Council of Gods
I had the chance to closely study the Avatars and their powers, and of course, I took it. They are definitely more powerful than anyone else in Frasfu, capable of channeling energy in ways I had never seen before on this planet. But to call them gods? I have no reason to think that they are more powerful than myself.The Council of Gods leads both the Theocracy of Nampyeon as its government and the Seven Faiths as its spiritual leaders. Seven people make up the Council, and they are said to each embody one of the seven gods —hence why they can also be called the Seven Avatars. The Seven remain in Hawong's Inner City and sometimes can be seen in the Outer City too. But they rarely go beyond the capital's walls.
Members
Avatars are sought and found by their House of Light when a previous Avatar dies. They specifically look for people who have suddenly displayed incredible powers, as they consider this a sign from the gods. The candidate is then brought to the other Avatars, who usually accept them as a new Avatar. Each of the Seven Avatar represents a divine domain, and each domain has several associated tasks:War
Sometimes referred to as Peace, they take care of the army as well as border control and patrolling. They are the only Avatar in command of the army.Civilization
The Civilization domain includes laws and their enforcement, such as the city and road guards. They often work together with the Avatar of War.Life
Also known as the Avatar of Death, they manage hospitals, nurseries, and other health-related infrastructure, as well as cemeteries.Nature
The Avatar of Nature makes sure that the wilderness is respected to keep the balance between civilization and nature.Agriculture
The tamed counterpart of Nature, Agriculture makes sure that everyone has something to eat and all farmers are taken care of.Knowledge
They write (and sometimes rewrite) history to keep record of everything that happens. They also manage educational institutions.Creation
A strong culture needs to have a government that cares for it. The job of the Avatar of Creation is exactly that.It's refreshing to see that the Avatars usually work well together. To my surprise, I never saw them scheming against each other.
Popular petitions
The Avatars usually don't leave the Inner City other than during important celebrations. However, all Nampyeon citizens have a free group audience every year. During the audience, random citizens are picked. These lucky citizens can then make a petition or thank the gods for something. It's also possible to pay for groups or an additional individual audience, as well as for foreigner pilgrims to enter the Inner City and see the Avatars.Tradition says the Avatars make sure that their gods hear all petitions. But after interviewing several citizens, I found some claiming that the gods hadn't solved theirs. They didn't seem worried at all, though —after all, if gods have a plan for everyone, not solving a problem has to be part of it.
Type
Government, Leadership
Alternative Names
The Seven Avatars
Subsidiary Organizations
Location
Controlled Territories
Origin of their powers
The Avatars are extremely powerful channelers, with enough intrinsic understanding to be considered pure channelers. This means that they can wield intrinsic energy like any other channeler, but unlike most people, they are not bound to the specific rules of their planet. However, instead of gaining these abilities over time, they reportedly become pure channelers suddenly, even if they hadn't been able to channel normally before. Not only that, but this sudden change always happens within days of the death of an Avatar.They are most certainly not gods, but I had never heard of a channeler suddenly becoming pure without decades of study. But I don't think they are lying on this point; their entire religion is almost based on this fact. Could this finally be proof that inanimate intrinsic resonances can be self-aware?
I like the blending of mortal and divine through the Avatars, as well as the duality (the avatar of war, also being the avatar of peace, etc.) I'd be interested in hearing an example of the type of thing that is viewed as the sign of a new avatar. Possible typo: under Members, "each of the seven Avatar represents" should be "each of the seven Avatars represent."