Imperia

Imperia was a country located in the ruins of North America. Its 12 territories and capital city spread through the former United States of America and Canada. Up until its dissolution, it was the only country that is known to remain after the events of the Dark Days.

Imperia was ruled exclusively by the wealthy citizens of the capital city, Dominus. Leaders were elected by eligible citizens of the city while a President with absolute authority over all policy decisions was elected for a term without limit. The President of Imperia may retire, but none were documented to have done so.

Imperia maintained rule over its subjects for a period of 179 years. Due to the Dark Days, Imperia was a rump state while the chaos of the first rebellion consumed the liberated Territories that were later reclaimed by the government after committing what many consider to be the most atrocious war crimes a country has ever committed against its own demographic.

After the second rebellion of 81 A.D.D., the Imperian government was reformed under the Republic of Imperia.

General
Dominus, known for its culture and technology, imported all its needs from the Territories of Imperia. Each Territory was established with a certain export in mind and their locations were picked to be the most beneficial to their industries. Citizens of Dominus lived in ideal conditions, generally exceeding their daily needs, with notable exceptions such as the shortages of food, water, medicine and other resources experienced near the end of the Dark Days.

The Territories of Imperia were populated by workers. These workers were trained from childhood to be the most efficient at their territory's export, rarely learning things the children of Dominus had the privilege to, such as mathematics, language and the arts. After becoming eligible to work, these citizens were forced to work grueling shifts to support their families with meager wages. Most Territories suffered greatly from poverty, with the exception of Territories 1, 2, and 4. These aforementioned settlements were often referred to as the "lap dogs" of Dominus, being the most friendly to the city in exchange for receiving many benefits.

The Territories of Imperia lived in relative harmony with the governing city after the Dark Days ended. That peace came at the cost of the peoples' sacrifice: every year following 1 A.D.D., the Territories were each forced to offer up two of their children own between the ages of 12-18 to participate in the annual Pyre Games event.

The Pyre Games
The Pyre Games was an annual event that occurred during the summer. 24 contestants would be selected from the Territories - each offering up two - and placed in an Arena to fight to the death until one alone remained.

Beginning as a televised deathmatch with the simple goal of striking fear into the territories, but later grew into a much larger part of the cultural identity of Imperian citizens. As the years of the Pyre Games passed by, a critical year, the 10th Pyre Games, popularized the event by increasing viewer participation. Soon, the Pyre Games would become the most looked-forward to event every year.

Each year, a single champion would be crowned from the Pyre Games. This would always be the lone survivor of the games, being bathed in riches and living in prosperity for the rest of their lives because of their achievement. Additionally, the Territory the winner returned home to would be showered with gifts of food, medicine, etc. Incentivizing winning the games whether for yourself or your people, volunteer contestants became more common during this time. While training for the Pyre Games prior to being selected was made illegal after the 16th Pyre Games, unregulated centers within Territories 1, 2, and 4 are rumored to have existed from prior to that year and until the end of the Pyre Games entirely. This resulted in a period of 70 years in which at least seventy five percent of champions were from these territories.

During the 79th Pyre Games, for the first time in history, two champions were crowned. This year coincided with what historians consider to be the catalyst of the second rebellion, and soon led to the liberation of all the Territories of Imperia. These two champions later went on to compete in the 80th Pyre Games and are known to be two of the six survivors of these games.