The Laws of Balance

The destruction of Tyrrha’s vital ecosystems had an unexpected consequence: a state of global interdependence. In the years following the Rain, a political status quo emerged as a necessity, with every faction reliant on the others. The Duxa required labourers to compensate for their lack of human capital, the Urthnaki relied on MIRA, and the Elvae saw an opportunity to fill the now-existing void in the power vacuum.

By the third year after the Rain, Emperor Duxa I strengthened ties with T’ebor of the Urthnaki Confederation, setting the stage for an unprecedented accord between men and orcs. With the Empire controlling the distribution of MIRA, it held a key advantage in the negotiations. However, T’ebor recognised an opportunity: the decline of the Duxa population had shifted the balance of power, giving the orcs leverage through their ability to offer labourers.

Two years of negotiations followed, addressing trade, territory, and arms. The resulting agreement, the Laws of Balance, established a fragile but enduring economic and political stability. Among its most significant provisions were:

• A trade agreement formalised the annual exchange of orc harvesters for MIRA.

• The demilitarisation of the Silent Waste created a buffer zone between the empires of Tyrrha.

• The deployment of Elvae advisor interpreters to the Duxa Imperial Court and the Urthnaki Confederation was tasked with maintaining the delicate balance between men and orcs.

The Laws of Balance marked the dawn of a new age, forging an uneasy chain of power. Long-standing enemies found themselves allied out of necessity, their pact sealed at the Council of Storms, held every seventy-fifth Sunshift. It was a triumph for the rulers—a safeguard for their thrones.

But the suffering continued unabated for those on society’s margins, like the Hadaki and the others living off the crumbs left by the Empire in Calinthia. Year after year, from the shadows of Calinthia’s vast deserts to the dark depths of the mines of Tirros, the lost voices of resistance rose in volume, reverberating like lightning.

And then suddenly and against all odds, the chord of balance snapped.