Isolde
With the rivers frozen solid, and the sparkling snow muffling the slightest noise, time itself seems frozen among the frigid lands Isolde claims. The force-fields of the cities seem like bubbles, frozen into beautiful jewels among the snow. But they are little more than gilded cages for those that they claim to protect. Behind all the beauty is a harsh world that cares little about those that cannot find a way to take what they need, and cares even less about what happens to the ones they walk over. It's everyone for themselves among these snowdrifts, and your sympathy for those that fall is misplaced.
Ruling over the destitute frozen tundra of the South-Eastern continent, Isolde stands alone. Its cities lie on top of the sparkling glaciers that blanket the frozen remains of humanity thousands of kilometres beneath them. Glittering icicles and snow shine beautifully as the day's light filters through them. Aside from the fact that skin freezes in mere seconds in these lands. Tears in a person's eyes from the glare of the sun against the sheet of white is enough to leave them blind a blink later. What the others would leave behind, Isolde gladly takes, and as the nation of the Ice Elementals, the cold never bothered them anyway. On the world stage, Isolde tends to stay isolated, aside from trading for raw materials and exporting their luxury goods back out. They have little tolerance for the attempts of Tierra to dictate what occurs within their own borders, especially their insistence of 'helping' through the Initiative Towards World Health. If those pesky poor people deserved healthcare, then they wouldn't be poor, would they? While Isolde has never been a nation of bleeding hearts, their current political climate has grown to increasingly match the harshness of their environment over the past century. The only chance of them warming up at this point is if someone commits arson.
General Overview
As a nation, Isolde has a strict hierarchy created through social stratification. The Royals rule at the top, with society being divided into classes based on their wealth and assets. While these classes are still distinct from 'castes', movement between classes is largely limited. Social customs discourage marriage between those of different classes, and increasing one's wealth often requires an initial investment that the lower classes living pay cheque to pay cheque are unable to make. The higher classes receive a starting sum of money from their wealthy family that can be used to get started, and only builds upwards. The benefits of being born into wealth and status is only reinforced by the genetic modification that the rich often pay for, enhancing the looks and abilities of their children. Furthering the entrenchment of the classes. A lack of wealth is seen as a moral failing. Associating with the right people and looking the right way are essential to maintain one's status, even if they have money. A poor reputation can destroy a person just as quickly as loosing it all in a game of Glistening Mark. In this sense, the only way that the classes seem to have free movement is downwards in a free fall guaranteed to break every bone.Active violence in Isolde is rarely seen in the open, as open conflict is looked down upon as lesser. Instead, society encourages those to do it "with Iceren grace, and not Firen savagery". Sabotage, violence that leaves the bruises covered up, spying and backstabbing betrayals are all seen as acceptable methods. A poor reputation can leave you with a target on your back. Those that wish to rise themselves up will happily tear another apart behind the curtains if it would mean even the slightest increase in status. For those in the lower classes, it can be the only way to survive as long as you can get away with it. Physical, open violence is seen to be indignant, but white collared crime is accepted in Isolde, no matter how many lives it harms. 'Donations' to the Local Forces members are common practise. There is a price to be paid to do what you would like. If one has enough jewels to pay the cost, then the law has little hold on them. The only 'rights' that matter is the right to take what one wants. Much like the polar bear does not care what the seal 'needs', in Isolde if one is not able to survive on their own, then those above them have every 'right' to take what they want. Worker protections are weak, if they even truly exist. Regulation and social safety nets are foreign concepts that are to never be spoken of in the snow covered streets.
There has been little progress towards equality of the sexes in Isolde, and it isn't hard to see that misandry still rules over the culture. But the cruelty it spawns is dwarfed by that which is inspired by the continued belief in the Hierarchy of Elementals. Purity is seen as perfection, and Mixed Elementals are stains to be removed. Even more disgusting than the Mixed are the interspecies relations that they represent. The fate of a Mixed Elemental in Isolde is either forced labour or forced conscription onto the Front Lines of the Military. Or death if they dare to resist. Isolde's city walls exist to keep their citizens in just as much as they stand to keep intruders out. There is little hope to cross the threshold of the walls without papers granting one permission. And those papers often cost far more than those that would need to run the most can cost. Those that offer to help the desperate could easily be a disguised Purity Investigator or a trafficker. In the worst cases, they are both. Taking the life savings of those that hope to run with their lives, only to arrest them just as the other side of the walls comes into view. Smaller towns and villages provide an easier path, but are often heavily patrolled by the Purity Investigators that have long since learned the tricks. For those that are different, being born in Isolde to be a fish born into a barrel where the bullets have already started flying. To stand up for those that have been marked for death is to join them. In a culture where apathy is queen, suffering is just background noise, and the bodies in the streets are just a mess to be stepped over. Your neighbours are not going to risk everything to save you.
Government Structure
At the top of Isolde's government is their Queen, who acts as the head of state. The Queen may rule with a partner, or completely alone. While children are expected of the Queen to maintain the Royal family, partners are not. Whether through causal partnership or more sophisticated methods such as IVF, as long as the children are legitimate from the Queen herself, little else matters. Like all high class families, genetic modification is common among the Royal family. Men are unable to rule in Isolde, and if a Queen would not have a daughter, then an heir is to be selected from the higher classes by the Queen. This has become a rare case, however, since with genetic modification also comes the ability for sex selection, and it's rare for one to choose their firstborn to not be female. Princesses that are not in the line of succession are to fulfil the roles of various diplomatic and government representatives, including representing the crown at meetings of the court. Princesses may also control entire provinces of Isolde. Princes are considered unimportant, and used as tokens for approval from the wealthy class. While the rest of Erina has come to see the practise of using the Royal spell of Suppression as inhumane, Isolde's crown still does so in the rare cases that a male Royal is born so that they may be married off to a loyal rich figure as a reward. A common figure of speech is "acting as crazy as an Isolde Prince", since suppression of a Royal often causes the victims to develop mental health symptoms like Psychosis. Long lineages of Royals are fairly common in Isolde, as they remain isolated from the masses and organized rebellions have never occurred in Isolde's history. While usurpers do occasionally come from the higher classes, the focus of the Royal family on placating these members of society tends to work.Isolde lacks a legislative branch separate from the Royal family. Instead, the richest class of Isolde's society are invited to attend the Royal court, where they may use their power and influence to sway the Royal's decisions. Annual donations are expected by those that are part of the court to maintain their invitation. Even the slightest misstep could have one thrown out of court and shunned from ever attending again. The closer a person is to the Queen, the more influence they command over the legislation put into effect in Isolde. Who one knows is worth far more than what one knows. Those that wish to steal one's spot are constantly working to sabotage others, or collecting blackmail so that they can push their own agenda. 'Representatives' of provinces, cities, and towns are appointed by the crown as a reward for loyalty. Those that own such assets generally only care of the issues of the areas as it would affect their own status. Hence, it is largely military protection from the Scourge they beg the Royal family for, rather than anything that would benefit those living beneath them.
The Judicial courts that handle the everyday items of civil and criminal matters are led by the Judicial council. Members of the council are appointed by the Royal family, and it is inherently understood that the law is beneath the Royals and cannot be used to hold them accountable to anything. The other councils are the Diplomat, Military and Purity Councils. Both the diplomat and military councils are largely underfunded and undervalued. Largely, the diplomat council works solely to maintain the trade alliances the country requires, and has little interest in participating in the global community. The military council works to fight against the Scourge, and to maintain order in the streets of Isolde's cities through the law enforcement branches. Unlike the other two, the Purity Council is one of the most well funded councils in the entire country. Their duties include maintaining and examining genetic records, and controlling the Purity Investigators, so that the purity of the Ice Elementals can be maintained from the pollution of the other, lesser, Elemental species.
Economy
Isolde has a free market economy with little to no government interventions. Government funding is reserved for the military, diplomatic, and purity councils. All other goods and services are handled purely by the free market forces, including healthcare, medical drugs, emergency services, and the prison system. Insurance for medical and emergencies are often tied to an employer, but they are not required to provide this insurance. Insurance companies promise protection with large deductibles, or even amounts that must be paid out of pocket before they will even start to cover the service. Deals between hospitals, emergency services and insurance companies can be specific to a certain brand, meaning that outside of these deals a person is not covered. Monopolies do tend to develop, as the government handles most aspects of the economy with a laissez-faire approach, allowing companies to slowly create deals to reduce the amount of competition in the market. Isolde's economy generally relies on in importing raw materials from other countries and manufacturing them into luxury goods. Many in the lower classes work in the factories required to do this, while those in the higher classes are welcome to work in areas of art, management, and other 'clean, white collared' jobs.Worker rights, laws regarding minimum wages, and regulations regarding safety do not exist. Unions are illegal, and these laws are enforced through the Local Forces who work to protect the upper classes property from those that would damage it. The few times that unions have started to bubble up through companies, they have been quickly snuffed out. Entire factories will close and move elsewhere if the word is even whispered, helping to contribute to the culture that helps to destroy any talk. Those that make the mistake are often reported to the higher ups in a bid to avoid everyone losing their job. With the lack of regulation, companies often turn to incredibly harmful methods to cut costs. Cutting milk with chalk, unsafe work environments, chemicals and substances that the rest of the world has long since banned are all legal. Or at least not thoroughly investigated.
While Isolde does have marginal brackets for their income taxes, the majority of the tax breaks are for the richest bracket. This means that what few social services left are the burden on those in the lower tax bracket, while the majority of other services have long been cut to afford the breaks. Promises abound that these savings for the richest class will trickle down to those in the lower classes, and that will help them rise to the wealthier class one day. The increased earnings however is rarely invested in the communities or the bottom line of the companies. Instead, it is used to pay for more assets used only by the wealthy or received as increased wages for the highest in the companies. The vast majority of goods and services are taxed at a low amount, but do not make an exception for essential goods. Many industries in Isolde pay a lower percentage in taxes than the citizens in the lower classes. Entertainment, and anything that is seen as 'immoral' is taxed at an even higher rate. Allowing the government to profit from the recreational drugs and gambling that those in despair often fall to. Gambling is especially pervasive in Isolde, as it promises those a better life. While taxed, it is also extremely unregulated, and games are often not fair. The Royal Family determines the tax rates, and is known to preference those that they have grown fond of in the Royal courts.
Military
The military in Isolde in generally seen in a negative light. The perception is kinder to those in the esteemed ranks of silver-clad and gold-clad, as these ranks do not participate in the action of killing. Due to the poor perception of the rest of the military, there are not enough volunteers to staff the military to the level required to fight the Scourge. As such, Isolde is the one nation that use active conscription, even in peace time, to maintain their recruitment levels. There are two draws for the conscription, one that recruits for the lower ranks, and another that recruits commandants. While those from the lower classes are technically not barred from registering for the commandant draw, doing so requires a large subscription to be paid yearly. As well, men and non-Ice Elemental citizens in Isolde are only able to register for the lower ranked draft. While technically, anyone who has their name drawn is required to provide a certain amount of military service, those that handle the draft results accept bribes. For those that have money, escaping this duty is easy. For others, it immediately tears them away from their families.As an organization, the Isolde military is composed of nine specialized divisions. Within these nine, the offensive and defensive divisions include the Air Forces, Defence, Espionage, Infantry and Magic Forces divisions. Domestic divisions include the Interrogation , Local Forces, Front Lines and Weaponry divisions. Each division is led by two Council Members, and their Lieutenant. The Military Council itself is led by two Generals, and their Second-in-Commands.
Shifts in leadership and promotions in Isolde's military are rare. They mostly rely on the same networking as the rest of Isolde's culture, as well as bribes and acting 'as a proper Ice'. Who you know will always matter more than what you know. Those that volunteer for the military rather than those that are conscripted are seen with more respect within the military itself. Mixed Elementals are regulated to only ever being in the Front Lines, their sentence for existing. Men and Non-Ice Elementals are barred from the holding commandant ranks.
Enforcement, the Law and Justice System
Law enforcement of the lower classes in Isolde is strict, with both the Local Forces on patrol, as well the Purity Investigators constantly working to monitor them. While the higher classes find it far easier to escape the law with bribes, the lower classes do not have the same luxury. While small crimes often are punished with fines, these fines are defined in the law itself, meaning that they are the same for those of all income levels. The wealthy often treat them as the cost of doing business, while a fine for shoplifting could mean that a lower classed citizen might not be able to afford food that month. Crimes that affect businesses, bother the wealthy, or are violent in the open are of high priority to pursue. While laws official forbid much of the sabotage, violence, and blackmail that goes on behind closed doors, Isolde's justice system is unlikely to pursue these crimes. Especially if the ones committing them can afford to keep their pockets lined. The misandry and speciesist parts of Isolde's culture is deeply ingrained into their justice system, with crimes committed against Mixed Elementals being essentially legal, and crimes against men often being ignored by the Local Forces members they are reported to. The Local Forces and Purity Investigators are often used by those that would like to see their rivals put down, with multiple calls being made on the same person, or bribes being received to forge evidence of a crime. Being let out on bail does exist, but the cost is, again, far higher than most in the lower classes can afford. There are no limits on who can or can't be offered bail. Lawyers are similarly expensive, and the lower classes are often left to defend themselves against the charges laid against them. Isolde has little restrictions against use of physical force during investigations to extract confessions.Isolde's use of a private prison system that works through government contracts often leads to massive issues involving prisoners rights. Since prisons are paid per prisoner they accept to house, they often cram as many prisoners as possible into cheaply constructed prisons. Using prisoners as slave labour is not illegal, and these private prisons maintain contracts of their own to send out the convicts as workers in harsh conditions for no pay. There is no government oversight of what happens in these prisons, though it is common knowledge by all that the prison guards usually commit crimes against those imprisoned there. Those that survive their time imprisoned often reenter society worse-off than when their sentence started. Blacklisting those that have convicted is common practise, and resorting to crime quickly becomes their only way to survive. And then begins the cycle again. Along the way, the companies involve profit from both keeping the prisoners and for using true slave labour. All justified by saying that it's their punishment.
Societal Values
Isolde's values are pride, beauty, and individual greed and power. The collective has little to do with the decisions made by those in charge. Individual greed, and the pursuit of capital, makes the world spin in Isolde. Societal Darwinism is a leading belief, with those that struggle left to fail on their own, while businesses and the rich continue to get richer. Caring about fellow citizens is seen as weakness, especially since it can take everything for those at the lowest classes to survive. Apathy is seen as strength in this regard, and few in Isolde's culture are willing to give up their own money to help someone they see as lesser. Money in their own pockets is all that matters, even as people starve in the streets or go bankrupt from a medical illness. Charitable organizations from the global community often work in Isolde so that they can provide basics that they are refused or cannot access due to limited money. The rich citizens of Isolde often brag that this is how it should be done, with people being able to voluntarily provide to the poor, but rarely actually donate to these charities. This is directly contradicted as many of these charities receive government funding from the other nations. Especially the Initiative Towards World Health, since the lack of access to medical care begins to effect disease suppression efforts. Particularly the efforts to keep Devastation Syndrome a disease that few actually see in the modern day.Isolde values careers that require little physical labour, or that produce beautiful works. The arts, acting, office jobs, management, and business owners are seen as respected, whereas jobs that focus on physical labour such as agriculture and mining are seen as lowly. Similarly, jobs that involve obvious violence, like the military, or dirty jobs that require peoples hands to get dirty such as Remains Collector and garbage collectors are seen as disgusting. The class one is born into often determines which jobs they are able to take, since training for better positions often requires a massive amount of money or loans. While it is possible to rise up in class with the help of someone of a higher class providing training, often this lands people in indentured servitude for years.
Change is seen very negatively. Whether it be new technologies, or progressive ideas from the other nations, Isolde is not interested in changing. Their society often remains stagnant unless pushed to change by an external force. Usually war. While the rest of the world has slowly moved towards equality, putting aside the ideas of the Hierarchy of Elementals and the Natural Order of the Sexes, Isolde still practises both. A fact that leaves many Mixed Elementals, their parents, men, and gender diverse people fleeing the country by any means. Often becoming easy prey for the traffickers that would prefer to see them harmed, or even returned straight back to Isolde, cashing in for a reward. The other countries of the world find themselves responsible for accepting Isolde's refugees that come to their borders begging for asylum.
Foreign Relations
[Work-In-Progress, to be added later]Important Historical Figures
[Work-In-Progress, to be added later]History Overview
[Work-In-Progress, to be added later]
Type
Geopolitical, Country
Related Professions
Controlled Territories
Related Species
Related Myths
Earth Elementals: 9%
Lightning Elementals: 3%
Fire Elementals: 0%
Percent Mixed Elementals: 7%
TV Shows and Movies
Fabrics and Clothing
Skilled Workers (Domestic Servants)
Professional Workers (Artists, Gold Smiths)
Furniture
Fishery Products
Mining Resources (Enigma Crystals, minerals, ores, precious gems and stones)
Forestry Products
Electronics (Only those altered to allow for government censorship)
Professional Workers (Medical professionals, Psychologists, Combat Medics, Lawyers, Computer Scientists, software and hardware workers, and Judges)
Skilled Workers (Blacksmiths, Miners and Farmers)
Military Weapons (Firinian Weapons are banned)
Friendly
Isolde largely supports the Tuscendite, given that their Ideological beliefs align. While both groups members disagree on who belongs at the top of the Heirarchy of Elementals, they both have respect for their commitment to genetic purity and bans on interspecies relations. Isolde provides resources, money, and weapons to the Tuscendite, while the Tuscendite in turn move to sway opinions both in Tora and Tierra to more closely align with Isolde.
Friendly
While Tora does not agree with what Isolde does to their own citizens, their mutual goal of independence to do as they please without scrutiny brings the two nations together against Tierra and Firina. However, the two friends of convenience both still view each other with suspicion due to Isolde's continued belief in the Heirarchy of Elementals, and the fact that Tora's citizens have a habit of concealling refugees from extradition requests.
Unfriendly
Tierra tolerates Isolde's isolation as well as their national policies in diplomatic meetings, but it is well known that the country supports several organisations that work to undermine Isolde policy, such as the Initiative Towards World Health, as well as taking in and protecting refugees. Isolde greatly disapproves of their friendly relations with Firina, and in current times are far more aligned with the values of the Tuscendite over Tierra's ruling government.
Hostile
Firina and Isolde both have vastly differing values and goals, which often come to a head at Elemental Coalition meetings and in small skirmishes during times of 'peace'. Given that the main view of Firina's citizens is that Ice are best found on a dinner plate, and that the Ice consider the Fires a blight to removed, the rest of the world puts their efforts towards keeping conflicts short and making sure their diplomats aren't in the same room alone, rather than advocating for better relations.
Hostile
Isolde is determined to destroy the threat that the Chaos Elementals pose to their country, with their current Queen Glacia fully aware that the 'Rebels' are lead and organized by her first-born daughter.
The Rebels' goal is the destruction of the current state of Isolde's ruling class and breaking Isolde into pieces. Fueled both by the Fire-like bloodlust for Ice Elementals, and their members rage at the oppression and genocide of Isolde, it is unlikely they will stop until every city in reach is razed to the ground.
Hostile
While Isolde escaped Emilia's focus for the initial attempts to gain control, they are constantly being infiltrated by Hybrids. With Isolde's focus on genetic purity, the Hybrids are horrifying beasts to be eliminated, as well as being a large inconvinence in the Purity Investigators focus on hunting down Mixed Elementals. Emilia's group has focused on the chaos caused by the Rebels to sneak more of their people in, hopeful to find the power they need to destroy the state.
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