Citrivale
The fortress of Citrivale marks the clear border and trade route between the elves of the Tenashi Kingdom and the dwarves of Valtkos Wingo. Today it functions as a way point for any commerce that takes place between the two states, and is the location of the dwarven embassy among the Tenashi. It is forbidden for those who are not forest elves to pass beyond this citadel into the woods, unless offered an explicit invitation by the royalty of the kingdom.
Purpose / Function
The citadel at Citrivale was built long before the Tenashi were even considered as a possibility. The elven culture in the Feywild was in full swing, and they were more than capable of defending their own realm. Still, after over five hundred years of exile, the elves began to wonder how humanity and their other old enemies were doing upon the Material Plane. They sent small forces through their various portals, and established outposts. Citrivale was one such outpost, designed to be hidden in the deep woods of the Nameless Empire and to report back anything they observed or witnessed of the humans' activities that could threaten the Feywild.
Alterations
The collapse of the Feywild changed everything for the elves, and the garrison at Citrivale were shocked by the loss of communication with their brethren. They were nearly certain that they could be the last elves in existence, until the arrival of a horde of refugees through the ancient Feywild gate to the north. The refugees settled for a brief time at Citrivale, building a village around it. The village was a ramshackle affair that no one would ever have associated with elves, and these buildings were abandoned as soon as Tenashi itself was planned and created. The ruins are now overgrown, within the woods surrounding the fortress.
After the new kingdom was created, Citrivale resumed its former operations, this time focusing more upon local threats, rather than the entire continent. Citrivale was the home to human prisoners taken for interrogation, as well as scouting and raiding parties looking to maintain supplies and information to the rest of the elf people. In time the elves deployed their magics to turn the new forest they found themselves in into a replica of the old Feywild, and there was only one access point left that was not surrounded by traps and hazards: Citrivale. The fort was revised, camouflaged, and reinforced, being nearly tripled in size and strength.
Today, Citrivale has been revitalized, now that the Tenashi's existence is no longer a secret. A dwarven embassy was established within the halls of Citrivale, and recently the humans of Alsona were admitted to. Citrivale's primary purpose is to now control the access of these outsiders into the heart of Tenashi territories.
Architecture
To many forest elves, Citrivale is an architectural mongrel, bent into its current form out of necessity, rather than a masterwork of beauty like most of their settlements. The original structure was bent out of the local flora, much like their newer cities, but increased demands of the refugees caused a myriad of more ramshackle buildings to be created out of blocks of stone. Recent modifications have taken into account the newfound visibility of the fortress to outsiders, focusing instead on modern defenses instead of aesthetics or camouflage.
Founding Date
91 BF
Type
Castle
Parent Location
Owner
Related Ethnicities
Owning Organization
Comments