Astrid van Mauve
To Seek Knowledge in all forms, and instil knowledge in all Mann
The O.W.L. aims to advance technology by coordinating research and learning throughout the Kingdom of Al'Khezam. The foremost task of the O.W.L. is research. This research will be coordinated both top-down as well as bottom-up. The O.W.L. will on the one hand function as the research branch of the royal court; investigating any questions that come forth from the court discussions that relate to the natural and technological sciences. On the other hand, the O.W.L. aim to further knowledge for the greater good of the kingdom through taking requests from Al Qaum as to what knowledge and resources they may be missing to better perform their jobs.
Once this research is done, the right people will need to be educated and informed. This is done by our lecturers, who will provide classes both in our order’s lecturing halls, as well as in the workshops of those practicing their chosen professions. These lecturers are in close contact with the researchers of their expertise and are often researchers themselves.
Lastly, through a programme called the Order of Wisdom and Learning Exchange Treaty (O.W.L.E.T.), the order aims to coordinate the different educational and research institutions across the realm. The O.W.L.E.T. provides a centralised hub and library through which fellow institutions can meet and exchange knowledge. This way research only needs to be done once and information can be provided to those who seek it. The order will keep track of each institution and their foci and attempt to maintain not only good relations, but also a good flow of information dispersion. If the O.W.L. finishes a piece research, the results will be sent via the O.W.L.E.T. to all institutions which may benefit from said knowledge. Additionally, the order leaves reciprocation of this courtesy up to each institution’s agency.
All are welcome to come to teach, learn, research and explore their passions in various fields at the O.W.L.
In an official and ceremonial capacity, the Order of Wisdom and Learning is headed by King Usifan himself. However, since the King has royal matters to attend to, the day-to-day running as well as most policy-setting is left to the administrators of the order. The head of administration is the Chancellor, who chairs meetings and executes overall strategy and policy. The Chancellor is also a part of the royal council in order to provide a knowledgeable voice, transmit information, and take on new research tasks. The other three administrators are each responsible for one of the above tasks of the order. There is the Dean of Research (DR), the Dean of Education (DE), and the Coordinator of the Order of Wisdom and Learning Exchange Treaty (C.O.W.L.E.T.). Last to attend administrator meetings, although without vote, is the chronicler scribbler. The chronicler scribbler is responsible for publishing the minutes of each administrative meeting and for looking up any policies and decisions that have previously been made. They are generally also the head librarian of the order’s library. Generally, a specific head of unit can be called upon to attend an administrator’s meeting if they are particularly invested in one of the topics being discussed. They will naturally not get a vote in the process but do have the right to have their opinion listened to and understood.
In the situation where a tie in votes occurs, the administrator who will be executing the policy voted upon has the casting vote. In cases where more than one administrator is in charge of executing (part of) the policy, it is the chancellor who holds the casting vote.
The following figure is an indication of the structure of the O.W.L. and is subject to change as administrative roles are filled.
Individuals: While the O.W.L is incredibly prestigious and holds its members to high standards, we are proud to offer a limit-free environment to any who seek us out. Everyone is welcome to join the order whether they be student or teacher, scholar or researcher. Within our order, the question is not of who you are or what you bring to the table, but of how passionate you are to learn, disseminate knowledge and innovate the technologies of Elyria.
Organisations: Any organisation within Al’Khezam can affiliate themselves with us through our O.W.L.E.T. This treaty is not just for the simple exchange of information via messenger pigeon but can also involve the organisation of exchange lecturing programmes, where a member of the O.W.L. comes to your location to teach their skills and expertise. Naturally, if one or more members of your organisation wishes to come teach, learn, or research at our facilities for a while, they are more than welcome to!
If your organisation is placed near the main location of the O.W.L., Delmunÿa, and you wish to be closely involved with the research and education programmes we offer, we would be open to find a permanent solution on common ground. The details of these solutions can be tailored individually to each local organisation, which will be done in discussion.
At the O.W.L we understand the importance of developing knowledge in multiple fields. One of our principles is that we come together as a whole to eventually inspire the advancement of our kingdom. We also are aware that not every individual can invest the financial and physical resources necessary to perform the intellectual tasks necessary to achieve this advancement. To this end, we offer rooms to serve as schools for every field required. We will also provide research grants and aid to those in need. We will accommodate to the best of our possibilities the needs of our students, staff, and external organisations to further wisdom and learning throughout the kingdom of Al’Khezam
At the O.W.L we offer you the unique opportunity to come together with a group of like-minded individuals and organisations, such that you may fuel your passion to research what interests you. After joining our Order you will have limitless access to the research facility of the faculty for your own enthusiasm, giving you the freedom to let your ideas and hypotheses grow into founded and proven theories. If you are unsure what you want your next project to be, we will have requests from both the council and professionals ready for you to work on.
We are firm advocates of community and will do everything we can to create an environment that will allow the formation of a positive and reciprocal relationship between our alumni. As such we encourage you to take advantage of the unique opportunity at this institution to petition the King to support you in starting up your own shop near the Order. What we ask in return is that you feed into our community as we have fed into you: that you continue teaching or researching at the order for the betterment of the whole community.
Come say hello on our Discord.
The order was named after a wise creature and a symbol of Al’Khezam. The O.W.L is a reprieve from the selfish, cold, and socially cut off society that has started taking over our world. It is a place to join all our lights as individuals and guilds in order to become one shining beacon of knowledge and community.
The O.W.L was founded by Usif and his sister Tulipa in order to stand forever as a memory of their father, King Usifan. This order reflects his excellence as a collaborative, compassionate, innovative and respected leader. In the same way that King Usifan served his realm and encouraged his people to work together to serve their kingdom, the O.W.L will bring education to the people of Delmunÿa and its neighbouring regions to offer them the best support as they research, discover, and advance the knowledge of technology to better serve their kingdom.
It will also play a vital role in preserving the current culture and knowledge of the land. Our extensive library holds and protects not only essential records and the most up to date maps of Elyria, but also descriptive research advancements from across the kingdom.
Going through his father’s desk, Usif found that for, the most part, things were actually less chaotic than he had prepared himself for. It would seem that during his descent into the clouded state that he eventually did not return from Usifan had been proactive, he must have realized his health was failing and almost all of the most important papers were already transferred into the capable hands of his privy council. All that was left were the notes that he wrote to himself before bed in the last few months of his illness, and while they were painful reminders of his poor failing mental health, they were otherwise easy to sort through and discard.
As he threw parchment after parchment into the hearthside his hands fell over a large scroll, clearly indented by furious scratching of a quill, but otherwise illegible from the twin stains covering the entirety of the front side, one the unmistakable opaque onyx of spilt ink, and the other what could have almost been blood but was too purple still for its age, clearly marking it as a deep, velvet red wine.
Even in the end, this kind of disorder was out of character for his father, but so was the length of the writing beneath it. Most of the notes in this desk were mundane quips about the day, “Saw Duke Magnus’s newest child. It seemed more intelligent than him already, but I guess it would only take 4 days to accrue the amount of knowledge that he has in a lifetime,” making this all together an interesting find.
As Usif contemplated what to do with this irregular find his sister swept into their father’s chamber. She had foretold that this would be a day of discovery and couldn’t resist responding to her brother’s inquisitive aura. “I feel you have come across something of great importance dear Brother. Please, share your discovery with your sister,” she breathed, coming to look over his shoulder.
“It’s nothing dear Sister I am sure, however this parchment is just so out of place among the others. My thoughts have lingered on it as you yourself linger over your crystals. I have completed my task. The desk is cleaned. And yet, here I stand, still grasping this soiled scrap of refuse.”
An ever inquisitive and open spirit, Tulipa had much more faith in her brother’s intuition than he had. She reminded him of this, and of his strength of intelligence and spirit, as she reached for the parchment.
The moment her delicate fingers graced the page the room around her became dark as if twilight. The candles flickered. Some flickered out. Looking up, she could see her father sitting at the desk in front of her, his glass of wine curiously full and his face sagging with untold misery. Her heart broke and she sent her spirit out to him. As her light enveloped his diminished spirit, she saw him blink, as if becoming awake for the first time, before hurriedly shuffling the papers on his desk into a pile, stuffing them into a drawer. He took out a fresh piece of parchment and began to scribble wildly. The plans for his legacy were etched into Tulipa’s mind as if her thoughts themselves were the parchment, and before her brother even realized that she had fallen away from him, she blinked and returned to the present, the sunlight still shining into the now closed window.
She clutched Usif’s arm with a gasp and closed her eyes, she could still see the plans for her father’s order laid out in full detail, wine and ink hovering around the sentences in wet streams, just waiting to fall. “Brother,” she clung to him for support, and he gave her strength, unfazed by the clairvoyant episode. “Our father was a man of great intelligence and great compassion. He has left us with a plan to make sure that those attributes are associated with him and our family for the rest of time. I have seen the plan, and we will carry it through.”
Extended lore is a work in progress
King Usifan says: I have always believed that education is the cornerstone of community, and that community is the cornerstone of growth. Because of this, it has long been an aspiration of mine to find a way to help encourage interaction between individuals and guilds, allowing us to further our knowledge and promote a cause, all on one platform. This order provides a place for just that platform. Here, we can set politics and economy aside and pursue a better understanding of that which binds us in the first place: technology.
If that the field of technology holds some of the greatest promise for mankind today, why would it not in Elyria? In our world, technology is always advancing in almost every direction. If we were to apply a similar approach in Elyria by coming together at this project, we can ensure that we will always be at the forefront of those advancements, constantly remaining a step ahead and keeping the wheel of technology turning.
To Seek Knowledge in all forms, and instil knowledge in all Mann
Astrid van Mauve