Pitru Punstraia

Pitru Ermení Punstraia also known by his adopted name Senate, was the former Altan (Religious and Political Leader) of the Arcadian Altanate, a theocratic nation serving as the refuge and authority for all adherents to the Mufijo Faith. He was from Ddaza, the central village an Arcadian tribe on Prospit, from which he fled after heavy religious persecution and threats of violence. He was the founder and former mayor/governor of the city of Wahat Almarjan. Pitru ruled the infant Altanate for its first 6 years (6 months OOC), before unexpectedly abdicating the throne (took place at the stroke of midnight on January 1, 2022). Thereafter, he concerned himself with ruling the city he founded, before he abruptly left the realm of Alathra to escape the assassins of Ddaza, which longed to finally kill a man who they saw as a slight on their honor. It is unknown whether he still lives.

Life in Yuvantiya
Pitru was born in the year -17 AZ, in the large village of Ddaza. The village was the center of the Ddaza Tribe, one of the 8 main tribes of the Arcadian ethnicity, then known as Yuvantiyans. While most Yuvantiyans followed the Mufijo Faith (then known as Triple Harmony or Lajrem Qarenna), the Ddazans had never been converted, owing to their relative isolation from other nearby peoples. Though the Ddazans despised Mufijo as a corrupting influence, a few citizens had in the past heard of Mufijo and converted to it. All the Mufijo worshippers in Ddaza had coalesced by the time of Pitru's birth into one clan, the Punstraia, to which Pitru and his family belonged. The Ddazans unsurprisingly discriminated against the Punstraia for being religious dissidents, with Pitru having vivid memories from his youth of the Punstraia leaders being harassed by the magistrates and elders of the village.

Pitru vaguely remembers his parents, two peasants of Clan Punstraia who held no sway or influence within it. His immediate family attempted to lay low and not attract attention, something that likely played a part in Pitru and his immediate family's continued survival. Unfortunately for the rest of Pitru's clan, their notoriety as religious dissidents and more bombastic nature would bring about their destruction. At age 15, nearly all of the Punstraia, from the oldest man to youngest child, were brutally killed by a mob. They were used as nothing but a scapegoat, blamed for a particularly bad harvest year in the surrounding area. Pitru and his parents only survived through their little notoriety and falsely submitting to the Ddazan gods. Although this act would save his life, it would be an act for which Pitru would suffer greatly. With his father now unexpectedly becoming the Sifan (leader) of the severely diminished Clan Punstraia, Pitru became the target of yet more discrimination and threats. he was constantly harassed with weaponry, and carried nothing on him to ensure he could not be robbed. He could not even sleep peacefully, with near nightly attacks on his family's home by disgruntled neighbors and religious fanatics. Despite these hardships, the Punstraia appeared to have a stray hope for their future. A sympathetic family in the village decided they wished to practice the faith of the Punstraia, reasoning that if the Punstraia had been saved from such a massacre, surely the Mufijo gods had some power. This family had a daughter around Pitru's age, who became fast friends with the young Pitru. The two eventually fell in love, and they were to be married, in the hopes they could continue the Punstraia line. Unfortunately, this was not to be.

Pitru's parents, as well as the newly converted family, were both killed in an outbreak of a deadly disease known as the Ašvat Hibra (Great Reaper). The illness nearly took Pitru's life as well, yet he was kept alive as punishment from the gods for his previous false submission to the Ddazan deities. By virtue of the fact that all his relatives were now dead, the title of Sifan of Clan Punstraia passed to Pitru, although it became nothing more than another target on his back. In the years following these tragedies, the Ddazans finally seemed to abate from their crusade against the Punstraia. This allowed Pitru to become a farmer on the outskirts of the village, where he intended to live simply to preserve his shaky safety. The Ddazans, hoping Pitru would die on the farm and thus exterminate Mufijo from their village, allowed him to live. Unfortunately, even this stability would not last.

Flight from Ddaza
In 5 AZ, the Ašvat Hibra devastated several families who lived near Pitru's farm. This would be unremarkable in itself if Pitru himself was not infected, despite living in incredibly close proximity to the deceased. The Ddazan people were outraged, believing Pitru had cast some dark spell to infect and kill his neighbors, or had some secret cure to the disease he would not share. Despite there being no evidence to suggest these rumors were true, the unceasing outcry from the Ddazan people led the elders and magistrates of the tribe to a simple decision. Pitru had to go.

Now fearing for his life, The future Altan took what little he could fit in small sack, fleeing Ddaza into the surrounding jungle in the midst of a terrible rainstorm. In this forest, Pitru collapsed to the ground and fell asleep, weak and weary from hours of running, only to be awoken by a grand spectacle. Before Pitru were the gods of his faith, Afi - the Sun, Jorb - the Moon, Xamu - the Earth. The three gods, the Setrusi, warned him of a search party out to kill him, prepared to carry out Pitru's execution ordered by the Ddazan magistrates. The gods pitied Pitru and gave him the option to stay and make a last stand for the honor of the Punstraia, or flee with their help to a land where he could be free of the ire of Ddazans. Preferring to live another day than to join his deceased relatives, Pitru accepted the gods' gracious offer and was guided out of the jungles, where he collapsed yet again in a large meadow.

Captivity in Lothridge
For the second time in under 24 hours, the exhausted Pitru was awoken from his slumber by the gods. The young man was without a home, possessions, or anywhere to go, now at the mercy of whatever plan the gods laid before him. The Setrusi instructed Pitru to travel south to a city of dual towers, where he would undergo penance and sacrifice to prove his loyalty to them, and to give him vital knowledge for the years to come. The Setrusi further elaborated that Pitru would no longer need their direct guidance once he had reached this city, and that they would guide him through fate rather than instruction from then on. Confused, Pitru accepted, perhaps because he had no other choice. Before they took their leave, the gods decided to gift Pitru with his family's hunting bow, the Malnourished Hippopotamus, an object he had left at his home in Ddaza. Although lost for two years after the Great Alathran War, Pitru would regain the weapon, retaining it in his possession until his disappearance from Alathra, upon which it became a sacred relic for the crowning of a new Gižaraša (Lord) of Wahat Almarjan. The bow was the only object Pitru had left from his old life in Ddaza. Setting off from the pristine hills he had found himself in, Pitru travelled south, encountering the great Acquendavian city of Lothridge. He immediately recognized it as the city of the dual towers, but decided to try to sneak into the city after seeing guards at the gates. Unfortunately for Pitru, his years of living isolated in the jungle did not teach him the skills necessary to stealth into a well-defended city, and he was promptly sighted and captured by two Lothridge guards. The guards mistook Pitru as a Kogongi who had escaped the city, and sent him to the schools established by the Acquendavians to strip him of a culture he, in reality, knew nothing of. The experience in this institution was agonizing for Pitru, made all the worse in that he could not communicate with anyone, speaking only Arcadian (at that time known as Yuvantiyan). As the Acquendavians attempted to "educate" the culture out of the Kogongi within the school, Pitru was left alone, neither practicing nor understanding any of the customs the instructors taught to be "wrong". After about 2 months of enduring and witnessing constant abuse and harassment of the inmates by the Acquendavians, Pitru finally made breakthroughs in learning the Kogongi language, albeit fragments as the Kogongi tongue was banned from use in the school. He succeeded in communicating some general information about himself to other inmates, who, in their kindness, helped Pitru to learn more of the language, instilling a deep sense of gratitude to the Kogongi within him. These Kogongi spoke of a vibrant and peaceful culture across the sea from Lothridge. Intrigued, Pitru bided his time to try to escape to this homeland of the Kogongi, leaving his fate in the hands of the Setrusi, just as they had told him to. One night, the school's guards had become drunk for some sort of celebration, finally allowing Pitru to slink away into the night, reaching a river by dawn. Although he had tried to bring some of the Kogongi inmates with him to help guide him to their homeland, they were separated and ultimately captured by the Acquendavians. The Acquendavians continued to search for him throughout the night, but Pitru was able to hide in a river that he titled the Draxí [drɐˈçi], named in Arcadian from the flowers bountiful on its banks. When he believed the coast to be clear, Pitru made haste towards the coast. Upon reaching a small bay, he found an abandoned boat, which he made use of to row far into the water.

Upon sailing out to the sea, however, Pitru's tired state and lack of sleep became quite apparent. Phantoms from the sky dove down to harass him as he rowed. Not well experienced with boats, Pitru seemed helpless in his predicament. However, like a beacon in the distance, Pitru noticed a large landmass on the horizon. He rowed towards it with great haste and difficulty, landing near a small fishing village. Going north, Pitru made his way through the Forests of Cotona, happening upon the city of Kais Kogong. Desperate for food, Pitru hiked towards the recently established town, not yet knowing he had found the Kogongi people his fellow inmates had told him of.

Beginning a New Life
As he arrived in the town, Pitru was greeted by a man in a toga. Noticing Pitru's sorry state, the man took him into his house to let Pitru rest and recover from the harrowing journey from Lothridge. When the man began to speak Kogongi, Pitru felt a great relief, finally able to understand an average person in the unfamiliar land he found himself in. The man said his name was Glider Fraemani, a Kogongi man who helped found the anarchist Federation of Kogongu in the very city Pitru stood. Over a drink, Pitru shared his journey from Lothridge, and gave vague hints to his foreign origins. As Glider shared similar experiences in the Acquendavian "schools," the two strangers became fast friends. Hours after his arrival in town, the druid Vasya made a routine visit to Glider's home. She quickly noticed Pitru in the corner of her eye, and the two greeted, with Glider explaining the situation Pitru found himself in.

Over the next few days, Pitru would ingratiate himself to these de facto leaders of the Kogongi. Pitru decided he wanted to settle in Kogongu, but still longed to farm as he once had in Ddaza, rather than live in the burgeoning Kais Kogong. Eventually, he came up with a proposition. Pitru told the Kogongi that if he would be allowed to found a town on the sandy Arcadian Peninsula north of Kais, he would swear to stay loyal to the Kogongi and secure their hold on the peninsula. The Kogongi had little objection to the idea, and quickly agreed, sending Pitru north with Glider. Upon arriving at the tip of the peninsula, Pitru found a suitable spot for a home and began building. He then a held a small ceremony, declaring the town of Wahat Almarjan, and himself as its Gižaraša (Lord). Soon after, Glider left south, and Pitru finished his home and plans for the mosque. The gods had been good. Pitru had a home once more.

Becoming a Leader
This peaceful and static state of affairs continued until Pmak, an ethnic Kogongi not part of the nation of Kogongu, joined the town. Pitru eventually constructed a wall when threats of war against Kogongu were made, and Wahat would begin to grow, along with Pitru's dedication to his faith. Game Glider joined Wahat not long after, with Pitru naming him as Lead Architect. Pitru, Game Glider, and Pmak were then each visited by one of the Three Gods of Mufijo in their dreams, who instrcuted the three to found an independent theocratic homeland for the followers of Mufijo, and to name an Altan to lead it. The gods also bestowed the title of Mumba upon the three avatars of the gods. The Three Mumbas eventually got the approval of Kogongu to form their Altanate, and Pitru, being the founder of the town and the only one of his people who stayed faithful to the gods, was named as the Altan. Pitru rules as an absolute monarch, with the two other Mumbas acting as the only check on his power. Wahat has drastically expanded, and the Grand Mosque of Jiba the Wise finally resumed construction under the supervision of Glider. Pitru has in recent times has conducted diplomacy with the nearby town of Atolia and the nation of Elyria and has constructed several buildings in Wahat to improve the happiness of the residents, such as the first ever Dunkaccino's.

Political Beliefs
During his time in Alathra, Senate believed himself and his two fellow Mumbas to be chosen by the gods of his faith, and thus is a supporter of the divine right theory of monarchy. Over his years of rule, however, Pitru took a liking to the increasingly democratic society of Arcadia, as it took some of the pressure of governing off his shoulders. He came to trust his people more, and supported them in the name of democratic ideals. Pitru supported the creation of the Holy Senate of Arcadia, helped monitor and manage every Arcadian election, and served as the main source for information on the Arcadian government. He particularly admired the governments of Ashina and Lydoneia, for their long lasting and democratic governance respectively.

Pitru personally wrote the Constitution of the Arcadian Altanate, which was approved by the Holy Senate of Arcadia. Senate specifically designed the document to give more power to the people and their elected executive, the Prime Minister of Arcadia, as well as the Holy Senate. Although it took him years to fully complete, the reception of the document was widely positive, and Senate was public in his hopes it may put an end to any lingering political instability in Arcadia. Pitru also planned to construct a palace in Wahat Almarjan, to become his new home, and a defensive stronghold for the city.

Religious Beliefs
Senate was the leader of the faith of Mufijo, and is known to be the hand of creation to the sun god Afi. He was committed to writing down the legends of the faith and the Path of Mufijo for the first time in the faith's history, although this laid incomplete upon his diasapperance. Pitru was, at his disappearance, compiling myths and stories into an official holy book, the Mufijoreon, and wished to distribute it throughout Alathra to finally fulfill the divine mission of the Arcadian Altanate: converting as many as possible to the faith of Mufijo. As a key tenet of Mufijo is constructing works for the faith, Senate ordered the construction of the Grand Mosque of Jiba the Wise, which is to be the centerpiece of Wahat Almarjan. The religious duties above were transferred to his former servant, Dr. Hugosombi, who was ordered by the Altan to complete the manuscripts left behind by Pitru.

Trivia

 * During his time in Alathra, Pitru was fluent in 3 languages (Arcadian, Kogongi, Dwarvish)
 * Pitru's family, the Punstraia, is one of many clans of the faith of Mufijo. Other notable clans include the Etrec, Vrestó, Dirmaxi, and Biqeš
 * While in Alathra, Pitru was a horse wrangler, owning 4 horses, all of which he passed down to his former servant Dr. Hugosombi
 * In the words of his own player: "Pitru is from Peter Griffin, Ermení is from Armenia because I saw it in the news that day, and Punstraia translates to something like elephant man in Arcadian"
 * Pitru's design was based off Philip the Good, the Duke of Burgundy from 1419-1467