Elanaah

Goddess of Family and Flora

"Though they were first our creations, a demonstration of power and purpose, we should love them as children. In the essence of us, they are divine, and they must be protected. Mayhaps more from themselves than from others." - Elanaah, after the creation of the Ehlen

Elanaah, the Godqueen, the Allmother, was the second god to rise from the blood of Nora as it washed across the world. It was not long before she was discovered by Artur. She gladly accepted him as a partner as they traveled across the empty world together. Their bond expanded from a mutual necessity to an enriching romance in their own company as they searched for purpose in their lives. Elanaah proposed a marriage between them, the first of its kind, where the two would promise themselves to each other for eternity. Artur accepted, and they made their ceremony in their own company atop the Worldspine. Marriage would since be declared a sacred bond and their original union would be meant as an example for others to follow.
Stirna's Decree came to them shortly after their marriage. He instructed them of their divine purpose, to create and spread life throughout the world, as well as gifting them the company of his two sons. Sturn and Firna were welcomed heartily by the partners as they said farewell to their primordial father. Elanaah could tell from the beginning that although Sturn agreed and recognized Artur as their leader and her partner, he was more interested in her attention. The goddess permitted it in silence so long as he still deferred to Artur. The four gods now traveling together would soon become six as Elanaah gave birth to a set of twins, Jerun and Kiran. As the first children in the world to the first married partners in the world, they constituted the first true family. Elanaah declared childbirth to be another sacred bond and gift to the world.
The second wave of gods to be discovered came in the form of Deign, Seigna, and Orloch. Elanaah and Deign were to be fast friends while the other two kept their independent inclinations out for everyone to see. Orloch challenged Artur in combat for the right to lead the gods, a combat in which he may have won if Elanaah had not interfered and restrained her husband's attacker. Orloch admitted his defeat and looked to them both as his superiors together. Artur joined these seven together, not including their children at the time, to create the first Council of the Gods and share their divine purpose from Stirna. Elanaah supported her husband wholeheartedly and set out from the Council in order to serve her part in their purpose.
It was during her travels that she discovered one of the rare gates that led into the Realm of the Fae. Stunned at the existence of another realm and the possibilities that this brought, she decided to investigate the realm further in hopes of finding something useful for her or her kin. Elanaah found herself in the Summer Court among the animalesque denizens in service of the Summer Queen, Lyantriss. Both became fast friends and confided in one another, Elanaah sharing her limited knowledge of the gods and their purpose while the more experienced Lyantriss told her of the rich history of the Fae Realm. Time moved faster here and the fifteen years Elanaah spent away from home translated to only a few upon her return to the Realm of the Gods.
Upon her return, Elanaah saved her news of the Fae Realm until the next Council meeting, working on her Risen in the meantime. The Ehlen were created in her image, tall and graceful with elongated pointed ears. Their personalities and culture were based on her new beloved friends in the Summer Court. The Ehlen became renowned for their prideful ways alongside their love of beauty and the arts. She settled them in the forests surrounding the northern portion of the Worldspine where she had found the gateway to the Realm of the Fae and dubbed the land Ehlanui in favor of her new creation.
A few centuries later as the Risen continued to spread under the machinations of the gods, the gateways to the Fae Realm became increasingly more active with Fae crossing over into the Realm of the Gods and creating conflict with the Risen. These conflicts continued for nearly fifty years before a delegation comprised of Artur, Elanaah, and Sturn was sent to the Fae Realm to meet with their leaders and begin peace negotiations. Elanaah's familiarity and friendship with the Summer Queen turned into their greatest asset in the negotiations. Talks of peace were ultimately successful but not wholly without resistance. Minest, the Queen of the Winter Court and the Weaver of Lies, began to spread false rumors throughout the delegation that Sturn and Elanaah were having an illicit relationship behind Artur's back and could not be trusted. Dishonesty was a new concept to the gods and quickly raised tensions between them. These claims were proven to be ultimately untrue, at least at the time, and they continued on in peace.
The false affair would be called into question once again during the period of time in which Sturn was on trial for granting control over Magick to his Risen. This act was forbidden by Artur from the beginning of the Risen and was viewed as treason. Sturn admitted his guilt and alongside that received support from Elanaah, Deign, and many others who came to his side because of it. Many of the gods approved of giving this gift to their creations, and Artur relented. After the trial, however, he called his wife's faith into question due to her quick leap to defend Sturn during the trial. She admitted to having a fondness for Sturn but assured Artur that it was nothing like the love between the two of them. Artur was assured and moved past the issue. Elanaah questioned herself with Minest's lies ringing in her head.
Nearly two centuries later, Elanaah met with Sturn upon his request in a garden in which he had secretly planted an arrangement of dahlias in an attempt to win her affection. The conversations between the two of them remain a heavily debated secret throughout time. The end result, however, is certain as it led to the greatest rift between the gods. Soon after their hidden meeting, Elanaah would give birth to twins yet again. First was Panen, a small and frail child who was confirmed to belong to the married gods. The second child, however, was born with four arms and the lower half of a black serpent, obviously belonging to Sturn following their illicit union. Sturn would later name her Dahlia, after the flowers he arranged in his illicit meeting with Elanaah. Artur flew into a rage and attacked Sturn only to be held back by Deign, Seigna, and Mortair as they called for an immediate meeting of the Council of the Gods. Elanaah remained beside herself, stricken with grief and guilt at the sight of the two children.
The trial was filled with heated emotions and accusations. Elanaah's quick defense of Sturn during the last trial and the rumors spread by Minest were brought against her as everything led Artur to believe she conspired against him with Sturn. She denied any conspiracy and any actions until the night they shared together before. Her husband focused nearly all of his anger on Sturn who claimed that their relationship was out of mutual affection and that she was with him willingly. Elanaah ultimately took Artur's side during the trial, affirming his claims that Sturn forced himself upon her and that there was no love between them. Artur pronounced Sturn guilty and called for execution as Elanaah stood by her husband's decision. The majority of the council was not so easily swayed, however, as many came with their own decisions as to what should be done with him. In the end, Sturn was banished from their realm to the Realm of the Dead, and the Council of the Gods was disbanded in the aftermath.
Elanaah went alongside the rest of the gods in their disappearance from the Risen. Like some, however, rare visits were marked in the following centuries. Her most notable would have been her return to go through the Rites of Ascension with Larael Shimmerweave, a resurrected Ehlen whom she had gifted mastery over Arcane Magick when it was finally allowed to be spread amongst the Risen. It is rumored that she has made multiple visits to the Realm of the Fae to visit the Summer Queen during times of trouble. Many Ehlen still hope for her full return.

The Godqueeen

Elanaah possesses the great power of Divine Creation. As part of the divine purpose granted to them by Stirna, she created the Ehlen, a Risen of beauty and grace. They possess a strong will and pride as well as a love for nature and their surroundings, just as their creator intended. They monitor and guard the central forests surrounding the Worldspine with unwavering discipline and ferocity. The Ehlen also now possesses an innate dislike and hostility towards the Dahlen due to the affair between Elanaah and Sturn. Though the Godqueen has wished no ill upon the Dahlen, she dared not to question the free will of the Risen instilled upon the gods by her husband.
One of her other names, the Allmother, comes from her being the first to give birth on Nora. She created the concepts of marriage and family in her early years of life in the world as she paired with Artur and gave birth to the twins Jerun and Kiran. Despite her adherence to and respect for the divine purpose of the gods and the immense love for the Ehlen that she created, she still loves her children more than anything else and attributes them as her greatest creations by far. Jerun and Kiran both have grown into immensely powerful gods with scores of devoted followers. Even after Panen was cast aside by Artur and looked down upon by many of the other gods, she still held him close and raised him as a true god and dear child of hers. The only child she is known to have not played a major part in their life in is Dahlia, as she grew up in solitude protecting the gateway to the Realm of the Dead.
Part of her godly powers was also the immense control she had over the flora of the planet. Elanaah wielded no weapons, instead choosing to rely on this power for combat in a member that closely resembles Arcane practitioners amongst the Risen. She could cause extravagant and spontaneous growth in the plants around her and move them according to her will. This was most notably displayed in artworks depicting Artur and Elanaah's first meeting with Orloch where she summoned great tree roots to bind and restrain her husband's attacker. Outside of combat, however, she used this power to construct great natural structures, such as the Great Halls of the Ehlen and the Amaranthine Gardens.

Icons of Elanaah

Elanaah is said to look very similar to Nora herself outside of her attire and ears. Her body is ample yet graceful and is often used as an ideal for regal mothers and matriarchs throughout the world. Her eyes are large and soft, shining in a brilliant yellow. Her most distinct feature would be her thick blonde hair comprised of bouncing curls that almost reach her waist. She is most often depicted wearing a dress of chainmail and scale mail adorned with a collar and train of various feathers and flowers from the forests around the Worldspine. It is not uncommon, though, to find statues of her throughout Ehlanui nearly naked and breastfeeding the twins Jerun and Kiran, unashamed in her pride as the first mother.
Emblems made to represent her worship are bouquets made up of a wide variety of feathers and flowers. The flowers will most commonly be ones that can be found throughout Ehlanui but are not limited to it. There is no uniform to her emblem, as the beauty and creativity of individual expression in each of the bouquets is something loved by Elanaah. Her emblems are often made 'naturally' out of materials that are gathered in the wild instead of being carved out of wood or forged like most of her kin.

Of Family and Marriage

The concepts of family and marriage are wholly sacred to Elanaah's followers, as well as many other Risen who do not proclaim her worship outside of the Dahlen, but most especially to the Ehlen. Procreation and the expansion of one's family are seen as one of life's sacred duties alongside the proper care and upbringing of the new youths. Parents following Elanaah's tenants will often sacrifice what they can for the betterment of their child's future as it is only seen to bring good fortune and favor to the family as a whole from their goddess. Family is seen as a tight bond that is not to be severed under any condition. The sins of the children are not for their parents to bear, but many will still take responsibility for the damage to the family name and work to repair it.
Marriage itself has evolved throughout the extensive time and varied cultures as the Risen have spread throughout Nora. Elanaah and Artur's partnership was the original model for marriage and still is to Ehlen and Dwehrlen by and large. However, many cultures have adopted polyamorous marriages between multiple consenting partners, as is commonly found in Mahangangahere and Vasileio. As long as their love is found to be genuine, Elanaah's favor will still fall upon their marriage. Sexuality has never been in question in her doctrines as loving and supportive as she was of Deign and Beirn's courtship.
As shown by her own marriage with Artur, marriage is not always a smooth and carefree experience. Conflicting beliefs and illicit partners could easily lead to a break in the relationship. However, Elanaah encourages discussion and forgiveness in relations, though this is not to say marriages are required to stay as steadfast as family. Many priests of Elanaah will offer absolution from the bonds of marriage for separation of partners before the goddess. Matters of property and family are often still left up to local governments to assist in separation.
Temples dedicated to the Allmother all offer assistance in childcare and family services for the local populace, most particularly bereaved mothers and widows.