TEN: Inheritance

When the small group of the descendants of Halrad's brave knights decided to set themselves apart from the world, they realized that they couldn't cut themselves off entirely.

At least, not in the beginning.

There were five original warriors blessed by the dragons, but among the tiny group, only two or three of the remarkable bloodlines remained clear. In order to protect those lines, and avoid the inescapable demise that comes from inbreeding, the descendants decided that, for an undetermined amount of time, they would bring fresh blood to mix with their clan's.

So, rather than allowing the noble warrior's bloodlines to shrink by intermarriage, other people were coerced, kidnapped, etc. to marry among the clan.