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"Are you quite sure you want to know this?"
Beyond this point lie major spoilers for Fallen London, Sunless Sea, Sunless Skies, or Mask of the Rose. This may include endgame or major Fate-locked spoilers. Proceed at your own risk.
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"The tapestries are luxurious. Patterned backdrops enrich foregrounds in lustrous carmine, lush verdure and luminous cerulean. Unicorns vie with spiders for dominance of web-haunted forests, while weavers enter spider-shrouded palaces with torches to draw out new silk. A coat of arms of three spiders on a burning field appears on each tapestry."[1]
Vesture is a kingdom in the Elder Continent that provides silkweavers for the Presbyterate.
A Kingdom of Silk
"The coach passes through vast forests, hung with webs and lost jewels. You see great stone houses rising through the canopies: these are the old silk houses, built like castles commanding the heights of Vesture. A great river runs through a valley, the colour of obsidian."[2]
Spiders are abundant in the jungles that cover most of Vesture, and are central to its society and economy. The kingdom is dotted with secluded Silk Houses, where spiders and human weavers craft its valuable exports.[3] The people of Vesture revere their arachnid companions, and human weapons and palaces feature their images;[4][5] they also employ giant spiders to draw their carriages.[6] Weavers are trained at the House of the Loom, the "oldest place in Vesture," which also serves as a burial ground[7] (since the people of the Elder Continent are rather hard to kill). The capital of Vesture is called Vestment.[8]
Vesture's tradition of weaving is governed by its strict Doctrine of Originality. No two Silk Houses are permitted to produce the same patterns or styles, and a House that does not meet quality standards will be torn down if there are no signs of improvement.[9] Every year, the palaces of Vesture gather to offer their silks for the Presbyterate and royal house to judge and take as tribute. Flattery is forbidden, as are depictions of humans.[10]
Each Silk House in Vesture is assigned a single Great Spider, sustained by a sherd of the Mountain so that they are long-lived[11] and extremely hard to kill.[12] It spends its entire life in its House,[13] supported by a designated team of weavers.[14] Only members of the royal family are allowed to end the life of an elderly Great Spider;[15] after this, the Silk House is burned,[16] its weavers are auctioned off to other Houses,[17][18] and the Spider is given a formal funeral.[18]
Every palace in Vesture, except for the royal palace, also has its own arachnid matriarch.[19] The royals are tasked with finding suitable larvae and bringing them to each palace to be reared.[20] The spiders, for their part, do not appreciate having their young stolen, so they are distrustful of humans and attack anyone participating in the practice on sight.[21]
Before There Was Vesture
"Is there a difference between Vesture, Investure and Investiture? All three have seemingly occupied the same place, at one time or another. Though only two appear as part of the Presbyterate..."[22]
The ancient cities of Investure and Investiture were both predecessors of modern-day Vesture;[23] Investiture is said to have been devoured by spiders.[24] The humans and spiders of the region once warred bitterly,[25] but ultimately allied to share resources and artistic expertise.[26] The agreement that unified the two species has been called both the Peace of Vesture[27] and the Concordat of Silks.[26][citation needed]
Political Turmoil
"Seeing your interest, the Injurious Princess introduces herself. She is the exiled heir to the throne of Vesture, the kingdom represented in the tapestries. She's in London to raise the capital and information required for a successful invasion of her homeland."[1]
Until relatively recently, Vesture was ruled by a decadent queen, whose indulgences and refusal to mitigate a famine in the kingdom led to an uprising known as the Bakery Riots.[28] Amidst the chaos, the queen's sister[29] (or niece)[30] exploited a disagreement among the country's weavers to plunge the nation into civil war and claim the throne for herself.[30] The usurper now rules as a ruthless and arbitrary Tyrant surrounded by her opportunistic court,[31] who seeks to abolish the Doctrine of Originality and threaten the societal foundations of Vesture.[32] The Tyrant is rumored to have fed the former queen to the spiders.[33]
As a result of the coup, the rightful heir to Vesture's throne, the Injurious Princess, was deposed and exiled.[34] She was forced to leave her younger brother behind, but promised to eventually return to retrieve him;[35] he is currently under the guardianship of the Tyrant,[33] who had also previously served as the Princess's regent.[30] A skilled player of chess and a force to be reckoned with,[36] the Princess now seeks to regain her lost throne by any means necessary.[37]
Vesture and Arbor, specifically the part of Arbor that exists in reality, share a border.[38] The Prester has forbidden his kingdoms from meddling in each other’s affairs,[39] and he himself has not found suitable reason to help depose the Tyrant;[40] however, Arbor's diplomats believe that the Princess's return to the throne would be an asset to both kingdoms and a strong potential ally.[41]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Season of Sceptres: A Visitor to London, Fallen London
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "The jungle which covers most of the country is both the source of Vesture's wealth and the realm of its arachnid citizens. The great Silk Houses are built in the depths of the jungle, protected from easy discovery and secluded, like monasteries."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "[...] She makes no effort to hide her spider-hilted sword, which hangs from her hip. [...]"
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "[...] Stone arachnids with jewelled eyes watch from high, greenstone walls. Clever engineering filters wine through openings between the fangs; it falls into gleaming pools with a hushed, whispering sound."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "Eventually, a white-coach arrives, drawn by a bulbous red spider. [...]"
- ↑ Listen to stories of Vesture, Fallen London "The oldest place in Vesture is the House of the Loom. There, new weavers go to fashion their first looms. It is where we bury those few of us unlucky enough to die."
- ↑ The Season of Sceptres: A Visitor to London, Fallen London "[...] infiltrate the capital of Vestment [...]"
- ↑ Listen to stories of Vesture, Fallen London "Every palace specialises in one type of weaving or another. The royal house will not allow duplicates. Samples are brought to us to adjudicate. The losing palace must find a new methodology or else be torn down..."
- ↑ Listen to stories of Vesture, Fallen London "Once a year, each of the great palaces brings its finest silks [...] the royal house, the College and the Prester stand in judgement. Flattery is forbidden, as are representation of human figures. A tithe of only the very best is claimed..."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "As the last threads fall away, the light grows like a sunset. Soft as warm butter, insistent as thunder and all-consuming as fire, it spreads through the hall. "A gift, given to all our Grand Spiders," the Princess says. "A piece of the Mountain's light.""
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "I have lived long in the Mountain's light. Only the sword can kill me, now. It is the surety of Vesture's peace, between woman and spider. The one who wields it may slay me if they wish to. I have lived too long and too alone."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "I have spent my life in this House, where I was raised as a childling. I have wept and malingered, been bright and terrible. I have created wonders. But I am failing."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "The Injurious Princess tells you of Vesture and its Great Spiders, the alliance that binds them and the Doctrine of Originality that determines Vesture's wealth. Every Spider is assigned a Great Silk House and weavers. The fruits of that house are unique and thus essential to Vesture's trade. [...]"
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "I have spies in the Tyrant's palace. The House of Silk and Flame is on the verge of closure. When a Great Spider is dying, one of the royal house must go and end its life. It is traditional. The Tyrant means to send my brother."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "Dark figures move in and out of the House, carrying in kindling for its ritual destruction. Nothing is allowed to remain when a Great Spider dies. Its House must fall."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "[...] When the Spider dies, the House is broken up, its weavers divided among the other Houses."
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "[...] The dim light illuminates a beautiful tapestry depicting the fall of a House, the auction of its weavers and the elaborate funeral of a great spider, pierced by the sword of a crowned woman."
- ↑ Listen to stories of Vesture, Fallen London "The royal house of Vesture sits on the banks of a river as red as loathing. It is the only palace in Vesture with no matriarch to attend it."
- ↑ Listen to stories of Vesture, Fallen London "When a spider matriarch is ailing, it falls to the royal house to find a replacement. We hunt in the shrouded woods in the east, until we have found a larva of suitable size."
- ↑ Listen to stories of Vesture, Fallen London "...where the spiders run wild. They do not trust us. [...] I had never stolen of their young so I was granted safe passage."
- ↑ Tease out the subtleties hidden in Presbyterate nomenclature, Fallen London
- ↑ Tease out the subtleties hidden in Presbyterate nomenclature, Fallen London "Is there a difference between Vesture, Investure and Investiture? All three have seemingly occupied the same place, at one time or another. Though only two appear as part of the Presbyterate..."
- ↑ Convince the Manager of the Royal Bethlehem to train you, Fallen London "Of Arbor stolen by roses, and Investiture devoured by spiders."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "The cloth depicts great spiders hanging like lanterns from a forest canopy. Some bear weeping scars, others are missing limbs and eyes. One of the central figures is a luminous, amethyst-pelted spider – smaller than the others. It stands apart from its damaged kin, instead depicted near a gathering of humans. They too are injured."
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "The Concordat, [...] When the two Vestures became one. When we learned what we might gain from each other: our resources and their art."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "[...] The Peace of Vesture, when the spiders and humans became one nation. [...]"
- ↑ Listen to stories of Vesture, Fallen London "My mother was queen before me. [...] Her reign ended in the Bakery Riots in the capital. The city starved while the provincials dined on marzipan and sponge."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "I know where my usurping aunt keeps her spiders. She has so many, she will not notice that we are offering her something she already owns."
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 Listen to stories of Vesture, Fallen London "My cousin who was once my regent holds the throne now. She exploited a division amongst the weavers. [...] Vesture was soon in civil war." [Editor's note: Textual inconsistency here.]
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "These bejewelled hawks circle the Tyrant's court, waiting to see what might arise. If a weakness arises to their advantage, they will strike. If the Tyrant is successful, they will remain steadfast. It is not so very different an atmosphere from an upper crust London drawing room."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "The Tyrant wishes to reform some of them. [...] The Houses are ruled by a single spider who may not breed; when it dies, the weavers are auctioned off. Both community and continuity are lost. [...] If the spider is replaced, the other Houses will reject those weavers acquired at auction. They will be compelled to return."
- ↑ 33.0 33.1 The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "The Tyrant raised me. She is not a good woman. The stories say she fed our mother to—" He shudders and shakes his head. "Only stories. But she is arbitrary and ruthless."
- ↑ The Season of Sceptres: A Visitor to London, Fallen London "She is the heir to the Kingdom of Vesture, the silkweavers of the Prester. Her throne was lost in an uprising and a usurper sits in it now."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "When the Tyrant came to power I had to leave quickly. Like a thief in the night – from my own country! My brother was just a boy. Barely sixteen. I couldn't take him with me, but I made him a promise."
- ↑ The Season of Sceptres: A Visitor to London, Fallen London "She produces a handsome chess set made from chert wood. [...] Her stratagems are sudden and without quarter. [...] "Please don't try to rob me. I'd hate to break a third arm before noon.""
- ↑ The Season of Sceptres: A Visitor to London, Fallen London "The Princess is in London hoping to raise enough capital to bring the unpleasantness to a swift conclusion."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "[...] And then there is the other one – where Arbor still exists on the Elder Continent. That Arbor still shares some of its borders with Vesture. [...]"
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "The Prester Saith: Every Planet In Fixed and Solitary Orbit: intrigue between nations is forbidden."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "[...] The Elder Continent is formed of many sovereign states and cities, all ruled by the Presbyter. Were he to think ill of the Tyrant of Vesture, help working against her could be more overt. But she has not offended the Presbyter. Indeed, her reforms may make Vesture more valuable to him."
- ↑ The House of Silk and Flame, Fallen London "It would do us all good if Arbor could count on Vesture's loyalty in the future."
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