Eunomia

Know that -
There is no chaos, only order.
There is no fluidity, only eternity.
All creation is realization; all invention is discovery.

Know that -
No other paths exist.
To tread the phantom paths is to struggle in vain.
In empty struggle lies all suffering.

Know that -
We are instruments of the Eternal Order.
In the Eternal Order we trust.

-The Eternal Order

• Eunomia is situated on the sole habitable planet in its system, encircled by beautifully symmetrical planetary rings.
• It is a theocratic autocracy ruled by an Ordained emperor supported by a council of scholars, with extreme division of labour enforced through a rigid caste system.
• Believing themselves to be destined, Eunomians traditionally adhered to an expansionist policy.
• The Ordained at the time of the Ananke conference, Ordained Oreteus, had started to steer the nation towards peace and reconciliation.
• All his efforts went to waste as the War broke out. Ordained Oreteus died and his successor, Ordained Acantha, now rules the ragged, blighted planet with an iron fist.

Eunomia was founded by visionaries and people willing to champion and realize that vision. Together, they built a society from scratch, with every detail preconceived and perfected to abide to the Eternal Order – the ultimate truth of reality, the nature of all things, the only blueprint of history. It was built to be a utopia, where every person has a purpose, where from purpose comes joy, where humans can be liberated from the suffering of aimlessness and conflict. Eunomia grew to be one of the greatest powers in the galaxy; its culture flourished, the School of Eternal Order a centre of learning far and wide; its people content and trusting in their ruler. It was then that they decided to spread their way of life. This hubris led to wars large and small for centuries to follow, and conflicts within and without - the most impactful and mournful of all schisms the rebellion, or independence, of what later became Selas.

The expansionism came to an end during the reign of Ordained Oreteus. Unlike his predecessors, he had a vision of peace. This shift caused controversy amongst scholars, and more so in the military. Hushed dissent existed even amongst the royalties. But the vision of the Ordained is the Order that must be followed. Seeing the Ananke conference as an excellent opportunity to reshape Eunomia’s diplomatic relationship with others, especially Selas, their long-lost kin, Oreteus sent out a large team of delegates; amongst them was his own daughter, Princess Eusenia.

None of them came back, and Ordained Oreteus perished, supposedly of grief, not long afterwards. This gave his younger daughter Acantha the chance to step forward and renew Eunomia’s expansionist policies. However, her policies were not met as favourably as she might have hoped. While the majority of Eunomians still believed in the fundamental rightness of the Eternal Order and the errors of all other nations, many were less convinced that outright war was the correct course of action. This group included Acantha’s brother, Prince Ilias, who was dragged before Acantha’s court and publicly stripped of caste and titles, before being cast out, along with most of his supporters.

Her position seeming safe, Acantha declared war on Selas and moved to mobilise troops. Before the invasion could get truly under way, however, a great protest was staged by a group comprised mostly of Visionaries and Casteless, who maintained that Acantha and her followers had fallen from the path of the Eternal Order. These protests quickly turned violent when Acantha turned the army against the Visionaries, and devolved into full-on civil war as the shock of Champions attacking Visionaries mobilised people to their cause. The rebel group became known as the Restorers due to their claim to be restoring the true Eternal Order.

The balance of the civil war has tipped repeatedly over the years. Although initially better equipped and prepared, Acantha’s government found themselves fighting on more fronts as once they invaded Selas. The highly effective propaganda of the Restorers meant that the imperial side were also plagued by defections, notably including one by a leader, Champion John, who took a large number of Champions over with him. Eventually, Acantha’s government were able to reassert control on Eunomia, but not before the long and bloody war took out most of the planet.

“We are struggling, but we do not suffer. We are on the right path, so we cannot suffer. We are - we must be - the Ordained must be right, so we must not suffer…”
- A prayer overheard in a chapel

Eunomia’s caste system has grown ever more strict over the past two decades of civil war, and now that the war has trailed out there is no sign of relenting. One notable feature of the slow tightening of the law over the past couple of decades is that the Champions have slowly risen in prominence and authority.

Physically speaking, Eunomia has been the subject of aggressive attacks from both sides of the war. As both sides became more desperate, scorched earth tactics became more common with chemical weapons being released into the soil and the water supply. The people of Eunomia stand proudly among their ruined cities, telling themselves that all of the death and destruction is the price they have gladly paid to maintain the true Eternal Order. And the version of the Order they follow is true, for any who say it isn’t have long since been subject to one of Ordained Acantha’s frequent purges.

Eunomia now also harbours a large number of Selasi Reunificationists who fled their own planet’s civil war. Although the Eunomians have used these Selasi as evidence of their reasonable policies, in reality the Selasi occupy an extremely uneasy position, as they do not fit into Eunomia’s strict caste system.

We are all instruments of the Eternal Order. Some are shaped to rule. Some are sharpened for war.
- Teachings of Visionary Nava

Every member of the Eunomian society belongs to a caste. Having only a first name, their caste titles serve as effective surnames. There are officially four castes in Eunomia, with the Casteless forming the fifth. Officially, the castes are equal; however, in practice, some are more equal than others. Decades of civil war have slightly confused the position of the castes, but as the government claws its way back into stability, they are making an effort to shepherd the caste boundaries back to their traditional places.

Universally enforced education (conditioning) starts from birth. There is no fluidity between castes.

The castes are as follow:
Guide - Royalty
The Guides are born and raised to rule. The Ordained would normally select an heir from the Guides before passing. In the rare cases that no heir would be named, the Council would select one instead.
The colour of attire for Guides on formal occasions is white.

Visionary - Theologian/Scholar
All scholars belong to the Visionary caste. In Eunomia, there is no distinction between a scholar and a theologian. The three subdivisions of the Visionaries are the Councillors, the Diplomats and the Scholars.
The colour of attire for Visionaries on formal occasions is gold.

Champion - Military
Officially there are two subdivisions of the Champions. The Internal force (mainly the police force), the Shield; and the External, the Sword. The one that is not mentioned - but has become the most important in maintaining the Ordained’s power - is the secret service, the Gun.
The colour of attire for Champions on formal occasions is black.

Realizer - Craftsman/Labourer
The rest of the Eunomian citizens are the Realizers, despite not being given any political rights, they are the lifeblood of the civilization. They are the most numerous, but also the ones most damaged by the Bloodblight.
Artists also belong to this caste. Their role has always been somewhat debated.
The colour of attire for Realizers on formal occasions is dark-red. However, since the Bloodblight, people have stopped wearing red - not that there have been many formal occasions in that time.

Potential – Casteless Outcast
The Potential are removed from society - sometimes temporarily, sometimes permanently. These are criminals, dissenters, etc, people who have failed to realise their full potentials for the good of the society. Only upon their potentials being realised correctly would they be allowed to return to society.