Demrefor

Starku

The Starku religion is a set of beliefs based around the worship of gods who control the magics of Demrefor and its people. These gods are heavily represented by a religious symbol known as the “Eight Star”; a star with eight coloured points, a dark centre, and (in some renditions) eight coloured tokens surrounding the outside of the star.

Its main belief is that the magical powers people inherent are a connection to the planet’s inner life-force. They believe that the Starku gods created this connection for the people of the world, and that it is important to foster these connections in order to remain grounded and be one with the world. They believe that the magics of the Eight Star are the “core” magics of the world, and that all other magics stem from these core magics in some way.

Currently, there are two major versions of the Starku teachings. There are the “Old Learners”; who follow the oldest known version of the religion, which only worships the eight coloured points and dark centre of the star and deny the existence of a secondary group of deities. And there are the “Full Disciples”; who worship the newer teachings and believe in a secondary set of gods known as the “Outlying Spectrum,” which are represented by the extra eight tokens surrounding the star.

It is considered bad luck by Old Learners to practice magic under more than one deity because of the physical strain magic puts on the user; they believe it is safest to only practice one magical skill to avoid over-exertion. This is not a belief of the Full Disciples, however, who encourage the study of multiple magics and believe that knowing about many different magics will improve the quality of all magic studied.

There are not many rituals or churches for the Starku religion and its practice is almost entirely self-governed by its followers.

Deities

The Starku deities are the creators of the Eight Star; a religious symbol that represents the magic of the Demreforian people. Starku followers believe that the deities pulled their respective magics from the world and weaved them into usable skills for the people; infusing them into the very blood of Sentients to be passed on for generations. It is believed those with a natural inclination to particular magics have been blessed by their respective god, and that there is a deeper purpose for their powers.

There are seventeen magics and eighteen deities involved in the Full Disciples’ version of the Starku religion; with only nine deities for the Old Learners’ version. Each deity is represented by their own crystal, which can also be used to enhance the magic they control.

The deities, magics, and their respective stones are listed below:

How the Eight Star came to be

Old Learners

It is believed that before the original Starku deities ascended to godhood, they were a family. All blood children of the great Prophet Arroblas; founder of the Eight Star and first of the family to become a god. Arroblas and their children are known as the ‘Original Nine’ and are considered, by some, to be the most important members of the Eight Star.

Arroblas’ eight children are as listed: Orlou, Kitan, Tanko, Prisay, Welten, Nortocor, Jornja, Ivvizix.

Kitan and Tanko are twins, though they are nearly never described as looking the same.

It is said that Arroblas and their eight children pulled magic from the planet and infused it into their blood. These powers were overwhelmingly strong and difficult to contain within their own bodies. They moved to an isolated commune where they were able to safely practice their newfound powers. It took years to get their magics under control; but when they did they created the Eight Star in celebration of their new skills, and it was through this symbol their powers were able to be spread to the people of the world.

It is believed that the symbol’s existence, being so closely tied to their powers, granted them immortality and they ascended to godhood together. As long as the symbol is remembered and worshipped, the nine deities cannot die and can continue to share their magical blessings with the world.

Full Disciples

The beginning of the Full Disciples beliefs branches off the Old Learners; they share the same belief that the original nine Starku deities were a family who pulled their magics from the planet, but they do not believe that the Eight Star symbol is the cause of their godhood.

Instead, they believe that each member of the family ascended to godhood individually; with Arroblas being the first. Arroblas foretold the death of Welten and, not wishing to lose their child, bargained with the powers of the world to take their own life instead. They were shortly followed by half of Jornja’s memories, which were accidentally removed from their body during an argument with Ivvizix.

It is said that Ivvizix got so enraged during Arroblas’ funeral that they changed their shape without meaning to and attacked Jornja, splitting their head open and removing their memories. Still in the form of the savage animal Ivvizix fled and, fearing that they’d murdered their sibling, lived in the wild as an animal and refused to approach society again.

One of Kitan’s friends, named Takalore, tried to mend Jornja’s body and return her soul, but they only managed to bring back half of their memories; Jornja’s childhood (known by their old nickname Jornjy) was forgotten by her adult self and sent into the afterlife. Jornjy joined Arroblas in the afterlife and Takalore was welcomed as a member of the family for their heroic attempt to save Jornja; becoming the goddess of souls. Jornja and Jornjy remember two different types of Dream Mastering. Jornja remembers the more complicated Dream Whispering, while Jornjy only recalls Dream Walking.

After Jornja was mended they went looking for Ivvizix with their life-partner, Ulutu. The pair spent years on the road and Jornja was becoming increasing distraught. Ulutu, hating Jornja’s distress, developed Aura Sensing to help find Ivvizix; they used skill to see through Ivvizix’s magical disguises and finally brought them home. After Ivvizix was found she refused to take her place on the Eight Star and instead let Jornja and Jornjy sit next to each other.

Several hundred years passed and the entire family eventually passed away and joined Arroblas in the afterlife. It was then that a strange man known as Lolto fell in love with Nortocor’s spirit. In a desperate attempt to impress Nortocor, Lolto learnt to harness the magical properties found in crystals. Nortocor was impressed but not infatuated; the two became close friends and Nortocor helped Lolto ascend to godhood as the teacher of Crystal Enhancement.

The Eight Star was peaceful for a while after Lolto’s ascension; until sixth-generation soldier Dortle decided to harness magic as a technique for battle. The warrior studied summoning and telekinesis, and eventually began throwing fire during battles.

While practising these fireballs they burnt down the home of a powerful enchanter named Ryx. Ryx was furious used their enchanting abilities on Dortle, creating the first curse. The curse was to make each spell Dortle used backfire; meaning harmful magic would not only hurt Dortle’s target, but Dortle themself. However, Dortle continued fighting through the pain and it is said they saved thousands of lives. Upon hearing about Dortle’s bravery Ryx tracked down the soldier and removed their curse. They replaced the curse with a blessing of good luck and joined the army to fight alongside Dortle.

The pair became loyal comrades in battle and, though they never saw each other as friends, their loyalty ran so deep that when Dortle was mortally wounded during battle Ryx stayed behind. They knew that it would be their death but they were not willing to leave their comrade to die alone. Together the two joined the Eight Star and were welcomed into the family. Dortle became the deity of War Spells and Ryx the teacher of Curses and Blessings.

Verna was the next to ascend. A strange woman who spent her early mortal years scamming people on the streets, she used magical powers to manipulate people; her spoken words taking on a charming affect that would skew their perspectives and change their memories. She could tell fantastical stories and have them believed, no matter how unbelievable they were— At least until her magic faded and wore off the people she had charmed. These powers were eventually noticed by a kindly king, who requested Verna’s services in finding the kidnapper of his lost daughter. Verna used her powers to have the kidnapper admit their crimes and reveal the location of the princess and was rewarded greatly for her work. After this, she had found a new meaning in her life and used her powers for good; saving many lives and speaking peace into the minds of the traumatised. For her services to the world she was rewarded by the Eight Star deities with godhood and her magical powers were given the name Word-Weaving.

The final god to ascend was a human named Joe, as the god of Scientific Theory. Joe was the first human child to ever bare the green spot on the back of his neck. He is thought to have been the smartest person to have ever lived and made thousands of discoveries connecting magic and science as one. These discoveries improved magic users’ understanding of their own powers and helped enhance everyday magic. And even though it is not considered a form of unique magic on its own, science is a very important part of magical study and is commonly taught to all types of magic users. As thanks for his contribution, Joe was added onto the Eight Star where it is believed he is helping the older deities improve and expand their craft.

In the end, the Eight Star family had changed quite a lot from the Original Nine. The nine magics had turned into seventeen and the Eight Star symbol was modified to house all the newcomers.

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