House Qáhiriyün

A house bred from blood and struggle upon the Spicewell Steppe of Surotsi, the Qáhiriyüns are notable for maintaining a high position of power despite their Esurkish majority. Esurkish-Aulesiri in blood, yes, but in politics and matters of the realm, House Qáhiriyün is as Aulesiri as Reinar or Sotulyn.

War of the Pale Brothers
During the War of the Pale Brothers, the Qáhiriyün domain was left largely intact, and unlike many other regions, actually witnessed an increase in population, both from a steady birthrate and an influx of war refugees seeking exotic pastures. While foreign warships scanned the high seas, Qáhiriyün ships were trading spices and bringing stories from the Beyond. Even the Solemn Age was relatively calm in the eastern Surotsi domain, with the Old Order unable to reconcile many of their extreme viewpoints with the oddball Pale-Esurkish folk religions that had developed within Qáhiriyün lands, and with the emperor not enforcing such policies because of political convenience (the Qáhiriyüns had long maintained the status quo, serving as a protective wall against what could have been crippling Esurkish incursions).

Indeed, while the Qáhiriyün have not had to deal with such pressures of the realm, they have had to deal with bloody, local conflicts against aggressive Esurkish tribes and city-states, many of which were but whispers in the wind compared to the fighting in Jyotnun during the War. Despite the relative peace of the past seventy-plus years, there has been a clear resurgence in Esurkish raids, whether that be out of desperation or renewed leadership, creating a tense environment in eastern Surotsi. In question is how House Qáhiriyün will respond to these immediate threats while attempting to maintain their advantageous position that was largely untouched by the bloodiest war in Aulesiri history.

History
In the 9th century, the Esurkish war chief Áttátir of the tribe Qáhiri found himself against impossible odds, drawn into a simultaneous war against three other tribes due to a byzantine system of blood alliances that set them against him. After being defeated in more than a few battles, he decided that his only option would be capitulation to the Aulesiri, whose frontier outposts he had both raided repeatedly and established trade relations.

He swore himself to the Emperor and with the help of Aulesiri reinforcements, defeated the triple alliance and seized control of the Árotsi river valley. He married an Aulesiri wife and brought in Aulesiri councilors, inviting the settlement of adventurous Aulesiri merchants and farmers within his territory. Over time, his territory became the greatest and most stable fief of the Emperor in the region, with his successors accepting the Emperor as divine and adopting certain Aulesiri customs while retaining Esurkish mannerisms and language within their court.

Esurkish tribes outside the imperial domain, however, regard the Qáhiriyün as Aulesiri, as they have disgraced themselves from "proper" honor by refusing to fight the blood feud by their code and submitting to the Emperor. Over the centuries, the Qáhiriyün continued to fight wars with the indomitable Esurkish who continually refused submission to the Emperor, while gradually expanding their trading fleet that brought them immense wealth in interactions with the Aulesiri mainland in Jyotnun.