The Return of Orivious – A Prophecy

In the maelstrom of events that resulted in the imprisoning of the god Orivious in a demi-plane, a prophecy emerged foretelling his vengeful return to the world of Kelbonnar.

Summary

It is said that during the imprisonment of Orivious by the other gods and goddesses of Kelbonnar into a demi-plane, the head of his mortal followers, an Elf named Bartholomeus Sworn of Orivious was there, observing everything that was going on, even at one point trying to intervene to save their master, to no avail. Though they couldn’t save Orivious, their presence at the Eye of Orivious, the last place in the Material Plane that Orivious was in before his banishment, meant that the surge of power caused by the other deities breaking the boundaries of the planes filled Bartholomeus Sworn of Orivious with energy and caused him to have a moment of divine prophecy.
Though Bartholomeus survived the experience and was able to flee the scene into the upper layers of the Underdark, his mind was permanently addled by the experience and all he could do was repeat the words of the prophecy over and over again. Realising that he had escaped, and knowing that he shouldn’t be allowed to get away, the other deities dispatched their representatives on the Material Plane to track him down, whilst the surviving followers of Orivious likewise dispatched their own search parties to rescue their temporal leader.
Unfortunately for Bartholomeus, the agents of the other gods and goddesses found him first, and he was cut down in an unknown place, his body left where it fell. Orivious’ faithful arrived not long after, took up the body and whisked it away to be buried, according to legend in a location known only to themselves. However, the agents of the other deities, including a Drow named Kallenar Tiarelle, high priest of Az, the god of law, history and records, carefully transcribed what Bartholomeus was saying, preserving the prophecy of the return of Orivious for future generations.

Historical Basis

There is no doubt that the events surrounding the prophetic mutterings of Bartholomeus Sworn of Orivious and the prophecy itself are true as the contemporary events they were a part of are well recorded and are well known to scholars and theologians. The fact that a cleric of Az committed the prophecy to writing also lends credence to its accuracy, as Az praises accurate record keeping and accounts above all things.

Spread

The spread of the prophecy has been rather limited to those with a deep interest in theology, not because it is regarded as being restricted knowledge, but because it is only recorded in writing in a handful of very old books that deal with the religious history and myth cycle surrounding the god Orivious.

Variations & Mutation

The wording of the prophecy itself has remained consistent over the many years that it is known to have been in existence, but it is interpreted in a variety of different ways. The two most common interpretations are that either, the fulfilment of the prophecy is inevitable and that a new celestial order will be established when Orivious returns to the world of Kelbonnar once more, bringing death and destruction with him; or, that the prophecy is a warning, from which key clues can be gleaned by those who know what they are looking for.
There is also third common reading of the prophecy, which does not attempt to interpret it at all, but simply views it as being the last attempt of Bartholomeus Sworn of Orivious to try and rationalise the defeat and imprisonment of the deity he was sworn to, by contextualising the events into being part of a narrative where Orivious is eventually triumphant.

In Literature & Art

The story of Bartholomeus Sworn of Orivious’ last days and the prophecy of the return of Orivious itself are seldom depicted in art as it is not well known enough to be pictorially referenced without significant additional explanation. Whilst the tale does appear in books, along with the words of the prophecy, these books are old, dusty tombs that tend to be used and referenced only by the most enthusiastic or thorough of theological scholars and the story almost never makes its way into common renditions of the tale of Orivious that the populations of the Underdark or the surface world would know.

Date of First Recording

C.2,000BIF

Date of Setting

Unknown

Related Species

• Divines

Related Locations

• Deep Underdark
• Eye of Orivious
• The Underdark

Related People

• Orivious

The Prophecy in Full

When in the land of endless night
A false god doth arise,
And seeks to vanquish death’s dark might
With those sworn to its lies,
The hubris of that creature then,
In thinking they will thus ascend,
Masks knowledge far beyond their ken
It leads them to a bitter end.
But in that place of ash and smoke
Where false one in their pride was smote,
The Imprisoned one, they shall return
And all against them then will burn.