The Vates

The bloodlines of Ternio are the oldest of Paradisus, and so is their religion. Called Vates, it focuses heavily on the three-fold concept of time: past, present, and future. These concepts are represented through a three-faced god named Saeculi. While this god is at the heart of their religion, the Vates are not monotheistic like the Tantum. Instead, they acknowledge the existence of other deities, sometimes incorporating these "lesser gods" into their personal belief system.

Saeculi: Absens, Nunc, Relici
Saeculi is the primary god of the Vates, considered a three-faced deity. Each face has its own identity: Absens, the past; Nunc, the present; and Relici, the future. Traditionally, these identities are thought of as an elderly stallion, a stallion in his prime, and a young colt, respectively; however, individuals often have their own personal interpretations which are treated as equally valid by their peers. Saeculi himself is never directly described, as the Vates believe his existing in all times at once makes him unfathomable. Because of these factors, the generally accepted descriptions of Saeculi and his faces change constantly over time, reflecting the culture of the current generations.

The Lesser Gods
As a polytheistic religion adapted to each follower, many of the Vates also follow gods acknowledged by other religions, as it suits their spiritual needs. Most commonly followed are Vita and Nox of the Duodecim, as the concept of life and death is so closely associated with the experience of time. Interestingly, the Vates often apply the three-faced concept to other gods, imagining ways in which to interpret them as their aspects apply to past, present, and future. Whether these gods know (or care) about this peculiar practice is unknown.

What is consistent between the Vates in regards to deity worship, however, is that Saeculi and his faces are considered older and superior to any other gods. This is not meant as a slight, only as an acknowledgement that Saeculi comes from "a time before time," and is significantly older than the other gods, at least as the Vates tell their histories.

The Gods
Saeculi, The Three-Faced