Ninewreck Covenant

The Ninewreck Covenant

Type: Maritime code / oathbound charter
Affiliation: The Rackborn
Author: Dagra "Mother Wake" Coil
Enforced By: Rackborn Captains, Enforcers of the Wake
Penalty for Violation: Death, exile, or sacrifice to the Tempest Void

Overview

The Ninewreck Covenant is the founding charter and binding code of conduct for all pirate crews sailing under the banner of the Rackborn. Authored by Dagra “Mother Wake” Coil, it serves as both law and ideology—a blend of inherited pirate tradition and revolutionary doctrine aimed at opposing the Council of Nine .

Despite its poetic title, the Covenant is blunt in tone and brutal in consequence. It grants a measure of freedom and independence to its signatories—but wields absolute authority when its core tenets are breached.

Origin of the Name

The Covenant’s name refers to the symbolic "wrecking" of the Council of Nine’s authority over the sea. According to Mother Wake, the nine great injustices committed by the Council—including conscription, tariffs, naval blockades, and suppression of coastal freeholds—are “stones to be shattered beneath the tide.”

Structure of the Covenant

The Ninewreck Covenant is organized into nine oaths, each named for a wrecked value or warning from the Council. Most Rackborn crews display these as carved plaques or painted murals aboard their ships.

The Nine Oaths of the Covenant

1. The Oath of the Bannerless
   “No king binds the sea, and no lord names the wind.”
   → No Rackborn crew may swear fealty to a crown, city, or trade syndicate.
2. The Oath of Salt and Smoke
   “We eat what we earn, and we burn what we break.”
   → Loot is earned by action, not rank. All plunder must be shared per crew agreement.
3. The Oath of the Stormblooded
   “Those who bleed beside us are kin, not cargo.”
   → No slave-taking. All crew must serve by choice or oath.
4. The Oath of the Black Wake
   “If one sinks, all rise in vengeance.”
   → Crews must respond to betrayal or attack upon another Rackborn ship.
5. The Oath of the Drowned Word
   “We do not lie in council, nor whisper treason.”
   → Captains who break covenant pacts face the Tempest Void.
6. The Oath of Broken Chains
   “Old grudges die when the sails rise.”
   → Feuds between Rackborn crews are settled at sea or by Wake-appointed arbiter. Internal warfare is forbidden.
7. The Oath of the Hollow Map
   “We go where no law dares write.”
   → Crews must explore, chart, and expand Rackborn presence beyond Council patrol routes.
8. The Oath of the Tempest Call
   “When the Wake calls, we sail.”
   → All Rackborn ships must answer Mother Wake’s summons when the horn is blown—usually signaling war or retribution.
9. The Oath of the Last Reckoning
   “All debts return with the tide.”
   → Those who betray the Covenant are given to the Tempest Void, with no exceptions.

Enforcement

Enforcement is swift and merciless. A network of loyal captains known as the Enforcers of the Wake patrol Rackborn fleets, investigate Covenant breaches, and serve judgment when needed. Trials are rare, and appeals nonexistent. To cross the Covenant is to gamble with your ship, your name, and your life.

Cultural Impact

Among loyal Rackborn crews, the Covenant is viewed with almost religious reverence. Many recite parts of it as part of shipboard rituals, initiation ceremonies, or funerals. It’s rumored that Mother Wake herself branded the nine oaths into her own flesh after her first fleet was betrayed.

To the Council of Nine, the Covenant is nothing more than pirate propaganda—a delusion masking lawlessness in poetry. However, naval officials increasingly report sightings of Covenant-themed graffiti, especially in sympathetic ports and on mutinous vessels.