Lamu Adar is a Xian Ember of Vix (His first name is a play on the Hawaiian word for torch and smoke, and his last name is an ancient Persian name for an angel which means “fire”).
Lamu came into service of Vix at the “Tuho Manene” (a play on the Maori words for “Age of Kindling”) on his tenth birthday as was his birthright as the child of the Clan of Adar, though other Clans are also granted this birthright which can be either given or taken by the Phoenix. He spent the following decade dedicated to his studies and service of Vix at the “School of Kora” (Maori for “spark”). At the “Tuho Whakaka” (a play on the Maori words for “Age of Ignition”), on his twentieth birthday, Lamu was selected for the prestigious honor of serving at the main fire temple of Mahili, an island in the Xian archipelago. At the “Tuho Rate” (pronounced Rah-tey, a play on the Maori words for “Age of Spreading”), Lamu was tasked with leading a Pilgrimage with the help of Alden to Zerlon that ultimately failed in its task to warrant establishing a fire temple after being forced out of the country due to growing Xenophobia after a new local initiate murdered their brother (in your write up you didn’t specify where I went on a pilgrimage or why it failed, so if these don’t fit pre-existing lore, I can change these easily. Also, if you have cooler ideas why it failed, I’m all ears).
Lamu is now 35 years old and his utmost dedication to Vix, along with his respected wisdom, has qualified him for this prestigious and dangers mission to collect the fire of an elder dragon. That being said, his recent failure burns hot not only in his mind but also in the mind of the Phoenix, Fua Gho. Although never expressed explicitly by the Phoneix, when Lamu was given the sacred task of collecting the fire of an elder dragon for the new temple in Hazl being established due to the work of fellow Ember Ji Hwa, Lamu knew that his failure would require of him the ritual act of Saigo.
Saigo is seen by the Light of Vix as highest form of ritual purification that one can undergo. It involves placing a hot ember of Iko in ones mouth before dousing oneself in Xang while sitting on a bed of Iko, resulting in self-immolation. It is thought that performing Saigo can cleanse even the worst of sins, restoring ones purity and honor in the eyes of Vix. Xang is a ritual sacrament used as an accelerant or starter for a fire. Iko is the holy wood used in all ritual fires. (“Saigo” is taken from Saigon, the location where the Buddhist monk, Thích Quảng Đức, as a form of protest, self-immolated in 1963. “Xang” is taken from the Vietnamese word for gasoline. “Iko” is the Maori word for oak, backwards. Saigo was based is partly based on the practice of Seppuku).
Often times, to show their dedication to Vix, Embers will undergo ritual scarification through branding. This process, once healed, leaves the affected areas of the skin slightly raised and subtly lighter-in-tone, and the Xian’s hard, dark skin allows for fine details to be “etched” into their flesh. This ritual is conducted while the Ember meditates and it garners great honor upon the Ember if they do not react during the painful process. Embers are the only ones who have the right to undergo this ritual.
Lamu has undergone this ritual twice and both times has continued to chant sacred prayers unabated by pain. At his “Tuho Manene” when he was a year old, he had the Xian symbol of fire etched into the skin of each of his inner wrists as a symbolic dedication to his commitment to Purity of Action, one of the five main moral pillars that followers of Vix adhere to. At his “Tuho Whakaka” when he was two years old, he underwent the ritual again, this time to have a raging fire etched into the upper half of his body. The base of the fire sits on his left hip, reflecting the Light of Vix’s teachings that the inner-fire’s heart is in the gut. The fire’s flames dance up Lamu’s side and cross over his heart, reflecting the moral pillar of Purity of Belief. The tips of flame then separate and snake up his neck, touching the left corner of his mouth, left eye, and left ear, reflecting the moral pillars of Purity of Speech, Sight, and Thought, respectively.
Lamu has fire-red hair, reptilian eyes with burnt-orange irises, and adorns himself with two pieces of jewelry. The first is a family signet of silver worn on his left ring finger that has two symbols etched into it representing the clan “Adar”. The second is a set of 3 gold earrings connected with a drooping, thin chain of gold representing the connection between an Ember’s “Commitment to Vix”, “Commitment to the Light of Vix”, and “Commitment to Clan”.
Lamu will be willing to sacrifice anyone to achieve his mission and would rather die during its course than return having failed. If he passes away during the mission, he will wish for his body to be attended to according to the Light of Vix’s prescription for a “Chet Kiasa” or “Death while Afar” (“Chet Kiasa” is a play on the Vietnamese for “Death while Afar”), which is applicable to anyone whose body cannot be delivered to a Fire Temple within 3 days of death. This ritual involves cutting out the heart of the deceased and burning it on a log of Iko after which its ashes will be collected into a vial. The rest of the body, after being completely stripped, will be burned on a bed of Iko, lit from the log used to burn the heart to ash. The deceased’s bones, vial of ashes, and jewelry shall be returned to their home temple for the completion of the ceremony and so that the Ember’s earrings can be returned to the Light of Vix and their clan’s ring to the clan. If Iko is unavailable to perform the Chet Kiasa, then other woods may be used, but it is seen as imputing impurities into the soul that must be cleansed at the completion of the ceremony back at a temple. Failing to perform the Chet Kiasa is seen as leaving the deceased to be accursed.
Proposed additional items
- A load of Iko (holy wood) provided by the Phoenix to sustain the fire/coals after collection on the way back
- An “Orun” (Hebrew translittteration for “ark”, and yes this is going to be an Ark of the Covenant rip off). A holy object constructed out of gilded Iko (holy wood) designed to be carried by four persons and used to ensure the integrity of holy fires when mere fire-pots (ancient tools used to transport coals) cannot be trusted. The box is decorated with images of fire and depictions of Vix and her first act of creation. At its base, inscriptions speak of Vix as the initial source of creation and at the top, inscriptions speak of the eternal blessings of Vix for all who draw near to her warmth. There are eight holes in the box near its base (two on each side) to provide the fire with oxygen. These holes have vents that can be rotated and deflected to protect the internal fire from the elements. There are also five holes, corresponding to the five moral pillars, on the top of the box with similar vents to allow the venting of smoke from the fire. The Iko used to construct the Orun had, sandwiched between it, a sacred material known as “matau” which cannot be burned and insulates the inside of the box from the outside (“matau” is a play on the Maori word for “inextinguishable”, which is where we get the word “asbestos” from when the Greeks noticed that it could not be burned). The box has two sets of rings located near its top on opposite sides of the box where two poles of gilded Iko can be inserted and used to lift and carry the box.
Item 2 will be fun because, after we collect the dragon’s fire, if we’re trying to sustain the coals, then we’ll be transporting a heat source/smoke source that could make us visible for miles and cause shenanigans on top of the normal shenanigans caused by having to transport this unruly object.