Imperial State of Morthrall-Dunder

**The Imperial State of Morthrall-Dunder**, also referred to as the **Empire of Morthrall-Dunder** or simply the **Empire**, was a short-lived empire lasting only nine years. Created out of the ashes of the bloody Blue Revolution, the Imperial State toppled a regime ruled by the same family for over two eras. Although supported by many within itself, the Imperial State of Morthrall-Dunder found itself surrounded by enemies-- both foreign and domestic. Eventually, after a long and hard fought Wars Against the Covenant, the empire was forced to surrender itself to the invading forces and the old regime was brought back into place.

## The Kingdom of Morthrall-Dunder

By the start of the 7th era a majority of the population of the Kingdom of Morthrall-Dunder disapproved of the monarchy. On 07:65:01:F, upon receiving the Petition of the People, King Griorgair McAlister III formed the Prime Senate-- a legislative body in which each town/city would elect a representative and advise the king in formulating new laws.

Although seen positively at first, the Prime Senate soon became elected with representatives of nobility which led to laws being passed that only benefited themselves. By 07:99:03:C the failure of the Prime Senate led to failed reforms being passed which was made even worse by the outbreak of Hounds Disease in both the Northern and Central Hold. On 07:75:04:F Angered at the failure of the Prime Senate, the governments inaction with Hounds Disease, and the rise starvation among themselves, a political group known as the Friends of the Blue led a peaceful protest at the Grand Temple of the Righteousness where the king and his family were praying. Upon arriving at the temple, the protesters were met with soldiers from the army who were reluctant to aim their rifles at them. As the king and his family began to leave the temple small stones were thrown at them eventually leading to the soldiers to quickly fire on them-- leaving a dozen dead. After hearing a rumor that the king himself ordered his soldiers to fire on them, the protesters (who largely outnumbered the soldiers) stormed the temple and killed both the soldiers and the Righteous Men inside before burning the centuries old building to ground. Upon realizing that the king had escaped, the rioters turned their attention towards the High Palace-- a revolution had just begun.

## The Blue Revolution

The next 14 days were among the bloodiest in Morthrall-Dunder's history. The protesters, now in full on revolution, began the infamous March to the Palace where any person of nobility (whether man, women, or child) was lynched and their heads placed on makeshift spikes. When the rioters were within a mile of the High Palace they were met by a larger number of soldiers from the Holy Army of Morthrall-Dunder who pushed them back to the ruins of the the Grand Temple of the Righteousness. There the revolutionaries quickly erected a barricade that stretched across the entire northern portion of the city. For the next 11 days the barricade stood and all fighting had ceased. As more and more citizens from the Northern Hold came to Aeo to support the revolution, the city was soon closed off from the rest of the realm. On the early hours of 07:86:04:F the king's army was awoken to the sound of a young girl who had snuck out from the barricade. Malnourished and dying the young girl confronted the soldiers and gave a heartfelt speech before dousing herself with oil and lighting herself on fire to protest the monarchy's treatment of the lower class.

Witnessing the brutality of the monarchy and heartbroken over the young girl's death, the general of the king's forces surrounding the barricade-- Lukas Elber defected over to the revolutionary's side along with his soldiers and together both groups marched towards the High Palace. Upon arriving at the king's residence, the two groups stormed the palace and found the king and his family trying to board a ship to the royalist Southern Hold. Angered at this the revolutionaries quickly organized a show trial in which the king, his teenage son, and his wife were sentenced to death by fire.

On 07:89:04:F, the revolutionaries quickly established new constitutional monarchy now known as the Imperial State of Morthrall-Dunder which Lukas as its emperor. However, by time the empire was founded word had spread about the revolution and the deaths of the king and his family to the south and to Morthrall-Dunder's allies in the west.

## The Wars Against the Covenant

### First War Against the Covenant

As news spread amongst the surrounding nations of Morthrall-Dunder of the revolution and the swift execution of the royal family the Augustinian Republic, Kingdom of Morales, Free City of Varket, and the royalist in southern Morthrall-Dunder led a coalition to topple the new government. On 07:15:05:J, Morales troops landed in northwestern Morthrall-Dunder where they laid siege to Westholme-- the seat of the Western Hold. After half a year of being under siege by Morales troops, on 07:65:05:J, a hurricane made its way through Westholme effectively destroying the unprepared invading force and their fleet.

Meanwhile down south, Varket and Augustinian troops made their way to the royalist territories where together the three began their invasion of the Central Hold. With troops spread thin and the advancing Covenant only seventy miles away from Aeo, Lukas sent his Foreign Counselor, Klaus Stahel to beg for help from the Most Serene Republic of Salira who, while sympathetic to the new government, remained neutral in the war. In order to boost the morale of the people, Lukas quickly organized a military parade for civilians to celebrate their soldiers who were marching straight into battle. On the afternoon of 07:68:05:J a grand total of 1,879 imperial troops meet with the Covenant of over 7,000 strong in the Buchman Highlands. After nearly two hours on the battlefield and as Lukas was prepared to give the order to retreat, over 6,000 imperial troops from Westholme arrived and helped quickly decimate the Covenant troops.

As the tides began to turn in their favor, imperial forces began their descent southwards to reclaim their lands. Meanwhile, having secured an alliance with Salira, Klaus Stahel returned to Morthrall-Dunder with over 10,000 Salira troops beginning the Siege of Havensfell and in turn becoming a national hero as well. By 07:21:06:C the siege against the last royalist opposition in Havensfell had finally ceased and Lukas had begun an invasion of his family home- the Free City of Varket. With no help from Morales or Augustinian (due to their massive losses in the invasion), Varket quickly surrendered themselves to the new empire and became apart of the Southern Hold-- a move many (including former royalists) approved of. With the invasion repelled and the consolidation of Lukas' power, Saliran troops removed themselves from the empire and the First War Against the Covenant had come to its end on 07:35:08:J.

### Short-lived Peace

With the First War Against the Covenant officially over and peace finally spread throughout the new empire, Lukas was able to make changes within the Morthrall-Dunder society. Among the first reforms created by Lukas was the reestablishment of the Prime Senate-- this time giving representatives a voices and allowing them to pass laws that benefited the people without the emperor's consent. For the next three years the empire ruled in peace with high approval from its people. However on 07:100:11:J while celebrating a new year within the empire, the HIMS Phoenix mistakenly fired upon and sunk a Salira diplomatic ship carrying the new Saliran Ambassador to Morthrall-Dunder. When word of the sinking reached both Aeo and Haman, Lukas met with representatives from Salira who demanded that the crew of the Phoenix be arrested and sent to Salira to be publicly executed in exchange for renewed peace. After refusing the deal, Lukas banished the Saliran representatives and prepared for a war against their ally-turned-enemy.

### Second War Against the Covenant

When word reached Morales and Augustinian about the conflict between Morthrall-Dunder and Salira, both countries formed a new covenant to take on the empire while going as far as to extend the invitation to Salira who refused. With the empires naval superiority over Morales and Augustinian, Lukas ordered all warships to defend the western coast while moving his army to the east to fight off the invading Salirans. Meanwhile down south, where royalist sentiment remained high, protests led to the retreat of imperial troops from Havensfell. Thanks to the efforts of a royalist spy within the Imperial Army, Morales troops managed to evade imperial defenses and sailed straight into the Weeping Bay before laying siege to Aeo.

With the empire being attacked from both the western and eastern coasts and from within, Lukas began a plan to sue for peace with Salira by allowing them to conquer the Eastern Hold so he could turn his attention towards Aeo. However before he could put his plan to fruition his generals Hans Thalmann & Rupert Heinz, not wanting to lose any territory to Salira,orchestrated a coup and arrested Lukas then surrendered to the Covenant. With the help of Covenant troops, the Imperial Army pushed back the Salirans and sued for peace with them. On 07:38:13:F Lukas Elber, now in chains, was brought to Aeo where he was forced to sign the Treaty of the Covenant and relinquish his claim to the imperial throne.

## The Fall of an Empire

The defeat the Imperial State of Morthrall-Dunder led to the abdication of Lukas as emperor, the dissolution of the Prime Senate, and the restoration of the Kingdom of Morthrall-Dunder. When the 28 year old Horace McAlister returned to Morthrall-Dunder from Morales he was greeted by an abundance of jeers from some and cheers from others. On 07:76:13:J Horace, the younger brother to Griorgair McAlister III, was crowned King of Morthrall-Dunder while Lukas was sent to exile on his former home of Varket (still under Morthrall-Dunder control). For the next three years the country, mainly Aeo, remained under Covenant occupation in order to maintain the peace and suppress any anti-monarchist sentiment. However in the years after the occupation, pro-Elber groups still existed in secret and planned for a restoration of Lukas on the throne.

## The Stahel Affair

On 07:78:20:F during the investigation into the murder of Ayla Ahmed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Rolf Stahel, son of former Foreign Counselor to the Emperor-- Klaus Stahel, discovered that Salira was secretly funding a pro-Elber group and that a note written by his father was intended to be sent to Elber himself on Varket. Though kept secret at first, word gets out of Klaus' treason and Rolf is ordered to arrest and execute him, only to find his father had set sail for Westholme. Upon arriving in Westholme, Klaus is greeted as a national hero and awaits the return of Lukas who, thanks to Klaus, manages to sneak off of Varket unnoticed.

When Lukas arrives at Westholme the entire Western & Northern Holds declare their allegiance to him. However in Aeo upon hearing of Lukas' return and Horace's plans to have the Covenant reoccupy Morthrall-Dunder Rolf, Catherine Radcliffe, Clarence Nemo, and Edward McNair execute a coup on 07:12:21:J which topples the monarchy once again and replaces it with a republic-- the Commonwealth of Morthrall-Dunder.

## The War for Morthrall-Dunder

With the establishment of the Commonwealth of Morthrall-Dunder, the Northern Hold abandoned Lukas with the dreams of republicanism and joined the Commonwealth. In what is considered the end of Morthrall-Dunder, a three way war broke out between Imperial & Saliran, Commonwealth, and Covenant forces all vying for control of the continent. Within less than year however the last remnants of the Imperial State were defeated during the Razing of Westholme by Commonwealth troops in which Lukas was captured while Klaus escaped to Salira to spend his last year alive there before being poisoned (some say on ordered by his own son Rolf).

Upon his return to Aeo, in chains once again, Lukas was tried and sentenced to death by hanging where he gaving his famous Farewell Speech to the crowd. With Lukas dead and with no heirs, the dreams of the Imperial State of Morthrall-Dunder died with him.