Creation

Kiros was created by Kelly Thompson and Meredith McClaren in Black Cloak 1.

General Background

Kiros is the last known city in its world.

Before the period ending some hundreds of years ago, it had a different ruling structure. Then a great war occurs against a “great evil.” And after the war, a new ruling structure is put in place.

It is unknown what relationship Kiros had to the rest of its world—for instance, if it was already the hub of government, or a rebel stronghold, or a big or small city.

Social Structure

After the war, Kiros is ruled by the elves, led by Queen Taline. Other leading "classes" (the Kiros term for race or species) include the Dracona, who are also very powerful, and the Humans, who are numerous but less powerful. The Kiros Three, a group of three super-rich Humans, seeks power. Lower-class races include Trolls and Fairies. Clans comprised of extended families can engage in generations-long blood feuds if not stopped. While racism is rampant, same-sex relationships seem to be perfectly accepted.

The Black Cloaks, a kind of police force, keep order and justice.

In Kiros, the male head of a family is often named after past family members, being for instance a II or III in the family line. Larger numbers have not been seem. He is also named by his "House" name. For instance, some male names include Phinneas II of Thane, Theron II of Pax, Beane II of Alden, Freyal III of Sidra, or Aldric II of Solas. He may also be known simply by the House name. For instance, Phaedra calls her partner “Pax.” Women, on the other hand, use that House name as a last name. Examples of female names include Phaedra Essex, Dagmar Solas, and Nida Nakaii.

Geography

Kiros is a fairly concentrated city, seemingly existing on the sides and peak of one mountain. Some of the areas of Kiros include The Lagoon, a cordoned-off area where Maids (mermaids) live; The Trees, where fairies and other flying folk, including even the richest of Dracona, live; The Narrows, a poor neighborhood, some of which is later called The Ruins after they are flooded; Castle Kiros, where the royal family lives; Merchant Row; and The Heights, a mixed area between the Castle and the Police Department that includes places like high-profile strip clubs (as opposed to the dives in the Narrows, which it borders) as well as the Kiros Natural History Museum and the Academy for Human Advancement.

Kiros burns and floods at the end of the first Black Cloak arc, but it grows into a healthier form over the ensuing five years and more.

Recent History

The magical infrastructure of Kiros begins to fall apart. Taline keeps it going by secretly breeding the beloved animals known as the Taka and draining their magic. She kills her own son, Freyal III, to keep the secret. Eventually the Black Cloak Phaedra Essex uncovers the conspiracy and destroys the magic absorption machine. Fires and floods destroy much of the city, including its most vulnerable areas.

Five years later, another conspiracy, this time led by one of the Kiros Three, tries to create and control a source of synthetic magic. Phaedra once again uncovers the plot and releases the synthetic magic to her father, the new Prime Minister, Phinneas II of Thane. He uses it to restore many of the damaged parts of the city