Norisian Covenant

## Overview

The Norisian Covenant is a theocratic hegemony that functions as a religious, political, and military group. It began as a religious affiliation among the jalek race on their homeworld Murtos, but during First Contact more than 70 years ago it started to spread and became more of a multi-racial cult. It then grew into a significant hostile faction in the known systems dedicated to reclaiming Ardaithian artifacts under the belief that the artifacts would help them achieve god-like prowess in the universe. By achieving this they would be cleansed of all sin and become almost holy beings, and take their place as the rightful owners of the artifacts and rulers of the galaxy.

## Current Leadership

### The Oracles

The Oracles are believed to be the voices of the god they worship, Vesmir, and together form a council. When a member of the leadership becomes an Oracle, they choose an aspect of their life to adopt as their name. This new name determines how they will live the rest of their life in service to the Norisian Covenant and their god. It is unknown how many Oracles have been named or died in service, but according to intercepted messages it appears only about three or four are in leadership at a time.

* Oracle of Destiny
* Oracle of Charity
* Oracle of Remorse

### Destiny's Hand

The role of Destiny's Hand is the highest honor that can be bestowed on a member of the Norisian Covenant. It signifies that whoever has the title is a role model for all of Norisian society, and that their devotion to their god is pure and true. It also carries a significant weight as a military role, since Destiny's Hand is usually the de facto leader of the Norisian military force. Destiny's Hand is quite an involved role, since most usually lead entire military campaigns in person. This also means that most who wear this title die shortly afterwards.

The most widely known Hand is Belinda Copperfield, who is also only the second known non-Jalek to hold this title, the first being Oshana Shiev. As Destiny's Hand, Belinda was responsible for the Tethys Occupation and for crafting many of the weapons of mass destruction used by the Norisians today.

#### Known Past Title Holders

* Belinda Copperfield
* Oshana Shiev
* Elgyu Jeger
* Mlato Cranick
* Patri Fenalia

### The Inquisition

Inquisitors are the Oracles' elite police force that help control the population and provide specialized military capabilities. Contrary to the mixed population of Norisian society, the Inquisition is entirely made up of Jalek. No other race has ever been included, and it's believed that this enforces the jalek as the supreme race in the Norisian Covenant.

Inquisitors are also tasked with guarding the Oracles. This honor was bestowed on the jalek when the first Oracles were named during the formation of the Norisian Covenant. Only the most elite of the Inquisition are asked to guard their holy leaders, making any attempt to depose or assassinate them near impossible.

### Seekers

Those that prove themselves in battle and devotion may also be promoted to the role of a Seeker. The Seekers are tasked with finding and recruiting beings who can access the threads of magic, and consequentially Ardaithian artifacts, by any means necessary. They usually are in charge of the radicalization process as well, with many undergoing an illusory simulation designed by a former-Destiny's Hand, Oshana Shiev.

#### Known Seekers

* Raygo Oristin
* Voric Kamelo

## Operations

The Norisian Covenant usually operates on the small scale, tending to choose subtle influence over otherworldly affairs than outright military challenges. They believe that by radicalizing someone on another planet, they don't have to expend their own soldiers and people to meet their needs. This leads to many accused terrorist getting cited as being involved or radicalized with the Norisian Covenant.

The Tethys Occupation and the recent Dirrum Civil War on Erathis are more aggressive approaches to reclaiming Ardaithian artifacts. This outright aggression seems to be more frequent, with more and more raids being committed on the other worlds and recent attempts at taking control of the orbital stations around Vintus.