House Marna

[DrakeHaze. 2524]

HOUSE HOREN OF MARNA

The House of Marna

Sworn to the Duchy of Adria

House Words

“Second to None”

A cadet branch to the former Imperial line of Horen, House Horen of Marna has had held a long tradition of bestowing wisdom and service to the various Orenian monarchs. At first, this was due to blood relations to the crown, but as time progressed, the competency of the lords of Marna granted them merit among even new dynasties.

In hopes of revitalizing this tradition and breathing new life to his near-defunct household, Illaustius Horen formally declared the junior branch of Horen to be one kin but distinct to the Horen line of Godfrey. He took upon his grandfather’s, Richard’s, first title, the Duchy of Marna, and distinguished him and his line as “House Horen of Marna”, or informally, “House Marna”.

House Banner

House Horen of Marna takes upon the colors argent and purple. It keeps the purple color of its main branch to signify its Horen ancestry, while turning its black dragon to silver to represent the steel which Richard bore and the stone which Silus worked.

House History

Archduke Richard Horen of Avalon, Duke of Marna

Richard Horen is regarded as the progenitor of the Marna line. The younger brother of Godfrey, Richard and his brother were left nigh destitute to beggar among the realm to various nobles to press their claim as Kings of Oren, and ergo, Renatus. When Renatus began to collapse due to poor administration, the nobles finally cast their lot in with young Godfrey, and the kingdom blossomed as a result.

But the stories of House Horen of Marna often look to historical figures that are overlooked. In the Divine Emperor’s shadow was his young brother, the fierce Richard of Marna. Lesser men would have squabbled over rights and claims in envy to their brother’s appointment as monarch, but Richard recognized his duty as a second son to protect his elder and devoted himself to matters military.

Richard is regarded as one of the first great Renatian tacticians, its first Lord Marshal under Godfrey. He cobbled together the Renatus common levy and elite mounted knights of Silverblade and Flay under his banner, forging a strong enough force of combined arms to annex the unruly provinces of Hanseti, Salvus, Seventis. He was aside the Emperor when they sent back the wildling tribes in their great battles, and is often depicted in song and art wielding a fierce warhammer, a relic of House Horen of Marna to this day.

Despite Richard’s lofty accomplishments, various lordlings of Renatus would often find ways to slight Richard out of envy of his prestigious offices held. A famous incident of this was between the Elendils of Ildon and Horens of Marna, where a lesser son of Duke Artorus Elendil remarked to Richard,

“How does it feel to beggar to your brother, forever second as his shadow?”

To which Richard responded,

“Do not talk to me about shadows, Elendil; I am my own man, second to none.”

It is from this encounter where House Horen of Marna derives their house words; while a cadet branch born of a second son often compared to their senior branch, House Marna boldly proclaim themselves second to none.

For his valor, Richard was granted the grand estate of Marna by his brother, and later, the Archduchy of Avalon. He wed a princess of Skravia and later a distant kinsmen of a lesser line of Horen, Caterina. Unfortunately, Richard lacked the wisdom and patience to rear his offspring meaningfully. His successors paled in comparison to Richard’s lofty prestige, unable to manage the Marna estates successfully, and thus the line of Richard soon fell to obscurity. It was not until his youngest son came of age, Silus Horen, when the Horens of Marna would come of note once more.    

King Silus Horen, Duke of Corazon

Silus was the youngest of Richard’s brood, a fourth son of a second son unlikely to inherit. Yet he was orphaned early in life, remembering scant of his brothers and parents who had died or gone missing long before he could mourn their loss. Silus was raised by Emperor Godfrey, who took pity on his nephew and hoped to preserve Richard’s legacy by tending to his last living heir. Silus proved competent in the Imperial court and was a favorite of Godrey’s; it was not long before Silus managed to distinguish himself among the Imperial councillors as Lord High Treasurer. Furthermore, he was named Duke of Corazon, though his rule as Duke was rather short-lived due to the hostilities between his vassals and inability to cobble together a militia to quell them. He resigned the duchy to Christenne Valois not long after his appointment. Silus was unlike his father in that he was not a soldier but a thinker; he found his duties as High Treasurer far more intriguing and often would work in collaboration with Toveah Goldman to insure the financial well being of the imperial capital of Abresi.

Growing up as an orphan, Silus often languished his lack of kindred and craved the attention of his peers. One of the few to return such attention was Marquis Siegmund Carrion, who found the Horen orphan intriguing and would humor the lad. The two built up a fast relationship that had a notable impact during the post-Exodus period. Silus, while proud of his lineage, had recognized the ineptitude of his cousin once-removed William Horen and aided Siegmund in his Adunian conquests and rise to power.

In this process, Silus was, for a time, elevated to King of Oren, after William Horen was forced to abdicate after challenging papal authority and failing. Silus ruled with an able hand, albeit he had no real interest in governance, leaving the duties to Siegmund’s firstborn, Tuvya Carrion. Before long, Silus had abdicated from the throne to the Carrions and was doled a sum to live out his days indulging in his true passion, the studies of the arcane.

 

In his later years, Silus aided the Golden Lance in crafting weapons to combat the Black Scourge and forging autonomous steam golems. An innovator and tinkerer, he had no care for politics or intrigue, marrying a merchant’s daughter by the name of Tricia and focusing on his academic pursuits. Silus’ accomplishments rival some of the greatest engineers in history, but his apathy to titles had left the junior Horen line landless. It would be up to his successors, the twins Illaustius and Crius, to make a name for themselves.

Ilaustius Horen of Marna

While born younger to his triplet Crius, it was Ilaustius Horen who would go forth in an attempt to restore the legacy of Marna. The twins were born and reared in fringe where they squired for the Crown Prince Robert Chivay. Crius had the fortune of being named Patriarch of House Horen due to the junior’s branch increased prestige as a result of Silus’ famous accomplishments, but unfortunately he had done little with the title to establish any sort of prominence. He fell ill consuming moldy bread and passed not long after, returning the reins of Horen to the senior branch in the form of Edmund Horen.

Under Edmund, the House of Horen partook in the Renatus Rebellion, a disaster in the eyes of the Marna branch. Ilaustius and his peers condemned the affair due to their family history with Tuvya Carrion and fought alongside the Imperial Wardens in the battle of Crow’s Folly. Despite being forced into hiding for a time, Ilaustius managed to survive long enough for the tables to turn on the traitors in the Schism War. Despite living a life of relative mediocrity until then, Ilaustius’ contributions in both wars earned him enough prestige to attract the attention of Duke Franz Vladov, who found his loyalty to faith and the Orenian spirit appealing. He took Ilaustius in his service and permitted Ilaustius to take upon the Marna name, to distinguish himself from his seditious kin and forge a new path born from the legacy of the sons of Richard. He was given Baron-Regency of Dragonspeak to ensure his rightful place within the duchy.

[[big thanks to Cracker for writing this & Jackster for the banner]]

[MamaBearJade 2090]

Acquilina frowns. "I thought he was a triplet or was I adopted?"

 

 

((Illy, Crius, Lina are triplets ya dope! So rude. XP))

[osumanduas 1442]

Edmond nods

[Sky 0]

The seed is strong.

 

[SodaiKamikaze 652]

<3

[Kalehart 1096]

Peter grumbles that he's never heard of such a thing.

[AIHuman 81]

Seems like they're second to a lot of people.

 

Actually, much lower than second.

 

Edit: Wait, guess that means they are second to none.

[moali125 19]

"Marna.. House Marna. Salut, to merit. May your new House have not just roof but chimney!"

[Galendar 631]

A ship rocks back and forth far out at sea, a black figure standing in his cabin, pouring over the scrolls sent to him from Athera.

 

House Marna catches his eye, bringing a small smile to his ever-stern gaze.

 

"The Dragon may still have fire yet.."

[Heero 4092]

Moved to the Archive. It shall be sorted into the appropriate category shortly.