The Ossirian Conclave

The Ossirian Conclave

“Magic rules everything — but here, law rules magic.”

The Conclave is both a government and a faculty council — six Lords and Ladies presided over by King Cael Ossir. They meet every seven cycles in the Throne Vault, deep beneath the Heart of the Deep, to debate policy, approve dueling outcomes, manage conduits, and quietly decide which students live long enough to graduate.

Their meetings are calm on the surface, tense underneath — part academic debate, part military tribunal, part dinner with knives.

⚙️ Council Rituals

1. The Calling of Seats

Before each session, each Lord places their conduit on the Table of Sigils, a massive obsidian disc etched with mana lines that connect to the Wellspring. When all six conduits are present, the table lights — symbolizing the unity of the Houses.

If any Lord’s conduit fails to respond, that House loses its vote until the issue is resolved. This happens more often than anyone admits.

Arveil once slammed his conduit down so hard it cracked the table. Ferrix had it reforged overnight without a word.

2. The Rule of Debate

Each Lord may speak once uninterrupted per topic. The King only speaks at the end — a tradition meant to prevent bias but often used to let everyone else hang themselves first.

If the Lords reach a stalemate, the King invokes Balance — a binding arbitration in which he seals the chamber, listens to all six, and delivers a single ruling that cannot be appealed. It’s rarely used, but when it is, someone usually resigns… or disappears.

Nyxion calls it “the kindest form of assassination.”

3. The Dueling Clause

Any matter of honor, law, or succession can be settled through sanctioned combat — the Arcane Duel of Proof.
It’s not always lethal, but it’s never safe.

Dueling law requires:

  • Two witnesses (one neutral)

  • Sealed ground (a warded arena)

  • The Conclave’s approval

Victory confers legitimacy; defeat strips one of title or voice for a lunar cycle. Fatal duels are rare but not forbidden. The Lords call it “discipline by demonstration.”

“If your argument can’t survive the fire, maybe you shouldn’t have made it.” — Lord Arveil

4. The Seal of Conduits

The Conclave alone can issue or revoke Conduit Rights — the legal authority to bond with or wield a magical artifact.
Every student, researcher, and Fraternity mage owes their conduit lineage to these decisions.

The process is meticulous and political:

  • Terranox inspects lineage purity.

  • Ferrix verifies craftsmanship and arcane integrity.

  • Verdalis and Aqualis debate ethical concerns.

  • Nocthyr archives the bond.

  • The King signs the seal.

A revoked conduit bond is a fate worse than death — it severs a mage’s link to magic itself.

“It’s how we erase without killing.” — Lady Merion Ferrix

⚔️ Laws of Duel and Discipline

Ossirian law holds that all conflicts, magical or political, must be expressed through measured trial rather than chaos. Students and Lords alike fall under this principle.

1. Duels of Proof

To prove honor or truth — formal, witnessed, bound by mana lines.

  • Winner gains legitimacy.

  • Loser forfeits argument or position.

2. Duels of Inheritance

To determine who inherits a conduit, title, or teaching post.
Sometimes fought between blood relatives; often between protégés and mentors.

The Deep’s history is full of “accidental” duels that no one seems to remember scheduling.

3. Duels of Silence

Unregistered, illegal, and personal — fought without witnesses.
Punishable by conduit revocation or exile.
Still, most Lords fought one at least once in their youth.

Cael once fought his predecessor in a Duel of Silence and walked out with the Signet. No one ever found the body.

⚖️ Council Dispute Procedures

The Conclave handles three types of internal disputes:

  • Academic (Theory vs. Policy)

  • Territorial (Wellspring control, conduit mines, district boundaries)

  • Political (House rivalries, accusations, treason)

Process:

  1. Petition — Written claim submitted to the Throne Vault.

  2. Hearing — Each Lord presents evidence or argument.

  3. Arbitration — The King renders a final ruling.

When tempers flare, Lady Thalassa often steps in as mediator. When that fails, Varkha locks the doors until someone admits fault. Sylen once grew vines across the exits “until everyone cooled down.” It took three hours.

🧠 Council Culture

Despite their power, the Lords and Ladies live under constant tension. They teach, govern, and duel in the same corridors. Friendships are political, rivalries generational.
They dine together weekly — a tradition the King enforces to prevent open war. The table is always round; the seating, random.

The unspoken rule of the Deep: you can hate anyone, but you must never hate out loud.

Cael’s quiet authority keeps them aligned, but even he knows it’s not unity that holds the Deep together — it’s necessity. They need each other to keep the world above from remembering what they still guard below.

“We are not gods. We’re janitors of a dying miracle.” — King Cael Ossir