CORPUS MORTIMUS

The Corpus Mortimus is the collective name given to the dozen or so major monasteries and many more minor ones spread around Erythia, due to their role in praying for the souls of the dead. It was originally founded by Khedor during the First Divine Struggle with three core aims: to protect the needy, the preservation of knowledge, and the teaching and maintaining of the Way of Khedor.

The Way of Khedor was founded in the First Divine Struggle. Khedor was alone in his vast library seeking knowledge which could help the cause of Light, when he was set upon by agents of an unknown god, and, left unarmed, appeared to have no chance.  Being a god, he realised that there were bound to be times when people needed to fight without weapons, and, as the agents advanced on him, quickly formulated a quick set of physical principles, worked out what the human body was capable of, and despatched his attackers as a sort of trial run.  This impressed him, so he then spent several months basically creating a Code of Combat for the unarmed.  He tried to teach this to some peasants, but found that they did not have the mental toughness or inner faith to do well at it, so then created other techniques too, to help anyone gain better control of their bodies, faster reactions etc, as well as making them more mentally tough and aware so that the skills he had discovered could be used.

The organisation is split into a simple hierarchy. At the top is the Supreme, the one who communicates directly with the gods on behalf of the order. He is the sole inhabitant of the First Circle. Beneath the First lie ten more circles, each of which with a growing number of members, and a different colour to the mark of the Order engraved on their bracers.

The Supreme is elected by and from the Second Circle, although often both Khedor and the current Supreme have a say in the successor. Each level of attainment puts the monk on a higher rank, so that they are obeyed by the ones below.

The Reverend Fathers elect the Supreme and run the major monasteries, one to each. They are the ones in charge of keeping an eye on the area that their monasteries cover, each with agreed upon spheres of influence.

The Abbots run the more minor monasteries - they are the ones who become Reverend Fathers when there are vacancies, although many are satisfied with helping those in the monasteries where they are first assigned.

Ambassadors are the monks sent to be advisors and counsellors to the major monarchs and rulers in the civilised nations. They serve terms of perhaps five or six years in a place, before moving on to either become an Abbot or to serve a second term but in a new place.

Envoys are those sent to more minor rulers, and to islands such as Gornior. More active than Ambassadors, they are usually sent to the more dangerous areas after they are surveyed by more junior monks.

Guardians of the Way are those that teach the Way to the lower circles, and are primarily responsible for maintaining the archives at their monasteries. They are usually amongst the most powerful of the monks in terms of physical prowess, as the Guardians are the last Circle before the Circles require keener intellects to advance.

Brother Protectors are the monks who do the most towards the preservation of knowledge, and are also those that form the elite fighters that were so important in the Second Divine Struggle.

Seekers of Knowledge are the ones that generally spend months, maybe even years, away from the monasteries tracking down historical accounts, whether they be eye-witness accounts of strange events or the only copy of an obscure author. Once they return, they go back to their training and generally become Brother Protectors.

Brothers of the Order are the rank and file of the Corpus - they are usually the ones sent to aid the needy, and to pray for the dead and conduct ceremonies. The separation between the Brothers and the other Monks of the Tenth Circle is that the Brothers are usually the more assured, whereas the monks have generally been accepted into the Corpus, but have still a great deal to learn.

Initiates are those training to join the Corpus, those that have yet to master the basic physical, mental and spiritual tenets of the Way.

There are rumours that the Fathers of the Monasteries collaborate over rather dubious projects also, such as maintaining an extensive intelligence network throughout the known world. Although this cannot be proved, it is assumed to be fact, although no leader in his or her right mind would take on the Corpus, as it is both large and well-connected. There have been cases of atrocities committed against the Corpus, but they were punished speedily.

The Corpus offers prayers both to Mortimus, Lord of the Slain, and to Khedor, Keeper of Knowledge, reflecting their prime roles in society.

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