[Bonus chapter] Valresta Continents in Focus: Stampeding Bison
As there are seven types of aether that rule Valresta, there are seven continents that compose this world.
While the seven types of aether flow through all the continents in some manner of another, some types are more concentrated in certain areas than others. Evidently, this aether concentration had a mild effect on people's naming sense when it came to countries and territories.
Of the seven continents, Stampeding Bison was home to dense Terraqi, or earth aether, and their warriors tended to be masters of using Terraqi aether as their spears and shields. Granted, the powers that be had very different focuses in this regard.
While there were about a hundred little factions, a dozen or so countries and empires, there were about four main superpowers that ran the continent.
These four powers are: The Golden Horns Confederacy, The Adamantine Empire, The Alloy Republic and the Iron Sands Sultanate.
While each of them have their own rich and crazy deep history that would probably take forever to touch upon, this chapter will briefly go over each of them.
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Located on the northernmost part of the Stampeding Bison continent, centered around Breaking Point Harbor, the Golden Horns Confederacy is a surprisingly young but viciously strong nation composed of twelve different states...that appear to be at each other throats almost all the time.
Lead by current Third President, Aureum, and the Twelve Counselors, a lot of outsiders assumed that the Golden Horns Confederacy would've fallen into civil war by now with how vicious the states seem to fight one another.
However, even though the states seem to barely like each other, they hate it when others try to get involved with their business even more. Which makes sense, given their origins.
Originally, the twelve states of the Golden Horns Confederacy used to be a series of colonies under the control of, surprisingly not any of the local super powers, but of the far off Scorching Scales Empire on the Dozing Salamander continent.
About twenty five or so years ago, the colonies were basically the place where the Scorching Scales Empire would send everyone from pioneers, to exiles to convicts to in order to not have to deal with them on the mainland. It was a happy accident that said colonists happened to provide the manpower necessary to slake the hunger for resources back home.
That was until the colonies got sick of being the Empire's bitch, and decided to rebel in what became known as, the Golden Horn Rebellion.
The war was long and brutal, and didn't end until a very dramatic battle to the finish involving the first president, but that's a story for another.
The long and short of it, the Golden Horns Confederacy is a brand new nation that already made a big splash, but the question of whether or not it'll stick around is another thing altogether.
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The Adamantine Empire is the oldest nation on the continent, with it's territory stretching all across the continent in a strange, mildly tentacle like fashion.
Composed of over a hundred or so kingdoms, each of them with several or so lords of various ranks beneath them,the Empire is ultimately led by the Adamantine Empress, Empress Talea Izacara Argentum the Fifth, the latest ruler in the two thousand year Argentum dynasty.
Under her majesty's gaze, the empire thrives with dozens of different cultures and ideas intermingling with one another. While conflict between these states and kingdoms do occasionally occur, all of it is fine under the Empress's approval.
"Let them fight," she decreed, "It's only through cutting can a diamond truly shine anyway."
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The Alloy Republic was founded out of necessity.
As the Adamantine Empire grew, more and more independent kingdoms and territories fell under their sway.
Not wanting to submit to their rule, a bunch of much smaller nations began to band together to form arguably the only nation that could rival the Adamantine Empire in both size and strength, the Alloy Republic.
The founders of this republic chose the name because, even though Adamantine was one of the strongest metals known to man, they knew they could make stronger ones by mixing ores into alloys.
Aside from kings and queens, the Republic is led by clans, smaller republics and everything in-between, all of them independent yet united.
It should be noted that the Iron Heart Kingdom happens to be a member of the Republic.
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At the most southernmost part of the continent, a vast desert known as the Swirling Forge dominates the landscape. It is here that the Iron Sand Sultanate rules.
Led by the Iron Sultan, the Sultanate rules their desert region with wisdom and strength in equal measure. Resources are scarce in the desert, but it is through this scarcity that efficiency develops.
Warriors from the Sultanate are able to squeeze out every bit of power from even the smallest sliver of aether, while their arts are highly sought out for their easy to understand efficiency.
That said, the reason why the Sultanate has managed to last for so long, is thanks to the the permanent set of wandering ruins that sit within the capital.
Interestingly enough, despite ruling for over a hundred and fifty years, the Sultan and his family have only explored about a tenth of the ruins.
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The Stampeding Bison continent may be made of a variety of nations today, but once upon a time it was ruled by a single empire, under the rule of a powerful tyrant known as the Meteor Overlord.
With the aid of a Universe class formula, the Meteor Overlord ruled over the continent with an iron fist and the strength of an Aether Demigod.
The Overlord's arrogance and cruelty knew no bounds, so much so that the heavens themselves were angered by him.
In order to bring down this tyrant, it was said that the heavens blessed a single girl with it's power, giving her the ability to summon mighty warriors who bore the names of the stars themselves.
With her mighty band in tow, she waged war against the Overlord's rule and inspired the people to rise up and take back a future they had long thought was lost forever.
Long was their fight, bloody was their conflict, but in the end...the Overlord was no more...as was the hero and her band.
The name of this hero was lost to the sands of time, but people still remember her story, and they still say the title of hero with respect: The Starcaller.
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"Hmmm," the girl went as she stared at the night sky, assessing the constellations. By her side, a strange giant of a man with the look of a rhino, armor as white as snow and a bright star in his stomach stood watch.
[Have you chosen our next comrade yet?]
"I think so, Goliath. The Weaver constellation is looking quite lovely today."
With her choice made, the girl stuck out a hand and produced a glowing ball of blue light. Once it was out, she grabbed the ball and prepared to throw.
"And you're name will be...Calliope!"
Woosh!
The girl threw the ball at a cluster of stars, and watched as it exploded in a brilliant shower of light, before condensing into a humanoid form.
"Let's not keep her waiting for long, come on!"
[At once, Milady.]