Aurum Fortis III

King/Emperor Aurum is a textbook example of the philosophy "peace through power." He cares greatly for his kingdom and his family, and it is this intense love that drives him to do all he can to protect them.
Aurum assumed the throne of Sigil relatively young; barely over thirty when his grandfather and previous King, Aurum I passed away. Aurum the II was already well into his 70s at the time and abdicated his claim to the throne in favor of his eldest son. Aurum III was coronated as Sigil continued to thrive on a booming upswing of economic growth and academic discovery, something he was happy to see continue. He proved himself to be a populous king to his people, presenting himself as an academically minded, peace loving ruler who did his best to mediate growing tensions between Sigil's sister cities of Cognance and Penance. Behind the scenes, he was a shrewd and cunning diplomat. Like most of Sigil's royal family, Aurum was trained in the ways of arcane magic and knew how to put it to good use. One of Aurum's first acts as King was to restructure Sigil's relatively loose assortment of mage guilds into a unified, government force: the Crown Mages, which acted as both the crown's arm in all things magical and arcane as well as an elite police force that "kept the peace" both within and without.
Shortly after ascending to the throne, Aurum also began creating a family of his own. He was coronated along with his wife, a kind woman called Marieta. Their relationship was strong and true, but unfortunately, they had trouble siring an heir. Marieta had many times been told she was ill-suited for childbearing by her physicians, but the burdens of statehood demanded that they at least try. After years of failed attempts, they finally conceived and gave birth to the Princess Tria. Unfortunately, Marieta did not survive the birthing ordeal, and despite the priest's best attempts, she was unable to be revived. Aurum strove to honor her memory and be the best parent he could be to Tria. He struggled, but ultimately, the two formed a strong relationship, though Tria often tested Aurum's patience and vice versa. Tria's drive for individualism and freedom only strengthened Aurum's resolve to protect her at all costs, however.
Despite his proclivity to consolidating power, Aurum was content to keep his influence more or less within the walls of Sigil and its vassal states. All that changed when Aurum learned of a great evil lurking in the shadows throughout the land. His new arcane advisor, the elf Palios Pseftis, told him a great deal about the dangers of the Fundamental Avatar, Cataclysm; how he would sow discord and anarchy throughout the land and feed off it to increase his own power. With the flames of war stoking again between Cognance and Penance, Aurum recognized a grave danger. He believed in his heart that Requiem would burn if its more rowdy states could not be brought to heel.
So Aurum and his advisors plotted to reunite the disparate trio of city-states; something not seen since the days of the Haedian Empire centuries prior.
The plan was a resounding success. After a brief campaign of consolidation involving martial law in Penance and arranged marriage between Aurum and Queen Domantus of Penance (which would later result in the birth of his second child and first son, Orin), a full alliance was forged between the three cities. Aurum proclaimed this arrangement the Second Haedian Empire and himself as Emperor.
With a united Requiem in his hands, Aurum was eager to lend their strength to the fight against Cataclysm, joining the White Tower Alliance and sending his armies in force into the region of Anhangia in Kentro to "convince" the holdout cities of Nessbrim and its vassals to join the cause.
However, many close to the Emperor began to notice a change in demeanor. His ambition had been ignited into a roaring flame and some believed his drive to protect his people has caused him to grow arrogant. He believed that he alone could unite the people of Archaios under a common banner, and that they would not truly be safe until the entire continent is reunited under a new Antecea.
For better or for worse though, his ambitions were never fully realized. He struggled for years after the Collision to maintain his new holdings, but the demand of reconstruction forced him to yield Anhangia. While he maintained a united Empire within Requiem, it never again expanded beyond the banks of the Klove River. Eventually, Aurum came to accept he would not be the one to see a united Archaios and, as age slowly crept up on him, adbdicated in favor of his daughter, Tria Fortis.

Life

1171 1281 110 years old

Current Residence

Sigil