House Silma

[Evonpire 2014]

 

The Silma
 

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Foundation and Ancient History
 

The Silma are an ancient house of Elves who were founded by Siol, the Second Son of Malin. Many of them were originally a tightly bound company of warriors called the Silmarion, who were organized by Siol to protect the children of Malin as they escaped from the Demonic Hordes of Iblees. Many died working towards this task. They stood before the demons, their swords, bows, and spears held at the ready and their formations tight, though they were often outnumbered twenty or more to one by the Undead. Overtime, Siol began to see his companions not as simple brothers and sisters in arms, but as family. Hence held them to high standards of honor and humility throughout the war, the same standards to which he would hold himself or his own kin. He adopted many of them over the course of the war, with them taking on his surname of Silma. With the end of the War and the Fall of Iblees, Malin promptly disappeared into his exile, and Siol disappeared soon after. Why he left the people he cared so much for is unknown, but it is thought that he felt some sort of guilt for his father’s self exile and for the many elves that died despite his efforts.
 
After the departure of Siol, the Silma were left in the hands of Siol’s two sons, Skale and Loriens. They held the unit together as best they could, staying in the city of old Malinor while watching over the elves who resided there and trying to mediate some form of order. The Ichorian departure came very soon after Malin’s self-imposed exile, and due to this early abandonment of Malinor and the Ichorian’s quest for power and to pursue traditions that the Silma saw as savage, few or no Silma joined them. A few decades later, when the Irrinites departed, some Silma did accompany them, led by Skale. They admired the Seeds and were largely Aspectist, and hence wished to leave the walls of the city and rejoin nature as the Irrinites did. They left on good terms with the rest of the house who, led by Loriens, stayed in Malinor as its population dwindled.

 

Eventually, when the population of Malinor was sparse and few besides the Silma and remained, Edrahil Sylvaeri and his company returned from their adventures and the famous dragonslaying. At this point the Silma met him at the gates with some degree of hostility due to Sylvaen’s Kinslaying. However, after some form of atonement from Edrahil, the details of which have been lost to time (at least to my knowledge), and taken with the honor of Edrahil and the oath he and his brothers swore to avoid the sins of their father, the Silma and remaining elves joined him in his quest across the sea. The Siolian culture slowly blended with the Almenodrim’s as the years went on, the two houses residing together in Old Aegrothond off the coast of Atlas until it was abandoned and the Almenodrim rejoined the other Elven splinter groups in the reformed Malinor.
 

- Loriens Silma, son of Siol -
 

The Silma then lived in Malinor through its existence, though they started to slowly grow apart as the years went on. This is due to the Silma being less necessary when Malin’s children were at their strongest with no great enemy to fight. Loriens, however, kept what traditions he could and passed them to his three daughters, Lûthil, Hâdhel, and Esgalneth in Anthos. Loriens believed all three, along with his wife, were lost in the flood. This was, however, not entirely the case, and led to a further fragmentation of the House. Then next section will follow the happenings among the branches of Loriens’ children before returning to the Siolian line which persists today, through Keeper Elros's honoury membership. Large portions of the account of Arben’s line are taken verbatim from the histories of Haston Silma, which were given a relative by Haust when he rejoined the main line of Silma many decades ago.

 

The Quenching of the Hearths
 

Spoiler

 

In the years leading toward the dawn of the modern age, three distinct lines of Silma came together in preparation for the oncoming storm of Ibleesian servants. During this time it is said that the matriarchs of these lines, daughters of the missing Loriens became twisted in their ideologies. The eldest sister between them, Lûthil, remained most closely tied to Siolian customs. The younger, Hâdhel, proved the opposite. Marrying a man of ‘aheral nobility proved to eviscerate the woman’s love for her kin, as soon concepts of purity and superiority prevailed over her mind. Hâdhel became a soul afflicted by vile whispers of treachery - yet still she could not bear to see her kin slain. In desperation to repair cultural hostilities growing between the two Lines, Lûthil summoned her sister’s kin. This did not, however, ended in hostility, starting a great and long feud among these lines, leaving only Arben and his sister Tirnel and a handful of others alive at its

 

At first, the meeting tense though peaceful, with Hâdhel being cold to her sister and not receptive to her ways, being set in the ways of the ‘Thill. However, this was soon to change, as Cailion Saedus, Hâdhel’s husband, had secretly followed his wife with some of his kin, and used the meeting as an opportunity to eradicate some of the Thill’s greatest detractors. When the first Silma was killed by her husband’s hand, Hâdhel was shocked into realization, and begged forgiveness from her sister for what had happened, frantically hoping to make up for what she had done. However, it was short lived, as both sisters were struck down, Lûthil on Cailion’s sword and Hâdhel was killed in the chaotic fighting, though which side stuck her down and whether she was forgiven and redeemed is unknown. By the end of the meeting, all the true Silma in attendance were dead, though many had escaped to various Sanctuaries about the world. Cailion, who blamed the death of his wife on the Silma in his twisted mind, swore to kill all the Silma he could, until all their hearths were quenched, literally and metaphorically.

 

This murderous sentiment sparked a war between the two bloodlines lasting several decades, where one by one each Sanctuary fell to the forces of the Thill and the Silma within were killed and their hearth quenched, though each time heavy casualties were inflicted on the Saedus pretenders as well. It came down to the very last Sanctuary, the last Hearth, with Ârben and Tirnel, the children of Lûthil defending it with the last of the Silma. The fighting was fierce and long, and after hours, with the walls breached and the Saedus in the keep and the sacred sanctuary itself, the last of the Silma were finally able to defeat the Thill, though with innumerable losses to their men, and with the final Hearth being quenched moments before the victory. It was here that Ârben swore on the unlit hearth to reform his house, to assure nothing like this wretched slaying which left hundreds of true and corrupted Silma dead would ever happen again. This led to the far harsher way that he led the house, as he believed the ways passed down to his mother by Loriens were too weak to allow the house to last going forward. Hence the Arbenian line was formed, far more insular, strict, harsh, and dogmatic than its predecessor, forged by conflict and quenched in blood.

 

 

The Ârbenian Line

Spoiler

 

The Line of Ârben began briefly after the first blood-feud between opposing lines of Silma. In the diminishing and rapidly darkening days thereafter would the son of Lûthil, a woman hardened by the tragedies of the First Ibleesian war, emerge to lead his few remaining Kin. Much like his mother, Ârben had been forged by conflict, though evermore was he plagued by his earliest days of combat. Later within his life, he was given a Sister - an elfess brought into the Siolian ranks during the earlier days of the blood-feud. It was said that she provided the voice of mercy, a motherly figure to those who found serving alongside Ârben as too exhausting. While Ârben remained the sole Keeper of his line, much credit is given to Tirnel for keeping the few remaining survivors of the feud united. 

 

Above all, Ârben taught those who remained under his protection the art of discipline. To be a Silma was to become a greater guardian of Malin’s Children. An honor that befell a relative few, Ârben commanded a guard of Elites that rarely numbered higher than seventy-five men. The distraction of war brought by conflict between the Descendants was not the primary focus of the Line, after all. The Siolians of the early modern age most often placed familial Halls wherever able, creating a network of sorts between Elven settlements of varying size and importance. There was a time in which the Halls of Siol represented a safety of sorts to citizenry - an elder brother of sorts to watch over not only the nobility, but the peasantry as well. Despite whatever poise the Siolians of Ârben’s line seemed to achieve, humility oftentimes shrouded the true magnitude of heroic deeds performed by the ever standing guard. Vanguards against evils greater than the pursuits of lesser men - Ârben’s Line became the unsung champions of their time.

 

Of course, the strength of one’s sword arm means little against certain creatures of the abyss. It was for this reason that Ârben anointed many outside of the bloodline Silma. Specialists of every variety were once as equally demanded as warriors of great reputation. It was for this reason that the followers of Ârben became split into two distinct branches; those who were guided by Tirnel, the sister of Ârben, and those who fought alongside Ârben himself. Tirnel acted as a guide for Siolians delving into scholarly, diplomatic, and creative pursuits. It was beneath her that the true upkeeping of the family took place, the Seer branch being ever important stewards of familial Halls and courtrooms.

However, in modern times - the importance of the two branches dwindled into almost nothing, and by the reemergence of Loriens anmd leading up to the Mali's passing  they were also all forgotten about. Though, some of the Warden's and Seer's own customs and trials were adapted into the core-Siolan beliefs. With the only surviving remnants of the Ârbenian culture being the people itself, with the majority of bloodline Silma's being descendants of Ârben himself. Due to this a need for being able to identify them - based soley on the traits they had.
 

Proof of Blood

The children of Ârben bear some Siolian resemblances, though a few traits differentiate descendants of Ârben. Firstly, many descendants posses eyes of gray, a deep and almost steelish tone akin to singed metal- as opposed to the now-extinct Siolan Golden-Eyes. Their skin is of ‘thill complexion, albeit most often freckled on the cheeks. Lastly, members of this Line tend to be a bit shorter when in comparison to original Siolians, perhaps due to intermingling of sub-races throughout their history, though still being taller than the average 'Ame.

 

 

 

The Siolian Line & Modern History
 

Loriens persisted on after Anthos, thinking the whole of his Bloodline was dead, not knowing of Ârben or of the Quenching. He would go look for his families over the descendants' time in Athera and Vailor before coming to the Dominion of Malin in Axios and joining their guard force, trying to reconnect with his past and his old reason for being. In Atlas, Loriens met with Skale again and the two decided to reform the Silma, for a brief time as a banner house of the Sylvaeri and then as their own house as they were in the past.

 

The two brothers blended the old 'Ame idea of a Seed with the traditions of Malinor and the original Silma in this new iteration of the house, which made it grow quite quickly. Loriens then succeeded Belestram Sylvaeri as the Third High Prince of the Dominion of Malin after it’s reformation, and he led the nation for a brief time, trying his best to further improve things for Malin’s Children, though internal and external turmoil hindered his efforts. The stress of the position slowly got to him, eventually leading him to step down and go back to simply being the Keeper of Malin’s Flame. Eventually he left even that position, appointing Skale as the new Keeper and going forth to wander and clear his head, occasionally coming back to check on the family he had formed. Skale then left after a relatively short and uneventful term as Keeper leaving Miklaeil as his successor. 

 

Miklaeil led the Silma well in his time, with his term stretching over the fall of the Dominion and the migration of the Silma to Aegrothond, to rejoin the Sylvaeri there as they had in ancient times. In his term, though the family grew and flourished in several family units that had been adopted since the reformation of the House, the strong sense of duty and the purpose of the family were somewhat put by the wayside in favor of being a standard but inviting Almenodrim house. When Miklaeil stepped down and, after a tight election, Elros was chosen to succeed him. It was his goal to rebuild the Silma with the sense of purpose they had lost over the years, aided by the last notes of Loriens and the history of the Arbenian line. These codes are a compilation of the codes of Siol and Arben’s ancient codes with modifications to better suit modern times. Unfortunately, time passed as the House grew into stagnancy, with Elros persisting as Keeper until the returning Haust, a member of the Arben line. But, history repeated as Haust departed the Silma, carving the way for Ali’ere to claim the title momentarily, stepping on as the family fell to its lowest point in half a centaury. Though, due to unexpected occurrences the Mali' took a step back and returned the title to Elros Silma.

 

Traditions of the Silma

Hierarchy

- Ali'ere Silma, of Ârben's line -

The hierarchy is fairly simple, with the Keeper of Malin’s Flame as the leader of the house, the Elders as leaders of House simply being senior and respected members of the family, and the members being brethren in name and in purpose. All in the house can voice their disputes, but the Keeper and Elders will always have the final say, unless they directly break the Codes. When a Keeper steps down, he is to choose his successor from among the Elders. The Elders can overturn the appointment only if they can demonstrate that the candidate directly broke the codes, in which case a new successor will be chosen. If the Keeper dies before naming a successor, then the Elders and family will decide on the new Keeper in an election. The Current Keeper of Malin’s Flame is Elros Silma (SmartScout), and while the current Elders are Ali’ere Silma (Evonpire).

 

The Codes of the Silma

• The Children of Malin are to be regarded as a precious resource in the realm, and are to be guarded accordingly. 

  • Traitors to the race (e.g, murderers, tyrants), are to be detained if possible and brought before either the court of the nation whom they attacked or to the Keeper for judgement. If found guilty, these individuals are deemed to have abandoned Malin, and thus no longer fall beneath the protection of the Silma. Kinslayers and Slavers are especially looked down upon.

• The Family and its goals must take precedence before one’s personal pursuits. 

• Elven customs of all cultures are to be tolerated, lest such customs interfere with the greater safety of Malin’s Children.

• Our ancestors are to be held in reverence. Fallen Silma are to be laid within a canoe and set to sea, then to be cremated.

• Interbreeding or engaging in intimate relationships with other Descendants is not to be tolerated in the Silma. Elven blood may mingle, but the race is to be kept free of halfbreeds, for it is a great curse and leads to much grief for the parents and children in the end. 

  • Born half breeds are to be treated with pity. These individuals are victims enough already to the two curses that afflict them.

• Silma are expected to maintain dignity and poise in their public life. Being a representative of Siol’s will is no task to be taken lightly. Discipline or expulsion will follow any act deemed disgraceful to the family by the Keeper.

• The practice of magic is permitted, so long as it does not endanger the greater safety of Malin’s Children or the world at large. Though local laws and traditions on certain sects of magics take priority, such is the case for Voidial Magics in the Irrinite society.

• Any Keeper or Elder within the Silma who gives an order that directly violates these codes is to be disciplined as found necessary by the Keeper and/or Elders (depending on whom gave such an order)

• The Silma are to obey local laws and traditions when they are afield unless they directly violate one of these codes, in which they are to voice their opinion and act on it, though with discretion.

 Malin’s Flame

Malin’s Flame is, in literal terms, the hearth kept by the Keeper or Elders of the Silma house. There can be multiple physical hearths that hold the flame, as any Silma manor or safehouse will hold a hearth, and even the hearths commonly found in the rooms or homes of the Silma could be considered to be lit with the Flame. However, it is much more than a simple ordinary fire found in a Silma-owned hearth, but a concept central to the Silma ideology. The Flame represents the will of Malin and his children itself, and by extension represents the traditions, knowledge, wisdom, justice, morality, and strength of them. A Silma may often bid someone farewell by saying “May Malin’s Flame Guide You.” or some variation of such, as a form of blessing upon a traveler, hoping that they find wisdom and safety in their journey. The concept of the Flame is central to the Silma ideology, so it should never be doused if at all possible. Even within Aegrothond and the Almenodrim culture at large, Malin’s Flame and the Silma’s adherence to it is well known, with Silma generally being respected as wise and as being the moral compass of the Almenodrim. As is said in a stanza of traditional Almenodrim verse: “Kaeronins keep the sails strung high, until the break of day. The Crown of Storms will steer the ship, and Silma lights the way.”

 

The Burning of the Mark

If a Silma departs the house for reasons of differing ideology, or if they are determined by the Keeper to have betrayed the goals and traditions of the Silma through their actions, then a Silma is to have their tattoo burned off their back with either conventional fire or with the fire of a pyromancer. This is to forever be a mark of shame on them, and to show that what they are giving up or what they have betrayed is something that they will likely never attain again. It is meant to be a deterrent, a warning, and a sign to any seeking to join the Silma of the severity of such an infraction and the high standards the house holds themselves too. Those leaving due to marriage or a similar situation where the ideologies of the Silma will still be adhered to and only the name itself is dropped do not have the mark burnt off, but in any case of betrayed or disputed ideology where a member leaves or is kicked out, the mark must be burnt.

 

 

Rites of Hospitality

The Silma are protectors, guardians, and friends to all Mali’, so hence the doors of their safehouses and manors to be kept open to any who seek refuge, food, shelter, or even simple conversation. If in times of peace, the doors of the main manor are to be kept unlocked. In times of war, or where there is an open threat to a Silma, they are to be kept locked, but are to be open if any with peaceful intent come to them. To violate the hospitality of the Silma, whether by committing a crime or causing disorder, such mischief is not acceptable, and is to be punished to a level fitting of the crime, with being thrown out for a time being a common punishment for smaller infractions, while the one’s rights to the protection of the Silma being punishments for serious crimes.
 

Trials for Entry
The Silma require anyone who seeks to join the House to complete four trials to prove their dedication to the Children of Malin and the ideals of the Silma.

• Trial of Knowledge: The goal of the Silma is to aid and protect other Elves, so hence they are to learn of the different Children of Malin, and their customs. For this trial a Silma initiate should ask a member of each race and culture of Malin’s children to speak of their people and traditions, and the initiate should then report of what they learned to an Elder or the Keeper in either writing or speech to show they know the state of Elvenesse in their time.

• Trial of Craft: A Silma must use their talents to help Malin’s people, hence they should create something with their talents to glorify the legacy and home of the elves. It can be food, music, literature, poetry, woodwork, smithwork, scholarly work, or any other craft, so long as it is tied into the history and heritage of the Mali’ or to their present cultures, homes, or lifestyles.

• Trial of Family: An initiate must know of the Silma and their history and meaning, so for this trial they must speak with the Keeper or an Elder about the history of the Silma and about events in one’s life that display what it is to be a Silma.
  The first three may be done in any order the initiate chooses, with many opting to complete their trial of Family upon becoming an initiation. In contrast, the fourth must be completed after the previous three are.
  
  Though, it should be noted that the Trial of Honor can be completed retroactively for example, my own trial being completed retroactively by being an Oathblade of Aegrothond - Ali’ere Silma
   

• Trial of Honor: A Silma must help their kin with honor, and in this trial the Silma must demonstrate they are willing to do this. Here, an initiate must do some service for Mali’ as a whole, whether it be freeing Mali slaves, defending a Mali nation, healing wounded, brokering peace, or otherwise working for the betterment of Malin’s Children. Once this trial is complete one has proven themself to be a worthy Silma and may receive the mark. 

 

 

Spoiler

((Ooc Note))
Most of this stuff was originally written by Smartscout (Elros Silma) with lore from Hearth__ (Silas, Haust, Loriens Silma) in our original post for Aegrothond. I just decided to update and modify it to better reflect what it is now while keeping most of the original content. If you’re interested at all feel free to contact me on discord (Evonpire), (SmartScout) or in rp (Ali’ere Silma), (Elros Silma) and we can figure something out.

All Art in this post is by Nummy!