Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
New to the forum? Check out our Introduction Page and New Members Guide! 1.1: Statistical Updates have been completed for the month.
Add Reply
Cetatsenia-Demoness Meeting
Topic Started: Nov 18 2013, 07:41 PM (8,320 Views)
Cetatsenia
Member Avatar

If one was to take a place from the nation of Demoness to Cetatsenia, one would most likely see the dichotomy that the nation was rather known for. In the southern parts of the nation one would notice the highlands, heavily forested and almost untouched by man aside from the winding roads and the occasional town. But further north, the terrain would give away to the lowlands of the Centric Basin. This land was flat, and lacked the expansive forests, though there were smaller isolated forests. But the main difference one would notice would be the level of development, it was dominated by a large amount of farmland as the lowland soil was incredibly fertile, but there was also the occasional city, bustling with people.

Albraustana-zid was one such city, and it was the primate city of Cetatsenia, the richest and most populous and most important of them all. It was built along both sides of the great Albastru River that ran through much of Cetatsenia, though most of it was on the southern bank of the river. This was because of the simple fact that Albraustana-zid had begun life as three separate forts and settlements built along the river. Albrau and Stana had been built on the Southern bank, and over time had grown together until they were finally united into Albraustana. And while Zid would eventually become part of the greater whole, for a long time it was simply considered a city separated from the capital only by the river.

Since it had grown organically over the numerous years, and had once been three separate cities, the streets and roads had a habit of being winding and could be complicated to navigate for those unfamiliar with them who had no map. Though the roads had over time been widened and revamped in order to accommodate cars, and the newest sections of the city on the outskirts actually had a gridded street plan. As it was the middle of the day, the streets were currently filled with cars and buses, and the sidewalks filled with pedestrians, while the newest addition to the city's transportation network, the subway system, ran below the streets.

While there was a number of attractions in the city, such as the museums and baths, one of the most prominent is the Palatul Regal, the Royal Palace. The site of the original settlement of Albrau and lying atop a hill, it has been torn down or otherwise destroyed and then subsequently rebuilt several times throughout history. The most recent being the ascension of Ioan I to the throne of Cetatsenia, though it has been renovated and updated since then.

The Palace itself is surrounded by a wall that rings the entirety of the hill, with only a single gate leading up to it. The wall is patrolled by a special corps of Cetatsenian soldiers, easily identified by their bright blue ceremonial uniforms and ornate, pointed helmets. After that, a road lead up to the palace proper, an expansive building with a stone exterior that shared more in common with a medieval castle than what one thinks of when they hear the word 'palace'. It was home to a fair number of servants, as well as the guardsmen, and a small number of government officials. Most of those lived out in the city, and worked in their own buildings. It was absolutely huge, and in front of it was an expansive pool of water. Overall, it was an impressive sight that could be seen from a good portion of the city.

At the moment, however, Voivode Gavril IV Suveraneshti was not at his home in the palace. Rather he was at the airport, which had been cleared of any citizens besides him, the guards arrayed with him, and those who worked there; all flights to this airport had either been delayed or rerouted to other nearby airports. Today was an important day, as this was the decided upon day of Jia Li's visit to Cetatsenia. As two nations whose relationship could be accurately described as "mutually neutral", this was a rather important meeting, and Gavril did not want to mess anything up. So he stood alongside his older sister Andreea, the Steward of Cetatsenia, in the airport, ready to head out onto the tarmac to greet the Empress as soon as her plane set down.
Edited by Cetatsenia, Apr 22 2014, 09:58 PM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Replies:
Cetatsenia
Member Avatar

Gavril nodded, "Of course. Ze less time spent dwelling on Traian the better, in my opinion."

They began to walk once more, and Gavril gestured to the next painting along the wall. It was of a young woman who would have looked incredibly beautiful were it not for the fact that she had several scars on her face, wore an eyepatch over her left eye, and was missing one of her ears. And one could easily see the sorrow and pain evident on her face, even through the painting. "Zat is Liliana," Gavril said sadly, "But I zink we have spent enough time discussing ze poor girl. So let us not dwell on it."

And the tour continued once again, Gavril taking Jia Li and the Demonessians through the history if Cetatsenia's Voivodes. Again most of them weren't particularly important and weren't particularly interesting, until they came to a portrait of a young woman who was incredibly different from all her predecessors in terms of appearance. Her skin was even paler than most Cetatsens, the normally black hair was instead shockingly white, and her eyes were a light pink; it was rather evident that the woman was albino.

And when they looked at her portrait, Gavril and Gavrila both smiled. Then Gavril turned to the Demonessians, "This is Voivode Aurora III," he said, "A woman who was well known for her kindness and charity, even in her short life."
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Demoness
Member Avatar

Jia Li smiled too, but for a different reason: her aunt Eris Katsuragi. Though not a true albino, the woman had always had pure white hair and blue eyes and it was assumed she was actually a platinum blonde, despite the improbability in her genetics. And unlike Aurora, she was not known for charity or kindness, even though she had both; instead, the actress was most well-known for the scandals in which she was named. Jia Li had only ever met Eris in passing, but she'd heard enough about the frustrations of dealing with her from others.

"Short life?" she asked curiously.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Cetatsenia
Member Avatar

"Well, Aurora was not just an albino," Gavril said, "She was also quite sickly and weak from birz. In fact, most did not expect her to survive to adulthood."

"Boy, she sure did prove zem wrong," Gavrila said, "Lived to be almost zirty years old. Granted, she was bedridden for most of zose years, but she still survived."
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Demoness
Member Avatar

The expressions of the Demonessians softened, especially Jia Li's. "My mother was like that as well. She inherited it from her father, who barely made it to forty. She was never able to go out and perform charity though. Her allergies didn't permit extended trips outside."

Her expression became more sympathetic as she asked, "Did she have children?"
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Cetatsenia
Member Avatar

Gavril shook his head sadly, "No, she did not. In fact she never even married; wiz her healz ze way it was everyone believed zat ze strain of childbirz would have most likely killed her."

"Aurora did not go outside much eizer; much of ze charity work was psychically done by ozers, wiz Aurora just initiating and paying for it," Gavrila explained, and then she grinned, "And her oldest brozer always made sure zat ze money always went where it was supposed to. He really cared about his sister, probably more zan anyone else in ze world."
Edited by Cetatsenia, Dec 8 2013, 08:28 PM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Demoness
Member Avatar

Jia Li saddened, frowning sympathetically. "It's good that she had her brother, but it's sad that she didn't experience motherhood, even if it probably would have killed her. It's worth the sacrifice." She fell silent, thinking about her mother Mona. Jia Li's pregnancies had been difficult and childbirth had nearly killed her each time, but she still believed it had been worth it. She wondered if her mother had felt the same, watching her abdomen expand each week, or if she regretted trading her life for her children's. Her father had always made her believe no life had been worth Mona's, so she always imagined her mother was a saint, maybe even like Aurora.

Xel noticed her distress as he returned to the conversation and subtly massaged the palm of her hand with his fingers, reassuring her. "What sort of charities did she initiate?" he asked.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Cetatsenia
Member Avatar

Andreea nodded at Jia Li in agreement, "Yes, it is sad zat she never got ze chance to be a mozer. I absolutely love my children, and I agree zat it would very much be worz ze sacrifice. My children's birzs may have been easy, but would gladly die for my children."

Both Gavril and Gavrila looked over at Andreea and smiled, it was a very personal thing for her to say and it showed that she was beginning to treat this as more than a simple diplomatic meeting. Gavrila's smile had a hint of sadness to it however; she envied Andreea and her family a bit. Her ex-husband hadn't been the best of men, and they had never had any children together before their divorce. Then Gavril turned back to Jia Li and answered her question about Aurora.

"Well, she built numerous schools across ze country, built housing for and gave to ze poor, and overall did much in an attempt to better ze lives of her people, " Gavril said, "She lived plainly, and never spent any money on extravagances, preferring to give money away to zose who needed it over spending it on herself."

"She also had ze Aurora Bazhouse built," Gavrila said, "Don't know if you saw it on ze way here, big and fancy public bazhouse."

"Zer were public bazhouses before zat, but zey were smaller and quite simple," Andreea added, explaining the significance of the building, "Ze Aurora Bazhouse was more on par wiz ze bazhouses of ze rich and noble population, but Aurora had it open to ze public for free."

Then Gavrila chuckled, "If I recall correctly, it wasn't actually named zat at first. Aurora was too humble to name anyzing after herself; I believe she named it after her brozer in fact. Her successor changed its name to what it is now in honour of her."
Edited by Cetatsenia, Dec 8 2013, 09:00 PM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Demoness
Member Avatar

Jia Li smirked. "There has always been a distinction between classes, but you have to admire people who try to close the gaps," she replied. "People are people, despite how much money they have, and reminding people of that is important, especially those in charge or they'll only see people as figures rather than individuals. It's also important for the poor to be able to experience luxury once in a while because no one's life should only be hardship." She looked at Gavril. "I think Aurora understood that."
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Cetatsenia
Member Avatar

Gavril nodded, "I zink so as well. And it is a good zing too, Aurora is considered one of ze first of ze "Enlightened Voivodes", so to speak. It is a term used to describe zose Voivodes who essentially zought of ze monarchy as serving ze people razer zan ze people serving ze monarchy. Most of ze Voivodes after her, and all of ze modern Voivodes, are considered as such."

"She also did not zink she was worzy of extravagances," Gavrila added, "She had been born into ze good life, and she saw her people suffering and wanted to help zem. And she didn't see ze point in spending zings on herself, since she already had it better zan most of her people and she knew she wasn't going to live for very long anyway. So she zought 'what is ze point in wasting money on myself?'"
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Demoness
Member Avatar

"That is a very good view of the world, but unfortunately, not everyone thinks in the manner," Jia Li replied. "However, I am glad that she started a movement in your country of 'enlightenment'. It probably needed it after that other, unfortunate Voivode." She was still reluctant to say his name; part of Demonessian damnatio memoriae believed saying the name of the dead could capture the attention of their departed spirits and Traian would have definitely been condemned to walk the earth in Morante.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)
Go to Next Page
« Previous Topic · Archive · Next Topic »
Add Reply

Theme Designed by McKee91