Location Godstouch [Zulaca]

[Translucent]

Godstouch is perhaps the most modest of the Dynasty plantations. Located only a short distance from the beautiful Kenash bay, there is little of the imposing grandiosity the other families cling to. Instead, Carthyrs had his home painted in bright colors with many windows that he might always be flooded with the light of the sun. Perhaps the best way to describe Godstouch is warm. It feels hospitable. Every room is designed with comfort in mind. Pillows, cushioned armchairs, and vivid divans decorate almost every room of the house. The kitchen is always well stocked with the freshest produce and although old man Zulaca doesn’t eat, he enjoys an immense amount of presentation put into every dish. The plantation house was built on pillars to accommodate the fluctuating shoreline of his property and so in terms of size, it is also the smallest of the dynasty homes. However, Zulaca began his career in Kenash as a simple gardener and cultivator himself and has never much cared for wasting the amount of capital the other families have on their comforts. Instead, most of his money is pumped back into his plantation. He sends for rare and varied crops and seeds from around Mizahar to arrive at his plantation. Usually these deliveries take the form of private shipments that are immediately carried to one of his five greenhouses on the property. Those five greenhouses are always guarded by Carthyrs’ most trusted as the secrets to his success lie within. The greenhouses are always of varying size and manned by Zulaca and the few he deems worthy to work among the fruits of his passion. Every Spring, Zulaca throws a lavish party where his newest combinations and crop strains will be sampled. There are few who turn down an invitation, most eager to purchase what Carthyrs has made and it is well known that most of the dynasties would pay top miza to take a sample from any of the five greenhouses back to their own fields. Of all the plantations, Zulaca’s has the most loyal population of slaves. Most of them are the men and women that would have been discarded from the other plantations and were instead bought on the cheap by Cathyrs and cared for. The slaves are kept in modest homes close to Gods Touch but are certainly afforded some of the best living conditions for slaves in Kenash. The fields of Zulaca make ample use of all available room in his property, and certainly are the most interesting fields to behold. Colored cottons, sweet tobacco, and other marvels of his botanical experimentation are neatly and expertly tended and organized. Cathyrs treats the entire property like his personal garden and can often be seen among the slaves checking his crops for sides of pests or damage. Cathyrs never tore down the original homestead he lived in before building Gods Touch, and it is still visible to those who have the will to find it. Here, Cathyrs often returns out of nostalgia and always to bury the bodies he has used. When one body has finally reached the end of its limit, he buries it in the cemetery kept beside the home. Each and every slave that has died under Cathyrs’ employment are also buried here and given their own stone and name. While not a large cost to himself, it makes those who work for him feel that little bit more human…and only strengthens their loyalty. [spoiler=moderation note]Feel free to self moderate[/url]   Family NPCs Name: Carthrys Zulaca Race: Nuit DoB: Unknown PoB: Unknown Title: Head of Household of Godstouch Skills: Leadership 78; Botany 70; Philtering 68; Embalming 62; Persuasion 60; Weapon: Bladed Rope Dart 58; Agriculture: Modified Tobacco and Cotton 48; Wilderness Survival: Swamp 46; Philosophy 40 Gnosis: Bala 2 Additional Info: Carthyrs came to Kenash originally in the employ of the Askara. He was Nuit at the time and his origin and age are completely unknown, nor will he tell. If asked, Carthyrs will change the subject to history regarding Godstouch plantation. After helping the Askara sow their fields, he asked them for a chance to have land of his own. A negotiation took place, ending in the Nuit's favour, and the first seeds of Godstouch were planted. He moved a distance away from them, and away from prying eyes he began planting and harvesting on his own time. Carthyrs is not a harsh Nuit, and lacks any of the coldness that seems integral to most Nuit in Mizahar. Instead, the old creature is delightful to speak to, enunciating in a rich, slow tone. Carthyrs began to collect slaves only after his garden got too large for him to handle on his own. Since then it has grown exponentially. Carthyrs personally believes that much like his own journey, slaves can only earn their right to freedom through hard work and merit. Not many possess the 'spark' that he had and those that do are, in his opinion, the more worthy of a dynasty title in Kenash. That is not to say that the old Nuit is soft or forgiving. Some have observed that Zulaca has little tolerance for cruelty. The Radacke treatment of slaves is deplorable in his eyes, who sees the world as something that must be gently cultivated, encouraged, and even pruned if necessary. The conscious decision to dehumanize is a terrible crime in Carthyrs’ eyes and he does what he can to buy Radacke slaves for his own plantation… at the least to liberate them from their suffering. There is a measured peace to the intelligence of one who can think in decades and centuries rather than the limited scope of those with ordinary lifespans. Carthyrs always makes his moves slowly, gradually, but they produce dramatic ripples in the social climate of Kenash. It is easy, perhaps, to underestimate Carthyrs as simply a glorified gardener, but those who have had the time to accrue perspective see Carthyrs as the only soul that has been with Kenash since its founding. He has seen its direction, he has personally experienced all its major events, and perhaps no one is as prepared for its future as Zulaca. Name: Saliero Zulaca Race: Nuit (Formerly Human/Benshira) DoB: Winter 453 PoB: Ekytol Title: Seneschal Skills: Finances 76, Persuasion 62, Intelligence 57, Weapon: Crossbow 49, Poison 34, Gnosis: Unknown Additional Info: Before he was bought by Cathyrs, Saliero was a field worker for the Sitai. In the field he was attacked by a creature from the swamp and sustained crippling injuries to his right leg. The condition would impart a permanent severe limp to his right leg and the Sitai deemed him unfit and useless to continue in the fields. Cathyrs bought him from the Sitai for two thirds of his original price and brought him to his own plantation. There Saliero was treated, but the prognosis remained the same, he would have a permanent limp. It was around this time that Saliero revealed to Cathyrs that before he was taken, he was a merchant in Ekytol. His small domain was long since gone, but the keen mind of a mathematician and businessman remained. At first, Cathyrs was content to keep Saliero as a house slave, cleaning with his limited means and sometimes consulting him for financial matters. As time went by, Saliero suggested several notable methods by which Zulaca could cut expenditure and increase profitability, even going so far as to suggest some of his own experience with Syliras and alternate ways to make deals with them. Cathyrs was impressed enough to grant Saliero his freedom by adoption into the Zulaca family. Lusting after his former life of riches and lavish comforts, Saliero took to the position perhaps better than Cathyrs expected. Of the two of them, sometimes it seems Saliero more looks the part of a rich plantation owner than old man Zulaca. Personally, Saliero is responsible for a notable increase in profits to both Zulaca and Kenash as a whole. With his limp gone and his body replaceable, Saliero has taken to life as a Nuit far better than most. Though his ability to enjoy the pleasures of Kenash have faded, he instead prides himself in his acumen and the ability to, like Carthrys, shape Kenash over the generations. While he was initially looked down upon by the other plantation families for his former status, his ingenious insight into finances brought an efficiency to Kenash in the last ten years that it did not know before. Not that he is solely responsible, but of all the slaves Cathyrs has elevated, it is Saliero who is at least tolerated by the other dynasties, if not respected. Every three years, Saliero takes a trip to Syliras in order to see to contract negotiations and other dealings with the castle city, and always seems to return with freshly minted mizas for the city to enjoy.   Servant NPCs Name: Zorin Freelander Race: Human DoB: Fall 463 AV PoB: Zeltiva Title: None Skills: Teaching 57, Writing 51, Research 47, Storytelling 36 Gnosis: Unknown Additional Info: Zorin works under the title of servant on the Zulaca homestead, but it’s simply a means to an end. Zorin is a professor at the University of Zeltiva who has taken a sabbatical from his home city and undertaken a journey to Kenash on invitation from Cathyrs. While Zorin is expected to straighten the house with other servants and perform in what ways Cathyrs requests, his purpose is to gather research about the plantation families of Kenash in order to compile into a small series of books for the Zeltivan library. Cathyrs has a great love of intellect and knowledge and so he’s happy to accept Zorin into his home to study the Zulaca way of life. Zorin is forbidden from the greenhouses on Cathyrs’ property, but most other places the writer walks untested. Whether the other plantation families will be as accommodating remains to be seen.   Slave NPCs Name: Shaida Race: Human-Vantha DoB: Spring 495 AV PoB: Avanthal Title: Skills: Philtering 43, Botany 38, Agriculture: Sweet Tobacco and Colored Cotton 29, Storytelling 26 Gnosis: Unknown Additional Info: Shaida is not her true name, but one given to her on the Askara plantation. Shaida was mostly a forgettable girl who worked the fields till she suffered an unfortunate accident that removed the use of her left arm. Cathyrs bought her when her performance fell in the Askara fields and gave her new purpose on his own plantation. She’s taken pretty swiftly to learning and it is assumed she may find membership in Zulaca’s family soon. ** Written up by Wrenmae