Common Deities in the Trailward Stars

Whether the core of a state religion in their civilisation of origin, a folk tradition taking on a life of its own or an extracted part of a wider pantheon, these deities are known to most spacefarers in the outer Orion spur and adjoining Terran territories.

Invictus

Principal colony-goddess of the Kitsunes, Invictus represents comfort, home, becoming one's true self, and gratuitous fluffiness of fur.

Inexorably tied with the disastrous colonisation of Sestin and the colony ship's enduring legacy as a shelter, a source of heat and survival, and as common ground for early kitsune culture. Invictus (often called Invi) is depicted as a kitsune woman of maternal build wearing humble and comfortable clothing. The style of clothing often varies with the culture portraying her.

Invictus is invoked most often by spacefarers seeking shelter from the uncaring void, looking to make their conditions more survivable, and wishing for a safe return to their loved ones at journey's end. The most common deity for otherwise agnostic individuals to pray to, usually in total ignorance of the Empire of Summer's approved styles of worship. Individuals who take up a sustained and serious devotion to Invi may show it by lengthening and softening any fur on their bodies, or for humans outside of Terran social norms taking genetic alteration to gain suitably fluffy tails of their own, but dedicated worshippers are more often identified by their gentle and welcoming disposition.

Oregano

Sole colony-goddess of the Fennecs, Oregano represents survival, preparedness, education and mentorship, and unfounded optimism.

While Invictus is remembered for the slow and dutiful demise of her namesake, Oregano is best known for the fennec colony ship's sudden and inexplicable self-deconstruction and technological execution of early Rupeean society. The goddess is best known as a well-meaning but eventually deadbeat mother who shepherded early fennecs into surviving in their inhospitable home... and then did not. Oregano is formally represented by the throne and tools she abandoned, overrun and enshrouded by oasis creepers and vines, but the taboo against her depiction is mild and often overlooked. A folk representation of a rangy, elderly fennec woman wearing a fine and flowing thermal cloak has emerged and grown in popularity.

Oregano is invoked by apprentices and their teachers alike, and by high-risk shipboard personnel who must be well prepared and aware of threats around them. Its not uncommon for damage control and rescue vessels to display Oregano's symbol in one form or another. She is also considered a patron of those learning on the job. The most common invocation in Rupeean space particularly is performative, echoing the attitude of "it'll be fine!" that the goddess herself is famous for. Rumours that the goddess is named for an ancient Terran herbal flower has resulted in an explosion in the popularity of similarly woody, small-flowered plants, often cultivated in oxygen gardens or flowerbox shrines by the devoted.

Trideste

Warrior goddess of the Lanzian Harpies, originally representing storms and sea monsters, but today associated with space travel, piracy, and honour among warriors.

The Lanzian culture is born in seafaring and the will to be free, and Trideste has always been the symbol of their particular brand of freedom. The attitudes of her worship is best represented by the Law of the Sky, the main interaction non-harpy spacefarers have with the goddess. The most common representation is that of a tall and powerfully built harpy woman wearing a flowing dress, wielding a spear and a large gunpowder revolver, standing astride a sailing vessel or modern military starship.

Trideste is invoked by combat personnel, especially those less involved with a traditionally arranged military, and often entreated for courage in battle or forfacing the trials of daily life. The formal, theocratic priesthood that has formed around Trideste is unusually inclusive and laid back given their political power and significance and often works to enable heterodoxy and principled rebellion even against their own material interests - the principles of Harpy freedom and the veneration of courage itself outweigh political necessities. Of the more informal forms of worship, particular devotees vary widely in their interests and activities but tend to stick resolutely to the tenets of the Law of the Sky.

Xerius

(Arken deity of forges, craftshops, machinery, creation, and the patron deity of sophont AI)

(origin? part of Arkens culture. how he fits into the pantheon. visuals - a figure of metal and moving parts who has a rather cheerful demeanor)

(invoked when informally? formal worship and priesthood? identifying devotees?)