Counting Cards, an AU Pandora Hearts RP

RULES & BACKGROUND & FACE CLAIM & ADVERTISE

Valaria is a small kingdom situated far from possible threats and overflowing with potential. Once ruled by the great Balthazar family, it has since fallen to ruin as the eight lesser noble families fall to squabbling as to over who shall take over the throne. But how did this happen? What could have possibly overturned such a great nation?

Simple. The Abyss. One of the two great families, the Tates, made a Contract with a Chain, and upon making said Contract, turned and decimated his fellow bluebloods. Centuries later, the fallout of this act is still affecting politics as the Tates and their rivals, the Veroniques, engage in an unofficial civil war over who will obtain the crown. It has gone on in the shadows of state affairs, the commoners still loyal to the Balthazar family that has gone missing since the Tate ancestor.

And then two lesser families brought the war out into the open, revealing not only the Chains they fought with, but also the two methods of Contracting, Abyssal and Charmed. The commoners now had a chance to fight in this war. But that's not the only way things have changed. A Balthazar, the first since the massacre all those centuries ago, has appeared to try to claim his birthright. The new head of the Tate family bears the same name and Chain of the ancestor who long ago brought this misery onto Valaria. A Veronique has Contracted the Chain of his family and been named the heir even though he is not the eldest son. And what's worse, people have begun to go missing from all around Valaria, leading to accusations and suspicion to further strain the frayed relations between the families.

The cards of fate have been dealt out, and no one knows yet what they might hold. In these uncertain times, the only clear certainty is that the secret to power lies in whoever dominates the Abyss. And who will it be to take over the throne when the dust clears? Well... you'd have to be Counting Cards to determine that, now wouldn't you?