Oath Scroll

The Oath Scroll is a parchment artifact by which two parties lay obligations on each other and seal them with magic. Put simply, it requires the making of a definite promise: the parties write all conditions and reservations into the scroll (it permits no ambiguous wording, so filling it out takes time), then seal it with their own blood. The moment both bloods soak into the parchment, it flares with red light — proof that the Oath has been successfully activated, and the pact can no longer be broken without consequence.

These scrolls are mass-produced by the Towers of Magic and fairly common, though rarely used: 'not many deals require setting down in an Oath Scroll.' Their power does not depend on who stands before you — criminal or Tower official — for the artifact cannot judge a person's status or station and binds everyone alike. This is why the Oath Scroll is more reliable than any notary: spoken promises cannot be trusted in this world, but a pact sealed in blood must be. Theodore sees and uses such a scroll for the first time when striking a deal with a black trader, a merchant of the dark market.

For all its power, the Oath Scroll is no absolute guarantee but merely a 'compelling promise' between the parties: the darkness of this world runs deeper than ordinary folk imagine, and a cunning dealer always leaves himself a loophole. Vince warns plainly that the scroll offers no insurance against deceit if the terms are written carelessly. The same compelling principle underlies similar artifacts: a mercenary's steel badge, which keeps him from tearing up a contract, works 'much like an Oath Scroll.' Later it is by an Oath that Theodore restrains a rival sword master whose actions are bound by the signed pact, though no trust passes between them.

The parties write every condition and reservation into the parchment without ambiguous wording, then seal it with their own blood. The parchment drinks the blood and flares red — the Oath is active and binds both regardless of their status. From that moment, breaking the pact brings a compelling effect.

The scroll insures against nothing clever: it is 'merely a compelling promise,' not an absolute guarantee. Carelessly written terms leave a loophole, and a seasoned dealer like the black trader knows how to exploit it.