Khastakhól

Khastakhól is a prominent figure of the Jewelled Council, the Ordâkh-aligned shadow government that once ruled the city of Zajâna under the authority of the Empire of Ordâkh. Following the Blue Mutiny, a popular uprising that expelled most Ordâkhai forces from the city, Khastakhól retreated to the Hall of Lajór, the former imperial palace, where he continues to hold court and assert the council's claim over "Jajân". Though the council's authority has been drastically reduced, Khastakhól remains a formidable political and military presence, coordinating resistance from the Hall and from Ordâkhai positions outside the city, including the Ordâkhai encampment at Jag Golód.

Under Ordâkhai conquest, the Jewelled Council was established to administer Zajâna while maintaining the appearance of local rule. Composed of Ordâkhai nobles and collaborators, the council oversaw taxation, military coordination, and the enforcement of Sauron worship, while civil institutions were left largely intact but powerless. Khastakhól, as a senior member, exercised authority from the Hall of Lajór, directing both the city's administration and the garrison stationed there.

The Blue Mutiny fractured the council's control. Zajâni scholars and citizens reclaimed the western districts of the city and drove Ordâkhai forces back to the Hall of Lajór and surrounding quarters. Khastakhól and the council retained these central strongholds and continue to coordinate counterattacks and intelligence operations, exploiting the remaining Ordâkhai influence in the eastern districts. Despite the council's weakened state, its presence ensures that Zajâna remains divided, with the western districts under the Doorwards of Zajâna and the Ordâkhai-controlled eastern quarter, Jajân, under Khastakhól's oversight.

Khastakhól embodies the enduring tension between Zajâni independence and imperial ambition. His survival and continued leadership of the Jewelled Council make the Hall of Lajór a focal point of resistance and intrigue, a reminder that the Blue Mutiny, while liberating much of the city, did not end Ordâkhai designs on reclaiming Zajâna. Adventurers and agents seeking to confront the remnants of Ordâkh authority must reckon with Khastakhól's influence, both within the palace walls and across the wider Kighân region.