A Secret Order of Monks
Pro Lapsis Astra (Pray for the Fallen Stars)
From the time the original Twelve cast themselves out of the Forever to Earth, there were those among them who sought forgiveness and, ultimately, redemption. They pursued justice and morality and taught their children (eventually known as the First Born) to do the same. The children of the Twelve became many things, including some who pursued a directly spiritual life.
These among the First Born, and some of their descendants (known as Offspring), lived a life of fasting, prayer and meditation. Some became rabbis, others sheiks, some chose a life removed — alone and rarely understood. After the death of the one who some called the Christ, a disciple, the apostle Peter, founded what eventually became the Roman Catholic Church.
Over time, a few First Born and even more of their Offspring became priests in the church. One was a particularly virtuous priest who later became the Cardinal of St. Peter and then, in 897 AD, was selected as Pope. Upon his election by the Holy See to the Papacy, he took the name Romanus. As a man of great faith, Pope Romanus believed completely in the power of prayer, and spent his life praying for the souls of the original twelve. He also created of an order of monks with the charge of continuing his belief in the need for constant prayer for the souls of the fallen twelve and their Offspring.
The monks recruited to this secret order were a mix of devoted humans with no knowledge of the existence of supernatural beings on Earth and Offspring who had already chosen to enter a life of spiritual purity within the structure of the church. Long before the church body officially recognized personal prelatures, Pope Romanus created his own and charged it with this solemn task. A task until the end of time, a duty never ending.
Although the papacy of Pope Romanus lasted only four months, his legacy continued in secret, uninterrupted to modern day. His personal prelature, Pro Lapsis Astra (Pray for the Fallen Stars), has continued to faithfully serve the Offspring descendants of the twelve.
As time passed, and fear grew of the secret order being discovered or disbanded, the monks of Pro Lapsis Astra made a bold move — they realigned their order with the Eastern Orthodox Church. Pope Romanus, upon creating the secret order, had wisely transferred land holdings in Greece assuring the financial solvency of the order. This independence allowed the order to fade into official obscurity, while in reality the order slowly and carefully planted monasteries around the world.
History records very little about Pope Romanus. One theory proposes that he was deposed by a ruling faction in Rome who wanted a different man as pope. This theory includes Pope Romanus living out the rest of his life in obscurity as a simple monk, though it doesn’t suggest what order he secluded himself with.
As an Offspring himself, clearly aligned with the First Born and other Offspring, Pope Romanus was certainly a target to those who believed their supernatural birthright had been squandered in adherence to the ancient Covenant. Romanus did succeed, however, in creating a force for good. His monks and their secret order, Pro Lapsis Astra, do not take sides, but pray for forgiveness and intercession. Through the ages, First Born and Offspring alike have sought them out for refuge, for peace, for knowledge and for understanding. Often, the Council of the Scribes has used the secret order’s libraries and collective knowledge to bolster its own records.