| Tattoo: | (Glowing) the fiery winged ki-rin |
| Sphere(s): | Order, Pride, Combat |
The Ki-rin are a race of large horse-like creatures. Little is known about them, and more often than not they are written off as creatures of pure fantasy. In ancient stories they are described as looking like a horse with a unicorn's horn and a golden mane, tail, fetlocks and wings. According to these legends, the Ki-rin rarely appear in their true form, instead taking the shape of humans, elves, or other intelligent beings and walking amongst the populace unnoticed. They are highly intelligent, aloof magical creatures that spend many of their days in the skies far above Thera, though some stories do make mention of their fondness for observing the societies of the other races first- hand. There are also stories of a being in the Heavens taking the form of a great Ki- rin. His mane, tail, fetlocks and wings all appear as flames, with a coat of golden scales and a horn of gleaming silver. Priests have spoken of him, spreading his teachings to those who will listen. Those who bear the mark of the fiery winged Ki-rin upon their bodies are said to be incredibly proud beings, boldly facing anything that comes before them. Deception, greed and cowardice, are all seen as virtues far beneath them, and worthy only of disdain. These followers are also noted for being incredibly rigid in their ways of thinking. They know what is right, they know what is wrong, and they are willing and eager to fight for it. This reflects on all aspects of their life, and all followers of the great Ki-rin find anything remotely chaotic or disorganized in nature to be nearly intolerable. Their views on chaos and disorder have been known to range from moderate disdain or disgust to outright hostility. Many followers of the Ki-rin define themselves through combat, be it with the sword, with their words or writings, or on whatever battlefield they chose to justify and fight for their beliefs upon. Attempting to break the proud spirit of the Ki-rin is said to be as futile as trying to tear the mountains asunder with one's bare hands. The underlying - and sometimes unspoken - goal of all followers of the Ki-rin is to achieve the betterment of society, either through teaching these values or by setting an example of them. Individual followers may have widely varying ideals for what makes a better society however, a source of conflict on more than one occasion. It is rumored that those following the precepts of Order, Pride and Combat are told to seek out Velkurah at the Temple of the Clouds, between two great peaks in a snowy range of mountains. |