T’Zyri

A Goddess of few followers and even fewer Devout, T’Zyri is known by many names: the Secret Keeper, the Schemer, the Scarred Princess, the Snake, the Usurper, the Spider. All names that speak to her strange yet unshakable place on the Pantheon. While the events of the Blood War involved many players, it is unquestionable that T’Zyri invited the greatest upsets in the war. And, indeed, her rise to power is both marred and emblazoned by the fruits of her machinations.

Prior to the Blood War, T’Zyri was a lesser goddess and the twin sister of T’Rer, the former leader of the Pantheon. Like her brother and father, T’Zyri was a goddess of knowledge. Unlike her brother, a God of truth and honesty, T’Zyri favored secrets. These secrets, it is believed, are among many tools that T’Zyri used to climb the ranks and claim her own place on the Pantheon.

T’Zyri is engimatic and her true role on the Pantheon is poorly understood by most Mortals. T’Zyri’s brother, T’Rer, as a God of Knowledge and Justice, served as an arbiter among the Gods and a general model for Mortal conduct. T’Zyri, while a goddess of knowledge, conceals herself from Mortal view and rarely openly shares her thoughts. However, she does hold a considerable amount of power: T’zyri possesses the Book of Deeds, which is a record of all things The Devout have done.

T’Zyri’s brother T’Rer presided over The Book of Deeds, but, unlike his sister, was never able to personally possess it. The artifact, it is said, contains the true potential of the Mortal World, and only T’Zyri can read it in its entirety.

As she holds the Book of Deeds, T’Zyri is one of two goddesses associated with Death (the other being Kasamei). The Book of Deeds allows Devout who have perished the chance to return to life. All Devout who have died may, rather than meet their final end, write one of their deeds in the Book. If they fail to offer a Deed, or if T’Zyri deems their Deed unworthy of return, they are taken to their final death. When this happens, the souls of the finally departed are shepherded to Kasamei–what happens in the space between stars is known only to Kasamei and those truly Dead.

Whether or not she appreciates the attention, T’Zyri is popular among social outcasts. This is in part due to her history: T’Zyri used to be known as The Beautiful One. This was before her ascension to the Pantheon: while the origins of T’Zyri’s scarred face are unknown, folklore suggests that Hyrnedhna, during her fall, raked T’Zyri’s face with venomous claws. In stories, T’Zyri was the likely Consort-in-Waiting to Beodhen, which would have made her considerably more powerful should she have joined the King of Beasts. However, as a God of beauty and perfection, Beodhen was unlikely to reward T’Zyri’s loyalty with the loss of her countenance. T’Zyri is rarely seen among Mortals, but it is generally believed that she wears her scar proudly–perhaps as a challenge to those that might attempt to unseat her.

The Devout of T’Zyri

T’Zyri has a smattering of followers, but is generally not popular for worship: this is due only to her general disinterest in her followers. As one of the gods seemingly neutral to the world of the Living, she rarely affords Miracles or favor to her followers. Nevertheless, those committed to T’Zyri’s purpose follow her without promise of reward.

Followers of T’Zyri often categorically reject standards of perfection and will often scar their faces as an act of both political refusal and worship. There are various cults of social outcasts who are pious to T’Zyri as a manifestation of imperfection amongst even the gods.

T’Zyri and the Layfolk

Of all the Pantheon, T’Zyri is the least popular among the common Layfolk, and many are largely indifferent to her. Since the Book of Deeds protects only The Devout from final Death, her concerns are largely outside those of everyday people.

However, Layfolk who consider themselves outcasts and loners will often follow Devout worship leaders committed to T’Zyri, and the goddess has a few surprising enclaves of Layfolk followers.

Costuming and Appearance

On the rare occasions T’Zyri has appeared before Mortals, she has been plainly dressed. She wears only a simple black dress and veils which cover her hair and face. Often, she will wear a mask to cover the scarring on her face, though the mask itself is scarred, suggesting it is ironic in nature.

Followers of T’Zyri often follow her model: they dress in simple black clothes with subtle silver, red, green, and gold accents. Some Devout may decide to scar their bodies, but many more do not widely share that they follow the Goddess.

The Blessed

T’Zyri very rarely blesses Devout, and only her High Priest and ranking Clergy bear her Blessing, which manifests as spiderwebs on their faces.