The azure flames are a religious group that used to exist in Dah’Rem, though they were originally from Arzentia. It’s been argued from historical accounts that many in the Azure Flames came out of the softstone artisans that Arzentia were so well known for prior to the industrial revolution. It seems to be the case that their lineage can be traced back to a particular Nobel family who made many of the sculptures and pottery for the aristocracy of Arzentia, who were later exiled, and migrated to Dah’Rem.
Belief System
While hard to directly pin down the beliefs due to the loss of first-party documents, we can piece together some of them based on third-party accounts, and the accounts of those who preached against their faith. The primary aspect of their belief system seemed to be centered around sculpture, and more broadly softstone pottery. This is likely why there are so many references to fire being cleansing, since this is traditionally how you re-use softstone when a mistake is made.
The basis of their belief is that there was a divine sculptor that formed the world, T’ajmet (Taj-met), who’s name translates roughly to the hands. T’ajmet was the one that “filled up” the world with the “stone” he used to sculpt with. Essentially he created the universe, and then began to help it take it’s proper shape, from a raw form of matter they called A’ljuien (al-ju-een). After a while of sculpting in large things like the planet and sun, T’ajmet created the sculptors, a group of human-like deities to populate the land and sculpt in “the details”. These smaller sculptors took his gift of fire, and used it to forge the mountains, and nature as we know it.
Worried that the world would become stagnant since they were very similar to each other, he also created two other creatures to oppose each other, Ja’ein (jaey-een) and A’Traeine (A-tra-een). Ja’ein was a being of chaos, a creature that breathed fire, and would destroy areas the sculptors created, A’Traeine would protect the sculptors, and the areas they held most dear. This is the reason given for why different areas have different climates. Since most places were being built and rebuilt, there was a lot of diversity in what was created, while retaining a lot of similarity in other ways. These creatures maintained a delicate balance that helped creativity thrive, while still keeping enough structure to let the world play out.
Eventually one of the sculptors, R’zen (re-zeen), got lonely while working and decided to experiment with the creation of life. So she decided to try making moving sculptures that reacted to the world. Eventually she was able to make one that looked similar to herself (Truein, the first woman), and managed to make it move and speak. This is where humanity came from. After a while the other sculptors began to do the same, they began populating the land not only with life that emulated themselves, but other animals as well. Ja’ein when he saw this was unimaginably angry, and began to expend his own life to burn hot enough to irradicate all life on the planet. He was successful in this, and the world was wiped away. A’Traeine fights off Ja’ein, but both are so injured that they retreat underground to sleep, and heal, until their final conflict when they both wake. In the meantime the new sculptors (and Truein) begin reforming the world, and building it into what we see today.
Similarities with Zarathem
They are said to have been a large source of inspiration for the work done by Uerties to unify the Zarathem faith. There is very little known about the group as much of their own religious texts, and artifacts were destroyed or censored during various wars and pogroms. It seems to be implied by some of the work of historians that much of The Uerties is likely adapted, or wholesale taken from the beliefs of this group (including The Quereth and The Rathem ). It’s believed that many Zarathem artifacts that predate the Uertian split by a long time are actually artifacts of the Azure flames that have since been assimilated.
Flame Festival
It is likely the case that the modern Flame Festival came from traditions carried out by the Azure Flames. There were several documents uncovered by historians who wrote around when Uerties first began the tradition that compare and contrast the two. Originally the flame festival was seemingly a more somber affair, being enacted once a year, or during times of major unrest. A pyre was lit, and various ingredients were added to it to make the flames different colors. The various colors symbolized the type of action that needed atonement.
It was believed that their ancestors could see them through the flame, and were there to see the living pay homage to their mistakes, and atone for them. It’s implied that people were meant to offer something important to themselves in order to atone, and in severe situations to make a pledge while being branded to have their ancestors baked into their skin to watch over them, and make sure they improved.