By the wings of a Raven, we bring you the Truth
Volume II, Issue I - August 15, 2017
Editor-in-Chief Artemis Thalassa
Links: Forum & Discord
Rise of the Raven
by Khronion Dracosier, Privy Councillor & Artemis Thalassa, Privy Councillor
Much has changed since the last reporting of the Alexandrian Herald. The reigning sovereign Joshua I of House Ravenclaw was found dead along with documents detailing his abdication and dissolution of the Royal House. His eldest son, James, ascended the throne as Sovereign James I of the newly formed royal household of Thalassa. Recognizing the need of assistance in governance articles of regency appointing his wife Artemis Thalassa, and his aunt, Domina Ravenclaw as co-regents.
Following several months, civil unrest began appearing throughout the Heartlands. With a vast majority of the Royal Legion still deployed in the South, the skeleton forces of the Royal Legion stationed throughout the Heartlands are ill equipped to manage the unrest. While no final count has been release, the death toll is said to be quite high. Reports indicated that during discussions with Sovereign James I, High Chancellor Khronion Dracoseir and High Constable Duane Odinsson had disagreements on how to proceed.
Over the next few weeks sightings of the Knight-Sentinels, an autonomous paramilitary organization, were reported throughout Coronpolis, the Enlightened City, and throughout the Heartlands. Accounts given under the assurance of anonymity shared that questions were being asked regarding the death of the late sovereign. As the investigation was on going, Knight Commander Atagait Dracoseir began the process of reorganizing the Royal Legion under the command of the Knight-Sentinels causing friction with the High Constable and the High Chancellor.
With the Royal Legion under the control of the Knight Commander, and several nobles raising forces, the Crown and its Regents were being handicapped at the knees. The Regents had been limited in scope at what they were able to accomplish by the Letters of Regency and Sovereign James was absent. When things seemed to be at a low for the new Sovereign, an armada featuring the flags of the Athenian navy were seen approaching from the South towards the capital. The Privy Council, including the Regents were convened to discuss issues regarding the Heartlands, when the Knight Sentinels and their forces detained them in chambers. After securing the Alexandria Castle, and dealing with supports of the Regency and James, the Privy Council was brought into the Throne Room where someone sat upon the throne. Each member of the Privy Council was forced to bend the knee to Queen Hyacinth Ravenclaw, who had orchestrated a vast majority of the coup.
Upon receiving the oaths of each member of the Privy Council, Queen Hyacinth ordered the arrest of her son, James Thalassa, his wife Artemis, and the sister of the late Joshua I, Domina Ravenclaw. Following a public trial, Lady Artemis was found guilty of Heresy, Sedition, and Oathbreaking. By the mercy of the Queen, Artemis was sentenced to a walk of penance from Alexandria Castle to the Great Temple of Flemingovia, and then banished from the Enlightened City. Princess Domina was found guilty of Heresy, Sedition, Oathbreaking, and Obstruction of an Investigation. Following judgement, she was sentenced to Life Imprisonment. Prince James Ravenclaw, as court documents stated, was found guilty of Heresy, Sedition, Treason. He has been banished from the Kingdom of Alexandria to Athenia to be transported by ship.
A New Beginning or Another Bureaucratic Body?
by Artemis Thalassa, Privy Councillor
From time to time, new institutions of power are created and dissolved. Power becomes centralized and stagnates and that is the bane of any instrument of authority. Stagnation. For years the Freeholder's Assembly and the Great Council of State were pillars of legislative authority within our kingdom. They were beacons for the common folk to look to. These bodies spoke for the people to the Sovereign.
But even they felt the disease of time and lost their relevance. Nobles took matters into their own hands, establishing rules for their own holdings, and Freeholders simply held position to be seen as something more than a subject. With each day passing and no new substantial action coming from the Assembly, King Joshua disbanded the Freeholders' Assembly and issued a stern warning to the Great Council. But the warning fell upon deaf ears resulting in the dissolution of the Great Council. After 6 months of no legislative body within the Kingdom, Queen Hyacinth established the Council of Paladia as a successor body to both the Great Council and the Freeholders' Assembly consisting of nobles and commoners from all across the realm. The Herald had an opportunity to speak with a member of the Council, Lord Khronion Dracosier as he made his way into the Council Chambers in the Lakelands about his thoughts on the newly formed body: "As one of the duly appointed magisters of the inaugural Council of Paladia, I am optimistic that this represents a turning point for Alexandria as we emerge from a dark and tumultuous era. The fall of House Montressor, the Southern Insurgency, the abortive reign of Thalassa, and mass unrest across the Heartlands -- each followed the others in an escalating cascade of turmoil that only goes to show that when one of us suffers, the whole of Alexandria does. For far too long, Alexandria has been merely a conglomeration of distinct and independent provinces that took no interest in the affairs of their brethren. This ends now. If we are to be successful, the Council of Paladia must rise above its predecessors --- the Freeholders Assembly and the Great Council of Nobles --- and commit itself deeply to the cause of Alexandrian unity in loyalty, to our Sovereign, to our brethren, and our institutions. We can ill-afford for this body to descend to the petty power politics of the Great Council, or the ineffective meandering of the Freeholders Assembly. Instead, we must labor to prepare a better future for our descendants. The tasks before us are monumental: the war-torn South must be rebuilt, and the Republican menace that continually lights the fires of insurgency must be purged. I am optimistic that we will be able to identify constructive approaches to bridging long-standing gaps between ourselves to achieve these goals. Under the watchful eye of the Sovereign, we will restore to our home the glory --- merely diminished, not extinguished --- that we once enjoyed under the rule of Sovereign Joshua Ravenclaw, may he rest in peace." In talks about about the south, we asked Lord Khronion about some of his goals for the Council and the Southern Reaches. ""As the South emerges from wartime recession, I will work with other Southern magisters to ensure that the Council of Paladia gives the South the constructive support it has long lacked. I look forward to working with other magisters to discuss mutually beneficial arrangements that will help revitalize the South and reestablish it as a strong and stable bulwark of Alexandrian society." We were honored to ask Her Majesty for a few words and she shared similar senitment about having the Council work to help restore the South going so far as saying, "The Council of Paladia will ensure that the South, still recovering from the insurgency, is better equipped with infrastructure that will promote industry, efficiency and increase living standards for our Southern subjects. My Council is committed to delivering real outcomes, infrastructure, and civil works in the South, and across all holds in the Kingdom, for our subjects and for future generations.The work of this Council will ensure the delivery of a cultural renaissance for the Kingdom of Alexandria, a return to peace, and a steep growth in prosperity and tranquillity for all."
To lead the Council of Paladia is a daughter of the Queen, Princess Kellina Ravenclaw. She will serve as the Archadian of the Council and be its administrative head. This position will keep the Princess in close contact with the Queen and it is assumed that the Archadian will report the wishes of the Queen to the Council. While the Council has yet to turn out any legislative items that we are aware of, we will wait to see what this new body can accomplish.
A Look around the Kingdom
compiled by Artemis Thalassa, Privy Councillor
The Prince of Westenfell - Romic Ravenclaw
In the bustling city Westbourne Prince Romic begins making his way up to a raised platform. The crowd numbering in the low two hundreds, a military band playing in the background as the small summer festival came into full swing. He shuffled a small stack of papers and smiled at the audience and began. "People of Westenfell, I announce to you after careful consideration we shall be building a new Military Academy! This academy will bring us the best and brightest Alexandria has to offer; however it doesn't come without a price. The price to train both officers and knights means we must seek funds part of which will come from the festival games. I also am happy to announce it will be named Ravenclaw Academy after my late father and you late King." applause came from the crowd as Prince Romic stepped away.
The festival itself is an annual summer festival celebrating the warriors of the past, present, and future. Westenfell itself is still recovering from the losses of the battles prior to put The Queen on the throne.
The Southern Lord of the Dalles; An interview with Atagait Dracosier
AH: The Dalles are one of your newer counties, Lord Atagait. Would you mind sharing the circumstances that led to it being granted to you?
AD: The circumstances are fairly simple. Kanaan Odinsson, one of the Oathbreakers, was removed from his position of Landgrave of the Dalles, and I was granted the land in his stead.
AH: I see. How has the transition of power been? I have heard that there was an outrage.
AD: It was a rocky road, yes. There were a few protesters, but I had dealt with the same sort of resistance when I claimed Raen from Dolph. So setting the disputes in a way was not too difficult.
AH: What are your current plans for the Dalles?
AD: I'm currently trying to stimulate mining and smithing by giving subsidies to Dalles-grown groups that mine, and blacksmiths in the county. With such a large landmass that covers the majority of the northern mountains, I can make the Dalles one of the chief metal suppliers in the north.
AH: There have been concerns about the overwhelming presence that Dracoseir Holdings has brought to the Dalles overnight. Do these concerns have any base?
AD: I feel that the presence that Dracoseir Holdings has brought is a step in the right direction. It will be the first concrete bond between the north and south, and will link the prosperity of Dracoseia, and the south, to the prosperity of the north. It will also enable more efficient trade routes between Dalles, and the South. I would hope that other provinces see this prosperity, and follow suit.
AH: Finally, there has been a lot of concerns about you silencing dissidents, starting with the people that protested to your granting of the Dalles. What do you think about this?
AD: I can assure you that in terms of 'silencing,' if I was pouring money into people's pockets to try shut them up, you'd notice a disparity in my treasury records. As for killing them, their families would have spoke out, and so far no family has been able to say that their children have gone missing. So I assure you that I have done no such thing.
AH: Well, thank you for the interview, Lord Atagait.
AD: It was no problem at all.
From the Outside looking In; An Out-of-Character look at the Kingdom of Alexandria
The New Alexandrian Herald - Artemis Thalassa
The Alexandrian Herald has been reestablished to help be a distribution of news and a chance for individuals to submit articles to help impact the in-character world through the news. The Herald will report on IC and OOC events. Subjects that are interested in joining the Herald Staff or are wanting to try their hand at writing either an IC or OOC article are asked to contact the Privy Councillor of State for Information Artemis Thalassa for ways they can get involved. Submissions that are printed will be rewarded with a pay.
The Council of Paladia - Artemis Thalassa
The Council of Paladia is the successor legislative body of the Kingdom to the Great Council and the Freeholders Assembly. It consists of 2 nobles and 2 subjects from each province who serve a 3 month term. It is led by the Archadian, who is appointed by the Crown. Currently Kellina Ravenclaw (aka Feirmont) serves in this role. If you have any ideas for legislation, feel free to contact a member of the Council for them to sponsor said legislation.
