Rupert Mitfield
Your Majesty Rupert Francis Mitfield
"There will be a day where you do not need us - where you do not need me anymore. Where our Dominion finally knows peace once more, where mothers can walk in beautiful gardens without having to lay flowers for their murdered husbands and sons. Until that blessed day, expect me to bear my teeth, to stand my ground, and to snarl against those who have drawn innocent blood from me and mine, and watch as I crush them to powder and dust!"
Rupert Mitfield was the 6th Monarch of Mithambe, in place of his elder brother, Jared Mitfield, who succumbed to sequelae from an attempted assassination.
Considered the first of House Mitfield to officially stray away from the Mitfield's established relationship with the Church of the Great Design, Rupert also penned the Modern Mithambian Constitution of 1807 (the Rupert Accord), which marked the transition of the Kingdom of Mithambe from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy.
King Rupert inflicted great damage on the unchecked power of the Church of the Great Design, including urging the newly formed Lower and Upper Houses to maintain checks of power on each other (and the Church as an extension), as well as forming the Talons to perform clandestine operations in dismantling the Church's open secret of its own standing armies. Historians refer to him as Rupert the Ruthless, in his dogged pursuit and punishment of the Church for its role in the untimely death of his older brother and the near destruction of his family.
King Rupert passed shortly after the first lawful transition of ceremonial power, from himself to his firstborn son, Charles Axel Mitfield. Rupert's skull was laid to rest beside his beloved brother in the Mitfield Mausoleum, and a ceremonial blade made from his bones and cremated ashes was added to the familial Armory.
History
Birth and Early Life
Rupert is the second son of Edward Mitfield and Giselle Forney, making him the 2nd in the royal succession, and the only other "legitimate" heir throughout the eyes of wider Vinesia. Even as his father continued his adulterous ways and sired more children, Rupert never got close with them - preferring his elder brother Jared's attention and adoration.
Religious Rebellion
Attempted Assassination
In 17... in the Chase Garden of Clifract, Rupert and Jared were enjoying a picnic, when several members of the Church's clergy approached them, with the intent of admonishing Rupert for his lack of attendance at the 1st day prayer sessions in the castle's chapel. Rupert politely but firmly rebuffed them, stating his intent on focusing on his studies instead of "wasting time praying with trinkets".
Bowing and dismissing themselves, the clergymen of the Church walked away, leaving Jared and Rupert be. Before Jared could ask Rupert about what transpired, four men dressed in black robes appeared, and set upon the picnic. In an attempt to thrust a syringe into Rupert, Jared intercepted the attack and took the injection in Rupert's stead, before losing consciousness.
Two of the assailants would be gunned down by Tobias, who was arriving late and with food in tow. The one that injected Jared with the unknown fluid was incapacitated and captured by Rupert, while the last assailant fled, but not before tiefling Caris Kalaine hit them with a tracking invocation, to determine their location in the near future.
Jared and Rupert were immediately evacuated to Manhesto Castle by the 1st Royal Knights, and Jared was brought to the Royal Physician's office for ongoing care. The Royal Physician, Marley Owson, declared that Jared was merely exhausted, and that he was injected with a sedative - though Jared did not appear to be recovering consciousness.
Unconvinced of the Royal Physician's declaration as to what injury Jared was inflicted with, Rupert had a sample of Jared's blood taken, and had Tobias run it to the lab at St. Asha's hospital for secondary analysis. His suspicions and fears were realized when the lab at St. Asha's returned results the next day, showing that Jared was injected with a potentially lethal dose of Beruelean wasp venom.
With King Edward currently away for business and with Jared incapacitated, Rupert was the highest ranking royal in all of Castle Manhesto, as the 2nd heir. Rupert brought his findings to the entirety of the Royal Court, including members of the Royal Physician's Office. While Chaplain Irmin attempted to reason with Rupert, the Royal Physician was taken away by members of the Church's militant arm from the royal chamber.
Jared's condition began to improve once antivenom treatment was started, but Rupert began to become paranoid of how the Court appeared indifferent to Jared's suffering, and to the fact that the Royal Physician's Office lied about their medical findings to the Court without a hint of remorse. Rupert suspected that the Church would not remain idle for long, following such a brazen attempt on his life, and reasoned that Jared's intervention was unplanned for and ultimately trashed the original assassination attempt.
Formation of a Shadow
Following the events of the Chase Garden, Rupert implicitly knew that the security put up within the castle itself was not as airtight as his father insisted. Convening with his trusted friend Tobias, the trainee Knight kneeled before the prince and offered his blade for Rupert's sake. Rupert smiled and asked Tobias to stand, declaring him his unseen shadow - thus laying the foundations of the modern day Talons.
Throughout the rest of his time at Inverdale, Rupert and Tobias would continue to scout out prospective soldiers with absolute loyalty, and their efforts netted them seven other individuals that would eventually form the core of Rupert's secret cadre. Upon graduation, they chose not to be inducted into formal orders, but instead were hired directly by Rupert as part of his retinue.
Ascension
The ascension of Rupert Mitfield to the throne was unintentional and outside of his control. The main precipitating event would be the eventual death of Jared, and the gradual mental degradation of King Edward, causing the 5th Court to call his competency into question.
Jared's Death
Jared Mitfield would eventually succumb to the poisoning that was inflicted on him in his youth, causing his mana pathways to ignite and his Third Eye to be unable to safely vent the excess. Jared Mitfield would be the first recorded progression of hyperetheria.
Upon hearing the news of his brother's agonizing passing, Rupert locked himself away in his study for three days and two nights, refusing all other company. He wept bitterly for his brother's demise, and was heard begging Amarise to trade places with him, or bargaining up to half of his remaining life just so he could see him once more.
Upon exiting his study on the fourth day, looking haggard and emotionally infirm, he was informed via royal messenger that he is now the Heir Apparent of the Kingdom of Mithambe, and that his father passes his congratulations. It is reported that Rupert exchanged words with the messenger that were to be relayed to King Edward, though the exact transaction was lost.
Cleaning House
Despite being the new Heir Apparent, Rupert knew that his father's indiscretions and promiscuity has resulted in the siring of dozens of illegitimate children, all of whom were vying now for the position of the Crown as heirs presumptive. Having done his research with the help of his newly formed Talons, Rupert knew which of his half-siblings were secretly in cohort with the Church of the Great Design, as well as their plans for their attempts to take over the throne.
Without warning, Rupert had his Talons mobilize in full force, and to gather his traitorous half-siblings for the slaughter - a crimson portent into how the early years of his reign were to appear. On the Night of the Summer Solstice in 1799, Rupert and his Talons ripped into the gathered presumptives in the Royal Hall, once the delegates from the Church had been dismissed for the night. A Church plant among the servants caught wind of the chaos, but was promptly silenced and his body added to the pile that was disposed by loyal menial workers, and their remains were disposed of - incinerated and their ashes scattered over Manhesto Bay.
"What do you mean they're all gone? They were some of our largest backers, and they've suddenly disappeared?!"
Over the course of two months, Rupert had his Talons perform multiple hits on those who were confirmed sympathizers with the Church of the Great Design, and had households of his half-siblings' retainers consigned to sword and flame. The local Constabulary detectives could not piece together how so many of these strangely affluent citizens were disappearing and their households butchered, with no trace of their assailants being located.
Coronation
"You thought you had it all under control, didn't you? That you could have anything and have anyone, merely because you were King. Your dominion was pathetic, father, and I will show you how a kingdom should be run, instead of letting heretics and whores trample all over you."
Two days after the Summer Solstice, King Edward officially abdicated the throne, and crowned Rupert in his place, closing the 5th Royal Court and opening up Rupert to establish the 6th Royal Court. In a change from the established tradition, Rupert did not formally assemble the 6th Court immediately, instead performing critical changes and staff changeovers to better suit the castle for what he would require in his quest to stymie the Church.
Cleaning the Castle
One of his first actions was to immediately have his father's previous retainers interrogated by the magi of his Talon group, and to determine their loyalties. Out of the ... retainers that were commissioned by Edward, only six would walk out of the dungeons intact - the rest having been determined to have engaged in treason and condemned. The same purge of staff continued throughout all of the ranks, with only the Royal Knights having proved loyal without a doubt.
By the end of the coronation week, Castle Manhesto was eerily quiet, with only a fourth of its staff having survived the purges. Those who survived and had proven their loyalty to the Crown were appointed as new leads throughout the castle, and would form the core around which Rupert would rebuild his kingdom.
Cleaning the Court
With the core menial and clerical staff having been cleansed, Rupert then turned his attention to the Royal Court former. Many of the courtiers were from dynastic lines that have served the Mitfields since the establishment of the Kingdom, but certain nobles were being sponsored by the Church to establish doctrines and laws that would exclusively benefit the Church.
"Some of you have trampled on my forefathers' dominion for long enough. It is time to pay for the comeuppance that you rightfully deserve.
On the ... of 18..., the Royal Court was locked down by the 1st Royal Knights and the newly formed Talons. When Royal Physician Marley demanded to know what was going on, the Court was greeted by Rupert thrusting his sword through Marley's midsection, before ripping down and disembowelling the physician, instantly killing him. Even as Marley's blood cooled on the marbled floor, Rupert had his Talons interrogate and ethereally inspect everyone who was inside of the court chamber, and those whose loyalty was suspect would be apprehended and brought down to the dungeons for enhanced interrogation. Those who were guilty of treason without a shadow of a doubt were immediately executed, kicked to the ground and impaled by Talons wielding heavy black swords.
By the time night fell, there were no remnants of the upper echelons of the 5th Court - most were dragged away screaming to the dungeons below for enhanced interrogation and torture, while those who were found immediately guilty of scheming against Rupert were executed in the court chamber - lined up and shot in the back of the head, or thrown to the ground and hacked to pieces by the Talons' blades. Most of the lower echelons were found guiltless, and were permitted to stay in the chamber as menials dragged the executed away for disposal, and cleaned the marble floors of blood.
With the Court now purified, Rupert looked to the surviving lords and ladies, and stated his intent - that no ascensions to backfill the recently vacated ranks will be performed until Rupert destroys the cancer that had infected the Kingdom as a whole. No sounds of dissent were heard in the Court afterwards.
The Mithambian Civil War
"How could I sleep soundly at night when the vultures claw at the door of my home, sinking their claws into my people and tearing apart their families as a vulture devours carrion?"
Three years into his reign, the Kingdom of Mithambe would find itself torn apart within by civil war, as adherents of the Church faced off against the Crown's loyalists.
Accusations of Illegitimacy
In the beginning of 1803, the Church of the Great Design released a scathing report that painted the late Giselle as a prostitute and as someone whose bloodline was so-called "impure" and "incompatible" with the Mitfield bloodline, openly calling Rupert's divine right to rule into question. It outlined that out of all of King Edward's children (not counting that everyone other than Jared and Rupert were illegitimate), Rupert was perhaps considered the most "tainted" due to his maternal parentage being that of "a common backalley whore".
The incident drew attention from all of Vinesia, particularly from its other True Royals. Most of the other royal lineages kept their opinions and hands out of the brewing conflict, as House Mitfield was already well-established as a royal lineage, despite King Edward's indiscretions. House Stillingfleet of Cleolinia and House Bellamy of Pehamber threw their support behind Rupert - the support of House Bellamy quelled further dissent within the ethnic Moumeans within Louthia, while the support of House Stillingfleet (and, by extension, Tiõ) quelled any further doubt that Rupert was legitimate, for only the divine could recognize the divine. The other kingdoms pressured Design missionaries within their territories to not press the issue further, as the spreading of such damaging rumors could turn hostile attention towards them.
Declaration of Internal Hostilities
Finally incensed beyond quenching that the Church would attack his legitimacy and spit on the graves of his beloved mother and brother, Rupert assembled the 6th Royal Court, his retainers, and his overall and regional commanders. Outright declaring the Church of the Great Design as a seditious organization, he authorized all operations to seize the Church's assets and its top clergy, and to formally dissolve the Church of any state authority it once possessed.
As the news spread throughout the kingdom and throughout the Louthian continent, unrest boiled over into overt warfare in the streets, with the church's most militant adherents engaging in firefights and brawls with local Constabulary units. To make matters worse, local divisions within the Constabulary and the Mithambian Army have resulted in entire units, precincts, or companies and battalions turning coat and fighting against the Crown. Out of all of the Mithambian fighting forces throughout the fighting, only the Mithambian Naval Department and the Knightly Orders remained loyal, with the Mithambian Army having mostly turned coat and the Aeroservices Branch having torn itself apart with brutal internecine fighting.
Dual Blessing
At the declaration of hostilities, two figures entered into the Royal Court, and were unimpeded by both the Royal Knights and the Talons. Owing to his bloodline's latent connection, Rupert stayed their hands, as he knew the ones that had entered his court - all in attendance were surprised as Rupert himself walked off of the dais, and kneeled before the two.
"What did I tell you, Brother of Mine? He recognizes Us."
"I usually do not put much value into a mortal's words, but clearly this one is built different. Perhaps wandering with You was not as much of a waste of My time as I had feared.
Pleased that the divine power sleeping within the Mitfield bloodline did not die, Amarise and Anais acknowledged Rupert and his efforts, and provided him with the spoken blessings of both of them, solidiying the legitimacy of his reign and his actions with the 6th Court as witnesses.
Mobilization
With a dual blessing in hand, Rupert took up his sword, and summoned all fighting forces that were loyal to the Crown and that stood against the sedition of the Church.
Post-war Era
"His spirit is whole and healthy, but his body is now broken. Such is the cost of channeling My power without preparation."Due to the combat injuries he accrued throughout the course of the Mithambian Civil War, Rupert would never again take up a combative role. However, now that his kingdom have been wrested from the hands of traitors and cultists, he would be allowed to properly settle with the pen, and begin making the Kingdom of Mithambe better for all - his experiences and the stories acquired throughout the conflict have given him ideas of how to properly manage his kingdom.
The New Constitution
"I may be a great soldier, but I am not an excellent administrator. However, for our kingdom to thrive, we need both - and the Royal Court alone is no longer sufficient."
Having seen not just the horrors of war, but also the insidious effects of corruption and neglect among his own people that fought alongside and against him, Rupert knew that the Royal Court not only needed to be cleansed, but that it could no longer provide the proper governance that the Kingdom of Mithambe needed.
To this effect, the New Constitution was meant to formally separate the Crown's "divine" authority and governance, and have appropriate civilian servants and administrators oversee the governance of the realm where the Authority of Amarise was not required or necessary to enact changes. From establishing proper governors and systems of bureaucracy to disassembling superfluous bodies and attenuating the overarching power of the Nobles of the Court, the New Constitution was seen as the Kingdom of Mithambe's stabilization package, and that which would enable it to prosper earlier than its political rivals.
Abdication
With the severity of his infirmity growing, and with Charles' maturation, Rupert declared on 18... that he would formally step down from the throne, as per the outline of the very document he penned. With a small but proud smile, he stepped off the throne, and placed the crown on his son Charles' head, thus terminating the 6th Royal Court and closing the chapter on his reign and on a tumultuous period in Mithambe's history.
While most of his courtiers were formally dismissed, his retainers voluntarily remained by his side for the rest of their lives. One of his retainers, Douglas Shrike, would eventually become his son-in-law through marriage to Sarah Mitfield.
Later Life and Death
With the governance having been formally passed onto the Upper and Lower Houses, Rupert could finally rest, and spent the rest of his life pursuing the arts, including painting portraits of his family and retainers. He would also spend his time properly manifesting his Authority with regular tea parties with Amarise, although he would never properly manifest an Emanation.
Rupert would eventually pass at 56, setting the record as the youngest Mitfield patriarch to pass away. The official cause of his death was residual combat injury from his service in the Civil War. He was survived by his wife Juliet (who would pass away two years after him, having never remarried) and his two children, Charles and Sarah.
Legacy
Although his reign is considered the shortest of the Mitfield patriarchs, Rupert's reign is considered one of the most influential in terms of the Kingdom of Mithambe's development, and his actions are considered to have shaped not just the kingdom, but Louthia and Vinesia as a whole.The New Mithambian Constitution
Rupert's greatest portion of his legacy, aside from his wartime feats and horrors, would be the New Constitution from which Mithambe would be permanently shaped against.Crimes Against Sapients
In 1805, Rupert was summoned to face his peers at the Royal Vinesian Summit, in response to calls by the Church of the Great Design that Rupert was intentionally engaging in wholescale military operations targeted specifically against the Church's adherents. Although the accusations were formally dropped, the rumor that Rupert was a madman and a psychopathic ruler were perpetuated by the Church's clergy, as a means of discrediting Rupert and his operations.The Talons
"We were formed to serve to the death and beyond. We are the Invisible Wings of the Crown, and it is us who will perform the King's bloody edicts, for only we are strong enough to bear its burden."
Relationships
- The Sixth Monarch of Mithambe
- Rupert the Faithless
- Rupert the Ruthless
- The First Prince of Mithambe, Rupert
- The Second Prince of Mithambe, Rupert
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