Iarus (ee-are-us)

Divine Overview

Portfolio

Many of the Natural Gods contain metaphysical aspects of the world, but none more so than Iarus. Their entire portfolio is intangible concepts, leading to their title as the "Catch-All God." Nevertheless, there is a theme, revolving around freedom, specifically freedom from.
Iarus is the god of Freedom and Independence, from which all of their other aspects derive. From this come Deception and Disobedience, the freedom from conformity; Fun and Frivolity, the freedom from the seriousness of life; Free Will and the Oppressed, the freedom from slavery and labor; Forgiveness and Vindication, the freedom from your own demons and the curse of revenge.

Appearance

Iarus is androgynous across all cultures, and often depicted as an animal. In Anhara and al-Tahat, for example, they are a rabbit, a freewheeling animal associated with the Fae. While they can be depicted as a variety of creatures, in the Boreal North Iarus is a full-time shapeshifter.

Plane

Cosmologically speaking, Iarus' Plane has no real position or orbit. On the Orrery model, it is depicted in a tight orbit around the Mortal Plane, representing his unique position in regards to humanity. As the trickster god, the god of freedom, he had no real role in Creation, and thus was never separated from the Mortal Plane with the Crossing Over. Maru allows him some leeway in interacting with the world given that portfolio, and he has tunnelled his own passages through the Veil. What his plane looks like is heavily dependent upon the culture depicting it. It often has similarities to Mirth, as Iarus is sometimes believed to have created that plane as a backdoor into the mortal realm. As such, his realm is often described as enterable first through Mirth.

Historical Overview

Primordial Origins

Creation Myth

Iarus plays no part in the Creation itself, being one of the few gods devoid of any connotation with natural elements or features of the world. Rather, he enters the Creation scene at its end, as a spiritual entity bringing the concept of freedom. Each nation has its own version of Creation, generally associating mortality's birth with their own god. Escaping the absolute power of their respective god, and instead have free will, is where Iarus comes into play.

Age of Rule

Many of the Natural Gods became associated with nations, which were eventually ruled over by the five Ruling Gods. Iarus' portfolio was what added not only free will to the mix, but political will as well. While historically each Ruling God's powers faded for different reasons, Iarus has a place in each culture's depiction of the events leading to the Crossing Over.

Contemporary Views

Anhara

In modern Anhara, Iarus is most often associated with two realms: the frivolity of entertainment, and Mirth. Bards look to them for inspiration, but they look to many other gods and sources as well. What Iarus most uniquely inspires, however, are playwrights and travelling entertainers such as milsen wagons.
As for Mirth, Iarus is not a god of the Fae. However, the dimension itself is supposed to have been created or otherwise tethered to the Mortal Plane by this god. As a god uninvolved with Creation, they were allowed to maintain some influence within the Mortal Plane. As a workaround to the Crossing Over, Iarus was said to have tunnelled through Mirth, piercing the Veil. They are believed to offer this service to other gods as well... for a price.

al-Tahat

Tahati views of Iarus are similar to those of Anharans. Here, they are associated with both entertainers and Mirth. Street performers make tributes to Iarus, but performances in al-Tahat have more of an oral history theme, even when frivolous. However, while Anharan itinerant knights and youths are associated with Enech, Tahati wanderers are associated with Iarus. They seek adventure on the dunes, or delving into ancient ruins, not for honor and societal position, but for a more Iarian sense of freedom.
The Veil thins in some of al-Tahat's most remote places. Those wandering the wastes have reported mercurial beasts, particularly desert rabbits, leading them back to the safety of an oasis town or rest stop. However, bad luck follows such a rescue for a few days. Events like this are attributed to the harmless benevolence of Iarus. Not all are quite so lucky, as the god is also responsible for driving some to just the very edge of madness... before relenting.

Boreal North

In the Boreal North, Iarus is predominantly the shapeshifter god. While at first glance, shapeshifting may be associated with a god of nature, as some sort of return-to-nature, it is viewed largely as a freedom from societal commitment or self. The Boreal North views shapeshifting largely as a challenge. On one hand, its a blessing allowing the freedom to be oneself and be in the world, on the other a freedom from actual, important commitments or from facing personal challenges.

Litoric Islands

Panag Rho

Divine Classification

Natural God

Domains

Trickery

Portfolio

Deception & Disobedience
Freedom & Independence
Fun & Frivolity
Free Will & the Oppressed
Forgiveness & Vindication

Titles

Chain-Breaker
The Catch-All
Plane Hopper

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Gender

Neutral