Kaidu Aurum

Kaidu Aurum, (born 69a.Au, crowned 85a.Au, died 89a.Au) known as Kaidu Secondborn, and in contemporary times was disputably known as Kaidu I, was the fourth King of Orbis following the death of his father Marcellus I. The third born child of Marcellus I and his wife Hoelun Gonji, Kaidu had an elder brother in Gelegian and an elder sister in Khulan. Kaidu's position as the third born child would become the genesis of the Woman's War, that would need to his deposition and death. Although crowned, Kaidu's claim is considered illegitimate and he is not counted in the annals of the Aurum Dynasty.

When Kaidu was twelve years old, his older brother Gelegian fled through the City of Brass to the Qaghanate of their maternal grandfather, absconding completely from his duties as the heir to the throne. This placed Kaidu as the new heir, under the prevailing laws of male primogeniture, where the eldest male child inherits.

However, there were some who disputed his place as heir. Chief amongst them was his aunt, Lilian, the royal archmage. Lilian argued that male primogeniture was a holdover from the days of the Terranian Empire, and that had Markus Aurum's daughter been born before his son, then she would most likely have inherited first as Markus was a great supporter in the destruction of archaic institutions and his wife was a member of the Zakariya Clan, which practice female primogeniture.

Regardless, Marcellus I recognised Kaidu as his heir and the issue laid dormant until 85a.Au, when King Marcellus died in a magical mishap. This led to Kaidu's mother accusing Lilian of plotting her brother's murder in order to put Kaidu's elder sister Khulan on the throne. Lilian, now a declared enemy of the realm regardless, sought to put Khulan on the throne. So began the Woman's War, at which point Kaidu was sixteen.

In 87a.Au, two years into the war, Kaidu married Sarella Rimgar, in order to bolster the alliances of the war effort. A year later a son was born to them, which they named Markus.

In 89a.Au, Kaidu would be slain by his own brother-in-law, Peef Rimgar, in the hopes of bringing the war to a quick end and to gain clemency as it became apparent that the backers of Khulan were going to win. Kaidu was succeeded briefly by his brother Naqu, (his son was disinherited by the horse regent, Hoelun, due to treachery in the blood,) but his forces were defeated within the year and Naqu became known as the Four Month King.

Peef Rimgar would be put to death by Queen Khulan for regicide, and Kaidu's son Markus would be adopted by Queen Khulan and recognised as the heir to the throne, eventually becoming Marcus II.