by Volatilus » Mon Oct 29, 2012 8:36 am
Volatilus sits up and folds his legs, still atop of the alter he nods to every arrival with equal parts respect divided. His eyes fall back to the pathway piercing the darkness with his eyes of flame.
One more yet remains. I'm content to wait until he arrives, but can the council afford it? Volatilus shakes his gaze from deep thought to sweep it across the three present.
In the meantime I welcome you brothers to my humble glade. I sure hope the ceremony location is acceptable on your terms. I assume it is as you all have arrived quickly without complaint. Now as I've said before, this is the easiest as well as the most difficult trial. For the first two, although important show merely if they can join the pack. The third will show if they can stay in it. Any member can run alongside Volatilus in a hunt, but it takes a very special amount of trust for Volatilus to bend his back to accept a launching foot instead of a crooked dagger.
This ritual will make us pack brothers by blood and grant us the knowing that when one of us is in danger, all of us will be in danger with that pack-mate, no matter the size of the den they had awoken. I find this ritual the perfect focal point to finalize the council's true birth, and perhaps a way of introducing new members in the future. Since you are all new to the customs of Alwilda I will explain the ritual as best as I can.
The ritual exists the same way the roots of a tree penetrate the earth. The further you go with the ritual the deeper the bond. It is not uncommon for native mortals of my world to accidentally slay one another in ritual showing their undying loyalty for one another.. by dying. I wouldn't expect half of such a foolish notion for us of course. The level of bond must be chosen by all who attend and the one who chooses the shallowest level will be where it is set for all. In large scale blood-oath this is a dangerous time, and those who choose too low are often challenged for reasoning by those who choose high and the result is often deadly. Again an observation that I couldn't imagine occurring here. Now the levels are set by the extreme of the sacrifice or bonding nature.
Some examples include:
-Shaving heads -Sharing of blood -sacrifice of a personal treasure -Sharing of home -Sharing of kin and loved ones -Sharing of weaknesses -Insignias burned into flesh -Donning of a piece of jewelry or ring. The list goes on.
I myself have witnessed blood oaths as strange as a reverse hunt where the oath takers rouse a predator and run from it's wrath, clad in only in their skin.
We are free to discuss which oath's are stronger than others and which are on the level of a council pack, but must hold our tongues on the one we have decided personally until ceremony warrants it. Once the oath is decided, it is immediately carried out by all who attend or face removal from the ceremony. The Blood Oath, done correctly carries a magic of it's own. The more serious the oath the more brotherly benefits can occur. A weak oath can get an itch in the back of your mind if a brother is in trouble, while a stronger one could tell a mirror's vision of the dangers they are facing. Along with this, the stronger the oath, the even stronger they will have to be to overpower the Oath and betray a pack mate. You might sooner fall on your own blade before planting one in a pack-mates back.
All an all that is what is needed to be known. Now Volatilus will pause for breath and listen.