The Verbil

The Verbil is the oldest account of Larian scripture written in Old Ysh. It is a first-hand account of the songs sung by Avelar and supposedly hand-written by Eliana. Most of it, however, was added by the first students of Larianism following the death of Avelar.

The Orthodox Verbil is divided into the **pre-journey songs** which were told by Avelar and written down by Eliana, the **Journeys** *(an account of the life of Avelar)* which were written by Laro Isaac, the **Meditations** *(personal writings of influential Larian thinkers)* which were written by multiple Laro, the **Prayers** *(a list of the most common prayers in Larianism)* which were written by multiple Laro, the **Proverbs** which are a collection of Larian wisdom, and the **Instructions** which were told by Avelar and inscribed into a gold tablet.

## The Scripture

### Ab Ovo *(from Avelar, by Eliana)*

They are the one true light

Which shone from within.

A single Spark

To channel all of Divinity.

From darkness, form.

From oblivion, meaning.

Lar is my Lord.

Formless void, now given shape,

The three sisters were born.

Cosmic clouds given for souls.

Cosmic stones given for bones.

Cosmic dust given for flesh.

Once there were none,

Now there were three.

Anima was the first to be born.

In the Eye of God,

Blessed are those

Who live in its Iris,

For it is Lar's sight;

The mercy of the infinite cosmos

And the love from within.

Then came Lunaria,

Young and pale.

Beautiful as is a pearl to the sea.

Lar gave her rule of the night.

When she became lonely,

Thousands of lights lit up

And lonely she was no more.

Finally came Solaria,

The burning flame,

The strength of Lar.

A light to shine beyond lies,

A flame to set fire to the unbelieving.

May they know we had to make it so

For there is no light without shadows.

Then there was a great stirring

From within the Lord.

And that stirring stirred all of Anima.

The Iris broke apart into four -

Senex, Tertia, Avorsus, Nuperus.

What a home may there be

In this garden of ours we will call home.

### The Song of Breath *(from Avelar, by Eliana)*

If the love of our Lord could be made into a sea,

It would cover all that was and will be.

And that calm and warm ocean

Would be full of droplets,

Millions of millions of millions

of loving souls,

The currents unyielding and the blue unending.

Anima was lonely as Lunaria was.

But the sky had been blessed with the lights already

So Lar made the land grow plants.

The trees were first.

They are the fortitude of life.

But Anima was not appeased,

And Lar sought to make her so.

Anima was lonely yet.

So Lar ushered in a great change.

Rivers and oceans began to fall from the sky,

Watering the plants and making more of them root.

Tiny critters walked along their slender bodies.

But Anima was not appeased,

And Lar sought to make her so.

Anima was lonely still.

So Lar made the best of their works.

On that blessed day, the heavens split,

The clouds were humbled and made to kneel

Before the glory of our Lord.

And Anima was intrigued.

And Lar had made it so.

The clouds danced in circles of seven.

What a beautiful song which was sung,

The melody of creation.

The clouds were given form.

This form was given color.

This color was given voice.

The Libridei, God's Children, were born.

### The Song of Reward *(from Avelar, by Eliana)*

We were made to resemble our Lord.

They have us grace, to soar the skies.

They gave us love, to create in Their name.

They gave us hope, to wake to another dawn.

They gave us reason, to be able to see.

They gave us everything,

So that we may give back tenfold.

Blessed is the one

Who can truly see,

Truly hear and feel.

For they must know

That they do so

Through the gifts of Lar,

And many there were and will be.

As life was a gift to Anima,

Anima is a gift to us.

We drink of her rivers.

We partake in her fruits.

We plough her soil.

We trim her trees.

The Lord is fair.

Seeing as Their children toiled

Beneath Solaria and over Anima,

The Lord made Their mercy known.

What power it must be

To speak Creation into Being

Yet to have your words be soft still.

We are unworthy of the gifts to come.

It was the will of God,

So it was willed to be.

A great statue was made

By Their hand alone;

A gift to the people

Something to outshine

All of creation.

It was the height of a hundred and twenty thumbs,

And wide by 80 the same thereof,

Of a metal as white as snow,

But as warm as blood.

In its peaceful moments,

The egg would hum

And speak to those who believed.

"This is Our OVUM.

It is the Shell that holds all life.

It is the one truth that is.

Our love for you, Our children,

Holds no bounds.

Place your hands upon Our work

And you will bridge every expanse."

One by one,

They touched the OVUM.

The bodies were struck by the light of lightning,

But none were harmed.

The eyes were given a heavenly glow,

As the arms spoke one truth:

"We are your Lord God."

Now wielding the Vis - the Power of Lar,

The Libridei worked no longer.

They made the animals and the beasts of the land,

Who would work for them instead.

One who has the power of Lar

Needn't fear any adversity

For there is nothing insurmountable before Them.

### The Song of War *(from Avelar, by Eliana)*

Know you all who hear me,

The Lord's mercy may be misused.

When would a father slay his son?

How could a mother unbirth her daughter?

A parent's duty is to love.

But from the greatest love

Comes the greatest pain.

Forewarn your hearts, people

For the roots of sin shoot fast and grow deep.

The soul of a wretch is fertile to the seeds of greed and pride.

They are the flowers of the undeserving

Which bloom in discord.

No matter how pretty the garden when they bloom

Soon it will wither and perish before itself.

Those who find comfort in these,

In the sins of pride and greed,

They will inherit ruin.

Those whose arms embrace the Lord

Will know Their path.

The Path of Lar is in every blossom;

It leads to all places good and well.

Hail him as your false god, wretches,

Rex Spes Gemini, the Lord of Greed and Pride.

May larcenous hands know naught

But the sharp steel above and beneath.

Let it be known

He who steals from the Lord

Steals their place at Their side.

Proud, he stood, Rex Gemini.

But a wretch has nothing to be proud of.

The mountain may be proud,

As may the sea and the sky.

How can a child of the Lord live proudly

When to lick, it bites

Everso the patient hand which feeds?

They spoke for seven days and seven nights.

From their mouths spilled words.

The same used by Lar to speak Creation.

But these mouths were deserts

Compared to the sea.

No one listens to the words of wretches

Save for the trees and the stones.

"Why have you abandoned us, o Lord?

Has your heart grown hard?

What must we give you

In return for our salvation?

Is this our punishment, perhaps a test?

Answer, o Lord, we beseech you.

Wise and powerful, Lar!"

"Were a shepherd to strike his sheep

I would turn away my gaze," Lar replied.

"What use is a wing, were the air still?

What use is reason, were all revealed?

What use is love, if it comes from force?

My child, I leave this to you, because I have faith, and you must too.

He who has not lost, may never truly win."

Hope is but a fantasy when faced with war.

The first blow was dealt and all came crashing down.

The joy of Creation, its children, usurped by sin.

Could gold turn to rust, it would at the sight of this Tragedy.

The fire of hope, dimmed to an ember,

Until naught but cinders remained.

The world heard the Lord's heart break and it was a time of mourning.

The face of war is also Lar's creation,

But it is a fiend onto all life;

Unfair and unkind.

The eyes of war seek only the next target.

There is no comfort, no respite from carnage.

All of Creation possesses that maddening gaze,

Yet all fear it turned onto themselves.

Those good children had gone mad.

The power to create was used to destroy.

The seas shot up.

Mountains were torn down.

The sky wailed for years and years.

The earth was fed fire and blood,

Until its core grew full.

Fearing complete annihilation,

One day there was a terrible rumbling under the City of God.

The clouds danced and yielded to the power of Lar.

Stone was sundered from stone and took flight.

"Keep away from this, the Holy City, all you who know war.

Your inheritance is now the soil you tainted with Our blood.

May your burden be light and your lesson eternal."

### The Song of Avelar *(from Avelar, by Eliana)*

In his heavenly grace,

An angel of the Lord appeared before the people,

Stepping from a pillar of blinding light,

Which stabbed the sands of the Tizel,

On that, the year of our Lord 333,

333 years after our Lord lost faith.

Now Their servant visits Their flock.

So many eyes were turned to this messenger,

But none dared to approach.

For the stories of the power of the Children

Were still fresh in the minds of the mortals.

None would dare disturb those

Who have heard the Lord's will

As their power is beyond strength.

On the first day,

They turned to their stone idols for guidance.

Having forgotten their Lord,

Lar made no response to them.

And the stone was silent.

For a thing may only speak

The words given to it by Lar.

On the second day,

They prayed to the waters which fall from Elisium.

Having forgotten their Lord,

Lar made no response to them.

And the waters flowed without word.

For a thing may only speak

The words given to it by Lar.

On the third day,

They turned to the sky and the two sisters above.

Having forgotten their Lord,

Lar made no response to them.

And the sky fell silent, the two sisters continued their dance.

For a thing may only speak

The words given to it by Lar.

On the fourth day,

From the crowd stepped forth

The Holy Maiden, Eliana.

She approached the winged messenger

And asked:

"Who are you to be among us?

What is the name given to you by our Lord?"

The messenger spoke:

"I am Avelar, a messenger of your Lord and God, Lar.

Your minds have forgotten, but your hearts have not.

Be not afraid, for they are among us, the works of Lar."

Avelar's mighty wings unfurled

And Eliana's knee was the first to bend before the Messiah of the Lord.

Lar smiled upon her.

Avelar made way to Eliana, who remained kneeling.

Without word, the messenger knelt in front and stirred the sands,

As a baker would dough.

The unyielding sands of the Tizel yielded before Lar.

Bearing fruit of a supple and vivacious red.

"Feed your children with these

And all those who follow the word of God."

They called it "Nes" - the miracle fruit.

For so long the people had forgotten Their word.

For so long had Anima been robbed of Lar's name.

No longer will wretches rule the lands,

For the name of our Lord is glory made speech.

And when every corner of every land has heard his song,

Will the reward be a new fruit, one of a lost taste.

### 1 Journeys *(by Isaac)*

Come the first year of his many journeys,

Avelar and Eliana made way to a village in the Tizel.

The people had named it Gavar after their stone idol.

Avelar, Eliana, and their humble host came to this village,

Where the Lord's name was forgotten.

"He who has yet to hear the name of our Lord

Earns nothing but pity from Them, not Their ire."

The people looked to the Messiah and they scowled.

"What business have you here, winged one?"

"I walk the Path of Lar, the Lord your God

Whose name has fled your people"

"The name of our god is Gavar, keeper of the harvest."

Avelar turned to Eliana:

"Teach your people how they might love again."

Eliana did speak:

"Your god is to Lar what dust is to the storm."

The people's ire waxed hot.

"Gavar is made of stone, true to form. Where is your Lar?"

Eliana did not speak, for she did not know where Lar was.

But Avelar knew and he gestured to all around him.

"Behold, the works of our Lord."

"Solaria which gives warmth to your wives is Lar.

The sands of the Tizel, every grain was crafted by Lar.

The four rivers, all fall for Lar.

The mountains, they stretch out in Lar's name.

Elisium above, a stone which has taken flight.

Might your Gavar perform such works?

Does his beauty give peace to this world?"

All fell silent save for the man Gabriel.

"All these works are for us, made by Gavar

In his name, we will find salvation."

Avelar replied:

"Your false belief will turn you into a wretch,

A stranger to the Lord."

Gabriel spat at Avelar.

Avelar did not waver, nor did he retaliate.

Gabriel grew bold and then called him a bastard.

Avelar wavered not, holding firm.

Gabriel grew bolder and threw sand at the Messiah.

But his bulwark was the Lord, undeterred.

Finally, he pulled a sword and went to swing at Eliana,

But the sword broke against her flesh for Lar had willed it so.

Gabriel's and every other knee bent before the Lord

Avelar told them the words of Lar:

"Blessed are those who are humble before Us

For We shall suffer no pride at Our side.

Truly, We have only made room for those

Who would give and those who would believe."

### 2 Journeys *(by Isaac)*

During the second year of their journeys,

Avelar, Eliana, Gabriel, the humble host, and the faithful of Gavar

Happened upon a caravan of those who wander through the wastes.

At their head was the leader Maor.

And his caravan stretched into the dozens

Of those who followed him,

And what he stood for.

When Avelar approached and wished them peace,

Maor instructed his people not to respond.

Gabriel spoke out of turn:

"My brother, this is the Messiah before you

His peace is the peace of Lar."

"What have I of his peace?

I would do with his God clearing the storm ahead."

True it was, a storm raged in the Tizel.

Sands of the speed that shredded flesh.

Gabriel emplored Avelar:

"Avelar, show him the works of our Lord,

They, the only force able to calm a storm with less than a word."

Avelar thought for a moment and chose to sit in the sand.

His wings gave shade to the believing.

"The Lord is not a tool to be used, Gabriel.

They are the reason for the use itself."

And Gabriel was humbled, and all were humbled.

All save for Maor, who spoke:

"What use is your God when we have our own?"

He pulled out a golden mammon.

He who takes gold as their Lord shall inherit nothing.

Avelar made a fire light in the sand.

"Throw your wealth into the flame.

He who believes in Lar, needn't have want for anything else.

Golden is the love of our Lord."

Maor refused,

And his people begged.

His heart only hardened.

Maor tried to bury the flames in sand.

The fires were fed with the works of Lar.

Maor tried to pour what water they had left.

The fires were fed with the works of Lar.

Maor tried to stomp his foot, to kill the flame.

The fires were fed with the works of Lar.

His clothes caught fire, but his skin was untouched.

Maor was stripped bare before the Lord,

The image he was fashioned into by Lar.

He gave away his mammon and the fires ate it.

The storm gave way to the faithful

And behind it was a beautiful haven.

"Whatever you give to Us,

We will return sevenfold."

### 3 Journeys *(by Isaac)*

During the third year of their journeys,

Avelar, Eliana, Gabriel, Maor,

And the humble host, and the faithful of Gavar, and the caravan,

Came upon a field where blood had been spilled.

The banner of the eagle flew high and mighty

Of that empire which ruled the Tizel,

The one they called Chazak.

Avelar and his students walked to the field where corpses lay.

They blessed them and wished them a calm afterlife.

A woman who they called Dafna came and approached the Messiah,

"Good sir, you have the look of magic about you.

Please, if it be within your heart, help my boy to live."

"Were I ever to turn an ear from a cry

May the Lord strike me where I stand."

Dafna took them to her boy who lay wounded on the field.

"Help my boy, Asher."

Avelar knelt beside him and placed his hands on his body.

A warm light emanated from his skin.

And what damage was done

The Lord had taken away.

Asher awoke, blessed by the Lord.

The day passed and they all walked the field

In search of the wounded and the dead.

The wounded were given respite,

The dead were given shade.

In the embrace of the Lord,

There is nothing to fear

But one's own arrogance; no other fault is greater.

Asher, the son, happened upon Herut,

The mighty warrior.

She lay on the ground among the dead,

But her heart blood was warm.

Asher remembered her face

And his ire waxed hot

And his arm went for his blade.

In his fury, Asher struck the wounded Herut,

But the blade broke against her flesh.

"What sorcery is this, to make stone from flesh?"

Avelar replied:

"No sorcery, but the will of our Lord God.

What They will, be done.

What They don't will, be gone.

"Slay her, Avelar. Lar knows it to be just."

"What pride an ant must hold to know the thoughts of a man!"

"She has killed a hundred of those whose names I knew!"

"She will then repent a hundred times over.

Be merciful to each other as your Lord is to you.

Their mercy is an endless well

From which we may also draw to drink."

### 4 Journeys *(by Isaac)*

During the fourth year of their journeys,

Avelar, Eliana, Gabriel, Maor, Dafna, Asher, Herut,

And the humble host, and the faithful of Gavar, and the caravan, and the soldiers of God,

Came upon a city of Chazak,

Built of the stone of the sand,

With a castle that housed

A mighty noble house called Java.

Having heard of Avelar,

Lord Josiah Java summoned the Larians.

"You come before me, Messiah,

And you offer no gifts?

Does your Lord not teach you respect?"

"My gift to you cannot be held

It is majestic, yet you must wait for it to come."

King Josiah was intrigued

And allowed the host to stay.

Day after day, Avelar taught the King.

The King once spoke:

"There are Kings to the south

Who threaten my lands,

And you advise patience?"

"The glories of both peace and war

Come to those who believe in the Lord.

A flower must grow to bloom."

"What if they cross the border?" the King asked.

"Whosoever would dare to march against Us

Shall know Our just but mighty retribution."

"To the stranger who gives you a mammon

You shall give him two.

To the foe that spares you

You shall spare him too.

Only harm deserves retribution, however,

Blessed are those who oppose rage

With the love of the Lord."

As the King had feared, an army crossed his border.

A host of a hundred thousand strong.

The King begged Avelar to save them,

But Avelar simply pointed to the sky.

Out of the heavens came a bright light.

Whoever it touched, turned to sandstone.

"War makes even the softest hearts turn to stone."

The King amassed his own army,

But Avelar bid him turn them away.

"We may win if we press the attack."

"Whoever wins a war, loses favor in the eyes of the Lord."

The King relented and turned his men back.

"Blessed are the peacemakers, the true Children of God."

### 5 Journeys *(by Isaac)*

During the fifth year of their journeys,

Avelar, Eliana, Gabriel, Maor, Dafna, Asher, Herut, Prince Java,

And the humble Larian host of many peoples,

Came upon a home in the desert.

One of the men of the host was afflicted and needed rest.

The people pleaded with the shepherd Zamir

And he turned them away.

"Treat your fellow man

As you wish the Lord to treat you."

Zamir spat on the ground and went back inside.

The sick man of the host grew worse

So they had to find new lodgings

Which were safe from this desert sun.

A gift, but also a test from Lar.

The second home belonged to a wicked widow.

They called her Rivka.

She offered to help, but demanded some gold.

The people went to pay her, but Avelar stopped and turned:

"Those who would use another's weakness

Are true wretches in the eyes of the Lord.

They will be asked to pay to reunite with Them in the next life."

The third home had its door wide open.

The man Malkiel went out and knelt before the Messiah:

"He has finally come, my saving grace, the herald of the Lord."

Not only did Malkiel allow them to stay,

But he fed the man and gave him his clothes.

He did not let his servants bathe him, for he did it alone.

"Why fear what's to come, when all roads lead to Lar?"

Come a day's time and Malkiel falls ill as well.

Avelar asked him:

"Why have you done this?

You've nursed my man back to health,

But have sacrificed your own."

Malkiel whispered softly:

"If all I was ever to do, was to help your man live longer

Then I am happy to have served the Lord.

For Them no price is too steep."

Avelar placed his hand on Malkiel's forehead

And he drew the fever from him and turned it into a flame.

Later came Zamir and Rivka to the estate,

No longer were they rich or proud.

They had been humbled.

"Those who try to rise above Us,

We shall humble before the meekest of creatures."

They did not turn them away.

Instead, they helped them true.

Avelar delivered the words of the Lord:

"No matter who you are or what you've done

You will find forgiveness in Us.

You will find love in Us after your first mistake,

And after your thousandth all the same."

### 6 Journeys *(by Isaac)*

During the sixth year of their journeys,

Avelar and Eliana, and all those who marched along,

A country's worth of people walked among them,

Not in size of number, but in size of character.

The Tizel was blessed to hold such guests,

Who came from the side of the Lord.

Muvtach'vyt was the site of their rest,

A glorious city in the sand.

Built by the Yshta after their exile from the Lord.

Even Lar looked upon the walls and saw beauty,

And dead things are seldom beautiful to Lar,

For the eyes of the Lord

Are bound to that which draws breath.

Those pretty walls hid a terrible thing within.

One which may bring a tear to Lar,

May be the enslavement of the other.

No one believer shall hold the whip over the other.

He who would place the yoke over another

Shall be bound to the Evanescence for as many cycles

As there were links in those shackles.

Men, women, and children alike

Walked the stone paths in feet bare and bloody,

Carrying the toils of their world on them.

Blessed are they who work,

For in work they are near the Lord.

Damn those who would force work onto another.

They will work in the next life, while the slave shall rest under the shade.

Avelar approached a woman who they called Dana.

Avelar placed his hand upon the yoke

And it turned to sand.

"The neck is no place for irons.

The yoke constricts the body and the mind."

"How can I thank you, my Lord?"

"I am not your Lord, child. LAROVUM is Their name."

"How may I give thanks to Them?"

Avelar smiled:

"How may an apple give thanks to the tree?

Be plentiful, be red, spread your seed, and make merry those who know you."

A harsh voice tore the peace:

"What is the meaning of this?"

A man of the Chazak came to see the Lord's messenger.

The slaver grabbed the free slave by the hair,

But Lar made it so that her hair was as sharp as glass and it cut the slaver.

In that fear, he sat and looked to Avelar who raised his hand:

"Behold, the works of our Lord."

Solaria pulsed and all the iron of that mighty city

Gave way before our Lord and turned to sand.

No shackles or yokes, no swords or crowns.

### 7 Journeys *(by Isaac)*

During the seventh year of their journeys,

Avelar and Eliana, and all those who marched along,

They were the souls of the blessed,

God's righteous nation under the red Solaria.

Those who walk with Us

Will be given the fruits of respite.

The others will be tried for their pride.

The host of the faithful happened upon a mighty sight in the desert,

A man who they named Michael lay on the ground.

Behind him a torn building stood in ruin.

It was a temple to the Lord

Made by the hands of those They abandoned.

Such was the Lord's sorrow

That They wept once more.

Avelar moved to speak to the man:

"What a work you've made here in the Tizel."

Michael grieved, still on the ground:

"But they tore it down. I've failed the Lord."

"Those among you who create in the Lord's name

Will earn the Lord's gaze;

The greatest of all honors."

"The Lord's home may never be torn down.

Its stone may fade and its wood burn,

But the home remains.

In Our home, all shelter be given,

No food may be wanted for,

No harm may come to the soul of the believer.

Grace be your boon."

"He who builds a home in this life shall become a Stella in the next.

He who cares for another will have the Lord care for them.

He who believes will earn the belief of the Lord.

He who knows the name of God will have his name remembered.

May I then come into your church and pray?"

"But, it is in ruins still."

"You see ruins, but I see the Kingdom of God."

Avelar came into the Church of Michael

And knelt before the altar to give thanks to the Lord:

"Great Creator, Lord of Heaven and of Anima,

God of the People, our hope, Lar,

See how they love You again?

They had but only forgotten.

I needn't do any else but mention Your good name."

The heavens split and there was a mighty light.

A voice of the sound of God boomed from about everywhere.

"Avelar, We offer you the comfort of Our side."

Every knee bent and every breath froze as Avelar humbled himself:

"Lar, my God, I have yet to tell everyone of Your glory.

They know but one mere tenth"

"They cannot know more, for We have found it too much."

### The Song of Redemption *(by Raphael)*

In the quiet hours of the night of the dimming harvest,

Came a time when Avelar and Lar's mighty host came upon a man.

Jacob Katan was his name.

But he was not alone.

He fought with a mighty beast

Which the Children named the Wyrm,

Which burrowed beneath the sand.

Avelar summoned forth the power of Lar

And prayed for aid,

And the Lord did answer,

For They are always on the side of the righteous.

And so a spear of white metal came into his grip, and the Lord spoke:

"With this instrument of battle

You will be able to slay many great things."

Avelar flew in the direction of the creature.

Jacob spotted the flying Libridei and ducked.

With one clean thrust, the Wyrm was dead,

And Jacob saved.

In this confusion, Jacob reached out to Avelar

Who threw him the spear.

Jacob grabbed it and pierced the creature one last time.

Avelar spoke:

"You are God's Spear, Jacob Katan."

Jacob grinned, somewhat humbled:

"I only serve my Lord Emperor."

Eliana interjected:

"No crown may weigh enough

to outweigh the Lord."

Jacob spoke:

"Lar gives not my family food during a famine,

Nor respite during pestilence.

I turn to Emperor for mercy."

"If that is the case, you drink from a puddle

Which is meters away from an endless well,

The waters of which run fresh."

Jacob Katan took Avelar to Emperor.

Emperor spoke:

"Kneel before us, herald of Lar, and we shall give you safe passage."

Avelar replied, and his party agreed:

"This knee bends only to one King,

They who reign supreme in the heavens.

They who have made the ground you rule."

Emperor's wrath waxed hot, hotter than any flame.

He had them imprisoned and starved.

When he brought them back hungry, he asked:

"Does the pain of hunger bend your knees?"

Avelar produced a loaf of bread from his hands:

"Those who believe in Us,

We shall never allow to grow hungry."

Emperor had them locked away again,

This time they would be denied the breeze,

And would stir in their cells for days like in an oven.

When he brought them out, he asked:

"Can the heat bend the knees of the faithful?"

A cool breeze came from Avelar's wings

"Under Our name, is the greatest shade."

Emperor's wrath waxed even hotter and he threw Jacob in with them too.

The great cell had a lion within.

The lion pounced and began to lick Avelar's face.

The two shared a moment of play before the lion fell asleep.

Avelar helped Jacob up:

"If you see an unruly beast or a gathering storm

Simply remind them who their Lord is."

Emperor's wrath had reached its peak.

He locked all the believers in an arena and set fire to its ground.

As the fires burned, the people inside were unscathed.

All chose to kneel, but not to Emperor

Avelar spoke:

"No fire shall reach Our believers,

For even the fire serves Our cause."

Emperor's anger had cooled, now remained cunning:

"Oh herald, kill the man Katan before you

And I shall spread the name of your God to my Empire"

Avelar replied:

"Why go through fire to reach Lar,

When They will always be among us.

Heed not the words of the silver-tongued."

Emperor calmed and one of their men threw a spear at Jacob in rage.

Avelar stopped it and gave it to Katan who dared to aim it back.

But Avelar stopped him.

"No mortal blood shall be spilled here,

Lest the Lord so command."

"Kill him, and Lar's name will prevail."

"The same as if you were to stop a wave, and hope the sea to end. It will not."

Emperor had had enough:

"Slay them and bring me the head of the Messiah."

A hundred arrows shattered against Avelar's body.

"My faith is a bulwark against your wretched ways."

They fired ten more times before Emperor commanded:

"He who brings me his head

I shall fashion into a king."

A wave of a thousand arrows was loose upon all of them.

And Avelar spread his wings to shield his people.

And all were safe beneath the feathers of the Lord.

When Avelar retracted his wings,

Heaven cried.

For a child of the Lord

Had been stuck with a spear of Their making.

Katan had driven the spear into Avelar's side

The light from him dimmed as the host rose up to slay the traitor.

But Avelar intervened:

"Stay your wroth-ready hands.

Forgive him for what he has done.

He surely does not know the price

Of what his pride has made him do."

Eliana comforted the dying Avelar:

"Most Holy and Holiest of all,

Bring peace to Your humble servant.

He has given his life to You.

And forgive the wretches who doomed us so.

We yearn for the whole.

But know less than a tenth."

"Forgive them, Lord.

They are full of so much love,

But that love is weak to pride.

Remember that they are but children.

Sing them a happy song.

Keep them in Your gaze.

Leave them not, as I must do now."

Emperor's men fired another volley, killing all

All but Katan.

A mark grew on him, on his forehead.

When Emperor ordered another volley,

It was so.

But Jacob Katan still lived,

And he would never die.

"The work of Our messenger is finished.

You have been given Our name.

We will forgive those who follow Our word.

It is finished and the truth is this;

Whoever gives up their pride

And allows Us into their heart

Will be admitted into Our Kingdom."

"We will leave you now,

But We have forgiven.

We forgive even the wretch Katan,

Who burnt the house which sheltered him from the rain.

We forgive those who will forget Us.

We forgive all who repent.

Our name is Mercy, We are Lar."

### 1 Meditations *(From Eliana, by Sarah)*

When any man would choose the sword,

There was only mercy in the Lord.

Truly, They are above us in every way.

Give Them your thanks on every Laris.

As from the Egg we are given new life even in death.

You should hold no other gods

Before Lar, for They are the only truth.

Take heed to keep the Lord in your hearts

During the most pleasant summers,

When the harvest is to ripen boldly.

If you do so, the Lord shall keep you too

When the coldest of winters comes.

"You have kept Us even during your finest peace,

So We will keep you during your most trying times."

Work for the Lord your God,

Not for the sad world of men.

There will come a day

When Solaria ceases to shine

And the waves refuse to retreat.

Even then, Lar will remain eternal,

For eternity is within Them, truly.

Cast your blame aside

During your darkest moments.

They are not the Lord's burden to bear.

No fury may excuse such blasphemy.

Were God to rid you of your problems,

You would claim Them to be a tyrant.

Live as life is to be lived, but give thanks to the Lord.

I have been taught by Avelar

A great and powerful truth about the Lord.

Their mercy is without fault and Their judgment just as so.

Know the word of Lar:

"He who rises in pride will be made to kneel.

He who kneels in humility will be made to rise.

Such is Our will."

The Lord spoke to me

When I had watered the last of the plants.

A doubt beset me about the coming years

And the trials ahead.

But no doubts live near Them:

"Fear not, for I am your God.

I will give you strength when needed, and I will give you peace when earned."

Avelar told me of a man he called the beggar

Which I laughed at since he was a King.

But Avelar is much wiser than I,

For the man truly was a beggar in heart.

"The Lord will sooner accept a man by Their side

Who but said: `I believe in you, Lord.`

Than the man who said: `I have lived as you commanded.'"

All of you were born to this world for a cause

Known only to the wisdom of the exalted one.

For some, that fate will be small to them,

But all lives are great to the Lord who made them.

But forget this not;

When the Lord calls to you, be not afraid.

They have need and only you will do.

### 2 Meditations *(by Ophelia)*

I have seen the body of our Lord;

They are gracious and revel in Mercy.

Open in Their name.

Loving beyond all.

Strong and fair.

But ever Merciful.

That is what I have seen.

What says the Lord on the other gods?

"You will have those among you

Who will build idols and worship fake names.

We allow them to believe as We allow you to believe.

Tell them their gods are theirs.

We love them too, for their love alone.

But We are your God, and you shall have none before Us."

"We would sooner suffer a wretch

Who has spat on Our holy name

But has given grace to their fellow man,

Than a true believer

Who has left a harvest sown of malice in his wake.

We are easier to forgive ignorance, than malice.

This is Our will."

"Our word is simple and short.

Spread it to all of your nations

So that all may enjoy in Us.

May they baptize their sons

In the name of the Lord.

For We yearn to hear everyone's prayers;

Our ears are kind to all your weary tongues."

### 3 Meditations *(by Matthew)*

"Draw your strength from Our name.

In your search alone

There is strength.

For look unto Us,

We will conquer this world;

Not by the sword,

But through your hearts."

The Lord is my guiding light,

My beacon in the darkness.

They will guide me through the wasteland

To the sleepy meadows.

I fear not what may come,

For I draw my strength from Them,

And They are powerful indeed.

The pleasure given to you

By your wretched sins

Is a pitiful wage.

He who sins is paid in transient joys,

But he who serves the Lord

Will be paid sevenfold

In Their embrace and Their love.

### Songs of Prayer

In the name of the Lord, our God, the humble the merciful, Lar.

Praised be our Lord God. May Their virtues be sung until the end of time.

Let us recount the fallen and the lost. May the Lord guide them on their paths back to Them.

Lord, keep me in Your grace.

Blessed are You, our Lord, who has made Being from nothing.

There is no place where I may be alone,

For You are always with me, Lord.

When all has failed me

And the world has gone dark,

Your strength will hold me,

And I will see Your wonders

And know You are beside me.

Oh, Lord, hear you humble servant

Steel my heart against evil

And shield my soul

May I brave this coming storm.

Lord, judge my heart.

It is riddled with pain.

Make it nought,

So that I might feel your love once more.

If I am to die,

Seat me in death by your side.

May my deeds be enough

To earn your loving gaze.

You are that which makes the skies turn,

That which gives strength to men.

Forgive me, Lord, for I have sinned.

Grant this wretch a morsel of your divine mercy.

Blessed be your servants

Champions of the Lord

For in their deeds, Your will is written.

Blessed are those who face evil

Yet waver not in its face.

### Proverbs

Overcome sin,

For Our strength is in you.

Were the world to fall to sin,

Overcome the world.

He who seeks, he shall so find.

He who wanders will be found.

We have never commanded you.

Follow in Us out of your own will.

You are not worthy of the Lord's grace

But They offer it nonetheless.

Lar has given us power

In face of our doubt.

We love him who has triumphed over water

More so than he who has beaten back flames.

Teach your children how to love in place of hate

And you will have made love the chief response.

Fools fear the Lord.

Fools worship Them as the Lord.

Their favorites offer them a child's love.

A good child is worth more than a kingdom of men.

The heart is the gateway to both all virtue and all vice.

Only Their faithful will use Their words as a bulwark.

The wretched will bind them to their swords.

Knowledge to the mind,

Love to the heart,

And belief to the soul,

Are what a whetstone is to a blade.

He who knows many names

Is richer for them.

He who may yet smile

Brings joy to the Lord.

Destruction is the only inheritance of the prideful.

Friends are for calm seas,

Brothers are for the storms.

Your tongue may hold more power than you might think.

Even God spoke Creation into Being.

### Instructions

1. We are your Lord, your God. You will have no other gods before Us.

2. Do not hate those who do not believe in Us. Instead, teach them if they allow you.

3. Remember Us on your holiest day.

4. Love your family as you love your Lord.

5. Cause harm unto no other, even if you feel it is just.

6. You will hold the Lord's name above greed or pride.

7. You will show mercy to your fellow man, as We have shown mercy to you all.