The Twelve Skies

After The Black Riots, governments fell apart. Military organizations and law enforcement failed, and the world saw the rise of The Pauper Kings, warlords who battle for territory in numerous places across world. Some of them looked to the sky, and saw a different kind of territory.
The Sky Barrons are the Pauper Kings of the sky. They saw the sky as real estate just waiting to be taken, and not necessarily by the kings on the surface. They have gained such power that no airship can leave port in safety without going through a liaison at the sky dock for a travel pass. The 12 Skies are territories above the surface of the earth. Each sky has a border and is patrolled by the house of a baron or the ruling houses bannermen. There are 12 regions of the sky that are officially recognized by the Barrons.
These regions are further broken down into smaller territories based on how each baron wishes to run their skies. Some maintain complete control over their entire territory such as the Exiles of Erin, to have several Bannerman but do not sky and titles. The House of Patriots on the other hand, only operate in a single City dividing up their entire territory among many of their bannermen.

Politics and Intrigue

All of The Sky Barrons agree to work together to some degree in a government organization. This organization is named Polaris, a poetic addition meant to demonstrate that each Baron is a guiding star. By no means does this mean they are unified without adversity. Every house even among the Lesser houses has an agenda and they all want to get the best part of a deal. They are aware of this fact and are aware that everyone wants to end up on top, as such they have created a system of government among themselves. This form of politics is similar to Americas division of federal and state politics, only there are no elected officials and no single leader. Instead, ot is democratic and every house has a voice, but for the lesser houses that voice comes second to their baron. Once every quarter of the year, The Sky Barrons meet on the floating Isle named The Morrigan. THE MORRIGAN hovers in the middle of the Atlantic ocean, several miles from THE GAELIC SEA. While each Sky Region has its own method of government dictated by the ruling house, these laws cannot go against rules established by Polaris. These rules involve taxation on imports, borders and expansion of those borders, terms of engagement, yearly goals, and more.

The Archivist

On every issue voted on in Polaris, every baron gets a determined number of votes. This number is dictated by The Archivist, a position held for a year and one year only in one's lifetime. The Archivist is a man or woman who calculates the worth of each barron and how many votes they may have in an unbiased and discreet manner. The Archivist does this by taking the time to analyze yearly profit made by the subject, whether the subject is dependent or independent ( meaning a Barron or a Bannerman.), and the overall military power the subject maintains. Every year the The Sky Barrons present The Archivist with a detailed Ledger detailing money earned and lost as well as munitions, industrial assets, airships that fly their flag and military personnel at their disposal.

Just Business

The Sky Barrons do not claim any kind of moral authority. They are very much so aware of their questionable actions and are also aware that the other Barons are just as questionable. Regardless of any other factors involved, they will always seek to benefit their house more than anything else. Betrayals are remarkably common and doing everything you can to shift things in your favor is viewed as simply doing business. Very few among them take these betrayals personally, as they would do just the same in kind. These betrayals usually involve loopholes in the various laws established by Polaris, actively withholding what is needed from each other without substantial compensation that is often worth far more than what is needed, and sometimes even outright attacking one another should they catch each other in Free Skies.

Glossary

Sky region: a Sky Region is effectively a way of looking at the sky as a distinct region or geography. Sky regions begin 4000 m above the ground and should a vessel travel above that point they are no longer in the territory of the ground below them.
Barrons: The Sky Barrons are a culture of individuals who primarily live their lives in Airship silver on the islands in the sky. They're divided into houses in every house has a leader, the bar on of the house.
Bannermen the bannermen are lesser houses, mercenary companies, thanes, and other allies of the house that work for a barron and their house. They may own and operate land under the houses supervision and with permission.

House liaisons:
At every skydock, there is a house liaison. These men and women represent the house that operates in the sky region your in. They sell protection, from others as well as themselves. Without a travel pass, you may very well be attacked by ships flying the houses colors.
The Morrigan
The Morrigan is the base of operations for Polaris. The Floating Island is a stray from the Skyfall that devastated ireland, and is the only floating island in the world that exists in Free Sky. The land is covered in emerald grass, soft and lush, with trees littered about the land. In the middle of the island is a ruin with a round table at its center where The Sky Barrons meet.
life in the Sky
The 12 skies are inhabited by those who seldom touch the surface without reason. They live with their heads in the clouds and have found numerous ways to make it better. Floating islands have made it much easier to establish a home, and an invention surfaced inspired by them that makes it even easier. Using Aether fueled engines, they have build artificial islands and set them to the sky.

Drop for The History of The Twelve Skies

History
The 12 Skies have a complicated history that has only recently been compiled and recorded. This is mainly due to the fact that few truly recognize what was going on in the skies above them until it was already under a Barron's control. Each Sky Region has its own complex history and culture that stands apart from the universal culture of the 12 Skies, but they do share common heritage and historical events that affected all who call the 12 Skies their home.

The First Skyfall

The First Skyfall was a major catastrophe that almost wiped the entirety of Ireland off the map. The Erin Reef that the event created was a major opportunity for pirates to stake their claim and make their mark on the world. We're not for the Exiles of Erin, the sky region known as The Gaelic Sea would be an even more dangerous place than the Free Skies. Some of The Sky Barrons existed during this time and surprisingly accepted the Exiles as a house among them. Their efficiency in pacifying the region it's something that even they had trouble doing successfully while trying to expand their territories.
Hill's Folley

Initially, Free Skies didn't exist and we're simply divided among the barons. They found it remarkably difficult to maintain a military presence and enforce there laws within these regions. It wasn't until an event referred to as Hill's Folly that the Free Skies were Established. It is one of many events that made The Delerium famous. The crew aboard The Delerium were able to unite the Barons against a common foe, Viscount Aemon Hill, who brought an armada of british ships out of imperial borders to assault The Delirium directly. Unbeknownst to him , The Delerium set a trap, using The Key of Many Locks, a Quantum Key capable of teleporting any number of subjects to a single area, to bring the armada's of The Sky Barrons to bear, directly withing the British armada.
A Final Battle
The battle took place within 12 miles of The Morrigan, and when the battle was won, the remains of the ships could be seen below, some of them getting out of the water making the area appear like an graveyard. To honor this major victory against the empire and acknowledge the fact that these regions cannot be properly protected without wasting resources better spent protecting the inner region, it was agreed upon by Polaris that the sky above open ocean was to be considered free Skies with no ruler and the site referred to as Hill's Folly was to be neutral ground where no battles may take place. Should this law be broken, each of the barons are bound by their own personal paths to band together and assault any party involved who took any aggressive action.
Keys to the Kingdom

After numerous incidents that occurred in Africa involving skyfalls and rebellions, the British Empire were forced to leave the region. This lead in a massive rise in both technological and social reform within the continent. It was then that insert African approached the barons demanding to be recognized for his accomplishments. Despite many of The Baron's own misgivings of allowing a person of color into their ranks, votes were almost a landslide. The news spread rapidly. The establishment of a new Sky Region, and a new Baron that has claimed it, not only proved that the Empire could be beat but also stood as a shining example of equality regardless of upbringing and personal belief. With the Civil War settling down in the Americas at the time, it was a welcome change and many from around the world of all colors rushed to Africa to explore the region. The region is still a place of many mysteries.
The Jade Skyway

An event that occurred most recently involving the entirety of the 12 Skies is the establishment of yet another Sky Region. The Jade Skyway is the Sky Region above much of the Orient and is shared by several houses who each view each other equally. When they approached the Barons to be inducted, it became clear did they had to unify in some particular way. For this reason, representatives of the Jade Skyway banded together and unified under a single flag but only do so during the quarterly meetings of Polaris. The house of Jade is surprisingly unified even when they are at odds with one another. the opening of China and Japan to travelers was a major feat of diplomacy that met a lot of resistance during the mid-1800s. In the present the region is frequent it by travelers from all over the world who wish to uncover its many wonders and experience its exotic culture.

The Skies In a Nutshell
The Gaelic Sea: the sky region consisting of what's left of Ireland, The Erin Reef and stretches across Greenland and the eastern part of Canada. The house of exiles rules the region and do so with zeal Liberty Skies: The sky region over parts of Canada, the former US, and Mexico. It is ruled by the house of Patriots who act as a puppet organization of the many Pauper Kings who govern the continent on the surface
British Aerospace: The largest region, this is the air above land controlled The British Empire. This particular Sky Region has no bearing that rules over it. It is meant to Mark the areas where the British Empire still operates and holds dominance. It is often regarded as a barrier or curtain that airship seek to travel through as quickly as possible due to the increasingly restrictive laws that the Empire enforces. The reason is referred to as a barrier or curtain is because it's border stretch from but we know of as the United Kingdom into Central Europe through the Middle East and India and finally down to Australia. This effectively cuts the world in half making travel difficult if you wish to go across the Pacific or dangerous if you wish to Brave the Empire's sky. The Free Skies: The term free sky refers to sky over open water. The sky Barrons have agreed that these vast areas are too difficult to maintain control over and seldom try to do so. This is where law and order brought by the barrons ends and the domain of pirates begin. Krasnoye Nebo (Red Sky): The sky region over Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Poland, ... The red sky is governed by the House of Angels The Amazonian Skies: A sky region that spans south america from the Panama canal to the southern tip of the continent. It is most known for an all female mercenary company, The Amazons, who act as the main military force of its ruling house, The House of Splendor.

The Auroran Skies: A cold sky region over the arctic circle. It is ruled by The house of winter The Jade Skyway: A sky region over south east Asia ruled by the house of silks, The House of Dragons, and The House of Dawn who all make up The House of Jade

World Map

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Yoruba's Court: A sky region over the entirety of Africa, the British have been forcibly removed from the region and numerous Barons have taken control of the skies with and some of them even dominate the nations on the continent as well. The African barons are a noble and proud people who are more progressive than most on the twelve skies. The region is under the control of The House of Lions

Olympia: Olympia is a sky region that stems from the edge of the middle east Italy. It comprises of sky above most of the Mediterranean and is under the control of The House of Kings.

Articles under The Twelve Skies

The Sky Barrons

Ethnicity | Jul 2, 2019

The self imposed rulers of the sky

The Erin Reef

Geographic Location | Jul 27, 2019

A chain of floating islands that developed due to the skyfall that occured in Ireland.

Entry for Summer Camp 2019
Answering: "Describe a country in your world, including its political structure and history."
Visit Dylonishere123's Competition Page Check all other answers to this prompt Competition Homepage

Comments

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Master Dr Jimothy

Oct 18, 2019 09:26 by Jimmy Shrekson

Which house pays the best? *loads 7 barrel rapid fire shotgun with poisoned bullets that I got from http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-914 , drops shotgun, shotgun fires, miraculously isn't dead*

Sage Dylonishere123

Oct 18, 2019 15:34 by R. Dylon Elder

I... Idk... That's a damn good question. Techniqually it'd be the house of exiles... but I'm not sure yet lol! Now how'd that escape contoanment!

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