Serenarchs

The Serenarchs are an order of mages which acts as the governing body for the country of Zepyria. They have been the active governing body of the country since its formation from separate city states, an event which marks the starting point of the Zepyrian Calendar.

History

Prior to the formation of the Serenarchs, the lands now known as Zepyria were inhabited by villages of merchant communities which traded freely using the established ancient trade routes. An increase in the use of the routes by citizens of the northern country Veridia saw an increase in talks of trying to integrate the southern trade towns into the nation. Many of the traders and merchants were unhappy with the taxes such an integration would impose, and word began to spread among the villages of the dangers of the nation to the north who wanted to erase the culture of the south. Rumours and xenophobia ran wild and unchecked, until the village leaders finally came together to decide what should be done. These leaders were independently elected by the 8 villages using different criteria, however each was highly skilled in early Manacraft as it was considered a marker of intelligence, wisdom and creativity among these early cultures.
It is said that the group met in the largest of the villages, Elysara, where they debated and bartered over the course of 7 days and 7 nights, a legend which is told to give reason to the layout of the Zepyrian Calendar weeks, which are made up of 7 day cycles. During this time, the leaders managed to come up with the foundations of a unified nation, so that they could protect each other from the threat of outside interference and maintain their own cultures.
The name they chose for the new country, Zepyria, and the organization, the 'Serenarchs', which was chosen to reflect their intention of preserving peace within the nation, and to avoid the mistakes which plagued the formation of Veridia. The Serenarchs still act as the ruling body for Zepyria to this day, and decisions pertaining to the running of Zepyria can only be made with unanimous agreement from all of the 8 members.

Religion

Zephyria is the only country of the Tapestry which has true freedom of religion. Though alternative religions are not strictly illegal in Veridia and Hinotoa, they can be somewhat stigmatised, Zephyria has strict laws which control anti-theistic attitudes and behaviours, though these laws rarely need to be inforced by the Serenarchs due to the attitudes of Zephyrians being generally more open to alternative points of view.
Due to the nature of the Serenarchs being intentionally representative of cities, towns and villages from all corners of Zepyria, there is consistently religious diversity among the members of the order. It has become somewhat of an unspoken rule that two followers of the same religious sect should not hold positions as Serenarchs simultaneously due to the value seen in varied perspectives.

Foreign Relations

Though the original intention of the order was that of culture preservation, this has recently become an out-dated view, especially in light of improved political relations between Zepyria and Hinotoa and, though to less of an extent, between Zepyria and Veridia. Younger Serenarchs especially are keen to promote the exchange of cultures between Zepyria and the other nations, as they see this as simply an extention of what the order was designed to do, though on a much smaller scale.

Type

Governmental, Senate/Parliament

Government System

Magocracy