Enlightened Church of Fire

### About

The Enlightened Church of Fire is a religion in Drevhall that originates from the worship of one of the Elemental Gods of Four - Sol. It is heavily based on the Enlightened Church of Sol, and in its very early stages, it used to be a branch of the ECOS religion, until it became its own thing during the Elemental Trials.

Both ECOF and ECOS follow very similar principles and have shared beliefs. However, ECOF is a lot more simple and primitive in nature. The Enlightened Church of Fire acknowledges the existence of all the 8 Flares, the 8 Stages of Withering as well as the 4 Commandment Rays as per the ECOS religion. Nevertheless, the ECOF religion focuses mostly on one specific Flare out of the 8 - "The Legendary Phoenix, Spirit of the Fire God, Flare of Kualii - Keeper of Vision", and mostly worships the element of Fire as opposed to Sol himself.

While the ECOS can appear more conservative and dismissive of any forms of faith that do not revolve around Sol, labeling anyone who follows other religions and believes in other gods as heretics - the ECOF is far more welcoming and receptive of other Elemental Gods and Elemental Religions, acknowledging their existence and respecting their place in the world.

### Origins

The worship of the "Holy Fire" originates from the Kingdom of Thoronor. While it is quite common knowledge that an ancient fire temple was discovered when Thoronor settlers were excavating the Dumenor mountain, the specifics of it are never shared publicly. Each of the 8 Flares have designated temples spread across Drevhall, which were built in prehistoric times. One such temple, was hidden inside the largest mountain in the Thoronor region. Thoronor's terrain, for the most part, is a snowy, windswept, mountain canyon. Kualii, the Keeper of Vision, is often represented as an " Ascended Mountain Eagle". Thus, Thoronor was the perfect place for the temple of Kualii, which was unfortunately hidden deep inside the Dumenor mountain, lost over generations. Before the excavation of the Dumenor mountain, the kingdom did not bear the name of "Thoronor", but instead, was called "Cardinal Kingdom". When the Cardinal Kingdom settlers were expanding their habitable space, the main leader of the kingdom - DaviDustin, decided to expand into what is now known as the Dumenor mountain. Being right front and center of the excavation team, David unearthed the ancient Fire temple - and was immediately put in a trance by the Fire God Sol, sending him through the 8 Stages of Withering - since if a sacred temple of a Flare is unearthed by a non-believer / heathen, they get sent into the 8 Stages of Withering immediately, where they are tortured and tested by Sol. While his body and soul were going through the grueling stages of withering, David's subconscious mind was trapped in an alternate reality - a hell on earth, reminiscent of the age of Hellfire. In that alternate reality, David's subconscious mind saw each of the Withering Stages that his soul passed through:

   [The events of the alternate reality: (PART 1 https://youtu.be/oZwcLDBAghU) & (PART 2 https://youtu.be/5OXuoa4RgsA)]

First Stage - David questioning himself whether or not he was doing the right thing, is he a good person saving his friends from corruption of power or an evil charlatan - leading his friends to their doom.

Second Stage - David is blind in seeing true evil before him, and continues his quest for success - by making a deal with the devil.

Third Stage - David is willing to fight to the end to achieve his ultimate goal of survival, despite his friends falling before his eyes one by one.

Fourth and Fifth Stage - David realizes how unwanted and unneeded he is and always was - causing his friends to die due to his involvements and shortcomings. If he was never there, none of this would have happened, and most of his friends would probably still be alive. He falls into deep depression and carries out the final task that he can do - making the Crypt.

Sixth Stage - David has lost all fear. He proclaims that he will become the Crypt Keeper and dedicates an eternity of serving as that title - all to redeem himself for his wrongdoings.

David never reached the Seventh and Eight stage of Withering, as Sol had mercy on his soul, seeing how much he is willing to do in order to redeem himself. Sol saw someone with a great future ahead of him, someone useful to Sol himself, as a carrier of his message. Thus, Sol shaped David's mind in the way that he seemed most fitting, revealing to him the nature of the temple that he unearthed, and what must become of it. This is where the "Halls of Fire", aka Dumenor, was born. This is where the name "Thoronor" comes from - as it directly translates to "Fire Eagle" - reminiscent of Kualii, the Ascended Mountain Eagle spirit, the "Phoenix". Thus, David dedicated majority of his existence to the restoration and completion of the sacred Temple of Holy Fire in Dumenor - dedicated to the Phoenix Kualii.

These dedicated efforts were acknowledged by the Enlightened Church of Sol, inviting David to join their religion. While David appreciated the invitation, he did not want to be involved (at the time) with all the customs and rites pertaining to ECOS. He was solely focused on following and worshiping the element of Fire itself, as he believed it to be the most raw proof of Sol's presence right before his eyes.

### Creation

Upon the successful completion and restoration of the Temple of Fire in Dumenor, as well as the discovery of other Elemental Temples and Gods, the Elemental Trials took place, where each Elemental God would choose champions to represent their element, putting them all in their respective elemental races. With David being chosen as a champion of Sol and placed in the Fire race, he saw this as an opportunity to share his knowledge both on the Fire God, the Phoenix and the Enlightened Church of Sol. The teachings of the ECOS can be quite confusing and difficult to grasp for someone who has never indulged in religion. Therefore, David created a whole new branch of Sol worship, the Enlightened Church of Fire - a more raw, primitive and simpler version of the ECOS, which mainly focuses on the direct worship of the Holy Fire and the Phoenix Kualii as the Spirit form of the Fire God.

The aim of the ECOF was to unite the entire Fire race under one faith and one church - the Enlightened Church of Fire, making them stronger through the ritualistic Baptism in Fire and launching a Holy Crusade towards the Fire Sanctuary at the Volcano, to reclaim, cleanse and protect the Fire Sanctuary from all heathens. During the events of the Elemental Trials, not only did the ECOF successfully complete its mission, they were able to baptize the majority of the elemental world in the Holy Fire and perform many miracles and feats of faith in the name of the Fire God.

### ECOF in Drevhall

Upon the completion of the Elemental Trials, and the return of all champions back to Drevhall, David - being the High Priest of the Enlightened Church of Fire, decided to make Dumenor not only the temple of Fire, but also the main temple of the ECOF religion, which people can visit and seek enlightenment via baptism in the Holy Fire. Those who get baptized in the Holy Fire receive numerous scriptures which teach them how to protect themselves from the harming effects of fire as well as how to use it to their advantage, along with 3 Blessings of Sol. Those who show true devotion to the Enlightened Church of Fire and the Holy Fire itself, by following the teachings of the religion, will receive the Fire Baptism Robes, which grant the wearer permanent Fire Resistance if the whole set is worn - This allows for whoever has them to perform voluntary baptisms to whoever wishes to join the faith, by lending the robes to whoever wishes to get baptized.

### Tenets

While the ECOF follows the same 4 Commandment Rays that the ECOS does, it has it's own 4 Tenets of Worship:

**Tenet 1 -** *Fire gives Enlightenment, never put mistrust in it.*

**Tenet 2 -** *Fire and Lava are the essence of this world, it is what keeps it moving. Move with it and use it to your advantage.*

**Tenet 3 -** *The Spirit of Fire is within you, let it engulf you. Let it consume you. Let it guide you on the road to Enlightenment.*

**Tenet 4 -** *The purpose of fire is to spread. Our mission is to blanket the world in beautiful ember.*

### Rites and Customs

While the Baptism in the Holy Fire is the most popular religious custom in the ECOF faith, every Enlightened member is trusted with following the Enlightened Journey.

#### The Enlightened Journey

- Once Enlightened, it is your duty to protect and serve the Enlightened Church of Fire and spread the word of Enlightenment to others.

- Take Daily ritualistic lava baths / fire baths to remind your fiery spirit of its origin.

- Convince and Persuade others to join the Road to Enlightenment and take part in the Baptism in Fire - regardless of their race or religion.

- Use the Holy Fire as both your main source of offense and defense. Reflect on the holy scriptures given to you on your baptism day.

- Once a month, embark on a pilgrimage to Dumenor in the Kingdom of Thoronor and bathe in the Holy Fire.

#### Ritualistic Baptisms

When a subject accepts the road of Enlightenment and comes to the church voluntarily to undergo the public ritual of Baptism by Fire, make sure that the subject puts all their belongings in a chest nearby, which will be kept safe from looters. A prayer is then recited by the Fire Priest towards the Holy Fire and the Fire God before the initiate. Once the subject is submerged in Lava, they will Reincarnate, be Reborn by the Phoenix and walk out of the lava unscathed. Greet them with the upmost respect and admiration as they have just become Enlightened, and lead them towards the chest with their belongings so that they may collect them.

#### Blessings of Sol

While not every subject will be willing to undergo an entire ritual for their Enlightenment, or they simply might not be aware of our faith, our missionaries will present our faith before them, asking if they have been Enlightened. If the answer is “YES”, the missionaries will gift a Blessing of Sol and allow the subject to step into fire or lava to celebrate their faith. If the answer is “NO”, the missionaries will place down a chest and allow the subject to place their items in there so that they don’t burn if they wish to receive the Blessing of Sol and get Enlightened. If the subject agrees, the missionaries will then submerge the subject in lava and celebrate their Enlightenment. For the missionaries, make sure to keep the initiates’ items safe in the chest and await for their enlightenment so that they can come and collect them.

#### Missionaries

In order to become a missionary, you must show true devotion to the Holy Fire and be willing to work with the ECOF in spreading its message. This is not an easy rank to achieve, and can only be granted by a Fire Priest. Likewise, missionaries are those who spread the word of the Holy Fire by Enlightening the masses and giving them the Blessings of Sol. These blessings can only be obtained in the Temple of Fire in Dumenor, and are distributed only by the High Priest of ECOF.

### Trivia

The symbol of the ECOF has been a topic for debate amongst many, trying to understand the reasoning behind it. The symbol represents 4 Flames, corresponding not only to the 4 Commandment Rays, but also to the 4 Tenets of the Enlightened Church of Fire.

Some rumors claim that the cross shaped symbol represents a depiction of a Phoenix through 4 Flames, some believe that the 4 Flames are a nod to the 4 Elements and how the Element of Fire is the one that caused the other 3 to exist in cohesion after the great collision, while others state that it is simply a memorial to how all 4 Races were Enlightened and baptized by the Holy Flame in the Elemental Trials.