The Ei

The Ei
The Ei are nine sacred objects (or people, depending who you believe) which are said to be capable of ending the world. They are worshipped in Fogland in place of the Crowned Deities. Their main temple is in the City of Ei.

History
The Ei are the only guns ever created in Sihiri. No others are allowed -- on pain of death, by worldwide agreement, following what happened to the nine.

Many years ago in the place where Isily Keep now stands, a warlady rose to power. She created nine weapons unlike anything seen in the world. Each one was slightly different, reinforced with a different strain of magic, and designed for a different purpose. Together it was said they could win any battle, since they covered every aspect of war.

Four years ago the Lady of War used them to usurp a slew of cities. Offended by resistance from Capital City she took the Silver Fox's son hostage, forced the Fox's allies to serve her, and forced all the religious authorities in the Slums to worship her. At last the Silver Fox gathered enough support to attack and destroy her, but the Fox's son was killed in the process. After the Lady of War's destruction the weapons were taken by her enemies and then lost.

Meanwhile the monks she'd impressed from the Slums had traveled up to Fogland, where they created a city. They built nine houses surrounding an empty temple. According to their doctrine, the Lady of War had started the end of the world, which was now inevitable. And sure enough the weapons began showing up again a year after their loss. Each was brought to the monks and placed in a separate house for safekeeping. Collectively the weapons were called the "False Ei."

But the weapons that the monks were waiting for weren't the physical items the Lady had created. Instead they were people, the living incarnations of those weapons, the so-called "True Ei." And now the first two of those beings have finally arrived.

The False Ei (weapons)
Eight of the nine Ei have been recovered. The fourth is still missing.

Each is radically different from the next. Some are spectacularly ornate, some are plain and simple. Some are huge and barely manageable, some are so small they'd disappear in your hand. All of them are capable of murder. Some are capable of far more savage things than that.

They are housed under the strictest security in houses full of fighting warrior monks whose sole duty is to guard them. Please really, really, really rethink trying to steal them.

The True Ei (people)
The True Ei are people. They are as different as the False Ei - different races, attitudes, and appearances - but they are all from other worlds, drawn here by some unmistakable call. So far Eight and Two are the only ones to arrive. But the monks have faith the rest will come.

The True Ei are also called Sigils, since they're symbols of some horrible devastation to come.

Each one represents the same attributes as their False Ei counterpart. For example, Eight is a master of illusions and fear manipulation, while being shot with the eighth weapon will cause terrible hallucinations of a person's worst fear, culminating in their death. The attributes are:

As deities
For centuries beyond measure, the only gods and goddesses in Sihiri were the Crowned Deities. A few other creatures were worshipped here and there, but the Crowned Deities were the mainstay of most of Sihiri's people. That is still the case: the majority of Sihirians still worship the Crowns.

However, in Fogland people have begun to worship the Ei instead. They believe the White Monks' prophecies were validated when Eight and Two arrived, and that the Sigils are meant to replace the Crowned Deities as this world's gods. Understandably, this has caused an uproar in the rest of the world. The Crowns have had mixed reactions. Some completely ignore the Ei, believing they're a trend that will soon fade, while others are preparing for war.