To conceal their existence from the Forsaken, the Bale Hounds must mask their spirit brands to the Maeljin Incarna. Through the Rite of the Shroud, the Asah Gadar bond with Soulless Wolf, the so-called forgotten Firstborn, and establish a connection to the Maeljin through Viruhk-Ur. In this role, Soulless Wolf is nothing more than an intermediary that allows the Bale Hounds to possess Maeljin or Maeltinet totems without being revealed as traitors to Luna and Urfarah. The Rite of the Shroud is always taught to a Bale Hound on the night she joins the cult, and attended by the Eyes of the Maeljin after a formal Rite of Initiation. Soulless Wolf itself, any of the Maeltinet and most of the Maeljin’s trusted spirit servitors can teach this ritual to the Bale Hounds.
Performing the Rite
For more structured presentations of the Bale Hounds, this ritual follows the Rite of Initiation (such as a Blooding). Rite of the Shroud must be performed in a Wound, after attracting the attention of Soulless Wolf through deeds or by summoning. The rite can never be performed without the Eyes of the Maeltinet present.
Soulless Wolf describes, step by step, what the werewolf must do after he has passed his trial to gain entry to the cult. First, the Hound-to-be must chant the names of eight people close to him, and swear in First Tongue that he will kill them all before his own death. This is a solemn vow, and though not mystically binding, it serves as a powerful oath highlighting just how far the Bale Hound is falling into personal corruption. He is then instructed to swear the following three promises:
• “I swear that with my claws I will tear Mother Moon from the sky.”
• “I swear that with my deeds I shall destroy all that the People have worked for.”
• “I swear that all the blood I shed shall be to see the Maeljin rise.”
After speaking each sentence, the werewolf is instructed to reach into Soulless Wolf’s mouth and break a fang free from the spirit’s powerful jaws. After the third promise, when the werewolf holds three of Soulless Wolf’s fangs, the Uratha is instructed to swallow them and concentrate on the feel of the spiritual matter dissipating throughout his body.
In the silence that follows, as the werewolf meditates on the sickening sensation of having swallowed pure Corpus from what seems to be the most powerful servant of the Maeljin, Soulless Wolf circles the Uratha eight times, growling the names of each of the Maeljin Incarnae as the spirit completes a circle. Then Viruhk-Ur waits for the werewolf to open his eyes, and demands that the Uratha speak the name of the Maeljin he desires to serve, or die here so that he may never speak of the secrets he has learned.
If the werewolf attempts to back out of this part of the ritual, he is destroyed swiftly and mercilessly. If he speaks the name of his chosen Maeljin, he feels the ice-cold rush of connection in his blood, as the Maeljin totem reaches for his heart. Here is the point at which the character rolls for the rite’s success.
