[STICKY] Black Ajah Traditions

[Jenny]

This sticky serves as a repository for the traditions, customs, and restrictions of the Black Ajah. This is not meant to be a set of strictly enforced rules. Instead, it is meant to be a set of guidelines to help create cohesiveness within the Black Ajah as well as to help prevent godmoding. The information has been pulled from WoT Companion or the books themselves.

There are other ways to turn to the Shadow besides the Black Ajah. The Shadow takes on many forms. The Black Ajah is but one of the many forces that the Great Lord has sent to create confusion for the forces of the Light. If you want to walk an alternative path, you are welcome and encouraged to do so! Please talk to an administrator about your ideas. He/she will help you fit the story that you want to tell within the world of the Grey Tower.

Please discuss this thread here: LINK ----- About the Black Ajah The Black Ajah is the largest organized collection of Darkfriends at the Grey Tower. Although the men and women of the Black Ajah are selfish, power-hungry individuals, they also understand power in numbers. They watch out for one another in their own twisted ways, and their ability to gather and assemble information is extraordinary for such a large and secretive organization. The motto is perhaps, "Scratch my back and I'll scratch yours... as long as it's not more advantageous for me to stab you instead."

In the Black Ajah, powerful weaves such as Compulsion and Rending can be taught and practiced. In the Black Ajah, initiates learn the arts of deception, observation, and murder. In the Black Ajah, if you are diligent, clever, and ruthless, then the keys to power will be handed to you.

Being in the Black Ajah does not mean doing whatever you please. The structure of the Black Ajah is very hierarchical. Members are always watching each other for signs of weakness. You must be willing to endure and overcome pain. You must be willing to patiently wait until the time is right for revenge. This means having the sense to serve and obey without question. There is very little room for stupid mistakes in the Black Ajah.
----- The Dark Oaths New recruits are of two categories: Oathsworn or Unsworn. Gaidin also fall into the latter category.

If you are Oathsworn: you undergo the Oath-Breaking Ceremony and swear the Dark Oaths upon the Oath Rod.
If you are not Oathsworn: you are taken to Shayol Ghul to swear the Dark Oaths before the Great Lord.

The Oaths are as follows:
1. I shall obey all commands given by those placed above me in service to the Great Lord
2. I shall prepare for the day of the Great Lord's return
3. I shall hold close the secrets of the Black Ajah, unto the hour of my death
----- Joining the Black Ajah Learning ranks are never accepted into the Black Ajah. However, the learning ranks may accidentally learn of the Black Ajah or purposefully seek it out. After interaction with a member of the Black Ajah, they may be given the black star of a Learning Rank Black Ajah.

If any person seems likely to turn to the Shadow, then he/she will be tested without his/her knowledge. The person may be engaged in a philosophical discussion, or placed in a morally ambiguous scenario. He/she may also be tested for the ability to keep secrets, to lie, to obey orders, and to murder. Once this pre-testing is complete and the person has gained full rank as Aes Sedai/Asha'man/Warder, then he/she is eligible for the Oath-Breaking Ceremony or to be taken to Shayol Ghul.
----- The Oath-Breaking Ceremony This ceremony has been compiled from references within the WoT Companion and the books themselves. Writing the full ceremony is NOT required to become a full rank member of the Black Ajah. You can simply imply somewhere in your writing that your character has completed this ceremony and has been tested for a year and a day.

The initiate, an Asha'man or Aes Sedai, is taken from bed while sleeping. He/she is shielded, blindfolded, and knocked unconscious with a weave that induces sleep. The ceremony takes place in a small windowless room, and is witnessed by only the hooded members of the Supreme Council. Only the Supreme Council knows the identity of all members of the Black Ajah.

The initiate is stripped naked and bound by his/her hands and feet. Then he/she is awakened and forced to kneel. A knife is pressed to the initiate's throat and a mirror is brought so that the initiate may watch him/herself bleed to death if the wrong answer is given.

They are asked only one question: "Do you wish to join the Black Ajah?"

Since the initiate is currently bound by the original Three Oaths, he/she must answer honestly. If the answer is "No," then the person dies, but not before being tortured for every bit of information that they may have.

If the answer is "Yes," then the knife and mirror are removed. The Oath Rod is thrust into the initiate's hands and one of the Supreme Council of the same gender as the initiate channels a thread of Spirit. The initiate is ordered to say: "I forswear all oaths that bind me."

Undoing the Oaths is extremely painful and the initiate usually collapses.

After this, the initiate is ordered to swear the three Dark Oaths in the name of the Great Lord. Then, he/she is told: "You will be tested for a year and a day, to prove your worth. Listen carefully." Instructions are issued. The initiate's performance during this testing period is critical to their eventual ranking within the Black Ajah.

Finally, the initiate is once again knocked unconscious by the weave that induces sleep and taken back to his/her bed. He/she will not wake until the next morning.
----- To Shayol Ghul Being taken to Shayol Ghul is the exact same process, except that it occurs in the Pit of Doom. The Pit is accessed through a long tunnel and opens into a vast and deep lava-filled cavern with a small ledge above it. The top is open to the sky.

There is no mirror and knife. The initiate is simply asked if he/she wants to join the Black Ajah. The Great Lord can discern the truth of the answer. Then the initiate swears the Dark Oaths.
----- The Supreme Council The Supreme Council is formed of four people, including the Black Ajah Head. The other three may be considered analogous to the Sitters of other Ajahs.

The current Black Ajah Head is Liliandra Sedai of the Yellow Ajah. The other three members are two women and one man: "Indigo", "Blue", and "Green."

They are the ultimate authority over the entire Black Ajah. They are always hooded and dressed in thick black robes. Their voices and any other identifying characteristics are hidden by weaves of disguise.
----- Notes on Communication Only the Supreme Council knows the identity of every member. The Ajah is organized into Hearts. Each member knows two others; these three are called a Heart. Each member also knows at least one person outside of his/her Heart. Messages are passed rapidly down the chain of command.

The notes are often tucked into a place where the recipient will have no choice but to find them, such as coat pockets, belt pouches, or slipped under the door of their private quarters.

The way the paper is folded means as much as the words themselves. For example, a note folded slightly crooked is to be passed on without looking, and messengers know better than to peek. A square note is to be opened, read, and burned. And a diagonal fold meant that the instructions are to be obeyed immediately without question.

Those are just the simplest folds. There are also various seals, and envelopes, and creased corners, and colored strings tied around the papers... the list of hidden meanings stretches on and on and on.

Currently known symbols: a white string, the color of mourning, means that the name written in the note is to be murdered.

The same goes for the lighting of candles, or the location of messages, or the secret hand signals that are used between the Black Ajah and their spies. The Black has many secrets to divulge, but do not have the luxury of teachers or lessons. New members must learn on the fly.