Solar Soul

"One day, when the sun and Cliona dance, there shall come a man whose soul burns with the light of the sun itself. He shall be Venderus' chosen, and he shall lead the Kalriv to our true destiny as Mirkos has foreseen. He shall be the Solar Soul."
-an excerpt from the Solar Canon tablets, held by Solar priests in Var Kalriv

The prophecy of the Solar Soul is a belief central to the Kalriv faith of Solarity. It prophesises the telling of a great being, a 'Solar Soul', who would lead the Kalriv in completing their destiny as laid out by Venderus, the Kalriv sun god.

Summary

When the priest Mirkos and the hunter Kalros founded the city of Var Kalriv nearly 6000 years ago, Mirkos received a number of instructions, laws and prophecies said to have been giving to him directly by the Kalriv sun god Venderus. Near the end of his life, the elderly Mirkos was said to have received final words from Venderus, foreseeing the arrival of a person who was chosen by Venderus himself to lead the Kalriv to glory and their final intended destiny Venderus had in mind for them. It was said that the fires of the sun itself would burn within their soul, and the world itself would change with every step that this 'Solar Soul' took.
Mirkos' words were memorised by his disciples and passed down over generations, and eventually codified into the Solar Canon, the holy tablets of the Kalriv. This Solar Soul is a messianistic figure; while Mirkos' description of precisely what they would do is left vague, the implication seems to be that they will serve as an extension of Venderus' divine will and will change the Kalriv, and most like Annyrion, forever.

Artist's impression of Mirkos, the Prophet of Venderus and the foreteller of the Solar Soul

Solar priests who have studied Mirkos' word have concluded that the Solar Soul will be bestowed with some form of innate divine power; if not an outright avatar of Venderus, they may have celestial influence or be guided by Venderus. They will be able to perform feats and miracles no human could ever perform. They have also gleaned the following criteria for the Solar Soul;

• The Solar Soul will be created many thousands of years from the founding of Var Kalriv, when they are most needed.
• The Solar Soul will manifest the very light of the sun itself in their words and deeds.
• The Solar Soul will be born during an eclipse; 'while the sun and Cliona (the moon of Annyrion) dance'
• The Solar Soul will lead the Kalriv in the completion of the divine intent Venderus had for them; this is generally believed to be some kind of conquest of Arikanda, although it is not specified beyond 'completing the Kalriv's destiny', which in most texts involves bringing order to all Arikanda.
• The Solar Soul will find the lost Spear of Kalros, wielded by the legendary founder of the Empire, and wield it themselves.

Regardless of the nature of its manifestation, if true, the Solar Soul's arrival would not only shake the foundations of the Kalriv and of Arikanda itself, but it would change the very nature of Annyrion's metaphysics and cosmology.

Historical Basis

Throughout Kalriv history there have been false Solar Souls; usually prominent Overlords who either proclaimed themselves to be the Solar Soul, or were proclaimed so by others. Particularly effective leaders tend to attract this reputation. So far, however, no leaders seem to have fulfilled the requirements needed to prove themselves as a Solar Soul.

Spread

As the Solar Soul myth was laid down directly by one of the founders of what would become the Kalriv Empire, it is a core tenet of the Empire today. Everybody in the Empire is taught about the coming of the Solar Soul, although the priesthood only wishes for their approved version to be taught and jealously guard its teachings, with the relatively recent War Priests only able to teach an alternative viewpoint through strength of numbers and influence.

Variations & Mutation

There are a few variations of the Solar Soul belief. While Mirkos himself did not specify a particular gender, class or even nationality to the Solar Soul, mainstream Kalriv opinion holds that it will be a male Guardian. However some scholars question this, believing it could be a male or female, or that it could potentially be a Solar priest.
The War Priests, a recent sect which has raised among some of the Solars and Guardians of the Empire, hold that the Solar Soul will manifest as a great general who, through his martial prowess, glory and conquest, will not only lead the Empire to glory, but will actually ascend to godhood alongside Venderus, or even become him somehow. This variance is frowned upon by some of the more traditionalist adherents of Solarity, but has picked up enough support from Guardians and Solars, that it cannot simply be suppressed, and is therefore tolerated.
Among the Empire's slave population, there is a belief that the Solar Soul will right the injustices bestowed upon them in the past by tearing down the existing order, replacing it with one true to Venderus' vision, and setting the slaves free. This belief is harshly suppressed by the Empire should word of it get out, so most who believe this must do so in secret.
Outside of the Empire, the myth is not taken very seriously. However, the Elemental Templars across Arikanda monitor anybody who may make a claim to the title, primarily because any acceptance of a Solar Soul by the Kalriv populace is very likely to precede a massive invasion of the Southern Sapphire Coast, the Heartlands and Arikanda as a whole.

In Literature

The Solar Canon is the primary literature source pertaining to the Solar Soul, although there are a number of tablets that have been written on the subject by scholars speculating as to its nature.

Date of First Recording

-5300 DoM

Related Ethnicities

• Kalriv

Related Locations

• Var Kalriv

Related Organizations

• Solar Faith