Celestialism

Though an officially secular state in governmental practice and consideration, as well as having a vast swathe of her people non-religious as rule, the Serene^Union is not without faith amongst her teeming billions. Indeed, though variation is perhaps limited, one particular religion commands an impressive number of followers amidst a society dominated by logic, and science over all else.

Such a religion is known as Celestialism, literally "Of heavenly descent or origin". It is further unique in being the only sanctioned faith of the Aengelistoria Dominica; for in order to function effectively any potential religion must be exhuastively examined, mandated and cleared by both the Office for the maintainence of Law Internal Administration. Stringent perhaps, but none may argue their case otherwise.

In accordance with the Act of Supremacy [Houses of Worship & Religious proceeds] the only sanctioned state maintainer of Celestialism is The First Celestial Church of Solarri.

Ovierview of Celestialism

That which begot all.

Before flowers had first risen from their nurturing soil and focused their petals upon a star, begging for nourishment; before the first creature had slid painfully from the lapping waters of world-spanning ocean to fill gasp their first rocky breath; before the mountains had settled into their impossibly long silence above all and sundry, all was as black as the bleakast nightmare.

A void not simply empty, but incapable of ever becoming relevant nor viable. A formless wasteland without boundry and equally robbed of hope; for without even the stuff of life, how could that which gave comfort to it in that darkest hour come to fruition?

Hope however did not relent in failure to exist, for it found sustinance and existance within an alternative reality, seperated from the darkness and laid upon a tumulus expanse of the brightest colour, and swirling meaning. Here within this Kingdom of wonder, pure potential existed as the rolling waves of an ocean forever reaching and without anything so mortal as limitation. Expression not limited to bouts of inspired achivement instead mingled with raw emotion - As simply as reactions upon the atomic level ocurred.

Yet these ripples were not truly conscious - They could not form abstract ideas nor truly grasp the enormity of their abilities; as the tragic conundrum of potential truly is, that it must be somehow realised before it can be taken advantage of, this Celestial Kingdom of sorts remained sealed and quiet.

Though time had no meaning here, where nothing existed to appreciate the concept of limiting one's own existance, action did. As ripples spread outward they met other such disturbing movements, and amalgamated. Waves which were previously inconsequential soon found their energies boosted by collisions with their likewise kin. Tremendous vortexes gathered and span at velocity, sending heaving depressions within the energy which had once been as serene and still as a any stagnant source.

Thusly, did some spark of true realisation dawn, though none could be there to note when. As each crashing collision passed, so did some semblence of understanding dawn so that this lawless Kingdom did begin to exhibit deliberate control over its sorroundings.

In this way, was Adria, Mother of creation, borne forth into existance. At first unable to regulate true thought, but soon gifted the sentience needed to rise up from the vast energies of the Celestial oceans and ascend to control over all that remained beneath. She learned to craft the oceans, and to her bidding turn them to. She channeled energies, and created sorroundings from nothing and interest from mere imagination. For a time she was content, reveling in the capacity to change all that could be changed.

Yet she grew unhappy, as the energies mindlessly obeyed without qualm. For what companionship could be gathered from that which could ont understand loneliness? Adria was one, her realisation of consciousness a hollow triumph if none could be present to experience it also. And though she laboured to create a second blossoming of intelligence, as she herself had been first, all fruits of labour fell rotten, and unripe.

Failure followed her doggedly, and incited her temper to anger and furious retribution. How cruel a punishment to bestow life upon something, to isolate it thusly and keep from it any appreciation of such a special gift. Anger and sorrow gathered, as the foreboding storm clouds might give warning to a greater incident overhead, and the oceans of the Kingdom heaved forth heavily with mindless excitement.

With a terrible cry, Adria's sum sadness found realise, as the gates of the Celestial Kingdom tore asunder, her growing powers not yet under total mastering or control peaked at their potential without oversight or control; the energies of her birthplace finding a new and utterly silent land to flow unto - The void which represented all beneath the Kingdom.

Known latterly as The Big Bang (Simplified though ironically precise) though more precisely regarded as Adria's Sorrow, marked the beginning of the physical and tangible. For the void was forever changed and altered by the flodding forth from the Celestial Kingdom. Where previously there had existed nothing, and nothing further to become bored by the silence, now spurned random occurrences - the Celestial energy which had been save for Adria's manipulations silent, now found random release, forming themselves into that which came to be known in the latter day as the Universe itself.

Adria knew true joy, as she found herself free from what she now regarded not as a home, but a prison. She wandered the infantile Universe and found her abilities truly expanded by her unwilling fury which had granted freedom. It was here she crafted the first Star, moulding the now excitable energies of her Kingdom to a furious and burning brightness.

That which spurned others.

Of her loneliness, she found relief, for now this Universe would grant her companionship and from its expanding frontier, she plucked kin and breathed into them the true glory of their newfound position as cultivators of her garden.

And thusly did Khandrii become such a companion, and did Adria set to teach the youngling all she could recall and truly deem as knowledge. Taking great delight as a teacher did they tour what had come forth and learn - For the first worlds of rock and gas were shaped not as creations in their own right, but learning tools and delvings for Khandrii to come to terms with her abilities and influence.

However Khandrii soon found fascination in Adria's first construction, and begged so that her Mother might give unto her the secrets of its burning light. Relenting, Adria did so teach her first child how to ignite and place the flickering lanterns and placed Khandrii upon the path that would eventually see her known as the Sister of Stars.

For a time, they journeyed as two. Khandrii's knowledge expanding at a truly immortal rate to surpass that of her mother, whom chose slower, more delicate projects; the first galaxies brought together as collossal works of art and understanding. Eventually, Adria regarded the immense size of the Universe reason enough to sire further - And from this came forth her first son, Anyal.

Anyal's fate became sure as he happened upon the world sculpted by Adria and Khandrii, rocky and utterly silent. It span randomly and cruelly, without a strand of fate that might give it the hope of a future to complement an uninteresting and largely irrelevant past. Taking it upon himself to deliver to this globe endless possibilities, Anyal bestowed light from his Sister's stars, and crafted the clouds and sky that might keep out the harsh and burning heat from said lanterns.

He set about great rains, that might bathe the dry surface for a hundred lifetimes, until such time as even the tallest peak was submerged beneath the waves. On a thousand worlds did Anyal sow his efforts and failure was a price to reckon with improvement. Some baked painfully as his Sister's creations drew them towards fiery destruction and certain doom, whilst others never held physical surface - Instead swirling clouds of gas whose only anchor to spherical form remained the intense pressure bestowed to keep cohesion.

This Triumvirate; Adriana the Mother, Khandrii the Star-Sister and Anyal existed onwards. Shaping that which they came across and unleashing a myriad of ideas and possibilites upon that which had spilled forth ironically as accident.

However, not all was as it should be. As time passed, now existing as it could not within the Celestial Kingdom, resistance began to show clear existance. The stars which had been so easily crafted by Khandrii became bloated, and angrily red. The galaxies pulled together by Adria span violently, or collided to create grotesque new mosaics. Only Anyal's worlds escaped what seemed a rebellion, continuing as much they had done.

Initially, the Guardians of this new Universe simply forced their creations back to previous states. Yet for each star returned to its birth, another would remain eternally young only for as long as it took to escape the attentions of Khandrii, and expand once more. It soon became apparent the Celestial energy which infused all, that which the Guardians themselves were created from, and which flowed from their Kingdom was skewed.

It possessed a chaotic streak which prevented long-term shaping. It could not accept a role assigned and bucked authority in any form, remaining true only temporarily before warping and twisting what it had been moulded to into a new and unpleasant variation. As though impregnated with a scarcely-detectable malevolence which subverted all efforts at beauty, and reason -- Corrupting the Guardians' works with animalistic sly.

Eventually, it is decided that only the spawning of many more can end the loneliness and bring the balance to order. Thusly are Kaeneians created, in the image of their gods and gifted incredible abilities such as eternal life, and great resiliance. Yet the energies of creation warp and twist, and soon mark upon these gifts terrible twists which force the Ayalanor to remove them. The universe begins to shape its own destiny, and the gods find it ever harder to prevent.

Eventually, Eneaianor declares that all is in vain, and that they cannot prevent the degredation of all that has been born; decreeing that they shall return to the Celestial Kingdom, and await the current energies of creation to exhuast, as they shall no longer be replenished when the gates to the Kingdom are sealed.

One Ayalanor cannot bare to be seperated from what it assisted to create -- And remains behind. Doomed to fade away painfully without sustinance. Yet its presence ensures the destruction of the universe is delayed, despite being certain. From beyond the universe the Ayalanor continue to do their best to assist their creations -- Interjecting when the threat is grave and using their mighty powers to arrest and sate the desires of an unpleasant world.

The future's end.

Thusly it is written that eventually, when the final stars have glimmered last, and the oceans boiled unto dust, the glow of life shall fade to black, and all shall be as before it began; with the Ayalanor coming forth once more from the Celestial Kingdom to recreate a better, more just world.

Beliefs

When one dies, their essence returns to the Celestial Kingdom, though it is not sentient, it is self-aware and resides their until the era of rebirth.

The universe is intrinsically unfair and difficult -- It was tainted eternally by the anger and pain of Eneaianor which first created it. Only the continued though distant efforts of the Ayalanor, and the strength of character of their followers prevents premature disaster.

There is reward to the faith -- All whom exist in this world shall fade at its end, and their energy shall return to the Celestial Kingdom and await the remergence of the gods, to be reborn into a new, fair world. Yet those of evil heart and obvious dubious means cannot be reborn -- For the twisted energy which imbues their essence is so violent and unyielding that it remains forever unusable; thrashing in semi-sentient anger though no pain, nor suffering. A purgotary of sorts.(Reincarnation)

Those who do evil deeds do so becuase they have been corrupted by the violent nature of the universe -- The darker spectrum of emotion; fear, anger, sorrow as well as passion and enthusiasm which are the very qualities of the Celestial energy whcih first gave birth to the universe and which flows through it, naturally gravitate to this state. The rewards for being "good" and just are the efforts of the Ayalanor to aide their loyal followers more ably, to bestow luck upon them, and also to assure their rebirth.

Religious affiliation as per population

• Approximately 2% of Kaeneians within The Serene^Union profess Celestialism as faith.