Nikolas III Nikolakis
Information
Name	Nikolas III Nikolakis
Species	Merman
Gender	Male
Born	46 BGE Ducal Palace, New Atlantis
Died	36 AGE Ducal Palace, New Atlantis
World	Asleep Universe
Occupation	Prince of New Atlantis (46 BGE - 18 BGE) Duke of New Atlantis (18 BGE - 10 AGE) High Priest of New Atlantis (10 AGE - 36 AGE)
Native language	Novoatlantean

Nikolas III Nikolakis (46 BGE - 36 AGE) was a Duke of New Atlantis, who subsequently served as the realm's High Priest.

Appearance

Nikolas had light blue scaly skin, with a tint of green. In his younger years, this was accompanied by a head of jet-black hair, which, in contrast to many of his peers, he kept cut short. He also wore ornate blue clothing lined with gold and silver - as was befitting of a prince (and later a duke). However, he was never very athletic: indeed, he was noticeably overweight, to the point where his subjects openly wondered how he stayed afloat!

Later in life, he lost some of his weight, and his black hair faded to silver. Furthermore, after he abdicated the throne, his wardrobe became much plainer and whiter - and he exchanged his characteristic tricorne hat for the turban of a priest.

Personality

Nikolas was a pious individual, who, even as a child, had a calm and placid demeanour. He rarely, if ever, went out on adventures; instead, he spent most of his free time studying in the library, keen intellectual that he was. This meant he had relatively few friends as a youngster - but, his deep knowledge of the realm and its history was respected by all.

As an adult, Nikolas also became known for his commitments to fairness and generosity. He treated his subjects with the utmost empathy, and never refused a chance to give to charity. However, his own advisers often had to rein this in, in order to stop him from bankrupting the realm!

Relationships

Lyra - Nikolas's wife of 55 years. In contrast to him, she was a firm disciplinarian - which did lead to some disputes (particularly when it came to raising their son, Nestor). Nevertheless, they remained fiercely loyal to one another - and Lyra's presence did help to keep Nikolas's most naïve impulses under control.

Nestor - Nikolas's son, and eventual successor as Duke of New Atlantis. During Nestor's teenage years, he often tried even his father's legendary patience: he regularly went out and caused mischief, whereas Nikolas would have preferred him to stay in and study. Nevertheless, as Nestor grew out of his juvenile habits, he and Nikolas developed a mutual respect for the very different paths that their lives had taken.

Lysander - Nikolas's grandson, who once again caused all kinds of havoc during his teenage years. However, he did have a friendly relationship with Nikolas (one of the few people with enough patience to somewhat tolerate him) - and, this led directly to Lysander becoming Nikolas's understudy (and eventual successor) as High Priest.

Story

Early years

Prince Nikolas was born in the year 46 BGE, to Duke Nikolas II of New Atlantis and his wife, Penelope. His birth was a particularly joyous occasion, as his parents had already been trying and failing to conceive a child for over 10 years. By the time they succeeded, Duke Nikolas II was already 37 years old - and Penelope was 40. Thus, Prince Nikolas was never going to be part of a large family: he had only one sister, Demeter, who was born a year later.

Unlike many of his peers, Nikolas took an intense dislike to swords and axes - instead preferring books and scrolls. However, he did enjoy watching choreographic trident displays by his grandmother, Aliana the Fearless - who shows that, even at her advanced age, she could still hold her own in combat. At the age of 8, he was inspired by her (and pushed by his father) to join New Atlantis's military and naval academy.

Prince Nikolas continued daily military training for five years. However, when he was 13 years old, Aliana the Fearless passed away from old age. With the loss of his primary role model, Nikolas quickly grew disillusioned, and he gave up all land-based combat only a month later. He persisted with the navy for a little longer - but, by the age of 16, he had dropped out of this as well. His academic studies, on the other hand, were going from strength to strength: at the age of 18, he graduated with five First Class certificates - including history, philosophy, and politics.

Adulthood and rulership

As a teenager, and on into adulthood, Prince Nikolas spent so much time in the library that he got to know several librarians on a first-name basis. One of these was a young, blonde-haired mermaid named Lyra, who always made every effort to fetch him the books he needed. Their study partnership eventually turned into romance - and ultimately into marriage. Tragically, their first son - also named Nikolas - was so sickly that he didn't survive infancy; but fortunately, their second son, Nestor, was much healthier.

Between the births of the two children, Duke Nikolas II abdicated - and so, Prince Nikolas took the throne, and became Duke Nikolas III. He immediately embarked on ambitious programmes of social spending, to improve the lot of the poor within his realm. For a while, he indeed lift thousands of people out of poverty every year - but soon, his overspending caught up to him, and plunged New Atlantis into economic ruin. The situation became so dire that he had to sell off many of the palace's paintings and sculptures - and even considered putting his own pearly throne up for sale. Fortunately, it didn't come to that in the end.

As Lyra took charge of raising young Nestor, Duke Nikolas focused on repairing the immense damage he had caused. With the help of his economic advisers, he was able to cut back on his spending - and eventually, his realm again became prosperous enough for him to start spending on the poor again (albeit not to the same unrealistic levels as before). He also commissioned artists to create replacements for the decorations he'd had to sell off - including a magnificent bronze statue of Aliana the Fearless in the castle grounds, which was unveiled in the year 7 AGE, for the 40th anniversary of her death.

Priesthood and later life

In the year 10 AGE, at the age of 56, Duke Nikolas III abdicated, handing the throne to his now-adult son, Nestor. However, rather than enjoying a well-earned retirement, he embarked on a new career, as the High Priest of New Atlantis - overseeing the ceremonies marking major life milestones of his subjects, and providing robust spiritual guidance when it was most needed.

Furthermore, once Nestor married his wife, Cassandra, and they started welcoming children of their own, Nikolas became involved in the lives of his new grandchildren. Indeed, it was he who suggested to Nestor that he name his first daughter Aliana - in honour of his own beloved grandmother.

The last major ceremony that Nikolas led was the marriage of Conor and Cheryl, in the year 36 AGE. By now, he was 82 years old - and he desperately wished to oversee the marriage of one of his grandchildren, all of whom were now adults themselves. Sadly, he never got the chance: Lysander and Meriandra never married, and Aliana's relationship with her boyfriend Kyle kept breaking down. They did eventually come to peace with one another - but when they finally married, in the year 39 AGE, Nikolas was not there to lead the ceremony. Three years prior to their wedding, he had died, much as he had lived: calmly and peacefully in his sleep.

Duke Nikolas may no longer be around to help the people of New Atlantis - but through Nestor, and Aliana (and, one day, her daughter Sandra), his legacy will surely live on.

Trivia

Nikolas spoke four languages: Novoatlantean, Classical Atlantean, Standard Lennartine, Modern Archonian.

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