The Age of Sovereigns

The Age of Sovereigns is defined by the rise of fragmented, powerful factions claiming pieces of the old world.  These new Sovereigns began to control the remaining resources and began to leverage those with control over psychic disciplines as a tool for political and personal power.  Cities that remained under Sovereign control saw rigid systems emerge, sophisticated but brutal rule enforced by Janissaries, who were used to suppress rebellion and maintain order.

The creation of these Sovereigns marked the transition from technocratic leadership to militarized, psychically-enhanced regimes.  The Sovereigns declared themselves as the rightful rulers of what remained, but their grasp on the world was tenuous.  The survivors within these new regimes often lived in fear, distrust, and constant tension.

Auckland

Auckland’s transformation during the Age of Sovereigns was the most steady. Karangahape road was reconstructed after the Collapse. Quarries were engaged to create ornate stonework. The international heritage of Auckland became the backdrop for cultural transformation.

Sydney

Australia suffered unrest, but its large stretches of hazardous terrain became more pronounced when the ocean levels dropped, creating a natural barrier that kept roving gangs out. Control was easier to maintain in cities like Sydney, which stabilized before they reached the total collapse seen in the New and Old Worlds.

New York City

After the floods the waters receded, but New York was never built for changes like this. The masonry facades quickly crumbled, intruded by salt and vulnerable to earthquakes cause by tectonic uplift.  New York City fell to ruin.

Paris

The conflicts in Paris continued.  Enough long term wealth existed in Europe that many oligarchs had turned to cloning and could afford the private armies necessary to keep fighting.  Paris became a symbol during this period, and a rallying cry as successive sovereigns attempted to take control of the city.

It was during this period that many sovereigns turned towards the symbols of the old world. Some did it for nostalgia. Days were better then. Others did it for power, because symbols, buildings and bureaucracy make continuity and power something that can be touched.

They stole from old cultures. Like when industrial era countries tried to resurrect the images of Rome and Greece, these everlasting autocrats did the same.  Expanding their playbook into faux-multiculturalism, they stole from Ottomans, Seljuks, Spanish, and Roman in equal measure. They called it recognition. In reality it was control draped in familiarity.

This was not a peaceful time.  Some rulers recognized too late their contribution to the state of the world, and tried to up-end the new order. This caused new conflict. Leaders began to fight over ideology as well as over profit. Armed engagements became frequent, and trade wars, backed by corporate security teams, created new need for an active military class.

Janissaries emerged as both commander and enforcer.  Recruited from the ranks of the upper echelon, these individuals always manifested some form of metaphyisical ability. This was intentional.  Automata had been charting lineages as best they could trace them, and had found descendent lines of the now undying elite. These genetic lines were cultivated, unaware of their origins, becoming a new upper class.

Many sovereigns perished during this period. Any reformers were labelled as heretical, mad rulers who’s very existence threatened survival. Their city-states were leveled and looted. Their corporations were plundered. Their vaults were looted. 

But some city-states simply died out and were forgotten. These became rumors of lost wealth, the forgotten cities and their vaults becoming tombs for would-be treasure seekers. Populated by Automata still bound to their corporate directives, these vaults wake up when an intruder is detected, the defense systems from long ago activating in a world that no longer remembers them.

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