Cruelle Sei'Dist

Cruelle Sei'Dist was the former Viscount of Sadistique. Vain, malicious and--well, cruel, he was a minor supporting character in the original Kingdom of Yaoi. His role is greatly expanded in the canonical re-imagining, Kingdom of Yaoi: One Wish.

Unfortunate Events
Few people who come to power do so preordained by birth, with commonplace elements of childhood death and economic hardship often obliterating succession. Often, success was winner-take-all--and right from the start, Cruelle had every intention of being the one to collect.

The last of three legitimate sons born to Velanus Sei'Dist, he was neither the heir nor the spare, preceded as he was by twins. With his brothers being eight years his senior, Cruelle was assured he would never reach Judge's desk. But, times were hard, and children were known to die before their time. The law in this regard was clear: one could not become an heir before the age of twenty-one. It was for this reason that all three brothers were prepared for the role, in the event that one or more of them perished.

It was by sheer chance that both of his brothers passed away before that landmark. With Vayne and Vyl claimed by poisoning and misadventure respectively, the Viscount was left with no choice but to appoint his surviving son as his heir.

That Cruelle was present for both events was entirely coincidental. After all, a teenage boy could hardly fell a man...and accidents were known to happen.

An Enterprising Successor
Now the last man standing, Cruelle took to his training with new energy, demonstrating gifts for both leadership and well-timed improvisation. He made quick work of establishing himself in noble circles, his razor-sharp wit and charm earning him as many allies as it did enemies. His intention was to be the most interesting person in any room, and it was a goal he achieved through extensive study, in topics from philosophy and art, to trading standards and warfare. The sheer magnetism of his presence was enough to draw any number of admirers, all of whom were certain the new heir would be a strong successor to his historically powerful line.

However, not everyone supported his rise. Suspicion regarding the deaths of his brothers followed him wherever he went, with his brash, combative nature only lending to the theory that he had a hand in their fate. On topics he disliked, Cruelle was outspoken, voicing his rather pointed opinions without thought to consequence. His humor was considered inappropriate, and sometimes, downright crass. Worse, his response to criticism was often to challenge those who opposed him, eager to demonstrate his skill as a duelist. He fought six nobles, and won every time.

His willingness to resort to violence put off a number of the barons, who expressed their disapproval to his father. These complaints, for the most part, went unheard. Cruelle was the only one left in succession.

As far as he knew.

A Suitable Alternative
As the time drew near for Cruelle to claim the Judge's Throne, he learned quite suddenly that he was not only one--just the only legitimate one. Pryed vil Sei'Dist appeared at court and promptly caused an uproar. Graceful, well-mannered and five years his senior, he was a better candidate in every respect, save his illegitimacy. Those put off by the young lord's manner quickly pushed to have his newly-discovered half-brother recognized as a more suitable successor.

Though Pryed publicly declined the recognition sought by his brother's detractors, claiming only academic interest, Cruelle was not convinced. He wasted no time in searching for an out, even if it meant disposing of this vastly superior interloper himself. As Pryed resisted the urging of the court to take his place in succession, Cruelle made his way to Kamar, a neighboring kingdom known for artful weapons, elaborate sexual studies, and exotic drugs.

Little did he know that Pryed knew full-well just how he had come to be heir. And he had no plans of becoming a sacrifice to the altar of his ambition.

The Rani
Through a series of unfortunate circumstances, Cruelle found himself in the custody of the Kamari guard, who ran across the young nobleman while searching for a poacher said to have slipped across the border.

Despite his claims of nobility, Cruelle found himself brought before the Raja's second hand--his eldest daughter, Kaat'a. Shocked by the reality of a woman in power, Cruelle nevertheless tried to talk his way out of the situation. This failed spectacularly when his attempts boiled down to shameless flirting in one breath and truly impressive sexism the next. Unimpressed by the conceited foreigner, Kaat'a had him imprisoned. Even then, Cruelle found himself infatuated with her. She was a woman of means, the likes of which he had never known: powerful, beautiful, and seemingly impossible to intimidate.

She was also his future wife. She simply did not know it yet.

Escape from Kamar
Having left no proof of his intention, Cruelle's disappearance placed his lord father in a precarious situation. Six months of searching turned up nothing; for all intents and purposes, the boy had simply vanished. Left once again without an heir, Velanus had no choice but to recognize the only child he had left.

It would be months before the usurped nobleman discovered the source of his plight: the tip that found him jailed had come from his side of the world, days before he even left home. He was as impressed as he was furious. Pryed had outplayed him, having given no sign that he was playing at all.

Cruelle spent half of his eighteenth year in the Kamari dungeons, as a prisoner of the crown. Claims of his lineage were largely ignored, as no one believed a man so brash and savage had come from a noble House. He passed the time learning the Kaman tongue by ear, and escaping his cell, venturing out at night to study the layout of the Raja's palace, only to return to at dawn. He could have fled at any time. He simply chose not to.

Kaat'a visited him regularly--mostly to mock him, much to his personal amusement. The mutual interest between them was immediate, though heavily denied on both sides. She soon discovered that his claim of nobility was legitimate, but her attempts to have him extradited failed. Though he had committed no crime, Cruelle had openly spited the Raja during capture. The ruler would see him a corpse before he would simply let him go. She warned of Clan Payne's history of brutality, but he failed to heed her. It was a choice that would have consequences.

When a seasonal storm flooded the prison, Cruelle used the opportunity to break out for good, drowning the guards that attempted to stop him and luring the others with calls in the language he'd gleaned. Instead of simply escaping, he challenged the Raja for Kaat'a's hand. The audacity of this was such that the ruler could only order him killed. Eighteen-year-old Cruelle responded by besting the men set upon him and fleeing with his newly-chosen bride. At the border to Sadistique, the Raja's men caught up, forcing a confrontation that cost the soldiers their lives, and left him permanently changed.

Cost and Consequence
The price of his escape was greater than just the trouble it took. An assassin's blades had narrowly missed striking out his right eye, but the attempt succeeded in blinding him on that side. The injury was dire and, in that time, impossible to treat. The Viscount's physician urged him to have it removed, to prevent the infection from reaching his brain. Cruelle refused. That the eye was intact was all that mattered. He suffered the resulting pain and, miraculously, it healed.

Cruelle's survival was a mixed blessing for the members of his household, who had already grown content with the idea of a less offensive successor to their lord. But though he had failed to get himself killed, his exploits in Kamar had made an enemy of the Raja, who came to collect in the most appropriate way: with an ultimatum. If Cruelle and Kaat'a were not returned to him, he said, he would come and get them. With a hundred men in tow.

As a conflict regarding a ruling house, the dispute was brought before the Crown. The King and Queen heard arguments from both sides, with the Raja's case presented by none other than Kaat'a herself. It was a choice made from pragmatism; better she, who was sympathetic, than the Raja's Right Hand. She presented the events of his arrest, including the false charges leveled against him and the facts of his imprisonment. That Cruelle had self-identified as a courtier only further damaged the foreign king's case. However, the fact remained that the Viscount's son had slain a number of the Kamari guard--and though Kaat'a's involvement in his escape was voluntary, Kaman law identified her as belonging to the Raja. She had no right to leave, and so was stolen property.

The Sei'Dist Gambit
The deciding factor in the trial was Cruelle's own appearance, made against the wishes of both his doctor and his beleaguered father. The state of his health was damning, the events having taken their toll on him despite his general good humor. He appeared before the court displaying a shock of white hair along his brow, several stone lighter than his standard weight, his mutilated face left bare for all to see. He brazenly claimed self-defense, and that his illegal crossing was to avoid the notoriety that came with his title. That he had been held at all was false imprisonment, as he had committed no crime they could place.

Further, he went on record to state that Kaat'a no longer belonged to her father--she belonged to him, as they were soon to be wed.

It was a bold gambit (one that nearly killed the Viscount from shock). While the engagement violated Kaman law, which required the Raja's leave, Paraphilian law dictated that the consent of each person was a God-given right. As the proposal happened within their borders, they were bound by law to defend the claim, or throw all other cases based in consent into question. It was a stalemate.

In the end, a compromise was reached; House Sei'Dist would pay reparations for the lost men, and as payment for Cruelle's imprisonment, the Raja would give his consent. The answer was quick and curt: Kaat'a was allowed to remain, but she could never return to Kamar. She spared the notice a single glance and burned it. They were married the next day.

That his gambit paid off was lucky indeed, in light of his trump card: the revelation that his soon-to-be-wife was pregnant. A single sentence more and he would have been the first Sei'Dist in three hundred years to start a war. It remained an achievement he was sorry not to have earned.

Rise to Power
Now with formidable bride in tow, Cruelle returned to his efforts of claiming the Throne, undeterred by the mutilation that would become his trademark. Days after the crippling injury, he appeared before the senate to present a number of bills, addressing the congregation without so much as a bandage to conceal his damaged eye. Though he subsequently lost most of the sight in his right eye, he refused to have it removed or even cover it, letting it stand as a reminder of the things he had survived to reach that point. It certainly made the barons think twice about crossing him.

In the subsequent months, Pryed faded from the public eye, reclaiming his prior refusal to impede his half-brother's ascension. Shortly after, he ceased appearing altogether. Those who pressed for his inclusion in the line were cowed into submission, or else quietly disposed of. With his son's prowess and grit brazenly displayed before all the province, Velanus was left no choice but to allow the wedding of his son to a foreign power.

With the birth of their first son, Kaindiva, Kaat'a's name was changed to Quaita, and Cruelle was officially named successor. Pryed vil Sei'Dist was found murdered the same week. Two years later, at the age of twenty-one, Cruelle Sei'Dist became the eleventh Viscount of Sadistique.

The Blind Butcher
Over the years, Cruelle established his hold over Sadistique with all the fury his name implied. Those who interfered with his efforts found themselves publicly executed, to assure their fellows developed no similar inklings. Though he was notoriously impartial with regards to daily affairs in the province, nothing took place without his notice. Disputes were settled in favor of who was most valuable in the deal, crimes he disapproved of--few as they were--punished with extreme prejudice. His apparent omniscience was the talk of the senate, as those who opposed him were dealt with, his supporters gaining power and land in the process. It was whispered that his ghostly eye showed him all things.

The truth was less spectacular; he used a lot of spies, and he paid them well.

His continued popularity was at least in part due to fear. The office of the Viscount was regularly inundated with invitations to balls, galas and orgies of all sorts. Everyone wanted his favor, because approval could mean the difference between a shady deal ending in success, or a row of shallow graves.

(To be Continued - this is so long)

Trivia

 * Cruelle bribed a slave to poison Vayne and a beastmaster to enrage Vyl's quarry on a hunt. He was present when both of them died, and the pair of them knew it was him. His involvement was suspected but never proven.
 * Pryed was unique in that he killed him with his own hands, in retaliation for attempting to depose him.
 * Cruelle's murder of his brothers was anticipated. The only surprise was that he managed to fell them both before they could fell each other.
 * Among his threats to the Kamari were that he would have Kaat'a's dismembered head cast in gold. Her response was: "Then you will then look upon my face all your life, knowing I feared you not at all." Her utter refusal to be cowed impressed him enough that he actively started courting her. Most of this was done while still in chains.
 * The only person who could ever oppose him was Quaita. Her fearlessness combined with a perpetual flat affect and collected nature often diffused his bouts of madness. As such, her death left him with no check for his temper.
 * Despite renaming her to fit his family naming theme, Cruelle never referred to his wife as Quaita. When speaking to her directly, he called her Rani--Kaman (and Hindi) for queen.
 * Quaita once compared Cruelle to Shiva, equating his increasingly destructive behavior with the deity's necessary--if willful--destruction of the universe in order to create a better world. He was uncertain whether to take this as an insult or a compliment. (Incidentally, it was both.)
 * The birth of his third child was the single worst day of Cruelle's life, as it marked his wife's death. Whiltheld's resemblance to her stood as a constant reminder of what he had lost, which only made him dislike the child more.