Axdel: Difference between revisions

Despite relative prosperity within Sekan-Aruqa, the economic booms led the way for the reignition of infighting between the controlling oligarchs, with the majority of the conflict centered around the Jakatei and Renequil dynasties. In the 5th century BCE a plague swept through the south of the peninsular, killing many members of the aristocracy on both sides and precipitating a short civil war as accusations of using the disease to mask assassination plots escalated. The Renequil succeeded in taking control of the capital, leaving the Jakatei with loyalties only in the smaller outlying cities, but not without safe land routes to Oceansend. Several decades latera devastating flood left the city vulnerable and Jakatei mercenaries attempted to take control of the government but were unsuccessful. With limited military options for reasserting themselves and the Kormistazic Confederacy on the verge of collapsing into independent city states, matriarch VirenaVireña Jakatei publicly embraced the Kozam faith as the state religion in order to garner grassroots support amongst the people. She also enacted massive reforms, most notably standardising the often convoluted and arbitrary relationship between the central and local governments and establishing rules of succession, taking some inspiration from literature purchased from the Kveshi. Although VirenaVireña would never see the fruit of her labour, her eldest son Mariqo continued the efforts to undermine the Renequil, who were facing intense popular uprisings and economic hardships as the Jakatei expanded their influence and began interfering with their inland trade.

Upon Enullus' ascentionascension to the position of Kormistazic emperor, he began a campaign of Northward expansion, incorporating the regions small kingdoms and chiefdoms under his rule. Naval advances brought forth in earlier centuries now allowed faster and easier navigation of the Axdelian peninsular riverways, but the slow burn of conflict that had degraded the strength of many kingdoms meant that much of it could not be used without the risk of falling prey to opportunistic pirates. Thus as the Kormistazic empire used these rivers to assert themselves across the southern plains and valleys these pirates were vanquished, allowing for ease of movement and earning the loyalty of many local leaders peacefully. With his children being unwilling to take the throne, Ennullus was succeeded by his General, Avilo Kariqo Kalamitas in 485 BCE. Worried the Kveshi would percieve the new empire as a rival, Kariqo expanded Kormistazic control over the southern coast of the Axdelian peninsula. Many settlements followed Kozam already, and so incorporating them within the empire remained a predominantly peaceful affair. As the empires border expanded, so did it's power and thus its ability to expand further, leading to increasingly aggressive acts. The Empires first major military victory would come after the Kassyr Chiefdom declared war on the empire in 458 BCE. This came in response to repeated incursions of Kormistazic soldiers into Kassyri territory and several pleas to cease the actions were ignored. The [[South Teban War|First Kassyri Integral War]] lasted for over five years but resulted in a crushing defeat for The Kassyr who were forced to ceded all of their holdings outside of the Mona river valley to Kormistazm. However, Avilo was injured during the war and survived only six months before succumbing to an infection, and was succeeded by his daughter Meya Jala Kalamitas, becoming the first Kormistazic Empress.

After the rapid pace of expansion in the first half of the century that saw unprecedented expansion that stretched the imperial bureaucracy to its limits, the sovereigns succeeding Meya focused their attention on domestic concerns that led to helpful reforms to the empires government structure. The mostly disorganised territory that had been incorporated at this point also required attention to ensure its full integration. Among other things the empires provinces were reorganised and large scale public works were authorised to support the growing capital city, which was from this point forwards slowly began being referred to as simply Sekan rather than Sekan-Aruqa. Another important reform was an increasing trend towards freedom of religion, as it was successfully argued that non-adherents to kozam, being treated like undesirables as they often were, would sow dissent against the empire and create instability. Despite this, religious discrimination remained a common malady.

With the Teba empire serving as a buffer between the Soltic and Kormistazic empires, the turn of the century saw campaigns of lateral expansion launched to secure riverways and establish coastal provinces. This triggered a war with a coalition of Lyr valley kingdoms which resulted in a Kormistazic loss, humiliating the more organised and centralised empire. A second more successful conquest was attempted a decade later , but it was a pyrrhic victory which also resulted in massive losses regardless. Fearing a revolt would lead to further costly wars of attrition, efforts to interlink the Lyr valley economy into the empire were undertaken via trade and the construction of infrastructure to link the Lyr Valley with the Kormistazic heartlands. These projects were so successful that they were extended to the rest of the empire in the following centuries and were a key factor in its long term success.

(There were many attempts to leave, ft. Cava spreading everywhere)

(This time we mean business, followed shortly by a 3-way shattering)

(I'm pissed - fascists and other people)

(We're back baby, assert dominance)