[center][b]The Golden Citadel, Ulzschath, Hanartha[/b][/center]

The Golden Citadel of Ulzschath was a massive and grand fortress of soaring towers and thick walls located at the edge of Hanartha's capital of Ulzschath, its walls built right up against the sea. Much like the city itself, construction of the palace had been started by Uradal Alugal, Hanartha's first Grand Prince, but his successors had added to it over the centuries. According to legend, the original keep had been coated entirely in sheets of gold, thus the name. However, even if that was true the gold had been long peeled away, as even among the long-lived Hanarth none alive remembered the Golden Citadel as being anything but stone. And deep within the Citadel, within the original keep itself, stood a small garden. It was a small windowless room with only a single entrance hidden away in the corner of the keep, but it was completely open to the sky and plenty of the sun's rays found there way into the small room. The colours of the garden formed a stark contrast to the walls around it; the deep green of the grass and the beautiful red and blues and yellows of the many flowers it held against the dark grey and white of the stone walls. And in its center was a small Faceless Pillar, the four-sided and featureless pillars that denoted a place of worship to Hanartha's Nameless Gods. This garden had been constructed centuries ago by a Grand Prince who preferred to worship alone and with nature, rather than in the Golden Citadel's cathedral-like main temple. These days it was still technically used as a temple, though there was only a single curator who tended to it and laid out offerings to the Nameless Gods. But mostly it was used by Napizzi Alar, the current Grand Prince of Hanartha, as a place to go when he needed peace and quiet. Or, such as now, when he wanted to have a private conversation.

The Grand Prince entered the garden alongside his son Suthra, the pair chatting as they walked. Though the pair was father and son, one could be forgiven for thinking otherwise. Napizzi was a tall and broad-shouldered man with not a strand of hair on the top of his head, but his face dominated by a long, black, braided beard in addition to a nose that was both wide and long and a thick brow. Suthra, on the other hand, had the prodigious height of his father but nothing else; he was incredibly thin, and his face was soft and feminine with the only hairs on his body belonging to the thick black hair that fell to his waist. However, he also had something of a gaunt look to him, like someone whose body was beginning to waste away from disease, which indeed it was as he had been chronically ill from birth. It was why he had to stop for a moment as his body was wracked with a fit of coughing.

"Suthra!" Napizzi said with alarm, he started towards his son, but was stopped when Suthra lifted up his hand and shook his head.

"Father, father, I am fine," Suthra said once the coughing had subsided, "This nothing new; I have been coughing like that for years."

"It is not usually that bad," Napizzi replied, before shaking his head, "But it is your body. You know far more about it then I."

Then the Grand Prince sat down on the grass, before patting the ground next to him and smiling, "Come on then, sit!"

Suthra smiled back at his father and slowly lowered himself to the ground, "So father, what brings us here today?"

"What, I am not allowed to just have a conversation with my son?" Napizzi said with a grin.

Suthra just sighed and shook his head, "Father, I may be young but I am not stupid. If you just wanted to talk, you would have just found me and started talking. This is a place for private conversations."

Napizzi sighed in response, but then shrugged and smiled, "True enough, and you are a smart man. It is not anything major, I just wanted you to be the first to know. I plan on announcing it to everyone else in a day or two."

Suthra tilted his head curiously, "Really? What is it?"

"You know Governor Xisuki, correct?"

"Of course," Suthra said, though he wasn't able to entirely hide the fact that he was not overly fond of the man. Xisuki was the Governor that Napizzi had put in charge of Hanartha's western coastline. Xisuki was also an incredibly large man; not large in the manner of Napizzi but morbidly obese. Suthra's recollections of Xisuki were mostly of jiggling fat and the smell of sweat mixed perfume. 

"Oh, do not say it like that," Napizzi said, obviously displeased with his son's reaction, "Xisuki is a good man, and my friend."

"I know that," Suthra said, ashamed of himself, "I'm sorry."

Napizzi just looked at his son for a moment before grinning and patting him on the back, "It is fine. You do not know him the way I do."

"That is probably true," Suthra said, smiling back at his father, "So what about him anyway?"

"Oh, yeah! One of his sisters just gave birth to a set of triplets. All of them daughters," Napizzi said, "You may not know this, but those are the first daughters any of his sisters have had."

Suthra nodded his head, since among the Hanarth bloodlines were traced via the female line daughters were important. The birth of these daughters meant Xisuki's family would continue, though Suthra had no idea why his father would want to tell him this in private. And he voiced that confusion, "So what did you have to bring me here to tell me?"

"Well, Xisuki is holding a feast to celebrate, unsurprising since the man loves feasting, and he has invited me," Napizzi said, "And I intend to accept the invitation."

Suthra was silent for a moment as he processed the information, "It is not that far away, so you will not be gone long."

"Most likely not, though Xisuki will want me to stay as long as I can to catch up," Napizzi said, "Which, I have to admit, is an entertaining prospect."

"So why is this so important?" Suthra asked, not entirely understanding.

"Because I would like you to run the castle and city while I'm gone," Napizzi said matter-of-factually.

Suthra simply stared at his father for a long moment as his brain tried to process what had just been said. His father, the Grand Prince, wanted him to watch over and govern both the Golden Citadel and Ulzschath. It was a shock, to say the least. "I... I can't do that," Suthra managed to stammer out.

"Why not?" Napizzi asked.

"Because it is not my place, father," Suthra said, standing up, "I am only your son, my mother was just one of the commonfolk. I am the same, I am not part of your House, I-"

"Suthra," Napizzi said sternly, standing up as well, "I took you into my household and raised you as a part of my family when your mother died. You are as much royalty as I am."

Suthra groaned in irritation, "No, I'm not. You may think so, but you are the only one in this city who does!"

"I am Grand Prince of Hanartha and what I think is all that matters," Napizzi said darkly, the words coming out sounding like a threat to anyone who would disagree with him.

"I am sorry father, but I cannot do it," Suthra said, "Let Amenmes or Ennutuar handle it. Or even Alurar or Asurar; they are all your nephews. They may be your heirs, they could use the experience. Not me."

Napizzi just stared at his son sadly. He thought he had been doing Suthra a favour by taking him in when his mother had died, she had been a commoner like Suthra said. But Napizzi's sisters and their children had never looked kindly on Suthra's presence in the Golden Citadel, since his mother had just been a commoner. They didn't like the way Napizzi seemed to dote on his son and not his nephews; he knew that some probably felt threatened by it. Felt like he was grooming Suthra as his heir. He wasn't of course, since he knew there'd be no way anyone would ever accept it. But Suthra's mother had been the only lover Napizzi ever took, and Suthra himself was all he had left of her.

Napizzi put a hand on his son's shoulder. "You're right, of course. You see these things far more clearly than me," he said, smiling sadly, "I'll have Anemnes handle it while I'm gone."

Suthra put his hand over his father's, smiling as he did so. "It is alright, I know you just want to help. But you've already given me far more than I'd ever ask for," he said, before hugging his father tightly. The pair stood there hugging one another for a long moment, before they heard a sound at the door. When they looked over, they saw another elf dressed in a simple brown rob and holding what appeared to be a small bowl of guts, staring at them. "Oh, s-sorry, I-I was just here to give th-the offering," he said, showing them the bowl, "I-I can just come back l-later."

"No, it's fine. We were just done," Suthra said, letting go of his father.

After a moment Napizzi nodded in agreement, "We would hate to keep you from your duties, curator. The size of this shrine does not make it any less important than any other."

And with that the two departed the garden, leaving the curator rather confused. But he simply shrugged and got to work making the offering to the Nameless Gods and checking to be sure that the garden was in proper condition.