Beyond the Void

Chapter 37, The desire to rule

of Sin 646 - After losing most of their lands on the major continent of Tavran, the Alyar cease hostilities and retreat to ancestral lands where their Dominions once sprouted. Chronicles also suggest the World Engines stopped bringing new humans into Tavran during that year, thus forcing the Human Kingdoms to relent their assault on the Alyar.

An excerpt from the diary of Pia...

KELDIN

One moon and three tens since the Mark of the Other One blossomed.

When had he ever dedicated himself to anything with this kind of passion? Keldin had spent tens planning, learning and scouting. Several items of interest had gone missing from Furos' quarters, but so far, the Archmage had notified no one of theft.

Furos had to know who the culprit was, but Keldin was not too worried. The Archmage had given oaths to serve the royal bloodline and aid them in any way necessary.

The more problematic had been the constant watch of the royal guard. Thankfully, even they had an end to their work-day. But it caused Keldin to miss several nights' worth of sleep.

He was the only one out and about this late in the dead of winter. As long as the guards did not find out about Keldin's doings before he had a chance to go through with his plans, it would all be worth it.

However, he had hit a major obstacle early on with his plans. If Keldin were to declare war on Sool, he would need a power base. Despite his bold claims to himself, a house would not stand without pillars.

He knew he had no way to approach those few senators still loyal to his father. Keldin was too unknown to them, and those men and women were all old and too rigid in their ways.

In a way, Keldin was a new power in the capital, unnoticed and underestimated. And there were bound to be others like him. Shunned sons and daughters of noble families or those who had the misfortune to be born second. And those so powerful and talented they had become bored with this system the old men in the Grand Council had spent an eternity building.

Keldin had sought out the most promising ones, with a promise of an adventure and a chance to shake the dated foundations of this Empire. A promise of another kind of coup.

This purpose and his duties as first heir had consumed all of his time. He had had little time to spend with the Pelesi Princess. After the meeting in the secluded garden, they had met in increasingly awkward formal situations.

She had made multiple hints that Keldin should seek her out. He had not found the time for it. And all this time he still avoided his brother. Every time Keldin's thoughts wandered, guilt made him squirm. It was easier to bury himself in plans and schemes. He could not find the will to face Seldin.

Ironcourt was buried under snow. This year the winter storms had lasted longer and had been much more ferocious. Keldin was staring across the river at the many brigades of snow shovellers and repairmen scurrying across the streets like ants. It had never occurred to him before that the houses and all of these buildings had once witnessed and been a part of what Keldin was attempting to rebuild.

When he was lost in plans, it was easy to forget that one minor problem he was faced with. It was not just about fighting Sool, he needed to be the one who would usher in a new golden age.

The rebirth of a nation from the times of Iordur and the Old Empire that stretched all across Tavran. From the Stormlit seas and the Tavran Lowlands all the way over the Greater Spine reaching far to the east across the plains of Syrr to the Scale of Souls in the Shimmering Canyons near where New Gaea once flourished.