The New Horizon

## History

Chuami Ka-Alesca, founder and believed ‘messenger of Angels’, sought to better attune the people towards the upper plane. She worked in uniting the numerous cities in the territory, placing them under the care of her Council. In doing so, she convinced people to no longer flee the whispers, rather, they should welcome them as Angels do.This evolved into both the Horizon’s ideologies and the Council of Ascension’s function.

The cycle variants are rather passive in practice but are widespread in all of Gaia. Even if you do not believe in religious influence, everyone has an interpretation of angels that places them in one or the other faith. The New Horizon works synchronously with them, allowing one to be both a New Horizon and a cycles follower. But, unlike the cycles, the New Horizon is only primarily dominant in Ordene since it’s the foundation of its theocratic society.

## Beliefs

With souls acting as a source of Angels’ emotions, the line between them and humans can easily become blurred. The Horizon carries the belief that such a line is literal, seeing the separation of atmospheric planes as the only true difference between man and celestial. When a soul is accepted into the upper plane, it is said it can consciously remain as a new Angel. In other words memory deposits are made up of the memories the Angels don't want, such as traumas, the moment of death, or just distasteful memories altogether. What this means for followers is that a person ascending whose life is 50% impure substance will only be able to get 50% of themselves into the upper plane. When they wish to 'better their purity', they are trying to harvest only good emotions and experiences. This way they believe most of themselves can ascend beyond the Gate and retain a sense of self, therefore capable of voluntarily remaining as an Angel. As a result, followers are encouraged to work on bettering their purity so their sense of self remains upon traversing the Gate. As an ideology, it can function in conjunction with other faiths.

## Practices

#### Churches

Places of Horizon worship are referred to as a church. The primary difference is the abundance of circular imagery, including the shape of the building. Windowed ceilings are also extremely common given how much people admire the sky. Mediations or mass are not required by the New Horizon, but voluntary participation encourages good thoughts and a sense of community. Additionally, many Ordene acolytes undergo pilgrimages. Some do this to spread their faiths, while others accept it as a coming of age. Since most choose to remain in the other countries, Ordene notably has the lowest population.

#### Nature and Holistics

In terms of nature's popularity, natural preservation is indeed prominently Ordene’s strength. Their civilizations are rarely built upon manipulated landscapes, being constructed onto the land rather than into it. This is in great contrast to the Reach’s mountainous burrowing and Corcordia’s avid mining origins greatly shaping their lands to civil needs. While it greatly reflects their allure for the New Horizon faith, it is also to preserve points susceptible to soul reclamation. These susceptible points may disperse if the surrounding territory strays from cleanliness and natural purity.

#### Weddings

They invite as many people as they can to any local wedding. If from Ordene, this will often involve the whole neighborhood. They are the loudest and festive, sometimes even lasting multiple days. This reflects their need to welcome good experiences, thus furthering everyone's purity.

## Trivia

* Dominant in Ordene
* Inspired by Daoism as a philosophical tradition rather than a spiritual belief