((OOC and meta: I'm changing my name lore-wise from "Solaire" to "Tarkus", both because I feel it fits better, and Soliare is a name that seems to be found only in Dark Souls, while "Tarkus" is a Nordic name.))
Hello. It is I, Tarkus, and I wish to make known the history of my homeland, Channoria.
I want to make it clear now: aside from some old books and historical records either kept in my hometown of Astora or found in my new settlement, most of what I am recounting is word of mouth history, so I apologize for any inaccuracies that may crop up in this text.
Regarding The Old KingdomI know, or at least suspect, more about the Old Kingdom than most average Channorians, because I was obsessed with it in a fanatic, patriotic sense when I was younger, and searched and searched for information on it.
The Old Kingdom is the original Channoria, long before the Mercurial Empire was even a concept, supposedly spanning several continents. Its heart stood in the middle of what would be an icy wasteland, uninhabitable for most. It was rumored to have advanced sciences, medicines, and even the power of flight, but I doubt any of these are true, if not just the last. Whatever its technological status was, it was brought down internally, in a conflict between its two joint leaders at the time, referred to as 'Coe and Teluca', exclusively in that order. I'm using 'referred to' here because it's implied that they chose another name upon entering office, for which they were elected.
In any case, they had disagreements on many matters, but never to the point of conflict, until one event. This event is unnamed, and I'm not even sure how is destroyed the kingdom. In any case, the kingdom fell and its citizens scattered to the wind.
New ChannoriaIt would seem two of the scattered citizens, two apparent friends, froze in a particularly harsh blizzard, but were somehow preserved, deep below the ice. An unknown event set them free, probably an minor earthquake near the coast, and set them both drifting out to sea. Landing in what would be Channoria, they set out to make a life for themselves, separately but meeting each other soon thereafter. They were Sketcher and Xethaios: ambitious, rash, perhaps a bit arguementative. It appears, at one point, they had an intense argument with the "Council of the Crowned" (I'm assuming this is something of the Empire's), but was quickly resolved, the matter dropped, and the land at peace. This peace was short-lived however, for it appears yet another internal schism brought the kingdom to low, of which there is a
detailed record of thanks to Teluca the Second. This, coupled with the departure of many of the inhabitants of the empire to the new lands, left Channoria in a sorry state indeed.
The Remants of New ChannoriaIn the aftermath of New Channoria's downfall, many villages remained loyal to the culture and laws of the land, Astora included. They used a common currency, a common language, and a more or less common legal system. Astora was one such village, built around a small archival library which kept records of the official and legal precedings of New Channoria (unfortunately, the library and much of its treasures inside were destroyed in a fire.) Other villages include (but are not limited to) Noria, Channa, Noxia (or something, I had it written down and am now unable to find it), Cretion and Meadtown (famous for their mead, which came in a variety of flavors.) My own village, Astora, was growing to be one of the larger towns, almost a small city; it was for this reason I left.
Teluca's Journey into the New ContinentAll the details I know of Teluca II's departure are included in the records I copied for the purpose of this account ((the link above)), so I won't expand upon that any further, other than to say that soon after Teluca II left the Council of the Elders disbanded, being largely unneeded. As far as I can tell Teluca came to the new land and settled in what is now the Kingdom of Valtaraz, I believe? I apologize, I have yet to become familiar with the kingdom names. From the looks of it, he intended to build a town where he settled, and from his various writings (or what's left of them) he intended to build several more, but he didn't get very far. It's probably for the better, his taste in building materials was...poor.
On ReligionOther than references to various gods nothing of Channorian religion has survived.
My IntentionsI am unsure of what I will ultimately do in this land. Right now I am making the settlement Teluca II made into a small village, but after that... I may stay in the village and continue building it up, or I may join another Kingdom. I currently live in the country I mentioned above, and for the time being plan to stay in the country. I may also travel to Ertia, for King Arjen extended an offer to become a subject of his, but I'm still undecided. I do know that I do not plan on striking out on my own and am happy to be subservient to another.
Or, and this thought just came to me, I could be a landless heathen and have multiple settlements in various kingdoms, living in them for a span and then moving. Or not.
OtherI found this. I'm unsure how it fits into the whole tale, and the rest of it is on damaged parchment, but I think given time, I can decipher it.
