Silverbell
It was the sound of that bell - the silver, small bell that kept us safe. Only a few tribes make them. Only a few tribes get them. They protect us in the forests out here. Just the ones with a silver bell though. If you don’t have a silver bell, it’s fair game.
The Silverbells are special caste or profession (depending on who you ask) who are granted criminal immunity in the realms of Koidios, the Tree God, in the region of The Ainslie. (See: Tegid's Report: Ainslie)
This means that if they are hunted or killed by rival clans or vagrants, it is considered a particularly heinous and illegal act. The penalty for attacking a Silverbell is immediate death, and if the victim was killed or eaten, a triple death. The triple death amounts to being bludgeoned, decapitated, and drowned at once, before divination on your corpse is performed to determine further punishment on the perpetrator's family or clan.
Are peoples other than Silverbells allowed in the forests? Yes, and many who venture through the forests do not carry the silver bell that keeps them from danger or justice. The Gvaneti and Latrodecti both have a large demographic of ambush hunters and frequently traverse the forest, however they are trained in combat and wilderness survival. Silverbells may be trained, and many are, in wilderness terrain; but not necessarily. Some silver bells are bought with favours or provisions.
All nymphs and young attercops hope they will get a silver bell. The idea of being able to wander the deep and mysterious realms of Koidios without fear is a marvellous boon to families in terms of their ability to gather resources or treasures to sell. It can grant independance to underclasses who work for those with silver bells, eventually earning their own one day so they can retire peacefully.
Silverbells are most often associated with the priestesses of the Godsibbs, such as Furfura Bedeguara, Rauma Latrodecta, and Yan Kube Maur. These women are often magicians or novice hunters who have Second Sight and can thus communicate with the Godsibbs, sometimes taking chastity pacts and marrying them to secure that bond. Even prospective brides are given silver bells, so this is a position also sought out by women who have the power of Second Sight to secure better accommodations for their kin or families.
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