Emperor Darian Tyce

Darian Tyce (3 VE - 72 VE) was the third Emperor of Verenia and the second son of Emperor Leron Tyce and Empress Leondrea. As the younger brother of Emperor Maxim Tyce, Darian ascended to the throne at the age of 24 after the death of Maxim and his son, the Prince Gerion Tyce, in an assassination plot committed by Lord Cyrus Barclay. As such, the first year of Darian's rule was full of instability and fear after the death of his brother, only to be assuaged by Darian's diplomatic skill and the capture, trial, and beheading of Barclay in 28 VE. Emperor Darian's rule would become one of the longest most prosperous reigns in the history of Verenia, overseeing a consolidation of imperial power, full domination over the continent, and a dramatic restructuring of the imperial bureaucracy.

Darian Tyce was born in the city of Tocwood in 3 VE during Emperor Leron's tour of the new empire. As Leron's second son, Darian was to be raised by his mother back in Linares while the oldest son, Maxim, was to be raised by his father and eventually Cyrus Barclay in the army. In Linares, Empress Leondrea acquainted the young Darian with matters of court politics and diplomacy, creating a stark contrast between him and his more military minded brother. Darian interacted with the greatest lords of Verenia and was beloved and well liked from a young age. By the age of 12, it was noted, the Prince Darian was already adept at diplomatic etiquette and when he turned 17 in the year 20 VE, he was appointed as Court Ambassador by his brother Maxim, now the Emperor of Verenia. As Court Ambassador, Darian had traveled with his mother and brother to Yoros, where his nephew Gerion Tyce had been born, there Darian and Leondrea worked to negotiate the assistance of the Yorosi military for Emperor Maxim's Yiergashi campaign, as well as securing loans from the Guildlands to fund his brother's wars. However, when tragedy struck in 27 VE with the murder of his brother and nephew and attempted murder of himself, Darian became the next in line to the throne and was crowned as the third Emperor of Verenia in a small, private ceremony in Linares.

Emperor Darian's reign was immediately thrown into crisis trying to find his brother's assassin. One of Darian's attempted assassins, the soldier Alvord Rowe, was soon captured while hiding in Linares and after a short period of interrogation he revealed how Cyrus Barclay and his group of supporters had orchestrated the assassination in order to destabilize the realm and destroy the emperorship. After hearing about Rowe's betrayal, Barclay retreated to the Castle Yar where he was quickly surrounded and besieged, only to turn himself in after only a week of being unable to escape the castle. On Emperor Darian's orders, Barclay and his core group of supporters where brought to Linares. In an traditional ceremony known as the Trial Under Eye, Emperor Darian held the funeral for Emperor Maxim, Empress Dyana, and Prince Gerion with their Barclay chained and gagged in attendance. According to Darian's writings at the times, he saw the trial as a way to cement Maxim's power and legacy while also asserting dominance over any who would try to attack his dynasty. Towards the end of the funeral, a summary of Barclay's crimes where read aloud to the audience and Emperor Darian himself sentenced him to death. Cyrus Barclay was then carted outside the temple to the Plaza of the Stars where he was executed in front of a public audience.

In the aftermath of the trial and execution of Barclay, Emperor Darian seized on public sentiment and instituted a sweeping purge of the Verenian military, weeding out generals and officers that he suspected to be of "bad philosophy". Many of Barclay's writings were destroyed in this time, with the only surviving manuscripts taken into hiding by Barclay's remaining followers who fled into darker corridors of the Empire to avoid persecution. It was also during this period that the official Royal Guard was established by Darian. Composing of an elite group of battle mages from across the Empire, the Guard was often at the forefront of Darian's purges and exerted intense control over the city of Linares. With a military waging an internal war that frequently erupted in brief instances of violence and resistance, unrest started to grow in the populace as they became less and less supportive of Darian's campaign, often referring to it as "The Queen's Payment" in reference to Queen Mother Leondrea. As this unrest began to seep into the aristocracy, the very foundations of Verenia became threatened and in 32 VE Darian called a cease to the purgings and announced a plan for a great summit between all of the powers of Verenia in order to restructure the Empire and foster peace and harmony among the nobles. By 33 VE, each Verenian kingdom had selected a representative, and the Harmonic Council was officially started in Linares.

For seven years, through several stages, the Harmonic Council held summits in the Palace in Linares where they discussed, debated, and fought over the terms of a new unifying agreement for the Empire. While territory frequently occupied the main subject of debate between the representatives, the topics of discussion also included trade agreements, organization of military, governance, taxation, incorporation of the Magi, and others. During this period, a tentative peace was held across the Empire, occasionally marked by riots, peasant revolt, or even noble rebellion in reaction to news of the Council's talks. Nevertheless, by the year 40 VE, the talks had reached a point of mutual agreement and the Imperial Treaty was signed in the Palace, signifying, as Emperor Darian put it, a new era of prosperity for the world. The Treaty established a concrete set of governed regions, Ilias in the north with Yoros as capital, Garlan in the northwest with Verak as capital, Hol in the west with Hafthor as capital, Aslihan in the south with Jathe as capital, Jaltia in the southeast with Falstaff as capital, the Islands in the east with Terav as capital, Uthan in the northeast with Auriel as capital, and Linares as its own region and the official capital of the Empire. Each region was also allowed to have its own independent military to deal with internal matters, while contributing to the greater Verenian Army which was now separated into four legions that occupied the cardinal points of the continent (1st Legion in the North, 2nd in the East, 3rd in the South, 4th in the West). These provisions, along with a strengthening of the imperial bureaucracy and a controlled structuring of trade routes along the Empire created a strong foundation to keep the Empire alive. However, the Treaty would be tested in the years following by rebellion by the aristocracy and people who were still unhappy with the results. These rebellions included the secession of Barlow from the Kingdom of Hol, a resurgence in Yiergashi insurgency against Yoros, and the beginnings of the Aslihan/Agramor split in the south. Nevertheless, Verenia was held together by shifting alliances and strategic interference by Emperor Darian into several of the conflicts, most notably in the War of Barlowian Independence.

During this time, Emperor Darian and Empress Verona had been raising their five children (Corbinian, Floridus, Felicitas, Josias, and Rudella) in Linares along with Queen Mother Leondrea who had been raising them in much the same way she raised Darian. In the aftermath of the assassination of Emperor Maxim and his family, Darian's royal family had become a cultural staple in the the Verenian Empire, with each prince and princess already being well introduced to the realm before they became of age. However, tragedy would strike once again when Leondrea died in the Palace Garden in 41 VE at the age of 71. As the tutor of Emperor Darian, her loss made a huge impact on the Emperor and court officials noticed the change in demeanor in the latter half of his reign, becoming more solemn, withdrawn, and realistic with his rule. A funeral was held for the late Empress, on the scale of her son's funeral over a decade ago.

Shortly after the death of Leondrea, Emperor Darian finally intervened in the Barlow War as the violence only seemed to grow. After the King of Barlow, King Raymond Woodward, agreed to become a vassal to the Kingdom of Hol by signing the Imperial Treaty, several of his vassals became dissatisfied by the surrendering of their independence and the shifting of trading routes to favor Woodward's family and his allies. When the new trade routes resulted in a food shortage in the city of Barlow, the rebellious nobles seized on the opportunity and had Woodward assassinated and his allies laid seige to in Barlow castle. Holstian soldiers were sent in to relieve the siege, while the populace of Barlow took over the city, with help from the rebellious nobles who encouraged it. By the end of the year, the Guildlands and Verak had become involved and the conflict had escalated to full out war. In 42 VE, Emperor Darian ordered the 2nd Legion to lift the siege of Barlow, pressing his finger on the side of Hol, in return for pardons except for the core conspirators. With the 2nd Legion, the Holstein army, and the Teravian fleet all surrounding Barlow, the rebels situation looked dire. By the end of the year most had deserted or surrendered to the Imperial armies, culminating in the rebels eventual surrender. The conspirators were jailed and their followers were allowed their pardons under the conditions of seceded much of their land to nobles who remained loyal. While unrest was still present, the period following the suppression of the Barlow revolt would become known as a Golden Age for the Empire.

In 50 VE, Emperor Darian took his court and made a tour of the Empire in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the signing of the Imperial Treaty, a celebration that would become something of a tradition for the Verenian Empire to keep the Emperor's legitimization in the mind of the public. This would become known as the Parade of Kings as the Kings of each region would ceremonially join the Emperor when he came through.

Historians generally agree that Darian's Golden Age began its decline from around 52 VE through the rest of his reign, which ended with his death in 72 VE. This decline is supported by sources showing growing famines and droughts around the Jaltia/Uthan regions, particularly affecting the rural areas and forcing people into the cities. Some of this resentment boiled over and during the second Parade of Kings, Emperor Darian and his court were attacked by a mob while traveling through Falstaff in 60 VE. Darian's youngest son, Josias Tyce, had also died in 52 VE in a shipwreck while traveling from Terav to Auriel. He had fathered no children and his death contributed greatly to Darian's increasingly gloomy mood that had begun with his mother's death. Disease also began to ravage the realm, specifically an epidemic of Bosson's Flu that festered in the hilllands north of Linares from 57 VE until 64 VE, sometimes wiping out whole villages and killing thousands in the region. In 62 VE, Darian was forced to personally intervene in widescale peasant riots in Jaltia, known as the Famished Rebellion. This Rebellion became infamous for its eventual defeat at Dumbarton, where Verenian forces of the 4th Legion slaughtered a peasant mob that had occupied the village and burned it town in 64 VE, now known as the Dumbarton Massacre. As a way to pacify the region, Emperor Darian arranged for his granddaughter, Jocelin Tyce, to be betrothed to a noble and heir of the Osborn Dynasty, Bayard Osborn, and for a festival to be held in their honor. In 65 VE, the two were married as a part of the Grand Festival.

Despite the violent reception of the last Parade of Kings, in 70 VE Emperor Darian left Linares for the third Parade of his reign. With the realm once again on an economic upturn after the famines, revolts, and epidemics of 52-66 VE, the Parade was seen as a relative success and confidence grew in the power of the Empire. However, at this time Darian had reached the age of 67 and in his weakened state the intense travel of the Parade took its toll. When the Emperor returned to Linares in early 71 VE, his health took a turn for the worse and in 72 VE Emperor Darian died after a bout of illness at the age of 69. He died surrounded by family and friends in his bed. His son, Corbinian was crowned as the next emperor a week later.