Microstory 676: Replace Eido Giacomo

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There’s a lot of ambiguity and misinformation regarding Eido Giacomo. He is said to have committed the first murder in Fostea upon its original settlement. Though we can’t know this to be true without going back in time and taking a closer look, this is accepted in the historical records. Giacomo went on to a great many things after this, none of which included killing anyone else. His vow of nonviolence is as far as our certainty goes, for the rest of his life is filled with mystery and doubt. Many actions were attributed to him that he probably had nothing to do with. He was often conflated with Eido Seamus, and even Sacred Savior, Sotiren Zahir’s foster brother, Hamish. His true history is not important, only his teachings. We do know that Giacomo contributed greatly to the writings in the Book of Light. It is even believed that Sotiren dictated much, if not all, of the text to Giacomo, who copied the thoughts in shorthand, and then transcribed them in his own words. Yes, it is believed by many, and not irreligiously, that Eido Giacomo was the true writer of the book that our people hold dearest. This is a problem for some, but not most, as the words themselves hold value regardless of who wrote them down, or even who thought of them. Perhaps the Savior recruited Giacomo for this purpose, knowing that it was the best outlet for Giacomo’s feelings. Whether this is true or not, he is now longed passed, and must be replaced by someone new. The presumption was that whoever managed to remake the Club of Death would automatically be accepted as the replacement for Giacomo, but this is not how the taikon operate. Though these events are interwoven in a cohesive story, each one capable of affecting all others, that doesn’t mean everything fits perfectly and understandably. The Light works on a level that mere humans could not hope to fathom. Truth comes in many forms...from all directions. It was decided that the new eido would be determined in a more formal way. While other eidos were replaced by some trick of circumstance, this was not so of Andrea. Ileana Ulaire was chosen from a long list of candidates whose traits best matched her predecessor’s personality and achievements. These candidates have been closely monitored for much of their lives, and are cycled out of the system upon reaching a certain age to make room for more. They are essentially a backup plan in case no other possibility appears organically. This has been going on for centuries since we could not know when the taikon would come to pass. Giacomo’s successor was decided this same way. After a time of paring the candidates down to a shorter list, the Highlightseers eventually found that a little girl named Yladene Carey would fit the role perfectly. Though extremely young, she shows the greatest amount of potential. The Highlightseers did not so much choose her as she was chosen by the Light, which does not see age.