Church of the Dying Grace
The Church of the Dying Grace was founded sometime after the Great War of nations. Founded by Father Grel Pas, this new Church was initially intended to provide solace and care to the poorer families who were otherwise ignored by society, despite their often heroic deeds in the battle. Because of these ideals, and the charisma of Father Grel, the church rapidly gained a sizeable following, from all nations on Imrai.
For much of the Churches early years, the teachings kept true to the founding creed, but as the congregation grew, the public began to hear about the teachings and sermons happening behind closed doors. Whereas the other long established churches worshipped the various aspects of the Apoch-God Naer, the Church of the Dying Grace instead focused their worship on the notion that when you die, anyone who witnessed the immediate death mask was looking upon the face of true bliss. The devout followers were always keen to make the distinction that they did not worship Naers' Death aspect, rather they worshippped the fleeting second of soul leaving body.
This revelation brought scorn and ridicule towards the newer church from the populace, which led to the congregation choosing to forgo visual identification to their faith, lest they endure open ridicule in the streets. Instead, they developed the key phrase "Behind the Mask" as a way of easily identifying other believers. Dropped into conversations in a way that wouldn't arouse unwanted attention, this simple code soon became a lifeline.
Over time, the phrase began to take on a life of its own, as stories cropped up in bars and homes about the "secret password of the crazies". Outside of the Dying Grace members, nobody knew the right phrase, but as all good stories in taverns go, it was the surrounding rumours that gave it traction.
It was one of these stories that gained the Dying Grace its most influential new member. Determined to find out more about these rumours, an Unnamed person of wealth and influence was said to have sought out the now aging Father Grel to offer his vast wealth and resources in exchange for being allowed to join the Church. At this time, the Dying Grace members usually met in small roving groups to spread their teachings. The offer was too large for the elderly Grel to ignore, as he wanted to ensure his churches ideals would continue long after he met his grace.
This investment allowed the Dying Grace to finally add a structure to their teachings, with the most senior members being sworn in to host new sermons. The Unnamed investor never revealed himself to any but the highest few. The ones who, like him, began to ferverently cling to their faith. Father Grel was said to have passed, but nobody was allowed to attend his entombment in the new crypts. This left the church in the hands of the fervent few.
Soon after the supposed passing, the Dying Grace began to once again present an outward front. Using their new funds, they purchased a large plot on the outskirts of the cities' religious sector, much to the ire of the nearby Churches. On this land they quickly constructed their new temple of worship. Outwardly pristine, only snippets of the interior have been glimpsed, and nothing pious can be said about these brief glances.
People have been seen entering the temple at all hours, which in and of itself is not unusual, but when lepers and injured patients from nearby medial buildings are later seen exiting in seemingly good health after all normal treatment and prayers have failed has begun to raise some brows.
Word of these unusual feats spread quickly, drawing even members of the existing churches in with curiosity. This has led the Dying Grace to have gone from being regarded with veiled hostility and cursory glances to now coming under direct scrutiny, with the heads of the older churches banding together for the first time to present a united front to the city leadership.
The outrage of the religious groups has seemingly fallen on deaf ears within the City leadership, much to their dismay. Seemingly the Unnamed investor had far larger reach and influence than anyone gave credit. This has caused the Unified Churches to form a shadowy new sect, dedicated to secretly hunting out the truth behind the Dying Grace. Highly skilled individuals have been tasked with numerous black ops to infiltrate and neutralise any potential threat.
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