Imperial Holdouts and Rump States (The Empire of Romikka)

***History***

After the Crisis of The Tenth Century, The Three Empires ceased to exist. Acrabia and Chinika were set free of their ties to the Titus Formed Empire of Romikka and thus both empires remained unified, avoiding a large scale fracture. However the largest of The Three Empires, The Empire of Romikka, broke up into several holdouts and rump states due to it's sheer size.

## ***Formation 1003 A.T.F-1026 A.T.F***

The Initial formation of these rump states began shortly after The Crisis of The Tenth Century. Many of these successor states were predominantly made up of Romikkan Administrators who were still in possession of Imperial assets after the capitulation of the Empire of Romikka. Oftentimes these holdouts and rump states were administered and garrisoned by a Romikkan minority, or continued to practice Romikkan Culture even though the people were not Romikkan themselves. As time progressed some of these rump states began to loose their Romikkan identity altogether and only carried the status of a "holdout" or "successor state" by name. While a majority of the rump states and holdouts were formed by powerful administrators seeking power in the ensuing chaos, there were a considerable number of holdouts that existed by sheer happenstance. These holdouts having no one to report to anymore, and having no way of returning home were forced to band together with other holdouts in order to survive the environments they were left stranded in.

## ***Fall 1026 A.T.F-1050 A.T.F***

A majority of these rump states were either destroyed by migrating tribes, infighting, or other successor states. Many of the holdouts located closer to the Imperial Core Cities were unified by a Barbarian Emperor by the name of Quintius Barbacanous. The holdouts and rump states located farther away from the core cities were destroyed by the migrating tribes of Northman who formed their own kingdoms. The only Imperial Rump State that survived the Crisis of The Tenth Century and The Fall of The Empire of Romikka was the Teratime Empire. The Empire of Teratime was able to avoid collapsing due to its geological location, situating the state on a series of island chains off of the shores of Drazzan. Although a majority of the minor holdouts were destroyed by 1050 A.T.F, any unmentioned stragglers were finished off by the 5 Great Conquerors who hailed from Drazzan.

## ***Notable Holdouts***

***The Northern Triumvirate***

The Northern Triumvirate was a holdout that was established by happenstance. The Holdout came into existence immediately following the death of the last Romikkan Emperor Pompolus Servellius. The Triumvirate was ruled by a council of Three Praetors who were assigned to be the Military Governors of The Three Northern Provinces. These assigned Praetors were experienced and loyal generals whose sole designation was to prevent any barbarian migration past The Shield of Titus. Once orders from Pompolus Servellius and the rest of the Imperial Bureaucracy were no longer received, The Three Praetors formed an administrative body with the resources they had present in 1010 A.T.F. By 1027 A.T.F The Holdout was overwhelmed by The Northern Tribes and ceased to exist.

***The Kingdom of Pyra***

The Kingdom of Pyra was the only Imperial Rump State that was formed within Acrabia. After the death of last Romikkan Emperor Pompolus Servellius, The Governor of Pyra rallied The Acrabian Legions under his administration, and crowned himself King of Pyra. The State existed from 1010 A.T.F-1029 A.T.F and was later destroyed by the Barbarian Emperor Quintius Barbacanous.

***The Teratime Empire***

The Empire of Teratime was formed immediately following the collapse of The Romikkan Empire. Due to its geological location, Teratime was shielded from the ensuing chaos that had overtaken The Empire of Romikka. For nearly half a century the ruling family of Teratime, The Konstantinos Family, had been slowly gaining autonomy from the greater empire. Teratime was the only Imperial Province that was exempt from Imperial Appointed Governors, possessed its own army and navy, and paid reduced taxes to the Imperial Core Cities. By the fall of the Empire of Romikka, the Empire of Teratime had already gained some semblance of full autonomy. And without the existence of the Empire of Romikka, the Empire of Teratime continued on as it always had. For a short time, The Empire of Teratime had attempted a reconquest of former Imperial Lands. Initially the successor state found some headway in these conquest, occupying the majority of Drazzan and the city of Freeport. However the reconquest was halted after The Barbarian Emperor Quintius Barbacanous, who now ruled his own empire seated in Titus City, defeated the Teratime Emperor Julius Konstantinos in 1038 A.T.F at the Battle of Dulia. After the battle the cities ruling council, a body made up of a series of powerful merchant families, ousted the Konstantinos Family and ruled the Empire of Teratime as an oligarchy. The Empire of Teratime would survive for nearly seven centuries until it was later annexed into the Dominion of Orbis.

***The Governors of Western Danika***

The Governors of Danika was never the formal name given to what was left of the Romikkan Empire in Western Danika. Instead it was used to describe a collection of nearly 100+ Governors who maintained their power in Western Danika after the withdrawal of Romikkan Soldiers following the defeat of Vaux Boomica's Legions. A majority of these Governors had remained in positions of power for decades due to the lack of Imperial Appointed Governors. Although Teratime was the only province exempt from legally being required to have their governors appointed by the Romikkan Empire. Western Danika's governors were simply appointed by family members due to Imperial Negligence. This lack of Imperial Oversight lead to a decades long string of family appointed Governors across the province. After the remaining Legions were removed from Western Danika, the Governors and their families began to assemble the locals into private armies. Overtime the Governors began to train their forces of local's in the Romikkan Style of Warfare, oftentimes importing Romikkan Veterans who were left jobless after the fall of The Romikkan Empire. The Governors of Western Danika were Romikkan, but oddly enough fielded armies of mostly Western Danikans in their wars and battles. The Governors of Western Danika ceased to exist primarily due to infighting, and being overthrown by the more numerous natives of the region. The Last Governor was killed during the The Great Norkish Expedition of 1090 A.T.F, ending the last remnants of Romikkan Influence within Western Danika.

***The Republic of Titus City***

The Republic of Titus City was formed by Senator Baedus Agustus Ramsaes and Senator Napoleon Latrimouis following the death of Pompolus Servellius. The Republic Existed was formed by several of the Senators who opposed the Horatii Brothers attempted coup of the Empire. The Empire of Romikka struggled between the Lower Bureaucracy and The Emperor's Authority ever since The Senate's formation after the Gallius Reforms. Initially The Senate had more power than than the Emperor, but as time progressed the Emperors Authority began to supersede the Senate's powers. By the reign of Pompolus Servellius the Senate existed only in name, and had very little power outside of minor policy making. Upon the death of the Emperor, the Senate Majority Leader Napoleon Latrimouis put forward a vote to form a Republic in replacement of the Empire. A majority of the Senators agreed, however a vast majority of the legates, rump states, and holdouts positioned outside of Titus City refused to recognize the transition from a Empire to a Republic. Thus the fledgling Republic's borders only existed in Titus City, and the Republic was destroyed only months later by Quintius Barbacanous.