Pholeimos (Foh-lay-mose)

Pholeimos is misunderstood. She’s often sidecast or even frowned upon by the Tel'Quessir for two main reasons. One - she is not a goddess, and two - she represents pain. People don’t see beyond those things, and therefore they don’t bother to look into them.

I’m writing this book to show why they are wrong.

Pholeimos is, for all intents and purposes, a simple spirit who failed to pass on from the mundane realm. From now on in this book however, I will be referring to Pholeimos as a Goddess, as I think all who worship her should. While it’s true, she doesn’t have the power or the followers of a Goddess, she has the will of one. A will stronger than most Gods, I would even argue.

Pholeimos isn’t a spirit of suffering or pain, she’s a Goddess of Compassion for those who fell through the cracks of this world - those who were picked over by Gods too focused on the larger picture.

She listens when no one else will, and she empathizes to the most literal sense of the word, where she takes one being’s pain as her own and feels it down to each crack in the soul, so she knows what they’re going through. I remember screaming together when my leg had to be amputated, and spilling my fears after only to be consoled with exactly the right words.

She doesn’t want anyone to feel alone in this world. Each heartbreak, each sting of a skinned knee, and each agony of flayed flesh down to muscle; she’s felt it. It’s what makes her such a good listener. So good for the little pieces of advice that mean the world.

My colleagues and I heard her voice during the war, after Emperor Streggyk decimated our forces and sent us fleeing into the mountains. When all seemed lost, she was there for us.

We dedicated building this tower of worship for her, but in the end, it gave us purpose. The will to carry on instead of ending it and praying to whoever would listen that the afterlife could be better than this. The tower, as with everything else looking back, was more for our benefit than hers.

Excerpt from “Pholeimos” by K. Virriet