MANDATES OF DIVINITY

EPISODE 9

Episode Nine

So we have all learnt,

That chaos doeth no good,

But order, no matter how little

Stops terrible ordeals.

-Saint Petros                       

The book of deeds.

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The path to be a priest wasn’t for everyone, the church was always very careful and meticulous in the process of selecting candidates. To be successfully ordained also took a great deal of hard work and discipline. The level of the priest however was one of the lowest in the ranks of the church, if a priest was not immensely talented, they weren’t really recognized by the church.

            The church had two types of camps, one for the gifted and one for the normal people. The gifted are those with any form of powers or high affinity for objects that requires powers. From birth, the gifted born to the church are tested for their level of compatibility to the “Giver’s breath”, this was referred to as the source of the church’s techniques, skills and magic. The better the compatibility to the breath, the higher the potential. The legends and giants of the church all had colossal levels of compatibility.

            Everyone was compatible, but there was a minimal level required for you to be considered a gifted and even a required level before you could apply to be a priest. The non-gifted could only apply to join the church’s army, where normal force ranks were applied but they couldn’t become priests or anything of sorts. The extent of your compatibility determined if you could advance in the ranks of the church and how powerful you could possibly become. The speed of growth was also somewhat dependent on the compatibility, in other words, it was akin to their potentials. The smith consisted of about a hundred gifted individuals and these hundred were already tested, they all displayed levels of compatibility that could be compared to the previous legends of the church.

The rank of the priest had various levels within, a total of four levels. First came the Deacon priests, referred to as Deacons, the lowest level. It was closely followed by Elder priests, referred to as Elders. Next were the priests of lower light or just Lower priests, they are basically referred to as Fathers. Father Bayo is at this level and it is often said that the title of a priest starts from this level. Finally, there were the priests of higher light or High priests. They are also referred to as Fathers but they are distinguished by their clothing. A small number of High priests are part of orders, they are referred to as saints. Saint Patra for instance was a High priest, but their battle power easily exceed that of normal High priests. One could progress in level based on a lot of factors, recognition by the church, sufficient compatibility level and many more.

            The next rank was the Bishop, far above the level of priests, it requires another evaluation and training to become a Bishop. It consisted of just three levels, the first are the Bishops of lower light or just lower Bishops. One usually controlled various High priests and their authority couldn’t be underestimated. The next were the Bishops of higher light or just high Bishops, the gap between high Bishops and low Bishops was enormous. In fact this could be said for all levels of the Bishop rank, it far exceeded that within the ranks of the priests. Finally there were Elder Bishops, referred to as the true Bishops, they usually have great power and influence. Specific Bishops were part of orders too and they were also referred to as saints.

            The next rank was that of the Arch Bishops, this was a class of its own and didn’t even have levels. Very few people achieved this height and immortality becomes evident at this point, ageing almost ceases. They were usually head of orders.

            What followed were cardinals, this was the final rank within the church. The very peak of the church’s might, those at these level were basically immortals. Every one of them had equal battle power to the Pope and each time they helped in running the church. They didn’t have levels, they had cults. Like groups with each having its leader, this is where the politics and power play comes in, with each cult succumbing only to the Pope. The Sanctus Primus is one of such cults and it is currently the greatest of all the cults, its leader Xandar is generally considered as the next Pope. There are various groups existing, like the crusaders but they were not ranks. You could be a part of groups no matter the rank, provided it falls within their recruiting criteria. Groups also existed above the Pope, some were made up of founding members like the original disciples of the first godling, some were even made up of individuals that their powers had far exceeded that of the Pope and had to leave, it just goes on. However, they do not interfere with the affairs of the church unless it was necessary.

            The smiths quickly began to train as priests, it was way faster than they all imagined. This was due to their incredible potentials, it merely took them days to attain the rank of Deacons and they gradually became a formidable force. They had general coaches that thought them of everything they needed as priests and all. Based on their specialties they were divided into groups and categories. Every one of them had coaches, including those who required objects to channel and utilize their gifts.

            Afterwards, they moved up to the level of Elders, none of the smiths were left behind. Their growth was tremendous, each of them showed great promise and had terrifying battle power. They couldn’t be graded and this went on till they became lower Priests. Normally, it would take an average individual years to rise in level, the extremely talented on the other hand did so easily until they attained a level matching their talents. In this case, every member of the smith were extremely talented and in just two months, they were all inducted as high Priests. It was a grand occasion but over a hundred high Priests at once, it was nothing like the previous ones. The thrill was that the smith still had greater potential, it made people wonder, how deadly would this force be?

“The entire one hundred and eighteen have all exceeded expectations.” Xandar stood at a balcony, a field was in sight and a lot of figures clothed in red robes could be seen. That was the induction event for the smiths and a man reported to Xandar, he knelt behind the figure of Xandar. “Your grace, there are no drags, no weaknesses, th-they are just perfect.” The man stuttered with excitement, he still couldn’t believe such a rate could exist.

“Perfect?” Xandar’s retort was cold, it was void of emotions, bland. “Let them know this will be the last time. No more events or petty ceremonies, no matter what, henceforth!” He didn’t need to raise his voice, it came down hard.

“Yes your grace.” The man bowed deeply. “We intend to begin the next sets of drills right away, at this rate, they can all become High Bishops by the end of the year.” He added, traces of joy trailed his voice.

“High Bishops?” Xandar voiced with disdain and chuckled lightly. “With potentials that great? No! We the cardinals intend to have made personal protégés out of them by the end of the year, High Bishops will be nothing but their footstools.” The figure that knelt behind Xandar couldn’t believe his ears, his face was instantly drained of color. Xandar felt the change in atmosphere and smiled, he enjoyed such reactions.

“Your grace, this is…” He remained lost for words, beads of sweat quickly gathered on his fore head. He started to recollect his own ordeals, he was still a lower Bishop, they were messengers for cardinals but to reach this height! He easily outmatched his peers yet, he had spent thirty five years to reach this height, thirty five! To become a lower Bishop.

“Having men like you around them will be detrimental, their abilities are way beyond your scope. Limit the contact they have with Lower Bishops henceforth and move them to stage three.” Xandar quickly ordered. “Stage two will be a waste of time, the Arch Bishops will take the up and from now on, they are not trained to be bishops.” Xandar’s gaze once again feel on the individuals in the ceremony. “From now on they train as Bishops.” With that Xandar left the trembling figure on the balcony, his steps were dead silent. He was like a ghost that floated.

            The news soon reached the smiths, the ceremonies had been cancelled, stage two had also been cancelled and they would no longer be subjected to normal church rankings. So it didn’t matter if they became Bishops, no one cared, all that mattered was the end result. The last piece of news was the most shocking, they were broken into small units and assigned to various Arch Bishops, a step they believed was faraway. It seemed like there trainings were about to take a drastic turn and for majority, festivity ended.

            Everyone soon met their Arch Bishops, their new coaches for a set duration but a particular unit met with something different. The unit was Bayo’s quartet, it consisted of Watt, Betty, Athion and Bernard. Arriving at a special hall, they didn’t meet an Arch Bishop, they didn’t meet anyone. Just when they started to brew second thoughts, a figure briskly walked in, his shadow stretching across the hall.

“Your grace…” The four quickly recovered from their shock and fell on one knee. “What is going on?” They pondered.

“You four on the other hand are mine!” The similar icy voice gently replied like he heard their thoughts.