Gorōntoh Kōtele

Gorōntoh Kōtele /gɑ'rɔːntə kɔː'tɛlɛ/ (1803-1879 FR) was a famous singer of lore, seer to Meerō Dolysoh and later a close confidant to Brone Forod. She was known as "Forod's slayer", as she was suspected of murdering many enemies of Forod. She also poisoned Olboloh Joleeloh, another singer of lore and seer, whose fame and influence she was jealous of.

She married Naamon Pyr who became the pōntim serving in the Chamber of Honor.

Early life

Gorōntoh was born in Palased, into a relatively well-to-do family. Her parents owned several establishments, including one of the local smithies. Since the early age, Gorōntoh was interested in music and singing and quickly became known for her recitals of the Great Lore.

Kōtele began to perform in the region, although never ventured very far away and was mostly known in Palased, Qor and Seeved. At some point she met Olboloh Joleeloh, who already had legendary status, and began traveling with her. The two became a sensation and in 1833 FR arrived at Gaskal to much fanfare.

As a seer to the gole

Olboloh's family, originally from Koalderood, was involved in a generations-long rivalry with the Jumpelee clan, but this was not known to the east of Frooj. Deciding to use their influence to get back at the Jumpelees, Olboloh used the pair's fame and influence to pass on a prophecy to the gole that warned him of impending threat to the authority of Dolysoh and their religious claim to Gaajmas. Olboloh's plan worked and both her and Gorōntoh were made seers of the gole.

Meerō's campaign against the Hadeer was successful, and the Jumpelee clan was defeated. This also increased both women's standing in the eyes of the gole and their positions as seers was validated even further.

Olboloh, however, was always more famous and had much more authority out of the two, and the gole clearly preferred to deal with her, rather than with Kōtele. This made Kōtele jealous and she began to worry that she might get sidelined. She then poisoned Olboloh's wine, which Olboloh drank along with her son, and both of them died, ending the bloodline of Joleelohs.

Realizing, however, that she does not have a strong relationship with the Gole and that she needs an ally, Kōtele told Meerō that before her death Olboloh said that she was mistaken about Brone Forod and that he should stand by his Gole. Meerō, shaken by the death of his trusted seer, desperately needed for someone to be his right hand, and Gorōntoh's message was exactly what he wanted to hear. Meerō went down to the palace dungeon and personally opened the door of Forod's cell. Porteek reports that Meerō was crying and asking Forod for forgiveness. Forod was then reinstated as the Prime of the Royal Voice.

As Forod's aide

Kōtele's main career as a courtier begins when she helps reinstate Forod. Officially she continues to be the Royal Seer, but unofficially she is Forod's aide and helps him expand his power. She does so by blackmail and outright murder.

Instead of using poison, she opts for an unlikely choice of a sword or an axe as the murder weapon. Her main innovation is how the murders are organized: she meticulously picks a time and place so that the body would be discovered only days or weeks later. This sometimes requires her to murder several people of the person's household.

Kōtele's involvement in a lot of high profile murders was deduced by Uroh Aabos Lorkyn who was secretly tasked with the investigation, but was ultimately unable to take action because of Forod's and Kōtele's high standing.

There has been considerable speculation regarding the dynamics between Forod and Kōtele, with Porteek suggesting that Kōtele forced Forod's hand. He argues that Forod was not known for such brutal tactics before his imprisonment and that he was generally considered to be a fairly conventional courtier, loyal to the Gole and exhuming decency, empathy and honor in the way he held himself with others.

Later research, specifically by Mlan, reveals that Forod forced Kōtele's marriage to Naamon Pyr and that she had been abused at the hands of her husband. Mlan argues that had Kōtele the amount of control that Porteek assigns to her, this would've been an unlikely turn of events.

However, Mlan also generally agrees that Kōtele frequently acted independently in what she understood to be the interests of Forod, and that the first murder caught Forod by surprise. But both Porteek and Mlan agree that Forod quickly adapted to his accomplice's methods and learned how to direct Kōtele against people that he wanted removed. In fact, it is possible that the dynamics of their relationship was not static and that her forced marriage was the result of Forod reclaiming some level of control over his unruly aide.

Later life and death

Kōtele held her position as the Royal Seer up to 1870, when Beejetoh Dolysoh ascended to the throne. Kōtele's removal was a disappointment for her. Forod died two years prior, so although she was feared, she also had no allies in the royal household and was not able to find her way back. By this time her involvement in various murders became somewhat of a steady whisper among the nobles of Gaskal.

She lived out the remainder of her life in seclusion and was found dead in her mansion in March of 1879 FR, having apparently died from starvation. Porteek reports a story that circulated in Gaskal: that a relative of someone she had murdered locked her in the room as revenge. Another story suggested that she predicted her own death in poverty, and since she was exorbitantly wealthy, she had to do something to make the prophecy come true. Porteek hastens to point out that there is little evidence for any of these stories and, in fact, even for the circumstances of her death. He suspects that the circumstances of her death were embellished:

"It's so unquestionably disappointing that the life of a mass murderer would end in her dying peacefully in her sleep. Our sense of justice demands a death as gruesome and macabre as the life she had lived."

Alleged victims

Reemoh Dedlos was a pōntim who served in Meerō Dolysoh's court, serving as the principal of the Chamber of War in the Court of Ooron. He disappeared after a posh dinner organized at his mansion where he spoke of a trip to Kees. Later investigation revealed that he never left his mansion and was probably killed that same evening. His body was never discovered. Alongside him three of his close servants also vanished. The body of one of them was later found in the Molosoh river.

Uroh Lenboh was the Prime of Ceremonies and father of Jeenor Rostoh who was one of key leaders preparing for the upcoming "Red Orchid" campaign. Lenboh was supposed to be taking part in the royal hunt, but had not returned. It quickly became clear that none of the people remembered him at the hunt. His body was never found.

A mere month later, Jeenor Rostoh was found dead in his bedroom, stabbed several times with a sword.

The disappearance of Lenboh triggered Maan Lon, a life-long servant of Reemoh Dedlos, to approach Uroh Lorkyn regarding the disappearance of his master. Lorkyn refused to help at first, but changed his mind when Jeenor Rostoh was murdered, suspecting conspiracy.

Eroh Blosoh was the Prime of Lights and an informal administrator of the royal household. She has not returned from a trip to Kees. Her aide and son also vanished.

Dovyn Glay, a Mōrtoh elder, Mosk Dolysoh's mentor. Along with Olboloh Joleeloh, he became an informal advisor to Meerō after Forod's imprisonment. Forod's return did not significantly reduce the influence of Dovyn Glay, who was also seen as Forod's replacement when Mosk Dolysoh would ascend to the throne. The elder was beheaded with an axe. His headless body was found outside of the royal palace gates. Uroh Lorkyn claimed that a skull he had seen in Forod's chamber was that of Glay.

Uroh Mysoh was a Maad noble. She was the daughter of one of the princes from the Kingdom of Maad and was married to Beloh Pyr, who became the negotiator for the Kingdom of Maad. She was found dead in the attic of the mansion when Beloh Pyr returned from a lengthy trip, with the servants of the house assuming that she left with her husband.