The History of Pellem Vero
Pellem Vero is one of the oldest kingdoms to be born from the Bazuar Empire’s collapse, and it has a long history of war that easily proves how it was able to survive for so long.
The People
The common people of Pellem Vero are raised from early childhood to become soldiers in their adulthood. They are trained to survive in bitter conditions with little sustenance and no comforts. They are trained to handle any weapon with ease, to navigate foreign territory unseen, to battle to the death without hesitation or, in better terms, empathy. This tradition has been in place for so long that no record even exists of other systems within Pellem Vero. The people don’t question their traditions and they don’t question their King- doing so instantly pins you as a traitor.
The Royal Customs
Heirs to the throne are not decided through bloodlines like many kingdoms, but rather through a duel to the death between the ruling monarch and any common person of Pellem Vero. If no one proposes a duel against the ruling monarch, then the title of Heir moves to either the eldest child of said ruling monarch or, if they have no children, an apprentice of the monarch’s choosing. The duels have been few and far between and are treated as sacred rituals when they do arise.
The Wars
Pellem Vero has a long history of war, given how old and military-centered the kingdom is. Every one of those wars was started by Pellem Vero and won by Pellem Vero, and after every one of those wars, the King who led them to victory would twist the truth so that anyone who asked would believe Pellem Vero was the victim. That Pellem Vero was provoked. The soldiers showed no mercy and left no witnesses, and without survivors to tell the other side of the story, Pellem Vero saw no consequences. No records exist within the palace of wars past, not even maps of kingdoms past- all burned to ashes to protect the kingdom from the weight of its crimes.
The Royal Family
The house of Callaghan came into power when a palace knight challenged the King to a duel and won. The kingdom was recovering from a recent war in which they had claimed victory but lost a great many soldiers, and both the new King and his son after him avoided starting any new wars during their individual reigns. The current King, King Jannon, became Heir apparent after the first born son of the King suddenly passed due to unknown causes. When his father eventually died as well, Jannon rose to the throne and quickly chose a bride whom he gave the name Brita. The two ruled in relative peace for many years, eventually giving birth to a daughter who was then promised to the Prince of Prendre L’air in order to secure an alliance between kingdoms. Queen Brita passed suddenly when the Princess was still young and though the kingdom wept, life went on. Now the time has come for the Princess to be wed, and the kingdom rejoices.
The Plot
Even before Jannon became King, he hungered for the glory of war, of defeat and the adrenaline of battle. He poisoned his brother in order to gain the throne and as soon as he held power, he began to plan for wars to come. Pellem Vero’s nearest neighbor, Prendre L’air, became the obvious target of these plans due to their lack of military and apparent naivety. Jannon cultivated a distant friendship with the King of Prendre L’air and the kinship between the Queens of each kingdom strengthened that friendship. When children were both to both Queens, a son and a daughter, Jannon offered his daughter’s hand in exchange for an alliance between kingdoms.
From the very beginning, Deryn was nothing more than a pawn in King Jannon’s game. Being a girl and unable to take the throne per Pellem Vero’s tradition, she was a disappointment in the King’s eyes, only useful as a martyr when the time should finally come for the war to begin.
King Jannon was not a faithful or respectful man- he often ordered female palace servants to sleep with him. One such servant became pregnant within the same cycle as the Queen. She was terrified the King would kill her or her child, and she hid her pregnancy until the last moment, dying in childbirth. The King named the child Callum and had him raised alongside his daughter, already beginning to sort how a son would factor into his plans.
Callum was raised as a personal knight to protect the Princess, who was in turn raised to be as alluring to the people as possible. The people had to love her, adore her, or the King’s plan would be all for nothing. For his plan was thus: marry Deryn to the kingdom of Prendre L’air, only for her to be killed, and her murder pinned on the very man she was set to marry. Such an act of hate would spur the people of Pellem Vero into action, and glorious war would begin.
Of course, someone had to orchestrate her death- and who better than King Jannon’s own son, groomed from birth to follow every order without question, same as the common people?