Flame Keepers
The Flame Keepers are a specialized order of priests in the Temple of Ziva trained to maintain kinfire lighthouses. Even among those who don’t follow Ziva, the priests of this order are respected and revered.
Once ordained, all priests in the Temple of Ziva are gifted with robes crafted from white silk. A Flame Keeper’s robes, however, are also specially embroidered with golden cuffs, collars, and hems. Traditionally, priests wear these robes whenever they are in public and keep their head uncovered so that they may be fully visible to Ziva at all times.
The priests of the Temple of Ziva have a reputation for boisterous displays of emotion. It is believed that these displays help fuel the magic of kinfire. Flame Keepers, however, have to be cautious while in close proximity to the Holy Flame. There are rumored accounts of careless Flame Keepers whose emotional outbursts resulted in serious injury.
Hierarchy
Within the Temple of Ziva, the Hierophant is the head of the church in each city-state. In Din’Lux, Hierophant Selen oversees all Temple priests. Her word is treated as the word of Ziva.
While the Flame Keepers are the most well-respected order of priests, they are not technically ranked above any other. This does not, however, prevent Flame Keepers from behaving as if they are superior to other priests, which has created some friction within the Temple. In Din'Lux, Flame Keepers are also respected as near-celebrities among residents of the city.
The head of the Flame Keepers often works closely with the Hierophant. In the case of Hierophant Selen, the leader of the Flame Keepers is Yorel of Firefalls.
Education
Becoming a Flame Keeper requires an enormous amount of dedication, study, and sacrifice. Before the return of the Darkness, each city-state in the Luminated Alliance maintained a seminary where devout members of the Temple of Ziva could study in order to be ordained as priests. Despite the chaos ignited by the Starless Nights, the Temple still maintains its seminary in Din'Lux, proclaiming that Ziva's blessings are needed now more than ever.
Once a priest spends many years in service, it might be possible for them to be nominated to become a Flame Keeper. These individuals are typically highly respected and experienced, though there are occasionally young and very talented priests that are honored with a nomination.
Much of the knowledge given to Flame Keepers is kept secret from the general population. There are many prominent members of the Temple of Ziva who protest this secrecy, claiming that all followers of Ziva are deserving of the secrets of kinfire. The Flame Keepers, however, claim that they are merely protecting kinfire from those who could use this knowledge to steal or desecrate the Holy Flame.
History
Among the ancient texts upon which the Temple of Ziva was founded, it is believed that a collection of tomes containing the details of kinfire were also found. Some claim that the information in these volumes was deemed to be dangerous. Therefore, the order of Flame Keepers was created to guard these secrets. Though the existence of these texts have not been confirmed, they are rumored to be hidden and untranslated so that only Flame Keepers can decipher their contents.
Divisions
Throughout its long history, the Flame Keepers have seen a number of divisions in their ranks. When the Starless Nights first returned and the Hierophant chose to share kinfire with the scholars, many wanted to defy her. It’s even believed that a plan was in place to remove Selen as Hierophant. An unsuccessful assassination attempt was made, but despite a thorough investigation, the party behind the attack was never publicly identified. Not long afterwards, a group of Flame Keepers were excommunicated from the Temple for unknown reasons.
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