Karath kol

Spell Name: the Karathic Curse

Incantation: Karath 'akal kol huw' dam

Pronunciation:

Spell Branch: Charms

Magical Discipline(s): Curses

Appearance:

Description: The Karathic ("to cut" or "to make a covenant") Ritual was developed in ancient times as a method of ritual sacrifice. Blood from a sacrificed animal was considered a purifying agent in many ancient cultures, but sacrifice itself could be messy. Mages were left with the problem of how to extract as much blood as possible from a sacrificial victim so that they could use it in later spells and ceremonies. When completed to full, this ritual purifies an animal for sacrifice and then drains all of its blood so that it can be collected in a basin and put to later use. The animal's throat can then be slit by the mage performing the ritual without losing any of the precious blood.

The Karathic Ritual itself is not considered dark magic, but it has been put to dark uses in the past. After its development in Israel, knowledge of it spread around the ancient Mediterranean, and some groups in Carthage, Kush, and Greece did use it to ease the practice of human sacrifice. As recently as the 1980s, a notorious illegal cult in Turkey used it as an exsanguination spell to murder human victims, draining them of blood and then leaving them for the wizarding authorities to find, who first mistook them for the victims of vampires.

Though the Karathic Ritual is not commonly taught at Beit Gaddol, mention of it often comes up in classes that study the interrelationships between magic and religion. Upper-level students might practice performing it on a small scale (birds and the like).

Necessary Spell Components:

- Olive oil and perfumes

- Ribbon

- Barley

- Purified water

- Three hairs plucked from the victim's forehead

- Sacrificial knife (commonly a machaira)

- Ritual container

The Ritual:

In the archesthai (first part of preparation for the ritual), the ritual performer prepares himself for the sacrifice by smearing his body with olive oil and ritual perfumes. He recites a prayer as he adds the ribbon (to represent the glory of the gods) and the barley (to represent the community's participation in the sacrifice) to the ritual container. The barley and ribbon are set on fire, and then the three hairs are added as well. The holy water is poured over the entire mix to put out the fire and purify the energy for the sacrifice.

Once the fire is out, the machaira is stabbed into the mixture, and the katarchesthai spell is chanted. This enthuses the machaira with the power of the ritual, which can be released with a spoken spell at a later date.

The archesthai prayer varies depending on the culture of the mage. Isaiah 57 is often used amongst graduates of Beit Gaddol.

The Spell:

To activate the power of the ritual, the mage takes a ritual container (where the blood will end up) in his right hand and the machaira in his left. He points the machaira at the victim of the ritual and chants "Karath 'akal kol huw' dam." The victim is drained of blood, which is instantly collected inside the container. (Since the containers are traditionally too small to hold all of the blood, it will fill to its brim and then continue to refill until the blood has been completely used.) If there is no ritual container to hold the liquid, the blood will simply explode into the air and the victim will be left exsanguinated.

The spell "karath kol," while not possessing the full power of the ritual, can accomplish a similar (though less refined) result. Deep gouges will appear all over the body, causing the victim to bleed out at an alarming rate. Normal magical healing practices to staunch the flow of blood often have no effect.

For ritual purposes, "karath kol" is useless. Part of the appeal of the Karathic Ritual is that it does not mar the body of the victim, allowing the mage to extract the blood without losing a drop. The secondary "karath kol" spell is so unrefined that much blood is lost in the attempted collection. However, it is sometimes used as a defense against dark creatures (such as werewolves, who are resistant to many magics), though many magical governments forbid its use against any human or human-like being.

Neither the Karathic Ritual or the "karath kol" spell are commonly known in Great Britain.

Regulations:

Skill Level: Mastery

Etymology:

References: Used by [Tiresias Katsaros], taught to [Sasha Schlagenweit], used on [Adon Eleor] in Dreogan Eleor's dream about his death

Notes: