'Selfish?' Ikaris repeated in puzzlement.
'Exactly! There is no other appropriate word for their behavior.' The Vampire spirit exulted condescendingly. 'For what separates the Saints from other Sacred Magi is what they do before they die.'
"Their final spell." The boy muttered with an enlightened look.
'Right on! Let me ask you a question. Do you think they're truly dead?'
Ikaris hesitated, but after feeling that ominous presence when Cleome had signed her Blood Contract, he could only doubt it.
'Probably...not?' He answered, seeking the Vampire's confirmation.
'They are well and truly dead.' Magnus snickered, proud to have staged this bogus suspense. But only if you consider me dead too. Well, unlike them, I'm not a Saint. At best, I am a pitifully weak ghost. I have only a fraction of my Soul Spark left, and I have no body, nor any of my other Primary and Secondary Sparks. My spirit survived, but in the end I am as good as dead. If I step out of this ring and am exposed to torchlight for even a few seconds my soul, or rather what is left of it, will be consumed instantly.'
Ikaris suspected that the Vampire's soul was not as vulnerable as he wanted to portray it. After all, his Soul Spark, even if weakened, was probably not level one. He must still have some trump cards left to defend himself.
Nevertheless, after Magnus' explanation he understood what he was getting at.
'Before you died, uh, well I mean ended up in this spirit form, you sacrificed your body and what was left of your life expectancy to create a Bloodspark.' Ikaris reasoned calmly. 'So, interrupt me if I'm wrong, but I can only assume that if you had acted selfishly and used your last spell to save your soul, your body, or some of your Secondary Sparks, you might not have succeeded, but you'd probably be much better off than you are now.'
'You're... totally right.' The Vampire validated forlornly. 'I'm in this state because I wanted to leave my legacy behind. The Saints, besides being much more talented and powerful than me at the time of their death, often devoted all the spells of their latter years of life to prepare their afterlife. They left nothing behind, but they transcended themselves.
'Having never met one in person I don't know if they still have their bodies, but they have retained a number of abilities, and most likely their Life Spark to continue casting spells.'
Ikaris was flabbergasted.
'So they really are Gods?' He asked incredulously.
He had heard that these Saints had their own temples in most towns and villages in the Forsaken Lands. Many people worshipped them and the amount of faith they enjoyed was very much like that of a religion.
'Mmm... No. Not really. The proper term would be... Godly Spirits.' Magnus revealed with an aloof voice. I kind of lied when I said they were selfish bastards. In truth, the help they have been providing to mankind after their death more than makes up for the selfishness of their lifetime. They found a way to survive and become stronger after losing their Divine Sparks and maybe even their bodies by capitalizing on their remaining Secondary Sparks and their unmatched Soul Strengths.
'If you visit one of their temples or pray in their name, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that they will listen to you and grant your wishes, but contrary to what their name suggests they are not altruistic. They usually ask for substantial offerings before giving anything back. Steles are an excellent example of the kind of resources that Saint Temples produce on a regular basis. There are other possibilities such as Artifacts, Blessings, and sometimes more circumstantial and immediate godly interventions...'
Ikaris regarded the late Archmagus' revelations thoughtfully for a few minutes and then broke the silence again.
'In that case, should I allow the worship of all the Saints in my territory to take full advantage of them, or should I limit myself to just a few?' He asked probingly.
Magnus did not readily answer either. After pondering the matter for a while he replied,
'I don't want to influence you, nor do I want to blaspheme, but you should know that not all the Saints are on friendly terms. There are 12 Major Saints and 72 Minor Saints officially worshipped in the Forsaken Lands, but there may be others who are less well known or more secretive. These 84 Saints have formed several cliques centered around several Major Saints and most Lords restrict themselves to the worship of a few of them. Gossip has it that the Confederation has a temple for each Saint, a comprehensive Pantheon and everything is fine...
'However! I have known several ambitious Lords who also chose to build a temple for each Saint on their territory, but in the end the Saints never granted any wish, no matter how many offerings were presented. I even know some who were punished instead...
'As for me, my Lupelux Empire only prays to Aedes, the Minor Saint who created the Vampire race. This may be a mistake, but Aedes is a very... exclusive Godly Spirit. He doesn't tolerate the worship of other Saints, but on the other hand he answers our offerings and prayers quite frequently.'
"What is the difference between the Major Saints and the Minor Saints? Their power?" Ikaris asked suddenly.
'Their power, but not only that.' Magnus sneered. 'I would rather say the type of power they have, their age, but also the magnitude of their cult's development on the continent. All right, let's not waste time, I'll give you the name of each Saint and you can make your own decisions. First of all, there is..."
The Vampire then spent a good part of the night introducing him to the 12 Major Saints and 72 Minor Saints as well as their respective specificities and attributes as well as some anecdotes about their temperament. Ikaris learned that the names of the Major Saints were more ingrained in the Forsaken Lands than he thought, because their names were even part of the calendar.
The first month was the Month of Khaos, the oldest Saint. Very little was known about him and he did not answer any prayers. For this reason, few worshipped him, but no one dared to disrespect him. Some thought that his Godly Spirit had perished, but they were in the minority.
The second month was the Month of Taxis. According to the scriptures, she was credited with the establishment of the Confederation, but some went even further and claimed that she founded the first civilization. She too did not answer any prayers, but there were rumors that the Confederation regularly held offering ceremonies in her name.
The third month was the Month of Exon. A mysterious saint who was believed to have invented the Transportation Portals. He too rarely answered prayers and as with Khaos and Taxis, many thought he was dead or at least gone.
The fourth month was the Month of Veel. This Saint had fallen from grace for betraying the Confederation and the Forsaken Lands when he decided to defect to the Glenrings. Regrettably, he remained popular, mainly because his Blessings were so useful. He was the oldest Saint with tangible evidence of activity.
The fifth month was the Month of Zar. During his lifetime, he was known as a narcissistic and valorous Sacred Magus who specialized in Fire and Light magic. Today he was known as the Sun Saint. He was the Saint with the most followers on the continent.
The sixth month was the Month of Faulch. Faulch was practically the antithesis of Zar. In his lifetime, he was a very powerful necromancer specializing in shadow magic, black magic and other nefarious arts. Today, only Tartarus Shade, home to his descendants, still actively worshiped him. Throughout the rest of the Forsaken Lands, he was a respected but unpopular Saint, usually bested by his luminous twin, Zar.
The seventh month was the holy Month of Anrasil. This Saint was loved almost as much as Zar. During his lifetime he was a formidable warrior, who managed to inflict many crushing defeats on the Glenrings. He was the only Saint who managed to take back some land from the Glenrings and hold it until his death. He was better known as the War Saint.
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