Temple of Aileron

The Temple of Aileron rises proudly above the Whiteport skyline, distinguishing itself as a beacon for the faithful from around the world. Its massive, glittering gilded dome is one of the largest and tallest in the world, reaching almost two hundred feet upward to touch the heavens, surrounded by eleven lower, smaller gold domes. The building's white marble walls are polished to a near-reflective sheen, and its flagstones are each sheathed in a bronze-gold alloy to prevent weathering, and on the sunniest days, this can mean the building's brilliance is literally hard to look directly at. The building's campus stands apart from the rest of Whiteport's cluttered city blocks, although on the edges of the square around it a small but bustling market flourishes, serving the pilgrims and faithful who flock to the temple. The temple serves as the heart of Whiteport's spiritual community and one of the holiest sites for worshippers of the Twelve, conducting daily religious ceremonies as well as special rituals and holiday events. The inside of the temple is designed to inspire awe. Entering through massive, gold and brass encased doors thirty feet tall, passes through a small knave and through a smaller atrium before entering the main sanctuary under the central dome. High vaulting ceilings and tall stained glass windows depicting various religious iconography make the space feel even larger and more imposing. The entire sanctuary seems to be lit with a faint golden glow emanating from the dome itself, where carefully positioned windows reflect light off of polished metal sheets and the marble itself onto the inner face of the dome, the true masterpiece of the temple. A mosaic, made out of countless individually shaped and pressed gold, silver, platinum, and bronze tiles depicts the cosmos, divinities, and various saints and holy symbols in subtle but finely detailed shades which seem to glitter and move as one moves around the sanctuary. Stone carvings of eagles, griffons, angels, and other noble beings line the walls and porticos, sometimes carved from marble and other times inlaid in fine metal ornamentation. A beautiful and finely carved gold, silver, marble, and ivory alter lies in the center. Upper floors line the outside of the sanctuary, acting as balconies for services held below. The entire chamber rings with angelic music, including a heavenly choir, numerous harps, a powerful organ, and horns from no apparent origin, and the incense burning leaves the entire chamber smelling faintly of lavender, sage, and cedar. Beyond the center sanctuary, under the smaller domes are small alcoves devoted to the other deities and saints in the pantheon of the twelve, offering worship of more than just Aileron. These typically feature iconography and small statues of their specific deity and saints, illuminated by heavy and intricately carved candelabras supporting hundred of candles, whose constant flickering also reflects of the dome's mosaic and gilding on the walls, contributing to the ever-shifting golden aura, and are frequented by worshippers looking to pay their respects to their own patron deity of the pantheon. Alters tailored to their specific saint or deity are often littered with various customary offerings, and as a result the temple often serves as a house of worship for devotees of all the pantheon's cults, not just Aileron's, within the city, and is a central gathering place for all their representatives. Through adjoining porticos and beyond these smaller alcoves and galleries lie the most private places for prayer and study and silent meditation, off-limits to the general public. These include the reliquary, to which access is typically further restricted (the most valuable and holy relics typically only being removed from their secure housings or displays on ceremonial occasions under heavy watch), and the church's archive and scriptorium, which houses many important and ancient documents, while beneath these lies the crypt and various sepulchers housing the bones of high illuminators and various holy and influential figures. On the upper levels well as small, private apartments for those who inhabit the temple grounds (including clergy ranging from the High Illuminator themself on the highest floor, to lowly acolytes and humble country priests and pilgrims on the levels below), as well as a barracks for paladins and clerics serving the twelve, many of whom can be found patrolling the temple grounds at almost all hours engaged in prayer, study, or meditation, keeping vigil, or simply taking in the grounds. These levels also feature private studies and audience rooms for the faith, chapels, storerooms, and a small kitchen to support those living in the temple's walls.

Purpose / Function

The Temple of Aileron serves as the center religious life in Whiteport, as well as one of the primary seats of the pantheon of The Twelve. Originally hallowed ground through its connection to Oren the Righteous, the site became a gathering spot and religious campus for the worshipers of Aileron and the Twelve. It draws pilgrims and tourists from around the world, and is famous for its size and magnificence. As the center of the cult of Aileron in Kethenicaea, the church acts both as a religious site and bureaucratic campus. Many officials, including high priests, acolytes, and even the head of the cult itself- the Lightbringer- live and work full time in the temple, and the temple also offers accommodations for visiting pilgrims, priests, and religious functionaries. Also serving as a place of worship for cults of the entire pantheon of the Twelve, the temple frequently hosts religious rituals and ceremonies not just for Aileron, but for the Pantheon as a whole. These ceremonies vary widely in size and purpose. Some are massive, such as on Aileron's holy day or significant holidays, during which crowds of thousands including locals and pilgrims may pack the Temple to capacity or pass through it as part of their rituals, to the daily worship ceremonies typically only attended by locals or the most devout, to those special and private ceremonies typically only attended by a select few. The temple hosts a large archive featuring many rare, old, and religiously and historically significant texts, which are maintained by a team of on-site scribes and archivists, copying and maintaining them. Its reliquary also features a number of old and similarly valuable religious and historic artifacts in the faith's possession, some still employed in ceremonial use, and some safely contained to keep their power from ever resurfacing or falling into the wrong hands. Accordingly (and also given the opulence of the temple's architecture) a number of devoted paladins also live and work on the temple grounds full-time protecting the temple, its archives and relics, and inhabitants. It also serves as the seat and adjoins to the larger barracks of the Order of the Dawn, the Headquarters of Paladins typically sworn to Aileron or his wider pantheon. Finally, the Temple offers various healing services and a small hospital staffed by clerics and priests in service of the cult which work to serve the local community as best they can and preforming minor miracles for those in need.

Alterations

The building stands almost unaltered on the outside from its original construction in 325 AC, more than a millennia prior, a truly impressive feat made possible through the careful maintenance of the structure, the genius of its original construction and design, and the care and investment taken to build the structure into something truly lasting and durable. Its marble stones have been cut with immense precision and the edges of each block are encased in a thin gold-bronze alloy sheeting and sealed together nearly seamlessly with concrete, resistant to rust and making the blocks largely immune to weathering, and also contributing to the building's glittering and golden aesthetic. The dome itself is encased in a similar alloy, making it resistant to rust, while its careful polish keeps it shining brightly. The inside of the structure is similarly unchanged from its original construction. While some beams, altars, ornaments, or the decor have since been replaced or restored, the original floor plan has largely remained, guided by the structure's architecture, and the mosaics, inner murals, statues, engravings, and tiling are all original and unchanged, though slightly weathered after years of prayer, as the stone has worn away and smoothed further from countless devotees' knees, palms, and feet over the centuries. Some new mosaics, murals, tapestries, and relics have been added, though these are largely designed in keeping with the temple's overall aesthetic and are generally indistinguishable to the untrained eye. Notably, the building is not in fact the first Temple of Aileron which has stood on the site, the present largely financed and sponsored by the then-king of Whiteport in 325, a distant ancestor to the current line of Dukes, in an act of shrewd piety, replacing the previous structure which had been constructed by the faith, a relatively unimpressive wood and stone construction.

Architecture

The Temple is a monumental construction made primarily out of marble, cement, and a metal-stone alloy. It stands almost 200 ft tall at the peak of the dome, which overlooks the central gallery, devoted to Aileron specifically. The ground floor of the temple, the only one generally accessible to the public, offers places of worship including discrete shrines under the eleven surrounding lower domes for the various gods and saints within the larger pantheon of the twelve. The ceilings are covered in mosaics made from precious-metal tiles depicting various religious iconography, most notably on the central dome but also on the surrounding domes and other ceilings. Outside of the central dome, which is freestanding, the rest of the structure is supported by thick walls, tall columns, and buttresses leading to vaulting ceilings. Narrow and tall windows cast pillars of light downward, reflecting back upwards off the polished floors, glittering mosaics, and carefully placed mirrors and metal plates carved with particular religious symbols, images, and inscriptions to illuminate and reflect off the central mosaic on the dome's ceiling, mixing with the light cast by flickering candles to create a constant slight golden glow, while pulpits overlook most of the main galleries and are suited to sermons for the pews. The basement features the main archives and scriptorium. These rooms are typically cool and dry, lined here with solid granite blocks which support the immense weight of the structure overhead. These rooms are typically well lit with lamps and feature long rows of bookshelves lined with texts and small copying tables and benches to suit the scribes needs. Beyond these rooms are the more secure reliquaries, themselves sealed behind strong doors. The relics of religious significance are typically kept on display, and occasionally even displayed or used on in religious ceremonies or on the main level, while those of special historic importance, or those of significant divine or arcane power are kept further secured still in a separate archive, each contained within locked wrought iron and lead casements. Below the basement is the crypt and sepulcher where various significant figures are interred in hallowed ground. The upper levels of the structure are built generally out of stone, though some walls here are constructed out of wood. They can be reached by spiraling stone staircases around columns. The second level is primarily still reserved for religious functions, including balconies which overlook the main galleries and altars and can serve as additional room for select worshippers during particularly crowded holidays. This level also features meeting rooms for religious functionaries, further records rooms, and more private rooms for prayer and study. Most railings and bannisters are carved from stone, and feature ornate decorations of religious images and symbols of Aileron, and from them are draped large tapestries of colorful silks depicting Aileron's sun sigil. Further back, it also features rooms reserved for more administrative functions, including storerooms and small kitchens serving those who live in the temple and its grounds. Up on the third floor, the structure is mainly built out of wooden beams and walls centered on the powerful stone support columns rising from the ground level. This floor features more private balconies to the main gallery, again reserved for select worshippers, and features the first level of apartments for those living in the temple. Most of these rooms are either communal or cramped, and are reserved for novices, visitors, or low-ranking clergy. The fourth floor features a similar design, although rooms here are larger and generally more suited for high-ranking officials and functionaries. This floor also features large meeting chambers for church officials, as well as pulpits from which orators can speak to the masses in the galleries below. Finally, the fifth floor is reserved for the living quarters of the High Illuminator. They include living chambers, an audience chamber and more private meeting room, a private shrine to Aileron, a number of balconies and pulpits from which he can address the crowds beneath (both inside the Temple and speaking out into the outside Temple square) and quarters for his security and staff. Beyond the fifth level access to the roof and outside of the structure, or the highest reaches of the dome is possible by using the network of wooden ladders, catwalks, and scaffolding, but these are typically only used for maintenance and cleaning.

Defenses

The Temple of Aileron is not built with defense as its main consideration, but rather sanctuary, generally drawing its security from its high traffic and the many eyes and good intentions of those within its walls rather than any traps or dedicated defenses to speak of. However, it does possess a few innate advantages, and the sheer amount of wealth, the important artifacts encased within, and its role as a symbol of holiness make it a target sure to attract wayward souls and those of sinister intent, and therefore it has also taken some pragmatic measures. First and foremost, as a primary target for unholy and ill-intentioned supernatural powers, the entire Temple campus has been thoroughly blessed and are hallowed ground. The temple walls are made out of thick blocks of stone, suitably durable to withstand most conventional attack and also prevent magical scrying. The doors to the temple, made of solid cedar and lined with a sheet of lead and finished in a bronze-gold alloy, while enormous and generally kept open, can theoretically be shut and locked with two massive beams, and reinforced with iron pilings that can be secured, created a formidable barrier through their sheer enormity. Within the temple itself though, little aside from the efforts of the faithful exists to protect the worshippers in the shrines or galleries, although a last ditch defense might fall back to the secure and easily defensible vault in the reliquary or crypts, while defenders might hold at the natural chokepoints created by the temple's design, such as its stairwells. Finally, the presence of the contingent of Paladins in Aileron's service living at the temple acts as a small but formidable security force, as the Temple Guardians are hand picked from the Order of the Dawn and sworn to defend the Temple. While rarely called to action, these Paladins specifically patrol the Temple grounds, serve as personal bodyguards to the Lightbringer and high church authorities, and guard the reliquary (and in certain expectional cases, specific relics themselves). While these Paladins would likely be insufficient to stop and serious military venture agains the Temple, they are typically seen as more than sufficient to guard against petty crime against the Temple and its worshippers, and could likely delay and serious attack for long enough for reinforcements from the Order of the Dawn's headquarters (located on the Temple's campus in an adjoining structure, the Dawnhold) or the City Watch to arrive.

History

Prior to its construction, the location served as a religious gathering point, featuring a number of smaller and more organic temples and shrines which had developed on the spot organically in affiliation with the religious legends around it. In 319 AC, these organic and somewhat deteriorating and unimpressive structures were replaced and the construction of a new temple was sponsored by the Kings of Whiteport at the ascendancy of their power, and these shrines consolidated into the Temple of Aileron's larger campus and the Brokenhold. The new structure, featuring its iconic gilded dome and white marble walls, was built in only five years and ten months, and was consecrated and first opened for worship in 325 AC. Traditionally the seat of the High Illuminator, the construction of the new Temple was part of a larger deal orchestrated by the Kings of Whiteport as part of a policy of mutual cooperation, endorsement, and noninterference between the faith and the power of the king, and was instrumental in reconciling the two.

Tourism

The Temple of Aileron is one of the major tourist sites in the city of Whiteport. It attracts not only faithful pilgrims, but simply tourists who have heard about its fabled design and decor and its impressive scale. During its busiest holidays, the temple can host 20,000 people in a day for the largest religious ceremonies and rituals, but in a typical day the temple might host anywhere from 2,000 to 7,500. During the largest festivals, attendees can include pilgrims and individuals from all over Kethenicaea and of all backgrounds, some of the utmost devotion, and others merely tourists interested in the spectacle, while on average days most visitors to the temple are either particular devout pilgrims, citizens of Whiteport observing their usual rituals, or tourists coming to marvel at the Temple. The temple also attracts religious scholars and officials from other faiths and devoted to other deities within the pantheon, as it serves as the administrative head of the Church of Aileron and a major seat of the pantheon of The Twelve. Many come as part of specific meetings with officials in Aileron's church, including the High Illuminator themself, but the Temple's archives and scholars result in visitors seeking information or important documents and religious lore, and many religious students frequent its grounds, as do acolytes, clerics, paladins, and religious novices seeking enlightenment or to advance in their studies. Finally, the Temple offers healing services and a small hospital. While its most powerful healing services are offered for a fee, many clerics and acolytes can preform minor acts of healing using their divine blessings free of charge, and as a result the Temple attracts a number of sick, injured, or otherwise debilitated individuals seeking both simple and more advanced medical attention.