The Neferka Kingdom - Neferites

First Age

The Neferites split from the Zutraim sultanates in the first age and formed the Neferka Kingdom when they came in contact with strange animal headed gods that were not of Urð. The Neferites worshipped the outer gods and built impressive monuments in their honour so in return the outer gods gave them blessings and divine power to fuel their magic. 

This made the Neferka Kingdom powerful in the first age and put them at odds with the Zutraim sultanates to the north as the two battled for territory around the various oasis and underground rivers of the Azcrets desert.

The only Pharaoh whose name survives to this day was Pharaoh Ramzes of the third dynasty, who received divine favour from the outer god of kings; Horus. Ramzes was the most prolific builder of his dynasty and as such most ruins found today are either dedicated to him as the vessel of Horus or pay homage to him. 

Little is known of the day to day lives of the first age Neferites but their religious practices survive through oral traditions and records left in the ruins buried deep in the Azcrets desert. Judging by the records that survived it’s safe to say that the Neferka Kingdom relied heavily on their divine magic to run the kingdom. 

At the end of the first age the gods of Urð had quite enough of the outer gods’ interference and cut off their connection to Urð, isolating the Neferites from their divine power and causing immense turmoil within the kingdom.

Without their divine power the Neferka Kingdom fell apart quickly and the pieces were claimed by the various neighbouring sultanates. 

Second and Third Ages

After the fall of the Neferka Kingdom most Neferites became lesser members of the neighbouring sultanates, whether it be through captivity or integration, though their unwillingness to give up their religious practices made integration difficult for those not willing to uphold secrecy around their beliefs. 

Endurance became the priority of the Neferites throughout the second and most of the third age. Much like the Zutraim people, the Neferites have mostly been a nomadic people. Small villages cropped up close to the underground rivers but often those villages had to be abandoned eventually as the seasons changed or nearby Sultanates found use for the land. 

By the end of the third age most Neferites would fall into one of two categories; nomads living in the harsh desert or serfs under the sultanates that conquered their villages and took them in.

Towards the end of the third age the upheaval of the heavens occurred which reopened the Neferites connection to their outer god. This caused the rituals of the Neferites to finally work as intended again so a mass uprising started and has not stopped since. This caused chaos within the Zutraim Sultanates as the Neferites living there left the oasis kingdoms with varying levels of violence. Now the Neferites have started gathering into larger nomadic tribes, travelling along the south of the Azcrets desert in search of the buried ruins left by their predecessors.

Culture

Neferites believe that all their actions in their waking lives will affect what kind of afterlife they get once they pass. They believe that their ka (souls) are intrinsically connected to their bodies and as such appropriate funerary rites are important to preserve the body, otherwise Anubis will be unable to recognize them and won’t judge their hearts which will doom their ka to wander the desert lands between life and death for all eternity.
They believe the afterlife is just a continuation of their waking lives and so death is not viewed as a tragedy but as a new chapter in their stories. 

Priests are very active community leaders who facilitate various bigger rituals to assist fellow Neferites in matters of ceremony.

Religious rituals are a staple of Neferite culture, though there are many variations of these rituals based on region due to how scattered the Neferites have been and how these rituals have had to change for each family. 

Neferites believe that all bonds, even familial, are spiritual above all else. This has led to them becoming a very diverse people as they readily adopt and raise children of any background to pass on their traditions, as well as having no restrictions on who they may wed other than that the spouse must be willing to pick up the customs of the Neferites. 

When a suitably powerful priest is available then the rituals for adopting a child or wedding a spouse often involve tethering the souls of the participants together. This does not have much of an effect on the participants in their waking life but is meant to help their souls reunite in the afterlife. There are also greeting rituals reserved for close friends that are meant to tether the two souls together but these bonds are less permanent as Neferites would never want to pull their friends from their own families in the afterlife.

The cycle of life and death is very holy to the Neferites as only Osiris can sanction true resurrection of the soul, as such necromancy is frowned upon in their culture.

Most daily activities are likely to carry with them some small rituals unique to the Neferites family and customs, usually with the purpose of asking the Outer Gods to bless or aid them in their activities.

More important rituals are often carried out by priests of the appropriate gods as they are able to more directly communicate with the outer gods.

The Neferites have a few symbols that have the same meaning to each individual Neferite:

The scarab, a symbol of the cycle of life and death.

The ankh, a symbol of eternal life, immortality and reincarnation. Often carried as a symbol of loyalty to the outer gods and the pharaohs of old.

The eye of Ra, a symbol of protection and harmony.

The eye of Horus, a symbol of healing and wisdom.

Outer Gods

Ra: The foremost sun god and creator of the other gods. He sails his sunboat across the sky each day to battle the serpent god Apophis so the sun may rise again, lest it be swallowed by the serpent god.

Osiris: God of death and resurrection who rules the underworld after being murdered by his brother Set. He watches over the souls of the deceased as they go through their afterlife.

Iset: Wife of Osiris, mother of pharaohs and goddess of magic. She put her husband Osiris back together after his murder so she could bear his heir, Horus, and guide him to the afterlife. 

Horus: God of pharaohs and the sky. He overthrew his uncle Set after the murder of his father Osiris and now grants divine blessings upon the pharaohs. All pharaohs are believed to be his vessels and will join at his father’s side in the afterlife as sons of Osiris and brothers to Horus.

Set: God of the desert and outsiders, known for his violence and strength. Murderer of Osiris, though he became Horus’ biggest supporter after Horus defeated him.

Sekhmet: Goddess of war, protection and healing. She was sent to be the judge of mortals but proved too vicious to judge mortals fairly. She now blesses warriors and battlefield healers.

Anhur: God of war, hunting and conquest. He blesses warriors with the strength and courage of lions. 

Ma’at: Goddess of justice, truth and order. The feathers of her wings are used to weigh against the hearts of mortals to see what afterlife they are worthy of.

Hathor: Goddess of motherhood, often associated with music, dance, joy and love. Often guides souls of younger mortals to the afterlife. Mothers often carry out daily rituals to ask her to protect their children and bring them joy.

Taweret: Goddess of childbirth and protector of children. Often assists Hathor in guiding souls of younger mortals to the afterlife. Patron goddess of midwives.

Neper/Nepit: Gods of grain and the harvest. Patron god and goddess of any who try to cultivate the lands of the Azcrets desert.

Thoth: God of the moon, knowledge and science. He is credited as the inventor of the Neferites’ written language and often gives his blessings to scholars.

Sobek: God of rivers, oasis and the creatures that live there. He is called on to protect worshippers from the predators that might lie in ambush in the oasis of the desert.

Amun: Primordial creation god, said to one day merge with his son Ra to create Amun-Ra to defeat Apophis once and for all. He is often associated with the cosmos beyond the skies of Horus and as such astrologers worship him.

Apophis: God of darkness and chaos. He is the serpent who will one day eat the sun and plunge the world into eternal darkness. Worship of this god is shunned by most Neferites but some give him offerings during solstices to appease the serpent god.

Anubis: God of funerary rites, protector of the dead and guide to the afterlife. He prepares and guides souls to the great scales where their hearts are weighed against a feather of Ma’at. Priests of Anubis are in high regard as they take care of funerary rites and banishing the undead.

Ammit: Devourer of souls. She devours the hearts of souls that are too heavy from their wicked deeds in life. She dooms the souls of the wicked to wander the desert of the lands in between the mortal realm and the afterlife for all eternity.

Ptah: God of craftsmen, husband to Sekhmet and said to be father to the architects of the great monuments of the first age. Nowadays he blesses craftsmen and shares his claim over Neferite alchemists with Thoth.

Bastet: Goddess of love, fertility and passion. She is the gentler sister of Sekhmet, taking on a more passive protector role and granting her blessings to couples and new families so they may be protected from the more mundane dangers of daily life.

Tefnut: Goddess of moisture, dew and rain. She is one of the daughters of Ra and consort to Shu, one of the outer gods who show this realm no interest. Her two children, Geb and Nut, also show this realm no interest but Tefnut herself was said to bless the Neferites with rain in hard times during the first age.