Chapter Four: The Incantation of the Unforgivable Curses

The might of the strength of words and the decibel of its characteristic sounds are to be measured in totality by the extent of its involuntary power, usually derived from the use of the artistic hand motions of "visible" material (to be utilized as the main medium of the decibel) in order to complement the potency of the invisible substances to be mixed in the exact combination of involved metaphysical properties, with the resulting caress of the pitch of the voice in the sounding phenonena dominates the process as the expected end product of the system is then transmitted into a certain form of a powerful impetus.

A convenient example of such group of words is called incantation. Incantations are mainly used in the dispensation of magical spells, whether ethical or not, and most of these incantations obey the whims and purpose of the wielder of the magical wand, with its efficacy depending on the material used in the manufacture of the wand (remember that in fiction, the wand always chooses the wizard), the accurate hand movement used to cast the spell, and the predominant intent of the Caster, depending on whether the incantation was intended to take the strictest form of a more sinister curse, or to conjure a simple command to a more complex shape of an ordinary magical operation.

Specifically in the area of Dark Magic, a curse is considered to be the most heinous spell of the three distinct kinds of Dark charms (the other two are called Jinx and Hex). Several of these recognized curses in standard spells came in many types of every strength and form, but were usually reserved for incantations causing immense suffering to the victim of the spell, such as the infliction of excruciating pain, total control of the mind and free will, or in some cases, even death. The most notorious of these Curses were classified under the umbrella term in Ministry-approved Defense Against the Dark Arts textbooks as the Unforgivable Curses.

In all of these authoritative source documents, the Unforgivable Curses were commonly defined as the three most powerful and sinister spells known to be in existence in the wizarding world, not to mention its quality of being the most potent dark spells still in subsistence. They were developed as effective tools in the further exploration of Dark Magic, first classified to be "unforgivable" in the year 1717, following a Wizarding convention providing for penalties attached to their use.

The three curses consisted of the Killing Curse (Avada Kedavra), the Cruciatus Curse (Crucio), and the Imperius Curse (Imperio).

By the early 1990s, using any of these curses on a fellow human being, either Muggle or wizard, would result to a life sentence in Azkaban prison without the possibility of parole, unless there were sufficient evidence to consider that the Caster of the spell did so under the influence of the Imperius Curse. After the litmus test of this accepted legal exception was made by its application in court cases, many Dark wizards attempted to use this lawful defense to prevent themselves from facing incarceration once caught by competent Aurors (the term used to denote the law enforcers of the wizardkind), particularly after the First Wizarding War was bitterly fought in the early rise of the most infamous Dark wizard that ever existed, known to many as, "He who must not be named."

There was an example of a well-publicized case litigated in a court of law involving Solomon Sallow where, in "his capacity as an Auror," he was forced by the "grim" circumstances to use an unforgivable curse on a Dark wizard, but afterwards acquitted from any form of guilt to any of the counts specified with respect to the information filed, and receiving no substantial penalties for the alleged criminal act subscribed therein, aside from the fact that he later on retired from the service on bad terms with the Ministry of Magic.

In the immediate case cited above, docketed as Solomon Sallow v. Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, the assembly of the Wizengamot, which serves as Britain's wizarding High Court and also their functioning Parliament, undertaking both legislative work and serving as legal tribunal, judicially held in a decision written for the majority of the Whole by the incumbent Chief Warlock himself, part of the decision is quoted below:

"[...] but in this particular case, a sufficient indictment presented in an effort to enforce the rules in the regulation of the said Unforgivable Curses, the circumstances of which were derived from the evidence presented to the competence of this assembly of the Wizengamot, as it was made in the information instantly filed in support of this particular argument, can never be permitted to apply substantially to the bar when the preservation of life and the protection of liberty are to be considered in a separate case of legally admissible defense, and by consideration of the accused's official role as an Auror, such wizard faulted in conjuring an act that violates this statute may be compelled to defend and protect his life or freedom without the presence of willful intent; so while the curse takes its effect without any form of criminal premeditation on the part of the Caster of the spell, then such act can never achieve the high standard of the Tribunal's incriminating basis for conviction, but such meritorious case illustrates a valid excuse in defense that the accused was compelled to act primarily in the preservation of his own personal welfare [...]. Therefore, by a vote of more than two-thirds of the majority of this Honorable assembly, the Wizengamot, as this judicial resolution was initially proposed by the sitting Judicial Committee of First Instance, adopts to dismiss all of the charges listed in the accusations as it was alleged by the said information, for being both INJUDICIOUS and UNLAWFUL, with the Wizengamot voting to affirm the tabled judicial resolution in its official sitting for consideration of law motions without any changes to be made, and that there is no necessity for the Committee of the Whole to issue a Declaration of Incompatibility governing the European wizarding rights as it was defined by Convention, with the pertinent legality of the issues considered in the said controversy is hereby resolved as such with finality."

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The Chapter is sponsored by Dior.