Records: Mesowestern Marches

## **The Aftermath of the War of Blood Crowns**

Four months after ending the war between the conglomerated Aztec and Mayan factions, there was an acknowledgement that the conflict itself had been exascerbated by the well-intentioned English RANP (via the HMS Discovery), who had armed the factions (ostensibly against the megafauna).

When the factions had instead turned the steel weapons on themselves and each other, it opened arguments to interventionism, self-determination, colonialism, imperialism, measurable ethics and so on. While the English remained a part of the equation, the CMC had taken the lead in contact to the Western Hemisphere – and that somewhat changed the nature of the contact.

Intervention was still a key topic, and now it was whether it was ethical to intervene at all or whether every society had to endure the same painful progression of growth. It was determined that non-interference might be the purest path, but it bordered on criminal inaction when lives were at stake. That led the CMC, as led by Aquitaine, to intervene in full nation-building mode.

### **The Matched Duchies**

The most immediate solution was to create separation, and the CMC did so by annexing strips of land (Atlantic to Pacific) across the mid-point of their hazy border, essentially the marches between them. These now became *Noble Plantagenet* duchies.

There were two adjoined duchies, and the CMC/NP titled them the Coatzacoalcos East and West Domains. As duchies, each side would support a respective, unified crown. That set the tone for what was about to happen to the conglomerated city-states.

### **From Conglomerates to Kingdoms**

The magic and the mundane, at this point, was so overwhelming by example alone, the influence was authoritative without even a suggestion of harder power. The CMC, with it's tools of the RANP, the OM, and now-native SA, allowed the NP to begin a peaceful unification into Magna Carta-guided kingdoms.

The charter details had minor differences in it, reflective of the cultural norms and mores, but the basics were there as the framework: ensuring justice, protecting liberty, and promoting the preservation of life.

There was now accelerated Aztec and Mayan Parallel Development. They were given both European and mutual benchmarks to compare themselves with and against. With the divine healing and arcane magic as fuel, both cultures were rocketing into the future.

## **Employing Momentum versus Inertia**

The Ricardian hand was *technically* invisible, but it's power and presence was undeniable. The Aztecs and Mayans alike had the framework of an agriculturally-powered engineering culture, with key benchmarks of langauge and visual style. It was on this structure, stripped of its self-destructive bloodthirst, that there was opportunit for growth.

Via "channels" within the RANP, a cohesive set of evolved concepts were applied to both cultures. This was an opportunity to bring "the future" to earth, but do it through the lens of the MesoWestern cultures and let their influence echo back to Europe and beyond.

### **Natural Exports**

There were regional treasures that the locals enjoyed that would bring Europe and the world to its feet, not the least of which was cocoa. The multi-faceted magic of chocolate would become dominant force in cuisine. The pep provided by the coca plant was significant, and the list went on.

### **Engineering Exports**

There were other opportunities that the Ricardian hand slipped in, seizing on the spirit of the West to express it in ways that made it seem like they'd invented it. This included "inspired" inventions like more sensible, less bulky clothing – and little engineering points like *pants with pockets*.

The hot-weather environment gave the RANP contingent an opportunity to dig into ergonomic engineering to create appropriate wear. With more dry heat to the Aztec side, and very wet heat to the Mayan side, the Aztecs and Mayans were quick to adopt the styles themselves.

This became the basis of cottage industries that would export their designs back to Bordeaux and London.