I, Globoch, appointed as High Wizard by unanimous voting of the 33 Kings of The United Free Kingdoms of The Lands, declare the 88th Universal Era officially open under the protection of The Golden One. May She always protect us and make us warm and peaceful. May this record stand the test of time and reach distant times and kingdoms.
Now that the ceremonial words have been said, I will begin this first gaze into the Silver Cup as is common practice by explaining what the Silver Cup itself is.
the Silver Cup [https://images.nightcafe.studio/ik-seo/jobs/ZOuyfQ1UoLTeyOXSOVVk/ZOuyfQ1UoLTeyOXSOVVk--0--y2ybv/a-big-fantasy-silver-cup.jpg?tr=w-1600,c-at_max]
Above: the Silver Cup.
The Silver Cup is an extremely powerful magical object that enables its user to see and hear all present events no matter their distance, as long as the object is binded to the God of a certain territory it grants visibility to all of the affiliated kingdoms. It was obtained after the conquest of the First Moon in the 23rd Era, more specifically during the last and most significant battle: the battle of the Moon Cathedral, where the Elven Cosmonauts' 70th Special Division defeated the forces of the Moon Mouse Empire and toppled the regime of Rooley the Fifth. Inside the cathedral they found the Silver Cup, which had been used by Emperor Rooley to acquire strategical information of significant importance. Its effect had been mitigated by the invention of a limited number of telepathical elven devices, used by high army officials to discuss their battle plans.
After having been binded to The Golden One it has mostly served the purpose of record-keeping thanks to the ability of the first officially appointed High Wizard: Uylmeiz of Ruby Bay, who created a spell that turned the visions offered by the cup into books divided by Era, just like the one you are reading now.
Rooley the Fifth [https://images.nightcafe.studio/ik-seo/jobs/SLCphbFtvNSsvDwsLpVO/SLCphbFtvNSsvDwsLpVO--0--f5n4p/an-evil-fantasy-dark-mouse-king-on-the-moon.jpg?tr=w-828,c-at_max]
The Moon Cathedral [https://images.nightcafe.studio/ik-seo/jobs/7jWlbDWY4fmV1XL2xgth/7jWlbDWY4fmV1XL2xgth--0--f1bq4/a-giant-black-gothic-cathedral-on-the-surface-of-the-moon.jpg?tr=w-1080,c-at_max]
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Above (always from top to bottom): Rooley the Fifth, the Moon Cathedral
So, what are The United Free Kingdoms of The Lands? Who is The Golden One? And who are the 33 Kings who rule over The Lands?
This chapter will mainly focus on our capital city, The Golden One and the King among Kings.
The central realm of the UFK is the Elven Forest and its capital city is called The Tree. Elves have been living in this forest since the beginning of time. There is no account of any Era where they have not done so, even in the books describing the first 23 Eras before the use of the Silver Cup. The forest itself is of natural origin, but the current trees have all been magically generated by their State Department of Internal Magic and Sorcery. Each tree is big enough that it can function as a house or building. Some skyscraper trees have been built, but not too many. The biggest tree is the one that gives name to the capital: The Tree. It is so big that it can still be seen many towns after leaving the city. It houses the government of Elven Forest, the royal court, the UFK headquarters and the UFK Research Centre.
A city street in The Tree [https://images.nightcafe.studio/ik-seo/jobs/jhy5GUM9I3spQ60AG768/jhy5GUM9I3spQ60AG768--0--qpnop/a-city-block-made-of-tree-buildings.jpg?tr=w-1600,c-at_max]
A summer villa outside the capital. [https://images.nightcafe.studio/ik-seo/jobs/iiWecKvWqo6CReuokhFE/iiWecKvWqo6CReuokhFE--0--qnqx0/a-gigantic-tree-full-of-windows-and-entrances-it-is-surrounded-by-other-trees-that-look-tiny-in-comp.jpg?tr=w-1080,c-at_max]
The Tree (building) [https://images.nightcafe.studio/ik-seo/jobs/MdlobNAvXqgNq4ZK96VI/MdlobNAvXqgNq4ZK96VI--0--gcc6u/an-enormous-tree-castle.jpg?tr=w-1600,c-at_max]
Above: a city street in the capital, a summer villa outside the capital, The Tree (building).
This Centre is of key importance to the well-being of the kingdoms of The Lands. Other centers exist, but they are not nearly as advanced as the UFKRC and usually specialize in regional matters. The research centre of The Tree contains The Golden One.
The Golden One was not always considered the God of The Lands (these were godless territories for centuries), until She fell from the sky during the second Era. The Lands have never been the same: the energy provided by The Golden One has been the fuel of elven research and has allowed the creation of wonderful technologies by the likes of those mentioned before. All visual representations of The Golden One are prohibited since they would diminish its true beauty. This is currently a matter of heavy theological discussion.
The king of the Elven Forest is not to be confused with the King among Kings: this title is given to all 33 kings of the UFK, once every ten years, until all of them have had their turn. This process follows a random order each time. After a full cicle is done, it resets and begins again. The King among Kings only has a representative role and only differs from the others in the fact that it manages External Affairs and represents the UFK when dealing with other kingdoms. The current King among Kings is Rockledouv the First, King of the Grey Cave and Leader of the rockley people.
There will be time to write all about The Lands, included some of its lore, and territories yet undiscovered. An Era is a long period, and I can't wait to see it unfold!