John Hilding Waffel-Paine

John Hilding Waffel-Paine
Full name	John Hilding Drak & Waffel-Paine
AKA	none
Physical information
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Hair color and style	Dark Brown
Eye color	Blue
Skin color	White
Biographical information
Father	Nathan II
Mother	None (clone)
Date of birth	25 Blumuar 1671 (aged 68)
Place of birth	Anmutstadt, Natopia
Residence(s)	Dracoheim
Nationality	Shirerithian
Allegiance(s)	Shireroth
Occupation	Count Palatine of Draconia

John Hilding Drak & Waffel-Paine, is the son of Nathan II and was the King of Drak-Modan. He was sent to live in Drakorda in 1673 and celebrated his second birthday there. His older brother, Nathan III is the heir to the throne of Natopia. He was the fourth to be birthed from his artificial womb, technically making him the youngest of the quadruplets. His older sisters, Vadoma and Leonora Noor Waffel-Paine, split their time visiting him and Nathan III, alternating visits so no more than two of the quadruplets are ever in the same city. He has four stepsiblings through his father's marriage with Kaiser Ayreon IV, the eldest of which is Kaiseress Salome. He lived in Lindstrom, Natopia, with his father, older sisters, and brother until he was offered co-rule with Andrea Drakland in 1685. As a result of his inability to maintain the Bovic Draconian State in Modan amid many crises, in 1699 he was relegated to ruling the County Palatine of Draconia, within the Imperial Republic of Shireroth.

Early Life

Very soon after John was born, the Kalirion Fracture erupted on the Benacian continent, which took the life of his step-father, Ayreon IV. John's father, Nathan II quickly founded the kingdom of Drak-Modan to protect Natopian interests on Benacia. The Natopian emperor wanted the new Bovic kingdom to be closely, and permanently, aligned with Natopia but robust and distinct enough to flourish independently. Thus, the decision was made very early on to send John to live in Drakorda, where he would grow up and become a naturalized Drak-Modani, which would help ease tensions between the ruling Natopian class and the native Modanese.

King for a Day

The Bovinist Schism of 1676 saw John's future drastically changed. Nativist and anti-Dozan Bovic pressures forced his father to promise to abdicate by 1679. The kingdom came under control of the Benacian Bovic Church and John dutifully attended Benacian Herds, increasing his popularity in Drak-Modan but quickly diminished his popularity in Natopia, where he was still considered a member of the Imperial Family and a potential successor to the Natopian throne. After Nathan passed the throne to John, a series of political crises occurred that culminated in the Drak-Modani Abdication Crisis. John found himself without power and his aunt, Clara Sundara, could only protect him physically, not politically. John was barely king for three months before his father recalled him to Natopia.

Life in Natopia

John has had difficulty adapting to Natopian life. He does not appear in public with his brother and sisters and has reportedly fallen into a deep depression, resenting the loss of his kingdom, resenting his father for using him as a pawn, resenting his aunt for allowing it, and resenting his brother Nathan III for being the favored child and future emperor. He finds the Dozan Bovic Church archaic and decadent, and prefers to drink goat's milk at dinner. Natopian tabloids write frequent editorials insisting that the Emperor send him to a Dozan Bovic monastery in Athlon, or enroll him in military school, before his temperament sours public opinion on the entire Imperial Family.

New Kingdom

In 1682, an unsanctioned convention on the island of Nel Modan, in So-Sara, Drak-Modan, voted to invite John back and become King of the Draconians and to establish an autonomous kingdom within the Republic of Drak-Modan for the Draconian diaspora to resettle as a homeland. John's father, Nathan II, expressly forbade John from commenting on the situation in public before the Drak-Modani government could sort out the situation. John, already deeply upset and depressed since being kicked out of Drak-Modan and without his father putting up a fight, clandestinely traveled to Nel Modan with the intention to accept the island's offer of a new crown.

Aspirations for a Restored Imperial Bloodline

John, who had now found himself in the middle of the Drak-Modani Civil War tentatively supported his father's claim to the throne. Although after the False Start at Raynor Point, both factions had entered into an uneasy truce. When the kingdom of Draconia was proclaimed, many Draconians who served in the royal courts of Modan and Malarboria flocked to Dracoheim, and John was tutored by many who served under Queen Kizzy, although they all had sworn oaths renouncing her before serving the new kingdom.

What John learned was that the people of southern Benacia hated foreign interference. Although Kizzy was foriegn-born, she had spent most of her adult life in Shireroth and, although she brought her cadre of demons from Demonsfall to Malarboria, they were, at least, native demons. Before her descent into corruption, Kizzy enjoyed some degree of acceptance in Malarboria.

The Line of Drak, which had two Kaisers in it, was itself claimed to be an offshoot of the Line of Grifos, which is itself an offshoot of the illustrious Line of Metzler. One of John's tutors, a Draconian revisionist historian, proposed that all Draconians are descended from Kaiser Loki I's extensive use of brothels in ancient Dracoheim. The Draconian kingdom was thus a return to the homeland for many Draconians, and over time, the image of the Line of Drak in Drak-Modan would come to be seen as a native bloodline.

Ever since Kyle Kilynn, son of two Drak kaisers, married the Natopian empress, the Line of Drak had been entirely subsumed into the House of Waffel-Paine. John wondered if there was a way to restore some independence to the bloodline, and thus restore nativist rule in Drak-Modan in such a way that would be agreeable again to the republicans and royalists. John himself was, for all intents and purposes, a clone of his father Nathan II, and therefore John was half-Draconian and half-Drak. The only other people who descended from the last full-blooded Drak were his siblings, and his cousins.... and one other person: Andrea Drakland. John's simplistic, 13-year old mind began to race, "What if she and I claimed the throne of Drak-Modan together? And then later on we can get married and have children more fully in the Drak bloodline?" He did not even consider that Andrea was already busy managing the demons in Goetia but he hastily sent her an invitation to visit Dracoheim.

Royal Consorts

Loki Drakspunk

John met Loki while vacationing in Dracoheim. Although the official story is that they met at one of the exclusive resorts on the island, the truth is that that met at one of Dracoheim's most notorious bathhouse, The Manhole. After several nights of running in to each other, the two men finally exchanged first names and numbers and began to chat daily. The two men fell in love, and delighted in bringing home other men to impress each other. John was at first apprehensive about Loki's career as a sex worker, but Loki, (born 1667), took the time to explain how the profession was well-regarded in the Draconian community. As the Draconian Supremacy Movement gained momentum, John decided to announce his engagement to Loki, relieved that public sentiment might be supportive of the unconventional relationship.

As John's first royal consort and spouse, His Royal Highness is recognized by RMDS Bovics as the spouse that John married for love or companionship. Although church and secular law treat all partners in quadratic marriage equally, it is assumed that the first spouse is considered first among equals in etiquette, protocol, and unavoidable situations where John may only be accompanied by one of his spouses. John and Loki were married in a small public ceremony in the royal palace in Drakorda.

Family: Loki has several older siblings who have moved with him to Drakorda to serve in his retinue and assist him. They participate in Royal Court activities as surrogates of the royal family. His brothers are Lado Drakspunk and Liru Drakspunk, they are twins born in 1660; and his sister is named Juliana Drakspunk, born 1663. Lado and Liru worked as constables in the Dracoheim civic police force, and Juliana was an elementary school teacher. The Drakspunk siblings are highly respected by John, and he values their help and advice.

John and Loki both agree that a stable and independent foundation for the new House of Drak & Waffel-Paine requires dynastic alliances outside of Drak-Modan, and that Lado, Liru, and Juliana are eligible and willing to serve in such dynastic marriages.

Qaren Queenie

Qaren Queenie, PhD., (born 1655) is an assistant professor of gender studies at Bousland College in Sehmlshire. Their dissertation, Low Hanging Fruit: The Biological, Sociological, Psychological, Ethical, and Moral Benefits of Queerness caused a minor sensation when published in 1688. The thesis of their book attempted to promote the idea of queerness as a moral imperative. They were critical of conservative Nazarene homophobia and argued it point-by-point using selected passages from the Tetrabiblios. Their work attracted attention from both the Reorganized Church of Bous of Modern-Day Saints and Draconians. In the forward to her book, they coin the term "fruits" to disparage non-queer people, by co-opting the Nazarene commandment to "be fruitful and multiply" in their chapter on the immorality of uncontrolled "livestock breeding."

In their personal life, Professor Queenie also spends time playing bass in a punk band, "Vaginal Tendencies." Their Royal Highness was pregnant with a child at the time John learned of their lectures, which had been circulating even more during the Draconian Supremacy Movement. As John's second marriage, it is understood that this arrangement was undertaken "for Bous," which is up to the personal interpretation of all partners involved. John and Loki both agreed that Qaren would make an excellent addition to the marriage considering the political climate. A few weeks after John and Loki were married, Qaren was married to John and Loki in a small public ceremony in the Bousland College campus chapel. Almost a week after the wedding, Qaren gave birth to their first child, and thus the first child of the Royal Family; Dorian.

Griselia Smith

Lady Griselia Smith (born 1666) is an heiress from Twoggle. Her father owns forty successful donkey farms in Sehmlshire, part owner of the Port of Twoggle Holding Corporation, and claims to be descended from ancient K'Tzuni nobles. She became known to Professor Queenie during one of Qaren's book tours in 1689. Griselia quickly became infatuated with the queer, pansexual, non-binary, androgynous punk professor who was unlike anything Lady Smith had experienced up to that point. The two had a a whirlwind affair during the remainder of Qaren's book tour and talked about having many children together. In fact, Griselia had invited the man who was involved with the tripartite copulation that resulted in the conception of Qaren's child. As Professor Queenie's sabbatical was ending and Griselia's father was demanding she return to Twoggle, the two lovers agreed to separate for the time being.

As soon as Qaren married John and Loki, Loki suggested Qaren choose the family's fourth spouse. Qaren immediately chose Griselia. Lord Smith could not find fault with his daughter marrying up the social ladder to be a Royal Consort, so Griselia was married to Qaren, Loki, and John a few days after the marriage to Qaren. As the third marriage, it is understood that Her Royal Highness fulfills the family's obligations to the Church. Although open to some interpretation, this partner almost always is brought in to assist in co-parenting duties for the growing family.

Griselia was assassinated during the 1699 Drak-Modani attempted coup d'état. Her death forces John and Loki to confront the personal cost of promoting Draconian supremacy. It is a primary factor in John and Loki opening negotiations with Shireroth to begin the reintegration of Drak-Modan into the Imperial Republic, 28 years after the Kalirion Fracture.

Full Titles

• 1671-1673 His Imperial Highness, John Hilding Waffel-Paine of Drak, Count of Rostock, Viscount Glenfiddich, Scion of the Three Peoples, Vessel of Dual Natures, Progeny of the Once-Living God, Marquis of Lükanburg, Transcendence of the Dhury, Lord in Jorvik, Heir to the Line of Drak, Knight of the Holy Lakes
• 1673-present His Bovic Highness, John Hilding Waffel-Paine of Drak, Crown Prince of Drak-Modan, Heir-Designate to the Kaisers of the Imperial Line of Drak, Count of Rostock, Viscount Glenfiddich, Scion of the Three Peoples, Vessel of Dual Natures, Progeny of the Once-Living God, Marquis of Lükanburg, Transcendence of the Dhury, Lord in Jorvik, Heir to the Line of Drak, Knight of the Holy Lakes
• 1679 His Bovic Majesty, John Hilding Waffel-Paine of Drak, King of Drak-Modan, Heir to the Kaisers of the Imperial Line of Drak, Count of Rostock, Viscount Glenfiddich, Scion of the Three Peoples, Vessel of Dual Natures, Progeny of the Once-Living God, Marquis of Lükanburg, Transcendence of the Dhury, Lord in Jorvik, Heir to the Line of Drak, Knight of the Holy Lakes
• 1679-1685 His Imperial Highness, John Hilding Waffel-Paine of Drak, Count of Rostock, Viscount Glenfiddich, Scion of the Three Peoples, Vessel of Dual Natures, Progeny of the Once-Living God, Marquis of Lükanburg, Transcendence of the Dhury, Lord in Jorvik, Heir to the Line of Drak, Knight of the Holy Lakes
• 1685-1698 His Bovic Majesty, John, King of Drak-Modan and of the Draconians, Heir to the Kaisers of the Imperial Line of Drak, Count of Rostock, Knight of the Holy Lakes
• 1698-1699 His Bovic Majesty, John, King of Drak-Modan and of the Draconians, Heir to the Kaisers of the Imperial Line of Drak, Count of Rostock
• 1699-1704 His Highness, John Hilding Drak & Waffel-Paine, Count Palatine of Draconia, Count of Rostock
• 1704–present: His Illustriousness The Count-Palatine of Draconia, Count of Rostock

Preceded by: Nathan II	King of Drak-Modan 1679-1679	Succeeded by Clara Sundara as Supreme Judge
Preceded by: Clara Sundara as Supreme Judge	King of Drak-Modan 1685-1699	Succeeded by Nathan II as Duke of Modan