Lexicon/GrandSolarMonarchy
The Grand Solar Monarchy
From Flawless Mirror's Collected Letters to Yu Shan
Dearest Fangs-Like-Milk, Darkest of Moons,
I must thank you again for the invitation, and yet again I must decline. My duties at Old Jin have called me away once more. This message is written in haste, as I have only until the Sun sets to prepare for the journey. Sabbaticals used to be so relaxing.
You asked me to do a bit of research, and I have enclosed what I have found. My own Exaltation was at the beginning of the Golden Age, and thus I have no recollection of the happenings prior. Otherwise this would be a faithful product.
From the darkest of night shines the brightest of lights. I never thought such a simple childhood rhyme could be so poignant. But, as such things do, it has its beginnings in the Age of Amarnath. Dark were those times. Inebriated with power as we were, we shirked our duties. We nearly lost the South to the Wyld, and I shudder to think, no pun intended, of what would happen should we have lost the Pillar of Fire wholesale.
The first Grand Solar Monarchy changed all that. The Deliberative had been formed, but it lacked direction. The more martial of our kind desired continued conflict; why stop at where the Realm had progressed? Why not continue to expand, to extend our conquest as deep into the Wyld as we could? Equally as foolhardy were those who thought the Fair Ones would no longer bother the Realm, and no more than a cursory border force should be deployed.
Lunacy, both. No offense.
The conflict between those two led inexorably to those most foul of treasures; the Soul Bells. Even now I cannot help but shudder at the tales my beloved has horrified me with. So sweet, yet so hopelessly empty. I thank Len-Bo Who Comes In Song and Water for the destruction of her prison and the subsequent reintegration of her shard into the Wheel. But, I digress.
Their conflicts raged, until at last there arose four Exalts, one of each distinction, who called for rest. They spoke to those who would listen and soundly defeated those who would rather fight. They waged peace as others waged war, and with the might of the Heavens behind them, no force could stop them.
The Solar of the bunch, one Weeping Chrysanthemum in Dawn's Light, was crowned the Grand Monarch, under whose even hand the Deliberative was formed and all debates settled.
As is now tradition, whenever a dispute arises that even the Deliberative cannot settle, each division elects a candidate for appointment. The winner of the election is the new Solar Monarch (regardless of celestial aspect), and presides over the original debate. The Monarch remains in power only as long as the debate continues, a holdover that hearkens back to Jubilant Willow's folly and abuse of power.
And there you have it, my dearest friend.
Yours in faith and companionship,
Flawless Mirror
-Dim
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