City of Towers_ The Dreaming Dark - Keith Baker [137]
Over the course of the last century, we have created horrors far worse than any monster of legend. We have harnessed the power of fire and storm and turned them against our enemies. We have given birth to an army of living weapons. And in so doing we have destroyed the heart of our realm. Chroniclers are calling the recent conflict “The Last War,” claiming—or at the very least hoping—that no one who has seen the destruction could thirst for war ever again. Perhaps they are correct. Surely, if we continue to toy with powers that we do not understand, with forces that can destroy an entire nation, our next war will be our last.
Khorvaire, Galifar, and the Last War
Though much of this world remains shrouded in mystery, scholars have kept records for thousands of years and many other secrets have been unlocked through exploration. The continent of Sarlona gave birth to humanity, but for the last millennium the people of Riedra, that continent’s largest nation, have restricted contact with the outside world. Tales say that Xen’drik was once home to a civilization of giants who possessed mystical secrets far beyond anything known in the modern age, but this society vanished tens of thousands of years ago. The dragons reputed to live in Argonnessen, if they exist at all, hide their secrets. To date no one has penetrated the interior of this dark continent and returned to tell the tale.
Only one continent is known to us—Khorvaire. Human and elf, dwarf and gnome, we all have our homes here. According to the legends, many of these races traveled to this land—human settlers from Sarlona, dwarves from the frozen north, elves from Xen’drik by way of the isle of Aerenal. Though they were last to arrive, it was humanity that reshaped Khorvaire in its own image. Those who opposed the humans were conquered or driven from their lands. In time, one man managed to unite the budding human nations with sword and word—King Galifar I, founder of a kingdom that would last almost nine hundred years.
Galifar had five children, and he divided his kingdom into five provinces, one for each of his heirs. Each region had its own customs and strengths, and these would continue to develop over time. Aundair was renowned for wisdom, both mundane knowledge and the study of the mystical arts. The people of Karrnath were known for stoic temperaments and military skill. Breland was a center for innovation in philosophy and industry. Thrane soon became the seat of the Church of the Silver Flame, and its people were devoted to this altruistic religion. Cyre was the heart of the kingdom, a center of art and culture. While there were other outposts of culture in Khorvaire—the gnomes of Zilargo, the people of the Shadow Marches, the Lhazaar Pirates—the provinces were seen as the primary repository of civilization and culture. Collectively they were referred to as the Five Nations, and this phrase became so engrained in the psyche of the kingdom that it remains in use to this day, even though Cyre is no more.
The Kingdom of Galifar worked hand in hand with the dragonmarked houses, and for centuries civilization flourished across Khorvaire—until the death of King Jarot in 894 YK.
In accordance with the customs laid down by the first king, Jarot’s children had been appointed as governors of the Five Nations. As the eldest child and governor of Cyre, Lady Mishann d’Wyrnarn was the rightful heir to the throne of the Five Nations. According to the ancient laws, her brothers and sisters were to step down from their posts and install Mishann’s children as governors.
It was a precarious system, and there had been upheavals before—times when a governor refused to relinquish control. But a rightful heir to the throne had never had to contend with three rebellious siblings, as Mishann did. Lord Thalin of Thrane, Lady Wroanne of Breland, and Lord Kaius of Karrnath