Zhao-Arkhad - Kiarii Wars: The Kiarii Wars that erupted in 827.M27 and which would last for more than three solar decades marked the end of Zhao-Arkhad's prosperity and unity of purpose.In the wake of the successful defence of the lunar colonies and the contribution of the hybrid Battle-Automata clades to this venture, the Kiarii and Eminarii forge-fanes began to work closely together, first at the injunction of the supreme domini, who pushed for a mass-production of the Eminarii hybrid Battle-Automata and later of their own free will, since the success of these hybrids had elevated them in the supreme domini's esteem.The union between the Kiarii and Eminarii forge-fanes was further solidified by the development of the first exemplars of the Black Iron Cores which began testing amongst the Legio Xestobiax, earning them even more attention and gratitude from the office of the supreme domini.While some forge-fanes had been called upon to work with the Kiarii and Eminarii, most forge-fanes viewed the Eminarii's rise in influence with barely hidden contempt. Not all of the forge-fanes had fully embraced the Zhao-Arkhad mentality that the end would justify the means and had purposefully refused to pursue Heretek practices like the Eminarii.In fact, many of the smaller fanes were openly shocked at the blatant disregard the Eminarii and Kiarii forge-fanes and even the supreme domini showed for the Forge World's doctrinal purity.With the rise of the Eminarii and Kiarii, those forge-fanes that would form the so-called "Purist" faction grew anxious over the growing power of the Eminarii and their allies.As fewer and fewer forge-fanes subscribed to the ideology that using the enemy's technology against them or studying forbidden technologies would result in survival, the battle-lines were drawn.The Kiarii Wars began in 827.M27 with the assassination of the forge-domini of the Kiarii forge-fane, then the largest military-specialist forge-fane as its task was the production of divers classes of Battle-Automata-chassis and their weapons.The forge-domini suffered severe rad poisoning from a contaminated nutrient shot, a nutrient shot that could be traced back to the Niare nutri-fane, a fane notoriously aligned with the "Purist" faction.Paranoia soon flared into open conflict, as first the Kiarii and Eminarii and later their supporters took up arms against the Purists, seeking retribution for the assassination of the Kiarii forge-domini. By the time the forge-domini succumbed to the poison six solar hours later, the first shot of the Kiarii Wars had already been fired.Yet, their was no sudden explosion of violence, for the civil war was more a sporadic, slow-burning conflagration that was marked more by border clashes, sabotage or individual assassination attempts than two Taghmata forces openly facing off on the battlefield.The fighting was mostly contained to the Eminarii and Kiarii forge-fanes, the latter of which suffered considerable damage due to its lack of effective leadership. Many of the smaller, more specialised forge-, nutri- or hydro-fanes were attacked by larger fanes against which they stood little to no chance.The supreme-domini retreated to an orbital fortress and did not participate physically in the ensuing carnage. She barred the Legio Xestobiax from intervening but ordered her own forces to occupy vital planetary infrastructures and defend them from any aggression.While she openly condemned the violence and repeatedly called for a ceasefire, her calls, communications and envoys were largely ignored. Eventually, pressure from external xenos attacks, several workers' strikes and revolts and general depredation caused the civil war to wane.In almost three solar decades of fighting, approximately 80% of Zhao-Arkhad's forge-fanes had sustained damage, with fully half of them running at minimal capacities and a further 20% either rendered non-functional or destroyed outright.The results of the Kiarii Wars were inconclusive, for while the Kiarii forge-fane was almost destroyed by its opponents and the Eminarii forge-fane had been severely damaged, the might of their hybrid Battle-Automata had inflicted considerable more damage on their opponents' armies.With the "Purist" faction claiming victory in all but name, the supreme-domini was finally able to convene every forge-domini at a council called in order to broker a peace, but when the negotiations began, it quickly became obvious that both parties had quite different views on how to proceed.The Purists naturally advocated for the dissident forges of the Eminarii and the late Kiarii to be punished for the sins their researches had committed against the Machine God, portraying their creations as dangerous Malefica which needed to be terminated.For her own reasons, the supreme domini was loathe to accept this proposition as the security of all Zhao-Arkhad's domains now heavily rested on those hybrid automata the Purists wanted destroyed.On the other side, the Eminarii, now clearly the leader of their faction, merely called for an armistice. While more to the liking of the supreme domini, this proposition was equally problematic since it would not prevent the Purists from attacking again.From the supreme domini's prespective, the wars had started only because the Purists did not share the beliefs of the Eminarii faction. In the end, she chose a quite different path to resolve the conflict: isolation.Since neither of the two factions were ready to recant their beliefs and cohabitation between the two doctrines only lead to strife, each and every forge-fane was forbidden from maintaining contact with its neighbours, allowing each forge-fane's research to become their sole property.Cooperation like the joint-venture between the Eminarii and Kiarii forge-fanes was no longer allowed as every forge-fane would treat directly with the Office of the supreme-domini which would now oversee the global efforts of Zhao-Arkhad, becoming the central authority all others would rely upon to acquire the resources they needed to further their research.To prevent physical contact, many tunnels that had previously allowed for movement between forges were collapsed or filled, the rest passing under the authority of the supreme-domini whose forces would patrol them exclusively. In addition, each forge-fane was permitted only defensive clade emplacements amongst the lunar colonies and those were forfeit to the control of the supreme-domini.Thus did Zhao-Arkhad return to peace. For the next several Terran years, the forge-fanes worked on isolating themselves from their neighbours and the Forge-World sunk into a strange, guarded, knife-edge stability that doubtlessly arrested Zhao-Arkhad's further development, but offered its people a stability which would last until the world's discovery by the roaming fleets of the Imperium of Man.If the Kriarii Wars had had one true victor, it was the Office of the supreme domini, for it now held complete control over the Taghmata Zhao-Arkhad, the industrial output of the lunar colonies and the newly-established mining colony on Nytos which had been founded by refugees trying to escape the violence unleashed by the Kiarii Wars.While the threat of xenos raids could never be truly eradicated and the threat considerably limited the development of the new colony, the might of Zhao-Arkhad's armies mostly held the worst depredations at bay.Under the supreme domini's authority, each of the lunar colonies would form its own militia to man the ever-growing orbital defences being built, while the forge-fanes had to contribute a certain tithe in order to allow for reconstruction and continual improvement of the defences.In exchange for this tithe, each forge-fane and even the lunar colonies were trusted to mostly conduct their own affairs as they deemed fit.