Abandinus, the Unknown-
Of all the gods of Arizide, the least is known about the shapeless, genderless figure of neutrality who is, ironically, the City of Masks patron god.
With few to no legends to guide his followers, and no known direct interference with the mortal world, there is nothing much that his followers have to base their behaviour- not to mention the laws of the City of Masks- upon. What has been developed is a carefully written, delicately balanced series of behaviours that walk the line between the extreme control of Tari and the heedless inaction of Sarapis.
The clergy of Abandinus are carefully selected. Despite how many individuals are born into the clergy or "hear the call" to serve the Unknown, very few are permitted to train beyond the level of an initiate. Those are the wandering healers, the neutral hands that offer aid to anyone who looks in need of it.
Control of the City of Masks is, in theory, relegated to the gods. Despite the inactivity of the First, a moment is always given at the beginning of any council to permit Tari, Sarapis or even Abandinus itself time to make themselves or their wishes known. Only the First are given such consideration; their more active 'children' are denied any word in the ruling of the City of Masks.
The One- always masked and robed to provide full physical anonymity- is the secular leader of the City of Masks and the clergy of Abandinus. Selection of the One is unknown and kept carefully hidden, and the lack of differentiation in rule over the centuries has given rise to any number of rumours and suspicions about the One and the clergy itself. No one, however, has braved the cenobitic monastary in which the One is thought to reside.
The One is aided in deliberations and rulings by the Convocation of Order- a collective of the City's clergy and guilds. Each guild is permitted two voices in the Convocation, and each voice must oppose the other when questions of rulings and legislation arise. It is also the Convocation who distribute the lots for the city's yearly sacrifices to Tari, Sarapis and Abandinus.
*the lots:
Each citizen is counted in a bi-yearly census, and the number recorded under the strict observation of the clergy. During that census, each citizen is marked with a permanent design on the back of their neck. The designs vary from year to year, and there are always five simple designs chosen. Only one design marks the sacrifices, and only the One knows what design that is.
At the height of summer, the (Agents) sweep the city and gather the individuals who bear the design entrusted to them by the One's personal assistants. The chosen are brought to the Basilica and sacrificed in accordance to the will of the gods. Those who are to be offered to Sarapis are immolated, usually in wicker basket figures. The sacrifices to Tari are ritually strangled. The sacrifices to Abandinus are done in secret by the clergy. Presented to the crowd, they are anointed with scented oils and borne into the Basilica where they are never seen nor heard from again.
After the sacrifice, the marks fade from the populace until the next annual census, during which new designs are chosen. There are never more than twenty individuals selected for sacrifice- control of the number is done via magical means.
