Although he's originally from the large, eastern city of Abelscinnia,
Tegene believed that the growing, secular influence of the Azgaril
empire threatened the spiritual development of his family. He'd
already become wealthy and influential in Abelscinnia's political
scene, but in order to raise his younger children and grandchildren in
a place where they remained free to worship as they pleased, Tegene
moved his entire family to Illithia.
Why Illithia? His youngest wife, Penda, had family roots in
Tamaria. (Her Tamarian father was a decorated war veteran who
married an Abelscinnian woman and settled in Illithia, where greater
racial tolerance existed.) Penda grew up in Shirak before
traveling on a pilgrimage to Abelscinnia. There, her maternal
grandfather arranged for her to marry Tegene. Penda's influence,
along with her concern that her sons would be drafted into one of the
private armies of the Azgaril, motivated Tegene's decision.
While visiting his sons at the seminary, Tegene met Lynden Velez.
The two men established an enduring friendship and have shared a
single, large residence for over thirty years. Abelscinnian
culture allows multiple marriages under certain conditions, whereas the
Lithians restrict marriage to a single partner. Thus, families of
both cultures can become quite large, but this tends to happen more
slowly among the Lithians. Tegene's children are adults, many of
whom have their own children who are older than
Lynden's daughters. Jawara, Tegene's youngest son, is more than
eight years older than Brenna.
The relative size of the images on this page are intended to reflect
family relationships, not importance! Children appear beneath
their respective mothers in order of birth from top to bottom, but not
necessarily from side to side.
Jawara (peace loving)
