The Serpent Watches. It Listens. It Waits.

Uraeus is an ancient being, one of the more primal of the Iyasteran deities. While many of the other gods have a multitude of names across the kingdoms, Uraeus is known most simply as the Cosmic Serpent, guardian of knowledge and secrets. They are a true neutral being, whose role in the balance of the universe is to simply observe and preserve the passing of the ages, neither good nor evil and never taking a side. Their followers believe that knowledge and secrets of the past hold the power to shape the future, and are therefore charged to protect it until the time is right.

Before The Severing, the Order of the Serpent had temples and archives dotted throughout Iyastera, having no allegiance to any kingdom or faction. Their numbers included members of all races and disciplines, united under the belief in the neutrality and everlasting nature of knowledge. There are two primary pathways to serving Uraeus: the path of the Witness and the path of the Scribe.

The Witness ventures out into the world, and is trained in detecting shifts in emotion, tension, and the nuances of non-verbal communication. They seek out stirrings of revolution, of moments in time that will cause ripples throughout the annals of history and give shape to events for years to come. They are masters of recognizing patterns and predicting which environments are breeding grounds for change.

The Witness observes events as they come to pass, and deliver that information back to the Temples, into the providence of the Scribes.

The Scribe is an archivist of events that are to become consecrated as history, the collective memories of the universe. They, like all in the Order, have memories sharpened by their connection to the Serpent and enter a trance-like state when recording the accounts of the Witnesses. Master linguists and cryptologists, they can unravel the mysteries of any tome, carving, and scroll brought back to the temple.

The tomes in which they record their stories are preserved through enchantments that prevent the deterioration brought on by the passage of time, effectively immortalizing the knowledge within.

As the bubblings of discord began to boil across the kingdoms, and war began to dawn, there were those who wished to forge alliances with the Order, with the intent of manipulating and weaponizing the information guarded within. When the Order refused, the methodical destruction of the temples began. The archives were looted and destroyed. Those who were not killed or captured fled into hiding. Temples who did not fall right away began their communion with Uraeus, to transmit what information they could to the god’s consciousness before facing whichever fate awaited them.

Today, only remnants of the Order remain. the treasures the temples once contained are gone, the kaleidoscopic murals adorning the inner sanctums shattered.

…but all is not lost. The Scribes and Witnesses that went into hiding still dwell in the shadows. Still listening, watching, and waiting…