Riev

Also known as: the Dancer, brightly-shining Riev, the Bright One, the Guiding Hand
A member of the pantheon and one of the true gods of Genesis, Riev is the god of the sun, fire, chaos, and the arts. He's a light-aligned god, the twin brother of the goddess Orona and the lover of the goddess Aia .
As an individual, Riev is considered mercurial and passionate, utterly dedicated to pursuing what his heart desires at any given time. More often than not he's joyful and is often spoken of as laughing or dancing, but when moved to anger he's a force to be reckoned with.

Depictions

Riev is typically depicted as a slender, athletic dark-skinned man with long hair worn in many small braids, appearing approximately thirty years of age. He's often shown wearing draping garments that resemble those of a dancer, and wears an abundance of gold ornamentation and jewelry; rings, bracelets and anklets, earrings, necklaces, and hair jewelry. Depictions of Riev frequently include a sun disc crowning his head, though this is sometimes shown as an artistic device and sometimes as a more literal crown.

Followers

Riev's most common followers are artists, artisans, performers, and poets; he's the patron of the arts and almost all creative people pray to him for inspiration.
Dedicated servants of Riev are most often travelers. While the god has some temples, it's thought that it's truer to his essential nature for his chosen to seek inspiration and bring beauty to the corners of the world; a visit from a chosen of Riev is often a cause for celebration and is seen as a welcomed event by most communities. Chosen of Riev aren't often warriors, but have an uncanny knack for reading and inspiring the emotions of others and rarely run afoul of trouble.

Worship Practices and Holy Days

Prayers to Riev typically involve song, dance, and acts of creation. Artists of all kinds worship Riev, and are expected to periodically create work dedicated to him during a period of fasting and meditative creation; these pieces belong to the god, and are thereafter burned as offering. Non-tangible works such as song, dance, poetry, etc, a symbolic offering is burned instead and the piece is never performed again. While the act of destroying one's creation can be a painful thing for an artist, followers of Riev are taught to embrace it. The offering is seen as an opportunity for renewal and celebration of the joy in the act of creation rather than the end result, as well as the ephemeral nature of beautiful things.
Unlike many gods, Riev has periodic celebrations throughout the year rather than only one or two high holidays. These occur on the first of each month and are the time when artists can choose to make their offerings; they're far more lighthearted than most holy days and are celebrations in the truest sense of the word, with a day and evening of performance, song, and bonfires late into the night.

Associated Mythology

RIEV AND AIA
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WEAVER LETO
Once, there was an old, old weaver-man named Leto. For all his life he had woven his work in a small village, and though the things he made were not grand they were beautiful in their simplicity, for Leto was a talented man. And as all talented men, he sought the favor of bright-shining Riev to keep his old fingers deft and his old eyes sharp for his work.
The time came for Leto to weave for the god and show his devotion, and though he was not a rich man and had nothing but undyed threads he knew that he would make something beautiful. And so he wove and wove, seven days and seven nights; and those undyed threads turned gold from the sun's shining light, and those undyed threads turned crimson from the blood of his old fingers. And at the end of those seven das and seven nights Leto took his work from the loom, and marveled, and knew that he would never weave its equal again.
But it was for the god, and what the god is owed cannot be taken back. Leto know this in his heart, because he was a faithful man and time and time again he had given his work to Riev's flames and rejoiced in seeing them turn to smoke in the promise of something new still to come. He stood before the flame, and held his magificent cloth of crimson and gold in his hands, and despaired, but the god was owed. And in that moment Leto knew what he could give instead, and stepped into the flames himself.
Only a fool defies the gods, but Riev is an artist himself and he admired that Leto valued his work over his very life. So the fire did not burn the old weaver, and instead he took the flames in his hand and wove them into a cloak of fire worthy of the god. And Riev took him to his side to keep. And Leto's great work still hangs in the Great Temple, in memory that even though Riev asks much of his followers, he also values the chaos that lets them choose their own paths.

RIEV
god of the sun, fire,
chaos, and the arts
light-aligned