Congress of Onshi

The **Congress of Onshi** was an international conference hosted by Empress Rixa I to determine the geopolitical fate of Inecuria, held in the city of Onshi. It began in the year 147 AD (1647 INC), but was interrupted from 148-152 by the Absurd Calamity of Chalparna, delaying the conclusion to 153 AD, six years after the conference began. The Congress of Onshi is often considered to be the first true international conference in the history of the world, with delegations from virtually every political entity of Inecuria coming together in the same location to discuss their future.

The Congress of Onshi was, in many ways, a follow-up of the treaties established by Emperor Athdus III in the wake of the War for the World. The unimaginable devastation left by the Cosmovore swarm had shocked and traumatised the rulers of Inecuria. They mutually agreed to a "perpetual" peace, upholding the geopolitical status quo and swearing on all things divine to cease attempts at territorial expansion, so that all nations could focus on healing their wounds. However, by the reign of Empress Rixa, it was abundantly clear that almost every state on the continent could no longer tolerate the status quo, as the fires of their old grievances were rekindled and ambitious rulers sought to exploit the newfound weakness of their rivals. Empress Rixa therefore invited all the states of Inecuria, both sovereign and subject, to the centrally located city of Onshi so that they could resolve their issues diplomatically.

It is certain that Rixa did not come up with the idea for a congress herself - the idea had been suggested back in the short reign of her father Verian, and already had notable support - but it is also certain that it was not difficult to win her over to the idea. Rixa did genuinely desire peace; though she never lost her love of adventure and her desire for an "interesting life", her childish exuberance over the glory of war had been shattered by her experience fighting the Dragons when she was young, and had been even further cast away by her subsequent military experience. First and foremost in her mind was the pressing concern to resolve the conflicts of the world without coming to blows.

It is impossible to deny that Rixa also desired to use the congress to further expand and solidify Nesarian domination over Inecuria, but most historians agree that Rixa earnestly believed - much like her grandfather Athdus, and most Nesarians of the time - that world conquest was the only means to establish permanent peace. Rixa did indeed desire to rule the world, but characterising this as greed or lust for power is generally regarded as a deeply unfair assessment.

## Agreements of Athdus

The treaties signed by the powers of Inecuria, usually collectively referred to as the "Agreements of Athdus", served as the precursor to the Congress of Onshi. While some agreements were kept and developed upon, other agreements were already widely understood as being no good in the long term before the Congress began. The Agreements of Athdus were made with virtually every independent state of Inecuria besides the Orcish tribes of Kuateoha, who were not contacted at all.

### Perpetual Peace

As mentioned, the most crucial part of the Agreements of Athdus was swearing an oath to not take military action against any other state (though internal military action was permitted), ensuring that the geopolitical status quo remained. This oath was supposedly to be upheld in perpetuity, but the writings of ancient historians suggest that all parties knew that this was only a temporary solution back when the treaties were originally signed. It was not surprising to any contemporaries that old grievances would rear their heads again, but at the same time no realm wanted to be the first one to breach the peace and eternally mark themselves out as untrustworthy.

The mainstream academic consensus is that Emperor Athdus never actually believed that the perpetual peace would stand, but instead carefully worded the treaty to pressure the realms of Inecuria to solve their conflicts diplomatically when they would inevitably begin anew, and establish a true permanent peace. According to this analysis, the perpetual peace is not to be interpreted as a short-sighted and naïve policy that was doomed to fail without Rixa's intervention (as some historians have written), but rather as a framework to force the states of Inecuria to co-operate.

### Leader of the World

As part of the Agreements of Athdus, some states of Inecuria agreed to recognise the Nesarian Empire as the "Leader of the World" in return for an oath of eternal protection by Athdus. The terminology of *leader* rather than *ruler* or *hegemon* is significant, as it signifies a supposed equal being nominated to take charge, rather than an overlord imposing its will on its underlings. Though the Nesarian Empire could not be called an "equal", as it was by any definition the most powerful state in Inecuria at the time, this recognition of superiority was an entirely voluntary affair for the states of Saveria, Avamorica and Epsilucia, and the remaining independent realms of Rulkhar which were not under Nesarian rule. The autonomous government of Asmukhar also proclaimed the Empire as "Leader of the World" seemingly of its own will, though this was obviously a merely ceremonial gesture as Asmukhar was already under Nesarian rule. However, the historical records make clear that the Republic of Onshi's declaration of the Empire as "Leader" was not voluntary, and was only performed out of fear of Nesarian reprisal. Many historians have also suggested, but cannot conclusively prove, that the Empire's role as "Leader" was only recognised by the Rulcarian states to deter Nesarian aggression.

Notably, the states of Kalzuranur, Draconica (modern Roulonne), Eske Karaa and the Chalparni kingdoms refused to recognise the Empire as the "Leader of the World". Keloruela followed suit, though they privately contacted Emperor Athdus to inform him that they would recognise his lordship over the world if not for their fear that doing so would provoke the Dragons - an obvious indirect plea for intervention, but one which Athdus was incapable of responding to due to his oath to not take military action against another state.

### Slavery and Polygamy

Though Emperor Athdus swore an oath to uphold the status quo, he made it very clear to all the powers of Inecuria that he was unable to tolerate the sins of slavery and polygamy, and he would only swear the oath on the condition that these two abominations would be eliminated. The latter demand was generally supported in principle, as very few peoples of Inecuria actually practiced polygamy, but Athdus clarified that by "polygamy" he did not merely mean the marriage of marrying multiple partners, but also the practice of having concubines in addition to a spouse, whether legally recognised or not. This clarification ruffled many feathers, especially in Kalzuranur, Chalparna and Roulonne; noble men frequently took concubines in the former two, and the Black Elves of Roulonne considered concubinage to be necessary for their notoriously infertile race.

Kalzuranur and Chalparna would eventually sign an agreement to *commit* to end concubinage, but made no concrete promises beyond this. The Draconic overlords of the Black Elves would also promise to end concubinage, and did actually pass a law prohibiting it, but went behind Athdus' back to make an exception for Black Elves - something the Emperor learnt of, but chose not to take action against.

The question of slavery was highly contentious outside of the nations of Saveria, Avamorica and Epsilucia, which had already abolished the institution long ago as their religion demanded. Most nations of Inecuria at the time had no fundamental moral objection to slavery like the Elvetans did, and only Keloruela and the independent realms of Rulkhar agreed to abolish slavery without complaint. Keloruela had, in fact, already been planning to abolish slavery to begin with; their own slave population was negligible, numbering perhaps in the low hundreds, and the anti-slavery movement had been rapidly growing ever since they began taking in Orcish refugees from Draconica during the Ruawi Genocide. Kalzuranur, Eske Karaa and the Chalparni kingdoms argued that they were economically reliant on slavery, and also pointed out that slavery was explicitly tolerated - or even *ordained* - by their religious scripture.

The Dragons also made economic arguments, but their main sticking point was that their entire societal structure and caste system was reliant on slavery; they could not abolish slavery without destroying their society, and they would not do that, because they considered their society to be just and divinely ordained. Many Dragons in fact considered a demand by a Human to eradicate the sacred traditions of racial supremacy to be deeply offensive, and to be an insult to their religion and their ancestors. The ruling Goldscales made clear to Athdus that any attempt to change Draconica would be met with war, and that they were utterly committed to this despite their extreme losses in the War for the World.

#### Less Radical Proposals

Athdus was eventually forced to concede that he could not eradicate slavery without war, and he hated the idea of war far more than he hated slavery. He gave up on pressuring the other realms to abolish slavery, but he was bound by both his own conscience and pressure from the priesthood to at least reduce the suffering of slaves and do all he could to shrink the slave trade. He therefore returned to the slave-owning states with two new proposals concerning slavery. The first was the implementation of a code of rights and protections for slaves - most of which were actually already in place in Kalzuranur and Chalparna, so this code was accepted without complaint there. Eske Karaa also agreed to implement the code, though not without much grumbling. Draconica claimed that they would implement the code, and did indeed give the protections Athdus asked for to the Human and Elfkin castes, but notably gave absolutely nothing to the Orcs - who, as most historians agree, were the worst-treated slaves in the entire history of Inecuria, and were amongst the worst-treated slaves in world history.

The Emperor's second proposal was the abolition of the slave trade and of enslavement. The abolition of *enslavement* is not the same as abolishing slavery; by prohibiting enslavement, the Emperor was proposing that no free men could be made into slaves, but the existing populace of slaves would remain, and the children of slaves would inherit the status of their parents. The abolition of the slave trade was also not intended to totally prohibit the buying and selling of slaves, but rather called for the trading and transportation of slaves between political borders to end. This proposal was accepted by Kalzuranur, which did import slaves but generally did not export them (and so was not economically reliant on slave exports), and which already had a substantial slave population which could be made to grow on its own to produce more slaves. However, the proposal was met with disapproval by Draconica, Eske Karaa and the Chalparni kings.

Most Chalparni kingdoms, alongside Draconica, frequently used enslavement as a means of punishment for criminals, and the two nations were heavily involved in trading slaves with one another. Chalparna imported a significant volume of Orcish slaves from Draconica, mostly for use in dangerous and intensive labour, and exported many slaves to the outside world, especially sex slaves. Eske Karaa was also heavily economically involved in the act of taking and trading slaves; almost all Harpy merchants dealt in slaves at least occasionally, and the Avian Corsairs were an important source of wealth for the islands. The Nesarian conquests of Asmukhar, Raskev and Onshi had already dealt a serious blow to the international slave business, and the countries most involved with trading slaves were understandably afraid that abolishing the trade would bring them to ruin.

Negotiating with the Chalparnis, Dragons and Harpies proved to be a substantial headache for Athdus. Those most open to negotiation were the Harpies, who not-so-subtly hinted that they would be willing to agree to the proposals if Athdus gave them the means to replace the loss of wealth. After much arguing, Athdus eventually agreed to give the state of Eske Karaa a one-time payment, which was to be used to subsidise the archipelago's local industries, in addition to signing a twenty year deal to import Golden Olives - the archipelago's main export - to Nesaria at a price that historians have described as "extortionate". Athdus also promised not to prosecute the Avian Corsairs for their piracy and slavery, letting them return home in peace. This was enough to convince the Harpies to abolish enslavement and the slave trade.

Athdus was also able to convince the Chalparnis to agree to the proposal by providing one-time monetary compensation and by restoring the Chalparni monopolies on Blue Rice and the Bhoravasi strain of tea by destroying the Onshian farms and plantations that were growing them. Draconica, on the other hand, completely refused to budge on the issue, and Athdus was eventually humiliatingly forced to accept that he could do nothing for the slaves of the country. In response to their newfound inability to trade slaves with Chalparna, the slavers of Draconica expanded upon their weak links with the tribes of Kuateoha, and opened up a new slave trade there.

## Strategic Situation and Aims

All the parties present in the Congress of Onshi had their own specific wants and needs based on their strategic and economic situation - and, in some cases, their religious and moral beliefs.

### Nesarian Empire

The single most significant party at the Congress of Onshi was obviously the Nesarian Empire, ruled by Empress Rixa. The Empire was the most powerful state in Inecuria on paper, and ruled roughly half of the entire continent, but in many ways they were weaker than they appeared. Nesarian rule over the steppes of Asmukhar was generally secure, as the local people genuinely believed that the line of the Kumukh Handughy now lay with the Emperors and considered the Nesarians to be friends, but Nesarian rule in Onshi remained tenuous. The Empire also had two notably insecure borders on opposite sides of their domain; both their borders with the minor realms of Rulkhar and their border with Kalzuranur in Okido only existed by convention, and were totally unprotected by geographical features or major fortifications. The Empire also had to contend with the fact that the Nesarian heartland was separated from the rest of their possessions by the Great Cliffs and the inhospitable Grey Wastes (which had not yet taken on the name of the Borderlands), and they had yet to fully solve the puzzle of how to govern lands that their soldiers would take months to reach.

Going into the Congress, Empress Rixa had two major goals. The first, which she thought to be the most important, was the expansion of Nesarian hegemony to make the Empire the undisputed master of the known world; not only was this in pursuit of the Nesarian goal of world peace through world domination, but it would also serve to secure the Empire's weak borders with Rulkhar and Kalzuranur. She knew that demanding an outright oath of fealty would be impossible, and followed the advice of her councillors to instead try to develop the old Athdusian principle of the Empire as the "Leader of the World", establishing the Empire as a (supposedly) benevolent protector which would act as an arbitrator and an enforcer of peace and order, rather than a tyrant imposing its will. This, her advisors thought, would serve as the first stepping stone for actual Nesarian subjugation of Inecuria. Immediate annexation was impossible without a war which nobody wanted, but annexation could theoretically be achieved peacefully and without complaint if it was performed carefully and gradually over many years, or even generations.

It was vital to achieve Nesarian domination with the consent of the people of Inecuria not only due to a moralistic desire to avoid war, but also to make it possible for Nesaria to actually govern its vast domain. This necessity had been recognised by Emperor Athdus himself, but was clearly detailed in the writings of Rixa's husband Eron which were presented to the Nesarian nobility. In response to accusatory questioning by the nobles, who thought the degree of autonomy given to conquered peoples would inevitably lead to rebellion - a concern not without precedent, as this is exactly what occurred in the Cortathian Rebellion of the Mortian War - Eron explained using a remarkably modern sense of strategic analysis that Nesaria was totally incapable of actually enforcing its will over Inecuria.

According to Eron, Nesaria had to grant a high degree of autonomy to its foreign subjects and only enforce the most necessary of laws because, if they rose up in rebellion, it was not as simple as "pulling an Athdus" (the actual term Eron used) to bring them back in line. Nesaria would face organised, united resistance from an enemy that knew them well - whereas according to Eron, the brilliant conquests of Athdus were only possible because the Emperor faced internally divided foes that were caught off-guard and had no prior experience fighting Nesarians. The Empire certainly had an international image of military invincibility after its recent successes, but Eron warned against letting the Nesarians themselves be deluded by this, and argued that this image could shatter very easily if they put it to the test. In other words, the Nesarians had to do everything they could to avoid giving their subjects a reason to revolt, which would risk destroying their perception of the Empire as being much stronger than it actually was.

Rixa's second major goal in the Congress of Onshi was, of course, the eradication and total abolition of slavery. As with all Elvetans, especially Nesarians, Rixa had been taught to hate slavery from birth, but her experience in Roulonne and the Glorious Rebellion had made her revile the institution even more than her Athdus. She was far more willing to use military force to abolish the practice than her grandfather ever was, and made this fact clearly known to the other states of Inecuria.

### Kalzuranur

The term "Kalzuranur" at the time of the Congress of Onshi remained only an informal name for the Kingdom of Adwan, the second most powerful state of Inecuria after the Nesarian Empire. Adwan had been ruled by King Malkar Baqrahanet since the reign of Athdus, and Malkar had proven himself to be an aggressive and ambitious ruler who openly endorsed slavery. Malkar had made extensive use of slaves during the War for the World, and whereas the Nesarians and other anti-slavery activists argued that their sacrifice should be rewarded with freedom, Malkar merely believed that the contributions of slaves to the war effort merely proved how necessary slavery was for the continued survival and prosperity of Kalzuranur. Despite agreeing to the "perpetual peace", Malkar also continued to speak of how Onshi had no claim to Okido, and never abandoned his ambitions to conquer it.

Both Rixa and the Nesarian court were convinced that war with King Malkar was inevitable, but an opportunity presented itself in 142 - before the Congress began - in the form of Malkar's younger cousin Rahera. Rahera had risen to be the leader of the anti-war faction within Adwan; she genuinely desired peace and believed that Malkar's belligerence would lead to a war they could not win, and petitioned Empress Rixa to support a coup against her cousin, promising to abandon all claims to Okido. Rixa was notoriously hapless when it came to subterfuge, and instead trusted the advice of her councillors to refuse to support Rahera with soldiers - which could cause a serious diplomatic incident and tarnish the native Adwani perception of Rahera's legitimacy - but instead send her funds and a promise to recognise her status if she succeeded. Rahera's conspiracy came to fruition two years later in 144, as Rahera killed her King by her own hand and proclaimed to her people that the "warmonger" was dead. True to her word, Rahera would not speak a single word about Okido in the Congress of Onshi, and implicitly accepted it as Onshian - and by extension, Nesarian - territory. However, Rahera would not prove to be the useful puppet that many Nesarians expected her to be. She had her own goals and aims, some of which contradicted those of the Nesarians.

#### Rahera's Problems

Queen Rahera had three key issues confounding her reign which had yet to be solved by the time of the Congress in 147. First and foremost was the question of her legitimacy. Though she was supported by the anti-war faction, many throughout Kalzuranur saw her as a usurper and a Nesarian puppet, and it was critically necessary for her to prove them wrong to avoid an attempt on her life or a full-scale rebellion. She had to show to her people that she was capable of defying the Nesarians, and had to dispel any rumours that she would submit Kalzuranur to Nesarian rule. This was doubly confounded by the fact that Rahera was an earnest hater of slavery and desired to abolish it, but she knew that such a move would anger the significant population of slave-owners and would only further contribute to her image as a Nesarian puppet. Empress Rixa was overjoyed at Rahera's completely unexpected statement that she desired to end slavery, but grew increasingly suspicious of Rahera as she made no moves to actually abolish the practice. In hindsight, it is clear that Rahera made no action against slavery because she was politically incapable of doing so, but Rixa started to suspect that, like her predecessors, Rahera was merely making empty promises to pacify the Nesarians.

Rahera's second problem was the so-called "infidel menace". The Nakkalite faith that dominated Kalzuranur, and which Rahera devoutly followed, was split between the two rival branches of the Amekizites and the Shurites. The city of Adwan and all the ruling nobility were Amekizite, and the peace between them and the large minority of Shurites had always been tenuous. However, ever since the War for the World had left the country devastated and depopulated, the ratio of Amekizites to Shurites had significantly shifted. The Amekizites had disproportionately suffered at the hands of the Cosmovores compared to the Shurites, and the populations of the two had become roughly equal - or, according to some estimates, the population of Shurites had possibly even become *larger* due to the extermination of so many Amekizites. This was not only alarming to the Amekizites on religious grounds, but posed a serious challenge to Adwani rule over Kalzuranur. The Adwani aristocracy believed it was only a matter of time until the Shurites realised the degree of power they actually had, and greatly feared the consequences. For the same reasons, the proportion of pagans had also increased, though they were not as serious a political threat.

The most immediately obvious solution to the "infidel menace" was the so-called "Belqar solution", which was, quite bluntly, to simply kill them all. Forced conversion was not without precedent, and Nakkalite rulers had always believed that inflicting death upon their religious enemies was actually a mercy, for it hastened their route to Nakkal and gave them the chance to purify themselves. Rahera too believed this, but she also knew well that such a policy would not go over well with the Nesarians, who had strongly adopted the position of religious toleration as long as a few basic moral rules were followed. She could act against the heretics essentially with impunity within her own realm, but she had to be careful to not trigger a response from the Nesarians, and was mostly at a loss as to how to accomplish this.

The third problem had a similar cause to the second, which was that the proportion of Na'Quahesto and Miaran to Humans and Sand Elves in Kalzuranur had sharply risen due to the simple fact that far less of them had died in the War for the World. The newfound strength of the Na'Quahesto had not yet resulted in any issues, but the Miaran had quickly realised just how weakened the Humans were and had resumed their raids. Much like with the infidels, Rahera had to consider how to eliminate the threat whilst also satisfying the Nesarians.