Kingdom of Solenum
Comprised of over fifty mountaintop cities and double that in agricultural vales, the Kingdom of Solenum is a strong nation that rises above the misty graylands. From Aeliana’s Joy in the East to Selunara’s Rest in the West, the kingdom spans a vast territory, most of it hidden graylands that few citizens ever see—much to their relief.
History
By Solenum legends, there was a time of only mist.
The people lived within its suffocating embrace, hunted by the creatures that lived there and starved for lack of food. There was a young man who fervently prayed each day to different things to give him and his people a better life.
He prayed to the stream, but it turned away from him and said it could not help; that its waters only held depth and darkness. Next he prayed to the rock, but the rock said that it could not protect him from the mist. He prayed to the mist to thin and let his people live, but it laughed at him and grew thicker. Then, he prayed to a tree, but it said all it could offer was its height but that if he were willing, he could climb its branches to see if there was more in the world.
So he climbed.
High in the tree’s branches, the mist thinned. The man could see a brightness in the sky. Awed, he prayed to it. In response, it flared and glowed, laughing like a woman. The rays of light broke off and became shining birds. The glowing woman spoke and said, “Follow my birds that can fly above the mist. They will lead you to a place where you too can see my face.”
So he followed.
For many days and nights, he traveled through graylands, encountering dangerous creatures. But he learned to hide in the high branches. He found he could listen to the birds for their warning calls of danger and their silence of deadly things nearby.
Finally, the land rose upward. He climbed until he crossed a point above which the mist did not flow. There, he found a field of grass where a clear spring flowed. Ripe berries he’d never seen before grew along its banks and were so sweet. As he ate and drank his fill, thanking the beautiful sun in her sky, a woman appeared on the hilltop above him, walking out of the shining rays. Her skin was sun-kissed, so dark as if it had never seen a misty day. Golden sun streaks laced through her braided dark hair, and her eyes were as golden as the sun. She wore a dress so white and lightweight, it appeared to be made of clouds.
The man fell at her feet, thanking this incarnation of the sun for her bounty and blessing. She raised him up and said she, Allora den Illuminem, was the representative of the sun goddess on this world, and that she was there to advise him, love him, and help him raise a great civilization that their sons would rule.
He braved the graylands again with Allora’s blessing, telling his people of the golden hills above the mist. For that, we gave him the name den Lightbringer. Trefe den Lightbringer was our first king and his son’s still rule with the wisdom of the Sun Priestess, who speaks to the Solastra Triune, our sun goddess of three faces.
And so it was and so it shall ever be.
Governance
Solenum has been ruled by a king since its founding and the legendary leader Trefe den Lightbringer led his people into the Solastra Triune’s sunlit hilltops. Each city has a Royal Keeper, who is often related to the royal line. Below a city’s Royal Keeper are several councilors, usually made up of the most important merchants and citizens of the city, who oversee disputes and day to day workings of the city.
The King
The king resides in the royal palace located in the capitol city of Starhaven. His only worry is to be taking care of the kingdom and its people. For this reason, he is not allowed to choose a wife. Instead, a bride is chosen by the Soltra Triune annually through a ceremony on the summer solstice.
The annual rotation of royal brides means the king does not become so attached to his wife that he loses focus on his people and the royal bride does not become so invested in politics that she loses the perspective of the sun goddess.
Any male children are raised to be heirs or sent to become Royal Keepers in cities, if not needed to rule. Any daughters are raised to be sun priestesses. If, for some reason a relative of the king is selected as the royal bride during the sun ceremony, if is assumed the Solstra Triune feels it is a time when the king and chosen sun priestess need to focus solely on the kingdom. Therefore, the sun priestesses role for that year is only advisory.
The royal crest is a sun eagle in display over a golden sun. Different kings have tweaked the eagle and sun to better suit their temperments and the times they rule.
Cities
The Kingdom of Solenum stretches across a wide mountain range that runs southwest to northeast, ending at the Glass Coast. Little is known about what is west of the Kingdom other than a wide, and seemingly uncrossible, marshy sea.
Rocky and steep ridges have often been converted to cities while those with deep soil are kept as agricultural vales. Encompassing an area of approximately 500 miles east to west by 375 miles north to south, the mountain ranges run parallel to each other in a wide swath, with a few distant outposts on the edges.
With a warm and humid landscape full of rivers, ponds, and lakes, water is readily available resource, though difficult to reach from some of the mountaintop strongholds. Fortunate cities have rivers and lakes. The less fortunate rely on rainwater captured on rooftops and streets and held in underground cisterns.
The earliest cities were built from stone. Once Prismara on the Glass Coast was founded and glass making became more common, great structures of metal and glass were erected to celebrate the sun’s greatness.
Below are the details of some of the notable cities.
Starhaven
Starhaven is the capital city of the Kingdom and sits near the center of the sprawling kingdom on one of the widest mountaintops. With both the King’s palace and the primary temple of the Iluminem, the city has many awe inspiring buildings of glass and gold.
Several small lakes rest within parks in the city and two waterfalls tumble into the graylands.
Clearhold
Located near the western edge of the kingdom, Clearhold is one of the oldest cities in the kingdom. Despite its prosperity, it still retains many of the original stone buildings quaried from the mine and a nearby ridge, now known as Shrouded Hollow.
Originally founded due to the spire of rock that rises high above the mist no matter the season and which gives the city its name, Clearhold quickly became notable for the discovery of rich veins of ore in the mountain. Now, mines run deep into the bedrock. Many citizens work in the mines and prisoners across the kingdom are often sent to serve their time working far underground.
Despite its natural protection from the mist, the city proper is guarded by thick stone walls. There are no natural springs on the mountain, so rainwater is conserved for household use.
Sunshimmer
Located a two day walk northeast of Clearhold, Sunshimmer is a city of beauty and luxury. With a large lake and cascading waterfall, the city is breathtaking for its natural location. Added to that are the multiple glass buildings. With a large university and contingent of great artisans, the city boasts commerce, relaxation, and intellectual stimulation.
Prismara
Located on the north-eastern edge of the kingdom, Prismara is one of the lowest in altitude cities, sitting barely above mistline on rocky cliffs of the Glass Coast. The Glass Coast is a shallow sea. When the tides retreat, an extensive flat of fine sand crystals are exposed. This sand is harvested and transformed into the unique insulating glass used throughout Solenum, making Prismara a wealthy as well as singular city.
Other Cities of Note
- Aeliana’s Joy—easternmost city
- Luminara’s Crossing—located in the center of the kingdom, north of Starhaven
- Selunara’s Rest—western most city on the edge of the great marsh
Taxation & Mist Running
The cities of the Kingdom of Solenum are separated by the mist, creating small islands that must be independent to survive. But no one city has everything needed to thrive. Clearhold holds the most important ore deposits while glass made in the distant city of Prismara.
Plus, for a king to rule and protect his people, news, orders, and decrees must be sent through the mist laden lowlands. For this reason, a family tax is incurred requiring four mist runs a year. As long as there is at least one family member capable of carrying a piece of paper, the tax must be paid.
Each year, every family is given four links of chain, representing the taxes due. When a successful mist run is completed, the link is reclaimed in the Tax Office and considered paid.
Age is not considered an exemption to the taxes nor is being an orphan. Though, in the case of orphans under fourteen years, taxes are accrued but will not be claimed until the child reaches the mist running age of fourteen. Physical deformity and occasionally mental illness are granted exemptions for taxes if that person is the only member of the family. If there is anyone else who is capable of mist running or paying a mist runner to carry the tax for them, taxes are collected.
Mist Running
Because many families would prefer not to brave the mist, or risk losing valuable workers to the creatures of the mist, mist running became a notable profession. The Mist Runner Alliance keeps a list of all children who graduate the mist runner training, usually held when children are fourteen years of age.
Each city has a Mist Runner Alliance barracks where traveling mist runners can sleep and get food as well as supplies for mist runs. There is also a board to post and find paid mist runs (and a similar board is usually found at the Tax Collector’s office). One person is in charge of the barracks at each city, keeping tabs on runners, routes, weather, and organizing training.
Mist runner training is not mandatory, though a family takes a risk if they do not have enough family members able to safely carry goods through the mist. Taxes are due no matter what, so a family must mist run or pay a runner. If taxes are not paid, a family member is usually arrested and walked to the cities edge with something needed to be delivered. If the first arrest and run isn’t successful, a second family member is arrested and a fine of two additional mist runs are added to that year’s taxes.
Not every mist run is worth only one link (one tax debt). The value of a run is demarcated by the number of nights spent crossing the graylands.
- 1 link = up to 5 nights in the graylands
- 2 links = 6 to 10 nights
- 3 links = 11 to 15 nights
- 4 links = 16 to 20 nights
It is rare for a mist runner to cross so great a distance for a delivery as it is easier to pass packages along to mist runners more familiar with local routes. However, in cases of extremely important or sensitive information, one runner may be paid for the entire run. In emergencies, runners can earn nearly a year’s worth of wages for one run. In these cases, runners of great renown and integrity are selected.
Marriages and Family Names
As taxes are paid by each family, what constitutes a family is defined by law. Children are part of a family unit along with their parents. However, once a child marries, a new family unit of the married couple is created. This is signified by the creation of a new last name, taking parts from both of the married partners. For example, if a den Sunlark marries a den Dawnchaser, potential family names could be den Sunchaser, den Dawnlark, den Dawnsun, or den Larkchaser.
This new family name is noted in the taxation books and the family tattoo, usually located on the left wrist, is modified to a new family image. At this point, the newly married couple is usually able to “adopt” immediate parents on either side, to create a new family unit (the parents would change their names to the new family one). However, in some cities, the Royal Keeper has decreed only the eldest or youngest child can adopt the parents (though this is not an official policy of the kingdom).
The only exceptions to names changing due to marriage are the king, whose familiy name is always den Lightbringer, and the Sun Priestesses, who are always referred to as den Iluminem. However, since the king can only marry a sun priestess and a sun priestess only marries if she is selected to marry the king, this is not a strong exception.
Tattoo example for the family den Sunlark.
Seasons
The Opaque Domain is a world rife with lakes, shallow seas, rivers, and marshes. With warm days and cool nights, the high humidity results in thick bands of fog that flood the lowlands, creating what is referred to as the graylands. Most settlements are above mist level on high hills and mountains.
There are two seasons: the warmer one of Clarestide when the mist is thinned to nearly non-existent except in very wet areas such as marshes. Opposite Clarestide is Frostshroud, when the overall temperatures are lower and the temperature extremes between night and day lead to thick fog that can rise to press against city walls, sometimes spill over into the city proper.
Clarestide
Clarestide is a time of saturating warmth, which usually thins the ever present mist into thin bands. Despite the heat, the populace bask in the days of bright sun, holding celebrations.
Since the sun even disipaites the mist in the graylands, travel between cities occurs more frequently during this time. City Royal Keepers often journey to Starhaven to meet with the king and witness the annual marriage ceremony between the king and his newly selected Sun Priestess.
For families paying their own tax, this is the season when most choose to complete their allocated four mist runs.
Frostshroud
Frostshroud is the cooler season. While it never grows cold enough to frost, except occassionaly at very high elevations at night, the wide fluctuation between daytime and nighttime temperatures leads to thick mist coating the landscape no matter the time of day.
With the dampness and chill, most people stay indoors, if they can. Mist runners often require extra pay to journey in this time of year, as the thick mist hides the predators who hunt the graylands.
Religion
The offiical religion of Solenum is the worship of the three faced sun goddess, the Solastra Triune. It is her and her messangers, the sun eagles, that led the first king out of the mist.
Each city houses a temple complex which includes an ornate sun temple of gold and glass, housing for sun priestess and initiates, and a garden. The complex in Starhaven is the most complex and largest, consisting also of a school and a large open air temple and altar where the marriage ceremony between the selected sun priestess and the king is performed.
Major holidays include the solstices and equinoxes. The Clarestide solstice on the longest day is when a sun priestess is selected by the Solastra Triune in a ceremony within the main temple. A ray of light at noon shines through the large glass windows and falls upon the chosen sun priestess. The marriage ceremony is held that afternoon. The day is full of numerous celebrations and is one of the largest holidays in Solenum.
The Frostshroud solstice is the shortest day of the year and often observed in temples along with the burning of herbs, spiced wine, and parties to celebrate the growing days.
There is some mention that farmers and mist runners mark the Frostshroud solstice in other ways with thanks to an old and forgotten god of the mist and forest, Nyxfang. This is considered by most to be silly superstition.