Deities of Arcadia
From Arcadia
Long after their followers, worshipers, and cults had broken apart, the deities of the old world, fearing they themselves would fade came together and decided to create a new world, in their image. The new Utopia, the humans spoke highly of, so they could finally be restored and continued their existence, for you see, the Gods of the old world were not truly immortal, as long as mortals validated their existence. Hundred of years ago, they had found a multi-nexus world, fitting to their liking, Arcadia. The only problem being that most of the Gods disagreed on how to control this new place to channel their power. In result, the city utopia was split into four sections, representing four major division with the Gods. Calliope, Verdandi, Methuselah, and Sídhe.
Though with a new land, connecting to many worlds and different times, in order to keep the land itself, literally stable, the Gods had to give up their powers, binding the world, in a rare joint agreement. Although limited in their powers and not as all-knowing and omnipotent as before, the Gods would keep their immortality, bound to the land they created. However, the eldest of the Gods, Brahma, managed to intact his fellow Brethren to keep a few of their powers, only on certain occasions, due to Brahma seemingly holding no absolute allegiance to either deities or mortals. For this reason alone, the city of Arcadia has been left to function, almost on it's own, sometimes in periods of chaos and sometimes in periods of peace. Some of the Gods heed sympathy to mortals, some do not. And more likely than anything, most Gods do not agree with each other. In the grand spectrum of things, this doesn't prevent the Gods seeking power from the mortals who sometimes are more powerful than a God that come across Arcadia.
Simply, the Gods will offer bargains, to sway people, offer protection, to keep balance, or to create pure chaos. It is up to each citizen of Arcadia, tied to a God to beware their choices, because there are two sides to each coin, as they say. They, of course, do not flaunt their real names, take the name of citizens, and change their appearances to blend in more.
Divisions of the city really represent forces of Gods (some of them unnamed, but they do exist), sometimes alone by themselves, or sometimes in pairs.
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[edit] Gods of Calliope
Loki is the Norse god of deception and mischief, a giant/deity, moving freely between gods and clearly doing all he can to stir things up between them. Despite much research, "the figure of Loki remains obscure; there is no trace of a cult, and the name does not appear in place-names." Sources inconsistently place him among the Æsir; however, this may only be due to his close relation with Odin and the amount of time that he spends among the Æsir. The foster brother of Odin, loosely attached from his own family, he runs rampant among mortals. Like other deities in the Eddas, Loki is described with many names: Lie-Smith, Sly-God, Shape-Changer, Sly-One, Lopt, Sky Traveller, Sky Walker and Wizard Of Lies among others.Loki was not so much a figure of unmitigated badness as a kind of celestial con man. He would often bail out the gods after playing tricks on them, as illustrated by the myth in which he shears Sif's hair and then replaces it, or when he is responsible for the loss of Iðunn's apples of youth and then retrieves them again. Loki is an adept shape-shifter, with the ability to change both form (examples include transmogrification to a salmon, horse, bird, flea, etc.) and sex.
Loki may have overplayed his hand when, disguised as a giantess, he arranged the murder of Baldr. He used mistletoe, the only plant which had not sworn never to harm Baldr, and made a dart of it, which he tricked Baldr's blind brother Höðr into throwing at Baldr, thereby killing him. Another version of the myth, preserved in Gesta Danorum, does not mention Loki. Loki, in the shape of an evil witch with stained black teeth Thokk, was the only being that refused to weep for Baldr, preventing the defunct god's return from Hel. After refusing to weep for Baldr, Loki (in the form of Thokk) stepped into a cave, and immediately after changed shape into a raven.
Powers: Loki still manages to keep his shape-shifting ability, considering it was all he had to begin with. Other than that, he is one who can easily manipulate people, a smooth talker, still the con man, and that was never a divine power to begin with. Though he can shape-shift, it is a limited power he can use, and will be stuck in a form for a good period. He cannot grant is changing ability to others.
Status in Arcadia: Naturally, he doesn't want to commandeer any powerful positions. Most of what he does is unknown, for the fact he can change at random. Loki walks freely amongst humans, choosing to pit them against the good. He has an alliance to an unknown God, Brahma choses not to press, Isis is often one to butt heads with him, Nepthys finds him an annoyance.
Appearance: A man who SHOULD appear in his 30s, he's kept some of his previous form with blonde hair and blue eyes. Most of his appearance looks like he can blend in well with the people of Arcadia.
Civilian name: Luke Faroe
Freely represents Calliope, as it is a place of deception...
[edit] Gods of Verdandi
Powers: Out of all the Gods, he has none, his only being that he can control the other Gods, if he so chooses it. The other could be said for his incarnations, if they were currently in the city. Plights can be made, but it is noted he can get easily annoyed and has the tendency to brush things off.
Status in Arcadia: He is the illusive Governor...though that term might not fit him, he just likes it. He would appear to be the mediator, at times, but more than naught, he carries the philosphy of 'leave me the fuck alone, figure it out for yourself". But the strain behind the other Gods, every so often, brings him back to handle them all. Has noted dislike of Methuselah and the Gods who control that area.
Appearance: He was given the ability to change his appearance once, and tends to look like a man with a goatee, tattoos, and wears the clothes to suit a rock star.
Civilian name: Barry Devon (which can be a bit of a play on "Braham" and "deva")
Represents Verdandi -- not by choice, however.
[edit] Methuselah
Isis the Egyptian Goddess fertility, motherhood, and of magic. She is the sister and wife of Osiris, lord of the Underworld, twin sister of Nepthys. Her name literally means "the throne", as well as the hieroglyph for it. Her archetype has supposedly inspired Christian representation of the mother Mary, with her son on her lap, much like with Isis and her son Horus. She was a dutiful wife who personally collected all parts of her husband, after he was cut up and murdered by their brother Set. With her powers, she was able to restore him, even for a short period. The flood in the Nile every seven years was said to be Isis crying for her husband. Isis is often depicted in Egyptian art, with her twin, standing by their brother as he judges the dead, which means they may have influence to what their brother does. The goddess was said to have a deep love for her people, but made no attempts to unite Upper and Lower Egypt. The goddess also had numerous cults -- ranging to Greece, Rome, and all the way down to the British Isles, integrated in religions aside from Christianity. She tends to be the most sympathetic out of the deities, and most nurturing. Not surprisingly, Isis has a soft spot for children and makes an attempt to look out for them. Her ties to the Underworld leave her unable to leave Methuselah, waiting on call for her husband or others tied to the Underworld. Notably has been quite angry about anyone daring to attempt to tamper with the Hell hole, left there by unknown reasons. Despite the strange people of Methuselah, she is very fond of them.
Powers: What is left of the Great Enchantress' powers is said to be only granted to children, the power of enchantment, either giving them temporary powers, or temporary enchanting weapons and objects.
Status in Arcadia: Reported as one of the creators of Tartarus Academy, a K-12 boarding school, on the board of education for it. She is personally involved in the project, seeing to it children learn well there. Also mediates paranormal societies, with her twin, as a way to make sure no one messes with her husband's world. It is unknown what happened to Horus, Isis doesn't touch the subject. Isis being bound to Methuselah often makes plights to Brahma.
Appearance: Takes the form of an Asian woman, for some reason. Appears to be in her twenties, often modes in her appearance, long black hair -- that she's kept. However this kite doesn't have the wings she once had.
Civilian name: Suki Kiryu
Nepthys the twin sister of Isis, the Goddess who was indeed the polar opposite of her twin, the darker one, at that. Generally represented as the assisting Goddess, who had said to have a breath that could burn the enemies of the Pharaoh. While Isis represents the transition of birth, Nepthys represents the transition of death and decay, wife and sister to her war-like brother Set. The death of her brother Osiris caused her to be estranged from her husband, quickly jumping to her twin's aid to finding pieces of his body. She is often referred to be a protector also, the nurse to Horus, that she helped Horus along with her sister. Both powers are shared between sisters, so they were inseparable in mythology, even as Nepthys was represented on canopic jars. Her role much like her ancient counterpart is simple, she acts as a balance with her sister, for their powers are shared, even though both twins are polar opposite. A mortuary goddess, at best. She still makes sure their older brother Osiris is protected as well as the dead. Also watches over the portal to the Underworld, but is more protective of it, versus her sister.
Powers: Nepthys also can grant limited powers, but only those spiritually connected, with enchantment, or with objects. To put it in simpler terms, only those more in tune with the spiritual world -- mediums or can harness otherworldly powers may seek temporary aid from her. Though she is quite hesitant to do so, far more picky than her sister. It is said that children are more in tuned with the paranormal, and like her twin, she favors children.
Status in Arcadia: Other than being with her twin, she serves as the curator to the historical society in Cwnn, monitors the cemetery. Is in charge of restoration of Lamech Hall, the former meeting place of Arcadia. Also apart of the paranormal societies.
Appearance: Is the mirror image of Isis appearance, has an affinity for darker clothing.
Civilian name: Siukx Kiryu
Represents Methuselah jointly with her twin
[edit] Sídhe
Lethe was also a naiad, the daughter of Eris ('Strife' in Hesiod's Theogony). The naiad Lethe is probably a separate personification of forgetfulness rather than a reference to the river which bears her name. n Greek mythology, the Naiads (from the Greek νάειν, "to flow," and νἃμα, "running water") were a type of nymph who presided over fountains, wells, springs, streams, and brooks, as river gods embodied rivers, and some very ancient spirits inhabited the still waters of marshes, ponds and lagoon-lakes, such as pre-Mycenaean Lerna in the Argolid. Even if deities preside over Arcadia, Lethe is one of the rare demi-gods in the area, perhaps the only one, solely representing her mother Eris. She's on special request for the Gods here.
Powers: Like her namesake, Lethe is a figure of forgetfulness. Her powers revolve around memory loss -- she's able to purge all memories of someone, for a God, or for someone with a price. But can and will freely curse those with memory loss, and they would have to go to her distant relative to reverse this. Her power is available, but for the sole sake of absorbing memories -- notably painful ones, to reuse them against those who require her services. This is a painful power, so Lethe uses it rarely. Lethe will often appeal to others, to purge a significant, painful memory, only to destroy anything they hold, even if she promises to destroy a painful memory that can drown a person down.
Status in Arcadia: Lethe is a nymph often on call for the deities. She's neutral, not apart of the feuds in Arcadia, keeps to herself and is a distant relative of Mnemosyne, a titan. She is also bound to Sidhe, is on call for any of the Gods to call upon her.
Appearance: She appears to be a young girl between nine or ten years of age, assuming the form of an innocent to make it easier for her to do what she does.
Civilian name: Erin Blanche
In Persian legend Simurgh is a gigantic, winged monster in the shape of a bird; a kind of peacock with the head of a dog and the claws of a lion. Its natural habitat is a place with plenty of water. According to legend, the creature is so old that it has seen the world destroyed three times over. In all that time, Simurgh has learned so much that it is thought to possess the knowledge of all ages. In Arcadia, he's nothing more of the historian, he records and observes everything, comes off as a know-it-all.
Powers: Because it is said he was able to process various knowledge through the ages, Simurgh can pass along information easily to people, even granting temporary abilities in which people wish they knew more about. That's pretty much it. Other than that, he acts like the true historian of this world, not afraid to flaunt it. He's actually more useful without bargaining powers and Simurgh is a fairly easy going guy. What's the point of getting angry if you've seen it all?
Status in Arcadia: Simurgh is nearly the same age as Brahma, so he serves as the second in command, in a sense, without public knowledge. Being the knowledgeable man he is, Simurgh serves as the lead of the Arcadian police and detective force. An all around good deity, snippy towards the deities of Methuselah, constantly keeping watch over Lethe, under Eris' requests, upon her return, or waiting until the so-called "Titans" emerge.
Appearance: Doesn't seem to care about his untidy appearance, looks like a man between his forties and fifties, graying hair, he's just thankful he's not a bird-like being.
Civilian name: Sam Bennett
The real representative and deity of Sidhe...
