Olha I Shiroko

Empress Olha I Shiroko

Olha I was the daughter of Ilya VII Shiroko and younger sister of Katarin I Shiroko. She is most remembered for her institution of the doctrine of Induced Regency. Along with this, she destroyed a slave revolt in the north of the empire, leading to a large massacre in the first use of the Ilyannoi for combat in two hundred years. Her actions, and the strict slave laws she enacted, led to her being called alternately 'the Cruel' and 'the Stern'.

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Born in 842, Olha I was the second oldest daughter of Ilya VII Shiroko. She was born three minutes before her twin brother, Niloko. However, as she was not a male, she would not marry her sister and become tsudaeba (royal consort). Instead, she was taught all lessons necessary to act as a support to Katarin I Shiroko. In these, she learned the minutiae of the twelve governmental departments, international politics, military strategy, history, and court etiquette. Through her childhood, she spent more time with her mother than father, who was busy teaching Katarin I how to rule the empire. Instead, she and Niloko became close despite the fact that they would never marry.
During her Attunement Test, she was determined to be an aliq-esh, equally attuned to heat and light magic. This was a blessing and curse. Both were necessary for the creation of the Ilyannoi and she was taught stitching magic. However, she would never make a Tsirin and thus her gift was considered a waste by the wider family, putting a strain on her relationship with Katarin, who had begun to carry on her father's paranoia. Katarin saw her sister as a potential threat.
In 864, her father retired and Katarin I ascended the throne, but did not take Niloko as her spouse. Olha I spent her time in the palace assisting her sister and working with her father, who had developed an addiction to celestial during the later years of his reign, using it as a treatment for his manic moods. She also helped care for her twin niece and nephew.
As Katarin I's paranoia grew worse, Olha I tried to convince her father to speak to her, given that he was the only one Katarin I trusted fully. However, his withdrawl symptoms left him so exhausted and out of touch with reality that he could hardly care for himself, let along speak sense into his daughter. Instead, Olha I and Niloko became the de facto heads of the empire, running the day to day operations while Katarin I lost herself in paranoid madness.
Several months into her sister's reign, Olha I was abruptly woken by Nioko who told her that Katarin I had murdered the twins and was coming after the family. She, Niloko, and Ilya VII fled to the old Shiroko home in Parishi, along with several other relatives who had managed to escape the Gandenye. While at the mansion, Olha I and Niloko conspired to kill their older sister, seeing it as the only way to save the family and prevent the empire from falling to ruin.
Olha I volunteered to sneak back into the Gandenye. While there, she entered the Imperial Residence while Katarin I was on her customary nigth walk, and poisoned her sister's drink. She used one of the Ilyannoi she had created to quickly run from the scene and returned to Parishi in two day's time, just hours before a messenger arrived with news of the baejan's (emperor/empress) death.
She and Niloko, along with the rest of the escaped family, returned to the Gandenye and, as the oldest of the remaining royal siblings, Olha I was crowned as the new baejan. She immediately married Niloko, their prior good relationship making the choice an obvious one. This would also secure both of their positions in case something happened. Prior to her reign, she and Niloko had conceived one child, hidden from Katarin, Vasyl III (862). After her coronation, Vasyl III became the tajanji (high prince/princess). Three more children were born after him: Liliya (866), Taras (869), and Memi (870).
In the first few years of her reign, she set to work on the doctrine of Induced Regency. This was meant to set out protocols by which a baejan could be temporarily removed from their position. Given the absolute authority the baejan had, the doctrine the meant to supersede that and be used only in times of extreme need. The various balances and safeguards put in place were added to ensure that it would only be utilized when absolutely necessary and not when a baejan was simply unpopular, but not unstable. After having to murder her sister, Olha I refused to allow any of the Shiroko to feel the guilt she held. Even though the act had been necessary, she retained the sorrow for the rest of her life.
In 872, a slave revolt began in Svantei Gansen and spread along the northern coast of the empire, reaching to Sori Ilaz. Slaves refused to work and actively attacked their masters, along with any free towns they came across. The destruction and violence led to Olha I using the Ilyannoi for war for the first time since the conquest of the northern territories during the reign of Svante II Shiroko.
She believed the public had forgotten their power and used each of the combat ready Ilyannoi to massacre the rebellious slaves. The battles lasted only a few months before the revolution leaders surrendered. Terror ran through all slaves in the empire and even those who had been freed. Along with this, the population was thoroughly reminded of the power the imperial family wielded, power that could be brought to bear against them. This drove a resurgence in worship of the Shiroko family among slaves as a show of loyalty to the dynasty.
In order to ensure this did not happen again, Olha I instituted a series of severe restrictions on current slaves, along with their descendants. This was the start of the use of the Eyudzeni Biiame to mark former slaves. Before this, former slaves did not have any marking indicating their previous status and operated just as any free person would have. Slaves, bound or former, also received harsher punishments for crimes than those who had never been slaves. These and other actions led to her earning both 'the Stern' and 'the Cruel' as monikers.
Olha I retired in 882, leaving the empire under the command of Vasyl III. She and Niloko spent the rest of their days in the family mansion in Parishi rather than remaining in the Gandenye. While there, she witnessed the first use of her Induced Regency doctrine when Vasyl was deposed for three months. She assisted in his treatment and, while sad her son was so ill, was also elated that the new system was functional. Twenty years after her retirement, in 912, she died in her sleep. Her body was transported back to the Gandenye and she was buried in the family mausoleum.

Life

842 916 74 years old

Birthplace

Gandenye

Place of Death

Parishi

Parents

Ilya VII Shiroko

Children

• Vasyl III Shiroko

Gender

female

Eyes

violet, narrow

Hair

mid-back, shining white

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

pale

Height

5'9"