The New Order of Dawn
"I always knew it would have come to pass, but it is impossible to turn away from the burden I have chosen."— Queen Micaiah I of Daein, on the subject of Sothe's passing.
Daein began its new life under the reign of Queen Micaiah and King Sothe as a nation surprisingly similar to Crimea. Under her reign initially, the people of Daein were slowly but surely beginning to turn away from their own prejudices towards the Laguz. Reconstruction efforts had advanced far more quickly than anticipated. The world sighed a collective sigh of relief that Daein wasn't going to suffer from another tyrant, another Ashnard.
But then, the cracks began to show once more. It began with the questions of Queen Micaiah's attachments to the newly-elevated Dawn Brigade. It wasn't just chronyism, her detractors posited, but an attachment of the heart that would not bear their shortened lifespans compared to hers. What of King Sothe? Would she be even more devastated if he passed before she?
The first came with members of the old Dawn Brigade. First it was Leonardo, passing at the end of a happy life, then Edward, then Laura, and Aran. With each one, the queen insisted that she would not lose sight of Daein's interests. The people were reassured at first, but still others felt this was a front...
Then, hardy Nolan, and still others.
As natural as their deaths were, each one reinforced to the people that Queen Micaiah's reign would span multiple generations. Each passing Dawn Brigader in turn reinforced to Micaiah that she couldn't see Daein as synonymous with her friends and loved ones solely.
When Sothe passed, something changed in Micaiah. While still outwardly kind and compassionate, her hand became heavier, her policies made with stronger force. Soon, the people noted that Daein's public officials had taken on an aesthetic bearing a strong resemblance to the Order of Dawn. It was as if Ashera had reawakened.
Today, the Knights Order of the New Dawn are the hand of Queen Micaiah. Outwardly chivalrous and righteous, they are seen outside of Daein as zealous enforcers. Queen Micaiah herself has fashioned herself as a mother to her people — many in Daein even worship her as a demigoddess in their own right, having lost a lot of awareness of her Branded heritage. She occupies the throne of Daein as a (mostly) benevolent ruler, though the years have given her a harsh, sharpened edge.
[[WIP, covers Daein]]