The Lady's Cathedral
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Image Copyright © Jonathon Earl Bowser. Used with permission.
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The Queen leads you into a triangular cathedral. It is beautiful, but also rather strange to your foriegn eyes. The walls are dark, midnight blue, as is the tile on the floor, but all of the decorations are done in soft white. You wonder why a cathedral would be so somber when religion is, in most cultures you know of, uplifting.
A woman at the alter stands and turns to you. She had been kneeling, her head bowed. You assume she was praying.
"Good dai, Lavinia," the Queen greets.
"Yes, it is, your Majesty," the woman smiles. She looks your way in inquiry.
"I'm giving our visitor a tour of the castle," the Queen explains. "This is Lavinia, Head Priestess. Would you mind explaining our religion?"
Her smile grows. "Hmmm, of course not." She seems amused, though you have no idea why. "You may have noticed the Queen or other people you've visited saying things like "Katrian" or "the Lady." Our religion is Katrian, as is our language and way of living. We worship the Lady, or the Goddess. Most people call Her the Lady, I think. She has a name, but it is so sacred that we cannot say it aloud. Only a few people even know it, but if you are of the Katrian religion, if you were to hear it said you would recognize it immediately, whether you knew it before or not.
"The Lady's sign is the Crescent Moon. She always has great power over our land, especially because She has Her own avatar in the hands of their Majesties--"
"My husband's sword, Radiance," the Queen said.
"--but when the moon is in it's crescent stage, She is the most powerful. Some can even feel Her presence.
"As I said, we follow the Katrian way of living. It was determined by our Lady long ago. The rulers of the land work for their subjects. The subjects work to provide the land and it's inhabitants with all they need. No matter what the color of your skin is or your gender, you are as equal as the next person. All animals are treated with respect. The BrotherMages, though they only work for themselves, are also to be treated with respect. No ruler has the right to do anything unjust or cruel. Every person has the choice of what to do for the rest of their life. These are the things that make AeaTr as strong as it is, because this way everything is in harmony.
"I said the Lady has an avatar, and the Queen supplied the name Radiance. Radiance is the sword that was made for the High King James on his journey to Tr. It is a long-sword, and the words "I am Radiance" are written on the blade. In it is the soul of one of the Lady's Stars; in other religions they are called Angels. We still do not know her real name, or why she was chosen. I suppose the Lady does not want us to know."
The Queen nods, agreeing with everything. "Thank you, Lavinia. That was very good."
Lavinia smiles again, and returns to the alter.
The Queen leads you out of the cathedral.
