Enkhtuya Dodai

The Empress who built a nation.

Emperor Bataar passed away in the deep winter shortly before Empress Enkhtuya gave birth to their first son. The baby, Arslan, was not yet ready to lead but Enkhtuya would not leave the decisions to the advisers - she took the throne in absence of an emperor. She was a conduit to the dead emperor, speaking his words, and under her leadership Bral focused inward after a long period of expansion and war. Enkhtuya started the infrastructural jobs program which guaranteed a job to every person in the nation. Under her leadership roads were built connecting every town and village, agriculture flourished, and happiness rose.

— Excerpt, A Brief History of Bral

The Least of Nobility

Enkhtuya was born on the 25th of Spring in the first year of the Time of Exploration to one of the lowest ranked noble families of Bral. While her family was far from poor they had little power as far as nobility was concerned and would never have access to the royal court - and certainly never the have the ear of the emperor.
Her tremendous height began to show early in her life and she was over 1.6 meters tall at age ten. Big and strong for her age, she ended up performing tasks that more powerful noble families would have delegated to servants - or had servants deligate to other servants - such as making trips to the market and meeting with craftspeople and alchemists - medicine was her family's specialty. During her teens her skill with words began to shine and she began taking part in local politics while she wasn't focused on her studies or helping the family.

A Fateful Encounter

When she was seventeen, Enkhtuya met the new emperor, Bolkhar Dodai as he traveled the nation to meet with all of the influential nobles and officials. During the summer the two met, quickly fell in love, and got married. Bolkhar's parents surely would have objected to him marrying a noble of such low status but they had died during the red lung epidemic nine years prior.
She joined him on the rest of his travels around Bral during which time she would meet with the common people while her husband met with the ruling class. The plights of the people began ideas that would later become the Imperial Infrastructure Initiative. She didn't know it yet but the admiration earned during this journey were the foundation for her later reign as the unofficial emperor.

Bolkhar's Death

"The emperor is dead. Long may he be remembered by the people as a strong leader and as a stubborn man by those who knew him."

— Empress Enkhtuya Dodai

Bolkhar Dodai continued the war that his father had started and waged it almost until the moment he died.
They had difficulties concieving a child and when they had finally managed to - only after a meeting with the Huntsmaster - Bolkhar became very ill. During the end of his life Enkhtuya would convey his orders to the royal court and no one was allowed to visit him - she claimed he didn't want anyone to remember him as a weak man. The final order she conveyed before his death was that the war had been a success, that they had acquired the land and resources they needed, and that the nation should focus inward.
Bolkhar died only a season before his son was born. Who Enkhtuya always made sure to keep away from any advisors she didn't trust to teach him how to run a nation properly.

The Unofficial Emperor

The baby Arslan would not take the throne until he turned fourteen and until that time Bral would be ruled by the royal council. Enkhtuya was not going to let that happen. She continued the work given by the last command of her husband and claimed to speak his wishes. Any advisors or councilors who didn't agree with her - or believe she could hear the dead emperor would have to contend with those who did. The people of the country - many noble families included - supported her and there was nothing the council could do about that.
She instituted the Imperial Infrastructure Initiative, the most popular decision in the recent history of Bral. This edict guarenteed a job to every citizen of Bral and resulted in high-quality roads to every single town and village - no matter how small. It built bridges, mills, and dams and fixed those that had fallen into disrepair during the war. It continued the mining operations but directed the results towards the infrastrucural goals instead of the imperialist ones.
Not only did this change the way goods were produced and transported across the nation, it opened up travel for many who never could have before. With travel came the spread of information and, seeing this dispersed knowledge, Enkhtuya created the Royal Academy of Medicine to collect the disparate knowledge in one place and train doctors - doctors who would provide services paid for by the nation.

The Legacy of a Great Woman

"Here's to Enkhtuya, the best emperor we've ever had!"

While she was no longer leading the nation for the final two decades of her life, she never left the public mind. Her death on the 71st day of Spring in 65EX caused a wave of mourning to sweep the nation.
She is remembered for being patient and hearing everyone out. Reading was something she loved to do and her policies in the nation greatly increased the literacy rate. It is also widely remembered that she enjoyed spicy foods and there is a new dish in her honour.

Appearance

Enkhtuya was very tall - almost 2 meters - and towered even over most of the men of the nation - including her husband. She had brown eyes that could freeze a person in place and long black hair that never grayed. She had strong eyebrows and cheek bones to match.
Strong, quick, and athletic are not the words that most people would use to describe Enkhtuya. She was tall but not of a warrior's build. However, she was never sick not even once - and is said to have survived drinking from more than one poisoned goblet.
She disliked the popular style of dresses for nobles that were so long and impractical that they would drag behind her. Instead she wore simpler clothing than the empresses that came before her and was much more like the clothes she had grown up with.

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Killing Words

Many who were in power when Enkhtuya took over were not happy with her domestic focus and despised her for ending the war. They sought further expansion and glory. However, as long as she spoke the word of the deceased emperor, they could not speak out. This faction believed that she lied about her ability to speak with the dead and that she had betrayed the nation.
At first they tried to poison her but after several failed attempts they hired an assassin. Little is known about what happened during the assassination attempt but it is said that Enkhtuya was able to use her legendary charisma to turn the assassin to her side. What is a matter of fact is that over the following seasons several oppositional advisors died under mysterious circumstances.
From that point on Enkhtuya experienced no further dissent and when Arslan Dodai was ready, he underwent his Ascension and became the new Emperor of Bral.

A Helping Hand

During the reign of her son, Ankhtuya remained an important part of politics with the Imperial Palace and beyond. She sent people to study the different agricultural methods used within the empire and use this knowledge to improve crop yields. This became known as the Agricultural Reformation.
She also stayed close and was her son's most trusted advisor. Out of either true devotion or a calculating mind, he kept her close and kept her name alive in speeches, notices, and the public mind.
Enkhtuya was afraid of ketzlat and when Arslan learned to ride one she was always worried about him. She was always there to greet him when he landed.

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