According to a 2022 Gallup poll, eighty-one percent of Americans believe in God. According to Wikipedia, worldwide religious adherents are 7.8 billion. While recognizing that ‘adherent’ does not necessarily mean ‘believer’, with the 2022 world population at 8 billion, it is safe to say that most of the world acknowledges some form of deity.
Yet, it is rare to see
faith or spiritual observance reflected in contemporary fiction outside of a
few narrow sub-genres. I suspect that mainstream contemporary fiction avoids
spiritual topics because they can be so controversial. Science fiction has
fewer boundaries, allowing the inclusion and exploration of faith and
spirituality without the baggage of modern sensitivities.
The incorporation of faith
can be as minimal as occasional references to The Lords of
Space in VeronicaScott’s Sectors stories, or fuller blown as seen in the Badari Goddess who appears to various Badaris in both the Badari Warrior and Badari Gladiator series. Not only do I love the female persona,
but also that the Badaris were stolen from their home world and enslaved, yet
their Goddess finds them and aids them in their times of trial.
The use of the use the
female to personify the ultimate spiritual power is also seen in Cara Bristol’s Alien Dragon
Shifter series
where an immortal priestess is the guardian of their Eternal Fyre; a collective
of all their fyres (souls).
Marie A. Perez’s The Curse of
Sotkari Ta series
includes two contrasting belief systems with the patriarchal Arandans believing
in a single deity while the contrasting Sotkari Ta seek The Farthest
Light, which represents
total evolution and perfection.
In a departure from
humanoid deities, Alexis Glynn Latner’s Aeon Legacy series contains two ancient and powerful alien
intelligences, one plant-based and the other pure energy. The humans who
encounter them come away from the experience as if they had met
archangels—powerful lieutenants of a greater force.
In all cases, the ability
to incorporate spirituality or religion allows for greater scope in both
plotting and character development, the different depictions as varied and
fascinating as the stories.
There is even a dissenting
group that practice a more zen-like, pacifist spirituality known as the
Universal Way. Considered odd by the mainstream and somewhat marginalized, this
group has a profound impact on the successful resolution of several crises throughout
the series. The stage is set for the importance of Lilian’s faith in the first
volume, The Cartel, when she undergoes a formal rite where Adelaide’s symbol is
tattooed on her hip.
***Excerpt***
By canon and custom, Five Warrior Rituals are open to the
public. They are to be witnessed by any with an interest in the Will of the
Shades. Only members of the warrior class receive warrior marks. At the
dedication, the Warrior’s Mark is drawn in henna on a four-year-old child. A
true tattoo is incised at the consecration.
Although she no longer holds warrior status, having been
dedicated, Lilian cannot be undedicated. She is bound by tradition and faith to
consecrate the bond with a rededication made of her own free will.
Chrys frowns. “I did not know one could be dedicated to
Adelaide Warleader. I thought it was only the Five Warriors that accepted the
dedication of their descendants and their retainers’ descendants.”
“It is a small sect but supported by the canons. There was
some controversy when I was dedicated to her,” Lilian explains.
Chrys is ever curious about both Lilian and the ways of the
warriors. “How so?”
Leaning against a console, she regards the far wall of the
windowless chamber. “I was intended for the Fourth Warrior. At that time, I was
the eldest and only offspring of the newly formed Grey Gyre Cartouche. It was
my duty to demonstrate our loyalty to, and descent from, the house of Jonathan
Metricelli. It was to have been an elaborate ritual.”
Releasing her regard of the wall, she searches her friend’s
face.
Fascinated, Chrys nods his understanding. Lilian has never
yielded so much before this. The ritual must be extremely important to her.
She continues, “Apparently, I became bored and wandered off.
They eventually found me in the Adelaide Alcove. I was seated in the lap of the
effigy happily singing to myself and playing with her warbelt. The keeper
decided that Adelaide had called me to her. They dedicated me as I sat there.
By the time anyone else knew what went forward, it was too late. What was done
could not be undone.”
~~~
The prelate waits in front of the statue of Adelaide
Warleader as Lilian moves to the center of the semi-circle. “Do you come of your own will to answer the
call of Adelaide Warleader? Do you become her true servant in this time and
this place? To live by her discipline and listen for her voice?”
Lilian’s voice clear and certain. “Of my own will.”
Pulling the thorn from her belt, Lilian places it on her
palms and bows at the statue. Straightening, she transitions smoothly into a
series of rapid movements, the thorn flashing like a flame before her. The
rhythm shifts and the flame becomes a flickering light before disappearing
entirely for the final set of maneuvers playing in light and shadow. At the
completion of the demonstration, she folds to her knees and places the thorn on
the stone floor in front of the statue.
At this point, Chrys moves to the alcove entrance and places
his back to it, crossing his arms. Trevelyan notes that the young man is easily
able to block the opening with his frame. Chrys’ stance is casual and his smile
unexceptional. His presence neatly breaks up the small group gathered to
observe.
Trevelyan finds the young man also makes an effective
screen. He cannot see beyond him into the alcove where, bared to the waist,
Lilian is receiving Adelaide’s mark. Long moments pass before Chrys turns and reenters
the alcove, where Lilian, still kneeling, raises her left palm, right hand
holding her thorn. She makes a quick pass with the blade, leaving a red trail
of blood forming on the raised palm. Rising, she cuts a silver coin from her
belt and rolls it in her bleeding hand. Placing it on the altar, she says, “For
skill in the discipline of attack.”
Freeing a second coin, Lilian rolls it in her blood and then
places it in the effigy’s lap with the words, “For skill in the discipline of
defense.”
For the third coin, she voices, “For skill in the discipline
of avoidance.”
The final coin is anointed. “For Adelaide’s will and voice.”
Stepping back, facing the statue, Lilian carefully cleans
the thorn before sheathing it and bowing a final time.
The alcove keeper comes forward to collect the cloth used to
clean the thorn and place it on the sacred flame. Returning, the prelate binds
Lilian’s hand. “By your own will, you are Adelaide’s to command. Listen to her
voice.”
As they leave, Chrys cannot contain himself. “Were you truly
sitting in the lap of the statue playing with that grisly belt?”
“They are stuffed leather balls, not shrunken heads, and I
was but four.”
“She was singing the Warriors’ Litany, as well,” her sister
puts in, thrilled to have something to contribute.
Chrys offers a teasing grin. “Were you truly?”
“So, the alcove attendants attested. I do not recall the
matter,” Lilian says dismissively. She lacks not reverence. She is far too
pragmatic to give much credence to the shrines’ obsession with unsubstantiated
manifestations.
“It is no wonder that they dedicated you immediately.
Perhaps the Warleader did summon you. Certainly, it is well that your patron
force is known for extended combat.” For all his teasing, Chrys is serious.
Considering his friend’s trial, a deity renowned for endurance is a positive.
***
The Twelve
Systems Chronicles have won numerous awards: three Paranormal Guild Reviewers’
Choice Awards, five RONE Finalists,
and Shield Bearer received the 2021 RONE for
Science Fiction. All ten volumes are available in both e-book and
paperback, with the e-book available on multiple platforms.
Purchase links: https://egmanetti.com/the-twelve-systems-chronicles/
EG
Manetti
WHERE DUTY AND PASSION COLLIDE
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