Union

Art of the city of Union.

**Union** is a city-state in southeastern Eukitia in the borders of northern Brynsia. Built into a cliff, it is known as an important trade hub in the region (through which it retains its independence) and proud, freedom-loving population. It is where duellists originated and has many famed folk-heroes of that art.

## Geography

Union is built into a large cliff face, although it is difficult to tell due to the vastness of the city. It is built into the Capellan Mountains, a small mountain range in the north of Brynsia that is more akin to a set of rocky hills than actual, proper mountains. Most of the city's water comes from underground aquifers, and a large part of the city is actually built underground and inside of the cliff. A long bridge connects it to another mountainside path across the way. Below this bridge runs the Fairview River, cutting a valley between the two relatively small mountains.

## Government

The government of Union is ran by a democratic republic, each citizen having the power to vote every ten years for representatives in the government. The two main portions of Union's government consist of the Chancellor and the Council - the Chancellor being the elected head of state, and the Council being made up of various Councillors who assist the Chancellor in making political decisions. This form of government was originally planned to simply be a temporary solution until a new royal was chosen to rule Union following the Sunstar Revolution, but eventually was adopted as the primary form of government of the city-state once a proper hereditary ruler could not be ascertained.

## Trade

Trade in Union is perhaps the most important part of their modern lives. It is what maintains Union's independence as a city-state, preventing the knightly orders of Brynsia from attempting to sieze it as their efficiency in trade and production is simply too important to risk damaging. It is one of the most prosperous and productive cities in Brynsia, and while independent, still helps contribute to the overall economy of the region.

Due to being built into a mountainside, stonework and masonry is an important export of Union. The city-state is famed for it's numerous skilled stoneworkers and artisans, adorned with countless statues and beautiful stonework. These stones are regularly shipped out of the nation either by land or by sea, sold and traded to those in need of strong stones for defensible walls or buildings. As well, the vast subterranean portions of the city are home to farms that grow various species of edible mushroom, used to help feed the city but also grown in surplus to ship out as toppings for various foreign delicacies.

Most notably, perhaps, is the production of gunpowder in Union. One of the first cities to ascertain a proper system of production of the substance due to their mountain being high in the resources required to create it, Union is home to many gunsmiths, firearms manufacturers, and gunpowder producers. The nation exports this precious resource primarily to Order Robertine, however will export it to anyone who has the gold to purchase it. They are one of Eukitia's primary producers of gunpowder, and the southeastern region's only manufacturer.

## History

### Founding

Union was founded by refugees of the Draconic Cataclysm, survivors of the twin rival cities of Mhach and Ythil, both once cities of the Kingdom of Var. Settling in the stony cliffs of southern Brynsia, the settlement that would one day become Union was founded. The mages of Mhach and Ythil, who once opposed each other and their ideologies, banded together in order to defend their new settlement from encroaching outsiders - eventually forming the art that would become known as duelling magic.

### The Sunstar Revolution

Union was originally one of the collegiums of Brynsia until they chose to revolt in 670 3E. This war, known as the Sunstar Revolution due to the month it occured in, was a violent uprising by Union and its locals against the siegewrights of Order Robertine. Spurred forth by the percieved mistreatment of local gunpowder producers - at the time an up-and-coming art that the Robertine knights were using to embrace powerful ranged weapons on their siegewrights - the revolution lasted roughly a month, forcing Robertine knights out of the city and onto the bridge, where they would attempt a siege against Union. This siege would inevitably fail, as Order Robertine could not maintain the siege with their limited numbers, and were unable to secure assistance from other knight houses or the Marquess Commander. This eventually led to Union forcing their independence as a city-state, and forcing Order Robertine to move their collegium to a new city, known as Robertine. However, to the present, Union maintains strong trading relations with the order due to being the nearest producer of gunpowder.

## City Layout - Subterranean

### The Works

The Works is a major layer of the subterranean portion of Union, where the majority of the city's industrial development lies. Manufactories, magical sites and laboratories exist in this part of the city. It is covered with rusted industrial pipes that lead pollution out to sea and chimneys that tower outside of the mountain to let toxic smoke into the air.

### The Neighborhoods

The Neighborhoods is a the subterranean residential part of Union. Buildings are carved into the limestone caverns in large yet somehow still cramped streets that criss-cross into the mountain, with shanty towns forming in the alleyways and hidden sewers of the location where the poorer workers live. Due to the darkness of the Neighborhoods, it is typically more dangerous to traverse due to higher rates of crime in the area.

### The Caverns

The Caverns are the deepest underground part of Union, where many mines lay. This is where Union gets most of their stone, ores and metallic resources, with massive mining mills burrowing deep into the ground. Numerous columns of stone and wood are carved out in order to support the city above this hollowed out region.

## Notable Inhabitants

* **Jaxon Hayes**, a duellist who was present during the Sunstar Revolution and, as a result of his actions, became a folk hero of Union.