Being a Matis
“A Matis must be loyal, courteous, tenacious, and most of all, reverent. By obeying our king, we are glorifying Jena, our Goddess, who bestowed on him the divine right. We believe that just as every particle of Jena’ s universe has a function, every homin must strive for her or his true place in society.
Jena helps those who help themselves, a Matis must never give in. By striving for success we are making our civilization strong as a whole. Only the best can reach the higher spheres of our society, only the elite can lead our people on.
By manipulating nature, we are elevating our souls nearer to godliness. Indeed, Homin, it’s by no mere coincidence that wa have become the Atysian Master Manipulators of plant and animal life. Our weaponry, armor and even familiar household items are living objects!
We have taken root in the forest areas of the new lands where we find every living essence needed for experimentation. We now need to make our new kingdom stronger and better, in the name of Jena.
If noble blood runs through your veins, come swear allegiance to your king! Our kingdom needs champions!
You are a young homin refugee. You have taken the long and perilous journey from the old lands to these new lands where we have established our new realm. After a period of training, as a loyal subject to the king you will be able to put your skills to good use and help rebuild our Kingdom.
Your forefathers built the most glorious kingdom on all Atys. But the ancient land of Matia was destroyed by kitins in 2481 in a terrible swarming. Your grandparents escaped to the forests where your parents and then yourself lived a harsh life under constant threat from kitins. For your own good, your parents urged you on the great road to join your people here in the new lands. After many years you have found us, we have secured territory and begun shaping our kingdom. It is up to your generation to live up to our former glory and make our civilization majestic again.
King Stevano. He is our supreme lord after Jena. To him you owe your absolute loyalty. To challenge his authority is to oppose Jena, a heresy worthy of death. If you are honored enough to be assigned a royal mission, you must succeed with dignity, unless you willingly defy his divine authority. You must strive to become worthy of his trust and you too may gain rank. Rodi di Varello and Girini di Antorello are the faithful dukes that give him counsel.
Jena is our Goddess, we must abide by her Law as it is preached to us by her faithful disciples, the Karavan. They watch over us lest we stray from the right path. They allow us to give offerings and render services to her to prepare for the future in the world of promise beyond. Remember, young homin, the Karavan are invested with great power which they will share only with the faithful. It is your duty to seek Jena’s favor through dealings with her disciples and you too will learn to wield their technology.
To succeed as a true Matis, you must build your life on the three key values:
The king holds power through divine right, his enemies are your enemies, by defending our religion you are defending our kingdom. In the same way, by disobeying him and his court you are disrespecting Jena, and are therefore guilty of heresy.
Our culture will have nothing but the best, we honor our goddess by making things beautiful as she made us noble.
We believe that every Matis must strive for his or her true place in society. Competition is what strengthens our character, sorts out the weak from the strong. And we Matis fight to win!
After resurfacing from the Prime Roots, our greatest challenge was to tame this land and make it noble. Our town and settlements sculpted into the trees are living proof of our success. Now we must:
Since the Peace Treaty signed at Fairhaven in 2515, we have been at peace with the other homin peoples. But ten years of peace could never erase the scars of past infamy. Indeed our relations vary depending on the civilization.
Our people first took root in these wooded lands in 2483 on their resurfacing from the sanctuary of the Prime Roots in the new lands. The forest is by far the most beautiful place on Atys and to the keen eye offers every living essence needed for creation. Since 2487 we have been continually rejoined by refugees having taken the road from the old lands, the very road you have bravely taken, homin.
Atys is a mine of fabulous natural riches, young homin, in time you will learn how to spin them into sellable wealth. As you become skilled in the ways of the world you will learn to tame the wilderness and conquer new grounds.