Minutes of the Nachivan Society of the Unburnt
It was easy to find a new meeting place (the debate was ongoing as to whether "temple" was appropriate) after the 30th of Tislev. Even weeks later, there were unused sections of High Priestly estates, abandoned townhouses of dead Juror officers, and probably-stable homes of mouflons ruined in the fighting. It was simply a matter of finding a piece of the world not currently in use and nailing a sign to the door declaring this a mekdash and, if possible, securing a lock and key.
The chosen new headquarters was one of the first, a few rooms in a wing of a sprawling manor. They had managed to claim a few rooms to themselves and now shared the rest of the place with an Iconoclast homeless shelter, a Confessionalist reading group, and a small family of Kutan mouflons who had provided them the strips of charki that now sat in the middle of the table. It was also, importantly, on the bottom floor, which Sister Sebitlil considered a necessity after the defenestration of Brother Hadad which had ended their last meeting and had them banished from the tavern.
She stood from her kneeling position against the low table and clasped her hands behind her back. "Thank you all for coming, siblings, dislocated fragments of the eternal, immutable being, and those who have wandered in off the streets. I am proud to see so many new faces, and so many old faces returning. Welcome to the new Unburnt Mekdash! I hope you all find the place suitable."
Ishme Sebitlil gave a beatific smile as she looked over the assembled party of trouser-wearing women, shirtless men, and wildly varying levels of tattoo and piercing all kneeling on folded blankets around the cheap wooden table. There were grunts of approval and the usual chorus of minor complaints.
"Good to hear," she said, ignoring all of them. "I know we are all eager to get on to business, but in light of the confusing nature of the past months and the new faces that have joined us in accepting oneness, Sister Geshtinana will begin with a reading of the minutes." She sat down to a satisfying chorus of disapproving muttering. Fighting had broken out over the charki, quickly broken up again by a chorus of jabs as Sister Geshtinana, a bald, tall, and underfed woman, stood up holding a clipboard.
"8 Tebet, 822", she began, "Attended by Brother Enki, Sister Geshtinana, Brother Hadad the Younger…"
Geshtinana's voice droned, which made her perfect for the task. The Unburnt were rowdy, and being organised in a coherent group felt like fire to them. This was how Ishme Sebitlil solved this problem: Put them in a sturdy room, give them food so they are slow and reluctant to leave, and make sure they pay just enough attention to their most soporific of siblings to keep them drowsy, but not quite asleep. Earlier attempts to achieve this state with meditation, incense, and alcohol were all met with failure.
"Urgent Business: Protocol Regarding the Deaths of Unburnt Siblings, presented by Brother Enki."
Sister Sebitlil looked around the table. There were dark looks from some of those that had been there the previous month. The Unburnt were a young sect and Zababa their first loss. The younger Hadad had suggested a burial at sea, that his body should be rendered untouchable by the fire of faith and that should be the end of it, that they should avoid treating the deceased with the gaudy pageantry of the Burned. The Elder Hadad had suggested the corpse be paraded through the streets, while his siblings and selves wailed and rent their clothes and made their despair known to all Nachivan.
"Discussion between parties swiftly becomes unproductive to a greater extent than allowed by the charter. Sister Ninlil suggests that the argument itself is adequate memorial to Brother Zababa. Motion to be revisited at a later date."
A later date as close to the World To Come as Sister Sebitlil could make it. It was a fire she was not looking forward to putting out, especially when others burned so strong.
"Further Urgent Business: Proposal to Update Position of Society Regarding Schismatic Burned,"
Fires such as this. This was where the previous meeting had gotten out of hand.
"Repeated similar motions now being made more urgent by events of 30 Tislev and the loosening of the Knot of Orthodoxy. Motion is made to update as well as clarify Unburnt stances regarding heterodox sects.
Multiple suggestions are raised ranging from a complete resistance to all forms of Burned organisation, citing a desire to immediately undo the Knot of Faith, to active collaboration…"
The gathered Burnt were once again becoming restless. Adversaries glared across the table at each other as Sister Geshtinana read their statements, determined to march ever forward with her duty even as her listeners stopped listening and resumed their arguments from the previous month.
"In response to Brother Enki's suggestion that reunification with the Burned may be possible under the principle that all things are one, Brother Hadad the Younger motions a desire to reunify his fist with Brother Enki's face."
Brother Enki slammed a fist on the table, knocking the last of the charki from the plate. Brother Hadad the Younger flinched. Sister Sebitlil clutched her hands together behind her back and maintained a beatific smile.
"Sister Ninlil expresses approval of certain tenets of Iconoclasm, suggesting that pressure and aid to Iconoclastic and Confessor groups might assist in lessening the importance of temples and other religious buildings in daily life. Sister Manzat declares sister Ninlil to be aflame and offeres to 'beat the fire out.'"
Sister Ninlil broke the charki plate over Brother Hadad the Elder's head.
"Discussion becomes unproductive. Brother Hadad the Younger defenestrated."
Brother Enki stepped across the table to tackle Hadad the Elder. In the chaos, she caught Hadad the Younger being launched through the window again, now at least onto a soft garden only a sepu down. Briefly, she considered whether this matter should be solved via trial by combat, and let the ones who can still speak afterwards determine the sect's position. This she discarded quickly. They are not Pugilists, no matter the angelforms Sister Ninlil was presently presenting Brother Enki.
It was a simple matter of finding the right solution and keeping the resulting explosive disagreement from tearing them all apart. As a group, and quite possibly physically given the enthusiasm with which they all seemed to treat the issue. Ishme Sebitlil stood and physically pulled Ninlil and Enki apart. Them, herself, and Geshtinana seemed to be the only ones present for the meeting still standing.
"It's clear that we're all very passionate about this situation," Sister Sebitlil interposed herself directly between the two glaring disciples, taking care to spend an equal amount of time on each of them with her smiling, admonishing gaze, "So how about we start cleaning up while Sister Geshtinana tends to the wounded. Then, you can all sit down with me one on one and discuss how we feel."
