The Dominae Royal Family
The rule of the Dominae family began in 620 when the 5 Kingdoms were united under the rule of, then, General Obereth Dominae.
Obereth ruled fairly, though with an iron fist, quelching any uprising from the now dismantled former kingdoms, and ushered in a golden era for the entire unified country of Ombre.
Obereth met Serrah, a young military nurse at the time, near the end of the 5 Kingdoms war and fell in love. At the end of the war, he and his lieutenants searched the country, to bring Serrah to the new capital of Unity, to court and eventually marry.
Serrah presented Obereth with 3 sons over the next 7 years, dying in child birth with Kourwin.
Obereth married Emilia 9 months after the death of Serrah. The country needed a queen and the royal children needed a mother. She stepped in to the role of motherhood to the 3 boys as if she had given birth to each, and regardless of their distance, rebelliousness, or disrespect, she was fair and loving.
Errick did not get along well with his new step-mother, still feeling the loss of his mother. Radeck was too young to understand, so grew to love his step-mother as the only mother he remembered, though he remained a little aloof to her affections. Kourwin was still a new born and knew no different, though, as he got older, he understood from Errick's behavior that she wasn't really his birth mother. Of the three boys, Kourwin had the best relationship with Emilia through the years.
Though the marriage of Obereth and Emilia began more as a diplomatic union than a romantic one, somewhere about 3 years in to the marriage, it became public that Emilia was pregnant. Initially, this was a national scandal, with the gossip mongers whispering that Emilia had been unfaithful to the King, though, it was also believed that the marriage was loveless. This was far from the truth. The King did, at first, refuse to lie with the Queen; each having their separate chambers. But, as time passed, the King healed from the loss of his first wife, he saw Emilia's beauty and grace, and the way she treated his children, whom he did love dearly. Eventually, he did fall in love with his wife, and began to share a bed with her. They had grown comfortable with the separate sleeping arrangements, and their chambers shared a private entrance, so the one or the other would retire to their own bed after a night of passion, the servants never the wiser.
From the day she was born, Irahnie was "daddy's little angel". Though she had her father wrapped around her finger, she grew up strong, independent, and everyone around her loved her; even Errick, regardless of his relationship with her mother. As a young woman, she had many suitors vying for her hand in marriage; all were genuinely enamored by her, with none pursuing a coupling as a method to get closer to the King. She eventually fell for a noble in Glasheer, and maintained a residence in both Glasheer and Unity. She had a great life with a large family, and spearheaded many social services in Glasheer. She died at the age of 41, after a on-going heart condition.
Emilia began to cough up blood near the end of her 35th year. The realm's healers were able to prolong the illness, but it did eventually take her at 37 years old. Heartbroken from losing a second wife and love, and watching Emilia wither away, Obereth was devastated; he would not recover enough to marry again. Obereth filled the rest of his days with the company of casual relationships, concubines, and an occasional consort. He was a good father to his three sons and his daughter, and a caring leader to the nation he led.
When Obereth passed away at the age of 57, Errick took the throne. Errick's reign was very short, lasting just over a year.
Errick had grown to be a prideful man, hating to lose, especially arguments and card games, feeling that his place on the throne afforded him the right to win either. On the night of his death, hosting a small card game attended by men that he considered friends, some from his childhood, Errick cheated his way to nearly cleaning out the coffers of the participants. One player had finally had enough and snapped. He confronted Errick, who continued to deny any wrong doing, and in a heated moment, stabbed Errick before anyone could stop him. Errick was dead within minutes, a healer never having a chance to attend to the wound. The player had bad luck at cards, and at life; his blade had slipped between two ribs, through the King's heart, and severed the descending aorta. Errick bled out quickly.
The player was tried and hung for regicide, though the incident was personal and not political, and incited by the King's cheating.
Radek, being the next oldest heir, was crowned just 3 weeks later. His reign was six and a half years.
King Radek was, by all accounts, a better leader than Errick; many of the kingdom comparing him to his father. In Radek's first year of rule, he reversed many of Errick's royal edicts, reducing taxes and improving trade among the states.
Radek's reign ended with a fateful hunting trip. Radek enjoyed the outdoors and game hunting. On his last day in this realm, he sunk an arrow in to the shoulder of a large buck. Breaking from his group, he raced through the brush to retrieve his trophy. As the brush opened up, the buck laying in the glade, Radek approached. Kneeling down to begin dressing the deer, Radek was attacked by a large, old black bear trying to claim the kill. The bear mauled Radek, battering him to and fro like a rag doll. In a final blow, the bear bit down on Radek's neck, crushing his upper spine and wind pipe. Radek's party had arrived in time to witness the killing bite, but were powerless to stop the bear from killing Radek, or to heal Radek. They did manage to take down the bear after the fight, and it is now mounted in the Hall of Remembrance in Unity Castle.
Kourwin was crowned in 657 at the age of 30 years old. Of the brothers, he was the one that wanted the throne the least, but he flourished in the role of King. The states were at rest, the guilds prospering on improved trade between the states and other continents, and the people were happy. Work was plentiful, and the population expanded.
Kourwin married the Duke of Algermon's second daughter, Alissya Covendash in 659 and within 2 years, the twins, Rian and Rieanne, were born.
Alissya passed away from old age in 692 and Kourwin followed in 697.
The twins were very close, closer than any normal siblings. As puberty set in, and with the twins being isolated within the walls of the castle, an incestuous relation began. By the age of 20, Rieanne was pregnant, and Rian was the father. Though not legal to marry, the twins stayed as close as any husband and wife, and raised Elric together until their deaths.
Rian was the first to pass away; dying at the age of 29. Rian had fallen ill and the medical staff, the realm wizards, and the clerics could not save him. It was rumored that his father had never accepted the relationship between Rian and his twin sister, and eventually, the king had Rian poisoned. This is far from the truth; Rian had succumbed to cancer, a common enough issue at the time, though cancers as a whole were not known to the medics and healers. The cancer had attacked his pancreas and his death was relief from the agony of the last couple of months of his life.
Reianne never got over the death of her brother and lover; she eventually stopped eating and wasted away, dying in 696.
Prince Elric was a difficult and premature birth. As a result, he was a sickly baby, young child, and young man. He was the last of the Dominae bloodline and took the throne in 697, after his grandfather's passing. He married Queen Cymoril. At this time, Elric is believed to be unable to produce an heir to the throne and the Dominae blood line may end with his death.
Maps
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Ombre
Type
Political, Family
Leader
Location
Controlled Territories