Overview
Oldrir is the capital of the House of
Longardir in the Kingdom of Khisite. It consists of two large walls with towers attached to it. Various sections, most of them were the homes of workers on the greater island of An Glough, divide the capital in different areas of living and working.
Structure
There were farms in the south, a large port in the west, the homes of the nobility in the east and the castle in the north on top of the largest hill. Most of the workers - speaking of smiths, woodcrafters, weavers - were located in this area of the city, it even had something like a sewer system to flush out the waste into the sea. Not a good thing, but better than to sit on a steaming pile of dump.
As they were no part of the city itself, the sawmills and quarries of the south played a huge role in the wealth of the kingdom. The Iron Oak Forest was so vast, it could supply the kingdom for hundreds of years, not to speak from the giant quarries. Between the forest and the city itself were the farms. They cultivated all kinds of fruits since most sorts of grain was a thing they needed to import. Only a few kinds of grain could grow in the cold environment.
The port was big enough to support various kinds of ships, but had only the place for two warships at once. As for the marine they had four warships entirely made out of the dark brown, nearly black, iron wood. They were big, heavy and not fast, but could withstand bombardement except for the heaviest artillery. The port itself had a chain under water and some towers at each side, each tower had a ballistae and some archers on top of them.
Located in the western part of Oldrir the nobility had their homes. Since there were not many noble families they had the space and the gold to build homes entirely up to their needs. There are a few wide houses, three towers - because towering over them was literally a thing back in the day - and three big gardens with fountains and flowers.
And in the north, on top of the largest hill, lays the castle with its balkonies, defenses, towers and flags.
Castle
The castle sits on top of the largest hill, literally towering over the rest of the city. It was built a long time ago, brought down one time by war and rebuilt entirely with sealing the
██████ away, they hollowed the hill for the basement, the ritual chambers and everything magic.
Castle Tower
The Castle Tower is the last part of the castle. From there one have a beautiful view out of the many windows and small chambers. On top of the tower lies the council chamber where the royal couple meet with other couples or the council members to discuss certain topics. At the top of the tower there is also a platform, surrounded by round engraved pillars, accompanied by two large bookshelves, four armchairs with a table and one ocularum.
It is more a resting place than something else. The glass windows can't be opened and it is not sure what purpose the platform should have in the initial planning.
Upper Castle Body
The Upper Castle consists of a more chilled environment. There are three big libraries, two lounges, one big kitchen for the nobility and various private chambers, including one floor for the king, the queen, the couples and their children. There are many balkonies and windows with stained glass, sometimes a suite had more than one balcony. To get to the tower of the castle you need to cross the floor and take
The Spiral staircase. Each entrance is guarded by four guards and they are not the formal type with halberds; they wear longswords and daggers and are highly trained in close quarter combat.
Like the Lower Castle Body the entrance of the Upper Castle, the entrance and exit to the nobility floor, the libraries, and the lounges are also engraved with strong and ancient runes. The defense spells and rituals are engraved into the stone along the hallways. In addition to the magical defenses one of the former kings was so paranoid he ordered twohundred fully armed knight statues which are standing guard in the hallways. Rumor has it that those statues will defend the king and the queen when they were in danger.
That the death of the last princess due to a broken heart would end the bloodline, which was the greatest danger of all, no one could have foreseen. Not even the protective stone statues.
Lower Castle Body
The lower castle body consists of different lounges, small libraries, three different kitchens (for each part of the castle: High chamber, body, basement), rooms for the essential staff like housemaids, handmaidens, butlers, & personal servants. There are also all kinds of supplemental rooms for the kitchens, the servants and the guards. There is also an additional weapon chamber, just in case.
There are four chambers with ammunition for mounted slingshots and the slingshots itself. They can be attached to a stand or to different places in the entrance hall to defend the gate. There are a few movable stone-parts which act as defenses.
After the war which tore the castle down the
Longardir crafted spells and magical traps. Both of those were engraved into the floor and the walls of the entrance hall. In addition every door & doorway is also engraved with ancient runes to make sure no one could open without the right "key" or at least the right codeword.
After the entrance hall one will go through a well-guarded hallway and stand before an iron wood double-door. Also engraved with ancient runes. Behind that heavy door there lies the throne room with two thrones, one for the king and one for the queen. There are also a few armchairs at the sides of the throne room, mostly occupied by nobility or the other couples when not attending their duties.
Castle Basement
The basement spans under the entire hill and a few dozen meters under the city itself. There are a few tunnels which leads to four different escape routes, all of them lead into the open sea. There is only one route (the fifth) which leads to An Delf, under the Ruby Fortress and then to a door inside a cave on the mainland.
Inside of the basement the
Longardir entombed their political enemies, disruptive noble folk and sometimes unwilling marriage-parts, which the Longardir kept getting alive and drugged under their influence. But those small chambers are only a fraction of what lies beneath the castle.
The Longardir built the "Chamber of the Ancestors", the first room one will see when descending into the basement. It is a high round room with dozens, hundreds of small indents. Every indent houses two vials with the blood of the female & male counterpart of the marriage. A golden plate states their names and bloodline and/or house from where they ascendet.
From the Chamber of the Ancestors leads a spiral staircase deeper into the stone of the island. As soon as possible the first small doors emerge from the dark stone. Behind those more or less featureless doors are small libraries located; laboratories for research (do not ask...), and prisons for artefacts, foreign or not.
As the staircase comes to an end, one stands before a large black stone double-door, engraved with old and poweful spells and runes. If one can open this door, one emerges into the central ritual chamber. The whole chamber consists of black and white marble with a round altar-like platform, also with a black marble base, a nearly feature-less onyx plate which has a golden edge.
From above joins an also golden chandelier with twenty-four candles, illuminating the chamber and the ritual. There are white marble round pillars with silvery veins in it; couches and chairs are located between the pillars, one desk with the instruments needed for the ritual joins the resting opportunities.
In addition to the central ritual chamber there is one heavy oaken door, sealed with a heavy
Ritual of Lock. Behind this door one finds a tunnel to another area. In this area there are twelve additional rooms, around six steps per side. In those rooms the Longardir imprison those marriage-parts - or couples - who did not agree with the details of the marriage and their future. Those people are under the influence of drugs and mind-breaking runes to fulfil their duty and do whatever the Longardir wants of them. In the end all of them produced an heir. With pleasure.
Inner workings
The castle is bound to the bloodline of the
Longardir with those ancient runes mentioned above. Every stairway, every door, every doorway and more or less vital connection is bound with those runes to the bloodline and so to the king, queen and the heirs. The spells lay dorment for thousands of years since the bloodline was strong and active, but right at the moment the last princess stopped breathing, the runes activated themselves.
They closed the lids, traps, windows, and doors on their own and sealing them so no one could enter without the correct codeword or magical "key" to the runes. This even counts for the ritual chamber in the basement and the Chamber of the Ancestors.
The problem with that: it imprisoned the staff and guards right on the spot. They couldn't escape and died of hunger and thirst if they were not eaten by their fellow staff members or the guards.
Tales & Quotes
Tales
They were once powerful enough to control the entire economy in the south. The Longardir were strong, kind, and wise. Not all of the scholars in the north would agree to the kind-part, but for most of the northern kingdom they were kind. As long as they got their will. Mostly it was an opportunity to marry a prince or a princess. No one would expect the Longardir to resent your choice, but the consequences are mostly long-term. And not even in a magical way. Rumor has it that the Longardir would bribe merchants - with the knife or gold - to avoid your area.
Once upon a time there was a prince. His name was Ulf and he was not a wise prince. He was drunk with power and obsessed with Illariell, the princess of the kingdom of Amlur which is now not existing anymore. Because of Ulf and Illariell. She loved him and he was obsessed with her beauty so they fled together to Oldrir. In his madness Ulf killed her father, some of her brothers and threw her mother down the stairs. This was a coincidence and not on purpose, but she died with shattered bones and a broken neck.
They married right on the spot and produced some heirs. But he was blinded by love - some say lust - so he killed his parents in his blind rage and took the throne. Some say this was the beginning of the end.
Quotes
"This is...big. And so clean. I mean, so clean a lost settlement can get over the decades."
"Centuries."
"What?"
"Centuries. The Longardir are now gone for centuries."
"Whatever. They are gone and by my beard, Gavín, do you see those runes? They look...old. Ancient."
"Yes. This are the runes I told you and the headmaster about. They are the reason we are here."
"Awesome!"— Thormar to Gavín as seeing the castle & Oldrir for the first time
"Those runes..."
"Yeah, there are old. Ancient."
"No. Yes. They are, but don't you feel it? The maliciousness? The pure will?"
"...you mean the pressure as someone is watching us?"
"Exactly!"
"Yes, I feel that. It is as the whole castle is alive." — Thormar and Gavín in front of the throne room
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