Manaes

"How dare you threaten Dynbodauls, and even in front of the Goddess Herself? I am the direct heir to the first Dynbodaul, and the first king, you will give me the respect I deserve." Manaes shouted to Hyrash.

— Book of Irath, The Taroths' and Dynbodauls' bond

Manaes is probably the most known king in Agia. He is believed to be the direct descendant of the First Dynbodaul, and the last king of all of the Dynbodauls.

Not much is known about Manaes other than what is written in the Book of Irath. We know he used to be a great king up until the bond-breaking with the Taroths happened, which turned his legacy into a cautionary tale of who to aid in war.

The Bond-Breaking

Part One

The first part of the bond-breaking happened because of another Dynbodaul named Welifar. He was a feller, who had happened to cut a Sibling tree, which also kills a Taroth. Manaes tried to defend Welifar when the Taroths demanded his execution to rectrify the accident.

Manaes made a compromise, by telling the Taroths that Welifar would be exiled, after that they would be able to do whatever they wanted. This, in his mind, was the only way to avoid a bloody war.

But as Welifar was about to be taken away, Rathias had disguised herself as a Dynbodaul and killed Welifar. The Taroths became furious that this happened and only saw the Dynbodauls as killers and greedy usurpers. The Taroths demanded that the disguised Rathias should also be punished.

"I agree that the subject of mine should not have taken matters into her own hands. This is not acceptable to commit murder when another sentence had passed by your kind, woman." Manaes said.

"I sentence you to death by hanging, for the killing you commited was not approved by any, and thus it is murder in the eyes of Dynbodauls. Take her to the tower for tomorrows execution." Manaes ordered. Rathias got carried away, it was her intention to get caught until the perfect moment arose.

"If she is not met by death tomorrow, none Taroth shall ever be friendly with Dynbodauls again." Hyrash said. But a rift was torn between the two species, a rift of mistrust which could not be removed again.

Part Two

The next day, Rathias had escaped the tower and no one knew how. They searched the entire tower all day but without any success. Manaes was furious and frightened of the prospect to meet the Taroths and Irath, and explain to them that the prisoner they wanted, was nowhere to be found.

Evening came and Manaes returned to the Taroths without the prisoner, this caused the bond between the Taroths and the Dynbodauls to break.

"From this day on, the bond of Taroth and Dynbodauls have been torn asunder, and nothing can repare this damage. Taroths no longer have trust in Dynbodauls, no matter any said words. From this day on, the Taroths no longer consider Dynbodauls for friends." Said Hyrash.

"I am truly sorry, I beg of you not to do this. One mistake should not break the bond." Manaes said heartbreakingly.

The bond-breaking with the Taroths became Manaes shame that was the first step to taint his legacy.

The First Species War

One day, the Unghrefeimian king Urgan the Usurper sought out Manaes. He explained that the Taroths and Môrwens was plotting a war against him. That he had merely sent out fishing boat to catch fish, which had angered the Môrwens somehow. He asked Manaes for help to defeat any aggressors should there be a war. Manaes already felt exposed after the bond-breaking with the Taroths, and in this vulnerable moment he agreed.

Urgan further explained that is was not fair how his people and the Dynbodauls always contributed with sharing their discoveries and skills with the other species, yet received next to nothing in return.

"Will you aid me should they try to attack the Ungrefeims?" Asked Urgan.

"Since the Taroths have severed the bond between the Dynbodauls and Taroths, I shall." Dynbodauls need allies. Said Manaes.

After hearing that Urgan had forcefully stolen the precious pearls of the Môrwens and killed them in the progress, Manaes started to regret agreeing to aid Urgan in the upcoming war. Veldur, the elected leader of the Ghrefeims, came to Manaes and tried to persuade him from taking Urgan's side.

"After the bond between us and the Taroths was broken, we felt vulnerable. I saw the Ungrefeims be in the same situation, and thought we could join in common cause. But I have had my doubts when I heard about what he did against Môrwen." Answered Manaes.

"You can still mend the bond between Môrwens and you, for it has not been broken yet. But if you support Urgan in his greed to get those pearls, then you will break another bond with not just one, but two Firsts." Explained Veldur.

"You are once again right. Though I had hoped I would not go down known as the Breinex who did not keep his word." Said Manaes regretfully.

Manaes kept his word to Veldur, he did not get involved in the war, but this caused mistrust amongst his own people, who thought of him as weak and unworthy as a Breinex. They joined Rathias out of spite and left for the north.

Manaes' Death and Successors

We only have a few records of him, written just after his death to explain the succession to the throne. Manaes seemingly died from shame and sorrow for the chaos his reign had been. He slowly withered away and became a mere shadow of himself. His two daughters tried to help him restore some life in him, but in the end he could barely remember them. He died when he refused to eat on his last days, it was as if he had completely given up.

Manaes had no male heirs, only his two daughters were the direct descendants of the first Dynbodaul. The Thing was distraught that they had no guidelines when it came to female heirs, and the two sisters both wanted to become the monarch. The Thing was so divided that the only solution they could come up with, was to divide the kingdom into two, and name the two new nations after the two sisters, Aistana, and Estain.

Legacy

Manaes' story is a cautionary one, he is known to be a weak king who always talked the other species after their mouth and did not stand up for the Dynbodauls when needed. Yet he is always refered to whenever a new succession happens in any of the royal families in Western Agia, since he was the last king of all of the Dynbodauls and the protector of the land given to the Dynbodauls by Irath.

Many royals strive to prove their lineage by tracing it all the way back to Manaes. And while it was his daughters that inherited his kingdom, Manaes still holds power over all the royal families in Western Agia.

Many think Manaes might not have been the first choice for a king, that another of his family might have been the first choice, given his poor style of ruling his people. But there are no such records of such a king. The lineage is not as direct in the Book of Irath that it write every king that has existed, which makes it impossible to actually study whether Manaes was truly a descendant of the first Dynbodaul. But in the Book of Irath he claims to be so, so why should we not trust that?

Social

Religious Views

Manaes was a firm believer of Irath, he always sought to get her approval and listened to her when she came with advise. At least that is what the Book of Irath tells us. We cannot know for sure whether he truly was an Irathian, or if he even had such an effect on the relations between the species.

Species

Dynbodaul

Circumstances of Death

Died from shame, withered away and became but a shadow of himself.

Family

Breinhoeleid

Children

• Queen Aistana