The Order of the Fallen Leaves

The oldest organization within Arbor they comprise the clergy and other members of the religious order that treats The Great Tree as a deific entity. Their numbers and influence is not what it once was, but they are still a formidable force within the city still holding a seat on the Silver Council. There are questions surrounding that seat and the orders right to it. But tradition has, for now at least, kept them in power though their strength has waned.

"They're older than all the other guilds, companies, families or any organization that matters. They used to hold everything in the palm of their hands, but these days praying to trees is less important than coin..." -unknown

Public Agenda:

Publicly the Order is the defacto state religion of Arbor and seeks to spread it's brand of enlightenment to anyone who is willing to listen. They also believe they have a sacred duty to safeguard the tree and protect the livelihood of everyone in Arbor whether they want it or not. In addition they run several charities, orphanages and outreach programs aimed at helping the poor and downtrodden.

History:

As the mortal races are wont to do when they find anything of great power that they do not understand some took to worshiping the tree, abandoning old gods for this new one. It did not take long before several groups formed under different banners citing differences in the way that The Great Tree should be worshipped and praised. Like so many things, these differences led to conflict and in time blood ran in the streets of old Arbor. When the dust settled only one remained: The Order of the Fallen Leaves. They cannot claim to be the first of the religions formed out of the early primordial soup but they are the survivors and that counts for far more.

Post Reconciliation

In the early days after the Reconciliation the church began gathering power and attempted to gain a monopoly on items produced from the tree. To accomplish this they established The Great Tree Workers as the only ones who were allowed to touch the sacred items from the tree, saying that to touch them without their blessing could incite the The Great Tree's wrath. This was incredibly effective for hundreds of years; the general populace was reverent, scared of losing their livelihoods and the good fortune provided by the tree. Any and all goods were under the order's control allowing the church to dole out favours and writs of use to those who had served them well. It made the Church powerful, though it was not to last and most of this change can be attributed to the invention of steam power and the rise of the Factory Bosses.

Post Steam

Steam power changed everything for the Church. They attempted to seize control of this new energy before it threatened their power by attempting to cut off the supply lines of Great Tree Sap that facilitated this new form of energy. But progress, greed and innovation wait for no one and to stand in it's way is to invite disaster. Several of the most powerful bosses from Factory Bosses banded together to strong arm the Church into relinquishing control of the resources of the great tree to The Silver Council directly. Shortly after several of the seats that had been held for centuries suddenly became available and one by one, seat after seat fell to other groups. As for how a few bosses could manage this, the details of this are lost to time and no one is really sure how or why the Church gave over control of the City to the capitalists though many suspect blackmail, force or even powerful magics. Suffice to say these days the Church is but a shadow of its greater days.

Attire / Common Garb / Quirks:

The order cites that their vestments are in reverence to the great tree itself choosing to mostly cover themselves in green a colour the tree does not exhibit except in it's seeds. In addition to this higher ranking members of the church undergo a special ceremony where a small amount of seed oil is dipped into their eyes dyeing them permanently green, they can still see but many of them believe that it allows the Tree to see through their eyes bringing themselves closer to the Tree in the process.

Written Description:

A long dark green cassock with polished silvery wooden buttons, the smallest tuft of a white shirt where the garment ends. Draped over one shoulder and extending nearly to the floor is a beautifully crafted musketeer's cape it's color a beautiful silver with a gold embroidery all along it's edge.

• Ceremonial Cassock floor length, in dark green buttons made of Great Tree Bark
• Musketeer's Cape, in station colours(dark green, silver, or red) with gold or silver embroidery
• White undershirt

Mythology

As the order tells it The First Ones were destined to find The Great Tree from the start of creation itself as only they could be it's proper caretakers. The myth that is propagated by the church is that The First Ones traveled for decades searching for a home being persecuted in every kingdom, village and city they stopped in. A people with no home the lost and shunned of the world. It was only until they had crossed the great seas, deserts and icy tundras that they had proven themselves worthy of becoming the Trees stewards. Upon seeing the tree for the first time it is said that it wept great tears and relinquished upon the First Ones the very first offering of Float Fruit and that it was only this offering that sustained them through the winter.
Many over the centuries have claimed to hear the call of the tree or know what it wants, most frequently these claims of prophecy and visions come from the Seekers. One common thread among many though is a single word echoed throughout the centuries "GROW". The voice of myth was quiet at first though as the city has grown so to has the volume of it's voice. Encouraging this and those that hear it's voice the Church has encouraged the growth of the city, it's peoples as it's believed that as a benevolent god the tree seeks only for the people that live under it to be fruitful and grow

Cosmology

The order believes that the tree was always here and that the world is what truly grew around it. It has existed in one form or another since the beginning and will continue to exist long after the stars have grown cold. They believe that the tree is the beginning and the end of all life, that fruit fell from the tree and instead of the succulent flesh of today, the races of the world were what emerged when the outer skin was torn. They believe thusly that when a person dies they return to the tree and are reborn leaving their memories behind that feed and sustain the tree allowing it to grow larger.
"We are born from fruit and we will return to root" -saying in Arbor

Tenets of Faith

• The tree is sacred and it's gifts must only be used for the benefit of Arbor.
• You will not take from the tree unless it is given freely
• You will not bring fire to the tree
• Give as the tree does; freely, generously and of oneself
• Seek not glory for as the tree does we are but to be content in shade
• Do not be a glutton take only what is needed to live and no more.
• Grow

Worship

To praise the tree many take a small piece of it into their homes to act as small shrines where they pray to it once a day at dawn wishing for good fortune and generosity from above. In larger churches they may have complete branches with leaves on as a representation of the larger tree. In addition to this homes or buildings built more in the trees shade than out of it are thought of as more valuable.

Holidays

There are a few holidays within the year that are observed by some of the states the tree takes on over the seasons though for the most part the trees state changes little those that have lived here long enough know that even small changes can have large effects for those below.

The Returning:

Twice a year is a ceremony of giving back to the tree in ages past this was a moment of sacrifice and in more barbaric times a captured prisoner would be killed at the foot of the tree their blood allowed to flow into Silver Leaf Lake until it ran red. These days though the ceremony is mostly symbolic and a small pin prick of blood from a finger is pressed into an effigy though some still make the long journey braving the crowds to place their offering directly on the tree itself.

The Day of Light:

This day is more spontaneous and predicting one is troublesome and inaccurate. Sometimes if the sun is in the right position and the leaves of The Great Tree are in just the right position huge columns of light will cascade down from the sky and for the first time is a long time Arbor the city of Twilight will experience a true day. On these days shopkeepers are a little happier children play in the beams and everyone is a little bit more cheerful. While not an official holiday it is one recognized by the church as a blessing from above to remind us we are protected and loved.

Founding:

Marking the day that the The First Ones arrived at the The Great Tree after their long journey it is the major holiday of Arbor and one of the only days when the Factories shut for the day. preceding it is two weeks of fasting only taking water in the evenings and partaking in none of the trees bounties until the day of the Founding when a great feast is held of the trees fruits and in the present other foods that have since made their way into the locals diet.

Ceremonies:

A number of religious ceremonies are practiced by the populace at large, though this is by no means an exhaustive list as there have been known to be more esoteric interpretations especially in the Twigs this still should suffice as a starting point.

First meal

A unique though somewhat more subdued ceremony or religious event it is still one of great importance for the people of Arbor. When a child takes their first mouthful of Float Fruit it is a momentous occasion that is often celebrated particularly in more affluent areas of the city. Sometimes this event is postponed as long as possible for the infant in order to make a bigger impression of the young one.

The Joining

One of the more rare events within the Order. The joining is a ceremony performed very rarely especially in this day and age of steam power and electricity. In days past if a person were to lose a limb they could petition the Order for a portion of the Heart Wood and through the joining ceremony be granted a replacement for what was lost. These tree forged limbs function the same as the person's original appendage and in some ways better. Of course the secret of how to perform these ceremonies is known only to certain high ranking clergy within the Order and with Heart Wood being extremely rare it is performed very infrequently.

Return to the Wood

When a person dies within Arbor their body is placed upon the nearest roots of The Great Tree this is a time to reflect on the person as they were and functions in place of any funeral rights visitors might be familiar with. Slowly the body is absorbed into the roots and disappears leaving behind any clothes or items they might have been wearing at the time. In cases where a person is will liked candles and other items may be brought to the site of returning to honour those that have returned.

Structure and Hierarchy:

To advance up the trunk of the Order of the Fallen leaves one must devote themselves to the tree, in times past there were records of high ranking clergy grafting parts of The Great Tree on to themselves so that they might be closer to their god. In more modern times this is more symbolic in the mainstream church manifesting in jewelry and articles of clothing composed of parts of the tree.

Initiate:

Lowest ranking members of the order they are little more than dogs bodies and their robes are unadorned. They also lack the cape of their more senior members making them stand out far more than any other. This is where many begin their journey through the order's teachings or where unwanted people might find themselves after displeasing a noble parent.

Caretaker:

In most cases a Caretaker is sent out into the Third Ring or Second Rings to preside over a church keeping an eye on it and its congregation ensuring that they are following the Order's teachings and respecting the tree. They have the iconic cloak dyed a dark green.

Gardener:

In the way that a Caretaker is responsible for the flock of a his church a Gardner is so too tasked with a number of Churches to look after usual an entire branch though in the case of larger ones this can be managed by more than one Gardner. The cloak they wear is dyed dark green with silver inlay.

Arch Gardener:

Those responsible for multiple branches or entire rings of the city, heavy is the weight of such responsibility but it is managed effectively in total there are 6 Arch Gardeners at present though there have been some in the church saying there needs to be a 7th as the Twigs is getting far too large to be handled only by 2. Their cloak is red with a gold inlay

Head Gardener:

The very top of the order no others may stand above him and his word is taken as if spoken by the tree itself. They are the voice of the church and hold a seat on the The Silver Council though these days it is littler more than tradition it is still a foolish person that does not show respect before the seat of the order. Their cloak is pure silver

Surgeon

A special place within the order, those of the order who are tasked with meting out divine justice on blasphemous actions and individuals. Most people believe the Surgeons to be a myth that they are a remnant from a bygone age one that has no place in our more modern society. If they do exist though it's said their Cloaks are devoid of colour seemingly sapping the light out of the sky.

Notable People:

Linnea III (Head Gardener, Leader of the Order)

Territory:

The order still maintains some control in and around their various churches that are scattered throughout the city and most have a certain amount of wariness about starting something within one of the orders buildings. In addition to this the order holds far more sway with the more downtrodden of people as the promises they make of deliverance when one returns to the tree bring a certain level of hope to those whose bellies are often empty and where life in the next day is not a guarantee.

Notable Structures:

The order's seat of power is St. Asari's Cathedral, from this location the order monitors and issues edicts throughout the city and for those of the faith that have left the larger world. It is worth nothing that St. Asari's is not the only structure to be built on this land it is just the current and still standing building.

Type

Religious, Organised Religion

Leader

Linnea III

Related Traditions

• Founding Day

Related Historical Events

• 100 GT
  The Reconciliation

Distrust/Loathing

Factory Bosses

-25

The Order of the Fallen Leaves

-75

The Order owe their downfall in the social and leadership hierarchy to the factory bosses so keep an active distaste for them the other way around a simple level of distrust exists to the once great power.