Ceru (City)

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Ceru
High Elven City in the
Holy Lands
CeruSymbol.png
The Symbol of Ceru
Country:
imperialorenia.png First Holy Orenian Empire
HouseAmador2.png Duchy of the Holy Lands
Founders:
Larien Taralym
Distuth Thruill
Halvard Bennett
Builders:
Distuth Thruill
Halvard Bennett
Facts of Ceru
Government: Elven Collective Community
Religion: No official state relgion
Economic: Prosperous Township
Military: Provincial Militia
Language(s): Common & Elven


Ceru.png
"The Elven City of Ceru, Located in the Renatus Holy Lands, circa 1370"

Ceru was a Elven sister city to Haelun'or in Asulon, Founded in 1364. It is most known for being the location that Ellir’siol left to with her supporters during the Haelun’or Schism. Interestingly, the settlement later became the keep of the Order of the White Rose.

History

Founding

Circa 1360, the Okarir’sil (Marshal) of Haelun’or, Nelecar, overstepped and abused the powers of his office by punishing citizens with excessive punishments for small crimes, without due process or a fair trial. Ellir’siol, the Okarir'leyun (Steward) of Haelun'or opposed the Okarir'sil Nelecar’s actions. She initially sought to arrest Nelecar, however felt she needed more support within Haelun'or to do so. She, therefore, set up secret meetings with other like-minded conspirators. However, one of these conspirators, a High Elf named Arthane Lazul, betrayed the rest and told the plot to the Okarir’sil. In response, Nelecar banished the conspirators except for Ellir'siol, as he did not believe he had the authority to banish a council member of Haelun'or. However, after losing most of her companions to Nelecar's actions, Ellir'siol decreed the banishment of every citizen of Haelun'or from the city, in protest.

Not expecting the severity of her words to become realised, a large portion of the citizenry of Haelun'or followed Ellir'siol's decree and left upon ships and sailed South. The Banished sailed until they reaches a small archipelago located to the East & South-East of the Respective Humans Realms: The Kingdom of Renatus and the Kingdom of Salvus. A quote from The Haelun’or Schism Volume II by Lucion Sullas:

”Piling upon boats, [Ellir’siol’s supporters] left the Emerald Isle to the town of Ceru-- a cliffside village and quasi-colony that bordered the Kingdom of Renatus. Here, they settled for a time, and waited.”

There, Distuth Thruill, a infamously paranoid wood-elf, alongside his companions, Larien Taralym, herself a High Elf, and a human named Halvard Bennett, Founded the Settlement of Ceru. Ellir'siol was not a founding member, as she stayed behind in Haelun'or for a while, before also following through with the banishment. As such, Distuth became the de facto Leader of Ceru.

Upon founding the settlement in 1364, the Cerueans came into contact with the Principality of Vendere, then led by the Prince of the Isle, Jack Amador. The two settlements of Ceru and Vendere were able to peacefully co-exist, starting trade and friendly relations between the Humans and the Elves on the Isle.

Departure of the Haelun'orians

The Ceru Docks

After existing for a few years, the settlement’s inhabitants received a missive from Dio, the second Maheral of Haelun'or & the successor of Larihei; The Missive from Dio requested the return of the Haelun'orians to their homeland. To which, without questioning or hesitation, the majority of the Haelun'orians did. This left a rump population of mixed Elves and Humans. As a result of the Ceru Haelun'orians returning to their homeland, Nelecar fled in disgrace, fearing repercussions for his own actions prior to the banishment. In a remarkable twist of his own fate, Arthane Lazul became the new Okarir’sil and Ellir'siol remained in her post as Okarir'leyun. It is often considered a miracle that no blood was spilled during this debarcle.

In 1378, Jack & Jiraiya Amador realized the exodus which had taken place at Ceru, which had been built up during the Haelun'orians stay on the Archipelago. After consulting with the Distuth Thruill, it was agreed that the settlements of Ceru and Vendere would merge and become a single polity under the rule of the Human House of Amador, led by the Prince Jack Amador. This merging of the settlements created the merchantile City of Crestfall. After absorbing a reasonable Elven population with this merger, the Archipelago came under the Scrunity of the Church of the True Faith, sending a man of the cloth to go investigate the cultural habits and inhabitants of Crestfall, returning with a scathing report back to his superiors that the city was full of degenerates and heretics.

Rise of the Order

The Citadel of Ceru

Whilst nothing was done in reaction to this report at the time, a group of Holy Warriors founded the Order of the White Rose in 1384, in the Barony of Rivia, located just outside the County of Ildon. This group, led by Peter Chivay, the titular Grandmaster of the Order of the White Rose, along with his Knightly-Companions: Velwyn Ashford, Baldir Toov and his brother, Thomas Chivay, got hold of the report and decided to act upon it. Agitating for the expulsion of the Elves from Human Territory, the Order of the White Rose asked the Church of the True Faith to recognize the Archipelago as a Holy Land, that required claiming by the Humans and cleansing of Elven Taint. In 1390, The Order of the White Rose committed the Crestfall Massacre. The Massacre started when an Unknown Knight of the Holy Order, disgusted by the presence of Sadia, a Dark Elf in the employ of the House of Amador was slaughtered, snowballing into the Knights of the Order, led by Thomas Chivay, rampaging through the streets of Crestfall and resulting in the deaths of an untold number of Elves. By all rational standards, these actions constituted a Genocide and contemporaries describe the architect of the event, Thomas Chivay as The Butcher of Crestfall. Ceru, once full of life, was now an abandoned ruin.

In 1399, recognising the strength and influence of the Order of the White Rose in his own lands, as well as in the wider Kingdom of Renatus, [[Jack Amador persuaded the Order of the White Rose to aid him in his conquest of the rest of the Archipelago, resulting in the consolidation of the Islands under the House of Amador. Thereafter, the Church of the True Faith recognised Jack Amador as the Duke of the Holy Lands.

The Coat of Arms for the Order of the White Rose

In 1404, Jiraiya of the House of Amador sold the territory comprising of the former settlement of Ceru, for an undisclosed sum, to the Duchess Helaine of Auvergne, from the House of Guivret, who attempted to revive the area as an industrial settlement. However, after failing to garner any new settlers to the region, Ser Edmond Brunswich, then the Lord Regent of Auvergne gifted the land to the Order of the White Rose, where they constructed a Stronghold on the land, formally renaming the site as the Krak du Rhoswen, which stood for the "Fortress of the White Rose". The Fortress would become the center of the Holy Order's machinations and, from it, muster forces which fought in the following conflicts:

  • The Jaruga War (1408)
  • Imperial Invasion of Malinor (1408)
  • Hansetian-Blackmont War (1410-1415)
  • Blood Pact War (1418-1420)

Following a series of disasters that afflicted Asulon from 1414 to 1420, such as the Plague of Asulon, as well as floods, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, the Order of the White Rose was forced to leave Krak du Rhoswen & the Renatus Holy Lands, along with the Imperial Entourage and the House of Amador. However, despite storms separating the House of Amador from the Imperial detachment, the Order of the White Rose would find new roots in Anthos.

Geography

A Rudimentary Map of the Duchy of the Holy Lands, Ceru Was located on the most northern point of the largest Isle

The Settlement of Ceru was located on the Northern tip of the major island of an Archipelago, located to the East of the Kingdom of Renatus and South-East of the Kingdom of Salvus, guarding the strait that separated the Sea of Renatus and the Ocean Beyond. The Geography of this area was strangely mountainous, despite being an isle, suggesting that Ceru was founded on a tectonic fault-line that rose the ground. However, the later earthquakes that would affect Asulon did not affect Ceru.

Despite holding a critical strategic location that could strange the economic relations built by shipping lanes, Ceru did not take advantage of its placement, but it was later used and fortified by both the House of Amador and the Order of the White Rose.

Due to the rough terrain, the diet of the citizens of Ceru were mainly consisted of fish and root vegetables, relying on the importation of wheat from Vendere. However, the grazing of some animals was not impossible, just difficult.

It is important to note that the port at Ceru was used for the mass emmigration that became known as the Exodus to Anthos, second only to the Port of Crestfall, which held the Imperial Fleet.

Notable Figures

  • Distuth, a wood elf, was the most prominent leader of Ceru.
  • Larien Alfakyns (Nee Taralym), who was a member of the leadership in Ceru.
  • Kolyat Alfakyns, who aided his wife Larien and later became an influential high elf.
  • Ellir’siol, Okarir’leyun who started the movement to Ceru.
  • Nelecar, Okarir’sil whose policies prompted the desertion from Haelun’or.

Society

The citizens of Ceru were composed of all subraces of elves, contrary to that of Haelun’or. Similar to that of High Elven society today, everybody shared in the wealth of the society.

Literature

The city is mentioned in the book series The Haelun’or Schism, specifically the second volume , which can still be found in the Eternal Library of Haelun’or today.

Random Tidbits

  • The Drake Slayer, Seth Calith, was the first citizen to move to the settlement and secretly aided Ellir'siol.
  • Nelecar knew of Ceru’s location but did nothing to oppose its existence.

References

Warning - Contains external links

  • A untitled album of the City of Ceru [1]
  • Accepted City Application [2]