The Rivan Codex: a special report on Chandara
Written by Geryon, Lord of Vo Dalin
This brings you a little change to the Rivan Codex, which was written by David Eddings. I'm not changing the book, of course, this is showed only here.
ChandaraGEOGRAPHY
Chandara is a fairly big island approximately 100 leagues southwest from Riva. It's a little bigger than the Isle of the Winds, and much more pleasant place to live. The island is covered with forests, streams, lakes and one mountain. The mountain lies in the center of the island. The Plains are situated just north of the mountain. The south is immigrated by people. The west holds many beautiful forests, and in the east is a barren desert. In the most farthest north is a place called the Uniforest, the area of the unicorns. Below it is a little valley, where the griffins live in their hill caves. The valleys sides are hilly, and the plains, which start there, are immigrated by the Pegasus, the Manticores, the Sphinxes, the Centaurs, the Minotaurs and even the Chimeras. If you go south from the plains you'll eventually make it to the mountain. But if you go west there, you'll find yourself wandering through many beautiful forests immigrated by many normal animals, like wolves, hawks, eagles, owls, bears, etc. But if you take the east road, you'll end up in the desert, where the scorpions live. Then, if you go straight to the mountain, you'll find large caves. They're the nests of the Phoenixes and other magical birds. When you get to the top, you'll know why it's called the Dragon Mountain. The Gold, Silver, Copper, Bronze and Brass dragons live there along with their Lord, the Rainbow Dragon. And just south of the mountain you'll see cities, towns and villages, the scenery completed with little farms. The capital city Chandur is the biggest sea port in Chandara. For some reason it's not infested with many taverns and roaring sailors. Wonder why ?
THE PEOPLE
The Chandaran people are much like the Rivans – they don't talk much. They don't even know where the name 'Chandara' derived from. Some people think they are Alorns, but that's just a part of what they are. Chandarans are a mix of the Alorns and Arends, but thankfully they got the best parts of the Alorn and Arend people. The bad traits such as quarreling and that excessive lack of thought are gone. There are many different-looking Chandarans; there are darkish and lighter-colored people, thin, burly, short, tall… They're almost like Sendars – except a few differences. There are many similarities between them and Rivans. They're as serious and as quiet, but luckily not as sulky. They are quite good at battling, though they don't like it as much as Alorns do. They have an Orb to protect as well, and they protect it… even with sorcery. (There are rumors that this Orb would be Belar's, but the color is light green. Some people say that there are new Gods now as the Old Ones are gone, and one of them is the Wolf God, whose color is light green.).
THE CHANDARAN HISTORY
The Chandaran people appeared after the Cracking of the World. A few Alorns and Arends, not wanting to go to war anymore, sailed to Chandara and immigrated the island. They didn't even notice that the island grew slowly every time as new inhabitants arrived. Many thousands of years passed by, and the Alorns and Arends had already been mixed, when the Owl God Aldur appeared with a golden-haired and golden-eyed woman. He told them her name was Poledra and she needed a place to live. A more Arendish than Alornish man helped her with her new cottage and became her friend. He was called Mandoranon, and he was Mandorallen's ancestor (and a couple thousand years later his line would produce a Mimbrate Arend called Orathan). Poledra helped young Mandoranon to find a wife and helped their children into the world (she was the Protector of the Line, just like Belgarath was the Protector of Belgarion's Line). But then one of the Mandoranon-line's girls suffered a shipwreck near Riva and became the wife of the Rivan King (That explains why Belgarion's twin brother is the King of Chandara nowadays). And some time after a son of Mandoranon's line shipwrecked with his family near Vo Mimbre. He gained a Baron's title and a new Mimbrate line was produced. A couple thousand years later a man named Orathan married a woman, who was not of Arendish origin, but lived there. The woman was tall, had a mix of golden, black and auburn in her hair, and was called lady Poleina. That marriage produced sir Mandorallen, his brothers sir Mordred and sir Morgan, and their sister lady Meriel. The golden-eyed woman was still around and she helped Mandoranon's line in Chandara. Every man, woman and child in Chandara knew who the woman was and what she was doing there and why. Poledra apparently knew that Mandoranon had a strong sense of magic (the Brotherhood of Wizardry calls it the Will and the Word), and later it could be noticed in some Mimbrates as well. The present king is called Beldari Whitewolf, for he can transform into a white wolf. His wife, queen Marina, died at the age of 23, due to a damage to her heart during the Battle of Thull Mardu. They had twin daughters, two twin sons, and again twin daughters. The queen died just after the birth of the last twins, her death caused by an overload to her heart. Prince Taran, the to-be king, is a serious, just and diplomatic boy. He's rumored to have inherited his black hair from his dead Grandfather, a man named Geran. Taran's twin brother, Orion, is a blond boy, who acts like a soldier and is like one. He's quite frank, plain and easy-going. The two younger boys are called Doroon and Arion. Doroon is named after Belgarion's friend, who drowned during the Battle of Thull Mardu. Arion is the quietest of them all, but also the fastest swordsman. The first girls are Polmina and Poldina. They're just fifteen years old, but they married at the age of ten. Poldina's twenty-year old husband is called Elian. Polmina's husband is also twenty years old, and his name is Mordred (well, they have so many years between them that…). The younger girls, Mila and Sila, disappeared after they were born. It's said that some people left the girls alone in a room, and after they returned, they were gone – like if they vanished into thin air.
MONEY
Rivan.
CLOTHING
Both Rivan and Arend.
TRADE
Both Sendarian and Rivan.
RANKS
The KingHereditary by the marriage of the Rivan King and Edasha of the Mandoranon line.
The othersArend.
TERMS OF ADDRESS
Arend. The common people addressed as in Riva.
MANNERS
The Chandaran people are quiet like Rivans, but more sociable. They are humorous and open. They're not stiff-necked, dull, melancholic and proud like Arends. They're not quarrelsome, and there are supernaturally few fights in Chandara. Chandur gets a little messy though, when the ships arrive from the other kingdoms.
FESTIVALS
A few festivals from the other countries, including Erastide. There are some Chandaran as well:
Mandoranon Line's Day – in mid summer – jointing, shows with horses, etc…The Dragon Festival – just like Erastide in Sendaria – the Dragons walking and speaking with humans; sometimes giving them a flight.
There are a number of others as well, but they're minor and take place in little regions.
RELIGION
The Chandarans don't have just one God; they have almost all of them. They don't worship them, they say they serve them, just like the Brotherhood of Wizardry serves the Owl God Aldur. In fact Aldur is one of their Gods, along with Belar and Chaldan. There are also new Gods, such as the Wolf God Agram, the Hawk God Shalas, the Rainbowdragon God Trand, and the Tiger God Jaqal. (These new Gods have new enemies, which are the Raven God Malys, the Crocodile God Baren, the Fox God Zandragal, the Rat God Cirga, and the Otter God Viras.) Some people say that Beldari and his family have a special link to Eriond, the Dove God. He has been known to visit Chandara a couple of times and even managed to get the Older Gods back to talk to them.
AFTERWORDThis is just a brief report on Chandara. There's much more to Chandara's history than you would imagine. My brother, Beldari himself, asked me to write this. He also demanded that I'd tell you who I am. Sigh… Well, if he demands… My name's Geryon, and I'm Beldari's younger brother. You must wonder why I am the Lord of Vo Dalin. It's a Mimbrate name, and I'm an Asturian (well, by my step-family…). The castle of Vo Dalin was left empty when sir Will, our eldest brother, died in the Battle of Thull Mardu. His and Beldari's step-family was murdered by a traitorous Mimbrate Knight called sir Zander. Beldari was to be the lord of the castle after that, but when he decided to move to Chandara, he gave this castle under my command – I don't like it, though. Oh, those 'some people say' parts are for the Tolnedrans – you must know how unimaginative they are.
The End Notes: So, what did ya like ? That's a fine description of the family connection between Dari and Mandorallen, and that even explains why Dari's the king of Chandara. I've always thought about how to make him the king, but I've never gotten a hold of the idea. And now Dari has a double-connection to Mandorallen ! I hadn't expected that. I mean, Poleina is Polgara's second sister and thus Dari and Garion's aunt, and Orathan (Mandorallen's imaginative father) is related to one of the queens of Riva (many years between them, though). Oh, this is messy… now I'm not sure about this… So Belgarath is Poleina's father… and Edasha's and the Rivan King's son's grandfather ? Oh boy… Now I got it… So now because Edasha of the Mandoranon (Mandorallen) line was the Rivan King's wife… it means that Mandoranon was (in an odd way) one of Garion and Dari's grandfathers… or does it ? If someone would bother, could you draw a family tree ? I'm totally confused.
