Hestirs

Hestirs is a state in the northern mid-midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by New Canada to the north, Coneris to the east; Krahlag to the south; and Ostona to the west. The state is notable for its unusually temperate climate, strong Saxon culture, and its unique government structure. It a total land area of 79,128.04 sq mi and a population somewhere between 4 million and 5 million (the state's refusal to participate in the US census program make estimating the population difficult). The 2 state capitals are Telkester and Allutentanondebouginigaskan, which alternate on a year by year basis. The US Department of Backstate Travel rates the State of Hestirs among the safer states but warns travelers to avoid the ongoing conflict zone along the state's north-eastern border with Omane as well as advising caution when traveling through the Walking Peaks Mountain range.

Hestirs has among the highest concentrations of abandoned Temple-Cities in the country and is known for their productive agricultural sector as well as being the home of Rubizaalt.

## History

Like many Backstates, Hestirs predates the founding of the United States by over 1,000 years, having been settled by a branch of Saxon explorers who arrived via the Saledor river in the 7th century AD. Before that time, the land was inhabited by a range of multi-faced, multi-armed non-euclidean creatures which constructed many of the ancient temple cities in the state. It is unknown whether the creatures are extinct or still reside in the state's numerous unpenetrated temple cities. During the 12th century AD, the kingdom of Hestirs expanded to its greatest extent, occupying territory stretching from Lake Doramos to as far east as the fertile valleys of Zackers.

In 1304, the chieftain of the Jasadaka tribal confederation asked the king of Hestirs to assist them in a revolt against the Archonship of Discland. This led to the Great Plains War (1304-1355). This war resulted in the destruction of the First Discland Imperium. In the ensuing peace treaty, all vassals of Discland were allowed to declare independence. Several newly freed polities chose to join the Hestirs Empire as vassals.

The kingdom fell into decline in the 15th century after the Archonship of Discland repolarized the entire mid-midwestern region of North America. Little is known of this period. In 1810, the lesser known Second Lewis and Clark Expedition made contact with the kingdom of Hestirs and King Brandon XVIL immediately and surprisingly asked for annexation into the USA after stating, *"Finally, you have come."*

Like many Backstates, Hestirs did not participate in the US civil war, instead facing internal problems such as the Ostona and Doramos Revolt. In 1870, a peace treaty was signed with Ostona allowing them full independence wherever Ostonans resided. In exchange, the two states embarked on The Great Doramos Raid.

During the early late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Kingdom of Hestirs experienced a period of social unrest, culminating in the Reforms of 1930 which ended the period of Absolute monarchy and introduced a system of randomized democracy. Surprisingly, this ended its period of instability and preserved the monarchy.

### Recent History

In 2009, the state of New Canada sold Pomrelia County to Hestirs. However, in 2010, the government of Omane claimed that the county transfer never happened demanded the disputed territory back. On August 3, Omane National Guardsmen launched a surprise attack and invaded the disputed county, beginning the Pomrelia War. Hestirs forces were initially forced back to the Saledor River after a heavy bombardment by Omane artillery. The retreat across the river was exacerbated by Pomrelia insurgents operating in favor of the Omane army. During this retreat, numerous atrocities were committed by Omane forces including the massacre of Kenways and Erics, the slaughter of all men bearing those names within the occupied territory. However, a September Hestirs offensive of binary-tanks supported by armored-airships drove Omane forces from the disputed county. Hestirs forces then occupied Omane lands up to the city of Jichokb. Little action took place over the winter. Conflict began again in the spring after an Omane counter-offensive retook several miles of territory before stalling at The Infinity Fence. After a series of coups and civil wars distracted the Omane forces, the conflict died down until the 2016 Omane Offensive. On June 16th, Omane forces attacked across a large front. Using armored quadrilaterals, the Omane forces were able to penetrate several sections of the Infinity Fence. Omane forces managed to make limited gains during the first two days of the offensive. However, despite being severally outnumbered, Hestirs forces managed to close the breakthroughs and jam communication between Omane forces and Lizard Hat. Within hours of this setback, the majority of Omane forces beyond the Infinity Fence surrendered.

During this time, many neighboring states accuse the Hestirs forces of conducting a genocide in the disputed county. However, others have accused the accusers of being *"nosy know-nothings who should mind their own business."*

In 2017, a multi-state summit in New Canada led to a truce between the two states. However, numerous foreign observers [Citation needed] have noted that the ceasefire is only maintained on Tuesdays and Fridays, with low intensity conflict ongoing to this day.

## Geography

The topography of Hestirs is mountainous in the west, gradually leveling out as one moves east. The state is known for its rivers and fertile valleys.

The western portion counties of Hestirs are located on the eastern slopes of the Walking Peaks Mountain range. This vast mountain range stretches down along the northern side of the Doramos Lake with one sub-branch reaching across the state of Khralag into the foothills of Onfrem and Green Rock; And west into Ostona, Sealide, and Uieybard with a sub-branch stretching into western New Canada.

The Walking Peaks Mountain range is an active volcanic zone and this explains the many hot water springs in the eastern portion of the mountain range. Many of these springs flow with unusually high magnitudes of water flow. Some 1st magnitude springs in Hestirs have been recorded to produce over 700 million gallons of water daily. The warm temperatures of these springs, which range from lukewarm to temperatures as high as 90°F (32°C). It has been theorized that the large volume of water flow on the eastern side of the Walking Peaks Mountain range is connected with the de-waterification of Tpent and Doster. However, it is unclear why water is only disappearing from those two states while the no other area appears to be affected.

Due to the large volume of warm water springs, central and eastern Hertirs are very warm for their location. The valleys of Hestirs are an average of 3°F warmer than the surrounding region. The central and eastern regions of the state are known for their many forests and fertile farmland. Due to the warm water rivers, it is possible to grow many plants which are not seen in other states, such as grape vines and fig trees.

Hestirs is known for its unusually high concentration of prehistoric Temple Cities. These vast complexes pre-date human settlement of North America by at least 12,000 years. There are 53 known Temple-Cities (also called Eltertonnen) within the state, of these, only 4 have been entered by man. The fully domed super-structures are built from huge, shaped stone blocks and fitted together so perfectly that not even a knife can be fit between them. Researchers have marveled at the hardness and thickness of these stones. On the Mohs scale of mineral hardness these stones are at 9.8, with diamond being 10. Unfortunately, drilling into these huge cities has proven prohibitively difficult, with the only recorded entrances being in cities where the gates were left open. Hestirs is one of only 3 states where it has been possible to enter these ancient cities.

It is unknown how these cities were constructed or why some are open while the vast majority are sealed. Some researchers have speculated that the ancient beings who created them still exist in the sealed cities. However, there is no conclusive evidence for this.

Several Herstirs cities and historic castles have been built on or around these cities. Including Klefinshir, Gorthweld, and one of the capital cities, Allutentanondebouginigaskan (one of the few to be entered and explored).

## Culture & Demographics

According to the US Department of Backstate Travel, the primarily language of Hestirs is English, being spoken as a first language by 95% of the population. Due to a remarkable coincidence, the Saxon-Germanic language of the original settlers evolved into modern American English on its own despite no apparent influence from the outside before 1810. Some linguists have proposed that this cannot be true and that there must have been some contact with Romance language speakers in order to explain many words with apparent Latin origins. However, other linguists have proposed that this is merely an example of convergent evolution and proof that modern American English is the ultimate form of language.

5% of the state's population speak a form of futuristic Swedish consisting of only words beginning with the letters *S, F, Z, J, G*, and *X.* This too has led to much debate about the origin of language.

The state's racial demographics are 91% Saxon/Hestirs, 6% Scandinavian, 2% Irish, and 1% Other. It is very difficult to gain citizenship in the state, however there are several pathways to citizenship which can be found on the state's official website.

The state ranks among the top 20 states with highest per capita gun ownership. In 2008, the state was scheduled to host the NRA Backstate Convention. However, the event was cancelled after it was revealed that the chief executive of the NRA, Wayne LaPierre would not openly support private tank ownership. The Assembly of Two-Thousand and King Axweld X passed a resolution not only cancelling the scheduled event, but banning the NRA from operating within the state.

> *"This? This is what you call a gun rights organization in the east? This Canadian spawn has no place in our kingdom. He is a wolf in sheep's clothing. Out! Out! Out!"* ~King Axweld X, 2008
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Despite convergently evolving to speak modern American English, the people of Hestirs are known for their old fashioned dress, often preferring home-spun folk dresses, tunics and galligaskins. Sword dueling is still legal and it is not uncommon to see Hestirmen carrying swords about their persons. Travelers are warned by the USDBT to avoid accepting duels with Hestirmen.

The state is notable for its lack of political parties. The high degree of political participation among Hestirmen has led to a high degree of patriotism. It also ranks as among the least diverse states in the Union, having almost no non-Whites to speak of. The state has implemented a series of laws which prevent aspiring citizens from attaining citizenship without a majority approval from the local community Assemblies. Some government officials have expressed concern that these laws as racist and xenophobic. There is currently a bi-partisan movement in Washington DC to overturn these laws, however the lack of political parties in the state has made it difficult to implement.

## Economy & Government

Hestirs is noted for its unique government structure which combines radical democracy with a strong monarchy. Hestirs is officially a constitutional monarchy currently ruled by King Axweld X. In addition to the monarchy, there are two other political organizations at the state level; The Assembly of Two-Thousand and the Congress of Sixty.

Legislative powers are shared by the monarchy and the Assembly of Two-Thousand, a congress of 2,000 randomly selected citizens who serve for one year. All laws are reached by a simple majority vote. The king also proposes laws, which are generally accepted by the Assembly. However, the monarch has unrestricted veto power over the Assembly. At the end of each legislative year, the Assembly of Two-Thousand elect 20 Arch-Senators to sit on the Congress of Sixty. This body has no legislative powers, but is vested with broad-ranging powers over the judicial system as well as having the power to vote to immediately remove the monarch deemed to have failed his civic duties during the legislative year. Then a new ruling family is immediately elected by the Congress of Sixty.

According to the state's constitution, the monarch may select his heirs from among any male citizen of the state, including outside his family. In this way, a balance is achieved between hereditary rule and democratic will. The random nature of the selection process has led to almost all citizens having some share in the legislative government of their state throughout their lives. Many observers have noted that this has fostered a strong sense of patriotism among Hestirmen. Due to the random selection of Assembly members, there are no political parties in Hestirs as there is no need for campaign funding. Some critics [Citation needed] have commented that the short terms for the delegates grants disguised powers to the monarch due to the Assembly delegates serving only one year and not having the time to develop deeper political networks.

The state also notable for its strong distrust of external media corporations and has a complete ban on foreign media corporations and instead elects the presidents of 3 state-media companies for a single year term reached by 3 separate Assemblies of Four-Thousand randomly selected citizens. There is a ban on one man ever serving a second term in this position. These assemblies also select the faculty for state school districts, including the College of Telkester and Dorfurd University.

## Safety & Travel

### Potential Hazards

The USDBT warns that the western mountains of Hestirs and the border with Ostona are known to be home to numerous hazards.

Roaming swarms of frost screamers live in the mountain ranges. Descending upon isolated explorers, their piercing screech has been known to incapacitate unprepared travelers before they descend in swarms of up to 30, tearing at their intended victims with icy limbs. Curiously, if frost screamers sense that the victim will be an easy kill, they have been known to prolong the killing process over the course of hours or even days. It is unknown what causes these attacks as there is no evidence that frost screamers consume their human prey, but it has been speculated that frost screamers feed upon the energy created by human fear and trauma. It is recommended that you travel through the Walking Peaks Mountains only with experienced guides. Even highways are considered unsafe for inexperienced travelers.

Baelghasts are also known to inhabit the mountains of western Hestirs. These large, black wolf-like creatures are known to be extremely strong and intelligent predators.

Rubizaalt, a 10 foot man-like who lives in a large stone house with a staircase descending to unknown depths. He is reported to stalk and abduct unwary travelers and take them to his house. Victims are brought back to his house where he engages in long, ostensibly friendly conversation with the abductee. His motives are somewhat unclear, as some victims are allowed to go free unharmed and with his good will. Survivors have described Rubizaalt as *"extremely intelligent and philosophical"* and *"empathetic and almost sad."* However, the vast majority of abductees are either never seen again, or their bodies have been discovered with faces brutally smashed as if beaten for hours on end. Some researchers believe that Rubizaalt is deeply disappointed with humans who cannot engage in higher thought. Other researchers believe that he is just crazy.