Traitor's Fate

Rules

Performing the Ritual

Performing this ritual takes at least 2 minutes of roleplaying. This ritual targets two willing characters. Each character must be present throughout. Both targets must verbally assent to the use of the ritual.

This effect is a curse. A target may be under more than one curse at a time.

Effects

At the completion of the ritual, the target characters gain the ability to call IMPALE against each other using any melee weapon or implement, at will, for the duration.

The effect of the ritual lasts for a year (until the start of the Profound Decisions Empire event four events from now).

Description

This powerful binding spell creates a connection between two targets, allowing one of them to seek revenge against the other if they are betrayed. It usually involves an oath or promise, and the understanding that the power of the ritual will be invoked only if one breaks the oath. Unfortunately, due to the nature of Winter magic, the effect is not quite that simple. At its core, it creates a sense of obligation by empowering both targets to kill the other.

Sometimes a ritualist or coven will use this ritual to arrange someone who can act as an arbiter for an agreement. The ritual is performed twice, and each time it targets a neutral third party and one of the people whose agreement is to be arbiter. This allows the third party to determine if the promise or agreement has been broken, and invoke the 'penalty clause' against the target. When used in this way there is no real limit to how many people may be signatories to the agreement.

The power of the ritual allows either target to inflict crippling, potentially fatal, blows on each other. It is entirely legal to use that effect to capture an actual traitor, or to bring them before a magistrate to face charges for any criminal action they have undertaken. Using the power of this ritual to kill someone is still treated as murder by Imperial magistrates.

A number of other variants of this ritual exist, that deliver differing levels of punishment. The Bargain of Agramant for example allows two individuals the power to inflict a crippling curse of weakness on each other while the Guttering Candle Promise rumoured to be used by certain Temeschwari criminals before that city was purged of their presence and caused a traitor to putrefy and rot in great agony while still alive. Most of these specific curses have fallen out of fashion in favour of this ritual, which simply empowers one to quickly kill or capture a traitor.

A version of this ritual that effects an entire coven also exists, called (slightly ironically) Circle of Trust.

Common Elements

The most common element of this ritual is a bargain, oath or agreement that lays out how the power is to be used. A written contract is often involved, not least because the magic only works if it is clear that both targets are entirely willing and understand what is happening. Blood is often shared or exchanged; in The League a drop of each target's blood is mixed with wine that is then used by each in turn to drink a toast; on The Brass Coast a couple of drops of blood from a cambion ritualist mixed with fruit-juice serve the same purpose. Some brutal covens, especially among the Navarr and Varushka finish the ritual by having each target strike the other, crippling a limb, as a stark reminder of what will happen if the power of the curse is invoked.

This ritual is often performed at sunset, or at night, and is usually performed in private. Some covens (and targets) like to have an Imperial Magistrate present to ensure.that everything is above board.