'Some three hundred years ago my ancestors, most of whom were Spanish, colonized this island. They were free-thinkers and proud idealists, which is why they left Spain in search of the New World that was on the tip of everyone's tongue in those days.
'They arrived at Port Haven, which in those days was called la boca ante los diablo, or The Devil's Mouth, an apt name because it was heavily fortified with a high stone wall ringing the harbour, and bristling with much larger cannon than those employed by ships.
'When the occupants of Isla Fiero made it clear that they did not recognise Spain's authority, Spain sent a fleet of ships to crush the perceived rebellion. Not a single ship escaped the cannon of Isla Fiero, and having lived under the grasping fist of Oppression, the occupants of Isla Fiero took no prisoners.
'Afterwards, a curious thing happened. A Dutch ship carrying political prisoners stopped a safe distance from port and sent a messenger to the authorities. They were caught in an awkward situation and feared their prisoners would come to harm- they were the wives and children of Dutch officials and high-ranking soldiers who had been executed for what was known to be falsely alleged treason. The Dutch captain informed an ancestor of mine that he had been ordered to make the prisoners disappear without apparent incident.
'My ancestor agreed, and there followed a steady trickle of political prisoners that lasted for almost two hundred fifty years, from Holland, Denmark, Portugal, Spain, England, France, Ireland, and many other countries.
'Over time we became a minor power in our own right, with our own line of ships and trade that spanned the globe.
'At the centre of this was my family and their castle. The castle had no name but was simply referred to as los castillo by the inhabitants. My family abandoned their Spanish name and adopted the Anglo-French term Castellan, which means "keeper, warden or governor of a castle."
'Without getting into the convoluted politics and beliefs of the time regarding the nature of stewardship, which were a confusion of totalitarian and democratic principals, which, though quaint, are of interest only to historians, I will tell you simply that the Castellan was the ruler of Isla Fiero, and as such was the head of an empire and its wealth.'
Roman turned to Kara, his features iconic and daunting, and said matter-of-factly, 'We Castellans remain the head of a wealthy empire, and are the sole de facto authority of Isla Fiero, though we have left the castle to the tourist trade, abolished taxation except for port maintainance, and removed ourselves to the Casa, giving the inhabitants of this island their own identity and autonomy.