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From Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum
→History
The cult flourished for a thousand years due to the corruption of [[Regium]]'s [[Planetary Governors]], which allowed Nahor's faith to spread across the world, and many temples were constructed in her honor. The Goddess' followers also honored her by planting seeds under their skin, while also caging their skin with tangled piercings of knotted wood and metal. A massive{{Fn|1c}} breed of [[Calefaction Pump|tree]] on the world were also the focal points of Nahor's religion{{Fn|1b}}, as they were treated as sacred sites of the Goddess{{Fn|1c}}. The trees' roots were also of much importance, as Nahor's dead worshipers were buried with them{{Fn|1b}} and placed within the trees' inner walls{{Fn|1c}}. Their sacred art also depicts the roots snaking down to encase the world's core{{Fn|1a}}. Her white, rune-stitched robed priests{{Fn|1c}}, known as the '''Keft'''{{Fn|1e}}, were the guardians of these world roots{{Fn|1d}} and claimed they formed a chamber within the core of Regium and would protect Aureus Nahor's followers in their times of need. Though the [[Emperor]] was treated as a separate god, Aureus Nahor's followers also worshiped Him and He played a part in the Goddess' mythology. According to the Keft, should Regium ever fall from the Emperor's grace, He would light a fire within its core that would tear the world apart.{{Fn|1e}}
However , Aureus Nahor's religion came to an end in [[M42]], when the [[Ultramarines]] [[Space Marine Lieutenant|Lieutenant]] [[Varus Castamon]] led a large [[Imperial]] strike force to [[Regium]]. He was charged with turning it into a part of the Imperium's vital [[Sanctus Line]] and drastic change would need to be done to secure the world. This included having Regium's [[Planetary Governor]] executed for corruption and also putting an end to Nahor's religion. [[Confessor]] [[Thurgau]] was largely in charge of this and though the Goddess' worshipers resisted at first, most stopped after the strike force gave them two revelations. The first, was that the Goddess trees, which were of such importance to her religion, were actually{{Fn|1b}} [[Geoengine]]s known as [[Calefaction Pump]]s, which had terraformed Regium so that it could support life{{Fn|1c}}. The second, was that those who refused to follow the Imperial Creed were destroyed by the Imperium. Nahor's worshipers were informed that would have been their fate, had the [[Ultramarines]] not been at the head of the strike force. Due to the [[Space Marines]]' presence and the revelations brought to them, the Goddess' worshipers were allowed the time to accept that their religion was no more. Their leader, [[Vela Zalth]], aided in this transition period and all this allowed Confessor Thurgau to convert the worshipers into the Imperial Creed, without a drop of blood being spilled.{{Fn|1b}}
[[Thurgau]] also demanded, however, that Nahor's most holy temple be leveled and he later had the fortress city of '''Zarax''' built in its place. This was a statement of intent on the [[Confessor]]'s part, but the former worshiper [[Urzun]], claimed he could still hear the weeping of Nahor's tree roots from beneath the fortress. The worshipers' songs about Nahor were also banned, though the [[Imperium]] did have them written down in books. But even with the banning of her religion, the Goddess' presence was still felt on Regium{{Fn|1b}}. This included the world's depictions of the [[Emperor]], wearing a helmet bearing a crown of knotted branches and of Him wielding a [[Emperor's Sword (Weapon)|Sword]] that trailed leaves instead of flames{{Fn|1a}}. Nahor's former worshipers also continued the practice of skin piercings, and planting seeds underneath their skin, though they did so now in honor of the Emperor, whose blood they believe was made of tree sap. These were minor deviations to the Imperial Creed, were allowed to continue at that time.{{Fn|1b}}
[[Vela Zalth]] was still a leader to the former worshipers, though she now bore the title of '''Proconsul'''. She did her best to temper those who resent having to stop worshiping the Goddess, which included her protégé and successor, '''Consul''' [[Damaris (Consul)|Damaris]]. While Zalth understood their complaints and resentments against the Imperium, she was quick to remind them that Nahor and the [[Emperor]] were now one and the same. And also what their fate could have been, had they refused to embrace the Imperial Creed. For his part, though, Thurgau still worked to stamp out any deviations that still flourished amongst the Goddess' former worshipers. This included their skin piercings, planting seeds underneath their skin and believing the Emperor's blood was tree sap. [[Regium]]'s new [[Imperial Governor]], [[Seroc]], had told the Confessor to ignore this, as these deviations to the Imperial Creed were minor compared to how the worshipers now prayed to the Emperor. In Seroc's view, pressing the matter would only undo all the work Thurgau had done to end Nahor's religion. The Confessor though refused to do so, as he believed these minor deviations could later lead to larger ones, if they were allowed to fester.{{Fn|1b}}
{{Spoiler|source= Leviathan (Novel)}}
Despite this, however, the Goddess was still secretly worshiped and some of her '''Keft''' priests, even still gathered to honor the [[Calefaction Pump]]s as her sacred sites. This ultimately came to an end, though, when [[Hive Fleet Leviathan]] invaded the world. Ultimately, [[Space Marine Lieutenant|Lieutenant]] [[Varus Castamon]]'s [[Imperial]] forces were not enough to save [[Regium]] and he gave the order to destroy it, so the world would not be consumed. His forces achieved this by throwing a reactor down what Aureus Nahor's followers called a world root, but was actually a pump from a [[Calefaction Pump]] machine. The resulting explosion started a chain reaction{{Fn|1e}}, that caused Regium to explode and only Castamon and four other [[Imperials]] survived the world's destruction. Regium's death also likely brought an end to Aureus Nahor's religion.{{Fn|1f}}
==Sources==
