The sandstone beneath his cloven hooves feels foreign and cold. Each step into the capitol upon the hard, cobbled road sends a tremor through his bones. He does not know his intentions—he does not know himself. He fears what he might be capable of...he fears the darkness looming like a sandstorm on the horizon of his soul. A black storm brews there, on the edge of day and night. It is neither and both. The heat of the sun and the absolute darkness of a moonless midnight. Sand billows...the wind howls and cries...his heart seizes and gasps; begs for both a new dawn and the certainty of death.
How can she be gone? And why?
Jahin is a simple man. He is not a man of cunning or manipulation; he is not a man of vision or possibility. He does not question the will of the gods; he does not stare beyond the stars that litter the sky in wonder and awe. He accepts what is and what is not. He is and always will be simply Jahin of the Davke. Fashioned from sand and sun and wind. His soul is laid bare for all to see; stripped clean and honest by the unforgiving sun and scouring wind. How can he be anything other than what he is? He will never be anything more and anything less.
So why is that this day, of all days, he looks to the sky and screams? Why? Why does he question the will of Solis? Why does he question everything he ever knew? Why does he have visions of past, future, present? Why does he map out every choice he ever made in his miserable, pathetic life; wondering where and why he went wrong?
What could I have done different? he thinks, his body wracked with agony and guilt. Why why why. He pleads for answers and finds none; the stars remain cold and dead as the petrified statue in the square before him.
Makeda was never his and she never would be (she was as wild and untamable as the endless desert abyss), but even so, he feels the possibility between them snuffed out like a match and as fleeting as a shooting star. Or was there ever any possibility? He knows his love and devotion was unwanted and spurned...but how can you choose who you love? How can you un-love someone you have loved since childhood?
He will struggle with these questions the rest of his life.
He finds he cannot forgive himself for turning a blind eye to the regime of Raum. If the Davke were safe, what did it matter that the entirety of Seraphina's kingdom was plagued with the shadows and monstrosities of Raum? If Makeda and Avdotya and his people were safe, what did it matter? Let them rot, he had told himself, countless times, as if that would make up for the horror birthed from Zolin's reign. After all, what had the capitol done for the Davke in that time of genocide? What is one mad king for another? This time his people were safe. Protected. There would be no death, no fear.
How wrong he had been.
He stands before the new king; eyes bleary from weeping in the desert over the bones of Makeda and her lonely, hungry death in the belly of the desert. His hate for the capitol (or does he hate himself, does he look to blame someone, something, anything else?) burns within him; a wildfire of grief and regret and guilt and things he could not quite put into words. How had it come to this; how had he come to hate his own country and the rift that has torn her asunder?
He watches the king closely. Who are you? The tattoos that litter his body are surreal and otherworldly. Are you a son of Solterra? He does not dare to hope. What a burden this self-proclaimed Prince of the Sun has taken upon his unassuming shoulders...how could this shining new light ever hope to heal the rift through Solterra if he did not even know her many peoples?
Jahin steps forward before he even realizes he has answered the call. Not this new and foreign king's call--it is Solterra that beckons him forth...it is the sun and the desert and the wind that calls him. It is the bones of his people littered in the sand and the blood of strangers that calls him forth. His own blood thunders through his veins; the sand-storm on the horizon of his heart billows black and angry and full of a furious purpose, the like of which he has never known before. He hesitates briefly, thinking of Makeda. He thinks of Avodtya and Seraphina. He thinks of the terror incited by both Zolin and Raum...he thinks of how he did nothing and how he is now faced with an opportunity to do everything for Solterra, for his people.
"I am Jahin. Desert-born and son of the Davke. I would stand by you as Regent and servant of Solterra. I would swear to hold you to your promises. And not just your promises to those who dwell in this shining city, but to all the peoples of Solterra--to the peoples who live feral and wild beyond these walls and have culture and laws of their own.."
How can she be gone? And why?
Jahin is a simple man. He is not a man of cunning or manipulation; he is not a man of vision or possibility. He does not question the will of the gods; he does not stare beyond the stars that litter the sky in wonder and awe. He accepts what is and what is not. He is and always will be simply Jahin of the Davke. Fashioned from sand and sun and wind. His soul is laid bare for all to see; stripped clean and honest by the unforgiving sun and scouring wind. How can he be anything other than what he is? He will never be anything more and anything less.
So why is that this day, of all days, he looks to the sky and screams? Why? Why does he question the will of Solis? Why does he question everything he ever knew? Why does he have visions of past, future, present? Why does he map out every choice he ever made in his miserable, pathetic life; wondering where and why he went wrong?
What could I have done different? he thinks, his body wracked with agony and guilt. Why why why. He pleads for answers and finds none; the stars remain cold and dead as the petrified statue in the square before him.
Makeda was never his and she never would be (she was as wild and untamable as the endless desert abyss), but even so, he feels the possibility between them snuffed out like a match and as fleeting as a shooting star. Or was there ever any possibility? He knows his love and devotion was unwanted and spurned...but how can you choose who you love? How can you un-love someone you have loved since childhood?
He will struggle with these questions the rest of his life.
He finds he cannot forgive himself for turning a blind eye to the regime of Raum. If the Davke were safe, what did it matter that the entirety of Seraphina's kingdom was plagued with the shadows and monstrosities of Raum? If Makeda and Avdotya and his people were safe, what did it matter? Let them rot, he had told himself, countless times, as if that would make up for the horror birthed from Zolin's reign. After all, what had the capitol done for the Davke in that time of genocide? What is one mad king for another? This time his people were safe. Protected. There would be no death, no fear.
How wrong he had been.
He stands before the new king; eyes bleary from weeping in the desert over the bones of Makeda and her lonely, hungry death in the belly of the desert. His hate for the capitol (or does he hate himself, does he look to blame someone, something, anything else?) burns within him; a wildfire of grief and regret and guilt and things he could not quite put into words. How had it come to this; how had he come to hate his own country and the rift that has torn her asunder?
He watches the king closely. Who are you? The tattoos that litter his body are surreal and otherworldly. Are you a son of Solterra? He does not dare to hope. What a burden this self-proclaimed Prince of the Sun has taken upon his unassuming shoulders...how could this shining new light ever hope to heal the rift through Solterra if he did not even know her many peoples?
Jahin steps forward before he even realizes he has answered the call. Not this new and foreign king's call--it is Solterra that beckons him forth...it is the sun and the desert and the wind that calls him. It is the bones of his people littered in the sand and the blood of strangers that calls him forth. His own blood thunders through his veins; the sand-storm on the horizon of his heart billows black and angry and full of a furious purpose, the like of which he has never known before. He hesitates briefly, thinking of Makeda. He thinks of Avodtya and Seraphina. He thinks of the terror incited by both Zolin and Raum...he thinks of how he did nothing and how he is now faced with an opportunity to do everything for Solterra, for his people.
"I am Jahin. Desert-born and son of the Davke. I would stand by you as Regent and servant of Solterra. I would swear to hold you to your promises. And not just your promises to those who dwell in this shining city, but to all the peoples of Solterra--to the peoples who live feral and wild beyond these walls and have culture and laws of their own.."
Which position are you applying for, and why would your character be well-suited toward it?
I am applying with Jahin for Regent. Jahin has lived in Solterra his entire life. He was Davke-born and raised but during the reign of Zolin he was captured and imprisoned. After Seraphina liberated him and many other captured slaves, he served in the capitol in the ranks of her Ifrisol. Once Raum seized power, he returned to his people in the Desert, assuming his debt to Seraphina paid. He has lived both lives (Davke and Capitol) and honestly cares little for the outside world (unless it concerns Solterra of course) and thus would be best suited for Regent rather than Emissary. He has only gone outside of Solterra’s borders one time (Arma Mountains). He is a provider and his people mean more than anything to him.
What is your current activity level, and can you commit to a reasonable amount of activity? How many IC posts could you make approximately each month?
I’ve recently returned from a summer-long hiatus (I work lots of overtime in the summer months), but hope to make 3-4 IC posts a month at the very least, and if I don’t manage this I have no problem stepping down and handing over the reins. Jahin is my main character at this point (I love writing him and have wanted to develop him further for a while now). I also have Polyxena in Denocte but she is more of a behind-the-scenes-when-the-muse-arises character. There might be another in the future, but along the same activity level as Polyxena.
Would you be willing to contribute plot ideas, lore, and court events? If so, do you have any existing ideas?
How would you like to see Solterra "rebuilt" post-Raum? What kind of events would you like seen, and multi-Court relationships?
I love brainstorming and plotting! Honestly I’d like to see Solterra become a “power-house”, so to speak. After Zolin and Raum, they really need a comeback! (Seraphina ftw did a wonderful job along these lines) And I think embracing the Davke and the Scorpions and parlaying with them would add A LOT of flavor and spice to the overall tone of Solterra. I personally think sub-groups can offer so many different possibilities! I also think it contributes to a kingdom being more than just boring black/white, good/evil….but more of a morally shady gray area, which presents opportunities for characters who are not necessarily a good fit for “virtuous kingdom life” to be involved in the making of big plots/Solterran life. I don’t see why Solterra couldn’t uphold the same values while embracing different cultures and ideologies to make it stronger altogether. I think people in the sub-groups would love the opportunity to be more involved as well!
Event-wise: Definitely reconnecting with other courts! Solterra has been a wee bit isolated these past few IC years. I think it’d be neat to have some kind of markets open in Solterra, where merchants from other courts can trade, mingle, etc., within the borders of Solterra and enjoy the great capitol Solterra has to offer. Multi-court relationships: Hey, if they can benefit Solterra, why not? But in my mind, Solterra doesn’t make friends with just everyone without benefiting themselves. It’s a give and take relationship with other courts. Jahin would lean very much that way, but I can see Orestes taking a different path in that regard maybe? (speculating here) and that would be good too, Jahin would be likely disgruntled but ultimately his main concern would be supporting Orestes and also balancing whether or not it benefits Solterra.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Oh gosh, not that I can think of? Other than excitement? <3
