the exile is the most obvious: mortal death.

It seems Ewolla uses the sacrifice of the master of its people as a method of generating a cultivated sense of nobility within the volcanic system itself for the protection of the people, to the point that a few volcanoes are said to have gained sentience and speak for Ewolla, becoming an active servitor and guardian of the people for the god. This is most likely apocryphal at best, as no current evidence for such remain. Nonetheless, those who follow Ewolla properly simply do not suffer for their choice of residence (that is: near a volcano). In order to honor this sacrifice, the observances must be strict, however.

Ewolla's gifts of prosperity, food, security, shelter, and wealth, however, remain the same; even donkeys remain as beasts of burden, while pigs arrive as food sources.

None living know exactly what Malachite or Ewolla look like, though various cultures have their own takes on it. The most common (though generally denied as its true form by the deity itself) is a cavernous likeness of a face with a flame inside. Those few scholars who have managed to learn of or attempt contact with Malachite's or Ewolla's servants have been entirely unable to get the god to describe itself in any terms other than broad concepts involving the discovery and refinement of copper or living in harmony with or near a volcano.

Three servants have been successfully identified over the years. Each are relatively unique-looking inevitables, each with two names for the roles they serve for their god. Regardless, each of their various insides are made of different kinds of malachite, copper, and stone that copper mines or the volcanoes are found in - the last seemingly tailored to each people group it comes to. The fourth seems to be composed of lava and malachite, and has never been seen on the material.

    Finder-Finder or People's Will (for Malachite and Ewolla, respectively): a very small thronefused suzerain stone idol arbiter who bestows authority or takes it away from those who are deemed worthy or unworthy (respectively) by Malathite or Ewolla. It is possible that there is an entire swarm of these creatures, and different ones are summoned at different times, as it doesn't seem to truly remember everything that it's supposedly seen, but such is speculation at best.
    Burner or Flow: a primordial fire chthonic kolyarut; sent to enforce the contracts between ruler and ruled, and correct (through whatever means necessary) error and imbalance within the society that serves Malachite or Ewolla.
    Herald or Tongue: poisonous scalding cave zelekhut. Generally, this the most dreaded of Malachite or Ewolla's servitors. Herald is usually the servitor that comes when both ruler and ruled have fundamentally strayed so far beyond the bounds of proper society that it is no longer possible to save anyone. Occasionally, a particularly overzealous priest will summon Herald to enact its destructive potential. If Malachite or Ewolla has not sent it, however, though it will arrive, it will merely refuse the request, and warn the summoner against attempting to do so again, on pain of death; summoners often sicken and get poisoned, however, even from this minor contact.
    Knower: an advanced fiery time seer magma dunesage axiomite blessed to be a lore oracle and trained as a loremaster. This creature is known as a close adviser to Malachite/Ewolla, and a valued servant. Her precise relationship with the deity is unknown, but she is only seen by the most faithful and then only in powerful dreams or visions.