Remana

Despite the hardships it has undergone over the years, the most recent being an outbreak of violence in 4E 189 that almost led to the fall of the city, Cheydinhal is (after the Imperial City, of course) the Niben's largest and most prosperous city.  Already having a large Dunmeri population, many refugees fled to Cyrodiil in the wake of the Red Year and today the city has Cyrodiil's largest elven population, though the Colovian cities of Anvil, Kvatch, and Skingrad have had a steady trickle of refugees from the Dominion in recent years.

Count Farwil Indarys is the reigning count and has been for many decades, but there are whispers that he may retire soon and hand off his title to his heir.  In Cyrodiil, titles are traditionally passed down to the firstborn child, but due to concerns over who his legal successor might even be (his now-deceased firstborn child, Symmachus, married a human woman and their many descendents are scattered all across Tamriel), the reigning Emperor gave Cheydinhal special permission to let its ruler choose his or her own heirs, which has caused its fair share of discussion in Cyrodiil and other provinces that share its laws.  There are still many who believe that, even if they should prove awful, that a ruler's firstborn child (or the next in line should that child die) has a divine prerogative to take the throne, that to go against that is to go against the will of Mara herself and Akatosh.  Others believe that this can only be a good decision and will help thwart incompetence and ineptitude.

Andela Indarys has no interest in taking her father's permission and her daughter Helena likewise has no inclinations towards becoming Countess Cheydinhal, preferring to live in Wayrest with her daughter, Alessia Lariat, and her family instead.  It was once thought that Farwil's heir would be his granddaughter, Julia Richton, but her untimely death in childbirth put an end to these plans.  It is now believed that Farwil's heir will either be her mother's cousin, Llathasa, or her mother, Maria Justinia.

I rather think they're just upset about being out in the cold all the time.

Sir?!  I may be strong of arm but that does not mean that I am not a woman!  Perhaps you think that because I am not bountiful in certain areas, then I am a boy, but if I am, then I am a pretty boy indeed!  I do not know if you intend insult or if you are merely mistaken.

In Cheydinhal, there are those who came before Mt. Dagoth Ur's eruption, those who came after, and those who were born and raised in the city.  Those who came before did so to escape the heinous religious persecution of the corrupt Tribunal Temple and the stratification of Morrowind society.  By and large, they received the faith of the Nine and left the cruel old ways behind them.  My great-great-grandfather Count Andel Indarys was one such individual and he rose to take the throne of Cheydinhal. 

Those of us born in the city continue on in the same vein.  We disdain the notions of racial purity that easterners continue to hold and many of us have Imperial fathers or husbands.  The last elf in my family to take an elvish wife was my great-grandfather.  The old family matriarchs and patriarchs do not understand us sometimes and to them, we are not Dunmeri but Nibenese.  The humans consider us Dunmeri and not Nibenese.  I do not see why one cannot be both.  The term manmeri has been applied to my my generation but I mislike the word.  We may have round cheeks and light eyes but our ears still point and we are not Bretons.

Those who came after the eruption are incomprehensible at times to me, clinging to old gods who offer them no succor.  I do not understand the point of clinging to old ways which have been proven to be false, in believing in elven superiority when it has been discounted.  Yet I admire the dedication to preserving the good in Morrowind and its history.  I think at times that the Nibenese are too happy to forget the past in favor of progress, forget meaning while holding on to aesthetics.  I wish that I understood Morrowind better so that I might understand others' nostalgia for it.  In my family, it is something that was escaped.

It is the chief jewel in the crown of Cyrodiil, a modern, elegant city rivaled by only the Imperial City itself.  Where other cities have fallen into squalor and disrepair, Cheydinhal stands strong.  The architecture is handsome to behold and there are many buildings in the old Akaviri style, including the Castle Cheydinhal, which boasts a thousand and one wooden and stone dragons, including the great coral dragon that was commissioned to celebrate the birth of Prince Juilek.

The River Corbolo is very beautiful and scenic.  In the green months, rose-boats float down the river into the Niben with boats laden with our fine flowers in tribute to the Queen of Flowers.  In the winter, drake-fish make their migration and the light from their sparkling bellies twinkles all through the river.

The Lythandas Museum is very good and has art from all across the world.  There is a fine exhibit of paintings from the artist himself and they are so true to life that one can nearly smell the forests he painted!  I also enjoy the display of Ayleid marbles.  There is Riverview which has been a fashionable and exclusive club for generations.  It is, however, very difficult to gain admittance if your name is not widely known.

My father is the great architect Otho Martinez and though he is perhaps best known to some for Goldhaven, the Medes' summer home, there is a fine house in Cheydinhal built in what he calls the Julian style and it is called the Viducia house, though the Viducias have not lived there since the bad times.  Aunts Alessia and Alessia live there now and maintain it nicely, though their garden is a deviation on the original landscape, which was laid out in an organic design instead of the stiff, crisp gardens that have become so popular.

The theater is good and ever popular, always worth a visit.  On St. Mor Street, there is a very fine bookshop.  There is a house full of exotic birds!  You may feed them seeds out of a spoon and they will sometimes perch on your hand.  We have many good and fine hotels and inns.  I enjoy hotels.  You are still in the city but you are sleeping somewhere different.  The Aurelia is very fine and there is a very excellent chef who does a great deal of work with peanuts.  Have you ever tasted peanut butter?  It is superb!

Some enjoy visits to the Telvanni district.  The living statuary is intriguing but the so-called Lord Shurivas smells of pipeweed and the House of Smoke and Bone violates several city ordinances.  I would personally recommend the part of town we call Little Narsis where there are many lovely shops and the proprietors are call very kindly and fashionable.

True! I, of course, mean as a mercenary. I’m always trying to keep track of all the dependable types in the area.