The Return Protocol

A pact is sacred, but we acknowledge that dissonance can occur. The Rite of Return may be invoked under three specific conditions:

• The Flaw: The artifact arrived broken or fractured by the chaos of its journey.
• The Error: The artifact received is not the artifact decreed in your order.
• The Dissonance: The artifact, though perfect in form, fails to resonate with your will or serve your ascent.

Upon the artifact's arrival, The Gaze passes to you. You are granted 14 days (a fortnight) to judge the artifact. Use this time to commune with the object. After the fourteenth sun sets, the window is sealed, and the artifact is permanently consecrated into your sanctum.

To be accepted back into the Citadel, the artifact must return in a state of pristine grace. It must be unused, its original packaging unflawed, and all sigils intact. We cannot honor an artifact returned in a lesser state, as it cannot be offered to another Seeker in good faith.

To begin this protocol, you must signal the Citadel. Commune with us through the contact portal. Your signal must include your Order Number and, if there is a flaw, visual scripture (photos) as evidence. Do not send the artifact into the void without first establishing this channel.

Once the artifact passes our final inspection, we will execute one of two resolutions, as chosen by you:

• Full Restoration: The tribute you paid is returned in full to your original payment method.
• The Exchange: We swap the artifact for another. Differences in value will be settled or refunded immediately.

Certain artifacts, marked in The Forge as "On Offer", are bound by a higher law. These are Final Pacts. By acquiring such an artifact, you agree that the transaction is absolute. The Rite of Return cannot be invoked for these items.

The burden of return shipping is determined by the nature of the dissonance:

• Our Error: If the artifact is flawed or incorrect (Article I, points 1 & 2), The Order bears the cost. We are accountable for our own architecture.
• Your Resonance: If the return is due to a change of will (Article I, point 3), The Seeker bears the cost. You must carry the weight of your own journey.