Daysikya

Daysikya, known as Empress Daysikya or Dramu Drikmatsba in some circles, namely Suzhya, was the ?th Emperor of Gemurtrak and the first female ruler of Gemurtrak, reigning from 1515 until her death in 1548. The last living child of the Kazha imperial family following an assassination attempt made by burning the Imperial palace, Daysikya and her mother, the former Empress Miki, were immediately discredicted and refused permission to continue the Kazha family reign under a queen regency. The noble council would fail to appoint a successor and lead to a total collapse of order within the empire, leading to the events of the Inheritance War. Daysikya would be born shortly after these events, being able to avoid much of the early conflict.

After the death of her mother, Daysikya would become a focus to the factions of the then twenty year conflict as a claim to legitimacy, most notably by Yazeku of Yorgerr of the United Suzhyan Cities. Daysikya would go on to subvert these attempts, producing internal power struggles, playing claimants against each other, and ulitimately spurring an internal rebellion and murdering her newly wed husband after declaring herself as sole inheritor of the Empire. She would go on to dismantle the United Cities and begin a series of campaigns in restoring the old imperial borders, which she would partially achieve in 1542 but fail to reintergrate Krayorzhya. Daysikya would ultimately die in 1548 during the Battle of Krakorzhu during the Krayorzhya Restoration Wars, where her army would subsequently win after rallying behind her son and future emperor Maguste III. Hailed as the emblematic representation of Gemurtrak, both a master diplomat and unyielding warrior, Daysikya is often regarded as one of the greatest monarchs of Gemurtrak and one of the most influencial. Her story has been retold in various mediums across the centuries including through poems, books, television series, films as well as plays and songs.

Imperial palace fire of 1490
Before her birth, Daysikya was to be the 8th child of the current generation of the Kazha family, the ruling imperial family during the latter half of the Kezik period. The family, cultural outsiders from the Kingdom of Krayorzhya who usurped the imperial title in 1376, established themselves quickly as one of the most powerful families in the Northern Empire with the use of the Kayzuskur to maintain bureaucratic authority. The Kazha would remain untrusted by the many native families of the empire but could not deny the numerous successes since the adopting of their military structure. With the Northern Empire's successful yet costly occupation of Ketra Yenka in 1470, the Kazha family had essentially ensured their position as the Imperial family would be guaranteed.

The losses in the wars for Ketra Yenka brought scorn by the Kayzuskur who demanded a prominant portion of land in the new region as compensation. The Kayzuskur would openly rebel in 1476 during the Horselord War disrupting the Kazha control of the kingdoms. Many factions within the empire began to oppose the Kazha family, many demanding absurd and ridiculous requests in order to justify a conflict. Multiple small scale skirmishes would break out during the 1480's as the ability to police the numerous family feuds in the empire began to wane. In 1490, a massive fire broke out in the summer palace of the Kazha family, commonly believed to have been an especially aggressive faction within the empire. The fire resulted in the death of all noble members present at the premises including the emperor, his first son and heir, as well as multiple other sons and daughters and servants. While a state of mourning is meant to occur following such an event, none was organized as numerous members of the noble council attempted to obtain hold of the Imperial title. The last know survivor; Empress Miki, was away from the palace at the time and went into hiding with her newly born child, Daysikya, following the treachery.

Early life and imperial activity
Records of Daysikya’s childhood are few and far between, many chroniclers were preoccupied with the events of the Inheritance war to record the goings-on of the few remnants of the Kazha family. What is known is that Daysikya was likely brought up in the traditional manners for a noblewoman, as displayed by temple records showing she had been ordained into the faith, and pieces of literature and art that she had created, all common actions performed by women in these positions.

By the mid 1500’s, Daysikya had reentered the interests of the numerous factions still vying for control in the war, seeing her as a tool to establish a form of legitimacy coming from her connection to the functionally extinct house of Kazha. Some wished to hold her and her mother as a form of implied legitimacy, such as the Raskur Clique, or forcing her into marriage and claim the legitimacy for themselves, an action that was seen by the larger, more independent factions. These attempts towards such claims commonly ended in a sudden outburst of conflict, followed by the acquisition of Daysikya by another faction. The constant momentum she experienced in this time allowed her to steadily develop connections with various members of higher authority, including the generals [Name1], [Name2], and [Name3]. Notably she would grow a considerable relationship with [Name1], who taught her rudimentary combat techniques in the event of any future kidnappings. Daysikya and her mother remained under the control of the Nyebi gakpow confederacy from 1509 – 1512. Before of which she was taken by other factions mainly within months before her acquisition by the Nyebi confederacy. She reportedly gained and maintained popular relations with many members of the confederate families, many of whom wanting her to bestow imperial right upon them. These attempts were regularly thwarted by other members of the confederacy who aimed for a council system akin to before the Kazha's assumption of the first crown elect.

Daysikya showed she was an effective diplomat among the confederate member, which she frequently mediated, mitigating the negative outcomes of these disagreements. Her efforts stabilized the confederacy and influenced some to support her as the inheritor of the Imperial crown, an opinion the more ambitious members of the confederacy were well against. This clash of ideals saw a slow growth of support towards Daysikya who continued to prove her skills resolving dissatisfaction and disagreements. In 1512 those against Daysikya, namely the [house] and [house] families eventually broke away from the confederacy, joining alongside the Merchant republic coalition and assaulting the confederacy, throwing It into crisis and leading to its dissolution. Daysikya would fight in the battle of Yoskerkerr and be captured after the call of retreat by [general 2]. She was imprisoned in the city of Yorgerr by Yazeku, the defacto leader of the coalition, and would remain so for almost six months. She was eventually freed after submitting to Yazeku's demand for marriage and the subsequent declaration of himself as the emperor of Gemurtrak.

Imperial claim
The marriage was constantly delayed by dissatisfied factions within the coalition, wary of Yazeku and his potential grabs at the economic heartland of Suzhya. Daysikya, still under heavy supervision, conversed with many members of these factions during their visits to Yorgerr and showed a handle of the political maelstrom significantly better than her betrothed, something he was very much aggravated by. Unknown to him, Daysikya began forming deals among members of the coalition to overrule the outcome of the eventual wedding, an event which was of major importance across the former empire. The schemes and plans surrounding the event were of an insurmountable size. The event, planned for on the 12th of April 1515 moved smoothly until the coronation. Daysikya, now recognized as the supreme head of the Owkugan faith, used her power to declare herself as Emperor, an entirely legal action she could perform, and proceeded to bludgeon her newly wed husband with the imperial crown. The wedding broke out into complete chaos as combat between attendees began and allegiances were confirmed. The subsequent war from the incident placed Daysikya at the helm where she would lead her loyalists personally in many major battles including the Battle of Yorgerr, the Battle of Ornpyat, and the Battle of Psabri. She would receive her nickname Dramu Drikmatsba during this time, killing her former husband along with 2 famous generals of the period; [general], and [general]. Her early victories and quick grabs of power during the disruptive period placed her faction in a position of control she would continue to maintain across the rest of the Coalition war. Daysikya would emerge the dominant faction in the Suzhyan region after the decisive Battle of lake Dazuk in 1525 where she would cement herself as a key player, holding the innate influence of imperial legitimacy her coronation gave her.