Fort of Kings: History and Rumors

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Fort of Kings has been known by many different names over the centuries. Originally it was known as Branstown in honor of the man who would unite the lands around the Erilyn River and become the first king of the kingdom. The name was changed in 33 to King's Land in honor of his coronation. It is rumored that Milara himself landed in the port city around 890 on the eve of the death of King Hiralm III. It is also generally rumored that the site was the landing point of the first King Sun but that has never been actually proven. The large statue to the Sun Kings does sit in the residential section of the city but it is contemporarily thought to be more in tribute to an allied neighbor than marking any claim he might have on the port.

The highlight of the harbor district is the Mother's fountain. Carved from a single block of ancient marble like coral that seems to defy weathering, is an image of Cinna Drayton with the infant king in her arms as King Bran was born during a unusual summer storm that prevented the ship Cinna and her husband Bartamus were traveling on to berth in it's normal port of Drayton's cove. The fountain has the mother and child protected by a flanking of the four fin ridged dolphin found in the various oceans of Layonara.

The gnomish builder Tap Tappinaway, who is credited with the creation, included 4 complimenting colored lights and water outlets as well as making the bowl of the fountain deep enough to house a school of fish quite easily year round. The fish are tame and inquisitive enough to take offered coins and food from visitors. Built in wards thankfully protected the beautiful structure from vandals during the Milara years. The wards did provide entertainment to the locals who were known to bait naïve newcomers into trying to desecrate the fountain. Many a fishwife had fresh reason to divorce her maimed husband after an attempt on the fountain.

The deep harbor and the many adjacent coves and inlets along the coast have made it attractive to seamen for centuries. Privateers have a long history in this town. While the majority work outside the laws and canons of the day there have bee a few that actually worked in subterfuge with the governments of their time. Alindor's most memorable female privateer Pippin "The Pip" Canvas called the harbor home in the early 500's. Her large manor is still a landmark in the city as it is also the city's largest brothel and a popular feast hall for Xeenites of the region.

The deep harbor is also the home of a shrine to Mother Ocean who is a popular deity in the region. Actual sea elf sighting have been rare until recent years but there have been historical accounts of the sea elves and merpeople aiding the city in times of need. The cure for the Blaze of Bitters in 181 was manufactured by the Archaics of the nearby Nysyer Sound. The harbor shrine was erected by Cedric I in 513 as a tribute to the merfolk that saved his and his brother's life during the tragic sinking of the royal flag ship Cestalina in 460.

The name Fort of Kings is a recent adoption in an attempt to put some of the Milara past behind them. The remains of an older section of the original structure first built by King Bran was uncovered by workers repairing the castle from centuries of neglect. This Fort of Kings was the foundation for the new nomenclature.