Ka-Tet
Born to Kalid-ma, the former Pharaoh of Kalidnay, Ka-Tet was raised in the city and groomed to be a wise and powerful accessory to her immortal mother. Worried about her fate as the end approached, Kalid-ma sent her daughter to the bastion of Last Oasis in the company of a group of loyal followers. Her protective instinct proved accurate, as everyone in the city was lost to a cataclysmic magical event. Ka-Tet survived, but had only a small personal guard and a few loyal followers with her.
For three centuries, she labored to restore her mother's realm under her rule. Crucially, she allied rich noble families with the cult of Kalid-ma, which grew into a state religion, to form the basis for a new city-state. She was able to preserve Last Oasis with her magic, and eventually grew powerful enough to expand her domain to include Kalidnay itself, which she rebuilt from the ruins.
In recent years, the city has ballooned in population--largely by acquiring slaves--and as of Free Year 10, Ka-Tet has opened the city to foreign traders and visitors, in an effort to further grow the city and its influence. Ultimately, she wishes her city to become the equal of any city-state, and to be recognized as a true Sorcerer-Queen.
It is not known the extent of her magical ability, although she claims to be capable of sustaining the city's lavish water features and irrigated farmland. Her magic is unlike that of the arcane masters such as Kalak; she and the church claim it is divine magic, granted by Kalid-ma, ascended to godhood through her sacrifice. No such magic has been known to exist since the time of myths, so many are skeptical of her claims. In part, the purpose of inviting outsiders to the city is to demonstrate her magical power, to further cement her legitimacy as a ruler and a sorcerer. However, she is known to be a shrewd and calculating leader, and it is possible that her magic is more limited than she claims, and that she relies on political savvy and the loyalty of her followers to maintain her rule.
Biography
Early Life
It is not known who Ka-Tet's father was, although some claim she was somehow conceived by Kalid-ma and her High Templar Thakok-An. If so, she didn't inherit her second mother's dominant physique, and is instead small and slender like her mother. She was raised in the city of Kalidnay, under the tutelage of her mother and the High Templar, who trained her in magic and leadership. She was a precocious child, showing an early aptitude for magic and a keen intellect. However, she was also sheltered and naive, and had little understanding of the world beyond the city walls.
She often spent long periods at her mother's retreat in Last Oasis. The staff at the oasis were like second parents to her, and she felt more at home there than in the massive palace in Kalidnay. She was particularly close to the head caretaker, a kindly old man named Jorath, who taught her about the plants and animals of the oasis, and shared stories of the world beyond. She also had a small group of loyal followers who accompanied her to the oasis, and they formed a tight-knit community that was fiercely protective of her.
When Kalidnay was destroyed, Ka-Tet was devastated and terrified. She didn't know what happened, but the likeliest explanation was that it was an attack, from enemies outside or within. As distraught as she was for her lost friends and family, she worried that she might be next, and that the same fate could befall her at the oasis. Her instinct was to flee, and when everyone assured her she was safe at the oasis, she absconded with a few loyal followers, seeking refuge amid the wastes.
It was a futile effort; she had no idea where to go, nor how hostile the wastes could be. Worse, she was fleeing Kalidnay, so her route took her northeast, into the shadow of a mountain range she wasn't equipped to climb. Some of the followers died, and she became desperate. Fearing death, but fearing whatever was chasing her more, she pressed on, and was lucky to find a cave as a fierce sandstorm approached. She and her remaining followers took shelter there, and waited out the storm. When it passed, the yellow sun came out, trapping them there even longer. They were on the brink of starvation when they were finally reached by Jorath's expedition, who'd been trying to catch up to her ever since she fled. They were able to rescue her, and bring her back to the oasis, where she was safe, but alone.
The Impossible Dream
Last Oasis proved safe, as it became clear that, whatever had happened to Kalidnay, it was over now. Perhaps the enemy perished in the cataclysm. Perhaps, as some whispered when they thought she couldn't here, it was Kalid-ma herself, in some terrible magical ritual gone wrong. Whatever the case, Ka-Tet was safe, and she resolved to rebuild her mother's city, and restore her legacy. She had no idea how to do this, but she was determined to try.
She was a good student of magic, but she was light years from being a Sorcerer-Queen. She had a few hundred loyal citizens of Kalidnay attending the oasis, and a handful of templars. She had no resources, no army, and no political power. But she had a vision, and she was determined to make it a reality.
The first step was to build a foundation--not literal, but philosophical. She cultivated the idea that Kalid-ma was not dead, but rather ascended to godhood, and foresaw a long, difficult, and ultimately glorious future for those who remained. She built a cult around this idea, and it quickly grew in popularity, as people were desperate for hope and meaning in the aftermath of the disaster.
She gathered strength in numbers, and all the courage she could muster, and set out on an expedition to the city. Months had passed, and all was quiet. The city looked extensively damaged, but not a complete ruin. It became clear that, whatever had happened, it happened only to the people. Meals were left unfinished on plates, valuables were left in place, and there was no sign of a battle. It was as if everyone had just vanished. The pyramid itself was mostly intact, but something destructive had happened to the central city, with the closest buildings to the pyramid being the most damaged. The outskirts were mostly fine, and the farmland was untouched, if overgrown. Thieves had already had time to loot the city, but not in enough number to clean it out completely.
Her initial focus were on gathering resources. The riches of the pyramid vault were still there, the vault's magic refuse access to any--even her, it seemed. But she could access her mother's personal chambers, which had their own vast wealth of magical artifacts and knowledge, as well as certain personal effects that would go a long way toward marking Ka-Tet as the rightful heir to her mother's legacy. It took dozens of trips just to retrieve the most valuable items, a few of which were aborted or delayed by the presence of dangerous creatures or bands of thieves.
The city's magic had faded completely by that first visit, so the wells ran dry. The overgrown crops withered on the vine, and the canals were empty. None would settle here. This was good, for now, as she didn't want squatters in her city. The desert would preserve its foundations while she worked. And work she did: on magic, on politics, on infrastructure, on everything. She had only two great assets: her blood and her magical potential. The former was undeniable, but the latter required effort and practice.
Last Oasis continued its peaceful, quiet existence, self-sufficient with its natural resources. But as years passed, the beautiful blue lake sat lower and lower in its bed. Slanted beaches of sand had to be crossed to reach the water, where trees used to sprout right at its edge. It was drying out. Kalid-ma's magic had sustained it for centuries, but it was fading, and Ka-Tet's magic wasn't strong enough to keep it going. She had to find a way to bring water to the city, or it would be doomed. She had no idea how to do this, but she was determined to try. Her mother's notes informed her of how the magic worked, but replicating it proved beyond her skill. She needed help. She needed the Orbs.
The Orbs of Kalid-ma
In her later years, Kalid-ma became obsessed with the idea of transcending her physical form, achieving a state of godhood. She was already immortal and powerful, but she was limited to a single, physical existence. While the path to true apotheosis remained stubbornly out of reach, she did discover a way to create powerful magical artifacts that could store a portion of her essence, and thus allow her to project power to places she couldn't be. These were the Orbs of Kalid-ma, and they were the key to her power. They were also the key to Ka-Tet's future.
The first orb was The Eye: an obsidian sphere the size of a human eyeball. It was said to be able to see anything, anywhere, at any time.
The second orb was The Voice: an obsidian sphere the size of a golf ball, which could project Kalid-ma's voice across vast distances, carrying her magic with it, and commanding the loyalty of all but the most strong-minded with ease.
The third orb was The Hand: an obsidian sphere the size of a basketball, with a faint, pulsing glow. It was said to be able to manipulate matter and energy, allowing its wielder to shape reality itself, bending the world to their will.
The third orb was The Mind: an obsidian sphere the size of a beach ball, with a faint, pulsing glow. It is said to contain vast magical knowledge, not only Kalid-ma's, but the knowledge of the cosmos itself--infinite and endless secrets of the universe.
The fourth orb was the Heart: an obsidian sphere the size of a horse, with a warm glow that makes living beings feel invigorated. It is said to be a fount of life energy, allowing growth in the wastes, healing wounds, and even sustaining the life of its wielder indefinitely.
All four orbs were secreted away in the vaults beneath the pyramid, as far as Ka-Tet knew, protected by powerful magic and deadly traps. She had to penetrate the vault and brave its traps and guardians. The deadly dungeon cost her many guardians and followers, but she survived long enough to find The Eye. It seemed to possessed a will of its own, demanding that she prove herself worthy of its power. She passed its tests, and claimed the Eye, gaining the ability to see far beyond the city, to find not only people and things, but paths and possibilities. With the Eye, she was able to find a hidden underground aquifer, and with the help of her followers, she was able to tap into it, bringing water to the city and saving it from certain doom.
The other orbs, it seemed, were not to be found in Kalidnay. For reasons unclear to her at the time, they'd been scattered across the Tablelands, and with their propensity to desire a worthy wielder, they called out to travelers, bidding them to seek them out and claim them, or else transport them to where they might find a worthy host. Ka-Tet was able to use the Eye to track down the Voice, which had found its way to the city of Tyr, and, inevitably, was claimed by the city's ruler, the Sorcerer-King Kalak. The Eye insisted that her future required that orb, and she would have to face Kalak to get it.
In Kalak's Court
Ka-Tet's journey to Tyr was long and perilous, taking her across the Tablelands and through the heart of the wastes. The worst of it came early, as the road connecting Kalidnay to Tyr's network was in disrepair, difficult even to find with all the sand and silt, with no staff or resources in the outposts. Terrible weather and dangerous enemies did their best to deter her, but she won through, reaching his mighty city after grueling weeks of travel.
She found a number of Kalidnese among the Tyrans--refugees and outlanders who'd found a new home, and resolved to find them and influence them to return to their homeland, to help her rebuild it. But first, she'd need the Voice, and there was only one realistic way to get it. She sought Kalak's court, and requested an audience with the Sorcerer-King. Given her illustrious background, he was happy to accept.
He strung her along, first feigning sympathy for her loss, then showing interest in her quest, but seemed to try to insinuate doubt into her mind, that perhaps she was on a fool's errand. He had plenty of anecdotes about how long and hard the journey to build Tyr had been--and he'd had far more magic and resources than she. It wasn't the job for a mere mortal, after all. Perhaps she could choose a new path, a brighter path, not as Queen of a ruin, but Queen of a thriving city, like his.
He offered her a seat by his side, with all the wealth and privilege he had at his disposal. He even offered to train her in the arcane arts, to help her prepare to prove worthy to the Voice--and if she did so, then clearly it was hers all along. She need only pay a simple price: she would be his bride.
It was humiliating, but she was desperate. She agreed to his terms, and spent the many years in his court, learning from him and his sorcerer advisors, and trying to gain the power she needed to claim the Voice. She was a quick learner, and she made progress, but it was slow going. Kalak was a master of manipulation, and he seemed to take pleasure in keeping her off balance, never letting her get too close to the power she sought.
A time came, when finally he humored her enough to let her try to claim the Voice. She was able to pass its tests, but he refused to let her have it, claiming that she hadn't proven herself worthy enough, and that she needed to learn more from him before she could claim it. Outraged at his hypocrisy, she was unable to contest his might directly, but she resolved to find a way to get the Voice from him, no matter what it took. She looked the The Eye for guidance, but it just kept telling her to acquire The Voice, unhelpfully.
On a clear night, after a yellow sun, she gazed at the stars, enjoying the cool night air, and the beauty of the cosmos. She heard a distant song, just at the edge of her hearing. Try as she might, she couldn't tune it out. She couldn't sleep, she couldn't block the sound, and it was driving her mad. She finally gathered her things and snuck out of the palace, following the sound. It led to the wall, where she would have to sneak out of the city proper. The gates were closed, but it was no great ordeal, given her command of magic.
Winding through the wastes, she walked uphill, toward the old iron mines, as the temperature dropped precipitously. The haze built overhead, and stars were twinkling out, promising a dangerously dark night, and she alone, miles from the city. The song was louder now, it was maddening, some trick to lure her into danger, a fool's errand that would get her killed. But she couldn't stop herself, and she kept walking, following the sound, until she reached the peak.
She heard the sound of a dragon's wings flapping, and she scanned the sky, catching a glimpse of scales and a tail vanishing into the darkness. But its voice was in her head now. "You hear me now," it said. "Now, let me hear you."
She didn't understand. She called out to the dragon, but it didn't respond to her words. It repeated, in its song, "Now, let me hear you. Use your voice, not your words." She had no clue what it was on about, or even how there could be a dragon flying around in the first place. She was freezing, darkness had swallowed the world outside a few paces from the peak, and she was alone, with a dragon. She was terrified, but also desperate. She glimpsed into The Eye, and it said one word: "Sing."
So she did. Somewhere, deep in her bones, some ancestral memory awakened. She trusted her instinct, and she sang. It wasn't a melody, or a chant, or one of the many songs she'd learned in her mother's and Kalak's courts. It was something alien, but not in truth--just unfamiliar, yet not too unfamiliar. It was an inhuman sound, not like something made in her throat, but something that rings out from the stars themselves, a song of the cosmos, brought into this moment by her will. The dragon's song harmonized with hers, and their voices intertwined.
Magic emerged from the vibrations, like sound from a violin's string. Pure magic, without words, without symbols and formulae. Magic with no purpose or meaning--not a spell, more like a living being, just enjoying its existence. And no plants withered, no water dried up, no animals died. This wasn't the Arcane, it was...it was...
"The Voice," The Eye said. "You have claimed it. You are worthy."
Return to Kalidnay
She didn't bother to say anything to Kalak. She gathered who she could, and she left the city, following the same path she took to get there. As the king's consort, she was able to gather plentiful resources for her journey, as well as able guides and guards to protect her.
At the city's gates, she turned back to the city one last time, and voiced, with her true voice this time, "My people. Come to Kalidnay. We will rebuild." The words couldn't be heard beyond a short radius, yet heard they were, woven into the dreams and thoughts of all Kalidnese in the city, and even some of the Tyrans. The Voice's magic did the rest, and soon, a steady stream of refugees was making their way to Kalidnay, eager to be part of the rebuilding effort, and to be under the protection of their new Sorcerer-Queen.
If he felt slighted, Kalak didn't show it. He didn't send any parties after her, nor diplomats to try to negotiate with her. She was glad of it--it wasn't at all clear to her how powerful The Voice was, why it wasn't attached to some obsidian orb, and what exactly it could do. That knowledge would take decades to evolve.
And over those decades, she discovered something strange, but welcome. She wasn't aging. At 50 years old, she was the picture of health and vigor. She'd often wondered if Thakok-An was truly her progenitor, then she'd have a strong constitution and a dash of elven blood, but that couldn't account for this. She'd learned much of The Voice's power, and it was quite unlike The Eye. The latter was like a helpful, intelligent tool, with its own personality, but ultimately subservient to her will. The Voice, on the other hand, was more like a force of nature that she could tap into, despite it seeming to come from her body. There was nothing artificial about it. It didn't speak, but it was alive...like talking to a mountain, it was just so grand in scope it probably couldn't be bothered to engage with her.
But that scope meant power. She could command loyalty at a word, and devotion with few more. She traveled the cities, finding wealthy and resourceful allies. The growth was slow, but exponential, each success multiplying the last. She grew Last Oasis, and reversed its decline. The Voice amplified her power, and the water obeyed her commands. The oasis was almost becoming a small city in its own right--but she had grander designs.
As the years passed, more and more she needed an easy explanation for her power and longevity. Sure, she was the daughter of a sorcerer-queen, but she'd not even attempted nor certainly achieved any draconic rituals of transformation. Yet here she was, out-aging the elderly, youthful as ever. There was only one explanation: divine magic. Her mother had ascended to godhood, and she was her chosen prophetess. Her powers, unlike any arcane magic, were a gift from her mother, and proof of her divine favor. She was the living embodiment of Kalid-ma's will, and the rightful ruler of Kalidnay.
After the first century, the city was finally cleansed of the monsters and men skulking in its ruins. She contracted with a dwarven guild, which would become one of the city's future noble families, to re-architect the city. She purchased and conquered thousands of slaves to do the labor, deconstructing the old city in preparation for the new. For each worker in the city, ten worked logistics, providing the uninhabitable ruin with food and water. It took even longer than the pyramid's construction, first to clear the ruins, then to build atop the old.
Less than a hundred years ago, the city was fully functional again, if sparse in population. Her magic had reached the point of sustaining the city's water features and irrigated farmland, but she could do only so much by herself. She needed numbers, and she needed resources. Just about every Kalidnese refugee, or their descendants, had already returned. Every slave she could afford, or seize from defenseless outlanders, had already been brought in. She needed to raise the stakes. She needed war.
She started small, with the village of Walis. With only a few thousand people, they nevertheless had a little bite, with six defilers and a few hundred soldiers. Worse, they had an ancient keep to protect them under siege. This battle she would have to lead herself. When the keep was surrounded, she called out in challenge to their sorcerers. They did not oblige. So she called upon the Voice, and it cracked the walls of the keep. Shaken, they reconsidered, and sent out a messenger. She offered them simple terms: if none in the village could best her in magic, they should simply lay down arms and submit. She was a wise and generous ruler, after all.
Several thought to oppose her. Their sorcerery was skilled, and they were willing to drain life energy from whatever they could to fuel their magic, but they knew nothing of her strange magic. Their attacks bounced off radiant shields. She hovered serenly, almost bored, above the earth. As they took a moment to silently confer with each other on their strategy, she chose to make an example of one of them. Though it was night, a ray of sunlight broke through the haze at her command, striking one of the defilers, and burning him alive. The others were so terrified that they surrendered immediately, and the village was hers.
Years later, with a chance to integrate Walis' population and resources, she set her sights on a grander prize: Celik. A city of over 10,000, it was built on Kalidnese wealth, by a merchant clan whose patron had escape the city's destruction. His descendants fancied themselves lordlings, but their mercantile expertise didn't dwindle with time, and they'd done well at trade. They could afford a decent band of mercenaries to ward off her aggression. But while they could perhaps offer serious resistance, they were no match for her negotiation.
She met with the leaders of House Maraneth, and engaged in lengthy discussions of the possible futures of their combined efforts. They were proud of what they'd built, but she insisted that a single, unified city would be stronger than two separate ones. She offered them a deal: if they agreed to submit to her rule, she'd let them keep their wealth and power, and even give them a seat at her court. They were hesitant, but they knew they couldn't win a war against her, and they didn't want to lose everything. They agreed to her terms, and Celik became part of Kalidnay.
Celik remained a trading hub, as its position was more favorable for the time being, given its connection to the Hinterlands, but much of its population was drafted into the city's next big project: restoring Kalidnay's road connections. The south road to Balic was in better condition--but for the mountain pass--but the north road was more vital to repair, as it would link with Tyr and points beyond. The project was simple, but labor-intensive: centuries of silt and sand had to be cleared, and the road had to be built back up to the new height of the surrounding desert. It took decades, but eventually, the road was passable again, and trade with Tyr was now practical.
To truly engage with Tyr, Kalidnay would need forts and outposts on the road. The older outposts could be repaired, but Fort Nether, where the north road met the Alluvial Way, had been all but destroyed, and the walls that remained were providing shelter to a band of raiders. In the first true military engagement of the new Kalidnay, Ka-Tet led a successful assault, and began the labor of rebuilding the fort.
Years later, when the work was done, all that remained was to invite the Tyrans to make the trek south and reconnect Kalidnay to the world.
The Great Rebirth
Less than a year ago, Ka-Tet sent dignitaries to every major city of the Tablelands: Kalidnay's doors were open, and she wanted to welcome visitors from across the world. The early response was furtive and skeptical, but when travelers found a city reborn, with wide, open-air canals of pure water, and lavish greenery surrounding the city for miles, they returned home with tales to tell. The effect compounded, with every month seeing a multiple of the last month's visitors. The city was booming, and Ka-Tet was thrilled. She'd achieved her dream of rebuilding her mother's city, and now she was on the path to making it a true power in the world.