Family
Wife: Cynthia
First Born Son: Damien II Born in the year 117ME
Second Born Son: Declan Born in the year 118ME
First Born Daughter: Michelle Born in the year 127ME
First Born Son: Damien II Born in the year 117ME
Second Born Son: Declan Born in the year 118ME
First Born Daughter: Michelle Born in the year 127ME
The Tragic Coronation and Adjusting to the Crown
Dante had never planned on being King. His whole life was spent with the understanding that his brother Jack would be King and that he would better himself so he may advise his brother. Unlike his brother Jack, Dante was wed before his father's disappearance to Cynthia Castello, who he fell in love with during his stay at Castello. As he was not in line for the throne his father had no qualm with blessing their marriage. This is important because his two sons were also born before their father took the throne and not raised as princes. After his older brother and father disappeared the crown fell to Dante and so a heavy burden was placed on his family. He and his wife had already created a life for themselves and had plans for their family and for their future, but now Dante had been thrust into a position of power that he had never coveted, though many say he was far more suited for the role than his older brother. Still in the early years of his rein Dante dealt with much grief and would often neglect council meetings as well as his responsibilities to the realm. The council was able to step in and rule without dispute for a time though, but the whispers of an unfit king could be heard throughout the land. In time Dante's position had been challenged. It was a distant cousin of his Guile Hertons, not even carrying the Lagrest name, that claimed that Dante was an unworthy King and that his Lagrest blood gave him a right to the throne. Guile's claim had begun to make noise in the capital, and while he did not have lands, titles, or and army he was still gaining a reputation and a following. At first Dante was advised to have his cousin arrested and made an example of, but his gentle nature let him continue, believing that he was no real threat to his crown. It wasn't until Dante was out in the market with his two sons, wife, and newborn daughter that he realized the severity of his cousins actions. Guile had created quite a following for himself and when they saw the opportunity to attack they took it. Though their goal was to kill Dante it was his youngest son, Declan, his wife, and his newborn daughter Michelle that paid the price. They had all been killed in the mob, and Dante was again broken. He had his cousin arrested and publicly executed, along with all of his followers, setting an example for anyone who would think to attempt treason again. Having lost two of his children and the love of his life Dante was broken, but he realized that the great depression he felt from the loss of his brother and sister was what had caused him to lose his family in the first place. Still having his oldest son, Dante decided to return to ruling Ruinous rather than sulk in his loss. He made a point to create harsher laws about treason and hunted down any of his cousin's remaining supporters.
The Leones
Years after losing his family Dante decided that he would have a monument built in their honor. He insisted though that only the finest stone mason be commissioned to work on this project, so he set out to find such a man. In his search he came across Joven Leones, who was well known for his craft and had worked on rebuilding the Waldwick Virile towers. Impressed with his work the king offered Joven a wealth of gold to build the monument to his family, now know as Dante's Dedication. Joven denied the King's offer though, saying that he needed only to supply him with the necessary materials and the standard labor fee for his crew. He insisted that it would be an honor to serve his King and that he felt such great sympathy for his plight that he would not be able to accept his gold. So Joven set forth and built Dante's Dedication, a statue of Cynthia with a babe in her hands and a small boy latched on to her leg. Now even more impress with Joven's work Dante tasked him with another job. He and the council had wanted a place to garrison troops south of the capital near the Rye Wood and so he asked Joven to build it for him. Again he offered Joven gold and again Joven refused. He was given no additional men for this task nor was he given gold to hire more. Joven instead inspired masons from throughout Ruinous to aid him in building for the glory of the King and hence the Rye Wood Garrison was built. The garrison had exceeded Dante's expectations, but still he would need to name a lord to rule there. He had offered Joven the position, as he was so impressed with his work and the way he inspired men, but at first he declined. Dante then ordered Joven to take the place as Lord of the Rye Wood, telling him that his Kingdom needed him. That a man like him was exactly what Ruinous needed. Joven then accepted the position and was given lands to rule as well as men to command. The lands of the Rye Wood were quickly cleared and populated by the families of the men who worked along side Joven.
The Aleers
Before Dante's time the land surrounding Bear Mountain had always been a traditional hunting ground for the Lagrest Kings. In the first years it had originally been grounds for the Lagrest hunters to seek game, but the Ruinousians have since moved away from game hunting as means of survival and now saw it as sport. Dante, like all Kings before him had enjoyed the hunt. It was a time just as any hundreds of times before. Dante had taken his son Damien hunting and accompanying them was his Royal Executioner, Edward Aleer. Edward had been a close friend of Damien's and so they had hunted together in the past, but never along side Dante. It is also key to note that Edward was a mountain of man, and so Dante had valued that he and his son had become so close. This trip however, would not be a typical hunting trip. Dante had grown tired of hunting deer and boar and sought out more challenging game. He wanted to hunt Bear, something very few hunters were able to do, but he felt that with Edward there, who had been a proven hunter, that the three of them could tackle anything. For the the forty years that Dante reined this was perhaps one of his gravest miscalculation. When finally faced with a grimacing bear, who had been protecting her cubs, Dante and his son were quickly overwhelmed and disarmed. The bear had actually cut into Dante's left arm and looked as if it was going to kill the King when Edward charged in and tackled the monster. It is said that with nothing more than his bare hands that Edward wrestled and killed the beast. In appreciation for saving the life of he and his son Dante elevated Edward to the position of Lord and contracted Joven Leones to build him a keep on Bear Mountain. With this keep, named Warren Keep for Edward's father, Edward was also given all of the lands surrounding the mountain as well as soldiers to man his castle. Such was the beginnings of House Aleer.
The Prince's Wedding
With the ascension of two new noble houses it stood to reason that conflict would arise as well. Many of the other lords as well as most of Dante's council felt that he was to quick to hand out the title of lord to Joven and Edward, but Dante had saw it as a means of expansion. He felt that for Ruinous to grow it would need to expand upon it's own lands and these were bountiful times. There had been no threat of war from an outside enemy since the Tior Dispute, before he was even born. The only threat would come from within and the jealousy that his lords felt towards the new houses was potentially problematic. He needed a way to solidify his alliances and prevent any possible conflict. Dante decided that his best coarse of action would be to arrange a marriage for his son Damien, a marriage that would show his loyalty to the old houses, but then arose another conflict. He had only one son, what if one of his lords felt slighted? But his two new lords were also free to wed. What if he could match all three of them, surly that would ease the tension between the new and old houses. Dante brought this idea to his council first, but the Gafertys and the Testokes both opposed the idea of joining their lines with the Leones and the Aleers. Joven and Edward were after all a Mason and an Executioner, despite their recent rise in power. They voted down a match between old blood and new blood, creating a clear tension between the houses of old and the houses of humble beginning. Upset with both families at their decision Dante told them that their daughters and grand daughters would not be potential matches for Damien and instead he would turn to his high Mage Edric Nands. Edric had a lame, meaning unable to use magic, granddaughter but he at already promised her to the heir of Adelphia, and once a marriage pact was made it could not be broken, even for a prince. This created a problem for Dante as the Nyis's had no daughters to be married off and the Castello's and the Spewake's were to close to Dante's own current blood lines. He regretfully turned to the Teskokes and arranged a marriage between Sara Testoke and Damien. In the end however it served the means that he intended and eased much of the tension between the houses. It was also the first time that a Lagrest King had arranged a marriage for his heir, historically when the new king came into power he would arrange his own marriage. This would set a president for future kings and lords, who rarely arranged marriages for their children. Before now there was no need to solidify alliances, but with the Kingdom growing the looming threat of a civil war did as well. The marriage ceremony of Damien and Sara was a huge expense on the crown and was the largest celebration the Kingdom had seen to date. It was at the ceremony though that the Lords of old came to have a respect for Joven and Edward, who knew that they would have to earn their way into the good graces of the Lords. The two young lords offered much, despite having very little, as gifts to every family, at the advice of Dante. It was the first step in the right direction.
The Late Years
The latter years of Dante's rein were similar to the rest of his rein, filled with peace and prosperity. Dante ruled with his son Damien at his side and the two continued creating profits for all houses through trade with the south and within the Kingdom. Dante established the Leones as the builders of the Kingdom when other Lords needed castle maintenance or the construction of a new tower, it was the Leones who profited. He also helped the Aleers created a series of cells within their mountains that would serve as the Kingdoms prison. The Aleers would be in charge of holding all criminals of all lands. Once a man was found guilty of a crime and sentenced it would be carried out in Bear Mountain. Everyone in Ruinous had their role and was content as such. The prince had been blessed with three sons, Pedigran, Clancy, and Lucas. The three young princes spent the bulk of their childhood under the watchful eye of their Grandfather. He took special care to make sure that they all had similar experiences to his and were able travel when they came of age, something he denied his own son do to his grief. Pedigran traveled through Ruinous as his grandfather did, Clancy the followed in his brothers foot steps a year later embarking on his journey around Ruinous. Lucas, the youngest, had a year later decided to take a different path however. He had a thirst for adventure and so he requested to journey to the Southern Continent. Dante remembered how much that journey had done for his brother and sister and gave his blessing to his grandson. Dante would even travel to Adelphia to see his Grandson off on his journey. Days after Lucas left for his journey Dante fell ill though and was not able to leave Adelphia. He called for Damien and his grandsons to come to him, but Lucas was to far and by the time Damien, Pedigran, and Clancy arrived it was to late. Dante had passed away, died an old man at the age of 70.