Ayxas
Ayxas was the third High King (Kuningas) of Asgartha, reigning from 70-86 AC. He was a son of Aysun and twin brother of Aysar. His reign began with expansion efforts but descended into tyranny during The Torment, ending with his overthrow and exile.
Background
Ayxas was the protégé of Cwaith, the second Kuningatar. Together they developed a strategy: she prepared society and the population, while he was tasked with expanding the nation’s sphere of influence. When Cwaith relinquished her crown, Ayxas ascended to the title of Kuningas.
Early Reign
During his early reign (70-74 AC), Ayxas funded the research of Jian Lam, a physicist studying the properties of Aerolith. He began planning strategy to populate the Anthea peninsula, exchanging information with the Lyra caravans. He provided logistical and material support to help Yzmir, Bravos, and Ordis organize themselves.
The Torment
In 74 AC, Ayxas secluded himself for several months in his Elysian quarters. He founded two organizations loyal to him: The Castigar, an Alteration Faction affiliated with political power, and The Magan, a military academy dedicated to the arts of war.
From 74-79 AC, he passed laws and decrees restructuring the state apparatus. In 79 AC, Ayxas presented a motion of no confidence against the Factions to the Privy Council. By royal decree, Bravos and Ordis were declared illegal and ordered to dissolve. Yzmir were instructed to submit to The Castigar and surrender their esoteric research. All independent military groups were required to disarm and submit to The Magan.
Alterers who refused to join The Castigar were hunted, imprisoned, or eliminated. The militant orders were dissolved, often violently.
Timeline
70 AC - Ascension
Ayxas became the third Kuningas of Asgartha following Cwaith’s abdication.
74 AC - Suppression of Warrior Brotherhoods
Ayxas issued royal decree outlawing independent warrior brotherhoods including Ugetsu Fenshen school. When Walela, Grandmaster of Ugetsu-Fenshen, refused the decree, a Magan contingent attacked the monastery. Suddran, Nadra, and many others were killed. Gericht vaan-Bracht survived and later joined the rebellion against Ayxas.
79 AC - Declaration of Dictatorship
Ayxas presented motion of no confidence against the Factions to the Privy Council, declaring Bravos and Ordis illegal and ordering Yzmir to submit to The Castigar.
86 AC - Overthrow and Exile
Insurgents stormed Elysium with help from certain royal guards. Forces of The Magan and The Castigar were overthrown by the coalition of rebel forces. Ayxas was judged by a people’s court and sentenced to exile, the harshest punishment in Asgarthan law. He was last seen walking into The Tumult.
Legacy
A portrait of Ayxas hangs in the Basileus’s bedchamber at The Asterion, opposite that of his twin Aysar. Avkan ruun-Heshkari kept both portraits as reminders of the temptation and corruption any ruler might succumb to during their reign.
After Ayxas’s overthrow, The Castigar and The Magan were dismantled. Akash was crowned the next Kuningas of Asgartha.
Relationships
- Akash: Successor as Kuningas following Ayxas’s exile
- Avkan ruun-Heshkari: Basileus who kept Ayxas’s portrait as warning
- Aysar: Twin brother who chose humility
- Aysun: Mother; founder of Yzmir
- Cwaith: Predecessor and mentor; second Kuningatar
- Eskheret ruun-Kurush: Rebel who breached fortress gates during uprising; died from wounds (86 AC)
- Gericht vaan-Bracht: Survivor of Ugetsu-Fenshen massacre who joined rebellion
- Jian Lam: Physicist whose Aerolith research Ayxas funded
- Nadra: Monk killed in Ugetsu-Fenshen massacre (74 AC)
- Rune: Grandfather; first Kuningas of Asgartha
- Sigismar Synd: Descendant who carries the stigma of Ayxas’s lineage
- Suddran: Monk killed in Ugetsu-Fenshen massacre (74 AC)
- Walela: Grandmaster of Ugetsu Fenshen who refused Ayxas’s decree (74 AC)