The Perjurers

Overview

The Perjurers are an ancient conspiracy of body-hopping parasites who possess human hosts across centuries to destabilize Asgartha and prevent its outward expansion. Members serially inhabit different bodies, abandoning hosts when strategically necessary and assuming new identities. Through Irises, they appear as parasites beneath host skin: translucent venomous slugs, multicolored leeches, and invasive crustaceans.

Nature and Capabilities

Perjurers are parasitic entities who possess human hosts across centuries. Each member inhabits a series of bodies sequentially. Sylas previously inhabited a body called “Qaasin” (pre-356 AC) and currently inhabits “Sylas.” Saskia Averina, called “Eugenist,” previously inhabited Parisa, Eugénie, Rojin, and Hayley (all dead), and currently inhabits “Saskia Averina.”

Each Perjurer has preferences for host types. Sylas prefers hosts with natural permeability to The Aether, while Saskia Averina delights in selecting hosts with alluring appearances to better ensnare victims.

Perjurers embrace their parasitic nature. Saskia Averina compared their infiltration strategy to a “tick on dog.” When Sylas asked “We’re all parasites. Have you forgotten?”, Saskia replied asking whether he meant “humanity in general, or us in particular”—rhetorical acknowledgment of their nature.

Known Members

Active Members

Sylas operates as a Yzmir Battlemage within The Kadigir. He previously inhabited a body called “Qaasin” (pre-356 AC) before staging that identity’s death in 356 AC. He created the Kraken as a puppet for conspiracy operations and was tasked with destabilizing the Asgarthan regime after Amahle Kalu’s betrayal. He maintains a workshop with thaumaturgical tools, forbidden relics, and bound tomes, wearing an enamel mask concealing glowing eyes. He planned to join the Expeditionary Corps (392 AC).

Saskia Averina, called “Eugenist,” operates as a Muna Naturalist. She conducted experiments during Kraken operations and planned to join the Expeditionary Corps (392 AC). Her parasitic manifestations include a brightly colored snail that drains life from plants.

Kelsang is expected to “hole up in The Monolith as usual” during Expeditionary Corps departure, remaining in Asgartha to continue oversight operations.

A “prodigal child” of unknown identity and location was mentioned by Saskia as separate from other members. Additional Perjurers are described as “numerous enough to oversee things here in Asgartha,” though their identities remain unknown.

Former Member

Amahle Kalu betrayed The Perjurers. After her betrayal, Sylas was tasked with destabilizing the Asgarthan regime for nearly a century.

Goals and Methods

The Perjurers pursue three primary objectives. First, they work to destabilize the Asgarthan regime—after Amahle Kalu’s betrayal, Sylas spent nearly a century working to undermine Asgartha’s stability and prevent outward expansion. Second, they planned to infiltrate the Rediscovery Endeavor by 392 AC to ensure Asgarthan actions don’t undermine conspiracy interests. Third, Sylas claimed to be setting a trap for the Rediscovery Endeavor that would “snap shut” with all attention turned outward.

Their operational methods include creating puppets (Sylas created the Kraken to allow Saskia Averina to conduct experiments), maintaining cover identities within Yzmir and Muna factions, staging deaths to assume new identities (as Sylas did in 356 AC), and operating independently for extended periods without inter-member communication.

Historical Activities

The Kraken Operations

Sylas created the Kraken as a puppet serving multiple purposes: allowing Saskia Averina to carry out experiments unhindered, contributing to destabilization efforts, and maintaining fear that kept Asgarthans from venturing outward. An “incident with the Strix” occurred where Sylas failed to deliver something promised to Saskia, though he later atoned. By 392 AC, the Kraken had “outlived its purpose.”

Post-Betrayal Mission (~292-392 AC)

After Amahle Kalu’s betrayal, the conspiracy restructured. Sylas was tasked with destabilizing the Asgarthan regime over nearly a century of operations. Saskia Averina questioned whether recent attempts lacked vigor, but Sylas assured patience, claiming the trap was set.

392 AC Coordination

By 392 AC, Perjurers had not communicated in decades. Saskia Averina visited Sylas’s workshop to coordinate infiltration of the Expeditionary Corps, division of targets and responsibilities, and confirmation that Kelsang would remain at The Monolith. Saskia concluded the conversation by noting “the day of reckoning is upon us,” suggesting the conspiracy was approaching a critical phase.

Wanjiru’s Investigation (243-393 AC)

Wanjiru, Oneiros founder of The Qorgan, conducted a secret investigation into The Perjurers for approximately 150 years, working with a tight circle of trusted individuals rather than exposing the conspiracy publicly.

By May 393 AC, the investigation produced a comprehensive theory: the organization had been active since Kalu’s Revolt, orchestrating periodic unrest to stall Asgartha’s expansion and keep Asgarthans “tethered to our little corner of the world, with no goal beyond survival.” Infiltrators were hidden in nearly every Faction “twisting ideals from within.”

Wanjiru identified “certain identifiable traits, almost like signatures” that Perjurers leave behind—patterns emerging when examining their operations across decades. Like fingerprints, these signatures suggest immortal operatives maintaining consistent approaches. Evidence documented infiltration across all six Factions, with secrets stolen from Yzmir, information vanishing from Ordis records, failed Bravos expeditions with suspicious patterns, and Saskia Averina confirmed as a Muna operative.

Wanjiru theorized the Kraken was not a Leviathan but an Eidolon summoning requiring an “insane amount of Mana” but “not entirely impossible.” The victory seemed “a little too easy” for a genuine Leviathan, serving instead as “another ruse keeping Asgarthans focused on survival rather than expansion.”

In May 393 AC, immediately after Kuraokami’s liberation at Cais Adarra, Wanjiru approached Afanas Korovinovich with an alliance offer, revealing that The Qorgan had identified the Chrysanthemum Cloaked Warlock as a Perjurer agent and offering Afanas a role as “bloodhound, judge, and executioner” against the warlock.

Relationships

• Afanas Korovinovich: Sylas’s protégé who remained unaware of mentor’s true nature for decades; recruited by Wanjiru as weapon against CCW (393 AC)
• Amahle Kalu: Former member who betrayed the conspiracy
• Asgartha: Target of destabilization efforts for nearly a century
• Kelsang: Member expected to remain at The Monolith during Corps departure
• Kraken: Puppet created by Sylas for conspiracy operations
• Kuraokami: Oneiros imprisoned by Sylas; testimony provided evidence of Perjurer capabilities (393 AC)
• Muna: Faction infiltrated by Saskia Averina
• Ordis: Faction with evidence of Perjurer infiltration
• Rediscovery Endeavor: Target of infiltration and trap
• Saskia Averina: Active member called “Eugenist,” Muna Naturalist cover
• Senka: Night bird, potential target being left to “little pup” (Afanas)
• Sylas: Active member, Yzmir Battlemage cover, created Kraken
• The Kadigir: Base of Sylas’s operations
• The Monolith: Location where Kelsang expected to remain
• The Qorgan: Intelligence organization conducting secret investigation since 243 AC
• Wanjiru: Oneiros investigating Perjurers for 150 years, founder of The Qorgan
• Yzmir: Faction infiltrated by Sylas