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UrnatiThe CataclysmArnathia
Every 6 years, when the world reaches its coldest, when the Emissaries watch with their everpresent eyes, The Dark comes.
It comes to remind us of our transgressions. Of our failure to meet the standards the Emissaries set for us, and to stay faithful to their teachings.
It is a day for us to pray for redemption.|Ancient belief
History
Components
Execution
On the morning of The Dark, believers gather at a high point near them, often hilltops or mountain peaks, to kneel and pray. And for most, this is the extent of the practice, speding from sunrise to sunrise on the mountain praying.
But for some of the more fanatical sects, there may be sacrifices involved. Some openly sacrifice animals to appease The Emissaries, while others are reported to go so far as to use human or humanoid sacrifice. These sects are secretive, and no one who has seen the rituals talks about them under penalty of death.
The more gruesome examples of this ritual include the removal of bodily organs while the sacrifice still lives, and the anointing of believers with the still warm blood.
Observance
The Dark is always observed on the first day of the year, every 6 years. Since it is based on the eclipse created by the moon and the Twin Suns, it is very regular and very predictable.
Participants
Normally, there is a higher member of the sects clergy to observe and officiate the ceremony, with lesser sect members doing the work of receiving gifts, placing them on the altar, and doing the same for sacrificial entities.
Only sect members are allowed to attend the ceremony, and there is always a contigent of guards working for the sect whose job it is to keep meddlers out.
