Kirien the Red
Kirien the Red is the Kolaluthenut Goddess of War, as well as being loosely associated with natural predation and hunting. She is typically represented as a hot-tempered and boisterous Dwarven woman with brilliant red eyes and skin as cured leather, clad in golden armour and enveloped in a robe as red as the blood she spills.
Being what the Empire would consider an evil domain, she is famously worshipped by the Steadfast Few, chiefly among the Porg Vogglot. Despite this, however, she is still understood to have a lawfully good alignment by the locals in Maletsok. She is rarely worshipped in the modern day as a warrior-deity, save for by soldiers of the Gilded Warriors due to her being conflated with the ancient war in Maletsok. Instead, she is often revered by hunters who call themselves the Masters of the Hunt and, in rare cases, investigators and inquisitors. Nevertheless, her Temple in Elionneadra, built ages ago in her Homeland on the frontier of Northern Wetlands, remains an awe-inspiring testament to the precarious balance between life and death that warfare demands.
Role in the Sacred History of Maletsok
Like most of the Nine, Kirien played a vital role in the history of Maletsok. She , she is credited with having taught predation to the creatures of the Islands and created the Goblin species. More importantly, she taught the peoples of Maletsok the art of warfare and weaponcraft. After Maletsok was founded and populated, and began to turn to greed and hatred, she took advantage and pushed soldiers from all peoples to attack neighbours, so that no one people-group would be to blame. It is said that the other Great Deities were furious at Kirien, but punishment was stayed after she indicated that she did nothing but accelerate what had already been established in the hearts of their creations. Her testimony, therefore, spurred the Nine to lay blame on the peoples of Maletsok and eventually decide to punish them.
Cults
Gilded Warriors
As their name suggests, the Gilded Warriors are of a warrior class who have dedicated their lives in service to Kirien to the art of warfare. Known across the land as ruthless and hardened killers, they have been a fearsome sect for millennia. To the Warriors, the besting and killing of an enemy in war delights Kirien, and every drop of blood spilt on the battlefield is as wine to her.
Unlike the Masters of the Hunt, the Gilded Warriors have very little respect for their enemies. If a fighter can be bested in combat, they were not worthy of being fighters in the first place. In order to be the best fighters and earn Kirien's favour, Warriors tend to be trained in martial arts from a very young age. Children who cannot keep up with the combat training are seen as inferior, and often disowned by their families and even communities (a barbaric practice since outlawed in Imperial law, but nevertheless continuing to this day).
The Gilded Warriors do boast a moderate standing army located in their training grounds in Gunzakhil, who often act as a mercenary group for greater powers. Beyond this, however, Warriors can be found of all species and backgrounds, whether guardsmen of noble families or high-ranking officials in the Ethelan Empire. In some cases, whole troops of Warriors have been sent abroad, notably in the Utamad'Zum Rebellion on the continent.
Masters of the Hunt
The Masters of the Hunt is a hunting guild located largely in the Semseach Woodlands. They worship Kirien the Red, following her domain of Predation. These Masters are, as their names imply, experienced and brilliant hunters. The Masters believe that participating in and perfecting the act of hunting brings glory to Kirien, and will earn her favour in their lives, and ultimately in their deaths.
The hunters do not merely hunt, however, as an average person hunts: purely for sustenance or sport. They instead live and hunt by strict moral codes. Firstly, hutners must catch and kill without the use of magic; only craft and skill. This is done to balance the powers between predator and prey, as it is in nature. Secondly, there is a spiritual understanding that Masters have between themselves and their kill that prey is not lesser than the predator, but rather both are equally important in the balance of life and death. In this way, there is a deep respect and reverence for prey in the Masters of the Hunt.
Typically, Masters enter the woods to hunt before first light, when it is believed the wakening of prey and the Astral Plane being close at hand coincide. They then pray to Kirien for guidance, amplified by the Astral Plane's nearness, and begin their venture. When game is spotted, they will, either in stealth or in the open, attempt to kill the animal. If successful, the Master in situ removes the animals heart and wraps it in a cloth soaked in the animal's blood. This bundle is then placed attached to rope and tied around the Master's neck while they take the hunt back home to be processed. All parts of the animal are used, typically for meat, canvas, and oil. When the animal has been processed, the clothed heart can be removed from the hunter's neck and burned at a shrine to Kirien as an offering.
Along with being expert huntsmen, the Masters are also gifted craftsmen in hunting paraphernalia. In cities and towns where Hunthouses can be found, one is sure to find there the best hunting equipment available in the area. Some particular Masters craftsmen, such as Grantham Broadeyes, are universally renowned, and their wares are well sought-after across Maletsok.
The Steadfast Few
Zealous, violent, and incredibly blood-thirsty, the Steadfast Few is a cult of Kirien the Red who believe themselves to be the only remaining faithful of war goddess. Unlike most Luthaenoists, the Steadfast maintain a slightly altered Sacred History, believing that Kirien was not remorseful for her role in the Island's destruction, nor was she guiled into "perverting" the predator-prey relationship. Instead, the Steadfast maintain that brutal, violent warfare and conquest alone bring glory to Kirien; the blood spilt in her name is often described as being like wine to her, and the screams of the slaughtered as music to her ears. As such, the Steadfast actively search for opportunities to wage war, typically in the form of raids upon nearby villages and towns.
Nevertheless, the Steadfast do maintain a strict moral code about war, believing in the value a fair fight both as a challenge to the aggressor and a mercy to the victim. As well, some Steadfast are known to go so far as to spare the innocent in war, deeming them unworthy adversaries. Evenso, the Steadfast Few is still a deeply illegal cult under both Imperial and Maletsokish law, and its adherents can only be found in large and proud numbers in the Porg Vogglot of the mountains, outside the reach of the Empire.
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