The Calling

The Calling, The Apotheosis, Deification... The Ritual has many names, some even clearly wrong, but used in laymen terms to describe how a higher power, usually a deity or other just as strong entity gives a fragment of their power to a mortal (or a lesser being), who most often is their follower, and calls this chosen one to join their powers, even if very minimally. The Calling is considered a huge honor, a status only achievable by noble deeds and virtue, or the exact opposite, depending on the deity's character.

Usually this Calling happens where ever the deity in question feels is most suitable place. It can be a very intimate or very grandiose occasion, but more often than not it is a promise of joined effort for a common cause. Many deities prefer to ask their followers or possible followers-to-be privately in dreams, for example, and sometimes calling their consciousness into the the realm of the deity in question. A lot depends on the deity themselves; some might want to show off, have proper festival held for this calling among the mortals, but that has grown less common, because it more often than not attracts unwanted attention, especially in the last part of the circle of Theomachy.

In this ritual, a deity -or a league of deities- promise to give a little bit of a power to an extraordinary person, often asking them to join their cause or perform a task for them, and for that the called one -often called the chosen one, the herald, or even the champion- promises on their own behalf to do their utmost best. There are no many known examples of a mortal refusing such calling, but apparently that has also happened in the past a few times; at least one occasion tells a story of a noble knight who was swayed by an evil undead entity, and the knight did reject the calling, which lead to one of the well-known examples of ultimate sacrifice, when the entity in question corrupted the knight, made them into a thrall and took them as their eternal servant. [More about the story here: The Ultimate Sacrifice or How a Noble Knight Resisted The Evil ]

History

In the ancient times, and every time the circle of Theomachy is fresh, and gods and deities are still young and plenty, the calling is much rarer, but when the end of the cycle is nearing, more the deities become to attend to their subjects and trying to gather forces. That is called the time of heroes and many great names who were heroes during the last part of the cycle, have risen to godhood during that time period.

Execution

A promise that bounds both parties - the entity and the hero - is made and sealed. For the mortal's co-operation and sign of goodwill, the deity often grants small boons like spells or magical items to their chosen one.

Components and tools

The physical items used in the ritual vary a lot, depending on the deity in question. Many those entities of 'shadier' reputation prefer blood sacrifices and other sinister ways of making the contract viable, distrusting the power of 'just' words.

Participants

There needs to at least one deity and the hero. Sometimes the same person can be called several times, when it usually has something to do with the dealings of the first or strongest entity whose calling they have answered. A hero of extraordinary quality can also attract the attention of other deities and they might decide to join in the 'collaboration' by calling the same person themselves. The deities often settle these kind of callings between themselves, though, and it is usually thought a bit rude to call someone's chosen one without any talks beforehand. Yet, some (evil) deities do not really care about things like common courtesy...