Order of the Vermilion Orchid
The Order of the Vermilion Orchid is a semi-militaristic female-only sect of the Andorian Church that venerates Saint Invyre Half-Elven, the wife of Kairoz the Andorian, and saint Enora. It is considered by many to be the feminine counterpart to Andorian Inquisition.
Structure
The order has a variety of sub-orders, some are tasked with more humanitarian goals; even so, all sub orders are comprised of capable combatants. These include:
The Order of the Immortal Sacrifice which venerates Saint Enora, and mostly deals with operating orphanages in lands were the Andorian Church is welcome.
The Order of the Graceful Mother, which is comprised of healers and is officially tasked with managing and operating the public health system throughout the Kadian Dominion. Some members of this order are paladins that act as knight-hospitallers.
The Order of the Solemn Silence, a monastic order whose members take an additional vow of solitude. Sisters of solemn silence live in remote abbeys and work to develop the surrounding land; they are rarely sent for executions, though they might be considered when publicity would be counterproductive.
The Order of the Unmoving Shield, comprised of paladins of Nymm that devote themselves to the eradication of evil and corruption. Paladins of the unmoving shield are fierce warriors that are known for their unwillingess to compormise, extending their dedication to improvement unto their sisters and retinue. This interpretation of their duties are a desired trait in a military commander, and equesa of the unmoving shield were even inducted as knights in the Aderian Royal Army and as cataphracts in the Osviri Thunders during preperation for the Kadian Invasion of Rakion.
Culture
Amongst themselves, sisters communicate via a secret language that utilizes a tetrasexagesimal system; this language can be expressed via hand gestures, or more commonly in written form over a fabric, differing in both color combinations and weaving methods.
Locking
The practice of locking is a series of rituals in which a soul is either prevented from leaving the body or permanently denied from returning to it. In assassinations this involves sewing shut the target's eyes, while in healing this may grant a patient more time to recover.Public Agenda
The order's official purpose is "...to protect the faithful from the godless and the wicked... to blind those who blinded..." (Hereticum Percute, Exradico Impius, Chapter 3, "On the duty of the capable"). In practice, the sisters are highly trained assassins; in stark contrast to other assassins, their assassinations are never covert and preferably done in public.
When carrying out such tasks, which they call executions, a group of 4-5 sisters will intercept the target and engage it and its guards in open combat; once the target is dead, its eyes are gouged out and eyelids sewn shut by the sister who dealt the killing blow, preventing the target's resurrection. Once done, the sisters disperse in order to prevent collateral damage.
History
The order has its roots in a group dedicated to healing the inevitable casualties and injured stemming from the war of the cleric and was founded by Invyre herself. However, with the escalation of the Taldirian War, the order began radicalizing, and looked up to the inquisition as a model of true faith.
In 800 AB, Grandeur Andoriani officially legitimized the Order; this was done both in order to separate the inquisition's public image from executions and to unburden inquisitors of the daunting duty.
Tenets of Faith
Unsurprisingly, members of the order are all religious zealots in every aspect of their lives; Sisters of the Orchid also take a vow of celibacy and a vow of anonymity as they see themselves spiritually married to Kairoz.
There are only three activities deemed worthy of a sister's time:
There are only three activities deemed worthy of a sister's time:
Improve
is any activity that furthers a sister's ability to perform the other two; trivial examples include sleeping and eating, but it could also mean a sister isolating herself so she could focus on prayer or even taking a leave of absence for a few days. A callback to Invyre's profession, every "free time" a sister has is to be dedicated to weaving.Execute
is any activity that furthers the goals of the Andorian church, almost exclusively referring to literal executions. However, the order also believes in charity work, and the vast majority of hospitals in rural areas of the dominion were established and are maintained by sisters; additionally, their monasteries function as orphanages for girls, most of whom join the order's ranks.Worship
is any activity that aggrandizes The Four, specifically Nymm. This includes prayer and honing a sister's skill to perfection; the latter might seem to fall under "improve", but it refers to reaching a level of expertise that is far above sufficient.Granted Divine Powers
Sisters of the Orchid are all physically capable fighters that dedicate their whole for a greater, divine, cause. They are crusaders of Nymm, seeing themselves as nothing more than a vessel for her fury; enemies of the church it know that facing an unarmed sister is just as bad, if not worse, than facing an armed one.
Sorores, Sutura
(Sisters, Sutures)
Type
Religious, Holy Order
Demonym
Sister of the (Vermilion) Orchid
Deities
Divines
Notable Members
Comments