Stormed Fortress (121 page)

Succession of Crown Candidates and
Caithdeinen

By terms of the compact, the Fellowship of Seven must Name a crown candidate. Any one Sorcerer
'
s innate perception is deep enough, and wide enough, to make such an assessment based upon probability. The task is most often handled by Asandir, as his natural aptitude for executive action makes him the preeminent Sorcerer to serve in the field.

The Crown Prince
'
s appointment is never automatic, and does not pass by direct descent. Nor do kings or any other office decreed by crown charter hold their seats until death - (Unlike town mayors, who are elected or selected by town council, but then rule for life term.) Royal lineages are not replaceable.

They cannot be transplanted from another kingdom
'
s bound line of descent, as the Paravians matched each forebear in resonant accord with the needs of the specific crown territories.

Provided that there are multiple blood relations, including cousins, to select from, the choice follows two factors: first, individual strength of character; and second, the quality of
'
natural calling
'
— this being any candidate (without bias toward male or female) - who displays the best aptitude for the post. Thus, if Arithon s
'
Ffalenn had possessed more than one relative, he may have passed the character requirement, but his natural calling as musician and initiate master may not have been deemed harmonious to the post. A cousin or relation of strong character, but who displayed more aptitude for the throne (by personal preference finding fulfilment and contentment in the position of arbitration) may have been chosen instead.

The heritable traits of Athera
'
s crown lineages do not
ever
transfer to
caithdeinen
if a last royal line-bearer should die without issue.
Caithdeinen
do administer crown justice in the absence of the king, and this may be an ongoing responsibility if crown rule has passed into a permanent state of stewardship. In this novel
'
s historical setting, this only occurred in Melhalla since the last s
'
Ellestrion heir died childless. In such a case, succession of that realm
'
s
caithdeinen
will now become Fellowship chosen.

Caithdeinen,
or crown stewards, who stand behind a living royal heir, are selected for character and for the ability to think independently. In times of peace, under a crowned High King, they would have been selected from a picked lineage, which could change with times and circumstance. The candidate would be suited to know their crown ruler well, and have the courage to draw clear and honest conclusions. This post would not suit a sycophantic personality, for example.

Proposed successors for
caithdeinen
and other charter seats are usually
'
designate.
'
This term denotes a conditional appointment, bestowed by a council of elders. (Kyrialt sTaleyn was designate for Shand, as Ianfar s
'
Gannley now is to Tysan.) An heir designate will inherit
unless
the choice is overruled upon proven grounds of incapacity. The appointment also can be upset by either a crowned High King (who would possess the requisite power of insight acquired through four attuned initiations) or a Fellowship Sorcerer
'
s direct word. Such a ruling would occur prior to or during the ceremony of investiture, where such an authority would be present. An heir chosen by Fellowship auspice automatically becomes invested without question. The investment ceremony then becomes a formality, wherein oath is sworn to uphold the post. Jeynsa s
'
Valerient, therefore, owns the power of her office by default - she has but to claim the responsibility.

A Fellowship Sorcerer only executes the selection of a
caithdein
if the existing royal lineage should be actively threatened. In this manner, if the crown succession fails, that
caithdein
would stand steward for the throne in fact.

Particulars of Clan Heritage

A
ll
old blood lineages were determined by the Paravians at the time Mankind accepted the terms of the compact, yet the
'
system
'
was not closed, and not every family assumed the same function. Some lineages stood for land rule -these guarded the interface between humanity and the Paravians. These individuals possessed Sighted vision or natural talent enough to be charged with protection and preservation of the boundaries of the free wilds.

Other family lines were selected for adamant traits of character. These generally governed a town-based seat, and administered directly to human affairs in those areas where Mankind was free to live with least oversight. Sometimes land rule and town governance were held as dual functions. Checks and balances within the charter system were designed to thwart private concerns and blind ambition from degrading the compact
'
s intent: to hold Athera
'
s great mysteries, which are essential to Paravian survival, in balance with human activity.

Clan seats held solely for governance would rule from a keep town without a focus circle - these were not located within the designate bounds of the free wilds, and were the backbone of charter law before the uprising incited by Davien. They administered the king
'
s justice in accord with those lineages holding the land rule.

The crown was the voice of land rule, and governance, under the charter written by the Fellowship Sorcerers. The sanctioned High Kings enacted the first-hand liaison with the Paravians, and were the protectorate for the free wilds. They presented the petitions to the Centaur guardians, then executed the final arbitration, as the agents of the Fellowship
'
s compact. They appealed, and enacted, Paravian decree, concerning what could and could not be altered to preserve the overall harmony of the land
'
s mysteries.

Each child born into clan lineage was subject to testing at each generation through the trial of Paravian presence. This testing could be refused, in which case, the candidate would revoke his charge to interact with the free wilds. A town-born individual could undergo the same test by free will choice. In rare cases this would occur, and a new lineage might arise from one candidate -just as an older, established lineage might become degraded, weaken and fail. Lacking Paravian presence, in recent generations the determinant factor has blurred. By the time of this novel
'
s setting, the range of human talent cannot be identified with such definitive accuracy. Those individuals with latent or weakened talent are no longer able to prove out the direct function of heritable lineage. Thus, a
'
talent deaf town born will see no apparent reason why the free wilds should not be considered another ripe acre of earth, ready for exploitation. Nor would such a person recognize why the old blood traits were not arbitrary politics.

The prolonged absence of the Paravians now has created a schism that is growing increasingly difficult for each side to reconcile. The non-talented individuals do not discern the wider perceptions of their clan-
born
fellows. They see no convincing case left for the restraints imposed by the lapsed system of charter law. There is no such division of interests between the old blood lines and those who still follow charter law, since the underlying reason for the Fellowship
'
s restrictions is still actively recognized.

The Designate Free Wilds, and Execution of the Compact

At the forming of the compact, which defined the terms for Mankind
'
s permission to take sanctuary on Athera, the Fellowship Sorcerers had dispatched or contained the worst of the drake spawn. Paravians were in fact leaving their Second Age fortifications, which were tied to the web of Athera
'
s mysteries by means of the focus circles. These structures are intersect points - connections that link the resonant flow between sites that comprise Athera
'
s most exquisitely sensitive ground. The human families required immediate shelter. Those arrivals who already possessed the requisite awareness to inhabit a fortified circle, or who had talent that could be heightened to flower in proximity to such places were appointed charge of them.

The initial grants named in Third Age Year One went to individuals with the strongest heritable family traits - those born talents already able to perceive within the necessary range to handle the guiding purpose of their guardianship. These rulers also were charged to hold sacrosanct the high resonance land that could not be disturbed by any human activity. These areas were designated as sacrosanct areas deep inside the free wilds. Markers were set forth by the Centaur guardians delineating sectors where Mankind was not entitled to trespass.

Other acreage was not so critically reactive. There, new towns were built for those who had less natural
'
tolerance
'
for the higher resonance state of the original Second Age sites. Such land was given over to agriculture and roads in allotments generous enough to allow Mankind to raise children and survive. The governing seats for these settlements had an elected council, presided over by a family lineage chosen for tenacity of character more than aware talent. These seats were appended following Third Age Year One. Here, humanity had license to keep their affairs as they wished, based upon certain precepts laid down by charter right to inhabit that territory. Alestron fell into this category. So did Hanshire. A mixed population lived in these subsidiary towns. The least sensitive people found most comfort in the smaller villages and tended to choose areas furthest from the free wilds.