Writerverse Challenge
Sep. 26th, 2012 04:13 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meridian_roseFor the writerverse challenge: describe the world you write in. This is from the series tagged c: Kat, and while I'm still figuring out all the aspects of the world and how it works – and so some things may change - there are certain aspects I'm sure of.
This is a fantasy world with strong Celtic, especially Irish, influences*. Once upon a time there was a lot more landmass, but the seas rose and swamped most of the continent.
The lands had been under a nominal diarchy. The Emperor and Empress fled to the surviving higher ground, she in the North and he to the South. When the Emperor died he sent his crown to the Empress and bid her join it with the two she possessed, and rule over all of the land.
Centuries later, the land has been split into many kingdoms and provinces. The ungoverned lands far to the South are of little concern to the northern administrative capital of the Citadel. Almost all of the northern territories are, despite varying degrees of autonomy, officially under the High King's rule.**
Kat's father was High King, though his authority was not absolute, having to work alongside the Council***. It was the Council who tried to keep Kat from her rightful position, denying her the position of queen until past the legal age, and doing their best to stop her becoming High Queen.
As a final push to put a stop to disagreements about her worthiness, Kat decides to go on the Grand Tour. All High Kings have done this, gathering tributes from the various kingdoms – alongside politicking and wife hunting.
Kat fights the Council tooth and nail over every detail of the Tour, but even once she mostly gets her own way, she's in for a shock. Outside the relatively sheltered environment of the Citadel she finds cultures where women are treated as little more than property – and places where gender is considered an unimportant facet of one's identity. Kat vows she'll make changes when she gets home – if she gets home.
Shortly before leaving on the Tour, Kat is accosted by a sorcerer-priest who lays a curse upon her, that one of her party will not return. Kat is already under a curse that, paradoxically, has given her a certain amount of power; what she says in the white hot moment of anger tends to come suddenly and fatally true, which occasionally silences her detractors. She also has nightmares, some of which she feels are prophetic, the most disturbing of which sees her dress and hands covered in blood.
Major mode of transport: horses
Magic exists: to some degree. Was stronger in past mythical Golden Age. Some modern magic we would consider science.
Religion: varies widely from The Benevolent Father, through The Lady, to whole pantheons of deities
* The "Old Tongue" they refer to is a bastardized/anglicized version of Irish
** I'm thinking of the Commonwealth as a real world analogy
*** President plus senate style, I think
This is a fantasy world with strong Celtic, especially Irish, influences*. Once upon a time there was a lot more landmass, but the seas rose and swamped most of the continent.
The lands had been under a nominal diarchy. The Emperor and Empress fled to the surviving higher ground, she in the North and he to the South. When the Emperor died he sent his crown to the Empress and bid her join it with the two she possessed, and rule over all of the land.
Centuries later, the land has been split into many kingdoms and provinces. The ungoverned lands far to the South are of little concern to the northern administrative capital of the Citadel. Almost all of the northern territories are, despite varying degrees of autonomy, officially under the High King's rule.**
Kat's father was High King, though his authority was not absolute, having to work alongside the Council***. It was the Council who tried to keep Kat from her rightful position, denying her the position of queen until past the legal age, and doing their best to stop her becoming High Queen.
As a final push to put a stop to disagreements about her worthiness, Kat decides to go on the Grand Tour. All High Kings have done this, gathering tributes from the various kingdoms – alongside politicking and wife hunting.
Kat fights the Council tooth and nail over every detail of the Tour, but even once she mostly gets her own way, she's in for a shock. Outside the relatively sheltered environment of the Citadel she finds cultures where women are treated as little more than property – and places where gender is considered an unimportant facet of one's identity. Kat vows she'll make changes when she gets home – if she gets home.
Shortly before leaving on the Tour, Kat is accosted by a sorcerer-priest who lays a curse upon her, that one of her party will not return. Kat is already under a curse that, paradoxically, has given her a certain amount of power; what she says in the white hot moment of anger tends to come suddenly and fatally true, which occasionally silences her detractors. She also has nightmares, some of which she feels are prophetic, the most disturbing of which sees her dress and hands covered in blood.
Major mode of transport: horses
Magic exists: to some degree. Was stronger in past mythical Golden Age. Some modern magic we would consider science.
Religion: varies widely from The Benevolent Father, through The Lady, to whole pantheons of deities
* The "Old Tongue" they refer to is a bastardized/anglicized version of Irish
** I'm thinking of the Commonwealth as a real world analogy
*** President plus senate style, I think
no subject
Date: 2012-09-26 04:00 pm (UTC)*HUGS*
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Date: 2012-09-26 04:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-27 10:33 am (UTC)This made me think of the Upper and Lower Egypt for some reason.
When the Emperor died he sent his crown to the Empress and bid her join it with the two she possessed, and rule over all of the land.
OMG the Double Crown of Ancient Egypt! O_O Is this it?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pschent
I'm sorry. I just adore everything about Ancient Egypt and I see references everywhere (even if there isn't any). x_x
Have you planned out the major stop points of their journey? I can't wait to see all the places you're going to take us! :D
As always I'm curious about the "anger" curse. Who put it on Kat or was she born under an unlucky (or lucky, depends how to look at it) star or something that gave the power to her? Or is it in her blood? Every N generations the curse awakens, or something like that? :D
And I absolutely want to know more about the Golden Age and Magic. :D
Please, bb, write MOAR!! *FLAILS*
no subject
Date: 2012-09-28 11:39 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-09-28 04:11 am (UTC)And Kat's conflicting prophecy stuff is fascinating, too. I'm all curious about who put the anger curse on her.
no subject
Date: 2012-09-28 11:40 am (UTC)I need to finalise that part myself, though I've got some of the details sorted!
Thank you for commenting :D