Harald
The throne room of Stonehill Hold was largely made of old stones and new timbers which still showed the signs of the destruction which once left Stonehill Hold abandoned. Kings of Dumgarth had once ruled from the ancient structure after the Fabian Withdrawal only to be defeated by the Old Blood Furse invaders of Daxholm before his father took the world and system as service to King Oswald of the Commonwealth.
Harald often enjoyed the sights of the grey and burned black stone. The fortress had been built by the Fabians on top of the remains of the older Tutha fortress which once stood there. The throne room his father had rebuilt was filled with carved art in the stone pillars that flanked the middle of the rectangle room by art from Tutha, Fabian, and Furse.
The old cracked stone throne still stood from the time of the Tutha it was said, with carved wolf heads. His father had spent much to upgrade it with new tech while maintaining its look and care not to damage it. It, like most of the room, was a blend of the four cultures which had taken control of the world.
It wasn’t just the sights and skill and craft of the room which Harald enjoyed, but the function. Harald spent many days among those who assembled as his father heard petitions and grievous’s from those he ruled over on Isca itself but also those who came from the rest of the star system. It was not uncommon for the System-lord to hear and make judgement for those who came from minor systems which surrounded Isca and swore loyalty in exchange for protection to his father.
There was hardly a day which System-lord Peder Frost did not spend hearing the concerns of the people of Isca. All were free to petition the lord, as he ruled in the fashion of the Furse. A lord must know their people. Share their joys and burdens, and listen to their concerns. Many would forgive a lord they knew of their mistakes his father had told him.
A lord could be forgiven and respected by his subject so long as he was seen as not only fair and just but one of them, and doing what their position would allow to help them and their families. His father knew many of those who came by name. Lords who swore their loyalty to him were easy but the farmers around Stonehill Hold or the common person from the other side of Isca his father could recite.
Harald knew that his father could not know them all by name. Many were relayed by his own steward and staff but his father had imparted the importance of the effort, and even those who he had not met before would acknowledge and take pride in being addressed by their own name.
Many times people came just for advice, or sought the support of the System-lord. It was not uncommon for his father to pass along the petition to other courts to settle disputes which he felt were not his jurisdiction or if there was a conflict. It was a dance his father had told him as a lord who passed granting his own judgment could soon lose respect for those they ruled. Just as easy was it for a lord to lose the respect of those they ruled if they never sought the advice and aid of the local courts.
In truth Harald knew it was boring. Land disputes, lean years and the failure to meet tax obligations and all matters of subjects hit his fathers ears. Local politicians could often be found in the room, supporters and non supporters alike. From the throne room of Stonehill Hold System-lord Peder Frost ruled but likewise he served as just one member of the House of Lord of Isca which served as just one of the ruling houses of the local government of the world.
Just as the System-lord spent almost every day holding court, he was required to do likewise within the House of Lords of Isca and answer the questions of the local politicians of Isca, a practice which the King’s of the Commonwealth had long abandoned but which his own father had maintained in the Furse Fashion when he was granted the title of System-lord.
Harald’s mother stood with his father and served as his Under-lord. Heir to the lordship until such time as Harald could come of age and prove his worth and take the position should his father name him. It was a notion which Harald had always taken serious and why he had always done what he could to attend those daily meeting and lord from his father.
When his father could not attend or was off world, his mother would, and when she was likewise unavailable the Master of Stonehill Hold Sophie Cannon Frost served in his place. He learned how they each held court, and dealt with those who came. He learned what he knew one day he would be forced to do but he did enjoy his time in attendance and when things became heated he watched in focused silence to see how calmer heads prevailed.
Most of his friends avoided the throne room most days. Joslyn and Gwen would often join him but not always. Joslyn was the granddaughter of System-lord Richard Vault of Jordane, and as such it was a scene she herself had seen her grandfather and own mother do on their own homeworld. Unlike Harald though, Joslyn was unlikely to become lord with her many elder siblings and Gwen’s own parents were small landowners and lords who had served under his father since before Clan Frost had left Furse Space to raid the Void of Eriu before they claimed the world of Isca with the support of King Harwyn Lynch.
