The Silent Brotherhood

The Silent Brotherhood (also known as Dark Brotherhood, Dark Knights, or the Eight Swords) is the secret organization consisting of Morrighan followers.

Making use of the dark, arcane magics, the organization consists of warriors, hiding their true identity, and a few magicians. They are also the only people who know the truth. In order to protect the Goddess, they’ve made the coming of Erinn their main objective. Thus, they are tasked with protecting the oracle of the prophecy from any danger until she fulfills her destiny as the prophesized oracle.

Currently, one can reach the Brotherhood only through the organization's representative, Nyle. The identity of the founder remains a mystery.

The members of the organization are extraordinary people - some are able to talk with the ancient Giant Spiders, some are great scouts, some are the sages possessing the greatest wisdom of generations. Pursuing the truth, these people are ready to sacrifice their own lives. However, they became too obsessed with their own beliefs. Pursuing the truth, they weren’t afraid to stain themselves with the blood of others. This contradictory way of searching for the truth became the schism within the ranks of the Brotherhood, which led to the appearance of another group - the Paladins.

Season 1 Encyclopedia explains that The Silent Brotherhood once tried to openly stand up against the Pontiff's Court, but their original place of residence had been razed to the ground under pretense of large-scale purge of the heretical temple. Many have died, but those who survived became more aware of their presence, concealing their identities while continuing their activities.

Story
The first mentioning of the Silent Brotherhood occurs during the Silent Brotherhood quest. According to Gwynn, the Royal Army wiped out the Silent Brotherhood, as they once tried to overthrow the Kingdom by questioning the legimacy of the prophecy. However, they've managed to survive the purge.

During the Pact, the mercenary asked Nyle if the Silent Brotherhood can use their magic to cure Tieve from her sleeping illness. The mercenary officially joined the Silent Brotherhood and gained the Transformation skill.

According to Gallagher, Nyle and Naveen are Dark Knights.

Trivia

 * The Silent Brotherhood is called the "Eight Swords" because there are only 8 members. That number went down to 7 when Nauches was killed by the Giant Spider; it is then implied that the player joins the brotherhood, restoring the "Eight Swords". The other 5 members in the brotherhood are unknown.


 * Nyle mentions Sylvan during the Pact story quests, implying their base of operations could be situated in the lands of Sylvan.


 * Brynn isn't a Silent Brotherhood member. However, Nyle treats him like the brains of the group, as Brynn has been assisting the Silent Brotherhood.


 * The Silent Brotherhood is a human counterpart of Fomor's Silent Knights. The only bridge between two organizations is Naveen.