The Unraveling

[copied from old forums, currently being edited/reformated]

The Unraveling was a period of radical political upheaval in the Mercurian Empire from 232 A.I. to 238 A.I. that marked the end of the hereditary Emperors and a shift to a more modern system of government with the establishment of the Indoles Carta. The Unraveling began with a regional dispute in Bela Akvario which resulted in an international uproar and the departure of 33rd Regent of the Empire on a leave of absence from which he would never return. After The Regent departed, there was a bombing campaign throughout Old Hermertia beginning with possible attempted assassinations which eventually built up to full scale settlement destruction. As more and more people and places were targeted, an atmosphere of paranoia spread throughout the land during which time King Nao was assassinated by Lenier deChanel. It was during this time that there was the rise of what has been historically although controversially identified as The Resistance Faction. With a major attack of Gnosis by an unknown assailant, the Council of the Crowned met to discuss changes to Hermertia's political system. This council meeting ultimately led to the Imperial Project Trial of the Resistance Faction and the Great Exile during which the Emperor returned after generations of absence. The trial resulted in the banishment of the leaders of a number of different freeholds throughout the empire.

The modern era of Hermertia unfolded in the shadow of The Unraveling. Not until many of the Old World Kingdoms had settled and expanded in New Hermertia did The Unraveling truly come to an end. Much of the precious fabric of Hermertian lore and life was damaged in The Unraveling, but ultimately the new systems established proved more stable and balanced.

The crisis began when Lenier deChanel proposed expansion into the northwestern swamp biome of Bela Akvario - where a flat isolated region provided the opportunity for the expansion of Lenier's Freehold from his initial settlement, Chenal. However this region was very close-by to Frailt, the settlement of another Freehold Lord - Gimpy I. Futhermore in secret correspondence with The Council of the Crowned it has been rumored that he expressed intent to annex Gimpy surrounding his lands and forcibly making him his protectorate. Lenier (in correspondence later made public) inquired to the council about the legality of these actions and whilst they advised him to make his intentions public, thus legal, the council - notably the 33rd Regent of the Empire - informed Lenier they would support Gimpy and resist his efforts to surround him.

At the time Freehold Lords (the then title of Gimpy and Lenier), under the Settlement Policy, could build in unclaimed land as a way of strengthening a claim on the land for themselves. Lenier's settlements were experiencing considerably more economic growth than Gimpy and he cited this as a reason he should have a claim over Bela Akvario. Although there is evidence to suggest his growth was fueled by an illegal trade and acquisition of goods that could have rendered his claims less fair or in fact invalid. Given their long historical establishment The Council expressed that different peoples and regions will experience growth at differing rates over time and that the land of Gimpy's potential growth should be protected. This coincided with the fact that Gimpy had to take a temporary leave of absence from his title for personal issues, which Lenier took advantage of.

With the situation still developing Chenal's continued growth was further cemented by the arrival of Kyra de Chenal from Gnosis and the population expansion that followed. Things looked to be heading for direct conflict until 'The Canal Agreement' was brokered between the two parties whereby Lenier would restrict his builds to south of the Bela Akvario Canal and Gimpy would have free range to build in the north.

Lenier published his claims and publicly questioned the nature of The Councils disagreement with him and suggested he was unhappy with 'The Canal Agreement' as he had very similar claims to the land as Gimpy, even though Lenier had access to southern lands for expansion whereas Gimpy did not. These events helped him gain support from some realms and freeholds within Hermertia, notably including the Chaos Orcs in the north who had a tradition of opposing the Council. Historically scholars have grouped Lenier, Chairman, Governor Talin, and Propret (the Orcs leader) as The Resistance Faction as they were a loose collective of dissents within Hermertia's forums, although this is not necessarily the most fair association, because some, like Talin, were vocal but remained completely diplomatic until the Great Exile and committed no crimes, while Lenier and the Orcs were independently waging discursive wars against the established political order and are the most likely suspects to have committed the terrorist attacks that would soon follow. Chairman, Talin, and Popret were not linked to any crimes, and while they were dissidents, many questions why they should be categorized alongside Lenier who was a proven criminal and deviant. These points are fair and should be considered carefully. This list is also not finite, as there were many who were dissidents, but these four happened to be the most influential. It should be noted however that there was never an official alliance but it was subsequent events that drew these three closer and lead to the grouping. The core Resistance faction were not alone in their opposition to the council with many other voices joining in the decent. This sowed the seeds for divisions between the peoples of Hermertia and the great upheaval that would follow.

There was much discourse about Lenier's claims in the public forums throughout Old Hermertia with Lenier pointing to The Regent's support for Gimpy as a too powerful Imperial influence over lands that he had no business in, even though the Regent had every legal right to intervene. Since Lenier's argument was on the basis of his legality, many seen his take that the Regent shouldn't practice his own legal rights as hypocritical. This created an atmosphere strong enough for The Regent to decide to take a leave of absence opening Hermertia up to a test of its institutions.

As Chenal continued to develop and an eventual climax of the Bela Akvario dispute loomed. Several towns and cities throughout Old Hermertia became targets of terrorist attacks. Bombs were discovered in Frailt, Pumpkinport, Gnosis, Emerald Bay, Tidewater and Sirius. Futhermore, with either intent of disruption of trade or assassination, traps were also found throughout the Netherail network of Old Hermertia on the Orange, Purple and Green lines. At the time it was unclear why these attacks began with some speculating a lurking anarchist or previous infighting between the Orcs spilling over into the wider world yet later it became clear that these attacks were tied into the growing disagreements between The Resistance Faction and The Council. It should be stressed that this was not a binary disagreement but a culmination of the growing isolation of The Council and the alienation of many peoples of Hermertia.

Paranoia spread throughout the land and many settlements ramped up security with regular inspections for attacks. With the atmosphere becoming increasingly hostile Lenier resigned his position as well mirroring The Regent and taking a leave of absence. Within the turmoil King Arjen took a stand and delivered two historical speeches calling for the empire to stand together in this dark time. With both Lenier and The Regent inactive and King Arjen's leadership the server stabilized and peace returned once again. During this time many lands on the periphery of Old Hermertia experienced a strong economic and cultural upturn despite of the terrorism and the worst of the crisis seemed to of been over. This went someway to hold The Empire together and with the atmosphere taking an upturn Lenier returned to Bela Akvario where he developed in the south of Bela Akvario returning to 'The Canal Agreement'.

After a mercannum since the first bombs, a new wave of bombs began to spread and intensify. The peace may have continued had it not been for a terrorist WMD style attack being discovered at Gnosis by Ser David Barrawin. Extensive damage was prevented by a communal effort of many leaders within Hermertia. This was the culmination of nearly six years of terrorism and as the attack was so potentially devastating it spurred the Office of the Empyrean, replacement of power in Minerva upon the absence of the 33rd Regent to become active in an attempt to help restore order to the increasingly chaotic land.

Whilst Gnosis was still in turmoil in Winterfell, King Nao was assassinated by an explosive trap that was later revealed to be planted by Lenier deChanel himself. This was a critical moment in the history of Hermertia as a member of the esteemed Council of The Crowned had been directly targeted with a political motive for the first time in living memory, or at least, not since the Newlanding Crisis. It appeared as though nothing was sacred and everything will be targeted, this lead to a critical summit at the Imperial project where the leaders of all the peoples of Hermertia were called.

The Resistance faction, all Freehold Lords that could be reached and some Governors were called to meet The Council at The Imperial Project. There after generations of seclusion The Emperor returned to restore order to the world, he announce a wide series of reforms including an end of many traditions and the forced imprisonment of peoples who had arrived only recently to Hermertia, for their involvement in the terrorist strikes could not be discounted (later evidence suggested some of these new arrivals were indeed terrorists, as they later admitted when they arrived in New Hermertia upon being kicked out of other lands). They were subsequently exiled from New Hermertia as well. Furthermore the leaders of established realms were invited to become Kingdoms and join The Council.

What happened next is still unclear but it appears that at least two Kings sought to forcibly detain the newer peoples of the land in a prebuilt pit filled with lava causing grievous injuries. Many Freehold Lords were grievously injured and left incapacitated as they were tried by The Council as a collective and had their citizenship suspended. Although it isn't clear how many, some, like Lenier deChenal might have become overcome by lava in the pit and perished. These deaths have not been proven nor disproven, so it remains a mystery in Hermertian history. It is known that most of the leaders survived though, as many subsequently returned from their exile after making careful appeals a few mercannum later. Some senior members of Hermertia, notably those of The Duroth Commonwealth saw this lava pit as an injustice and chose to join the Freehold Lords in their plight, and many self-exiled themselves in the process.

Although it is uncertain if deaths took place in the pit, there is some evidence to suggest King Nao's successor took great strain for his role, as it is assumed his emotions about his father's death led him to seek revenge on some.

With the disappearance of many Freehold Lords many areas of Hermertia went through a period of long stagnation and economic downturns with little leadership much of the damage from the terror attacks remained leading to much less travel and trade. Many of the young folk in Hermertia who had grown up in this atmosphere yearned for new lands and opportunities away from the ravaged lands. King Nao's successor departed on a solo pilgrimage, feeling incredible guilt for his potential role in the possible executions of some of the resistance faction leaders. Nao was inspired by rumours and old maps from the scholars of Hyrnjandi that there might be a pass to the fabled Lands of Plenty. Fueled by a generational divide, with milieu striking the older residents of the empire, the youth were taking increasingly great interest in the fables and stories about a land discovered in the late age of the Imperials in the Cycle of the Snake which was vast and uninhabited. The Imperials were thought to have abandoned their mining projects there when their homelands were destroyed, so it was assumed the land would have expansive room for true kingdoms to grow.

Following the return of the King of Perth from his personal pilgrimage, he and later fisherfolk and explorers claimed to chart a path to the fabled land through treacherous mountain passes to the South-East of the Chemical Straights and the Hyrnjandi. Kingdoms and realms from all corners constructed great fleets and offered their brightest, most curious, and most brave the chance to bring glory from Old Hermertia to the new lands, and to one day return with great strength; all for the glory of the Empire. The 34th Regent played a critical role in promoting these plans, and himself personally opted to participate.

The logic to the Regent was that only through humility, reflection, and glory could we regain the status that was lost in the Unraveling. The journey to found a new land was seen as a meditative step for the entire nation, much like individuals do when they are looking for personal or spiritual inspiration.

Little did they know at the time, but the land they would eventually discover was far more lush and bountiful than anyone had expected, just beyond The Corridorlands. This was truly fertile grounds for the rise of powerful nations.