King Louis Blindeye
King Louis Bosonoid (a.k.a. "Blindeye")
Mental characteristics
Personal history
The reign of Louis Blindeye begins with his father, Boso, a Formorian chieftain from the Forest of the Erlking, who led an army in the Erlking's conquest of Letha, focusing specifically on what would become the Kingdom of Arle and Tolosa. Boso gained a reputation as a ruthless conqueror and general, conquering large swaths of territory and leaving burnt ruins in his wake. This changed when he met and fell in love with the captive Gallian princess, Adelaide of Burgundy, with whom he had a child, Louis. Boso defected, defending the city of Arles from Arnulf, another Chieftain of the Erlking's army.
When the Erlking was defeated at the Battle of Tours, the territory that would become Arle fell to Arnulf, who arranged the capture and execution of Boso in exchange for sparing Arles. Adelaide and Louis were taken as hostages, but the princeling was spirited away to Tolosa before Arnulf could have him quietly killed. Louis gained the support of the King of Tolosa and the wyvern riders of the Meneziou Gwenn, launching a campaign against his father's killer. The pair met in single combat, which ended when the prince beheaded his longtime rival with the swing of his ax. Louis consolidated the tribes of Formorian and Bediz into the Kingdom of Arle, beginning his long reign.
Louis's position was threatened by two hostile groups. In the North, the remaining supporters of Arnulf pressed in from the Forest of the Erlking, remaining a constant threat to the region. At the same time, the South was threatened by increased pirate activity from the Saracens of Slaver's Coast and Outremer. The latter also threatened the stability of both Tolosa and the Golden Sea, allies of Louis from his initial campaign. Louis' military prowess and the relative stability of Arle itself allowed him to march into Tolosa and over the Meneziou Gwenn, where he came into a rivalry with Berengar the Incompetent, a regional warlord and then king of the Golden Sea. The nobility exiled Berengar and installed Louis, but his triumph was short lived, with continued attacks from the pirates along the peninsula and its shipping. His support among fickle nobility dwindled, and many withdrew their support, recalling Berengar, who defeated Louis in a pitched battle.
Taken before Berengar, Louis was made to take on an ere-hud, forbidding him from ever "looking upon the Golden Sea as his kingdom" ever again. His army returned over the Meneziou Gwenn. Berengar's return to favour was short-lived, however, and Louis was again called upon. He returned in triumph to the Peninsula, easily defeating Berengar's forces and crowning himself King of Arle and the Golden Sea. He established a capital in Verlupino, a small northern city, and a great feast was held. When night came, a rain of blood fell across the city and surrounding countryside, the first in a series of ill-omens that would continue throughout Louis' short reign. Animals would take ill and die suddenly, wells went sour and crops withered in the fields. Fear Gorta began to appear in citys under his reign and a Bloodmoon over the city of Serenissima led to a pack of Garwaf stalking the canals of the floating city.
The nobility sought out the wisdom of a Nathair sage, who instructed them that the source of the calamities was the breaking of the Ere-Hud. Louis could no longer serve as King, as his Sovereignty over the land had become corrupted. Following this advice, the nobility stormed the palace, putting out the King's eyes with a red-hot iron poker and exiling him from the peninsula. Returning to Arle in disgrace, Louis refused to step down, killing both his chosen successor and the Queen of Sovereignty and sealing himself within his fortress.
Louis remains in a state of near-death, never crossing the threshold into death or recovery. A perpetual twilight fell across the land and the Kingdom collapsed into a state of civil war as countless petty nobles vie for control, dark creatures and calamities stirring in the shadows.
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