View source for Ochelby's ward

Ochelby's ward is a priceless protective object manufactured by Palleseen artisans for an ambassador's passage through the [[the Wood|Anchorwood]]. Its loss at the hands of [[Ochelby|Sage-Archivist Ochelby]] transforms it from a routine diplomatic safeguard into the object of a desperate, self-destructive search, making it the catalyst for one of the most harrowing sequences in ''City of Last Chances''.

The ward's disappearance directly precipitates the final act of [[Shrievsby|Statlos Shrievsby]], a Palleseen officer of [[Correct Conduct]] condemned to death for his former complicity in [[Ivarn Ostravar]]'s corruption. Ordered to recover the ward from Ostravar's rooms in [[Gownhall]], Shrievsby instead destroys the premises in a frenzy-toppling porters, slashing paintings, cutting books, and axing a scholar's desk-only to find three hidden compartments and no trace of the object. The ward's location remains unknown, and its loss leaves unresolved what consequences the Occupiers will face.

== The Object ==
=== Description ===
The available text identifies Ochelby's ward only as "a priceless protection." No material, dimensions, markings, or method of carrying or wearing are recorded.

=== What It Does ===
Its stated function is protective: it was manufactured to safeguard an ambassador's passage through the [[the Wood|Anchorwood]] - ch 10. No further operational details-how it activates, what specific threats it wards against, or what it costs to employ-are described.

=== Provenance ===
Palleseen artisans crafted the ward for the ambassador's journey through the Anchorwood - ch 10. [[Ochelby|Sage-Archivist Ochelby]] is identified as the one who lost it - ch 10. [[Shrievsby|Statlos Shrievsby]] is assigned to recover it from [[Ivarn Ostravar]]'s rooms in [[Gownhall]], but the search yields nothing; the ward's whereabouts remain unknown at the close of the chapter - ch 10.

== History ==
=== City of Last Chances ===
Ochelby's ward is a priceless protection manufactured by Palleseen artisans for the ambassador's passage through the [[the Wood|Anchorwood]] - ch 10. The object was lost by [[Ochelby|Sage-Archivist Ochelby]], and its recovery becomes the central task assigned to [[Shrievsby|Statlos Shrievsby]], a Palleseen officer of [[Correct Conduct]] and formerly an accomplice of [[Ivarn Ostravar]] in corruption, who carries out his own death sentence by searching Ostravar's rooms for the ward - ch 10. In [[Gownhall]], Shrievsby storms through the premises in despair, knocking down porters and an elderly maestro; he destroys paintings, cuts books, slits robes, and axes the scholar's desk, finding three hidden compartments but no trace of Ochelby's ward - ch 10. The search yields nothing, and the whereabouts of the ward remain unknown at the close of the chapter - ch 10.

- raised, ch 10: Where did [[Ochelby|Sage-Archivist Ochelby]] hide Ochelby's ward, and what will the Occupiers do now that Shrievsby has failed to find it?

== Relationships ==
- '''[[Ochelby|Sage-Archivist Ochelby]]''' - The person who lost the ward, making its recovery a matter of institutional urgency within the Occupier administration.
- '''[[Shrievsby|Statlos Shrievsby]]''' - The Palleseen officer of [[Correct Conduct]] tasked with recovering the ward; his search for it becomes the mechanism through which he carries out his own death sentence - ch 10.
- '''[[Ivarn Ostravar]]''' - The corrupt figure whose rooms in [[Gownhall]] are searched for the ward; Shrievsby's former accomplice in corruption - ch 10.

== Tags ==
#warding · #anchorwood-protection · #artifact

[[Category:Objects]]