The Factions at play
The Spiral Church
The Spiral faith - known collectively as the Spiral or Spiral Church - is a religion that never stopped growing. Originally a small belief system in northeastern Europe, the Spiral shot to prominence during the late middle-ages. Spirality as it was later dubbed overtook large chunks of Europe, even spreading into Africa and Asia during the late renaissance period.
With this boom came power, differing beliefs, offshoots, and a complete abandoning of what originally started as the Spiral’s belief system. A country was founded on the Spiral’s power, Verdusk, and that country sought to spread it as far and wide as possible. At the end of the Great Karsk War, Verdusk was wiped out. The nation, all of those inside be they born or otherwise, was wiped out. This event became known as the ‘Cataclysm’, with the land each side was fighting over becoming an empty but holy pilgrimage site.
The Spiral today is worldwide, and the land that was once Verdusk is divided between three nations, and it sits atop a belief system of Order, Rebirth, and Unification.
“We are blessed every day, and we thank God in Her grace for today’s gifts.” - Spiral prayer
The Rizen
The Rizen sect is an evangelistic, some would say extremist, offshoot of the Spiral. An aggressive and militant group, they split from the mainline belief after a long but growing resentment toward the Spiral.
The Rizen are the remnants of the Spiral’s origin, a corrupted piece of a trinity that seeks the unification of their God. When the Great Karsk War reached it’s pinacle and the nation of Verdusk was wiped out, the Rizen began to rise to power. They now compete with the greater Spiral for dominance, their roots spreading like a poison across the world.
“Find what was taken from Her, for Marryanne will unify us all.” - Rizen proverb
The Saintbloods
After the fall of Verdusk, strange accounts began passing through the Spiral. They didn’t come often, but they all involved confessions about visions of the war, encounters with the deceased, and a broken reflection of the real world.
These hushed words coalesced into a rumor - one especially strong within the Rizen church - that those with these visions were ‘Saintbloods’, the very people their God Marryanne sent them to find.
Now all sects of the church search for the Saintbloods; the Spiral to protect them, the Rizen to take them, and the FRM to test how true the rumors are.
There are only a few accounts of possible Saintbloods post-Great War, and all of them are dubious at best.
The White Aid
The White Aid is one of the Spiral church’s three main branches. They are focused on community aid, disaster aid, and philanthropies. They are the most well-known face of the order,
The Red Aid
The Red Aid is the second of the church’s limbs. Their primary focus is on medicine, prayer, and illness prevention.
Their members are most often seen in hospitals or shelters, working endlessly to help other people get to a better place. Together with the White Aid, they are quick to help when disasters strike.
The Black Aid
The Black Aid is the most controversial branch of the church. When the world was more undefined, they served as the headliners in both internal and external conflicts. They function as security, as defense, as a shield against any would-be enemies of the church.
The Black Aid, however, has mostly defected toward the Rizen. Most of their numbers now serve the sect in its goals, and other groups will quickly bow out of conversations regarding them or the Rizen.
