Alwyn's Timeline

Presenting the timeline for our second main character: Alwyn Fionnlaugh

• Prologue: Adheinne, Capital City, first day of winter, Alwyn’s birthday
  • Alwyn’s older brother returns from his inspection of the northern-most provinces of the nation just in time for Alwyn’s birthday
  • He says his present is very special, and too big to fit in a box
  • He leads her to the throne
  • That’s her present
  • He’s abdicating, and now she’s heir apparent
• Adheinne, southern coast, mid-spring the next year
  • Alwyn is between social visits to various noble families when she receives a letter from Renailia of Runalis
  • It is a letter to a summer ball, which she had never received personally before, generally she was just her brother’s plus one
  • Septimus, her former tutor and current advisor, convinces her to go
• Adheinne, southern coast, mid-spring
  • Alwyn arrives at a noble’s country estate to discover that they already had guests despite her established appointment
  • These guests are all also nobility, old codgers who’ve never seen a woman on a throne and weren’t keen on the idea when Alfwine abdicated
  • Alwyn takes note of all those present but makes no fuss, proceeds to have a pleasant conversation with the lady of the house and her daughter, while the lord of the house excuses himself not but five minutes into her visit
• Adheinne, Capital City, late spring
  • Alwyn arrives back at the capital, and goes to find her brother
  • She finds him in the garden with the reason for his abdication - his butler and guard, Niall
  • They discuss what happened when she visited the noble’s house, but Alfwine tells her not to worry, that no one would dare try anything. She’s royal by blood, after all. 
  • He also encourages her to connect with Renalia, as it would be good to have a friend in a similar situation as her.
  • It’s honestly all pretty patronizing. 
  • Even still, she instructs Septimus to keep his eye out while she’s away
• Runalis, Capital City, first day of summer
  • Alwyn arrives at the palace around the same time as Corona, and is greeted personally by Renalia
  • Alwyn is surprised when she is immediately invited to tea, but takes the offer
  • The three girls bond over their courtly responsibilities and the courtly jerks that make things difficult for them
  • Corona eventually breaks down and does the overshare thing, telling the others that her parents have kept her isolated to keep the court from finding out about her magical powers, which are frowned upon in her country, except in very specific military applications, and plan to marry her off to the son of a diplomat from a country with a poor reputation
  • Alwyn feels for Corona, and vows to help her in any way she can
• Adheinne, capital city, early summer
  • Alwyn returns home to hear from Septimus that he’s caught wind of a plot to remove her from the throne and attempt to get her brother back as the heir
  • The plot involves tricking Alfwine into falling for a young noblewoman, who is to be disguised as a man, which boils Alwyn’s blood
  • She takes the proof Septimus has gathered and goes to her parents and Alfwine, demanding that those that she can prove are involved (the sender of the letter, the person who was to receive it, the young woman, and the young woman’s father) are thrown in jail
  • The king and queen insist it will be done
  • Alfwine apologizes for not believing her
  • Before she can dive into the investigation any farther, however, a letter comes from Corona
  • It’s a wedding invitation and a plea for help
• On route to Ericordium, mid-summer
  • Renalia and Alwyn meet up on a private airship heading south to Corona’s wedding, and swear to object to the marriage, willing to fight if necessary
• Ericordium, capital, mid-summer
  • Corona is set to be married, and finds herself near panicking trying to find a way out of it
  • Renalia and Alwyn manage to catch her alone for a moment, and promise her that they’re going to object, and give her a moment to expose her parents’ treachery
  • Renalia suggest implementing a harem system like in Runalis, to keep such a thing from happening again
  • Renalia and Alwyn object during the wedding, leading to a small scuffle during which Corona defends herself using magic, exposing herself to the nobility
  • She banishes her mother and father, along with the ambassador and his son, and changes the wedding into a coronation ceremony
• Adheinne, capital city, late summer
  • Alwyn continues to investigate the conspiracy against her, but the nobility have gotten smarter after her initial move, which she had hoped would scare them into dropping the plan
  • Instead, she finds that military implements that were under the care of certain noble families have gone missing
  • She receives a letter from Corona detailing movements of the Republic in Ericordium territory at the same time she received word from nobles loyal to her that those who oppose her appear to be on the move with their knights and militias. 
  • She immediately sends word to Renalia and Corona
• Air ship, neutral territory, late summer
  • Renalia, Corona, and Alwyn meet up and begin strategizing
  • Renalia calls upon Iroha’s father to bolster their armies
  • Alwyn offers to take a single squad of soldiers to rescue Cadell
  • Corona suggests drawing their enemies into a naval battle in the sea between the northern edge of Renalia’s kingdom and the southern edge of Alwyn’s
    • This sea is known for being rough and unpredictable, especially during the transitional period between summer and fall
  • Corona would then swoop in on Alwyn’s sturdy airships with a squad of magic users
• Runalis, countryside, late summer/early autumn
  • Alwyn leads a small squad of her own soldiers and a handful of demon warriors into Cadell’s family home, finding him held hostage in his childhood bedroom, three stories up
  • Alwyn uses the demons’ magic to help Cadell escape, riding up to the window on a gale of wind and carrying him down
  • There is a small scuffle with the manor’s guards, but Alwyn and Cadell manage to escape
• Runalis, capital city, late summer/early autumn
  • Alwyn reunites Cadell with Renalia
• War ship, the sea between Adheinne and Runalis, early autumn
  • Alwyn commands her armada to draw the Republic and stolen Adheinne ships into the most dangerous part of the sea, setting upon the enemy ships with cannon fire and magical missiles
  • She allows her ship to be boarded by an enemy ship, captained by the leader of the dissenting nobles, the man who she had visited just that spring
  • He hadn’t actually wanted to put Alfwine back on the throne, he was unnatural after all. Even the whores down south at least knew that a man is to lie with a woman. If Alwine was unnatural, what were the odds that Alwyn was too? Too high, in his opinion. It would be best to simply go back up the line of succession and find someone entirely different.
  • Low and behold, his daughter would be the next viable heir, via a long, complicated family tree
  • Alwyn’s fairly certain he’s lying about their relation
  • Despite his best efforts, Alwyn handily defeats him and forces him to watch as Corona and her court magicians obliterate the Republic ships 
• Epilogue: Adheinne, Capital City, mid-winter two years later
  • At age 25, Alwyn takes the throne as queen