Cabal of Seasons

The Cabal of Seasons is an arcane society dedicated to providing arcane support for mages who seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge, over the temporal power that often accompanies it -- the Cabal is enduring even as the seasons turn and repeat. It is an extremely secretive society, and while occasionally rumours surface of an organized group of mages with immense power and knowledge, their name is too rarely spoken to go along with the rumours, so they gain various pseudonyms in the tales, which are without fail embroidered to the point of incredulity.

However, after the Second Null, no sign of the Cabal of Seasons can be found. Some of their former members may recall the organization, but the leadership, and its secret resources, are nowhere to be found.

Government

The Cabal of Seasons is led by a four-mage team. They take the names of the four seasons as their names within the Cabal, and the Cabal is divided into four segments, each under the direction of one of the Seasons. Usually, two of the Seasons are female, and two are male, but this is not always so. With the existance of four leaders, there is the possibility of deadlock in disagreements. While it is preferable to come to a full consensus, if a decision is necessary in a timely manner, the vote of the Season whose season is currently in effect in the world carries the day, to resolve a deadlock. While the four Seasons are the titualar heads of the Cabal, there is also a hierarchy of ranks that follows under them. The direct lieutenants of the Seasons take the names of the months of the year, three to a Season. These are appointed by the Seasons themselves, and take care of the day-to-day operation of the Cabal, with the Seasons themselves rarely showing their faces -- indeed, Seasons have been known to masquerade as lesser mages and spend time studying under their own lieutenants. Lesser officers of the Cabal take use-names of qualities of the Season they are segmented into. For instance, a mage in the Spring segment of the Cabal might take the use-name of Rebirth.

Membership

Estimates of membership vary, and only the Seasons and their direct lieutenants are perfectly sure how many mages belong to their segments. There are roughly thirty full-member mages per segment, generally. Most of them have mortal magical PLs, being hedge wizards and lore-seekers, with a handful of useful magical techniques that allow them to experiment and learn. The officers of the Cabal (five to eight) are low-level mages with a handful of useful combat techniques, usually similar to the techniques of their Season. The direct lieutenants of the Seasons generally have a mid-level magical strength, and a wider variety of techniques. The Seasons themselves, of course, are exceptionally powerful and knowledgeable mages. A member of the Cabal is called a Seasonal, and membership is by invitation only. Members can recognize each other by the Seasonal glyph, commonly worked into clothing in the form of broaches and pins, or into designs. The Seasonal glyph is a yin yang-style symbol, except of four parts, rather than two. Most commonly, the colours of the four segments are green, white, gold, and black, in that order.

Dues

The fees required for membership vary. Officially, there are none. All that is actually expected is that mages contribute to the knowledge of the whole. Exactly what is expected varies from mage to mage, but publishing a book on whatever they've worked on recently is commonly expected of researching mages, whether independantly, or in a group, at least every few years. Some Seasons, especially, have been renowned for their prolific publishing.

Locations

The Cabal has numerous small chapters scattered around the world. Wherever a few Seasonals are gathered together, they often build a common dwelling and join together in their research, led by whatever minor officer might guide them. The location of the head chapter is a great secret, and only well-trusted mages are permitted to know its location. Not, that is, that other mages are necessarily limited in access to its great library. The headquarters of the Cabal is actually underground. It has deceptive enchantments laid upon it to deflect locationary magic from determining its true location, and windows have masterful illusions that illustrate a false illusion, to wit, exactly what the view would be from the spot where Korine Cardo Aula rests, if Central City did not exist.

Resources and Services

The resources of the Cabal are not insignificant. As the Cabal has been around for a significant period of time, they have a large amount of wealth readily available. Additionally, the combined magical talents of the Cabal permit various sorts of nominally-illegal financial investments to produce additional monies as necessary. However, far more valued to the Cabal is the great library in the central Seasonal chapter. It contains numerous arcane reference texts, as well as spellbooks that detail the casting of specific spells, and the proper way to perform a wide variety of rituals. In accordance with the Cabal's purpose, there is no limitation on who can read what books, by rank. It merely requires a test of arcane knowledge pre-requisites, and that the mage has the appropriate judgement to not use the knowledge rashly. Of course, if the mage lacks this judgement, they'll likely be denied entrance to the library, or never be invited to join the Cabal in the first place.

The Cabal provides a few forms of support to its members. It provides research facilities and a variety of chambers adapted to casting numerous forms of spells. It also provides grant monies to research projects, and emergency funds and assistance to members who have found themselves in trouble with temporal authorities.

Associated Characters

Of Spring

• Alana Dorset, Blomst Elvlivet (Open for Play)

Of Summer

• Bronwyn Maris, Madam Summer
• Nathaniel Marron, Unforgiving Heat

Of Autumn

• Master Autumn
• Jessica Vaurian, Fleeting Wind [Under Development.]

Of Winter

• Durin Von Krystraat, Master Winter
• Selyka Marron, Frigid Splendour
• Tazmire Corwin, Enduring Storm