Rasvia Miscrost

> You are the false resolution to an eight-year war. Your marriage was a hopeless affair, wasn’t it?
>
> Truth-Speaker, Banner of Red, Orange and Marigold

Rasvia Miscrost is a supporting character in the Banners Saga and one of the primary protagonists of the prequel novel *Queens of Crimson, Cobalt and Sage*. She is the wife of King Trevyren Miscrost II, as well as the mother of Tryvia, Trevyren III, Tachiel, Thea, and Taeden Miscrost, and her bastard daughter Taaliyah Onasisi. She opposes, but ultimately works with, Trevyren's plans to outmaneuver The Prophecy, and she dies one year before *Banner of Red, Orange and Marigold* takes place.

## History

### Early Life: Marriage and Children

Before her marriage to King Trevyren Miscrost II, Rasvia was known as Tsarevna Rasvia Marchiliov, from the Tsar family Marchiliov in the city-state of Krosov in the Borchta Clandom. Her family, and the other family clans of Borchta, were supporters of Miscrost Kingdom during the Miscrost-Seqian War. Three years into the war, when she was nineteen, Rasvia offered her hand in marriage to Trevyren in hopes of ending the war, and he accepted. Rasvia knew that the marriage would be hard, especially given the controversy the war had started over, but her older sisters refused and she took the initiative in order to bring peace.

Unfortunately, her proposal and marriage did not end the war. The couple was never truly in love, but they both understood their obligation to one another and worked to satisfy one another to the best of their abilities. Trevyren was harsh and unforgiving, but Rasvia arrived with a merry and optimistic disposition, and did her best to brighten up life at Miscrost Keep and be a good queen. Her first pregnancy, at the age of twenty, gave Trevyren his first son; Trevyren III, and his twin sister Tryvia. Rasvia was praised for delivering both a son and a daughter, and life got increasingly better for her after her second pregnancy two years later bore the king another son; Tachiel. After her third pregnancy, which gave her another daughter, her time in Miscrost Kingdom became increasingly hard. She began to notice a suspicious attachment between Tryvia and her father, and she became incredibly homesick and weary from her time having to suppress her Mana.

As her doubts began to fester, Rasvia sought answers in the only way she knew how; through Mana. She had heard of a famous Mana-User named Lady Freia Malauren, who Rasvia managed to have brought into the kingdom in order to read her fate. Rasvia heard the answer she feared the most; that her marriage was destined to fail. During the same performance, Freia delivered The Prophecy, which sealed the family's fate and was the final nail in the coffin that would tear the family apart.

### After The Prophecy

Despite the grim future foretold by The Prophecy, it did breed one good result for Rasvia, and that was the end of the Miscrost-Seqian War, which finally brought her some peace about her husband's loyalty, since he had seemingly given up on Seqian Huiying. Around the same time Rasvia had her final child with Trevyren, named Taeden Miscrost. While deciding upon what to do to outrun The Prophecy, Trevyren and his advisor, Cekaris Helrene, believed it would be best if Trevyren III were removed from the castle, for fear of some disaster consuming the whole family. Rasvia hesitantly agreed and her eldest son was sent to live with his aunt Terrissa Lovelan. However, her worst fears came true; her son, along with all of the Lovelan family, were killed in a fire that ruined their estate.

Rasvia blamed herself and her husband for her son's death, and never fully recovered from the loss. Even more traumatic for her was when Trevyren decided to erase all record and memory of his eldest son. Rasvia, although internally opposed, didn't have the strength or willpower to oppose her husband as she was beginning to see just how cruel he could be.

Rasvia focused her attentions on her still-living children, especially Thea and Tachiel, who received the brunt of their father's abuse. Rasvia tried to keep a hold on Taeden, but Taeden wanted so badly to please his father that he shunned most of his mother's affection. Tryvia, on the other hand, had been completely tainted by her father in her youth, and although Rasvia tried, she couldn't save her daughter from the disturbing relationship she had developed with her father. This only drove Rasvia further into madness as she realized that Freia's prophecy was hopeless to avoid.

As the years went on, Rasvia's mental state severely deteriorated. Her marriage was falling apart, she still mourned her eldest son, the repression of her Mana took a toll on her spirit, and her regrets festered. She entered a deep depression. She treated her two sons as if they were already dead, giving them dull affections and often weeping when spending time with them. She could hardly bear to look at Tryvia, and even Thea, her only child that still had true affection for her mother, began to drift away, preferring the company of happier folks. It wasn't until Taeden turned ten that her spirits began to brighten once again.

### The Affair

When Taeden turned ten, Trevyren began to take action to ensure that Taeden would sit on the throne. The first step in his plan was to mold Taeden into a powerful Mana-User, and to do this, he hired Amir Onasisi to teach him.