Kánitore

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* In Vultierra
* Prefectures and Territories

Location of Kánitore (in navy blue) on the continent of Vultierra.

* At Peace
* At War

### Motto

*"Neminem relinquere post fasciculum"*  (Arcani) *"Leave no member of the pack behind."* (Common)

### Population

700,000,000+65% Canine

15% Feline

10% Pinneped

10% Other (Honedge-line ghost types, immigrants from other nations)

### Other Languages

Lapidusian, Axian, Duralosan, Rustican, Ardesian, Morreauvian, Kaulmontsch, Meui

### Exports

Primarily various animal products (leather, lard, meat, cattle, candles, dairy, fertilizer, etc.), various food products (Grape products such as fine wine, olive products, tomatoes, citrus, etc.), some luxury fashion (like jewelry, clothing and handbags), pharmaceuticals, therapeutics/medical equipment and steam motors/engines.

## Government

### Alphas

**Sonterra:**  Celeste Vecellio**Eldorado:**  Frida Pizzaro

**Montclair:**  Enzo Lafontaine

**Kaulmont:**  Wilhelmina König

**Barkshire:**  Winston Templeton

**Kánitore**, officially the **Great Canine Empire of Kánitore**, is an empire that lies on the entire northern portion of the continent of Vultierra. It is based on a modernized Roman Empire - with its constituent parts being based on various Greco-Latin Mediterranean European countries as well as some of their colonies. The citizens of the empire comprise of mostly canine pokemon, including vulpines and lupines, but also harbor a significant population of native pinnipeds and pokémon from the Honedge line born from deceased citizens who were reborn into the afterlife. There is also a sizable population of immigrant feline pokémon originating from the Queendom of Tameu that are currently considered the empire's largest minority group. According to archeological data, Kánitore is classified as one the world's first civilizations, although it still remains as only the third oldest nation in the world behind the Feline Queendom of Tameu and the Draconic Empire of Ryukanshi. In addition to being the youngest of the world's 3 Cradles of Civilization, Kánitore still holds the distinction of being the oldest nation in the Southern Hemisphere - as it's civilization has predated even the countries in the neighboring continent of Eidres. It is also currently the second most developed country in the world, falling behind Kaulseg, but still categorized as an official member of the Elite Four.

The empire of Kánitore is divided into five distinct prefectures: Sonterra, Eldorado, Barkshire, Kaulmont, and Montclair that are further divided into dioceses that are are home to their own distinct ethnic groups similar to, but not completely identical to the others within the same prefecture. Each prefecture's population is comprised mostly of citizens belonging to an ethnic group tied to the location collectively known as a "Court". Each Court is governed by elected members of the Kánitorian Senate that represent the people of these prefectures - known as the "Alpha". Each prefecture's head of government is led by the Alpha, who oversees a certain framework of the nation (i.e: STEM, finances, military or the arts) in a way of dividing out the work required to keep a nation functioning. All five of these Alphas work together in administering their specialized frameworks to help the entire nation function smoothly as one. Each prefecture also has their own "Prefectorial Capital" while subdivisions within their prefectures, known as dioceses, each have their own "Diocesan Capital". The capital for the entire nation is the city of Remus - which is located at the furthest Northeastern tip of the Vultierran continent.

Within each prefecture - the Kánitorian people mostly speak a specific Romance language, which stem from a Latin-based language called Arcani. However, the current-day lingua franca is English (called Common), though it was originally the aforementioned Latin-based Arcani language for over a few millennia prior to the 18th century. Within each prefecture - Dioceses have their own distinct regional languages as well. While most speak a Romance language, there are still a few exceptions - including the prefecture of Barkshire, which speaks Common due to Rickie influence after the Kánitorian Civil War and the diocese of Axos, which speaks Greek (Axian).

Being a warrior culture at its core, the Empire once took up nearly half of the world at its peak about several centuries ago. Fueled by a dynasty of fairy-type Emperors with ambitions to unite all the world's canine peoples under one banner, the Kánitorian Empire had, at one point, gained a foothold in all three of the world's continents. They fiercely competed with other imperial powers at the time such as Deloria and Kaulseg, whom they often got into territorial disputes with throughout it's more recent history. Along with their Eidresian counterparts - the nation's former imperial ambitions have made a vast impact on the world's Southern Hemisphere, and even in limited parts of the Northern hemisphere. However, following it's Civil War in the 1700's, the empire has since collapsed and began implementing a "world peace policy" to compensate for their over 1000 years of conquest while also making amends with their former rivals and for the most part - their former colonies (With the exception being that of the Ferallands).

Even after abolishing it's former imperial ambitions centuries ago, modern-day Kánitore has never truly left it's warrior culture behind - with gladiatorial combat being the most popular sport in the Empire behind fencing and hunting. It is also because of their nature as a warrior culture that it also boasts the Southern Hemisphere's largest army in numbers at around 30 million enlisted legionaries, yet still falls behind only Kaulseg in terms of military development - ranking as the 2nd most advanced military in the world. Most of their military technology nowadays, just like most of the technology used by civilians, relies on advanced steam mechanics carefully crafted and studied for millennia - as Kánitorians are the pioneers in steam technology and are credited with inventing the world's first steam engine a little over 2000 years ago.

In the current day, Kánitore is a highly urbanized nation of over 700,000,000 laden with baroque, classical, and neoclassical style cities while also being host to a wide variety of biomes, cultures and an vast history that attract millions of tourists from all corners of the world. The Empire is the world leader in exporting animal products (like leather, lard, gelatin, meat, dairy, fertilizer, eggs, wool, lipsticks, candles and cattle) as well as fine wine, olive products, perfume, steam technology, medical supplies, pharmaceuticals, medical education and healthcare workers.

## **History**

### Prehistory

According to accounts in the most ancient book of Gamellic scripture - the Grimoire Aurum, the culture that would soon became the Kánitorian Empire once comprised of groups of both canine and pinniped tribes that occupied Northern Vultierra who were all originally created by three wolf deities simply dubbed as "The Three Wolves" by Kanitorian historical records and Gamellic scripture alike. These three deities comprise of a Zacian named Minerva, a Zamazenta named Maria and a Zygarde named Clymenus - who were born out of the earth of Northern Vultierra, leaving behind the mountain range that divides modern-day Kánitore into North and South. According to these mythological accounts, The Three Wolves created these mortal beings in their image from parts of themselves combined with the earth of Northern Vultierra to help prepare for a "a great war". Details about this war are scarce and are left vague in the Grimoire Aurum - though the enemy forces are implied to be some sort of malevolent, supernatural force that the three wolves were unable to face without the aid of an army.

Once the war had concluded, the mortal canine and pinnipeds lived together peacefully in a period that many historians refer to as the *"Canine Halcyon"* (Sometimes nicknamed *"The Time of Cherries"* by citizens due many oral sources from the time indicate that they regarded the fruit as a symbol of 'rebirth' or 'beginnings'). For thousands of years, these quadruped, sapient canines/pinnipeds frolicked in all the untapped, untamed wilderness the region of Northern Vultierra had to offer. While no written records exist of this time period, oral sources from both ninetales and ghost types related to these canines as well as over 30,000-year-old cave paintings and ancient grave sites found throughout modern-day Kánitore provide some insight into the inner workings of this proto-Kanitorian society. The little that is known about this period is that these pokemon were primarily a hunter-gatherer society made up of a whole variety of canine and pinniped species living together as one massive pack administered by several rulers divided by region rather than being separate tribes divided into specific species or types.

Due to their 1000-year lifespan granting them centuries of wisdom, both Alolan and Kantonian ninetales were usually regarded as the Kings and Queens of this massive pack - donning either flower crowns made of roses or crowns of laurels as symbols of their leadership. This symbolism would continue into the modern day: as the former remains as the national flower of the Kánitorian Empire (The Rose) and latter would move on to become an iconic symbol of every government to take power throughout Northern Vultierran history, even being seen in heraldry and imagery today. It is widely theorized that the continent's name stems from the rulers of this time period, as Ancient Kánitorian historians several millennia later would designate this area *"Terram regi vulpes"* ("The land ruled by foxes") or simply, *"Vulpes Terra"* ("Fox Land") that would soon be shortened further into it's modern name of "Vultierra" later on. Throughout this period, various ninetales rulers would reign over certain sections of the massive mixed canine/pinniped tribe that occupied all of of Northern Vultierra. While none of their identities were truly known, oral records indicate that the first of these rulers to be crowned with flowers was a Kantonian Ninetales named Rhea. Beyond the name of this first ruler - who reigned over single region that would become modern-day Remus - her story, as well as the name and stories of other rulers like her throughout this time period are currently lost to time.

This period would last for about 10,000 years, and it was during this time that these quadrupedal tribes would gradually evolve to walk upright, discover agriculture, create structures and eventually forge weapons and armor. Additionally, around roughly 20,000 BCE - the members of the tribe would slowly start gravitating toward those who shared the same species - soon setting the foundation for species-specific divisions to form out of what was originally a more diverse confederation. This would cause the ninetales that once held dominion over the land to gradually lose power over the regions of the mixed tribe that they once administered - eventually coalescing into their own species-specific divisions like those around then. Anything else beyond the information from these accounts, however, are lost to time and no further details could be found neither through archaeological data nor oral records.

### Ancient History

The Grimoire Argentum, the second book in the series of Gamellic scripture, documents that while these tribes gradually began to split by species while evolving the ability to lay the building blocks for civilization - all three divine wolf deities had grown rather curious of their mortal creations made in their canine image. Acting on their curiosity, they often disguised themselves as their fellow earthen canines and mingled with them - often growing fond of them to the point that oftentimes, they would bear children with many of them in the process. The firstborn children of The Three Wolves would soon become minor deities in their Pantheon once their time on earth has passed (Known as "Saints"), yet during life - would pass on their divine lineage through the generations while those around their children grew in population and continued to evolve as a society alongside them. Despite this common lineage, these species-exclusive packs continued to remain very territorial, frequently engaging in both conflicts and alliances with one another over the course of several millennia until about 5000 BCE - where the land was now completely divided by 35 distinct canine tribes that all occupied the north of Vultierra. This included the first recorded civilization of the world's Southern Hemisphere: a confederation of city-states formed by a small handful of these tribes known as the Axian Civilization. The Axian Civilization comprised primarily of canine and pinniped tribes located in the northwestern region of the continent and is regarded by many as a precursor to the modern-day Kanitorian Empire and it's formation marks the very beginning of Kánitorian culture.

Slowly but surely, the constituents of the Axian Civilization - comprised of a confederation of all pinniped tribes and a unified confederation of a tribe of both Kantonian and Alolan ninetales all descended from the divine wolves - would wage war against one another in a series of bloody conflicts. After centuries of bloodshed, around 3500 BCE, these vulpine and pinniped tribes would form a union through the marriage of the united ninetales tribe's Empress Cassiopeia and the united pinniped tribe's Emperor Leonidas to form the first Empire in all the Southern Hemisphere's history. Named after the civilization that had it's start in the region, the Axian Empire, commonly referred to as Axos, would be ruled together by an Emperor and Empress bound by marriage to share power over the region - with one ruler (primarily being the Empress) customarily being of the united ninetales tribes and the other (primarily bring the Emperor) being of the united pinniped tribe.

However, with the seal faction still seeking to expand it's borders even further and the faction of united ninetales still reflecting on their prehistory - where they practically ruled over the canines of the region - it would not be long before the Axian Empire sought to expand their influence as far across the continent as they could. Being the new powerhouse of the region, the Axian Empire would primarily achieve their goal trade and business, which was usually mediated by the united ninetales faction. The faction comprised of seals would typically provide the military aide if nearby tribes responded violently to their presence in the region. It was through this process that they would acquire territories and vassal states under other nearby tribes throughout the continent of Vultierra. The most notable of these territories was a confederation of Arcanine and Hisuian Arcanine tribes located in what is now the capital city of modern-day Kánitore, Remus.

Once the Axian Empire had firmly established themselves that the continent would begin see its first foreign invasions. The first would be the arrival of a seemingly nomadic group of psychic types simply dubbed as "the Northern Mages". Accounts describe their arrival as "swift" while these mysterious pokémon reportedly landed on the beaches of Northern Vultierra "in droves - as if they were running away from something beyond the Northern Ocean." While the Northern Mages would hastily scramble to settle the continent, skirmishes often erupted between these psychic types and the already-established Axian Empire as well as their nearby tribal allies in the region. Over the decades, skirmishes soon devolved into war until eventually, the Northern Mages were ousted and their fleets proceeded to travel eastward to find another area to settle. While the identity of these mysterious "Northern Mages" were unknown at the time, many anthropologists speculate that their lineage can be traced back to the distant Northern continent of Ori.

However, the Northern Mages would not be the only incursion these early Vultierran civilizations would face during this period. Over in the neighboring continent of Eidres, a confederation of tribes from what would soon become modern-day Kaulseg would wage war on another coalition of Eidresian tribes located in current-day Rickland. Using a natural bridge formed by the ice cap of the South Pole that connected the southern portions of the two Southern hemisphere continents of Eidres and Vultierra at this time - a group of these proto-Rickie tribes would flee from the war in Eidres. They ultimately sought refuge in Southern Vultierra, settling in around what would become the modern-day Ferallands, Solustra and Southern Kánitore. However, the proto-Kaul tribes that clashed with these tribes would follow in hot pursuit, crossing the same ice bridge to soon bring the conflict to the Vultierran continent.

It was here that another series of skirmishes would begin again between the two ancient Eidresian factions, with battles between both tribes soon erupting across the modern-day Ferallands and Solustra that gradually made their way north toward the Axian Empire and the other unincorporated canine tribes in what would become modern-day Southern Kánitore. While native tribes in Southern Vultierra worked to diminish the power of incoming proto-Kaul tribes from behind while they pushed north, an alliance of the Axians and native canine tribes in north of the continent would push south to meet the proto-Kauls head-on. These Kaul tribes would be unable to keep up the momentum as the native Vultierrans pushed in from all directions, with their armies soon capitulating while the Eidreisans that settled in during the initial invasions were quickly assimilated into the Axian Empire, the remaining northern canine tribes and southern tribes of Vultierra.

### The Birth of a New Empire

The Empire of Axos would continue to retain hegemony over about half of the canine tribes of Northern Vultierra as well as small parts of Southern Vultierra for a little over a thousand years before gradually dealing with increasing rebellions, internal corruption, instability and soon losing many of the territories it had gained over the course of the millennia. As the Empire of Axos continued to decline, one of their former territories - the aforementioned confederation of Arcanine tribes in the most northeastern tip of Vultierra, would be one of the territories that seceded from their rule.

Around 2100 BCE, a warlord from this confederation by the name of Remus would have a series of dreams from his ancestor, the Zacian goddess Minerva, in which she encouraged him to mobilize his armies and finally unite all canines under one banner to form a singular nation that would mirror her and her siblings' very own heavenly canine empires - Elysia and Stygia. Additionally, many other visions he had along the same vein had demonstrated how Minerva and her other sibling deities, Clymenus and Maria, had in fact created the canine tribes of Northern Vultierra in their own image tens of thousands of years prior. This series of visions further urged Remus to reunite all his lost canine brother and sisters once again for the benefit of their survival as a people. Sure enough, Remus followed his ancestor's instructions and garnered his army of Arcanine, urging nearby canine tribes around them to join them before facing stiff resistance that soon escalated into a decades-long war for unification that would be known as "The War of the 35 Packs".

Soon, Remus' army would begin claiming victory after victory over the other northern Vultierran canine tribes, gradually assimilating them into their Axian-influenced culture as he quickly rose to power as the first Emperor of Kánitore. Tribe by tribe, Emperor Remus began to expand throughout the north of the continent, much like the Axians had done over 1 millennia prior - but covering much more ground and consolidating his claims much more efficiently than his predecessors. Being faced with the growing threat that would be the budding Empire of Kánitore (a former Axian territory) - the remnants of the much-older Empire of Axos inevitably clashed with Remus' forces. Remus sought to add the dying Axos to his new Empire while the Empress of Axos at the time, an Alolan ninetales named Faustina, sought to ward off this new threat. Despite the Axian Empire only being a small fraction of it's original size at this point, with many of the other tribes it once held dominion over now under Kánitorian control - it was persistent enough to repel invasion after invasion from the early Kánitorians as they continued to expand around them. However, it wouldn't hold steadfast for long, as after years of constant bloodshed and negotiations amongst the two nations would lead to stalemate after grueling stalemate, Empress Faustina and Emperor Remus ultimately decided to marry around 2094 B.C.E - forever uniting their Empires into one.

It is this part of Kánitorian history that is currently met with lots of debate among historians and anthropologists alike. While many consider the marrying of Faustina and Remus the fall of the Axian Empire, it is more widely accepted that the Axian Empire didn't fall, but instead evolved into the Kánitorian Empire. Those that argue the latter cite the fact that the very foundation of Remus' Empire of Kánitore - the original confederation of Arcanine tribes in the area - was molded by Axos during the time they were a territory under their Empire, leading to the Kánitorian Empire being a valid successor state to the Axian Empire becoming the most widely accepted theory. It goes without saying that Remus and Faustina's marriage was a historically symbolic moment - marking the era where a crumbling Axos rises out of the ashes as a brand-new Kánitore.

Even after this, The War of the 35 Packs raged on - where both Remus' and now Faustina's conquests of some of northern Vultierra's canine tribes and now their recent absorption of the former Empire of Axos further bolstering their forces as they grew in numbers and power. Throughout the remainder of the war, the borders of Emperor Remus and Empress Faustina's new nation rapidly expanded further as more and more of the canine tribes occupying the northern 2/3rds of the Vultierran continent were slowly added to their realm. As they integrated their fellow canines in species by species, they assigned each of them specific roles based on their species' skillsets to help keep the well-oiled machine that was the newborn Kánitorian Empire running smoothly. Examples of how canine species at this time were assigned specific roles under Remus' newly formed empire included herding species like Boltund and Stoutland taking up the task of animal husbandry, Leafeon taking up the task of farming, Fidough primarily being chefs/bakers, delphox being mages/priests/priestesses and more territorial, aggressive species like Mightyena or Arcanine primarily taking positions as commanders or politicians.

#### Former Canine Tribes and their Role in Ancient Kánitorian Imperial Society

To further strengthen the sense of unity among fellow canines while stepping back from the formerly more isolationist, species-exclusive tribal values - the newly conquered lands of Northern Vultierra then be organized into prefectures, which would be divided further into dioceses within the new empire. These divisions would not be based on species, but rather - based on the cultural similarities amongst several former canine tribes in a region. These new land divisions would even be complete with some level of self-governance at both a prefectorial and diocesan level. A handful of former rulers belonging to these canine tribes that either allied or negotiated with Remus were often spared in battles during The War of the 35 Packs, so after integration into the newly formed Kánitorian Empire - they were typically assigned governmental positions that roughly administered the lands they once reigned over. However, the power they once held over their dominion was still a far cry from what it was prior to their integration into the Kánitorian Empire. These former rulers' original titles would be replaced by titles created by Empress Faustina that were derived from the first two letters in the Axian (Greek) alphabet. Both the "Alpha" and their retainers, the "Betas" would act as representatives for their people within a prefecture and would answer to the Kánitorian Emperor and Empress. The subjects that these Alphas and Betas would rule over - formerly members of the canine tribes - would be dubbed members of their "Courts" with the Alpha being the main representative and leading 1 of 6 Courts. Several times a year, Alphas and Betas from each prefecture would travel to what is now the modern-day capital city of Remus to regularly convene with the Emperor and Empress in assemblies that would discuss the nation's affairs on behalf of their people and culture. These assemblies would be Kánitore's first formal "Senatus" or Senate - which was also the collective name for nation's governing body comprised of the Alphas, Betas, Emperor and Empress. As the numbers of canines that joined Remus and Faustina's Empire grew, so did the continued development of the Southern Hemisphere's very first civilization. Gradually, the nation would evolve to form a permanent population sharing a single cultural identity, infrastructure, writing system, institutions, architecture and social hierarchy led by a democratic government and a professional military.

Once all the canine tribes of Northern Vultierra were successfully united under one banner and each assigned a role to play in keeping their new nation alive, they now set their sights on the southern half of the continent (modern day Solustra and the Ferallands) which was mostly populated with non-canine tribes that migrated from Eidres. While not as plentiful in canine species as the northern half of the continent - there were still pockets of canine populations left over from the migration of Kaul tribes over the ice shelf as well as refugees from former Northern Vultierran tribes that escaped the initial phases of The War of the 35 Packs. Emperor Remus and Empress Faustina initially began by negotiating with these Southern Vultierran tribes, attempting to convince them to join their newly formed Empire with offers of trade or protection in exchange for tributes. Some tribes, however, treated these offers with more hostility - resulting in skirmishes that would soon erupt into battles between the newly formed Kánitorian Imperial Army and the southern Vultierran tribes that once worked together with them to fight off the proto-Kaul tribes about one millennia earlier.

    Battles between the more organized, professional early Kánitorian Imperial Army and the more mixed, scattered tribes of Southern Vultierra had very mixed results. The Kánitorians managed to claim and control some swaths of Southern Vultierran lands for limited amounts of time while the Southern Vultierran tribes either resisted to dismantle these claims, refused to cooperate with one another or even continued to war with one another while under the Kánitorian banner. Since these territories were far less organized and much more difficult for the ancient Kánitorian Empire to claim or maintain for long periods of time, these lands would soon be dubbed “The Ferallands” by the Kánitorians themselves. Countless attempts were made to subdue these lands, with Emperor Remus even going as far as commanding his lycanroc forces to construct an expansive underground network of tunnels beneath the entire continent of Vultierra to aid in ambushes, easy transport of Kánitorian troops/supplies and possibly even to use them as an aqueduct system once the entire continent was under Kánitorian control. At the conclusion of The War of the 35 Packs - after several failed attempts to subdue and unite the Ferallands into his new Empire, Emperor Remus and Empress Faustina commanded the newly-assimilated Lycanroc Packs to construct a heavily-armed bulwark that would span the entire Southern border of his canine empire to separate the newly formed Kánitorian Empire from the Ferallands. The newly formed Imperial Senate stationed Kánitorian legionaries to keep watch within the wall to ward off any potential invaders - essentially turning the structure into a massive military fortification that they used to keep the Southern Vultierrans out. From here, the executive decision was made by the Emperor, Empress and their Senate to consolidate their current claims rather than continuing further bloodshed to bring the entire continent under their control. It would not be for another 1000 years until Kánitore would yet again make an attempt to try to subjugate the South of Vultierra under their banner. Even until the present day, the Ferallands would remain unclaimed by the Kánitorian Empire, despite their claims in other faraway lands throughout the course of their history.

### The Strife of 1000 Years

The unification of Northern Vultierra did have its benefits - as it gave the tribes that inhabited these lands a chance to forge a common cultural identity founded on their canine principles and lineage. Additionally, formerly species-exclusive tribes now began interacting with each other in ways they hadn't before - intermarrying with one another to create a diverse empire that thrived on the myriad of cultures working together for the common goal of survival as a nation. However, the fact that about 35 tribes - each with their own distinct cultures and territories - were now suddenly integrated under one banner and forcibly organized into 11 dioceses and 6 prefectures by a foreign power meant that this unity also came with a deadly price. Prior to unification, these canine tribes had their own ongoing political issues that ranged from established alliances and rivalries with one another to either a distaste or preference of local rulers. Even after being consolidated into a nearly continent-wide Empire, many of these leftover political issues were left unresolved - causing old wounds from political tensions within and between each former canine tribe prior to unification to tear open once again in the form of civil unrest within the newly formed borders of the Kánitorian Empire.

Over the course of the next millennia in what historians call "The Strife of 1000 Years", a vicious cycle began to form as political instability from a myriad of reasons would cause uprisings, which would be temporarily quelled by hastily-made governmental reforms to try to keep up with the civil unrest. Most of the time, these new reforms would cause new political unrest, starting the cycle all over again. This cycle of self-destruction would erupt repeatedly throughout the newly birthed Empire at various periods of time during this millennia, forever marking this era Kánitorian history as a sort of Kánitorian Dark Age where the nation would still be one unified entity, but constantly at the brink of collapse. What was originally Emperor Remus and Empress Faustina's dream of a united canine Empire would become an absolute nightmare laden with small-scale wars, coup d'état's, assassinations of various political figures and more that were often incited by or involved the participation of common citizens, members of the newly formed Kánitorian Senate and even the military. Oftentimes, groups within their own assigned prefectures viciously warred with one another and/or rebelled against the Alphas or Betas put in place to rule over their Courts due to sentiments they held for these leaders prior to unification. There are even some accounts of Alphas, Betas and/or citizens plotting against or successfully assassinating the Emperor or Empress for a plethora of reasons that ranged from ethnic conflicts to poor leadership, scandals and other influential political figures rallying their followers to take matters into their own hands.

Throughout the millennia, various Courts hailing from any of the Empire's prefectures would take power either over neighboring prefectures or over all the other prefectures in the Empire without any endorsement from the central government. Alphas of these rogue Courts throughout this period would declare themselves Emperors/Empresses before inevitably clashing with Emperors/Empresses formally elected by the central government - resulting in the outbreak of bloody wars for the imperial throne. At times when these rogue Alphas rose victorious - they managed to completely control the central government for periods of time that ranged from a few years to a few centuries. While the central government was under the rule of a specific Alpha, they would enforce their Court's distinct culture across the entirety of the Empire, spreading their influence throughout Remus' realm for a certain amount of time. They would then either be overthrown by another Alpha and their Court also seeking to seize power, or deposed by the central government when it managed to regain control again. As each Court with their own cultural identity would essentially take turns seizing power over the central government, the remnants of their tribal cultures would gradually permeate into the culture of Kánitore as a whole. All the while, members of the central government seeking to spread their original "Kánitorian" culture stemming from Emperor Remus' culture of the Axians often found themselves fighting for dominance against these usurpers at the same time.

When the central government did manage to take power several times amidst the various prefectures' fight for dominance over the nation, they attempted to consolidate control over the unruly Courts by making changes to the way the the nation was administered. Attempts ranged from abolishing the Court and prefecture system altogether to give every former tribe autonomy while keeping them loyal to the Emperor to dividing them out in cultural spheres alone. The most notable of these attempts, known as the Canine Triumvirate, involved divvying up Kánitore into administrative regions based on the type of canines that lived in an area. This divided the Empire into a sector comprised of all the nation's dogs called the "Kingdom of the Canines", a sector comprised of all the nation's foxes called the "Kingdom of the Vulpines" and a sector comprised of all the nation's wolves called the "Kingdom of the Lupines". Each realm was ruled over by their own Emperor - who were expected to meet together in a loose form of the Kánitorian Senate to promote cooperation between their realms. While these realms did retain some shared Kánitorian identity - evidenced by their cooperation when warding off Ferallander tribes or early pirates from the neighboring Kaul Empire in Eidres - they still found themselves warring with one another for dominance over the entire nation. It wasn't long until a Vulpine Emperor named Valentinian wished to restore the original culture and government started by Emperor Remus by launching a campaign that would subdue the other two realms - successfully reuniting the Empire and it's central government into one entity again.

Despite this, however, revolts and threats of rebellion continued - with each one being brutally quelled by the Imperial Military under either the Emperor or Empress, members of the Senate and sometimes even Military Commanders. There were even accounts of citizens themselves partaking in these rebellions as they worked together with either of these authorities - depending on who they favored at the time. Over the course of the period, this constant political unrest prompted major infrastructural changes to the way the central Kánitorian Government ruled over its subjects. One of the most notable changes that would still have it's effects last into the modern day were policies designed to slowly phase out the original cultures and identities of the former tribes that the Empire conquered while simultaneously imposing one, homogenous "Kánitorian Culture" on all of its subjects across all Courts. However, unbeknownst to the central government - the "homogenous Kánitorian Culture" would already be forever shaped by the remnant tribal cultures that spread their influence prior, only distributing them further and solidifying their place in the Kánitorian national identity.

These policies - combined with the upheavals preceding them - greatly influenced many facets of Kánitorian life at the time including fashion, architecture, religion, city layouts, infrastructure, cuisine and art. Even the languages they spoke were heavily shaped by these policies both at a regional and a national level. The Empire's lingua franca was made to primarily be Arcani (Latin) and secondarily Axian (Greek), but regional languages in each diocese and prefecture would start drawing more and more influences such as syntax and vocabulary from these two main tongues. This, combined with the governmentally enforced "unified Kánitorian Culture" unintentionally incorporating aspects of the original canine tribal cultures with every takeover by a single Court, would cause the civil unrest to slowly diminish as the Strife of 1000 years would came to a close around the late 900's. Eventually, the Empire of Kánitore was properly united and rebellion-free - but there are accounts of each region still secretly practicing some customs from their original cultures while continuing to blend them in with this newly enforced underlying Kánitorian culture in a way similar to how former native tongues incorporated aspects of the mandated Arcani and Axian languages. In the end - the constant back and forth battle for cultural influence between the original tribal cultures of Northern Vultierra and the central government enforcing a more ancient Mediterranean "Kánitorian" culture would unknowingly solidify the nation's identity as one distinct canine culture made up of many.

### The Beginning of the Antigonine Dynasty (Pax Kánitori I)

Once the turn of yet another millennia approached, stability finally made its way across the Kánitorian Empire as a polished version of Emperor Remus' original governmental system was put back into effect. There were still some remnants of the Strife of 1000 Years in the form of political unrest that occasionally erupted in the 10th century C.E, but none of these movements had any lasting effects nor left any marks as the Kánitorian Empire began to thrive. At this time, an Emperor by the name of Lazarus was primarily responsible for beginning many of the reforms that set the foundations for Remus' initial system to work to its fullest potential. However, as a plague began to sweep through the entire Southern hemisphere from Eidres - Emperor Lazarus was inflicted with the disease and fell critically ill. Without wasting any time, Lazarus' wife, named Antigone, took action and began primarily enacting these policies in his her husband's stead as Empress.

When Emperor Lazarus eventually succumbed to his illness, Empress Antigone continued to enact and revise her late husband's policies while the election for the next Emperor went underway. Empress Antigone's versions of the policies primarily focused on giving each Diocese and Prefecture more freedom to express their own cultural rituals and reinforce their secondary identities that were stripped away by the Strife of 1000 years. These amendments quickly earned Antigone the favor of the Kánitorian people, and once the Imperial Election came to a close - the widow had been crowned as the Kánitorian Empress, starting the Antigonine Dynasty. As she finalized these changes allowing for expression of a region's original cultural practices, she would forever be credited as the Empress that would put a definitive end to the Strife of 1000 Years. Although, while a lot of her policies focused on the importance of maintaining regional identity, her biggest reforms mostly surrounded an unconventional approach of keeping the people of Kánitore safe.

Not only would the "Widow Empress" Antigone be responsible for ending the Strife of 1000 Years, but she would also call forth the Empire's first Golden Age - often dubbed "Pax Kánitori I" or the "First Kánitorian Peace". While only lasting about 6 decades, this period in the Empire's history would be the first time it achieved any level of political stability since first being established over 1000 years ago. Antigone's policies during this time would focus primarily on using this time of peace she ushered in as an opportunity to develop the nation further - promoting a more formalized education system that would cause the literacy rate to skyrocket as well as a foreign policy primarily focused on establishing relations through trade rather than through expansion of the Empire's borders like Remus attempted to do in the Empire's earlier years. This would be the last time Kánitore and the Ferallands would have strong, friendly economic ties - as they would be the empire's largest trade partner with Solustra and the the newly formed Kaul Empire that neighbored them to the east. Many records from this time describe visits from envoys that hailed from many parts of these nations, with some accounts even stating that at one point, Kanitore's Imperial Guard enlisted some soldiers from the southern Kaul Empire and even some larger tribes in the Ferallands.

### The End of Pax Kánitori I

However, this era of peace and economic prosperity would not last. As Empress Antigone aged and her health began to decline, she too would fall ill with a terminal illness that would render her unfit to rule as she became chronically bedridden. Since she had no one to enact policies in her stead like she had done for her late husband decades earlier - her only son, Tacitus, would take her place in ruling the nation she helped lift up from the ashes of the Strife of 1000 Years. Compared to the honorable reputation his mother had, Tacitus was known for the opposite - often being labelled as short-tempered, high strung and paranoid yet very charismatic and personable. Many accounts from those closest to him show signs that he may have been mentally unstable - often being called the "Mad Emperor" by historians and those within his circle. During the time that he took over the throne while his mother was ill, Emperor Tacitus fervently believed in visions that came to him in his sleep: where the mother wolf of the Kánitorian people, their Zacian goddess Minerva herself, had chosen him - "a member of the all-powerful fairy type" to "unite all canine peoples under one pack" - similar to the visions that Emperor Remus had over a millennia prior. However, with all the canine tribes of Northern Vultierra now currently under the rule of the Kánitorian Empire - this left Tacitus to conclude that the goddesses were rallying him to expand their borders even further to include canines from other nations and even other continents, as they would also be considered "lost children of the divine wolves".

As years would go by where Tacitus would continue to rule in Antigone's stead, he would constantly rally the Kánitorian people to stand by his cause - emphasizing how the prosperity that Empress Antigone established gave them the tools and opportunities they needed to expand their borders so they could "bring the lost children of the divine wolves home". Due to the pack mentality of the nation, small groups that were convinced by the charismatic Tacitus would soon grow to many, and it wasn't long before many of these groups would become most of the nation as the Mad Emperor, much against his ill mother's wishes, would mobilize her people for war.

Today, many historians point out the fact that the known world to the Kánitorian people during Remus' time was vastly different compared to the known world that was familiar to Antigone, and by extension Tacitus. Given the vague wording of the visions Tacitus had, historians believe that he had interpreted "all canine peoples" as those overseas in other continents as well - when it very well could have simply been referring to the canine tribes of northern Vultierra actually created in the images of the goddesses and their brother. While the answer will never truly be known, it would be through this likely misinterpretation of Kánitore's "Mad Emperor" that the Antigonine Dynasty would have its reputation forever tarnished by Kanitore's bloody mark on the world - a period that many Kánitorian historians would now call the "Era of Conquest".

With the people now by his side, Emperor Tacitus and his Senate devised a plan to utilize the riches earned from Antigone's reforms to negotiate with neighboring nations - offering money in exchange for the canine-populated sectors of land they possessed and only resorting to force if nations responded with hostility. However, while Tacitus would set his plan in motion - his mother Antigone would soon make a recovery from the illness that left her bedridden during the years her son enacted this new agenda. The now elderly Empress would immediately confront her son about the reforms he made in her absence, leading to a heated altercation between the two that ultimately resulted in Antigone being captured by forces now loyal to Tacitus before being incarcerated deep in the underground dungeons of the Imperial Palace. Very few knew of the Empress' return - with much of the empire believing that she was still bedridden while already accustomed to her son's rule. As a matter of fact, Emperor Tacitus had now garnered such a large following that he was officially granted the title of Emperor by winning the next election - further solidifying his new role in Kánitorian politics. All the while, his aging mother Antigone would remain incarcerated - betrayed by her own child as was left to watch all her life's work unravel before her while he continued to mobilize for what he would call, "A continuation of the War of 35 Packs".

With his only political opponent, his own mother - now imprisoned by his orders, Emperor Tacitus immediately sent his armies south past the wall to negotiate with Northern Ferallander tribes. For a whole millennia, Ferallanders tribes held grudges toward the Kánitorians from when Remus attempted to conquer the area over 1000 years prior. With Emperor Tacitus and his armies now suddenly approaching them, instead of Antigone's usual bands of traders and merchants, the northern Ferallanders responded with hostility - leading to the first battle of Kánitore's Era of Conquest. While both armies clashed, a small handful of Antigone's supporters from within the Imperial Palace freed her from her prison, and she soon made her presence known to the citizens that presumed she was still ill this entire time. Thrilled to see their Empress alive, albeit malnourished from her imprisonment, Antigone amassed her own army while her son and his forces engaged the tribes in the Northern Ferallands. In an attempt to stop Tacitus from causing any further damage to the age of prosperity she created, her armies inevitably clashed with Tacitus' from the rear as he found himself now fighting a battle on two fronts. However, it was when Antigone unexpectedly joined the battle that Emperor Tacitus would be slain by Northern Ferallander forces right in front of his own mother.

Once Antigone had witnessed the death of her only child, she was no longer able to carry out the duties of leading the charge against Tacitus' Imperial Army. As she would carry away the lifeless corpse of her only son away from the battlefields - mourning the entire way - she would hastily entrust her command to one of her Prefects while the battle continued. With Antigone's army now under new management, they would quickly form an alliance with the Northern Ferallanders against Tacitus' newly reformed Imperial Army. However, the deceased Tacitus' more aggressive military reforms, in combination with the loyalty of the nation's citizens garnered during his rallies, would prove to win out as his Imperial Army rose victorious under the command of his cousin and closest Prefect, a Primarina the name of Zeno.

### The Era of Conquest

With Prefect Zeno's forces now controlling scattered areas in the Northern Ferallands closest to the wall that divided the Empire from this unorganized territory inhabited mostly by non-canine tribes - he immediately annexed a strategically crucial section of coastline along the southeast of the continent into the Kánitorian Empire. Not only was the area strategically important, but it was also culturally vital to the Ferallanders, as it was once inhabited by one of their largest and most prominent tribes from ancient times - the Barca Tribe - whose King, Hasrabda, was a rival to a then-younger Kánitore's Emperor Remus. Because of this, it is speculated that Zeno's hasty annexation of this section of coastline was done to decrease Ferallander morale, but also to limit the Ferallanders' access to the Sea of Fates and hence, limit trade with the Kaul Empire on Eidres. This region, now the modern-day Kánitorian port town of Adversaire, would become Kánitore's first-ever colony that would mark the end of the first Pax Kánitori (Kánitorian Peace) and set the stage for the nation's new Era of Conquest.

As news of Emperor Tacitus' post-mortem victory made it's way to the citizens of the Empire, support for his regime soon reached an all-time high - with Prefect Zeno's military victory following Emperor Tacitus's demise earning him the title of Emperor by next election. With Zeno now crowned as the third Emperor in the Antigonine Dynasty, this would begin what would be dubbed "The Reign of Fairies" - which was a name given to the string of Fairy-type Emperors and Empresses related to Tacitus that would rule over the Kánitorian Empire during this new era of expansion through colonization. Emperor Zeno would prove to be no different from his predecessor as he would carry on Tacitus' legacy and policies - preserving the belief that due to his typing being the same as their Gamellic Goddess of War along with his relation to Emperor Tacitus, that he was destined to unite all canine peoples throughout the world under the Kánitorian banner.

With these ideals firmly instilled in him, he would proceed to wage war on various tribes all throughout the Ferallands. Tactics employed by Zeno and every Emperor/Empress after him involved taking Ferallanders' paranoia surrounding canine pokémon species and using this against them. The Kánitorians heavily relied on strategic alliances formed between them and the local populations of mistreated Ferallander canines that were either exiled or currently being disenfranchised by various tribes throughout the region. Often, they would promise these canines that under their rule, they would receive better treatment with more rights as citizens (that Ferallanders deprived them of severely), protection from other tribes through the help of the Kánitorian army as well as the ability to mostly self-govern - albeit needing to answer to the Emperor, Empress and their Senate. These promises sounded so appealing to the canine rejects of Ferallander society that they willingly flocked to the Kánitorians' aide as rebellions led by these mistreated canines (and sometimes backed up by the Kánitorians) would erupt all across the Ferrallands, leaving many tribes weak as they capitulated to invasions from the more professional Kánitorian Imperial Army. However, this was not the only way that these alliances would prove crucial, as they would also allow Kánitorians to communicate with local tribes, provide them with intel during times of war such as the movement patterns and plans of enemy armies and would inform them of other tribes or canines willing to aid the Kánitorians.

Zeno and many Emperors and Empresses after him would continue to take full advantage of the prejudice the Ferallanders had against canines by inciting and aiding in rebellions that would result in swaths of Ferallander land becoming colonies - regions of the Ferallands now controlled by Kánitore would sometimes be administered by the Ferallander canines formerly exiled by their own tribes. These scattered colonies would be granted independence and self-rule as promised, as long as they answered to the Kánitorian Emperor and his Senate. While obtaining the colonies had proven to be successful, lasting control of the areas was an immense challenge as tribes under Kánitorian rule often moved around and sometimes disappeared entirely - causing an underlying state of disorganization. This lack of unity stemmed from politics between various tribes within Kánitorian colonies in the Ferallands caused a lack of cooperation that would remain a roadblock for Emperor Zeno and his successors. As the Kánitorians would spend the next few centuries attempting to retain colonies in this part of the continent throughout the Era of Conquest, they would still have little to no permanent success. This would be the first time the Ferallands faced invasions from Kánitorian forces since the days Emperor Remus was in power over 1000 years ago, but they only faced the brunt of Kánitorian expansion due to being the empire's immediate neighbors.

\_\_\_

The colonial flags of all of Kánitore's claims during the peak of their Era of Conquest.

    Solustra was conquered on land, with all three of its factions succumbing to Kánitorian forces and military occupation and being renamed into the Kánitorian prefecture of *Solustella*. Tameu was stormed by Kánitorian military forces that sailed over by boat, but but did not resist occupation - resulting in its immediate annexation as the Kántorian prefecture, *Felisidus*. Around the same time, Kaulseg and Deloria warred with one another, with Kánitore starting to expand its borders to other nations and watching the war from afar with curious eyes. With it's claws now sharpened due to its new claims in Solustra and Tameu, the Kánitorian Empire decided to exact its revenge on Kaulseg from the time it took over their lands prior to unification. The Kánitorian Empire stormed a distracted Kaulseg, conquering and claiming parts of its Western Coast as their Kauls opponents simultaneously fought off Delorian forces now backed by the incoming Kánitorians that sought to claim Kaulseg as their own as revenge for their occupation by the Kauls thousands of years prior. These lands in Western Kaulseg that they conquered successfully would soon become the prefecture of *Ferrucia* while Kánitorians stationed in Deloria that were waiting to be deployed to Kaulseg with Delorian troops would settle in and occupy the lands to form the Kanitorian prefecture of *Sapentius**,* where they exchanged ideas and technology in what was deemed a beneficial relationship between the two. Once all this land was claimed by the Kánitorian Empire, it's prefecture of *Solustella* (Solustra) was soon under attack by an ever-expanding Totemic Empire, which sought to claim their port toward the ocean west of Vultierra (modern day ***Aaron's Meet***). When the Totemic attacked the Kánitorian-occupied *Solustella*, the Kánitorians responded by sending more forces to conquer them, depleting their resources and precious metals like gold to fund their Empire during what was now a Great Depression triggered by the war between Kaulseg and Deloria. At its peak, the Kánitorian Empire claimed territories in what is now Kaulseg, Tameu, Solustra, Deloria and the Ferallands. Although, there are records of catastrophic failures, like Kánitore's attempt to conquer the land of Saranghon, only to be slaughtered by the feral-behaving bugs that only saw the soldiers as food. However, the ruthless and all-powerful Kánitorian army was no match for the Civil War in the late 1700's that not only caused them to let go of the colonies they worked so hard to gain but also to potentially lose the unity they once prided themselves on.

### The Civil War

One of the most controversial Emperors in Kánitorian history, Emperor Cicero. The last Emperor of the Reign of Fairies and the Emperor that ended the Civil War. However, his mistreatment of Tameui immigrants to Kánitore due to his bitter feelings toward Tameui Pharaoh Cleocatra for rejecting his advances had earned him the title as Kánitore's first deposed Emperor.

The Great Depression was now in full swing due to the collapsing economy of Rickland from the Kaul-Delorian War. In the meantime, the Kánitorian Empire - which was a major trade partner with Rickland at time, was now left with their economy beginning to struggle as well. It would not be long before this era of economic depression would spark unrest through an atmosphere of general mistrust toward the Kánitorian government due to the high unemployment rates combined with the horrible economy and overly nationalistic attitudes. Sure enough, the spark that would explode into one of the Empire's most bloody conflicts soon ignited when one court was mysteriously wiped out by a plague and three of Kánitore's remaining five courts had decided to secede. Their reasoning behind this secession, according to most historians, was due to political unrest, dissatisfaction with the cultural practices from the strife of 1000 years and the restricting policies that the Kánitorian government put into practice at the time; as well as tension between existing Courts due to claims overseas during the Era of Conquest. The emperor at the time, *Emperor Cicero*, attempted to maintain order and unity, but faced fierce opposition from the three courts that defected and the Alphas that led them, who would soon be known as the Order of Cerberus. This regime led by the Order of Cerberus would soon deem their lands as "Sarveria", calling their citizens "Sarverians" and often rallying them to violently protest against the Kánitorian government after brainwashing them with the move hypnosis en masse. Additionally, the Alphas within the Order of Cerberus had sapped wealth and riches from their colonies to fund the growth of their own military, which would soon be used to quell rowdy citizens, arrest dissidents and to fiercely battle against Kánitorian forces trying to subdue their rise to power throughout the Civil War. The Sarverian regime ruled with an iron fist, crushing any rebellions within their territories while also silencing anyone who opposed them, making them "disappear" while giving their children away for adoption into families that agreed with the regime's ideals. The colonies the empire once claimed soon slipped out of the Emperor's and Alphas' grasps as they started to focus their military power on the Sarverians and the Civil War, only for the bloody rebellion to be violently quelled by a ninetales named Frida Pizarro. It was said that she had murdered the Alphas that headed the three defective courts and allowed Emperor Cicero to reunite the nation and improve on the government system to prevent future outbursts.

### The Era of Peace (Pax Kánitori II)

Following the tragic loss of life that took place during the Civil War, relations between the Kánitorian Empire and the economically recovered Rickland begun to improve greatly. This was due to the increasing Rickie demand for certain lava-based stones only found around volcanoes within the borders of Kánitore since volcanoes were weaponized during the war and used to bury entire towns that were strongholds for the Order of Cerberus. Rickies found themselves assisting in excavation efforts, extracting and purchasing the stones from these sites in order to make a profit back home. With this influx of Rickie workers flowing into the slowly recovering, post-war Kánitore, many stayed long-term in order to assist with excavation efforts as well as to find even more business ventures within the Empire.

Not only did this result in a boost to the crippled Kánitorian economy after the war, but also in a heavy amount of Rickie influence that helped Kánitore develop more like the other world powers of Eidres. Before long, Rickie music, entertainment and even the use of Common (English) spread all throughout the Empire during this time - with this influence lasting even up until the present day. Rickland's influence on Kánitore during the post-war period was immense, with more and more Kánitorians being given more incentive to speak Common due to the sheer amounts of Rickie businessmen. Additionally, ampitheaters, theaters and bars were combined together into what the Kánitorians called Cabarets - which were based on the concept of Rickie Burlesque/Vaudville complete with their own versions of showgirls. Even the Rickie music genres of jazz and swing began spread all throughout the Kánitorian Empire at this time, eventually leading to the conception of Kánitorian regional genres like Bossa Nova, Latin Jazz and even contributing to it's current, Empire-wide Electroswing craze.

All this aside, however, Kánitore was still heavily in debt, so now the Kánitorian empire began to set their sights on Tameu once again. They had claimed this nation as part of their Empire prior, but had lost it due to the Civil War. Now, however, they needed money to pay their debts and had believed that they could use Tameu to help pay them off - resulting in their second attempt to "colonize" the Queendom of Cats through peaceful occupation and helping the local government gain power rather than the usual violent means. The two nations, very briefly, had a small union between them that allowed both of them to economically thrive together. This was considered Tameu's golden age, and it was here that the people were given hope that Kánitore would help them prosper. Kánitorians soon mingled with the locals and intermarried with the local Tameui - resulting in many Tameui being taken back to Kánitore as husbands and wives. Just like before, however, Kánitore was to lose control of Tameu decades later due to unrest sparked by the *mass immigration of cats* into the country, and an affair between an Alpha named Barc Antony and the Pharaoh of Tameu at the time, Cleocatra. There was even some speculation that Emperor Cicero himself having some involvement in the love triangle as well. Since this second release of Tameu from their occupation, the Empire of Kánitore had vowed to enforce a world peace agenda with Embassies all over the world and Ambassadors living in almost every country in an attempt to right Kánitore's past wrongs of world conquest, even up until today.

However, while some modern-day nations forgive the Empire for its transgressions in the past, others still remain bitter about their prior occupation during Kánitore's Era of Conquest. Although, evidence of the Empire seeking to conquer again after it's brutal Civil War has never been uncovered, with Kánitore now actively trading with and establishing diplomatic ties with most of its former colonies such as Tameu, Kaulseg, Solustra and Deloria while now playing a key role on the world stage as "The World's Guard Dog". Any aid requested by other countries it has ties with will typically be met with agreement and aid sent in from Kánitore in the form of money or even professionals in whatever field they are needed in - mostly doctors, nurses and soldiers.

## **Geography and Climate**

Kánitore lies on the entire northern portion of the continent of Vultierria, which sits on the Southern Hemisphere. The Empire is bordered by the Kánitorian Sea to the North, the Ignotus sea with the islands of Oramundi, Fortulenza and Carcano to the West, the Ferallands to the South and the Gulf of Sorrorcula to the East, with Kaulseg and Deloria beyond the gulf. Dividing the Empire from it's Ferallander neighbors, a massive, heavily armed 10 meter tall wall separates the Ferallands from Kánitore, with its entire length covering the border between the two nations, containing rooms, barracks and other chambers inside to allow housing for soldiers.

It is a primarily Mediterranean climate in the North of the mainland with scattered deserts that expand to the coastline in the northeast and in the central north - where the Pannochia Gulf surrounds the Aurisian Peninsula. The prefectures that contain this particular climate include Eldorado and Sonterra, where the Iron Dog and Centurion Courts reside respectively. Inland, lush, rolling farmland sitting atop gently inclining valleys surround the massive Mount Pruina in the center of the Empire, with this sector of fertile earth expanding out as far as Kaulmont. Plots of vineyards, olive trees, orange trees and other luscious flora expanding out along the farmland - with dirt and cobblestone roads being decorated by rows of Cypress trees. Coastlines retain their Mediterranean climate - a prime example being the coastal city of Montecarlo, with deserts in selected areas such as Novis; as well as subtropical zones, particularly around the northern portion of the Sonterran prefecture and the entire island of Fortulenza, off the coast of Northwestern Sonterra.

The further south, the cooler and more temperate the climate gets - with the colder climate providing plenty of lush woodlands, moorland and meadows sitting atop valleys. Prefectures such as Montclair, Kaulmont, and Barkshire lie within this temperate zone, where they have much cooler, longer winters in contrast to their the northern counterparts - where the weather is much warmer and experiences generally shorter winters. Despite this, nearly the entire Empire experiences all four seasons, with the exception to this including the large, snow-covered mountain in the center of the empire named Mount Pruina - which experiences snowstorms year-round; as well as the Northernmost portions of Sonterra and the Island of Fortulenza - which are closer to the equator and never experience winter.

Five rivers run through the Empire - River Baetica, River Aquitania, River Epirus, River Britannia and River Germania, with each one meeting at a point, around the city of Wolferhampton. Toward the west, River Germania flows directly into the nation's largest lake, Lake Peregrino - where several dozen small towns litter the coastline of this body of water surrounded by deep woodland. Around this lake, fog constantly blankets the area - and with rumors of the lakeside town of Clairton being abandoned entirely because of a beast terrorizing the local people 20 years ago, this only adds to the mysterious aura of the land around Lake Peregrino.

Beneath the entire Empire, as well as the continent of Vultierra - a network of underground tunnels lie expanding from Remus to the Southernmost portion of the Ferallands. These are remnants of the first Emperor Remus commanding newly conquered Lycanroc troops to dig these tunnels beneath the continent for aqueducts when he planned on taking over the entire continent. Since this venture fell short and he was unable to claim and unite the Ferallands, these networks remained - with some parts caving in and others being repurposed. Some notable examples of repurposing including the catacombs beneath the city of Jeanneville - which were used for both dumping grounds for cemeteries above ground that grew too crowded, as well as proper burial crypts and shelter from wars that the Empire found itself involved in.

## **Government**

A chart detailing the Courts of Kánitore (Click to expand)

While the Empire is first and foremost, a Monarchy with an Emperor and/or Empress at the top of the hierarchy, each key aspect of the country is individually moderated by 5 Courts in a checks-and-balances type of system.

Courts comprise of a certain percentage of average Kánitorian citizens (See the section on "Omegas" below for more details) and are headed by their Alphas. Currently, the 5 Courts are: *The Iron Dogs* - which manage finances, funds as well as the treasury, occupying the prefecture of Eldorado; T*he Centurions* - which manage culture as well as infrastructure, occupying the prefecture of Sonterra; *The Brotherhood of the Lily*, or simply, *"The Brotherhood"* - which oversee anything pertaining to the arts, entertainment and foreign relations/policy and occupy the prefecture of Montclair; *The Fellowship of the Crown*, or simply known as "*The Fellowship"* - which manage the Empire's economy, manufacturing and trade, residing in the prefecture of Barkshire; and lastly, the *Kriegshunde*, who manage Military, STEM and research and reside in the prefecture of Kaulmont.

Each Court is ruled by an Alpha and enforced by their bodyguards as well as their advisors, the Betas. Betas also advise Alphas in their decisions and have a crucial role in the government. All Alphas work under the Emperor/Empress and must consult them first when making important decisions, but also have the right to depose any Emperor or Empress they deem unfit to rule (with votes from their Betas) to prevent abuses of power. At the same time, Betas, given their roles as advisors, keep their Alphas in check and also have the right to depose an Alpha they deem as unfit to rule to again prevent abuse of power. This organized system of Alphas, Betas and the Emperor keeping one another in check is what is known as the Kánitorian Senate, making Kánitore a Constitutional Monarchy.

 Court of Eldorado
 Court of Montclair
 Court of Kaulmont
 Court of Barkshire

*See Also: The Courts of Kánitore*

### **The Emperor/Empress**

At the top of the hierarchy, above all citizens, Betas and Alphas - is the Emperor and/or Empress. All 5 Alphas run their respective aspect of the country, but typically cannot act on larger governmental decisions such as war declarations, alliances with other nations or redistribution of spending within the country's infrastructure without approval from the Emperor/Empress. While Alphas do have jurisdiction over some governmental affairs in their respective Court's specialty, it is generally accepted that the decisions aren't final until the Emperor/Empress approves, as they are the executive power that oversees the decisions of the Alphas. Additionally, Alphas also have the power to keep the Emperor/Empress in check, acting as a Senate with their Betas by overlooking decisions the Emperor/Empress makes in their respective specialty while also having the ability to depose them if they deem them unfit to rule. In order for any law or decision to pass, both all 5 Alphas (with help from their Betas) and the Emperor have to be in agreement - if decisions are split, meetings are called in the Capitoline Forum with the entire Senate, comprising of Alphas, Betas and the Emperor discussing the matter until they come to a conclusion.

The role of Emperor/Empress formerly abided by concept that they have divine right to the throne, since every Emperor or Empress is a direct descendant of both the Zacian Goddess Minerva and the Zamazenta Goddess Maria. However, since the Civil War in 1712, this idea has become less and less accepted due to the actions of the Emperor Cicero after the Civil War, who abused his powers despite being of royal blood and having divine right to the throne. He is the only case thus far of an Emperor being put on trial and deposed out of rule by the Alphas. Despite this, however, relatives of Emperor Cicero that happened to maintain the divine bloodline of the Goddesses Maria and Minerva have been elected by the Kánitorian people after Cicero was deposed and passed the requirements necessary to become Emperor/Empress while still maintaining the Royal Bloodline up until the current Emperor, Emperor Vitellius. However, during elections - Emperors and Empresses can still be chosen to rule by Goddesses Maria and Minerva regardless of bloodline as long as they pass all requirements. This indicates that whoever is elected will be blessed by the Goddesses, which will grant them an innate Mega Evolution that they can summon at will.

Typically, Emperors/Empresses must change their names based on the names that the Zacian and Zamazenta Goddesses Minerva and Maria bestow upon them, which is revealed when the Gamellic High Priestesses/Priests announce the deities' decisions on the ruler's name during the coronation ceremony. However, some Emperors and Empresses are given names that they already have, depending on whether or not the Kánitorian deities see them as fitting. Emperors/Empresses do not have last names while coronated, but still retain records of their old first and last names in the case of resignation, being stripped of their title or passing away. The rule of the Emperor/Empress typically lasts for life, but every 10 years, an evaluation is done by citizens and members of the Senate alike to check that the Emperor is still ruling by the standards of the Kánitorian government. Additionally, the monarch - with consent from their Alphas and Betas, can also decide to initiate elections at any time they please, usually when they consider resignation, deem themselves unfit to rule in some way, the people suddenly demand a new election or if they have no heir and want to decide who would be next in line in case something were to happen to them.

The process of becoming Emperor or Empress is typically very extensive and involves votes from the Kánitorian people, a very elaborate campaign, approval from the Alphas and Betas, and a series of Arena Battles before a candidate could even be considered for the position of Emperor. Candidates must first be in the higher ranks of Order Mixta in the Arena - surpassing the skill level of Betas and even Alphas on top of being favored by the people in their election campaign. They must also be able to best every ruling Beta and Alpha in the Arena in order to be coronated. In the case of multiple candidates being able to do this, they typically face off against one another in a campaign and again in an Arena fight once they both defeat all Betas and Alphas in the same way. The process is incredibly selective and extensive, lasting about 10 years at the most, and is generally very high risk with high reward since someone who does very well in the campaign can still be denied a chance at the throne if they lose an Arena Fight to a Beta, Alpha or other candidate. Currently, no other elections are going on - with the most recent one being done during the time of the previous Emperor - Emperor Marcellus.

*See Also: List of Kánitorian Emperors and Empresses*

### **The Alphas**

(Image of the Alphas)

Right below the Emperor/Empress are the Alphas, government officials that, together with their Betas, act as a Senate by ensuring that the monarch makes fair and just decisions while also acting as their bodyguards. As mentioned above, each Alpha runs one aspect of the Empire with help from the citizens of their respective Court as well as Betas acting as their own advisors and bodyguards, akin to their relationship with the Emperor or Empress. While they make most decisions within the realms of their specialties, Alphas are expected to consult one another and even the Emperor regarding decisions that may involve other Courts or that are big decisions that may effect the Empire as a whole. Oftentimes, the Alpha's responsibilities can overlap with the duties of another Alpha and their Court (i.e the Iron Dogs' treasury needing to work together with the Kreigshunde's decision to invent new weapons since they need funding), so cooperation between Alphas is also crucial to the Empire's organization.

They have jurisdiction over their respective prefecture as well as the citizens that live within them and citizens that work under the specialty that their Court is assigned to.

Unlike Emperors, Alphas and Betas retain their names and typically do not have any divine/royal lineage. Once they have become Alphas, their title changes to "Alpha" followed by their first name, with last names only necessary if being addressed formally or if an Alpha has had the first name before. The origins of their role stem from the tendency of wolves to divide themselves out into packs led by an Alpha, with the Alpha leading their entire division of Kánitore's population as their pack. This means that a level of respect is to be expected toward an Alpha if a citizen belongs in any of their courts, although respect from an Alpha in another Court is also warranted, but not as expected.

An Alpha has a term of about 10 years before a mandatory election takes place, where they can either choose to run again and see if they can be re-elected, or they resign and leave the position open for someone else to take. Much like the Emperor/Empress, a popular vote is done with campaigns for each candidates - including the ones that would like to run again. Then after this, the Emperor chooses an existing Alpha that they see as fit to test the skills of the candidate and let them fight each candidate in the Arena. If both rise victorious in all matchups, then they must complete the election by battling each other in the Arena. Whoever rises victorious wins the election and the spot of Alpha. At the same time, if a candidate loses a battle to an existing Alpha despite winning the votes of the people, they are automatically kicked out of the election and their rival candidates are either permitted to continue or become Alpha if they are the only other candidate. Due to the nature of this election partly relying on skill in battle shown in the Arena, candidates must be in the Ordo Mixta class of the Kánitorian Arena and must be at a higher skill level above the Betas to be able to be considered for the position of Alpha.

### **The Betas**

An Alpha with her Entourage of Betas, with Alpha Wilhelmina of the Kriegshunde Court shown in the center. The top row of three from left to right is Beta Walter Kraus, Beta Hanz Ackerman, and Beta Francisco Vesalius. The bottom row of two from left to right is Beta Frederick Müller and Beta Faye Ernst.

**Betas** are the bodyguards, enforcers as well as advisors of **Alphas** that are responsible for keeping them safe, enforcing their policies and keeping them in check. They are one of the highest-ranking government officials in the Empire, third only to the **Alphas** and the ruling **Emperor**/**Empress**. Each Alpha has an Entourage with 5 Betas, which are usually chosen by the Alpha in a very intensive process that involves extensive testing of character. When a Beta resigns, passes away or is expelled from their position, the Alpha often advertises the open position and follows a strict protocol that works along with their judgement to choose replacements.

Becoming a Beta first requires the applicant to have a ranking in Order Mixta in the Arenas, which is the highest possible tier of Arena Fighter. An interview with an Alpha will not be considered if the applicant belongs to Ordo Magna or less. Once this is achieved, then an initial interview with the Alpha of the court the applicant is trying to work for is conducted when they open a position or a waitlist. After this, a series of 4 trials pertinent to the applicant's job is assigned to the applicant to prove their worth to the Alpha (it has to be pertinent to what types of professions the Court they are applying for oversees). After passing three of these, the final trial is initiated - which is typically an Arena Fight against an existing Beta of the Alpha's choice to prove their capability to serve as a bodyguard to the Alpha. If an applicant loses the final Arena fight despite finishing all the trials with flying colors, they still do not get the position and are told to try again in a period of 1 year.

Additionally, more often than not, the Alpha chooses a "favorite" Beta, indicating that the Alpha sees this Beta as the most reliable and often chooses them to battle applicants for their final trial. Depending on the Alpha, some may even tend to follow the advice of this Beta more than the others. This is not an official government position, but is a trend that has occurred since the system was established.

> ***Click here to see a full list of the current Betas, their professions, species and signature weapons in the Arena.***
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### **The Ambassadors (Gammas)**

While there is no level below Beta officially noted, Kánitorian Ambassadors assigned to live in Embassies all over the world are considered a high-ranking position and are *unofficially* called "Gammas." Ambassadors are considered to be right after Betas in rank, though not directly connected to them aside from being given their positions by them.

> ***Click here to see a full list of the current Ambassadors (Gammas), which court they represent and the country they are currently stationed in.***
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### **The "Court's Finest" (Deltas)**

Certain member of courts in Kanitore, regardless of status, can obtain a special honor/status known as *"The Court's Finest."* In order to get this honor, an Alpha(s) of all the courts that a citizen belongs to would have to recognize a the citizen's exemplary service to their Court or for the Empire as a whole. Any citizen can receive this honor except *Alphas* and the *Emperor*, and they are usually recognizable by an entirely gold pin of their Court's insignia as opposed to the normal, colored ones. They are unoffically known as "*Deltas*" unless they already have the position of *Beta*, which cancels out this title. This ranking is equivelent to the aformentioned "*Gammas*" that serve as Ambassadors for Kánitore.

### **The "Omegas"**

"Omegas" are simply an unofficial name for the average Kánitorian citizen. However, their role in the government is just as crucial as the rest, and this is due to the Court system the Empire abides by that was mentioned prior as well as their role as voters in elections for Alphas and the Emperor/Empress.

As mentioned before, each and every Kánitorian citizen belongs to a Court, which is represented by an insignia that they are advised to wear at all times in the form of fashion accessories such as jewelry, patches or enamel pins. Each citizen wears their insignia in some way, since each contain a unique combination of numbers only belonging to that individual to help with identification as well as for Social Security purposes. Each Alpha manages and rules over the citizens belonging to their Court, mirroring the ancient canine tradition of Alphas leading their own groups of packs.

Citizens can belong to more than one Court if their parents from different Courts marry one another and decide to apply for "Dual Court Membership", but this is the highest number of membership the citizen can obtain. At the same time, citizens can choose to leave their own Court to join another as long as they fill out proper paperwork and discuss the membership changes with the Alpha and the Alpha of the Court they wish to switch to.

While each member within each Court were formerly allowed to only have professions pertaining to what their Court contributed to the Empire (i.e: those belonging to the Iron Dogs could only become bankers and financial advisors, only those in the Kriegshunde could be doctors, etc.), this was revised after the Kánitorian Civil War, as this rigid system was part of what caused civil unrest leading to the war. Now, while any member of any Court could work in any job they desired - they are still under the administration of the Alpha that heads that aspect of the country (i.e: A doctor could come from the Iron Dogs, but anything related to their job as a doctor was managed by the Kriegshunde and their Alpha.)

## **Culture**

The Kánitorian people are known for their staunch loyalty to their leader as well as their Empire, with most Kánitorians having full faith in the leaders they have elected - from the Alphas to the Emperor himself. With loyalty being such a major part of their philosophy, they are known to be very patriotic and nationalistic to both the Court they belong to as well as the Empire as whole. Disappointing or letting down someone higher in command, be it a Prefect or an Alpha, is deemed to be one of the worst travesties that could fall onto a Kànitorian citizen, causing many Kanitorians worry about failing those who lead them. Disloyalty can be seen as a major offense to Kánitorians, be it a leader to their people, a leader to another leader or people to their leader. Teamwork and working together is a major part of their philosophy, the root of this being due to their instincts as canines to unite as a pack and work together to survive. Additionally, they are an incredibly welcoming culture, being well-known for their physical ways of demonstrating friendliness such as cheek kisses or what many interpret as their lack of personal space. They have a generally congenial attitude toward complete strangers and often look forward to meeting new people and making new friends.

### Demographics

While the majority population of Kánitore is canine - comprising of dogs, lupines and vulpine animals as well as a sizable pinniped population that they officially deem as "water dogs", the nation also has the second highest number of felines in the entire world, only being surpassed by Tameu. About 75% of Kánitorians are canine - including pinnipeds, vulpine and lupines while 25% are feline, descending from Tameui migrants during the beginning of the Era of Peace. Less than 1% of the population are other species. The origins of this large feline population again stem from the mass migration of Tameui immigrants during the second Kánitorian occupation of the Kingdom of Cats following the Civil War. Because the Tameui people intermarried with the occupying Kánitorians and immigrated as brides or grooms, were granted an opportunity to escape civil unrest as well as live longer more fulfilling lives under the care of the Kánitorians - a mass migration took place that would forever change Kánitore's demographics. Despite issues with discrimination fueled by a jealous *Emperor Cicero* during the infamous Tameui Revolt of 1735, the feline population were desperate to stay in their new homes due to the better quality of life and were soon granted equal rights under *Emperor Maximillian*, further boosting the population of the Empire in centuries to come. Feline immigrants from Tameu ended up melding into all kinds of different courts, either being taken in as brides by Kánitorian soldiers during the occupation, showing enough interest in the culture of the Empire to the point that they willingly became citizens or migrating in due to the civil unrest in their kingdom after the Tameui Pharaoh told stories of their riches.

    Additionally, there is also a significant population of honedge, doublade and aegislash originating from Kánitore's Era of Conquest, where a small percentage of soldiers that perished in battle resurrected as spirits possessing their weapons. Due to the Kánitorians' predilection toward owning swords, even as civilians, the small chance of resurrecting as ghost types usually result in most Kánitorians becoming honedge, doublade or aegislash upon death. This has caused a sizable population of the Empire's citizens to become these enchanted swords, who either integrate back into Kánitorian society to serve the Empire as if they were living or become displaced in the lands they perished in. It is common to see many Kánitorians wielding honedge, doublade or aegislash that are their deceased family members and using them in battle or in the Gladiatorial Arena. Oftentimes, Kánitorian households will have deceased family members living with them as honedge, doublade and aegislash and even the festival of Lemuralia on October 31st (also known as All Souls Day) has processions involving ghost types that were once Kánitorians' loved ones reuniting with their family members in a parade of their own while their families feast in the cemeteries.

The massive amount of feline immigrants from Tameu faced many hardships in Kànitore that made their culture unique from their Tameui counterparts. So, a flag of their people was proposed prior to the Tameui Revolt of 1735 that was used extensively during the Revolt itself and during the public deposition trial of Emperor Cicero.

Individually, each Court has its own subgroup of ethnicities that speak their own dialects as well, with each one primarily residing in a subdistrict of each prefecture. In the prefecture of Sonterra, where the Centurions Court rules, there is Lapidus, Axos and Duralosa. In the prefecture of Eldorado, where the Iron Dogs rule, there is Rustico, Ardesia and Tangier. In the prefecture of Montclair, where the Brotherhood Court rules, there is only Morreaux. The prefecture of Kaulmont, where the Kriegshunde rule, have Nebenburg and Slawischgrund. The prefecture of Barkshire under the Fellowship are their own group and do not have any other subdistricts or ethnic groups that speak unique dialects. Each prefecture speaks a "main dialect" to make their secondary language for the Empire, but other dialects still remain in other subdistricts of Kánitore.

For example, while the prefecture of Sonterra speaks Lapidusian (Italian) to one another - based on the dialect of the subdistrict Lapidus, the people in the subdistricts of Axos and Duralosa also speak this main dialect while retaining their own native tongues, Axian (Greek) and Duralosan (Sicilian). The same is said about the others, with Eldorado speaking Rustican (Spanish) as a whole prefecture while having two other subdistricts of the Eldorado - Ardesia and Tangier, speak Pavanian (Portuguese) and Tangerian (Catalan). The prefecture of Kaulmont, while all speaking Vultierran Kaul, have a small group from Slawischgrund that speaks Slawicshian.

### Religion

The Gamellic Cross, Zacian's Sword and Zamazenta's shield.

The primary religion in Kánitore is Gamellicism, which regard the Zacian - Minerva, the Zamazenta - María and the Zygarde - Clymenus as it's three primary deities. Minerva is the goddess of strategic warfare and victory, while María is the goddess of peace, reasoning and prosperity. Clymenus, the runt of the three, is a mediator between the two and is supposed to ensure that none of them abuse their power. Additionally, they have a pantheon comprised of smaller, canine deities that are demigods, called Saints, that each rule over different aspects of life such as medicine, motherhood, festivities and more. The religion of the Empire is heavily ingrained into it's political system with their system modeled after those of the goddesses and their saints - as well as into its history, since it is believed that the lands in Northern Vultierra were blessed with resources like metals, ores and plants as well as the all-canine tribes that used to occupy the area prior to unification. Nearly all the Empire are members of the Gamellic Church, including variants of the religion - Bigeminal, Trigeminal and Tameui Gamellicism. Due to the massive number of felines in Kanitore, one of the other religions that are fairly widespread is [ Tameui religion ]. The number of those practicing other religions in the Empire are minuscule in number but include some atheists, [ believers of Arceus ], and other deities from other regions.

### Holidays

Kánitorians celebrate a wide variety of holidays and rituals year round, with some being more prominent and others being more minor. The major Kánitorian holidays are, in order:

* Festa of Saint Chronos / New Years (January 1st)
* Festa of Saint Juno / The Festival of Creation (February 14th, Valentine's Day)
* Festa of Saint Ampellio / Carnivale (Late February to early March)
* Ides of March / Tax Day (March 15th)
* Festa of Saint Apollonia / Festival of Light (June 21st)
* Festa of Saint Persephone / Rosalia (October 31st, Halloween)
* Festa of Saint Demeter / The Harvest Festival (November 26th, Thanksgiving)
* Festa of Saint Flama (December 25th, Christmas)

The origins of each of these major holidays originate from ancient Kánitorian traditions surrounding the aforementioned Gamellic Saints. While some nations in other continents may have similar traditions on similar days, it is currently not known if this is due to Kánitorian influence or not. In nations like Rickland, for example, they celebrate Mardi Gras on the same day as Kánitorian Carnivál - but Kánitore's influence from it's Era of Conquest had never reached Rickland. The correlation between these similar holidays have yet to be determined.

In terms of smaller celebrations, there are a few worth mentioning that are more situational. In times of war where the Kánitorians rise victorious - a ceremony known as a Triumph is held in every prefectorial capital days after the conclusion of a successful war. In a Triumph, elaborate military parades take place on the streets of the prefectorial capitals, where marching bands play marches exclusive to each Court while spectators watch and cheer from the sides of the streets. Soldiers that are members of the Court hosting the Triumph march to the beat of the music while parading through the streets, making captured soldiers from the enemy side part of the procession to demonstrate to the Kánitorian people the forces they had won over. Each procession leads to an Arena within the prefectorial capital - where the prisoners of war are typically taken in as gladiators in Arena battles.

Other small celebrations include massive balls, feasts and small parade processions for coronations of Emperors and Empresses, celebrating achievements, and inductions of new Alphas.

### Sports

The Empire of Kànitore has a wide variety of sports that are practiced by the citizens, with ancient Axian traditions birthing the tradition of the Olympiad, which comprise of small events such as boxing, swimming, archery, fencing, long jump, javelin-throwing, discus, and running. Fencing is also largely popular in the empire, since many citizens own swords for the sake of self-defense and this sport enables them to put their skills with the weapons to the test.

The Kánitorian Colosseum in the capital city of Remus. Just like many colosseums across the Empire, this one is used for Gladiatorial Arena Fights.

However, the most widely-known sport of all that every citizen of Kánitore follows very closely are the Kánitorian Gladiatorial Arena fights. Based of the customs of Ancient Kánitorian Gladiatorial fights, this sport has gained immense popularity among its own citizens as well as citizens outside the borders of the Empire in nations overseas. Many people around the world and within Kánitore seek to make a name for themselves as gladiators in the Kánitorian Arena, so many fighters flock to the various arenas in every major Kánitorian city just to partake in this sport.

The rules to the Arena are as follows:

* Each party must have either a wild card weapon of their choice, a mega stone or a battle item
* Each party is limited to using only 4 moves in battle, this is especially enforced in cases where a gladiator uses a Honedge, Doublade or Aegislash as their wild card weapon. You must only use 4 moves out of your combined move pool.
* First one to faint loses
* Both parties must be good sports, learning from their own mistakes and being grateful to their opponent for helping them improve. Even a loss can be considered a win.
* All sanctioned matches must be preceded by a "protection spell" from a mage to prevent mortal injury to the gladiators whilst using real weapons.

Due to their warrior culture and their affinity to weaponry of all sorts, every Kánitorian has a signature weapon that they use in the arena. The aforementioned spell mentioned in the rules allow these weapons to be used by combatants in this sport without causing mortal injury. The spells work by translating hits or slashes with weapons or melee attacks inflicted by gladiators themselves into damage that adds up during battle before reaching a cap. Once the cap is reached, the gladiator that has taken the most damage faints. This is standard to most Arena fights with the exception of Arena battles used for prisoners on death row or war criminals, where the spell is only applied to the executioner and not to the accused.

Additionally, each arena fight can also have a wide variety of terrains put into place to add extra challenge and promote improvisation in the heat of battle. Terrains can vary widely, but Kánitorian engineering has made it possible so that they can be changed per battle as needed. The terrains available are as follows:

**Even Terrains:**

The Ruins arena terrain, complete with sand and manmade remains of pillars and structures.

* **Standard** - Flat terrain with only sand and no other obstacles.
* **Ruins** - Sandy, flat terrain with occasional foundations of collapsed buildings, slabs, bricks, boulders and pillars. Some components will be intact.
* **Urban** - A miniature replica of a city on a flat landscape, complete with buildings that have different stories.
* **Frozen Rapids** - A flat terrain comprising of nothing but frozen water with raging rapids beneath the ice if it were to break. May have occasional boulders and large pieces of ice.
* **Tundra** - A flat terrain comprised of snowed over grass, frozen dirt, patches of trees and even frozen ponds.
* **Jungle** - Flat terrain with moist swamps, bogs and solid land complete with tropical plants.
* **Woodland**- Flat terrain with grass, dirt and forest.
* **Springs** - Flat terrain with shallow, warm water and flat rocks to gain footing on. Geysers may appear at random and spray from your feet if you are not standing on a rock

**Uneven Terrains:**

* **Deep Woodland** - Uneven terrain with grass, dirt, heavily dense forest, boulders, some cliffs, creeks, rivers and even ravines.

* **Thousand Islands** - The entire arena is flooded with water, complete with currents as well as dozens of small, close-knit islands with various landscapes on top of them. The types of landscapes available on each island will vary each fight.

The Naval terrain in the Kánitorian arena, in which the entire battlefield is flooded with water and populated with wooden ships.

* **Naval** - The entire Arena is flooded with water like a massive swimming pool. Ships of all sizes will be floating on the water. No islands present, only ships. Use them to your advantage. (Note: swimming may be required.)
* **Dunes** - Uneven terrain with sand dunes, may or may not come with occasional ruins and boulders and may even have oases complete with ponds.
* **Deep Tundra** - Cliffs and ravines of solid ice complete with glaciers and even some frozen lakes that can crack beneath your feet.
* **Mountain** - Dangerously uneven terrain with whole valleys and miniature mountains with forests, meadows and lakes potentially mixed in.
* **Cascade** - Uneven rocky terrain with waterfalls and drains at the edges of the arena that can make water around the rocks rise or fall. Whichever one happens occurs at random, fighters must adapt accordingly.

The practice of Gladiatorial Arena battling is considered highly crucial to Kánitorian culture, as it is used in elections to determine the winner for a position of Emperor/Empress, elections for Alpha and even trials to become a Beta. Many Kánitorians view the practice of Gladiatorial Arena fights to be "training" for the common people in case invaders were to set foot on their soil. With Kánitorian citizens owning some sort of weapon, the sport gives them purpose.

Competitively, the sport abides by a ranking system. Participants must battle their way through a series of one-on-one battles to climb up the rankings within 4 distinct tiers. The four tiers are as follows:

* **Ordo Parvus** - a class for smaller-built fighters and lightweights
* **Ordo Medulla** - a class for average-sized fighters
* **Ordo Magna** - a class for tall/large fighters
* **Ordo Mixta** - the championship gauntlet comprised of fighters from all size classes. This tier contains those who climbed the ranks to rise above all fighters in all the other tiers and includes Kánitore's top gladiators, the Senate (Betas, Alphas and the Emperor).

For new fighters in the Kánitorian Gladiatorial Arena, exhibition battles are often done to test where in the rankings the new gladiators can start. The exhibition battle is determined by the candidate's size, and the fighter will undergo a series of one-on-one battles with a weapon, item or mega stone of their choice in a tier that matches their stature and size. If the candidate rises victorious, a fighter in the same tier but a higher ranking will be chosen to fight the candidate to continue testing their skills. This process repeats until the candidate loses, in which they are given the rank right below the opponent they lost to but above the ones they rose victorious over. From here, the candidate can continue fighting and securing victories in battles to climb the ranks within their class and eventually move up to tiers above the one they were placed in, with the goal being Ordo Mixta. Additionally, each tier is guarded by a "Class Champion" at the highest rank of each class, and in order for fighters to move onto the next tier from wherever they are placed - they must best the class champion before being allowed to proceed. The first three tiers of Ordo Parvus, Ordo Medulla and Ordo Magna all have a specialized class champion of their own while the final tier, Ordo Mixta, has the Betas, Alphas and Emperor as the top ranking fighters in all the Empire.

For example, if a new spheal gladiator is initiated and is placed in the middle of Ordo Parvus' rankings due to his small size, he would have to win every battle against fighters in ranks ahead of him until he gets to the class champion of Ordo Parvus. Once he beats the champion there, he moves onto to Ordo Medulla to repeat the same and then Ordo Magna. Once the gladiator bests the class champion of Ordo Magna, he can then start moving up the ranks of Ordo Mixta until he gets to the Betas, then the Alphas and if he bests them - can face off against the Emperor himself.

Gladiatorial Arena Fights are the highlight of Kánitorian society, and citizens from all over the Empire gather to watch and even partake in this ancient tradition that has been kept alive for thousands of years since it's birth. Citizens from other nations are welcome to join in and often do join in on the tradition to make names for themselves while also honing their skills in the art of combat along with the Kánitorians.

### Architecture

A prime example of Kánitorian classical architecture - the Kánitorian embassy in Deloria.

Kánitore is well-known for its classical and neo-classical architecture that is present althroughout the Empire and even in some select areas of the world where their Empire once took hold including Solustra, the Ferallands, Deloria and Tameu. Even modern-day Kánitorian embassies still abide by the rules of Kánitorian classical architecture and utilize the pattern of alternating columns and inscriptions. The architecture mostly surrounds the principles of both Axian and Ancient Kánitorian architecture as well as concepts from the Ancient Kánitorian Architect, Vespacian. Many elements of Kánitorian architecture include the use of alternating arches and columns (as seen by the colosseums throughout the Empire) as well as the use of lighter colors and variations of white. Marble statues are also a major part of Kánitorian architecture and many can be seen as standalone monuments or replacements for pillars in some buildings. Oftentimes, these statues and even some parts of the buildings themselves are adorned with carvings of phrases, names or sentences and gold, brass, copper and silver to highlight certain aspects of the structure. Regardless of prefecture and the culture that is present there, every city follows this architectural pattern of classical architecture originating from prior to the Civil War and Neoclassical architecture originating from after the Civil War as well as hints of Romanesque and Baroque Architecture from various periods of time during the Strife of 1000 years.

### Transportation

Transportation around the Kánitorian Empire can vary depending on the distance travelled as well as the areas within it's borders. Due to the immense landmass of the Empire's territorial claims that take up 2/3rds of the Vultierran continent, every major city is connected by a railroad with a steam-powered train known as the Imperator Express. This particular method of transportation had originated from Kánitore's rekindled ties with the country of Kaulseg a few decades after Kánitore had left their territorial claims in the country, where Kaulseg had allowed Kánitore to buy some of their trains from them to aid in the rebuilding of infrastructure following their Civil War. From here, Kánitorians have made their own versions of the trains based on their steam engineering, and the Kánitorian railway system was born just a few decades following this.

As for travel between more concentrated areas like within cities or between small towns, Rickland's worldwide Guild of Transit as well as steam-powered trolleys are used by the residents of the Empire to navigate towns or cities. The Guild of Transit primarily consist of equine pokemon hailing from Rickland pulling carts and carriages, and it used to be the primary method of transportation within Kánitorian cities and between towns that were close in proximity to each other. However, due to the advent of steam technology in the 1400's as well as advancements made centuries after this - many steam trains that were primarily used to travel between large cities were starting to scale down to form the trolleys that slowly replaced the Guild of Transit and are still in use even today. While the Guild of Transit is still operating within the Empire, it's golden age has long been gone - as use of this method of transportation was at its peak after the Kánitorian Civil War and has since been slowly declining over the centuries.

### Music

Much like the Empire itself, the music of the Empire can be varied in styles and genres due to the country's vast history and all the other cultures it came into contact with during it's Era of Conquest. Prior to any influence, however, ancient Kánitorian music primarily used string instruments such as the lyre, cornu, tibia, drums, lutes, organs, timpani, castanets, and cymbals. Then, sometime during the Strife of 1000 years, prior to the Era of Conquest, pirates in what would now be modern-day Kittlescor began trade with the Empire - resulting in a cultural trade as well as trade of goods like silk from Saranghon and Ryukanshi. With this cultural exchange came the introduction of the accordion to Kánitore, which forever revolutionized music within the Empire as other instruments began to evolve - with the lute slowly becoming a guitar and other regional variants. Following this, the Era of Conquest was a period met with the most cultural exchange that shaped Kánitore's musical trends today - from classical instruments they brought back from the occupation of Deloria to electronic components from Kaulseg.

## **Military**

*Please see the full article, The Kánitorian Imperial Military, for further information.*

### Tanks

The steam-powered T2 Ernst, the standard-issue tank usually seen in Tier 2 and Tier 3 Armored Legion vehicles.

Hefty steel versions of Da Vinci Tanks, complete with threads for traction on multiple uneven surfaces. They are often prone to overheating and exploding due to relying on steam power, so on occasion - they become giant mobile time bombs that fire out smaller bombs in all directions since they have explosive ammunition. There are currently three tiers of these tanks.

## **Landmarks and Points of Interest**

### Mount Amulius

The infamous volcano has been feared by all of Sonterra for thousands of years, as it had erupted violently countless times, decimating cities around Cape Oricula. Many times were there attempts to build cities in the Cape that this volcano sits upon, only for them to be decimated over and over. For reasons unknown, the only city that had managed to withstand the assaults from the volcano was the city of Novis. Although now abandoned completely, speculation about why the city had lasted up until the civil war despite the harsh conditions the volcano provided remains rampant.

### Mount Priuna

A view of Mt. Pruina from the hilly Kánitorian farmland, which sits at the center of the Empire.

The largest mountain in all of Kánitore, this formation lies right in the middle of the nation, overlooking all of the prefectures with its staggering height. Being one of the few places in the country that has snow all year round, it hides a variety of secrets about Kánitore's past. There are a few villages that are scattered throughout the mountain, but these usually remained isolated from the rest of the country and keep to themselves, only seeking help from the Kriegshunde that reside nearby.

### Lake Peregrino

The largest lake in the entire nation, Lake Peregrino is surrounded by dense, forested wilderness and rolling valleys. It is surrounded by small towns that provide hunters and outdoors types with supplies, food and places to stay, but one of these towns in particular have fallen into ruin 20 years ago due to very mysterious circumstances, involving a large, black beast that lurks in the forest nearby. The other towns surrounding this lake have also reported similar beasts terrorizing their communities throughout history.

## **Major Cities**

### Remus

The capital city of Kánitore, Remus.

Being the capital of the whole nation, the metropolis houses a variety of attractions and historical sites. From the Hall of Alphas to the National Colosseum to the emperor's regal palace, Remus has it all. Named after the first emperor of Kánitore that first united the country, it is the crux of Kánitorian historical sites and houses a variety of ruins and museums preserved for the sake of remembrance. From the ruins of the first forum to the village that Remus came from before deciding to go out and unite the nation into what it is today.

### Novis

The abandoned city of Novis, with the volcano Mt. Amulius looming over it in the backdrop. During the Civil War, the city was abandoned after the volcano erupted, smothering all residents who couldn't get away in tons of ash and lava.

This peculiar city is the only one that remained unscathed in Cape Oricula. While many other cities that were built on this stretch of land were leveled and burned by constant eruptions from Mt. Amulius, Novis has always remained. What finally caused its demise was the Civil War, as the city was used as a main base for the Order of Cerberus, as it was the only city that worshipped Giratina. Fire type soldiers fighting for Kánitore against the Order of Cerberus had willingly caused an eruption so massive that the city was decimated, never to be occupied again. Currently, it remains empty and abandoned, and speculation about how it was immune to onslaughts from the nearby Mount Amulius lives on. Theories range from Giratina protecting the city to sheer luck.

### Vernazza

While being the capital for the entire prefecture of Sonterra, it also doubles as the nation's cultural center. Most of the establishments from the days of old were preserved in this city, moreso than Remus, even. From ancient-style baths to olden-day colosseums, Vernazza is a very popular destination for history buffs. Most of the common festivals from the older eras are also held in this city.

### San Roque

San Roque is both Kánitore's most dense as well as most populated city, residing in the heart of the province of Eldorado and boasting a population of over 27 million residents. The left picture shows the city straight from above while the right shows the city from the side.

The largest and most densely populated city in all of Kánitore, the heart of the Iron Dogs' prefecture of Eldorado remains as a paradise of wealth and prosperity. Most of Kánitore's finances are handled in this very city, making it a prime area for shopping and recreational activities. The city is home to a variety of Cathedrals, shopping centers, markets and architectural sites. Probably the second most visited city by tourists, suprassed only by Montecarlo. You can spend your day exploring the elaborate Baroque architecture or listening to street performers while eating at a café, in San Roque, the possibilities are endless!

### Montecarlo

The coastal city of Montecarlo sits on the mouth of River Aquitania between the provinces of Eldorado and Montclair and attracts up to 20 million tourists yearly from all over the globe. The coastal area is mostly canals (pictures 2 and 3) with the inland area sitting on a valley (pictures 1 and 4)

While not the most populated city in all of Kánitore, Montecarlo remains as the #1 tourist destination in all the country due to the massive amount of hotels, casinos, beaches, and the mesmerizing landscape it sits in. It sits at the mouth of River Aquitania, where the water empties into the Gulf of Sorrorcula. Jointly owned by both the Brotherhood and the Iron Dogs, the influence of both Courts remains strong in this wonderland of a city. Enjoy a gondola ride through the canals that run all around the flatter, coastal parts of the city, or even celebrate Carnivale with elaborate feathery masks and gowns in the springtime, Montecarlo provides an endless amount of entertainment for young and old. The city is the party center of the empire, and is flooding with young people seeking to socialize and dip their feet into the party scene.

### Jeanneville

Three pictures of Kánitore's 3rd largest city, Jeanneville. The first depicting the Eastern Gate, the second showing one of the larger roads that run through the city and the third depicting one of the bridges after the gates that lead into the city.

The entertainment center of Kánitore, Jeanneville hosts a majority of the nation's cabarets, art museums and theaters as well as providing a home for the plethora of sculptures all throughout. Named after the first female Alpha that came from the prefecture, Joan of Barc, the brash and bold nature of the furfrou lives on in this bustling metropolis. Unfortunately, this city and Montecarlo have the highest crime rates, with murders and kidnappings rampantly plaguing the streets.

### Ritz

The industrial capital of Kánitore, the hardworking culture of the Kauls lives on in this gloomy city. The best medical facilities as well as engineering facilities in all of Kánitore lie within this city's walls. While most factories lie in the city of Wolferhampton, in the prefecture north of Kaulmont, some of them make their way into this metropolis as well, almost to the point that it is constantly gloomy and cloudy.

### Wolferhampton

Four illustrations depicting the city of Wolferhampton, which sits at where the five major rivers of Kánitore meet in Barkshire.

Ritz's sister city, Wolferhampton is also rampant with large, looming factories constantly pumping out pollution from their smokestacks. In addition to this, the city maintains all the trade and stocks centers, being the lead city in trade as well as production of goods. The gloomy weather it constantly undergoes is more the fault of the climate being further away from the equator as opposed to the pollution. While constantly rainy and cloudy, the people keep a generally cheerful disposition and partake in hunting and archery in the vast open fields and flowing rivers that surround the city.

### Vigilangham

The city of Vigilangham is a stark contrast to other Kánitorian cities due to being in the center of a hilly, mountainous woodland with mostly wooden structures and fortifications due to being a hunter's paradise.

At the very southern tip of Kánitore lies Vigilangham, the country's youngest city. Located in a small clearing of forest, the city comprises of nothing but cabins and lodges. It is a hub for those in Kánitore seeking to hunt for sport, hike or explore the wilderness around them. A popular destination for campers, the city has gained a reputation for being remote and untamed, which is something nature thrillseekers adore about the city.

*See Also: Gallery of Large Cities in Kánitore,* *Lists of towns in the Kánitorian Empire*

## **See Also**

* *List of Current Betas in Kánitore*
* *List of current Ambassadors (Gammas) for the Kánitorian Empire*
* *Lists of towns in the Kánitorian Empire*
* *The Great Tameui Exodus*
* The Tameui Revolt of 1735
* *The Kánitorian Imperial Military*
* *Gamellicism,* the official religion of Kánitore that worships Zacian and Zamazenta Goddesses
* *List of Kánitorian Emperor and Empresses*
* *List of Kánitorian Alphas*
* *The Current Kántorian National Anthem*
* *The Former Kánitorian National Anthem*
* *The Kánitorian Imperial March*