Sovereign Lore - The Class Revolution of 960-962 N.E.
AI rendition of a battle between citizens and the Praesidium
-62 years prior; The Human History Decree & The Degenerate Riots
On February 1, 898 N.E., the Empire implemented the Human History Decree in response to cyber crimes committed by degenerate citizens, which caused the first significant currency crash of the Sovra Centi. Its goal was to limit access to the Human History Archive to the upper class up to royalty-class citizens. Even within this, access was limited, so dependency was placed upon the Empire for knowledge, freedom, protection, and power—distinguishing classes. This was implemented by Nej Kane, Emperor Kane II.
After implementing the Human History Decree, citizens were noticeably angry about the limited information they faced moving forward. Many believed this to be the Empire's first distinctive breach of human rights. Even though a minority of citizens were misusing access to the archive for criminal activity, the majority wished to have access to their history as a species. The idea of forgetting where they came from and what caused the collapse of that society was harrowing and seemed prophetic of the potential doom they would face if they remained uninformed. Many citizens took to the streets of Sovereign, demonstrating their distaste for the decree and demanded access be restored to all citizens through *The Kane Foundation as Emperor Victor Kane had promised.
After a few months of being ignored, riots began to plague the streets of Sovereign. The most significantly impacted districts within the city were repurposed as detention centres for disgruntled citizens and became viewed as quasi-military installations. The military at this time was not as abundant due to minimal unrest within Sovereign, so being overrun by citizens was a potential risk for the Empire. Due to this, the military was launched on these operation bases to placate situations as genuine peacekeepers. Rioters viewed this as an occupation, and swarms of citizens were sent to these areas as a show of power; however, the military had planned for this response, and other units were dispatched to unguarded citizen housing to confiscate any stolen or ill-gotten wealth during the rise in cybercrime.
This redistribution of assets back to the government was done to discourage further rioting and identify those who had broken the law. With the government having a distinct idea of who their criminals were, most citizens feared the potential response and withdrew from their ideological viewpoint and disturbing the peace. The military was dispatched to arrest all offending citizens, and most of the rioting was diminished to a dull roar. All criminals were given a ‘fair trial’, but most were found guilty of extensive criminal activity involving money laundering and the like.
In response to the currency crash, riots, and criminal activity, all financial aid and subsidiaries were removed from The Kane Foundation to protect the Empire from haemorrhaging any more money. Of course, this had a detrimental effect on the population, and suddenly, a distinct variation in socioeconomic standing became evident among the population. So, after the riots and trials, those found guilty were either imprisoned or relegated to new slum areas. These areas had little food, water, and healthcare access, but the military had a considerable presence. A clear and distinct line was drawn in the sand between the citizens the Empire held a grudge against and those they deemed worthy of protection.
*The Kane Foundation = more info in The Final Space Race
-Smuggler’s Tongue, Further Division & The 2nd Currency Crash-
The Toll language was a hybrid language that began being spoken in the Slums of Sovereign. In its early stages, English was shortened fundamentally so that inhabitants of the slums could have relatively detailed conversations very quickly without worrying about the military understanding them or getting involved. At first, children used it as a protective measure to smuggle sweets and games into the slum districts, but as time passed, the adult population of the slums began to understand its potential uses. Thus, it got the name Toll.
To engage in sensitive conversation, you needed to know the ‘Toll’; to the military Officers, it was known as Smuggler’s Tongue.
Smuggler’s Tongue, or Toll language, became so influential over the years that financial crimes increased again. As the division between citizens was pushed further, more crime ran rampant within Sovereign society. This time, the majority of crimes were non-cyber related, and many well-off citizens were being robbed or killed for their money. So around January 1, 915 N.E., the second Imperial currency crash happened.
The inflation of Sovra within the economy created a significant economic problem for the Empire. Although effective, the redistribution of assets did not fully rectify the surplus of currency flowing through the Empire. People were either still finding ways to obtain Sovra illegally or were being paid to such high extremes to combat inflation that it made Sovra worthless; this brought about discussion involving the Sovra Divisionary.
-The Sovra Divsionary & Military Might-
Once the *Sovra Divisionary was implemented, the concentration of military personnel increased significantly. The creation of distinct classes created a huge desire to be part of the Military and the societal benefits it brought, resulting in a huge bump in enlistments within the Imperial forces. The Military ranks grew by about 50-60%, meaning there were thousands more boots on the ground. So, a division within the ranks was necessary to maintain a semblance of operational control.
To create that distinction between the Empire's serving defensive elements, the army was known as The Imperial Legion, and any on-world service was changed to The Emperor's Praesidium. This unit then had a specialist unit dedicated to protecting the Emperor specifically, which at this point was a myth known as The Hāris'Raja.
With such a considerable increase in enlistment, there was now a need to expand the Military off-world, with an HQ being created on Cygnus, which at the time was a small mining colony. Praesidium Officers were left on Sovereign, and the rest of the Military was moved, turning Cygnum Province into the first line of defence between the Stellar Sovereignty and the rest of the galaxy. Many outposts were created on surrounding planets, and StellarFleet craft were stationed throughout the Province to give a quick and dominant response wherever needed in the galaxy.
*Sovra Divisionary = for more information read The Imperial Federation
-Evolved Toll Langauge & Whispers of Rebellion-
A few members of The Slums became agitated by the growing concentration of Praesidium in the area, and as such, many began to be persecuted for speaking out. To mask their discussions further, they started embellishing Smuggler’s Tongue. Now that the language had jumped into more mainstream use and away from the youth of the Slums, parts were added from other languages. These additions were made by older citizens who attained the knowledge before the human history decree was implemented. Their use became common practice, blending Japanese, French and English with hints of Spanish into the language.
It was a way of ensuring security within the Slums around the Praesidium; those who knew the language were privy to conversations, and as such, a need to understand the language became very important. To the Praesidium, it had evolved from Smugglers Tongue to Slum Speak, as it was now more pervasive throughout the slum populace and not relegated to smaller sections of the community.
With the creation of the Sovra Divisionary and subsequent rigid division of class lines in an official capacity, the now abundant lower class had been whispering of rebellion, an uprising to overthrow the Empire. This created significant tension within the Slums and surrounding districts and a subsequent increase in Praesidium presence, which only added to the problem—Sovereign had reached a tipping point.
-The Palace Regent and The Sovereign Day Attacks-
A period of mild inflation began, and the power of the now-called Sovra started to soar in value. With the earning limits and rigid class system in place, redistributing property purchase rights, and tiered taxation implementation focusing on the heavier populous (lower class) group, Sovereign was becoming increasingly wealthy for the first time in its history. The Sovra Divisionary was a monumental success, flowing wealth back towards the government as intended.
To celebrate the recent economic uptick and the worrying increase in tension in the Slums, the construction of The Palace Regency began as a matter of security for the Emperor. With the whispers of rebellion and growing unrest in the Slums, more protection was required for the government and daily operations. Their current location within the city centre had proven problematic due to protests and riots on their steps.
Built for, and future home to, the reigning Emperor, Nej Kane, a large building made of sandstone and marble, Roman inspiration adorned its exterior with marble columns to the ceiling, serving as its grand entrance. What was once a public park and surrounding community housing area was now a massive manicured garden with grassland enclosing it, serving as protection and beauty whilst maintaining distance from the people. In addition, a 60-metre-thick wall barricaded the entire park, created without a care in mind for beauty but purely for defence; its size is a marvel to witness and a reminder of the ever-growing distance between The Emperor and his people. It completed construction around April 945 N.E.; its first resident was now 97-year-old Nej Kane.
Many believed The Palace Regent was the final nail in the coffin for the lower-class citizens of Sovereign. As they fought for their rights, famine began to spread across the population as food became more scarce and crime increased. In response, the government increased policing within the slums, which only increased tension—something had to give, and give it did.
On May 1, 946 N.E., during the Sovereign Day ceremonies, an extremist group attacked the Kane Foundation, partially destroying the building. It was in protest to all of the current issues facing the lower class and subsequent famine and homelessness facing the Slums. This, of course, resulted in retaliation from the Empire. With the attack on the Kane Foundation being a symbolic blow to the Empire, a heavy increase of Imperial Officers and Military pushed into the slums to oversee any potential rebellious activity. The creation of the military zone ensured that the Empire put its finger on the pulse of any potential movements made to attack the Sovereignty.
The invention of public-use facial recognition was implemented to help secure Sovereign from further attacks. It was the public implementation of a very commonly used military system. Within seconds of scanning a person's face, it could find their medical, financial, and familial history and current vitals. These devices were installed on every street and corner of Sovereign. The public outcry around the military conversion of the slums and the implementation of facial recognition began another set of protests from the lower AND middle classes of Sovereign. Gaining traction throughout the populace, this scared the government into an even deeper plan focused on control, the religion of *Konarii.
*Konarii (Con-AR-ee) = more info in The Hidden Empire
-CLAVIALIS-A aka. The Whispering Disease circa. 948 N.E.-
CLAVIALIS-A (Clavialveoli Disease Type A) was a disease that began spreading throughout the slums. Many conspiracy theorists believed that the government deployed it to cull the poor. The prevailing theory, however, is that it started due to the high-density population in the area, the rise in deaths, and pollution, which caused the outbreak. Being an airborne disease, it mainly affected the respiratory system and began a slow breakdown of the alveoli, decreasing lung capacity. Making them look like spiked balls (hence Clavi - Latin for spikes), meaning talking became very difficult very quickly. This, of course, rapidly slowed any ideas of rebellion, and a focus was put on public health. After about three years of the Whispering Disease, the slum population had dwindled significantly, and most rebellious talk turned to fighting for a cure, even though a few still believed the government was behind the outbreak. It seemed as though, however devastating this disease was, it halted any potential unrest facing Sovereign.
Eventually, a cure for the Whispering Disease was found, and people were brought to the Palace Regency for the first time since its construction and cured at the Emperor's hands. It was found that a newly uncovered Familial Sceptre had a unique ability to withdraw and cure the disease within seconds. The Sceptre was a divine gift found amongst documents owned by the late Vincent Kane and bewildered the scientific community. The discovery was commemorated and celebrated throughout the Empire; the day was to be known after the first person to be cured of the disease, eight-year-old Malika Arran—Malika’s Day.
Konarii religion was created after many in the slums began worshipping the Emperor for his miraculous cure for the Whispering Disease. So, The Kane Foundation was rebuilt in two locations, changing both name and focus: one upon the grounds of the old and damaged foundation and the second using the old residence of the emperor in the city centre. The Foundation then repurposed itself in the divine image of Vincent Kane, the late First Emperor, who was now seen as a miraculous man with a holy purpose, changing its name to Konarii. The smaller house, previously The Kane Foundation, was renamed Konarii Temple, and the residence, with its complete and magnificent redesign, was renamed House Konarii. They shared a street down the city centre, redesigned as a beautiful avenue connecting the two buildings, reminiscent of the Familial Sceptre.
With the creation of Konarii, the Kane bloodline became a sacred entity within the Empire, promoting them to an almost god-like status. Of course, the foundation and immortalisation of the Imperial Family caused the anti-imperial movement to escalate. Now that the remaining group were extremists and small in number, their anger and resolve only grew stronger. While the Empire successfully turned most of the slums over to their side using Konarii as influence and the cure for Whispering Death as the catalyst, there was still a growing resistance, and this time, they had less reasonable people leading the charge - the tipping point still remained.
-The Murder of Malika Arran-
About six years passed, and it seemed like the rebellion had all but died out. Any whispers or plans were quickly and quietly subverted, and most extremists were now in jail, or so it seemed. As it turned out, the rebellion had been passed down to the younger generations, who were going about it differently. While their parents used blatantly obvious tactics such as protest, petitioning and riots, the younger generation pushed their operation underground. They planned to make it seem like the rebellion had died, but it was all a plot to gain arms and explosives to push the military out of the slums and take complete control of the zone, hopefully establishing it as a sovereign nation within the city.
However, their superiors continually pushed back the date of their attack, which ended up being delayed by two years (the original date being planned for sometime in 958 N.E. Most believed it was a lack of arms or a lack of resolve, but truthfully, it was a lack of catalyst. Most civilians within the slums had become accustomed to their new way of living. Although it was not better than before, it was at least survivable. People were happier knowing they were safe and there was no immediate threat of danger as long as they followed the law.
This all changed in January of 960 N.E. when Malika Arran, the eight-year-old girl who was first cured of CLAVIALIS-A, now a fourteen-year-old teenager, was murdered by Praesidium Officers. The prevailing story was that the officers mistook something she was holding as a weapon. The real story, however, was that the Praesidium did not love Malika as the lower-class population did. They saw her as a hero, a beacon of hope that threatened the authority of the Praesidium within the slums. Most of the Emperor’s advisors were adamant she did not threaten the Empire and that the Praesidium needed to be advised to leave it alone. The Emperor, who was much older at this point, nearing 115, was dilutional in believing Malika would create an uprising to overthrow his rule and so, informed the Praesidium to kill her but create a good reason for it.
Once word had circulated in the slums about the murder of Malika Arran, the extremist group took to the streets and attacked a Praesidium stronghold within the slums. The all-out war began taking place within the streets of the slums, and the slums were closed off from the rest of Sovereign, being declared under Imperial Law for the first time in history. The Class Revolution occurred over two years and ended on March 962, N.E., with the assassination of Emperor Nej Kane II. Although the lower class deemed the revolution a success due to the assassination of Nej Kane, it all but sealed their fate. Emergency power was transferred from The Concilium to the Chief Imperial Command, who immediately accelerated operations. The slums were bombed and all but eradicated; the military swept through at full force, and the hope of saving lives and preventing significant damages was thrown to the wind. With the assassination of Emperor Kane II, the acceleration of Emperor Cedric Kane III's enthronement was implemented, and he was seen as the first war-time enthroned Emperor.
-Revolutionary Trails & The Tolîsian Displacement-
After the dust had settled from the war within the slums, the following months saw the arrest and trials of all extremists and their families. This was the majority of the lower-class population, as most became involved and swayed throughout the two-year war. Those deemed to have been a part of significant crimes were sentenced to death; most were jailed, and the rest were subject to community-based service. The lower class became a serving class of society and could be bought or sold by the other classes. They were compensated for their work, but most of the time, it was with living quarters or food or, in some rare cases, minor monetary compensation. Emperor Kane III was very forthright in mentioning that the treatment of the lower class was retaliation and should be seen as a warning to all who attempt to revolt again. This earned him the moniker of Emperor Cedric Kane, The Ruthless.
He had a particular disdain for the lower class for assassinating his father and was very vocal about it. The following years saw him create incredibly unfair laws. In most cases, the Concilium fought him on those decisions mainly because lower-class citizens were suffering across the entire Empire, galaxy-wide, on planets that had nothing to do with the assassination of his father. After eighteen long years, Emperor Kane III decided to displace the vast majority of the non-serving (not in some form of “employment”) lower class to the Outer Plain in an attempt to quell the situation once and for all and also expand into the outer regions of the galaxy, a two-fold win for his administration.
This resulted in the creation of the ninth and final province, Limina Province and its capital planet, Tolîs (Th-oh-lee).
