Talon's Research Ch. 3: A Mystical Order for the Realm of Castles
As stated previously, one of the main reasons for my research into magic and magical theory was the hope that magic could one day be brought back to the Realm of Castles and accepted by the people there so that the Realm would have a greater means to protect itself from mystical threats and to aid the children of the Unicorn in their ongoing struggles against the Lion and his minions. This is why I worked so closely and in full disclosure with the monks of the Blessed Order of the Horn and Sir Lawrence, a master Noble Paladin. Though this meant that my research was perhaps slowed slightly due to the oversight and ensuring that I did not devolve into heresy, I believe that ultimately the outcome and gains made in directions not simply academic were well worth the added effort and attention. For if my ultimate goal of the Realm once again attaining magic is to be realized, then it cannot be condemned and persecuted by the very people it is meant to help. If the Order of the Blessed Horn or the Noble Paladins were to decry any magic school I attempted to introduce to the Realm as heresy, much of this work would be for naught and I would be leaving an uphill battle for any who might follow in my footsteps. Especially as my research began to truly bear fruit and the gravity of what was being uncovered struck me, I realized all the more the importance of bringing the Sacraments of the Unicorn back to her people. It is my belief that the lack of the Sacraments may be part of the reason why no true queen’s holds have been built within the Realm, why no dragons have been slain, or great miracles have been seen since the great war. The Sacraments of the Unicorn were one of the greatest gifts the Unicorn bestowed upon her children, and it pains me to know that they have been perverted and corrupted, partly because of the various failings of humanity. The Order of the Horn is ultimately right: our sinfulness has brought this lesser age upon us and it is only by repenting of such sinfulness and the accomplishments of truly great deeds of virtue, heroism, altruism, and faith in the Unicorn that we will be able to find that new great and glorious age which the Unicorn wishes us to have.
However, that means that we cannot be afraid to take risks in order to do what is right. The Sacraments of the Unicorn must be practiced within the Realm by her children, even if it means that the temptation to utilize the Sacraments of the Lion will always be present. The Sacraments are perhaps the ultimate test of faith: an ongoing ordeal against ever-present temptation and the denial of the Lion’s empty promises of quick power and dominion over others. The truly pious and faithful will never succumb to these temptations, and so in that we should not fear what ultimately comes from the Unicorn.
I have no doubt that there were those who succumbed to this temptation during the great war, perhaps believing all the while that what they did was not truly against the Unicorn or of the Lion but instead was simply giving them that small bit of power they needed in order to attain what they thought were righteous goals. Others may have dabbled in the infernal practices of the Lion in reaction to others utilizing it against them, perhaps saying that one must ‘fight fire with fire’ and that they only turned to these dark heresies out of desperation and defense. Still others, I have no doubt, saw what the Sacraments of the Lion could do for their ambitions and, whether knowingly giving themselves to the Lion or not, sold their soul for the power he offered. Make no mistake, any transgression into the Sacraments of the Lion is heresy, regardless of reason or purpose. The spells and rituals that of the Lion flow from him, and thus no good can come from it. Any use of the Sacraments of the Lion draws upon him, empowers him, and allows him to have that much more of a foothold upon the Realm and its people. However, there will always be people who will not heed this, either because they are ignorant of it, do not fully understand it, dismiss it as false, ignore it due to practicality, or rebel against it for they have embraced the evil of the Lion and other such entities of malevolence.
This is the nature of people: we are imperfect. The great war showed us that all too well. However, that does not mean we cannot learn from our mistakes and strive towards a more perfect world.
To attempt to go back to the way things were before the great war is folly. The Order of the Horn, the Noble Paladins, the queens, the empress, and the people would never accept free practice of the Sacraments without some form of protection against heresy and a repeat of what occurred between Hearth, Cricket, and Orchard. If ever the Realm of Castles is to accept the practice of magic again, there will need to be some form of order and regulation placed upon it to ensure that the lessons of the past are not forgotten and repeated. It saddens me to write this, for I wish that we could be strong enough in our faith as a people not to have to resort to something like this, and perhaps someday we will be. Until such time that the Lion is wholly defeated and his lies and false promises never again tempt the faithful, there will need to be some form or check and balance placed upon those who would reclaim the birthright given by the Unicorn to her children.
It is for this reason that I have devised and proposed the formation of a mystical order for the Realm of Castles. The sole purpose of this order would surround the teaching and use of the Sacraments of the Unicorn. This would include the ability to initiate others into the Sacraments (and thus the order), foster and support those who are part of the order and can call upon the Unicorn through spell and ritual, develop and rediscover the various mysteries of the Sacraments of the Unicorn including its history, possible greater workings, and how to potentially purify the remaining spells and rituals so that they are no longer of the Lion, and to safeguard its members and the Realm as a whole from heresy.
This order would not be a political faction beholden to any outside group or power save the Unicorn herself. It would need to be politically and practically independent of the Order of the Horn, the various queens and queen-holds, and even the Empress herself. Likewise this mystical order should not have control over the Order of the Horn, any queen, and certainly not the Empress. The Sacraments and its sanctity should not be a chip to be played in political games and machinations, nor a power to be wielded for personal gain. I fully realize that this order WILL have power and influence within the Realm, but its motivations and actions should always be dictated by the will of the Unicorn, what is best for the Realm of Castles and, when these two conditions have been met, what is best for its members.
Previous to writing all of this, I had already spoken to my Lady, Madeline, and laid out the outline of what I wished this mystical order to be. Last night she gave me her permission to begin forming this mystical order as I had told her what it would be. Unfortunately, because of what I will be doing tomorrow, I will not be able to see this through myself. I am instead leaving the formation of this mystical order in the hands of Princess Annalyn and any others whom she, in her wisdom, trusts to make this a reality. I leave her and others who will take up this endeavor this chapter of my memoirs to aid in its formation. I do not expect the order to be exactly what I envisioned, as it will be up to those who live in and with it to shape it to what it needs to be. I simply hope this might be of assistance in a task which will be quite daunting, to say the least.
The basic principle of this mystical order is this: only those who join this order will be taught the Sacraments of the Unicorn. Upon entering the order, the initiate would be required to swear a number of oaths, including (but not limited to) the following:
An oath to never “learn”/utilize any spell, ritual, or greater working which calls upon or is of the Lion.
An oath to never teach the Sacraments to anyone who is not already a member of this order.
An oath of understanding that only those of the inner council of this order can initiate members into this order.
An oath stating that, if they willfully break any of their oaths to this mystical order, they are declaring an honor duel against the Unicorn, this mystical order, the Noble Paladins, the Empress and those queens under her, and the entirety of the Realm of Castles and its allies.
Essentially, any member of this order is placing themselves under the Sword of Damocles. This is intentional, especially in the founding of the order, as only those truly dedicated to the order, its ideals and what it represents should become members of this order. It should NOT be an organization entered because of the potential for personal power it will provide, the prestige it might offer, or any other temporal or selfish reason.
That being said, it is my intention that membership into this mystical order shall be open to any who are willing to put themselves under such scrutiny. Noble or peasant, woman or man, monk or lay-person; the Sacraments of the Unicorn are a gift to her children and none should be barred from it so long as they are pure of heart and intention. This means that knights, queens, and even the Empress may become a part of this order without having to give up their title and duties. After all, the first Empress (and quite possibly the first Woman) used these sacraments to bring greatness to the Realm and peace to the people.
The only ones who will be barred from joining this order will be the Noble Paladins. This is not because they are lacking in faith and fortitude of conviction, far from it. The Noble Paladins as an order is one of the greatest shining examples of purity and faith in the Unicorn which the Realm has. It is for this reason that I would not have the Sacraments burden them further with it’s ever-present temptation. They must remain pure and righteous in their mission and devotion. However, they will still have a very important part to play in this mystical order.
When I had discovered the full extent of what the Sacraments currently are, Sir Lawrence told me that he did not believe me to have crossed over into heresy: that if he had, he would have smote me down. Later I thanked him, both for not smiting me, but also for his willingness to have done so if I had indeed crossed that line. It was this exchange which brought me to the idea that this mystical order should not (and in fact could not) self-police itself entirely. Though the mystical order will indeed attempt to keep its members from devolving into heresy and, when necessary, dispense justice to those who cross that line, it will primarily be the Noble Paladins who will be the ones who watch and mete out judgement on those of this order. It is also for this reason that the Noble Paladins will be barred from joining this mystical order, to ensure that there is no conflict of interest if and when they must perform their duty to the Unicorn. The strictures and standards which the Noble Paladins hold themselves to will also ensure that their judgments are just, fair, and in keeping with the Unicorn and her wishes. Finally, I can think of no better combatants against rogue magicians than a Noble Paladin. The hierarchy of the mystical order and the Noble Paladins should work together in tandem towards the protection of the sacraments against heresy, and neither one should exclude the other from this all-important task unless circumstances and situations require such.
The hierarchy of this mystical order should be, as previously stated, an inner council of the wisest and most prestigious members of the order. The sanctity and direction of the Sacraments is, in my belief, too important to place upon the shoulders of one singular person. Instead the mystical order should be lead by a deliberative council, its members chosen based upon merit and purity of faith. I think it would be a disservice to the order if it were made up entirely of queens or princesses, as I believe monks, knights, and even peasants should have a voice and role in the direction of this order so long as they have the knowledge, the wisdom, and the faith to deserve it. While acting in the capacity of an inner council member, the primary concern in decisions made should be the Unicorn’s will as it pertains to her Sacraments and this order. Outside politics should be put aside and not considered over the greater good and the needs of this order. A queen is a queen when she proclaims edicts from her throne, but she is a member of the order when she sits upon the inner council, as are all the others. At the moment I believe seven would be an appropriate number of inner council members.
The Inner Council will also be responsible for vetting and initiating new members into the mystical order. Only they will have the authority to do so, as entrusting someone with the Sacraments of the Unicorn should not be done lightly nor without ensuring that the candidate is worthy of such and fully understanding of the oaths they are about to swear. I can foresee the potential of a master/apprentice relationship growing within the order as it gains in numbers, playing to the concept of fostering other members. It is also important that any initiate into the order personally meet at least one of the inner council members, as this will help to foster a line of communication upwards on subjects concerning the leadership of the order.
I am unsure as to what this mystical order’s exact roll will be concerning the magics of other worlds. I certainly see the potential of members of the order being initiated into other schools of magic, and even the potential of those from other worlds becoming members of this order, provided they pass the vetting process (which should be vigorous) and are true in their oaths. I do not believe those from other worlds should become members of the inner council, as they do not have as vested an interest in the affairs of the Realm of Castles as the children of the Unicorn. If the mystical order wishes to include the research and study of other magical schools and a universal theory of magic, I would not be opposed to this. However, I would suggest that the mystical order be one of the paramount advocates and enforcers of ensuring that no magic from other worlds be cast within the Realm of Castles, as there is very strong evidence that doing such undermines and unravels the metaphysics of a world. The use of such magics is acceptable within the Forest, but it could have devastating effects on the Realm of Castles. The question of whether spells from other schools which create effects considered heretical should be tolerated within this mystical order is something I leave to those who may actually found this order.
Concerning the start up of this order, this will be an arduous task. Obviously the Sacraments are in no condition currently to initiate into. It is not even possible, as of my writing this, to even call upon the Unicorn in spell casting. Hopefully this will change soon. In the meantime, this does not mean that the groundwork for this order cannot begin to be laid. Those who initiate into this order now will be the ones who will lead the way into researching how to rescue the Sacraments from its current form. They must fully understand and accept what it is that they are attempting to accomplish and what will be required if ever these magics are to gain acceptance within the Realm once more. This is why it is so important that, when the Sacraments are restored, this order or one that serves the same purpose is in place and ready to perform its function.
So concludes my memoir on this project. I am saddened that I will not be able to be a part of it, but I have faith that those who follow in my wake will see the Unicorn’s will be done, whether it be this or something else entirely. Remember, though, that people are fallible and failings will occur. However, do not lose trust and faith in people, for it is only in trust and faith that we have hope for the future. Through faith in the Unicorn, anything is possible.