Vasyl I Shiroko
Emperor Vasyl I Shiroko
The second son of Sava Shiroko, Vasyl took over the throne of Eoion after the death of his older brothe, Ilya II, in 392. He is most remembered for his paranoia surrounding poison, his loss of the Second Great War, and the institution of the first sales tax within the empire.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Vasyl was born in 368, three years after his older brother, Ilya II Shiroko. At the time of his birth, his father. Sava Shiroko was 60 years old and extremely busy running an empire that had been left without a micromanaging leader after the death of Ilya I Shiroko. Even so, Sava took great pains to be involved in his sons' lives and Vasyl grew up very close to his father. However, he was much closer to his older brother, a relationship that developed over the many trips the two took together to the western mines.
He was taught to make the Ilyannoi after his attunement test showed his abilities as a pyr-esh, like his brother, and became very skilled in the practice. His further education was not as much in actively ruling the empire, but in supporting his brother as Ilya II was to be the next baejan after their father retired. After Ilya II was crowned, Vasyl worked to support him in his endeavors, particularly with rebuilding the empire's treasury after Sava's massive construction of the Gandenye.
When Ilya II fell ill in 392, Vasyl was thrust into the role of active rule while both his father and sister-in-law stayed beside the ailing emperor. Sava traveled between Parishi and Niuus in an attempt to help both of his sons. His words spoke of illness, but Vasyl only saw poison. His brother had rarely been sick and his death had been very sudden.
Rather than allow the empire to pass into the former royal family of Faren, Sava recommended that Vasyl marry Ilya's widow and assume the title of emperor. Vasyl agreed only so he could watch his new wife as he had become convinced that she had been the one to poison Ilya in an attempt to gain the throne. Her questions about the family magic only further solidified in his mind that she was attempted to steal from the fledgling Shiroko dynasty. This paranoia led to an incredibly controlling and strained relationship within their marriage.
In order to keep her from poisoning him, Vasyl insisted that she be locked in her home in the Gandenye. She was not allowed to leave unless he specifically ordered it and the door to her bedroom was modified to allow food to be slid inside at regular intervals. He also removed his two year old nephew, Timof I Shiroko, from her for the purpose of keeping him safe. He kept the young boy close, even going so far as to have Timof sleep in the same bed with him for much of his childhood, although nothing untoward was done to the boy. It wasn't until Timof reached his early teens that he was allowed to reside alone in the house designated for the ruler's children. Vasyl himself never had any children as he refused to be alone with his wife.
On top of this, he became extremely paranoid about his own food. Anything that was brought for him to eat, he forced several slaves to taste before he would touch it. He also only ate bland food so he would be able to tell if something had been added and he refused any sort of meat thinking that an animal could be poisoned and toxic nature be transferred to him through their flesh.
With the empire still in a precarious financial situation after the construction of the Gandenye by Sava, Vasyl looked south in order to find more wealth to pay back the debts incurred. In particular, he saw the jewle mines in the norther part of Yzel as the path to riches. This began the Second Great War in 408.
Vasyl marched his army, composed of both human troops and Ilyannoi into Yzel and began raiding mining towns along the border. The sudden invasion shocked Yzel and the disparate nobles had to scramble to get their defenses in order. With surprise on his side, Vasyl was able to initially capture several town and encroach in on Yzel's territory. However, the military leadership of the current queen of Yzel proved to be much greater than his own and he began to lose his gains. Even with the powerful creatures of his family, his increasingly desperate and rash decision making led to a precarious stalemate in 410, with Vasyl rapidly losing ground.
The Second Peace was established through negotiations between the two countries. Vasyl agreed to leave the towns he had raided and pay Yzel for the destruction caused by his attacks. He also agreed to a greatly reduced amount of the number of active Ilyannoi at the border. In return, Yzel agreed not to invade Eoion and to renegotiate trade between the two countries within three years. All prisoners were also to be released on both sides. Vasyl was also somewhat sidelined as part of the treaty and Timof placed in charge of foreign affairs.
Between the debts already owned from the Gandenye and the losses suffered during the war, the last fifteen years of Vasyl's reign were geared toward increasing the treasury once more. Timof was instrumental in this and directed his uncle toward taxation and improvements to Eoion's main exports, particularly rice as a food staple crop and gold as al luxury item. Taxes on the entire empire rose, leading to repayment of some debts, but mostly discontent among the populace. In particular, the institution of a 1% tax on all sales within the empire was added to increase governmental revenue, split between merchants and consumers. Yzel had implemented such taxes several decades ago and Timof saw them as a stable way to increase imperial wealth. Initially, the economics of the empire saw backlash to the new taxes, but the new law was strictly enforced. By 412, the taxation was seen as normal and business began to increase, a trend that was carefully cultivated by Timof I before and after his ascension to the throne.
Vasyl retired in 425, exhausted, bitter, and completely disheartened with the running of the empire. He spent the remainder of his days in self-imposed isolation in the House of the Imperial Parents in the Gandenye until his death in 435. Timof I succeeded him.
Relationships
History
Vasyl was highly overprotective of Timof through his early life due to his theory that his older brother Ilya II Shiroko had been poisoned. He taught Timof the magic of the family and how to rule an empire. After the Second Great War, Timof took control of the military branch of the empire, a decision which began the rift between them. This became worse when Timof concluded that his father had not been poisoned. However, before Vasyl's death, the two were able to mend their relationship. Ultimately, they became close to one another again.
Life
368
435
67 years old
Circumstances of Death
kidney failure
Birthplace
Place of Death
Spouses
Siblings
Children
Comments