Vasyl III Shiroko
Emperor Vasyl III Shiroko
Born in 862, Vasyl III was the bastard son of Olha I Shiroko and her twin brother Niloko. When his mother took the throne and the two were married, he became a true heir. He is most remembered as the first on whom the Induced Regency doctrine was used and for his use of treason trials against the nobility in order to obtain funds. These were partially used to construct the massive indoor marketplace, the Tseler Nira.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Vasyl III was born in 862 to Olha I Shiroko, her first child. During his first years of life, he was kept secret from his aunt, Katarin I Shiroko, as he was a bastard child born from Olha I and Katarin I's intended husband, their younger brother, Niloko. When he was two, he was forced to flee the Gandenye with his parents to escape the paranoid murders committed by Katarin I. The next few months were spent in hiding while Olha I and Niloko devised a plan. During that time, he spent his days with his grandfather, Ilya VII Shiroko, who had fled as well and was recovering from an addiction to Celestial.
He did not understand what was happening or why they were suddenly in another city. However, he trusted his mother and stayed as much out of trouble as a small child could. When they returned to the Gandenye, he was suddenly placed into the role of tajanji (high prince/princess) when Olha I was crowned. He asked many people about his aunt, but was told she died because she had been very ill. He was never told that his mother poisoned her.
As the official heir, he was taught military strategy, history, international politics, court rules, and governmental administration. Along with this, his Attunement Test showed he was a lu-esh. With his mother as a light and heat aliq-esh, he learned magic mostly from her, lessons folded into what he was already learning. In particular, she taught him how to use stitching magic to create the Ilyannoi.
Through his teen years, he found himself often plagued by thoughts of worthlessness and a world without hope. The fact that he was the tajanji and had every advantage only made him feel worse for his desire to simply cease existing. There were those much worse off than himself and yet he was unhappy. Ashamed, Vasyl III hid those feelings away until he could not force himself out of bed. His mother came to see him and he was told that his grandfather had suffered from a similar ailment. Niloko had been working on treatments for him before his death and Vasyl III began assisting. Until 882 when he became baejan (emperor/empress), he and his father produced several attempts at treatments, two of which were written down in the family treatment book currently in the possession of Erasure.
Upon his coronation, he did not marry as his younger sister was only sixteen at the time. When she became an adult four years later, they were married. Through his reign, the two had seven children: Liliya I (883), Ilya (889), Krystanya (890), Sava (892), and the triplets Svante, Bayko, and Daniila in 894.
In the first two years of his reign, the treatments he and his father had initially created began to become less effective and Vasyl III started hearing voices berating him. He grew more and more depressed, with the hallucinations becoming a daily occurrence. For days, he refused to leave his chambers and could not be convinced to eat or bathe himself.
Liliya stepped in and used the new system of Induced Regency to force her brother/husband out of the role of baejan. This soured their relationship even though he understood why she had done so. His own refusal to voluntarily give up the position had led to her decision. For three months, he spent time in Parishi at the family mansion, assisted by physicians and his mother. Together, they were able to create a new treatment that helped and one physician was assigned to speak to him about his symptoms daily. Speaking, they found, helped Vasyl III work through his symptoms and increased his ability to cope.
Upon his return, he resumed ruling with Liliya stepping down as vlabaejan (emperor/empress regent) as prescribed by the Induced Regency doctrine.
Immediately, Vasyl III began implementing plans he had come up with during his months away. The rebellion that his mother had crushed had drained the treasury far lower than he would have liked, even if the expense had been necessary to destroy the rebels. The new Ilyannoi were also eating up money in the form of upkeep and feeding. To obtain more money, he turned his attention to the nobility. Rather than specifically raise taxes, he began using small Ilyannoi to plant evidence of treason on those he found useless. This allowed him to seize their assets for the empire.
The disgraced families tried to plead innocence, but he turned the accusations on them. Fear and paranoia once more reigned in the Gandenye, although it now came not from the royal family, but those around them. The nobles scrambled to prove how useful they were to the empire in order to avoid being convicted. Vasyl III kept extremely detailed notes on who he had framed and what evidence was used. Most of the funds were utilized to fill the empire's coffers, but some was turned to a particular pet project of Vasyl III's, the Tseler Nira, a massive indoor marketplace within the city of Niuus. It was the first of its kind on the continent, with six stories of shops and exquisite decoration. The building belonged to the empire and rent was paid by each merchant selling there, further increasing the country's wealth.
In 914, he retired and his daughter, Liliya I took the throne. Rather than go to Parishi as his mother had, he remained on the grounds of the Gandenye, spending a great deal of time walking the surrounding city and working with the priests of the Bolugama temples. In his old age, he became increasingly devout, praying often. He died in 924 and was buried with the previous rulers in the family mausoleum.
Life
862
924
62 years old
Birthplace
Place of Death
Children
Gender
male
Eyes
dark purple
Hair
tailbone, dull white, braided
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
pale
Height
6'0"
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