Alabaster, United Kingdom

**Alabaster** is the former Mythical Capital of the world and the 'city' most physically impacted by the Mortal-Mythical War. It was formerly a highly populated town, but after it was bombed during the war, its population has declined to around 2,000 or so permanent residents. It was founded in the 1300s by members of the Black vampiric coven. Efforts to rebuild the town and restore it to a more autonomous state have meant that many mythicals are choosing to return to Alabaster. It is located in the Midland area of England, with the Pennine Hills to the West, and forest and farmland to the East, stretching until the flats of the Fen's meets the cold North Sea.

## Geography

Alabaster is located in the middle of a densely forested area that fills the dale in which the Town sits. A number of small streams run through the Town and surounding woodland, all which lead to the River Raven; after which many of the local places are named. Many of it's suburban buildings are actually within the forest itself, rather than the cleared area that serves as the town's center. This was previously ideal for hiding it from intruding mortals. The town's center is surrounded on three sides by a stone wall, which has been standing since the Middle Ages. The forth side of the wall sits on a hillside. Alabaster's history as a medieval feudal center is evident in its layout - the ruins of Ravenside House, also known as 'Black Manor' are at the very heart of the Town, and many homes, businesses, and small farms surround it.

### Post-War Alabaster

After the city was bombed during the Mortal-Mythical War, a lot of Alabaster is in ruins. Many homes and areas of the surrounding forest were destroyed and still remain in shambles. There have been recent efforts to restore the city to its former charm and glory, though this process has been slow due to lack of interest in the project.

## Government

Alabaster has gone through many changes in government throughout its history. It was first a feudal town, with the various patriarchs of the Black Vampiric Coven serving as Lords. The Black Coven remained in power throughout most of Alabaster's history, even with the collapse of the feudal system. Post-feudal Alabaster was still governed by a Lord, though a council system was introduced in order to include the interests of the city's citizens.

After the death of Abel Black and subsequent merger of the Black Coven with the Imperial Vampiric Government (IVG), the council system was abolished and Alabaster was left without a formal government. Ariane Rossetta-Black tried to redeem her family's name by assuming the position as the Lady of the city, but her skills as a leader were called into question after she began a relationship with her first cousin and future Lord of the IVG Roman Black.

After the decimation of Alabaster during the Mortal-Mythical War, the remaining citizens of the town signed a treaty with Enoch - under the treaty, Enoch would govern Alabaster and aid in its rebuilding if given a share of its resources. This treaty has thus worked out very well, as a large portion of Alabaster has been rebuilt since its signing.

## Vampiric Presence

Alabaster previously had the second highest vampiric population in the world, after BlueAsh. This is due in part to the presence of the Black and Rossetta Covens within its government. Many former allies of both covens still believe they have a claim over the town and are not pleased with Enoch's rule in the slightest. This resistance is currently under control, as these vampirics have no legal claim on land or other aspects of the town. With the forming of a new Vamperic government Alabaster will soon have new and definite rulers once more.

## Historical Overview

Once a small village of mortal farmers, ironmongers and miners, Alabaster was first founded as a place of mythical haven in the 1300's. When Lord Laurence Black, a sanguine vampire, set a siege upon the village. The battle was bloody and many lives were lost, mainly mortals. The Siege of Alabaster remains an important moment in mythical history, as it marked the beginning of the Black Coven as the first powerful vampiric coven outside of BlueAsh. Originally, it was only the Blacks that lived in Alabaster, but its gates were opened to mythicals of all species as the years went on. Lord Laurence was notorious for his brutality against those who dared to challenge him. He was also plagued with insanity, possibly from the ancient vampiric tradition of inbreeding to keep bloodlines 'pure'.

After Lord Laurence died, his eldest son, Lucian, rose to power. Lucian was perhaps more insane than his father, though it was under his rule that Alabaster experienced its biggest period of development. It was also during this time that Cambria Morningstar took interest in the growing village, believing Lucian to be a promising young leader. She invested a large sum of her own money in the village, which went toward building new homes for the increasing population of mythicals arriving. While Alabaster itself was flourishing, the late Lord Laurence's children were at each other's throats, vying for power. Eventually, middle child Abel murdered his own brother, just as Lucian was about to reach the very brink of his own psychological issues.

Initially, Alabaster slipped into a state of decline after Abel became the new Lord Black in the mid-19th century. Cambria, having been very fond of Lucian, ceased her investment and moved back to Enoch. While Alabaster remained the capital of the mythical world, many mythicals were choosing to leave for Isadora and BlueAsh, believing Abel would eventually become just as crazy as his predecessors. Alabaster was more or less rescued with the arrival of Valentina Rossetta - She initially stabilized Abel's condition enough to the point where he was able to put the village back on its feet. Eventually, people began to settle in the village once more. It would seem history was bound to repeat itself however, as Abel and Valentina's relationship steadily became more and more toxic. This toxicity leaked out into Alabaster's governance. It was around this time the IVG was gaining more and more power in BlueAsh - It was the IVG who foresaw where Abel's condition was headed, and they saw it best to snuff him out of his existence before Alabaster could be run down into the ground once more. He was more or less 'put down', and the village was left in the hands of wife Valentina. After her own death, the village was without governance for a period - though without the influence of the Blacks, this was probably Alabaster's most peaceful time. Eventually, Abel & Valentina's oldest daughter, Ariane, took control over things, and was fairly successful in running the village until Lucian's own bastard son, Roman, arrived in the early 2000s, looking to claim his birthright as Lord. Rather than clashing over this power struggle, the first cousins actually began a romantic relationship... Thus continuing the unfortunate cycle of incestuous relationships within the Black Coven. Insanity bred more insanity - the vicious cycle continued.

Roman, something of a prodigy within the IVG, was summoned back to BlueAsh to become the new Lord there, leaving the city in his cousin's hands once more.

Things were going very smoothly in Alabaster up until the outbreak of the Mortal-Mythical War. It was then Alabaster would fall back into the ruins it had been once before. The town became something of a head quarters for mythical military forces, as it was the capital. It was bombed by mortals attempting to stamp out all mythical lives there in 2021, and about 60% of the town's infrastructure was completely obliterated. After the war, Enoch took over governance and has since made progress in reconstruction.