Ladies of the Pane

The original Ladies of the Pane were oracles whose blood could transform glass into predictive windows. Early Meranese generals and emperors consulted the Ladies to have their fortunes told, and these glimpses into the future helped secure the empire - even when the predictions were less than positive. Though the Ladies initially stayed cloistered on the islands to maintain the sanctity of their art, even as their glass-blowing counterparts left for Novaroma, they were eventually lured out with promises of an equal stake in the empire they helped to build.
But as the empire turned from conquest to everyday rule, stained glass windows went from weapons of war to fads for the rich and famous. Throughout the centuries the Ladies continued to cast for anyone who could pay the price, with only one caveat - once the prediction came to pass, the window returned to the care of the Ladies of the Pane.
When stained glass was outlawed in 2008, all practicing Ladies retreated to Insulam Merano, leaving Novices in charge of maintaining the temples for public exhibition.

Structure

• Matron

• Lady

• Lady-in-Waiting (Novice)

Public Agenda

The creation and preservation of stained glass windows (aka prophecy windows.)

History

While it's not known who first discovered that mixing her blood with molten glass would result in a prediction of the future, the art as a means of channeling divinity first came to light around the year 400. Servants to the goddess of the hearth, Vastia, used broken glass to spill their blood over a fire - the glass changed shape, and showed fragments of an image. These images were taken as messages from Vastia, and cemented her followers' positions as oracles.
After experimenting for a century or two, the Ladies discovered they could influence the outcome of a piece of glass if they added their blood to the sand mixture before it was fired, resulting in the detailed stained glass windows that would eventually be their downfall. They continued to refine the process, with sand from the beach of Insulam Merano showing the best results. World leaders and army generals sought them out for the privilege, but as the world shifted to a new status quo, the windows shifted as well - from a broader geo-political scope to personal (and frequently lethal) forecasts.
In 2008, as public opinion turned away from these 'death windows' in the wake of the Allway Mine Collapse, Senator Nirav Montoya took advantage of the situation to press his personal agenda and passed a law banning the creation of new stained glass. Most vitrices retreated to Insulam Merano, leaving the temples in the hands of non-practicing Novices.

Disbandment

Stained glass was outlawed by the Meranese Senate in 2008. Any woman caught practicing or suspected of practicing the art was exiled to Insulam Merano.

DISBANDED/DISSOLVED

Vitrum est in Sanguinem

400 - 2008

Type

Religious, Coven

Alternative Names

• Pane Janes

• Vitrices

• Glass Witches

Location

Insulam Merano

Controlled Territories

• Empty Sea
• Temple of the Ladies of the Pane

Notable Members

• Evanore Drach
• Silca Caius Montoya