| Subspecies: | Elvenfolk |
|---|---|
| Gender: | Male |
| Born: | 972 (Age 49) |
| Title: | Governor (Former) |
| Family: | Viara (Daughter) |
Vincere Rae is a member of the Rae family and a former Irynian politician. He served as Governor from 1006 to 1018, after announcing his retirement in 1017. He currently is the owner of a no-cost[Note] food stall, Rae's Wraps, in partnership with his daughter Viara.
Vincere was born in 972 to Valen Rae and Auricula Lux, two distinguished members of the Upper Old Iryna community. Because the children of Auricula's sister Forsythia Lux had taken her secondary name, it was agreed that the children of Auricula would be named Rae, in the interest of distinguishing the two families. Vincere has one younger sibling, Vahan Rae. Vincere was a serious and studious child, in contrast to Vahan, who was always more extroverted. Vincere did not show much magical aptitude, but gained a reputation from a young age as a level-headed mediator. A career in politics seemed natural, and Vincere graduated from the Legal Studies program at IMI in 993, with the intention of pursuing public office.
Vincere began his political career as an administrative assistant to Isolde Everle, Upper Old Iryna's Senior Representative and one of the longest-serving Representatives in Parliament. Once his elders deemed him properly prepared for leadership, they elected him to the position of Junior Representative. In this more public-facing and prestigious position, Vincere slowly gained positive recognition from the rest of Irynian society. He was soft-spoken, always polite, and treated every Representative with respect no matter which district they represented.
In 1005, Parliament voted to hold new gubernatorial elections at the end of the year. Vincere was 33, just a few years older than the required minimum age of 30, but his Upper Old Irynian connections believed that he was the ideal candidate to lead the city. His youth meant that he could potentially maintain a stable government for several decades, and he was popular both within and outside of Parliament. Vincere announced his candidacy, stating his intention to maintain prosperous conditions in the city, which at the time was experiencing a commercial boom with rapid advancements in magitech applications.[1] Without significant opposition, Vincere won the election, taking office on Day 1 of Month 1, 1006.[2]
Vincere served as Governor for 11 years, fulfilling his promise of maintaining stability through an increasingly tumultuous era of Irynian history. It came as a complete shock to everyone in Iryna, both in government and the public at large, when Vincere made an official announcement that he planned to retire, requesting that Parliament call new elections to take place at the end of 1017.
I am deeply grateful for the opportunities that have been given to me. I have continually strived to serve Iryna to the best of my ability. However, in doing so, I have ignored other priorities. My daughter became an adult this year, and I feel as though I hardly spent any time with her throughout her entire childhood. Despite the pride I feel in the contributions that I have made to Iryna, it has come time to let other voices be heard. I am satisfied with my accomplishments as Governor, and I look forward to pursuing new passions.[3]
Although Vincere Rae was a well-regarded and successful governor for over a decade, possibly his most historically-consequential action was to leave power behind. The 1017 election was decisively won by Reiner, a District Representative who had only been elected the previous year, but was already wildly popular with the Irynian public. Reiner was seen as the epitome of the Irynian cultural shift towards pure meritocracy: a charismatic and energetic leader without family, wealth, or political connections to fast-track him into a position of power without first proving his competency.[4] Although few faulted Vincere for his success, it was still undeniable that his Upper Old Irynian heritage had all but guaranteed him a political career. Meanwhile, the Upper Old Irynian community was infuriated by Reiner's election, and broke their tradition of district solidarity to openly accuse Vincere of willingly handing over Iryna to an incompetent sycophant.
Seemingly unbothered by the political turmoil he had instigated, Vincere once again refused to deviate from the promise he had made to the Irynian people. It quickly became apparent that the "new passions" that Vincere had alluded to was a pivot to a career in the culinary arts. The same day that Reiner took office, a new food stall opened its doors in the plaza outside the Parliament building, staffed by Vincere and Viara. Their stall served taro-leaf wraps with a rotating selection of fillings, asking for no payment other than a tip jar on the counter. Viara assisted customers while Vincere filled orders. Many of their patrons had worked alongside Vincere during his tenure as Representative and Governor; one noted that Vincere was "the happiest I've ever seen him."[5]
This section relies largely on information from anonymous sources. Its neutrality and factual accuracy are dubiously verifiable.
When Vincere Rae moved into the Governor's Mansion to begin his term as Governor, he was accompanied by his partner and their infant daughter. However, shortly afterwards, Vincere's partner abruptly disappeared from public life. Vincere made no official statement about the matter, but began to bring his daughter to official events, clearly serving as her primary caretaker. Sources with insider access to the Governor's Mansion began to share a rumor which sought to explain the situation: Vincere's partner had left him for a foreign diplomat she had met at the Mansion. Vincere spent much of his time away from the Mansion, engrossed in the many responsibilities of Iryna's chief executive, and his partner had apparently grown bored of staying home alone with the baby. Several Mansion Guards allegedly overheard an argument between the two, in which Vincere had uncharacteristically lost his temper. Vincere was allegedly heard delivering the ultimatum: "Do whatever you want, but don't you dare drag Viara along with you. She stays here. With me."[6] Although multiple individuals corroborated this story on IrynaNet messaging boards, none of them could provide conclusive proof that the incident had occurred. As of Day 1 of Month 1, 1021, there is no evidence that Vincere is in any committed romantic relationships.