History Main / MercyKillArrangement

* Gebel and Miriam from ''Videogame/BloodstainedRitualOfTheNight'' are both extremely powerful "Shard-Binders" - as a result of experiments carried out on them by the alchemists guild, they can transform demon corpses into crystalline shards and use them to cast magic. Because they were experimented on without their consent, both maintain that [[BadPowersGoodPeople this power is only as evil as the Shard-Binder's intentions]]; but just in case, they've sworn a pact that if either of them ever appears to be acting without free will, they other must hunt them down and destroy them.

* ''Series/JessicaJones'': When Jess and Simpson are getting ready to try to capture the PsychopathicManchild [[BigBad Kilgrave]], they both tell the other to take them down if Kilgrave manages to control them with his CompellingVoice.

* Gebel and Miriam from ''BloodstainedRitualofTheNight'' are both extremely powerful "Shard-Binders" - as a result of experiments carried out on them by the alchemists guild, they can transform demon corpses into crystalline shards and use them to cast magic. Because they were experimented on without their consent, both maintain that this power is only as evil as the Shard-Binder's intentions; but just in case, they've sworn a pact that if either of them ever appears to be acting without free will, they other must hunt them down and destroy them.

In order to ease their anxiety about this danger, the person may ask a difficult favor of another: [[MercyKill to end their life if things reach a point where safety and quality of life can no longer be assured]]. This is obviously a very painful thing to have to do, and asking it requires a great deal of trust, both in one's emotional composure in ending another's (often [[StakingYourLovedOne a loved one's]]) life, often in cold blood, as well as the physical ability to do so, especially if the victim is overcome by a supernatural force and is actively attacking them. The person may sometimes give the other a [[KryptoniteRing special weapon]] of some kind that will be effective against them.

In order to ease their anxiety about this danger, the person may ask a difficult favor of another: [[MercyKill to end their life if things reach a point where safety and quality of life can no longer be assured]]. This is obviously a very painful thing to have to do, and asking it requires a great deal of trust, both in one's emotional composure in ending another's (often a loved one's) life, often in cold blood, as well as the physical ability to do so, especially if the victim is overcome by a supernatural force and is actively attacking them. The person may sometimes give the other a [[KryptoniteRing special weapon]] of some kind that will be effective against them.

* On ''Series/{{House}}'', Thirteen performs a mercy kill for her brother, who was suffering from Huntington’s disease, an incurable degenerative disease their mother suffered from and that Thirteen has as well. House ultimately agrees to kill Thirteen if she ever asks him to.

A sub-trope of ThePromise and ThanatosGambit. Compare BetterToDieThanBeKilled, in which someone tries to commit suicide rather than face an undesirable fate, KryptoniteRing, another arrangement meant to deal with an ally going bad, and SuicideByAssassin, when a character hires a contract killer as part of an assisted suicide. Also compare SuicidePact when individuals arrange to commit suicide together or kill each other under some circumstances. See also BetrayalInsurance, which is less about mercy and more about preventing other characters from stepping out of line.

* Franchise/{{Superman}} trusted Franchise/{{Batman}} with Lex Luthor's kryptonite ring to use against him if he ever turned evil and needed to be stopped.

* Dumbledore in ''Literature/HarryPotter'' secretly arranges a mercy kill for himself with [[spoiler:Severus Snape]] when he learns that Lord Voldemort has set Draco Malfoy the task of killing him. He's dying anyway as a result of mishandling a cursed artefact, but doesn't want the boy's soul to be tainted by murder, and is afraid of a much less dignified death in the event that one of the more sadistic Death Eaters gets to him first.

* ''Film/VanHelsing'': The title character has been bitten by a werewolf and must use the supernatural strength bestowed by the transformation to kill Dracula before the twelfth stroke of Midnight. While Van Helsing deals with Dracula, he sends Anna and Carl to find a cure for lycanthropy, and gives Carl a silver stake, insisting that Carl must destroy him if they fail to administer the cure in time.

A sub-trope of ThePromise and ThanatosGambit. Compare BetterToDieThanBeKilled, in which someone tries to commit suicide rather than face an undesirable fate, and KryptoniteRing, another arrangement meant to deal with an ally going bad. Also compare SuicidePact when individuals arrange to commit suicide together or kill each other under some circumstances. See also BetrayalInsurance, which is less about mercy and more about preventing other characters from stepping out of line.

* In ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}'', Nico once asked Gert to kill her if she ever lost control of the Staff of One. Gert has adamantly refused any such arrangement.

* In ''ComicBook/StarWarsLegacy'', the Fel Emperor basically has an agreement with his Inperial Knight bodyguards; if he falls to the Dark Side and can't be redeemed, they must kill him.

-->'''The Cat's Wife:''' What is it, dear?
-->'''The Cat:''' I had a horrible nightmare where I took the path of cheap laughs!
-->'''The Cat's Wife:''' Oh don't be silly, you know I'd have you put to sleep before that could ever happen.
-->'''The Cat:''' You promise?

-->'''Ripley''': Hicks, I'm not gonna end up like those others. You'll take care of it, won't you?
-->'''Hicks''': If it comes to that, I'll do us both.

* In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', Harry is in urgent need of power and can only get it by [[MagicallyBindingContract pledging]] to become the Winter Knight of the [[TheFairFolk Fae]]. Knowing what a total monster the last man in that position became, he arranges to be killed as soon as he accomplishes his goals and [[LaserGuidedAmnesia has his memory of the assassination order removed]]. However, his new boss is the kind of entity who doesn't let someone off the hook just for being shot through the heart...

* ''Series/{{Angel}}'': When Angelus is intentionally summoned,via removal of Angel's soul, to get information about the Beast, Angel makes his team promise to kill him if Angelus gets out of his cage. He does cause more trouble than they thought, but they don't have to do it.
* On ''Series/{{House}}'', Thirteen performs a mercy kill for her brother, who was suffering from Huntington’s disease, a disease their mother suffered from and that Thirteen has as well. House ultimately agrees to kill Thirteen if she ever asks him to.
* At one point in ''Series/JessicaJones'' when Jess and Simpson are getting ready to try to capture [[BigBad Kilgrave]], they both tell the other to take them down if [[CompellingVoice Kilgrave]] manages to start controlling them.

** Also in season 10, Cain makes Dean promise to kill him so that he doesn't have to live in a murderous rage caused by the Mark of Cain. Unlike the previous two examples, Dean was forced to actually make good on the promise when, triggered into a blood rage when he is ambushed and has to slaughter dozens of demons to escape, Cain sets on a systematic campaign to murder all of his descendants, which Castiel notes numbers in the billions.

-->'''Francis:''' [[DeadpanSnarker What if your beard starts to turn? Can I shoot that?]]
-->'''Bill:''' You are an idiot.

[[/folder]]

-> ''"He was willing to kill me. And I'll always be grateful."''

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]

-->'''The Cat's Wife:''' What is it, dear?\\
'''The Cat:''' I had a horrible nightmare where I took the path of cheap laughs!\\
'''The Cat's Wife:''' Oh don't be silly, you know I'd have you put to sleep before that could ever happen.\\
'''The Cat:''' You promise?

-->'''Ripley:''' Hicks, I'm not gonna end up like those others. You'll take care of it, won't you?\\
'''Hicks:''' If it comes to that, I'll do us both.

* In ''Film/StarshipTroopers'', Major Rasczak shoots a wounded soldier to prevent him from being EatenAlive by a flying alien bug and makes clear to his unit that he expects them to do the same for him. When a bug rips off both of Rasczak’s legs, he orders Rico to kill him. Rico very reluctantly complies.

* At the end of the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' novel ''Discworld/TheFifthElephant'' this is {{Implied|Trope}}. Angua (a werewolf) asks her boyfriend Carrot if he would kill her if she went off the rails the same way her brother did (having gone into a half-crazed state after his EvilPlan was thwarted). Carrot answers [[LawfulGood "Yes"]], which was exactly what she wanted to hear.

* Dumbledore in ''Literature/HarryPotter'' arranges a mercy kill for himself with [[spoiler:Severus Snape]] when he learns that Lord Voldemort has set Draco Malfoy the task of killing him, not wanting the boy's soul to be tainted by murder, and he's already dying from wearing the cursed ring of Marvolo Gaunt.

* In ''Series/TerminatorTheSarahConnorChronicles'', Cameron installs a bomb in her head and gives John the detonator, in case she ever becomes a threat to him. She has good reason to worry about this, because it's happened to her before and nobody (not even the Teminators themselves) knows what causes a reprogrammed Terminator to suddenly revert to its default programming.

* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion'': The ''Shivering Isles'' expansion pack has Hirrus Clutumnus, a man who is cursed with suicidal depression but too afraid to take his own life in case his soul becomes trapped on the Hill of Suicides. To get around this, he gives you a quest to kill him in a manner that he's not going to see coming, with the agreement that you can loot a key from his body after his death which unlocks a strongbox containing all his valuable possessions.

[[/folder]]
----

-> ''“He was willing to kill me. And I’ll always be grateful.”''

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

-->'''The Cat's Wife:''' What is it, dear?
-->'''The Cat:''' I had a horrible nightmare where I took the path of cheap laughs!
-->'''The Cat's Wife:''' Oh don't be silly, you know I'd have you put to sleep before that could ever happen.
-->'''The Cat:''' You promise?

-->'''Ripley''': Hicks, I'm not gonna end up like those others. You'll take care of it, won't you?
-->'''Hicks''': If it comes to that, I'll do us both.

* At the end of the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' novel ''Discworld/TheFifthElephant'' this is {{Implied|Trope}}. Angua (a werewolf) asks her boyfriend Carrot if he would kill her if she went off the rails the same way her brother did (having gone into a half crazed state after his EvilPlan was thwarted). Carrot answers [[LawfulGood "Yes"]], which was exactly what she wanted to hear.

[[/folder]]

* In ''Film/StarshipTroopers'', Major Rasczak shoots a wounded soldier and makes clear to his unit that he expects them to do the same for him. When a bug rips off both of Rasczak’s legs, he orders Rico to kill him. Rico very reluctantly complies.

In order to ease their anxiety about this danger, the person may ask a difficult favor of another: to end their life if things reach a point where safety and quality of life can no longer be assured. This is obviously a very painful thing to have to do, and asking it requires a great deal of trust, both in one's emotional composure in ending another's (often a loved one's) life, often in cold blood, as well as the physical ability to do so, especially if the victim is overcome by a supernatural force and is actively attacking them. The person may sometimes give the other a [[KryptoniteRing special weapon]] of some kind that will be effective against them.

* Dumbledore in ''Literature/HarryPotter'' arranges a mercy kill for himself with [[spoiler:Severus Snape]] when he learns that Lord Voldemort has set Draco Malfoy the task of killing him, not wanting the boy's soul to be tainted by murder, and fearing a much more undignified death if one of the more sadistic Death Eaters get to him first.

A sub-trope of ThePromise and ThanatosGambit. Compare BetterToDieThanBeKilled, in which someone tries to commit suicide rather than face an undesirable fate, and KryptoniteRing, another arrangement meant to deal with an ally going bad. Also compare SuicidePact when individuals arrange to commit suicide together or kill each other under some circumstances. See also BetrayalInsurance, which is less about mercy and more about "preventing them from stepping out of line".