Edward Valrington

 Edward Valrington 

Edward Valrington, or known as Commander Valrington, is an officer in the Arkadian Army, and is known for his skilled leadership.

 Childhood 

Edward was born in the Valrington family, a well-settled aristocratic dynasty, with it's family's history in either Arkadian politics or military.

His mother died at childbirth, which let him live with alone with his father. His father, an Arkadian Senator, was not so fond of his son, and often neglected him. Despite this, Edward was still sent to the most elite schools in Aldoria, as his father couldn't afford to lose prestige. Being granted almost no privileges, he almost always was in his room, studying.

He was intrigued by Arkadia's history however, and developed a grudge against the Wythower Empire. The absence of his father and family made him feel lonely, and he needed something what he could love and follow until the end. The answer was easily found: Arkadia. From the age of 17, he deepened himself in Arkadian history and the then political situations. He was a strong patriot and in favour of Arkadian unification, unlike many Senators and politicians at the time. As time progressed, he began to see the Citizen Assembly and the entire political process as a scam, and corrupt mess that only saw to increase personal wealth and power.

Because of this, he also developed a hatred towards his father, and quickly crossed out the political path of the Valringtons. There was one path left to go on, the Arkadian Military. And luckily, this was something he was legitimately interested in. On the age of 18, he joined the Imperial Military School, and took on the training of an officer. He flourished in his educational career, almost always getting the top of his class.

He finished his studies and became a Lieutenant in the army. His superiors were often annoyed at his stubbornness, stating that he 'should follow orders without question'. Despite this however, he was recognized for his extreme discipline, dedication and efficiency.

 Later life 

As time went on, Edward continued to serve in the army as an officer, but made little progress in the ranks. His strong iron-fisted personality made his superiors less willing to promote him, as they knew that he wouldn't turn a blind eye, or accept a bribe. However, he wouldn't need a promotion to get into contact with corruption.

On one day, Edward accidentaly saw his Colonel accepting money from a Senator. The two, surprised at Edward's interruption, quickly tried to bribe him aswell, but to no avail. Upon realizing that the two of them would be compromised, the Colonel quickly called upon his personal soldiers, who were also involved in this corrupt mess. Edward was overpowered and then knocked out, and then sent to a prison. The death of Edward in the military camp would be suspicious, and thus they would hire an inmate to kill him instead.

However, Edward seemed to have fate on his side. The carriage, on the way to the prison, was ambushed by bandits. In the confusion, Edward managed to escape. He knew that the web of this corruption stretched far, and thus he went to someone who he was certain that wasn't corrupt: King Ferdinand III.

After a long process of trying to enter the fortress, Edward eventually succeeded and managed to speak to the King. Edward's story shocked the King, who knew that then there would be even more corrupt officials involved. The Royal Guard was sent out on an investigation, and everything that Edward claimed turned out to be true, and more. An entire group of corrupt Senators and Military commanders were discovered, who were even planning to execute a coup to gain complete control.

Edward, who came in good favour with the King, was promoted to Colonel, and was granted various military and royal honours for 'saving' the kingdom. In the years that followed, he continued to gain the King's respect and recognition, and became one of the Monarch's closest advisors/allies. He and Ferdinand shared the same authoritarian goals and ideals, and both saw to decrease the Assembly's influence in Arkadian leadership.

Years passed, and both men became involved in various campaigns and changes to lessen politician's their influence in the Kingdom. In the long run, Ferdinand managed to severely limit Senators their power in the Administration, and rooted out almost all signs of corruption.

In some minor battles with warrior tribes at Arkadia's north-southern border, Edward also proved himself as a skilled tactician and commander. He also earnt the respect of his men, as he wasn't just sitting in a command tent far off, but was instead on the battlefield with the soldiers.

 Alexandros' rise to the throne 

When Edward was 40, Alexandros was born. He felt relieved that a direct heir was produced, and secretly hoped that Alexandros would just be like his father. Ferdinand however felt that Alexandros was different than himself as he grew up, and therefor thought he needed a safeguard to 'protect' the monarchy. Edward was that safeguard, and he was promoted to the rank of General.

As Ferdinand passed away, Alexandros would ascend the throne on the age of 17, which made Edward was rather sceptical about the future. Alexandros' less authoritarian mindset immediattely made Edward dislike him, believing that an absolute monarchy without lesser institutions is a requirement for a strong Kingdom. Nevertheless, there wasn't a chance that he wouldn't serve Alexandros with his life.

Edward voiced objections to some of Alexandros' reforms to increase stability and please nobles, as he thought that they should obey without question. However, when introduced to plans for attacking the Wythower Empire and unifying the Arkadian Kingdom, he gladly agreed to participate and lead several armies.

In the war that followed, Edward was positively surprised to see that Alexandros lead several offensives aswell, and they often found themselves near each other. After several decisive battles and the Wythower army crumbling apart, victory was proclaimed, and the Arkadian armies proudly marched in the reconquered cities. A two-sided respect for each other had grown, with Alexandros noting Valrington's abilities, and Edward recognizing Alexandros as a competent leader.

This respect however was often shadowed over by a mild sense of distrust and disagreeance. Edward sometimes referred Alexandros as a 'reckless revolutionary', while Alexandros saw him as a man of old guard, too old-fashioned to lead in these modern times.

 Dragan Crisis  (server rp starts here!)

During the Dragan Crisis, Valrington left the Diplomatic service and the crown to do the job, while he himself drew war plans for if war would break out. He however made it clear that he was a strong proponent of war against the Dragans, and almost managed to convince Alexandros that war was the only option after the Arkadian Ambassador came back from Draga while nearly having been killed. His opinion of Draga varied somewhat, as he found the kingdom before the 'Restoration' of King Adrian to be pathetic and miserable, and only saw total destruction to be a viable option.

During the short period of time where Casten ruled Draga, Valrington strongly opposed the idea of sending out Nix to kill or possibly convert the (presumed) darkness-possesed ruler. His opinion was again overruled however, and this caused a shift of mentality within him, feeling that the King shouldn't even have been able to come into contact with the 'creature'. From that moment onwards, Valrington fostered an even stronger anti-Human sentiment.

As tensions with Draga eventually cooled off, Valrington begrudgingly ceased his calls to go to war. With Alexandros' Paix Sans Fin plan being introduced, Valrington immediatelly voiced objection, but was ignored in full. He however then bended to Alexandros' optimistic plan, seeing it's value. Despite this, he still retained much scepticism towards the idea in general, and feared that such marriages could bring Arkadia more trouble than good.

 Plot against Silvermere 

After King Adrian was slain by the Lomal Emperor, Kroenen, he watched with much interest as the situation in Draga developed, as there were no clear heirs for the Dragan throne. When Arassuil ascended to the Dragan throne and proclaimed the revival of the 'Kingdom of Silvermere', he once more protested, and called the new ruler an illegitimate usurper of the kingdom. Instead, Valrington called out for the destruction of what was left of 'Draga', proclaiming that the land and people their incorporation into the Arkadian Kingdom was the only viable option.

When the first Arkadian diplomat to the new Kingdom came back while having been sent away, Valrington saw a chance to cause the war that he had always desired. In this plot, he wanted to make it seem like that the second Arkadian ambassador was poisoned by the 'usurper', hoping that it would be the final catalyst for Alexandros to call for war.

Ultimately, his plot only achieved partial success. After the death of the Ambassador in the Dragans their very own palace, Alexandros was enraged, but demanded proof of the cause of death first. As the situation concerning the Ambassador's death was very unclear, and combined with the fact that numerous other threats had appeared in New Gwyn, Alexandros left it as it was. Even though no war came of the incident, relations between the two kingdoms were now severely hampered.

 Strengthened Influence 

As a result of his strong anti-Dragan, anti-Lomalian and anti-Dreanorian opinions, Valrington became a prominent figure upon the Arkadian stage. Many of the conservative and reactionary elements within Arkadia's society took to him as a leading figure, with even the Church siding with his pleas on multiple occasions.

Beginning to form plans, Valrington then ensured that his prominence remained. Due to this, he held several debates within the Imperial Citizen's Assembly, and continued to rally for war during the Crown Council's' sessions. He rallied more support within the military circles aswell, aiming to 'recruit' high-ranking officers to the cause. John Moore was an example of them.

Besides this, Valrington also sought to increase his influence over the King, which was only succesful from time to time.

 Current Day 

Today, Valrington remains an important voice in all Arkadian circles, maintaining influence over the military and (in part) over the King. Seeing as much of his ambitions have yet to be fulfilled, the General is unlikely to remain at the sidelines of Arkadian politics. Even though Valrington is respected and influential now, only time will tell what will happen..

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 Traits 

In short, Valrington can be described as a: Conservative, Monarchist, Authoritarian, Militarist, anti-politics, absolutist, Nationalist and Traditionalist.

His hatred towards politics and the fame/vainglory that comes with it makes him wanting to distinguish himself from them. One prime example of this are the military titles; he has refused to be called 'Colonel' or 'General', as he found them to be useless. He was only one thing for his troops: a Commander. And that is how he is called.

His stances towards nations are as following:

(former/present?) Kingdom of Draga: Disliked

Even though having formed no real opinion of the Dragans in his early life, Valrington had come to notice the semi-hostility posed against Arkadia after deepening himself in the (then) modern day politics. His dislike only grew as he grew older, feeling that the Dragans were becoming just as big of a threat as the Wythowerians. After the unification of Arkadia, he continued to suspect the Dragans. After the Dragan Crisis had begun, his dislike had grown into hatred, desiring to destroy the nation that threatened his. His hatred however lessened after King Adrian's seeming cordial relationship with Alexandros after his restoration. After Silvermere and then the Allfather Empire occupied former Dragan territory, he came to regard the Dragan Kingdom as the only legitimate to rule the lands, with the exception of a greater Arkadian Kingdom. In the end, he now sees the 'original' Dragan kingdom as the lesser evil between everything that followed.

(former) Kingdom of Silvermere: Hated

Seeing the Kingdom of Silvermere as nothing but a sham since the start, Valrington's hatred towards Silvermere had only been increased. Believing that King Arrasuil was just an usurper from the peasantry, he strongly pushed towards war. Even though not succesful in the end, he actively contributed to sabotaging relations between Silvermere and Arkadia, which in turn might have indirectly led to the fall of Silvermere, as Arkadia was never informed. After the fall and Arrasuil's death, Valrington's rejoicement was short lived, as he felt that the new 'Allfather Empire' was even more disgraceful.

Lomal Imperium: Hated

(wip)