maskormenace | 007 | Text; Anonymous

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007 | Text; Anonymous

One month ago, the Dark Brotherhood offered to instruct any interested parties on how to remain anonymous on the Network. We are still willing and happy to assist you.

But there is also another way to obscure one's identity: Changing the name that appears with your messages. This is difficult, but possible. We can teach you this as well.

As always, we will answer other questions about us, within reason. We cannot betray the confidence of our family members, after all.

We will also provide alternative means for contacting our Family, should you wish to avoid the Network. However, if you wish to see someone dead, we must insist that you perform the Black Sacrament to summon us. We do not kill for anyone whose resolve is not proven to us.

Have a pleasant day.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I’m interested.

[Look who got the hang of anonymous messages about one post too late.]

[Everyone makes mistakes, especially the young. Eagerness to learn can certainly make up for it, and it's gratifying to see in someone hopefully at the start of a good career.]

And we will be happy to teach you.

Before we begin, do you have any questions for us?

Yes. Is your Family paid for their contracts?

[He’d read enough of the information in the linked “Black Sacrament” post to understand that this is some kind of assassin’s guild. He hadn’t, however, seen any mention of payment.]

Of course. The religious aspect of our work is important to some among us, but we must support ourselves as well. Contracts are negotiated by trained representatives among us, based on the difficulty of the request. We reserve the right to reject offers completely if a suitable agreement cannot be made.

Sounds like an assassin’s guild.

[Boba isn’t about to sign up on the spot—if anything, he prefers to remain independent. But if that isn’t possible here, it would be better to know the details in advance.]

So someone performs the ritual and one of your people shows up to decide on payment. Then what? How do you decide who gets the bounty?

[The boy certainly has a mind for the practical. That's heartening.]

By skill, availability, and with consideration to the length of time since a sibling's last contract. Many contracts are open to a further performance bonus.

[Boba also has an appreciation for the practical. It’s certainly better organized than the system at Jabba’s palace, which was based on considerations such as “whatever Jabba feels like at the time” and often involved envious rivals trying to sabotage one another’s jobs.]

How many “siblings” are in this family?

I cannot reveal that. We are sworn to never betray our Brotherhood or its secrets.

[Honestly, Boba would be much more comfortable with this without all the talk of “brotherhood.” If he had a choice, he’d prefer to keep things strictly business-like.]

Fair enough. What are the requirements for joining this family? Do you have to take religious vows or something?

Not at all. Many of us are disinterested in the faith. Killing entirely for profit is welcome, as long as our five tenets are followed.

And what are those?

Never dishonor the Night Mother, never betray the Dark Brotherhood or its secrets, never disobey or refuse to carry out an order from a Dark Brotherhood superior, never steal the possessions of a Dark Brother or Dark Sister, and never kill a Dark Brother or Dark Sister.

We have found the third to be a point of contention among the curious here. It seems onerous in bare text, but true orders are rare within our Family, and only used to preserve our security.

[And really, what family doesn't have their limits of tolerance for bad behavior?]

[Boba does admit that that third point hadn’t sat well with him either. He’s not necessarily unaccustomed to following orders—it’s definitely dangerous to disobey a direct order from Jabba, for example. But the way it’s talked about here sounds a bit too… military.]

Would turning down a contract I’m not interested in count as disobedience?

[The use of 'I' in that question is interesting.]

Only if it is vital that you specifically complete the contract.

Our only other requirements for family members are that they must have committed a murder before they join us, and they must demonstrate that they can do so again.

[Oh, Boba isn’t too worried on that count. He’s plenty confident in his own willingness to kill. There is something else, though...]

Say someone gets in. They follow your rules and do a few contracts. Are they allowed to leave the family if they want out?

No, not truly. While some of us transition to never taking our contracts for any number of reasons, our tenets will always apply to them.

[Boba has to say, whatever interest he has in this organization sharply drops with that answer. If he’s ever truly desperate, perhaps it’s an option, but he’s not interested in signing any contract for a lifetime.]

Thanks for the information. Your Family sounds very well organized.

[But maybe not a good fit for someone as independent as him.]

Getting back to your first offer: you were going to tell me how to change my network username.

[And the shift is easy to detect. Oh well. He won't push the subject.]

You are welcome. We wish you well in your work.

And we will.

[And he does.]

pl
easant
day

We thank you for your gracious response.

Do you have any questions for us?

i like your ritual
I like your art
meat art for little meat
children

You are very kind. We do ask others to make these rituals, but it is not for us. It is for our mother. She hears the words said over the meat, and sends us to speak with the one who made the art.

yes I am kind
is your mother kind?

She is.

She observes each and every murder, every sacramental prayer for more. We show our love for Her by teaching others the Sacrament, killing in Her name, and bringing new children into our Family.

h h h h h h h h h h h h h hhh h h h h h h h h h h h h h h h h h h h h h h h hh h h h h h hh h h h h h h h
mother mother
kind children
i'll watch you
too ok

We would be honored to have an appreciative audience for our work. Thank you.

what, like it's hard?

For some, it is. And anonymity is a blessing to be shared.

Fair...and true. You charging for these lessons, or what?

Absolutely not. This is a service we provide, at no cost to those who require instruction.

So no need for weird summoning rituals or selling our souls?

Huh. Not the answer I was expecting to be honest.

This seems to be a common misconception. Our rituals do not require the binding of your soul.

And no ritual is required to teach someone the more technical aspects of using the Network, of course.

Your posts sometimes give off that vibe...

But uh, good to hear you're just helping out with the technical end.

We are not necromancers, as a general rule. Assassins, certainly. But binding the souls of sapient beings is not our trade.

It's probably the whole "ritual" thing. Most people associate things like that with uh...dark arts?

Wasn't aware soul binding was a local trade though.

That would be an accurate description, to an extent. I believe our two cultures may think of the term differently.

But no, I've yet to meet any here, only those who have believed we practice it.

It's definitely something that can be defined differently. Pop culture tends to have at least five standard definitions for it at a time.

Not the best reputation to have. Anyone ask you to do it?

And each is welcome to their own interpretation, of course, but it may not always align with reality.

It is only a detriment if it doesn't align with your intent, and sadly that is the case here. But in the interest of maintaining a secure and discretionary service, we cannot confirm or deny the existence of any professional contacts, misguided or otherwise.

Wasn't asking for names or anything. Just wondering if people really took it seriously enough to ask.

I actually kind of...appreciate you respecting privacy I guess. Even with how creepy as some of your stuff can seem.

That was understood. Still, it is information that cannot be revealed.

Thank you. We understand the desire for privacy, irrespective of motive. It is an essential part of our work.

But we will answer questions for the curious, to the extent that our tenets permit. Feel free to ask, though we may be unable to answer.

I see. I guess specifics would give certain people away.

You mentioned being assassins, and giving people help with technology. I guess I am wondering just what more you do. What things can be asked of you?

Indeed.

We limit our work to assassinations as a matter of course, and respect for other specialized organizations, thievery especially. While we will permit further conditions to be negotiated on our contracts, we do not guarantee that they will be completed. Only murder is assured.

Good to know. I doubt I'll be using it but...just in case, I guess.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

007 | Text; Anonymous

text; private

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whoops forgot to mention he's still anon this whole time

permatext; permaprivate \o/

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Text network ID reads "Pale Maiden"

text; anonymous

Re: text; anonymous

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text; ID: Alibaba

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oh right tags are a thing whoops

tags? what tags? lol

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