Kisara's Cipher

The first High Exemplars for the Theocracy of Azhavin delivered many priceless religious texts. Among them are the primary tenets of faith, rites to be performed by the priesthood, and--most curiously--a coded cipher.

The cipher was written in tandem between both Exemplars. It has yet to be decoded in full, but pieces of it have theoretical translations. Study of this cipher became foundational to religious scholars.

For hundreds of years, the First Cipher was the only cipher delivered from the Exemplars. It wasn't until 608 PD that they produced another.

Historical Details

History

The Second Cipher was delivered by High Exemplar Kisara near the beginning of the year. At the time, she had been the chosen avatar of Sao for only two years.

The presentation of it was strange because she did it alone. Traditionally, all major announcements by either Exemplar was to be made in conjunction with their partner. Instead, Kisara called an assembly without notifying her fellow Exemplar. When she stood upon the stage to proclaim her vision, her partner did not stand by her side.

Kisara also proclaimed that the cipher was delivered solely to her. The ciphers of the original Exemplars had been given to them both--two parts of a whole, meant to be joined as one to complete the message. Kisara's cipher being solitary made it unique to all other canon texts.

Public Reaction

The cipher's breaks from tradition created vibrant unrest in the community. That unrest grew when High Exemplar Eli--avatar of Aza--publicly denounced the text.

"It comes from nothing. It means nothing. It is nothing. Kisara has invented a miracle out of nothing."

— High Exemplar Eli

Disagreements became more and more heated as the church divided between those that believed Kisara and those that didn't. The conflict escalated into what is now called the Cipher Schism, which ended in the assassination of Kisara and the flight of the Khetzali across the Great Desert.

Type

Text, Religious

Medium

Paper

Authoring Date

Early 608 PD

Location

Azhavin

Authors

• High Exemplar Kisara

The actual document containing the cipher is written with ink ona small roll of parchment. It is much shorter than the First Cipher, only taking up half of the scroll.

It is kept under close guard in Jahzir, Khetzala's capital city. It is only accessible by the highest ranking religious and political figures. Copies of the cipher are studied in its stead.