Assington
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| Flag of Assington | |
| Motto: When all else fails, violence prevails | |
| [1] | |
| Region | Fatal Terrain |
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| Capital | Amethyst City |
| Official Language(s) | English |
| Leader | President Boris Lepedius |
| Population | 18 billion |
| Currency | Amethyst |
| NS NSTracker Sunset XML | |
Contents |
History
Assington began as a loose collection of tribes that ruled over a number of territories that are now the modern day major cities. These tribes rarely warred and each tribal leader formed part of an oligarchy that ruled over the nation as a whole. Whilst this was the earliest form of a federal government in Assington, it was quite informal and rarely ruled on national matters unless dealing with foreign invaders.
As time progressed, so did the people of Assington. Small tribal villages became sprawling towns made of wood and stone with large castles and palaces housing an emerging nobility class Eventually this led to the decline of the oligarchy in favour of a king chosen by the noble blood of the clan leaders The position was usually hereditary but incompetent kings were promptly deposed if it was deemed necessary. Rapid expansion led the people of Assington to discover they were not alone within the borders of what they called their homeland and had neighbours in the many forests. The elves had been a reclusive people for generations and generally left humanity to itself but the unprecedented growth of the human population made the discovery inevitable and eventually the forest dwellers approached the human king.
Humanity was quite wary of the elves they had neglected to notice in the forests but the small community of magic users embraced the wisdom and aptitude of their long eared cousins. Despite the somewhat suspicious nature of the humans, peace reigned for several generations after the elven discovery as the elves largely remained in their forests, content to live out their lives as usual without the added need to hide from the presence of humans. Generally interaction was minimal, save for those of the arcane community that frequently visited elven dwellings.
War and Manipulation
In 1385, the current human king declared war on the elves, claiming they were plotting to expand their territories beyond the forests and conquer human land. This wasn't true in the slightest but the nobles rallied behind their king and armies marched forth towards known elven dwellings. Whilst generally a peaceful people, the elves were more than capable of defending themselves and managed to fend off most attacking armies. The cost of life was great on both sides, more so for humanity as they had not considered the elves as competent warriors. Despite continuing pleas to end the war by the magical community, the king continued his campaign with an almost manic fervour, as if he intended to drive all the elves from Assington. This odd behaviour led the mages to believe foul play was at hand and after examining the king they discovered his mind was under a demonic influence.
With the king mentally incapacitated, his son took the throne and promptly ended the war, signing a treaty of peace with the elven people. The mages and elves used this regain peace to investigate the presence of demonic forces in Assington, although they uncovered little information besides a name for the demonic species that seemed intent on the death of elves. Some elven records spoke of a demon breed spawned from the souls of corrupted elves and a translation of name into the human tongue was known as Barklor.
The Arcane Community
The occurrence of humans with magical ability was very low in Assington and there were never more than a hundred or so mages within the nation. The knowledge of these mages was limited and their spells certainly weren't complex compared to other well established magical communities. Very little is known about how magic operated and was implemented by these mages as all their dwellings are long dead and not a single one survived the conflict with Marduk and his army.
Whilst there are still a number of sights around the nation that could be said to possess an arcane resonance, there are no magic users native to the country to perceive such and thus they go unnoticed. Ever since the extinction of these humans there has never been a recorded re-emergence of magic users in Assington and thus the people are somewhat wary and unaccustomed to the idea of magic.
Vampires
Several hundred years passed before any sign of these demons would emerge in Assington once again. Most had assumed it was a one off incident but such assumptions were quashed in 1585. Enticed by the prospects of massive increases in magical ability, a human mage delved into what many referred to as dark or demonic magic. Despite the general practices of the magical community, Daveon pursued unsavoury magical practices that culminated in the summoning of a demon.
Daveon proposed that the demon shared his human body, thus anchoring him to the world of humans and elves in exchange for arcane abilities beyond anything a human could imagine. The demon promptly agreed but once he entered Daveon's body he simply overwhelmed the human and corrupted his mind, forming a single entity that called itself Marduk. Whilst entirely human in appearance, Marduk possessed arcane abilities more inclined with demonic breeds and far more powerful than anything Daveon's colleagues could match.
Marduk's first act in the human world was to feed his blood lust. Whilst the demon in him possessed a specific hatred for elves; he was more than happy to massacre humans and thus the first village Marduk encountered became his first victims. During massacre of a small human village, Marduk sustained several injuries, spilling his blood on several occasions. Several of the injured managed to ingest the blood through no fault of their own and were struck down with an incurable sickness. After several days their bodies died and yet their brains remained active. Thus creating the original Assington Vampires
Skadi, Idun, Uller, Svartel and Lysar (later known as Zardon) emerged as changed people. These were the first vampires of Assington.
Elven Genocide
With a better sense of his abilities and the knowledge that he could spawn more of his own kind, Marduk began a campaign against the elves of Assington, intent on killing as many as possible. Svartel and Zardon immediately fell into service of their creator whilst Skadi, Idun and Uller fled north in an attempt to avoid the suspicious village people and the wrath of Marduk.
Whilst Svartel and Marduk slaughtered elves in the south, Zardon had followed Skadi, Idun and Uller to the north and was successful in killing Uller. Unfortunately for him, Skadi didn't take kindly to such and promptly removed Zardon's head with the help of the katana like blade Uller had forged for her. At that point Skadi and Idun met a mage by the name of Sithaer and found an ally willing to stand against Marduk.
Despite the constant attacks from Marduk and Svarel against the elves, the numbers were dwindling slowly and the pair grew impatient. At this point Svartel attempted to create vampires of his own and was successful in doing so, establishing that the necessary conditions were a significant loss of blood and the ingestion of vampiric blood. With this ability clearly identified, Marduk ordered Svartel to create an army out of the human population and within weeks they had a force able to decimate most elven settlements.
Further north, the mages rallied the humans to prepare for a conflict against Marduk's army whilst they continued to search for a method to deal with the demon permanently. Unwilling to take part in such a slaughter, Idun abandoned Skadi and was taken in by the elves of Emerald Forest, leaving Skadi to face Marduk along with the humans. Despite such, Skadi was not discouraged and agree to assist on the battlefield.
Upon arrival at Emerald Forest, the humans discovered that the elves had left Assington and so were left to fight off the vampires alone. Unfortunately the army was completely overwhelmed and it was only thanks to a few strategically placed spells by Sithaer that the majority of vampires were also destroyed. The mages and Skadi then dealt with the final problem, Marduk and Svartel. Whilst Skadi and Svartel battled, the mages of Assington constructed a spell to seal Marduk away for all time. The spell worked in sealing the demon-mage away, but in the process all the mages had died due to the stress of the forces they conjured. With the elves gone and the last of the mages dead, magic died within Assington.
Whilst the war was now essentially over, Svartel had escaped and many of the vampires had scattered over the nation. With the mages and Idun gone, Skadi was left to fend for herself for as long as she could manage. She decided to spend this time hunting down the remaining vampires of Marduk's army.
Aftermath
With the elves gone and most of the vampires destroyed, Assington returned to a somewhat cautious peace once again. Without magical, elven or demonic influences, the nation continued to develop like many others, eventually reaching an industrial revolution that fast tracked the technological and productive capabilities of the nation. A monarch maintained control over the centuries but a growing sense of individualism led to public outcry for democracy. Those in power didn't wish to relinquish such and resisted the democratic movement until a king finally decided that the right to rule was secondary to the voice of the people.
Those responsible for redesigning the body of government were dubious about allowing too much democracy and therefore settled upon a system where the people elect a president with many powers similar to the former monarch. The first man to take the reigns under this new system was President Calis Inferno. Calis led Assington to new heights and prosperity for thirty years until his untimely death at the hands of a rogue cardinal.
Geography
Assington is located in the region of Fatal Terrain and is mostly a flat land with a few mountains scattered around the nation. It's a southern hemisphere nation, not too far from the equator but enough that snow isn't uncommon in the southern regions of the nation. Temperatures vary depending upon the location but are mostly considered comfortable during the majority of the year. Besides the few mountains within the borders, Assington also possesses a mountain range along the east border that stretches down the length of the country and curves around to cover part of the southern border, leaving the west and north open to the ocean.
Despite the poor attitude of the government towards the environment, there is still a comfortable amount of untouched forests scattered around the land, mostly the ancient homes of the elves that once existed within the nation. Whilst there are many that would like to see these forests destroyed, there is something about them that prevents such from ever happening. Some say the forests a haunted, yet no one truly knows. Assington is also known for it's large rivers, many of which act as the borders between regions of the nation and provide the necessary water for people to survive.
Emerald Forest
Emerald Forest is forbidden land to everyone of Assington. There was once an attempt to demolish the forest and all construction workers were mysteriously killed. There have been several reports of odd creatures and ghosts within the forest and whilst the government is sceptical of such things, they realised there is obviously some sort of danger and therefore banned access to the forest. Little do they know it was once the home of the last remaining elves of Assington.
Caged Desert
The Caged Desert is another area of the nation with restricted access, yet fortunately there is nothing of any particular importance there. It is the most barren place in Assington and is caged in by high mountains that are quite difficult to pass by on foot. At one stage there was a large effort into exploring the desert yet it seemed that whoever went inside the cage never came out. Unknown to the modern people of Assington, that desert was formed when the last remaining mages of Assington sacrificed themselves to seal Marduk away.
New Territory
Due to the collapse of several nations within the region, significant portions of land were left ungoverned, allowing anarchy to reign. In an attempt to prevent further chaos in the area and deal with the refugees of many defunct nations, Assington seized a portion of land to the south-east of Khadrim and claimed it as sovereign territory. The land is mostly forest but a combination of interested corporations, refugees and the government are turning the area into a safe and desirable place to live once again.
People
The people of Assington are quite diverse in their background cultures, which have come together to form a single national identity. Besides the existing native Assingtonians, the nation has been the target for a large amount of Irish, Russian and Australian immigrants, integrating quite smoothly with the natives in order to form a people that are fiercely loyal, determined and known to be easy going.
Whilst the government would be considered oppressive and fascist by some, the people realise their government truly does govern with them in mind and most are content knowing that the man they elect to the presidential office will be competent and hard working. The people of Assington tend to be highly educated, non-religious and somewhat cynical.
Humans
Humans have been the dominant species within Assington since the loose formation of the nation. They founded cities and towns, spreading over the entire nation to form the massive population that Assington now sports. A combination of exponential population growth and technological ingenuity insured humanity remained the dominant species of Assington, despite the presence of other species within and outside of the national borders.
A characteristic that sets native Assingtonian humans apart from others is a natural ability to channel psi energy. Scientists believe it to be a natural evolution of the human brain but the phenomena is not completely understood. Presently there is a 45% chance of an Assingtonian being born with psychic abilities ranging from telepathy, telekinesis and even pyrokinesis. Those with such abilities can train to become more efficient in the use of such powers and strengthen their mind. Vast amounts of funds have been spent on researching the phenomenon and developing the necessary infrastructure to deal with it.
Besides the mental powers, the people of Assington live a fairly comfortable life. Whilst taxes are high, public services such as health and education are free whilst other public necessities are of high quality and efficiency. The government doesn't always do what will make the people happy but all their actions are based on an intent to cater for the well being of human citizens.
Vampires
Vampires have been considered legal citizens of Assington since 2184. Before hand the government had attempted to ignore the problem but it eventually became too big of an issue to hide. Once vampires were officially recognised, human rights activists lobbied an act to make vampires equal citizens. Obviously the matter wasn't so easily settled but after heated political debates, vampires were given citizenship based on strict regulations and registrations. Of course many didn't appreciate such and so a police force especially for vampires was also created to deal with those that were not registered citizens or did not follow regulations.
Most vampires exist as criminals and feed however they wish, live however they wish. Of course this means running the risk of falling victim to a silver bullet from the VP and so they tend to stay in groups known as gangs or covens for protection. Hondur is the leader of the largest coven in Assington, his name being the second most influential of all vampires behind Skadi.
Elves
The elves of Assington have only recently returned to their homeland after thousands of years of a self inflicted exile. No one really knows why they have returned but so far they are known to only occupy Emerald Forest. Many still hold past grudges against humans and are highly prejudice against vampires. They are of a darker nature than many other elves and tend to stay away from the human cities unless they have certain agendas.
The government is aware of the elven presence to a degree but the people as a whole are not. Currently there is no legal recognition of the elves or their right to land in Assington but the government has opted not to move against them.
Government
Throughout its history Assington has made the transition from a loosely formed oligarchy to hereditary monarchy and finally a democratic dictatorship. Lobby groups for all sorts of government exist around the nation but so far the current system appears to be stable enough to prevent mass public outcry for change. Despite this stability, there are many government officials that wish to return the government to a monarchy-like system as a recent incident involving the rigging of elections has highlighted the failure of democracy.
The Democratic Dictatorship
With the monarchy abolished, Calis Inferno became the perfect poster boy for democracy as he possessed a unique outlook for a man so young and was able to win the people over with his sincerity and obvious dedication to ruling with their well being in mind. No doubt exists that many would have preferred a far more democratic system but those responsible for the administration of Assington had witnessed the failure of such around the world and believed it would only be effective in small doses. A high priority for the government is efficiency and that didn't bode well with the democratic process.
Whilst the elected President possesses many dictator-like powers, he is not responsible for micro-managing the nation. In order for the nation to run effectively a cabinet of ministers was established that sits directly under the president. The ministers are appointed by the president but can be subject to approval by the Hall of the People if there is significant outrage over the appointment.
The Hall of the People is a body composed of fifteen members that were either appointed by the government or elected by the people. They are responsible for examining laws decreed by the president and approving those proposed by the ministries. The Hall also has the power to impeach a president or minister if necessary.
The general form of politics in Assington is quite unique to itself. Besides being a democratic dictatorship, Assingtonian politics does not employ the party system that is seen in most other democratic nations. Those that wish to become considered for the position of president must meet certain criteria before nominating themselves and backing their own campaigns (which don't necessarily cost much as most publicity events are government funded). Once the nominations have been taken, they are sorted through by government officials and those viewed to be more a more competent leader are chosen.
Once this stage is finished, the 'competent' candidates are presented to the Council of Ministers where the ministers themselves vote upon a final three. Once this is decided, the candidates are presented to the people and they are given a week to vote upon who they wish to see in office.
Loss of the Infernos
During a meeting with Archbishop Jason Kulstov, the Inferno brothers, President Calis and Foreign Minister Calin were brutally murdered in a plot to take control of the nation. Whilst there was a great deal of civil unrest following the death of Calis and his brother, eventually elections were under way and three candidates rose to the final stage of the election process. Boris Lepedius (at the time, Minister of Security/Defence), Mark Kulstov (son of Jason Kulstov and successful businessman) and Julia Thatcher (leader of the feminist movement within Assington).
Despite fierce competition, it soon became evident Boris was the favoured candidate and even Julia was gaining ground on the poll runner up, Mark. Employing the resources of his father, Mark had Julia killed and the vote rigged in his favour. Learning of this plot, Boris realised he was in no position to combat his political enemies and so he took his family and ran, using a military controlled spacecraft to flee to the edge of the Sol System.
Ten years later, Boris had gained the necessary allies within the government to effectively coup the current government with little to no objection. Mark had been an erratic and detrimental ruler, wasting funds on ventures of little use to the nation and making official decisions on a whim. The only real benefit for Assington was his no tolerance vampire policy which helped to severely cull the vampiric population in Assington.
Upon his return, Boris put a bullet through the skulls of Mark and Jason Kulstov and took charge of the office with full support of all necessary officials. The military went to work quickly dismantling the church and all associated underground operations. This all occurred quite quickly and Boris was declared the legitimate president after a review of the rigged election.
Foreign Policy
Assington has always adopted a rather friendly but not particularly involving foreign policy. Whilst a long term member of the region Fatal Terrain, Assington has not been a major participant in regional issue until recently, more specifically since Boris Lepedius came into office. Despite this low level of involvement in regional affairs, Assington has a well established and highly valued friendship with Tarlachia and The Golden Simatar as well as a growing relationship with Tanaara.
Whilst certainly not a hostile nation, Assington does not easily fold to international pressure and doesn't take kindly to threats against regional or national stability. Due to the recent unrest in the region, Assington has deployed military personal in a number of locations to deal with warlords and supposed freedom fighters and would not hesitate to do so against anything that threatened the people of the nation or region.
Military
Assington has always maintained a strong and efficient military despite having been involve in relatively few conflicts that could be deemed wars. The philosophy behind such has always centred on being prepared for the worst and the idea that a big gun will deter those with smaller guns. Besides the international implications of a strong military, the government employs the armed forces for a number of purposes domestically as well. Within the national borders, the military has been specifically designated to deal with terrorist threats and any other organised militant groups. These forces have set a brutal precedent of dealing with those that would incite civil unrest in a bloody but effective manner.The armed force of Assington can be divided into four branches: the army, navy, air force and space fleet. Each branch is well funded and possesses a range of specialised divisions and personal necessary to accomplish their designated tasks.
Army
The army is the branch responsible for most anti-terrorist activities as it possesses a multitude of personnel, equipment and funds necessary to deal with such problems. Due to infrequency of significant military operations, the Assingtonian army conducts significant weapons research and testing of its own whilst relying only on a select few arms manufacturing companies.
This research has resulted in the implementation of several technologies, including anti-gravity vehicle repulsion, psi-repression, genetic engineering, nanites, and a range of other developments that possess military and domestic applications.
Similar to armies around the world, the Assingtonian army has established a range of specialised forces for a range of different tasks. Many of these forces have been closely related to the implementation of 'super soldiers'. Initially the army invested in soldiers known as BMU's or Bio-mechanical Units but this was limited by the difficulties encountered when organic matter and machinery is combined. Eventually the program was decommissioned and replaced by the nano-soldier program. So far this has yielded far greater results as soldiers are able to maintain what they consider their humanity whilst being pushed to their absolute peak.
Air Force
Over recent years the Assingtonian air force has received significant funding cuts due to the emphasis placed upon the space fleet. The space fleet equivalent vehicles to fighter jets and bombers are capable of operating on and off planet, making air force assets somewhat redundant and therefore likely to be sold off as the air force is integrated into the fleet. It is simply a matter of time in regards to training personnel up to necessary standards and and converting systems and usable technologies for fleet use.
With two borders exposed to the ocean, Assington has ensured the development of a competent and efficient navy. Several bases litter the coastlines, some entirely submerged whilst others are in plain sight and known to the public. Stealth has always been a significant focus for the Assingtonian navy and thus development has been centred upon fast and evasive craft rather than bully aircraft carriers. The naval fleet boasts a large range of submarines and other submersible vehicles.
Assington has never encountered a great need for a naval fleet save for a few instances and thus the main purpose of these forces are simply to guard the borders from illegal immigrants and those looking to cause trouble in the region such as terrorists and warlords. Naval aircraft are also being replaced with space fleet aircraft in order to establish a uniform Assingtonian presence in the skies.
Space Fleet
The Assingtonian Space Fleet (ASF) is a relatively new branch of the military compared to the others and was established approximately five hundred years ago. This branch of the military has received the most funds and has produced some of the most advanced technological developments. Obviously there are a number of significant obstacles to achieving effective space travel and this motivated the Assingtonians to develop plasma reactor power sources, faster than light travel, energy based projectile weapons, conversion of matter into energy for transportation and advanced stealth systems. These technologies have enabled a strong space fleet to be constructed as well as advances in other fields of society.
Besides a sizable military fleet, Assington has a number of space stations and satellites established within the Sol system. A number of defence and intelligence satellites orbit Earth, Mars and Neptune whilst military research outpost stations orbit Earth, Neptune and Pluto. Over the centuries Assington has developed colonies off world for research, mining and general expansion purposes.
On top of these permanent establishments, Assington has a number of vessels spread out amongst the Milky Way, scouting and conducting research. The construction of hyperspace gateways is also under way to allow speedy commercial travel throughout space. Whilst commercial spacecraft may possess their own developed forms of faster than light travel, the military has been reluctant in the past to share it's hyperspace technology with the private sector. This attitude has waned over time to the point where the military does collaborate with the private sector but the most advanced military technologies still remain classified. As a compromise, the military funds the construction of hyperspace gateways and allows the private sector and public full use.
Assingtonian spacecraft are designated ASV - Assingtonian Space Vessel.
Government Organisations
In order to accomplish the many tasks necessary to maintain a nation the size of Assington, the government established a range of agencies and organisations. The list of such entities is far too long to examine in detail but a select number of organisations are worthy of note.
Vampire Police (VP)
The VP were originally established when the federal government finally gave official recognition to the existence of vampires within the nation. After many decades of denial, the government's recognition simply meant it could now openly devote funds into strict regulation of vampires and even extermination as they were considered sub-citizens. Upon the foundation of the VP in every major Assingtonian city, ten laws were officially enacted:
1. All vampires must register their images, name, birth year, second birth year, sex, residence, fingerprints, DNA and any other necessary information to become a vampiric citizen.
2. It is illegal for a vampire to feed off a human that does not give their full consent to the conditions of the feeding. Illegal feeding resulting in death is punishable by death. Other illegal feeding can incur varied punishments, determinable by discretion of the Vampire Police.
3. Vampires are permitted to feed through government operated 'Blood Banks' and programs such as 'Eat a Criminal'. These programs are highly regulated and fraudulent actions may result in detainment.
4. Unauthorised vampire hunting by citizens is illegal. As are organisations for said purpose. Those guilty of such may face legal actions according to judgement of the VP.
5. Vampiric covens are illegal and are to be broken up under VP jurisdiction. Coven members are exposed to legal and VP action. VP have full power to seize and destroy coven residences.
6. The Vampire Police (VP) have full power to deal with vampiric issues of the cities and nation. All activities shall be subsidised by the government.
7. All vampires must carry their Vampiric Identification Cards with them at all times or face detainment.
8. A human is within their rights to end the life of a vampire if they attempt to feed upon them without consent.
9. Permission to sire another vampire must be applied for with the government before any such activity can occur. Both parties must approve and the government shall deem whether it is acceptable.
10. Vampires are not allowed to carry weapons of any sort.
Despite most of these still being in statute, the VP generally act as a law unto themselves and do whatever they deem necessary to get the job done. Whilst there has been some protest regarding such from the legal community and vampiric rights groups, the government has yet to do anything about it since the methods have been very effective. The invasive and harsh laws have also driven most vampires away from becoming vampiric citizens and thus the stereotype that most vampires in Assington are thugs and criminals is quite accurate.
Whilst the original intention for the VP was to deal with vampires, its mandate has changed over the years to deal with supernatural beings in general. VP officers have received training to deal with vampires, lycans and other potential threats. Generally they are prepared to deal with almost anything, although demonic encounters are usually referred to the expertise of the military.
Assington Security Agency (ASA)
The ASA could be called a combination of the American agencies, CIA and NSA. It's primary mandate is to ensure the safety of the nation, whether it be from internal or external threats. In order to accomplish such it specialises in information retrieval and storage and acts with the authority of the government to gather whatever information is deemed necessary. The means for such retrieval are classified and most do not care to know as they may be considered unsavoury, to say the least.
Besides its primary objective, the ASA has been known to meddle in domestic criminal affairs when it feels there is an advantage to be taken. This has involved the use of vampires and other undesirable characters tom complete tasks that are beneficial to the ASA. Legislation on what the ASA can and cannot do is quite vague so there is little restriction to their activities, save for what the government dictates.
Another important function of the ASA is technological research. The agency works closely with the military when it comes to developing technologies that may have practical applications for both parties and has been somewhat responsible for almost every major technological advance in Assington. This research has allowed the agency to become very effective at its task, in and out of the field.
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