The Shorai

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Source Crystal Age Unknown Discovered by Finwë, first of the Aerai

The Shorai is without a doubt the single most important aspect of Aerai culture. Its discovery marks the very beginning of them as a people, and the creation of their Order which has persisted throughout the ages. What the Aerai refer to as it's "heart" can be found in the grand temple of the Aeraesarian capital, Sharyrdaes. There, it resonates a comforting hum that ebbs and flows with the gentle pulsing of a strange, blue luminosity that comes from within, almost imitating the beating of one's heart.

Even pieces taken from this "heart" retain this ebbing light in perfect sync, though lacking the audible hum.

It is looked upon with nearly as much reverence as any god, and is an integral part of Aerai faith.

The Shorai is a complex, luminous crystalline structure unlike any other the Aerai have ever encountered elsewhere. What is visible of it stands tens of meters tall and many meters wide like a great spire. It reaches deep into the mountainside where it was discovered, and during the excavation and construction of the underground city in the mountain, it was discovered that the crystal grew great roots which ran far deeper into the earth than any could tell.

Once Sharyrdaes had been completed, the great crystal was housed safely in their temple there, and revered as a great gift of the gods. The oldest Aerai stories say that in these days the Patriarch taught the first Aerai the nature of the Shorai, how it could make them more than what they were, how it lived in a way like the world and the trees did, and beyond.

In these days the Aerai took the first from the roots of the Shorai, and much like a living tree did the Shorai regrow that which was taken. And with that which they took did they study, and learn. They learned to craft weapons of war with it, stronger than anything they could have made before. They learned to imbue power, strengthening their magic. They learned to imbue thought, and consciousness into it.

It is in the earliest ages that the Aerai learned of how the Shorai could make them the many who were one, to join their minds together and be more than what they were. This was a time of great strife and learning for the Aerai, and their Order, but through many trials they were remade into what has lasted through the passing of many ages. Much has been lost, but those oldest traditions remain.

And so over the history of the Aerai people, the Shorai has been imbedded and utilized so deeply into the culture, influencing nearly every aspect of their culture. It is used in the most arcane ways to the most simplistic, being seen everywhere from jewelry, weaponry, to architecture.

The most readily obvious effect of the Shorai is its luminosity and warmth. To be in the presence of the Shorai's heart is said to be a mysterious comfort, like a peaceful and quiet embrace. This effect is lessened in pieces taken from the Shorai, but still present to those more familiar. Something about this luminosity that may perhaps not at first be so obvious, is that each and every piece of the Shorai, albeit relative to their size, show forth the same light with the same growing and diminishing brightness at any given time, be it the smallest shard to the heart itself. It is in this that the connection each piece shares is shown.

The Shoraes

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There is little that is understood about the earliest years of the Order. What is known, is that in those days there was no such thing as the Shoraes - the collective consciousness that now joins all of the Aerai through mind and spirit, thought and emotion. It is said that it was the Patriarch who elevated the minds of the first Aerai, bestowing upon them the ability to read and impart thought. And then, in the last days of the Patriarch, it is said the Aerai were shown how the Shorai was tethered unto itself in ways unseen, and they were forever changed as a people.

The Shorai, as it was unveiled, was not only capable of imbuement and transmission of magic, but also of thought. It was with this revelation that the Aerai were forever changed as a people, and the Shoraes was made manifest as the first Aerai were joined through the Shorai.

The union of minds that the Aerai share is difficult to explain to those who do not know it, and dangerous to experience for those who are not ready. In this mental union, the Shorai itself acts as a nexus of thought. It is through it that their thoughts may be shared so readily, and how they may all coalesce into a singular understanding. In this way, it is simple for the Aerai people to work well with one another toward a purpose.

The collective, however, is not an overriding or overruling presence in their minds - though it has to potential to be. This aspect is achieved through many years of careful training and preparation, and is not something that comes naturally to many, if anyone.

It, instead, can be manifested and manipulated in a number of ways. For much of the time, it is perceived mostly in the sub-conscious, with a heightened awareness of their joined kin around them and a heightened empathy toward them. There is comfort and comradery in their presence, and confidence. It is common for individuals to share thoughts among one another as casually as one might speak minds of as few as two, so long as they are near one another. It is also quite common for emotions to be shared as readily with another as one's own self feels them. It is for these invasions that Aerai often spend decades before joining with the collective, requiring great mental fortitude to withstand a potential onslaught of emotions from many individuals.

When not in the physical presence of others, it is possible to reach out and either wade in the passing thoughts moving to and from the centre at the Shorai, or seek someone out specifically through meditation and establish a connection, but this often takes a great deal of focus, especially over greater distances.

The strong minded can separate themselves completely, or separate particular thoughts or emotions, even hiding them from the collective altogether. These same individuals can also do the opposite, and forbid any intrusion from the collective into their minds. And often times these individuals display an ability to maintain a heightened connection to the collective even over vast distances, something which is usually a hinderance or disruption for most after a period of time.

The Shoraes is, however, far more than the immediate or nearly immediate transmission of thought - an aspect heavily influenced by distance from one another - but it is also the collective retention and recollection of past thought. The Shorai itself retains the memories of those who have been joined for a time that has been difficult to determine. It would seem that the Shorai itself does not do this of its own accord, but rather the collective, in its collective sub-conscious. Because of this, many memories fade with time, or are obscured through the countless influences that undoubtedly touch its collective memory. It is for this reason that the Istoneth caste - the keepers of knowledge - came to be.

I Enontië

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The ritual which joins one to the Shoraes' collective, called I Enontië by the Aerai, is something looked upon wide a wide mix of emotion and opinion. In one hand, it affords all who take part in it an incredible benefit in a number of ways. However, in the other hand, not only does the collective mind of the Shoraes require a strong mind, so too does the ritual itself.

Once one has been deemed ready to decide whether they would like to join with the collective - as it is and shall always be a voluntary decision - they are immediately evaluated. Being part of their culture, Aerai often choose this path relatively early on in life. Though it is tremendously uncommon, outsiders are not forbidden from taking this path, if they are deemed worthy. To be deemed worthy, one must be found to not only be of sound body, but even more importantly of not only a sound mind, but a tremendously sound mind. The ritual itself is regarded by all who endure it as perhaps one of the most arduous, painful and traumatizing events of their entire lives.

The ritual takes place in a solitary, dedicated chamber, found in any Aerai temple. Within this chamber is a great dais, upon which a large slab of the Shorai is laid. It is upon this where one rests as the ritual begins, overseen by the Istoneth and assisted by the highest members of their order. Over the course of a week, the magic and focus of those preforming the ritual twist and bend reality, tearing and binding and healing the recipients body as their flesh is invaded and their bones intwined with the crystal.

It is almost inevitable for one to emerge broken from this experience, but it is through the comfort of the collective in the aftermath that they can be healed and made whole - and more.

The Dream City

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Shortly after the first Aerai joined their minds, they found that they not only spent their waking time in total contact with one another, but also their time asleep. Their dreams became lucid, and they found that they had influence over them which grew as they focused in unity. These Aerai also came to believe that the subconscious or dream world was a doorway into the metaphysical, or spiritual realm. They believed that all things were bound through this unseen realm, and it was in the vastness of this world where the darkness and light both stemmed from. They also believed that those untouched by the Shorai were protected by the amnesia of their dreams, and that they were now more vulnerable to influence in this state.

It is from this fear that the art of Incánussë, literally meaning mind mastery, was developed and deemed imperative for any who would join with the Shoraes. Often taking decades to develop to an acceptable degree, Incánussë begins by training one to enter into the lucid dreaming state of their own accord. This progresses to being able to do so in a meditative state. From here, they are then instructed in trained to fortify their minds, manipulating their imagination and subconscious into creating visual representations of boundaries, gateways, and halls, and to use these representations to protect and defend ones thoughts both inside and out, to open and close their mind at will, and to share only what they are willing to. And just as the art of Incánussë has influenced them individually, it has also done so to the collective as a whole.

Due to the nature of the Shoraes and its direct connection with the Shorai itself, the growth of the order and their use of Incánussë has influenced the representation of the collective in the dream world. Generated and anchored by the minds of the many, a great city shines in the darkness of the void. Here there is light and hope, joy and faith. Here there are the thoughts and memories of many to feel and see as one chooses. Here there are the passers by of those who also wade through the no longer listless sleep. The Aerai call this place the Dream-state City, and they may choose to venture here in their dreams if they wish, or remain within their own minds instead.

The legends surrounding the Shorai say that is was the Celestials that forged the great crystal in the heavens above, many eons ago. When the time of the Exodus came across Arethil and the gods were to depart, it is said that it was Tychan who set the Shorai where it is now, a great gift of light.

Those that came and settled in Aeraesar and built Sharyrdaes believed in the Celestials, and they believed the Shorai to be such a gift. The truth of the crystal's being could most certainly be contested, but what is accepted beyond argument is that it was Finwë, the first Aerai and Patriarch of the Order who found the Shorai, and laid the foundations of Sharyrdaes, and of all Aeraesar.

[W.I.P]

In the Listless Night
When the Faith Fails Us
Remembering What Might Have Been
Before the Dark Times