"A king will marry his cousin or even closer? That's called incest and is greatly frowned upon where I come from."
"We call it 'keeping the bloodlines clean'."
Social Hierarchy in Ilmarinen
Ilmarinen has a social hierarchy that the people follow because it is what they know. It is not until Altana shows up that the people realize life isn't as fair as it should be. The social hierarchy exists because of the Creation Story.
The hierarchy consists of only two levels:
Scions:
Scions are humans born from the tears of the gods. When Odin had the world destroyed, the gods cried again to create life, but only created two humans. Any human who can trace their family tree back to those first two humans are called scions.
Scions have the wealth and power. Odin deemed them more worthy than any others.
Begotten:
Begotten are humans that were not born from the tears of the gods. In order to populate Ilmarinen faster, Odin sent his sons to another world to bring women back. The sons had babies with these women and those babies became the begotten. Any human whose lineage goes back to those women are called begotten.
Begotten are the poor and lower middle class of Ilmarinen. They do not have any political power.
*Scions and begotten have not and do not mix.*
The hierarchy consists of only two levels:
Scions:
Scions are humans born from the tears of the gods. When Odin had the world destroyed, the gods cried again to create life, but only created two humans. Any human who can trace their family tree back to those first two humans are called scions.
Scions have the wealth and power. Odin deemed them more worthy than any others.
Begotten:
Begotten are humans that were not born from the tears of the gods. In order to populate Ilmarinen faster, Odin sent his sons to another world to bring women back. The sons had babies with these women and those babies became the begotten. Any human whose lineage goes back to those women are called begotten.
Begotten are the poor and lower middle class of Ilmarinen. They do not have any political power.
*Scions and begotten have not and do not mix.*
Politics in Ilmarinen
Scions of Ilmarinen have all political power, but they, too, have an hierarchy. The level of power is as follows:
High King Scion:
The High King Scion governs all of Ilmarinen and resides in the capital city, Cala. Everyone, except the gods, answer to him. Ilmarinen is ruled by High King Scion Jareth Meilhard.
King Scion:
There is only one King Scion in all of Ilmarinen. The title was given to King Scion Walfred Bardolph because he governs Ellery Island which has a port town that connects to Ancelote Island and a port town that connects to Skerry Island. Ellery Island is the only smaller island in Ilmarinen that has more than one port town.
He must answer to the High King Scion, but rules over all of Ellery Island.
Scions:
Scions are rulers of each port town on Ilmarinen. Scions that rule a port town on a smaller island also rule the entire island and any towns on it, but must also answer to the High King Scion.
On Ancelote Island: Scion Lambert Sinclair rules Edlyn, Scion Marcel Gorman rules Maris, and Scion Varick Meilhard (High King Scion's son) rules Beryl. All three men rule their port towns, but do not have power over Ancelote Island. That power belongs to the High King Scion.
On Ellery Island: King Scion Walfred Bardolph rules Elden and the entire island. Scion Elinda Berdine (the only female Scion) rules Ashira. She rules the town, but must answer to the King Scion of Ellery Island.
Skerry Island: Scion Seldon Thormand rules Eginhard and the entire island.
Rhona Island: Scion Kaiser Nicodemus rules Demelza and the entire island.
Ara Island: Scion Enoch Nairne rules Renley and the entire island.
Paladins:
Paladins are the fighting forces of Ilmarinen. They are like police officer knights. They make sure everyone follows the laws and rules, but because war is not something Ilmarinen knows, they do not fight many real battles. Each island has its own paladin forces. Their uniforms are of their island's colors and include the island's symbol on the chest.
Everyone else:
The lowest on the political hierarchy are scions that do not hold a political position. When a scion holds power, they get the word "Scion" tacked on to the front of their name. Without it, they are simply scions, humans found special by Odin. They are rich and receive the most benefits. Although they do not have political power, they can have a say in how things work.
High King Scion:
The High King Scion governs all of Ilmarinen and resides in the capital city, Cala. Everyone, except the gods, answer to him. Ilmarinen is ruled by High King Scion Jareth Meilhard.
King Scion:
There is only one King Scion in all of Ilmarinen. The title was given to King Scion Walfred Bardolph because he governs Ellery Island which has a port town that connects to Ancelote Island and a port town that connects to Skerry Island. Ellery Island is the only smaller island in Ilmarinen that has more than one port town.
He must answer to the High King Scion, but rules over all of Ellery Island.
Scions:
Scions are rulers of each port town on Ilmarinen. Scions that rule a port town on a smaller island also rule the entire island and any towns on it, but must also answer to the High King Scion.
On Ancelote Island: Scion Lambert Sinclair rules Edlyn, Scion Marcel Gorman rules Maris, and Scion Varick Meilhard (High King Scion's son) rules Beryl. All three men rule their port towns, but do not have power over Ancelote Island. That power belongs to the High King Scion.
On Ellery Island: King Scion Walfred Bardolph rules Elden and the entire island. Scion Elinda Berdine (the only female Scion) rules Ashira. She rules the town, but must answer to the King Scion of Ellery Island.
Skerry Island: Scion Seldon Thormand rules Eginhard and the entire island.
Rhona Island: Scion Kaiser Nicodemus rules Demelza and the entire island.
Ara Island: Scion Enoch Nairne rules Renley and the entire island.
Paladins:
Paladins are the fighting forces of Ilmarinen. They are like police officer knights. They make sure everyone follows the laws and rules, but because war is not something Ilmarinen knows, they do not fight many real battles. Each island has its own paladin forces. Their uniforms are of their island's colors and include the island's symbol on the chest.
Everyone else:
The lowest on the political hierarchy are scions that do not hold a political position. When a scion holds power, they get the word "Scion" tacked on to the front of their name. Without it, they are simply scions, humans found special by Odin. They are rich and receive the most benefits. Although they do not have political power, they can have a say in how things work.