Entre, the City of Commerce

The city of Entre, from its first inception, was inextricably intertwined with that of the Eastern Coast Trade Company. The story goes that King Flores of Fondo was in serious debt. Expenses piled up from previous wars incited by the crown, and there's only so much taxing that can be done before guillotines come into fashion. The coming and going of the Fangtide plague only worsened the situation. At the time, trade agreements had been put into place by three familes of Alderia, Hordof, and Fondo respectively, which allowed goods to be transported almost tax-free between the three nations.   These families would change the course of the Eastern Coast forever.   Esteban Del Rico, head of the Del Rico family and by far the most wealthy individual this side of the Talesian Tale, got smart. He approached King Flores and offered a solution to all of his problems; the three families, under one organization, would purchase a piece of Fondish land bordering Fondo Proper and the South Iron Mountains, and effectively eliminate the debt with the money involved. The King agreed, and so the Trade City of Entre was born, and governing it, the Eastern Coast Trade Company.   Of course, the rich are never very good at keeping in mind the wants and needs of the common folk. Who knew the abrupt proclamation of land to not only be divided from its previous nation, but to now belonging to a previously unheard of organization, would upset the farmers that had previously held that land? Certainly it would not cause upset amongst the indigenous Firbolg who were sworn to protect the forests west of the newly established Entre. The same forests that were decimated by lumbermen to sate the desperate construction needs of a citystate in the making.   Needless to say, it didn't take long for these "commoners" to turn into fighters.   This is where the dark side fo the Adventurer's Guild rears its ugly head. It turns out that having an organized association of warriors-for-hire can be rather easily exploited by those with the proper funds. For example, three wealthy, wily, willful families who had just made a rather large land investment that they were NOT about to let fail. Throw enough money at a man, and he'll walk where you point the stick... and swing a sword at whichever pitchfork-wielding fool thought he could best you. And there are was no shortage of swords. Those who swung became known as East Coast Dogs, and their reputation for bloodshed alone was enough to send farmer back ti field. Firbolg, however, are not easily dissuaded. When man mar's nature, nature bites back.   No one soul knows the origins of the Kraki. We've all heard the legends of giant sea squids tearing ships from the water's surface, never to be seen again. Comparing them to the Kraki, however, is like comparing a fly to a Phoenix. Tentacles miles long. Suction cups bigger than a mansion. And a maw large enough to swallow the coty of Entre whole. Extensive research into Firbolg rituals indicate a massive sacrificial rite took place, at the cost of countless Firbolg lives. The result: a cataclysm sure to enact revenge upon those that had wronged them. Or, it would have. If not for the Trinity adventuring party.   Trinity had in their posession a mythic artefact known as the Hastam Tonitrui, or Thunder Spear. Rumored to have been crafted by a legendary srtificer of the Old World, wielded by King Ademar Winter himself, the spear was sheathed at the center of Entre, down through the mouth of the Kraki itself. The creature never stood a chance. Its tentacles would soon cover the landscape, creating strange rolling hills. Its cups would create cornicopia's of strange fauna. And, though the attack did sink the surrounding area of Entre into the ocean, the city would now be sheltered by the fangs of the maw meant to swallow it whole.   Ironically, that which was destined to destroy it would become Entre's greatest strength. The collapse of the surrounding lands placed Entre at the centre of a channel connecting the Ocean of Origins to the Gulf of Souls... something that previously was not possible due to the high activity of sea monsters throughout El Reino Fracturado. The citystate of Entre had just become the centerpiece for trade to a whole new section of Neos. There was just one problem, though.   The leaders of the Eastern Coast Trade Company were among those killed by the Kraki.   At the time, the trade company was run by representatives of its three founding noble houses. However, in a strange turn of history, and what many see as an act of the gods, every eligible member of said houses had been killed in the Kraki attack. This left a question as to how the company was to run without some form of leadership, and where its ownership lied. Many feared an undesireable power struggle between those with vested interest in the company. The solution came from what is now a common commodity in Entre: the sliver.   A sliver, as we all know, is a physical writ magically bound to represent partial ownership of a company or organization. An ECTC Sliver, colloquially known as an Ectic, can be representative of any percentage of ownership of the Eastern Coast Trade Company. It was, and still isn't, uncommon for even commonfolk to hold Ectic or other company slivers as a form of investment. For many years, in fact, the Eastern Coast Trade Company was run by tribunal, those with a significant portion of Ectics beholden to the company's profits. The emergence of Erwin Lightstringer changed that.   Erwin seemed to appear from nowhere. Supposedly, an annual meeting of the company tribunal was cut short when a tall, stringy half-elf kicked open the door, strode in and slammed a sliver writ totaling a larger portion than all the tribunal combined onto the table. Whether or not the story is to be believed is a matter of debate, but the end result is the same: Erwin was made the new de facto leader of the company.   That was fifty years ago. Today, Erwin remains as the unquestionable figurehead of the Eastern Coast trade Company, with an "office" (see: throne room) at the top of the Ebony Tower built around the shething place of the Thunderspear, lording his wealth over the rest of the city. Many wonder if this king-in-all-but-name will ever be dethroned. But, with more money than he can possibly spend and the Trade Coast Dogs acting as his personal army...   I doubt it.