Void Priest
Void Priests are the Patronist chaplains of the Cobalt Knight corps wherever they operate away from the comforts of the Cobalt Protectorate's terrestrial core. Equal parts spiritual guides, motivators of men, scholars of xeno-religious practices, and advisors, the Knight-Specialists who take up the mantle of the Void Priest serve a vital role in a culture spread across the vast distances between habitable worlds.
Career
Qualifications
Prospective Void Priests may be civilians drawn from Patronist clergy or, should a Squire express interest, may be drawn from within the ranks of the Cobalt Knights-Specialist. In either case, the Void Priest must complete a collegiate education in comparative theology and recieve a rating for stationing aboard a spacecraft. Lastly, as the social cachet of the profession hinges greatly on the character of its members, a prospective Void Priest must take and abide by a more specific oath than other Cobalt Knights binding them to the virtues expressed in the Ancestral Codex.
Career Progression
Void Priests advance as other members of the Cobalt Knights do. They may pursue advancement in the Protectorate 'merit' system through achievements in scholarly research pertaining to religion, successful diplomatic missions to foreign nations, or by providing support on the field of battle.
Perception
Social Status
Void Priests are expected to live as exemplars of the virtues espoused by the Ancestral Codex and, thus, are among the most respected members of the Cobalt Knights. Though they are not commisars in the strict sense of the term, answering to the Codex above most mortal authorities and issuing no punishments for transgressions, the rebuke of a Void Priest for failing to uphold one's sworn virtues carries the same emotional weight among Cobalt Knights as a formal reprimand. At the same time, Void Priests are also highly respected among scholars for the field research they conduct and among the diplomatic corps of allied foreign governments for their work in bridging the gap between Evermornan and non-Evermornan worldviews.
Operations
Workplace
Void Priests are typically found aboard starships or in Evermornan enclaves and embasies on foreign worlds in the Protectorate periphery. Some Void Priests are attached more closely to a Cobalt Knight unit than others, and, as part of the scholarly and diplomatic work, they are among the most accessible of Cobalt Knights for civilians wishing to discuss matters of faith. This is not to say that Void Priests are any less capable of fighting than their fellow Cobalt Knights, but their work is much more focussed on preventing conflict than it is in settling it through force.
The title of Void Priest is sometimes translated indirectly into the languages of client states to avoid complications over the nuances of the word 'void' in particular. The variant of the word as used in Evermornan Basic refers specifically to the void between stars and is a synonym for 'outer space'; it has nothing to do with the term 'voided', as in 'canceled' (or 'defrocked' in this context), and only a tenuous connection with the term 'void', as in 'devoid of substance' (or 'faithless' in this context). For example, in Tae na Lepidesn - the official language of the League of Lepidosian City-States - Void Priests are known by the personal form of 'Taenat', meaning 'sky-speaker' for having come from the distant stars.
Provided Services
Void Priests provide religious counsel and services among the Cobalt Knights. From marriage to funerary services, Void Priests are ordained Patronist priests and can perform all of the usual roles pertaining to that profession. Leaders and diplomatic missions occasionally seek out the advice of Void Priests where religious or cultural matters are concerned.
One important role that the Void Priests fill which other members of the clergy do not is the study and preservation of the other religious traditions that fall beneath the Protectorate's defensive umbrella. For example, a Void Priest stationed in the Execution Hill Launch Complex on Lepidos is expected to thoroughly study Raikepism so that he or she can more effectively minister to the spiritual needs of aspiring Lepidosian citizens or Cobalt Knights and provide counsel to the representatives of the Protectorate embassy. The research conducted by these Void Priests is forwarded to academic institutions on Evermorn for further study and preservation and, eventually, may even influence companion pieces to the Codex itself. Ancestral Patronism is syncretic in nature, after all, and borrows elements from every culture the Protectorate encounters in an effort to forge a unified pan-humanoid mythology.
Dangers & Hazards
Upholding the virtues of the Ancestral Patrons is sometimes a dangerous proposition, especially when the unvirtuous option is the more expedient one. Many Void Priests have laid down their lives protecting the innocent, ministering to the needs of dying soldiers on alien battlefields, standing up to corrupt powers, or expressing ideas that go against entrenched local orthodoxies. Space travel and exposure to unfamiliar planetary environments also present hazards that Void Priests must contend with to carry out their work.
Alternative Names
Taenat (Tae na Lepidesn)
Type
Religious
Ranks & Titles
Comments