Dust Belt

Not to be confused with the Great Western Desert Belt, of which the Dust Belt is a subregion of.

The Dust Belt is a geographical area that comprises the entirety of Eastern Haven. The region takes it's name from the powerful dust storms in the savannahs and deserts of, primarily, Aldane. The Dust Belt is bordered by the Sea of Jcon and the Pirate Sea to the east, the Kushite Sea to the north, the Baldic Sea, the Heart of Haven and the Sanctuary Mountains to the west and the Savernian Jungle in the south. The western border of the region is variously defined, however there is a general area of separation. The highest point in the region is Mount Zhaskgrod, standing at 4307 meters tall, in Ironhold.

Etymology
The name 'Dust Belt' was coined during the end of the Second Republic of Chevkri by it's Apex Chidius, referring to the powerful sandstorms that occur in the region.

Pre-Athinische Arrival
The original name of region was 'Maqri'. It's etymology and meaning is fully unknown however there exists some theories that cite Chevkri mythology and folklore, hypothetizing that 'Maqri' is or something related to 'Maqrish', the forgotten Ninekh god of War. They reason that the region may be named after him due to the Ardatian invasions or the native raids.

Post-Athinische
Following the arrival of the Aetherians, they briefly gave it their own name, 'Umbria'. This name was in fact the name of the region the Aetherians settled in, however the migrants were unaware. This name would be quite brief as when the Qeshbago and the Umbrians chose to unite, their union was named the 'Holy Chevkri Empire'. It would be through this name that this region would be named 'Chevkri'.

Late Kingdom of Chevkri
During the Late Kingdom of Chevkri, the name 'East Haven' became much more popular among the mainly Auroran emigrant or Auroran-tied government who, thanks to their ties, used their influence to impose this name on the region.

Modern Times
The name 'Dust Belt' was coined near the end of Chevkri, being used ever since not simply because it is easy to remember, but to distance nations like Aetheria or Nullaria from Chevkri.

Definitions and Boundaries
The different boundaries for the Dust Belt, going from most accepted to least accepted Black: Lünefeller Line

Red: Ursus Line

Green: GWDB Line

The boundaries of the region have always been disputed however the general area it comprises is pretty accepted, with it the fact that it includes Kutaiyara, Nebula, Nullaria, Aetheria, Montroig, Alokhrad and Dande being widely agreed on. Various seperations from the rest of Haven have been proposed, with the Ursus Line being the oldest of them that is still used on some maps and definitions.

Original Boundary
The original boundary of the Dust Belt infact only stretched from the Meramhold Plateau down to the Nul'lari desert as the north was considered part of the Cat's Claw Peninsula and the south part of Lietmarg. This definition of the region was due to the area being under the First Kingdom of Jcon and generally underpopulated. It was also not helped that the entire need for a definition of the region only came with the Qeshbago Dynasty, who set the boundaries as such to fit their needs as they wished.

Cat's Claw Peninsula
The Cat's Claw Peninsula, as stated, used to not be part of the region. However, as time passed, it became the most known and recognizable area of the Dust Belt. It was with little controversy that the peninsula was considered a territory within the Dust Belt, however many Aetherian nationalists pushed for it's seperation from the Dust Belt in recent times due to their wish to distance themselves from Chevkri and Dara Lumonde.

Tamji
Tamji is the single most disputed area in terms of setting a boundary for the Dust Belt. In many maps at first, it was not even included. However, slowly, with the partition of Andros, Tamji appeared more and more. However, some still said that it was not part of the Dust Belt, and those who did agree it was within it's borders, could not agree where it's borders ended. The Ursus line argues it ends on the Chevkri border, while the Lünefeller line argues it ends with the Greater Nul'lari desert.

Sindimlemi Dynasty
Main article: Sindimlemi Dynasty

Qeshbago Dynasty
Main article: Qeshbago Dynasty

Umbria
Main article: Umbrian Empire

On February 14th, the city of Russantia was founded in what would come to be known as 'Umbria'. Måne sailed south from Zhaitker-Klend, intending to go north, and landed in Russantia's land and came to found it. He then declared the nation of Umbria. Very quickly, the Athinische migration occured and the nation of Umbria found itself in a dominating position over Qeshbago. However, the Qesh would not give up the lands immediately. During a short battle in the city's palace, Qeshbago mercenaries consisting of elite soldiers from Alteniquia and Nieden besieged the palace with many defenders outside. They attempted to enter but failed due to rigorous Umbrian defenses, however an attempt at counter-attack caused an opening in their defenses to be breached. Many defenders were slaughtered, despite this, the Umbrians eventually kicked the mercenaries out and retained control of Russantia. This would mark a turning point, causing Qadrog Meram I of Qeshbago to concede and grant Umbria 1/4th of the nation's land.

Countless coups and rebellions would occur in Umbria, and following a KATO intervention and coup that immediately triggered democratic elections, electing Ursus Xanbiri, Umbria made the decision to merge with Qeshbago following short negotiations and they formed the Holy Chevkri Empire.

Holy Chevkri Empire
Main article: Holy Chevkri Empire

Upon the formation of the Holy Chevkri Empire, a terrible plague began to ravage the Cat's Claw Peninsula. The Russantia Fungus, also known as the Nether Infection, began in Russantia and infected large parts of the population.

Chevkri Republic
Main article: Chevkri Republic

Uldarashi Civil War
Main article: Uldarashi Civil War

Upon the Uldarashi Schism, Chevkri was immediately on the side of the Imperialists. Chevkri did not recognize the trial held by Montroig for Empress Caterina, and was one of the states agreeing that the secession was a 'power grab' from her along with Savernia. Nullaria saw itself in a precarious position, not knowing who to side with, however it eventually came to agree with the Imperialists, and so did Canine. Montroig and Alfheim pledged their allegiance to Caterina and formed the Crowned Republic of Loyalist Uldarash, also known simply as Loyalist Uldarash.

Battle of Canine
Main article: Battle of Canine

Both sides sent in an around equal number of troops into the island. The battle was more of a skirmish, but still ended in a disastrous loss for the Loyalists. Though they fought hard, they faced the loss of 42 of their own against 4 Imperialists, an omen for the future. This did not affect Loyalist morale and vigor, as they still enjoyed major foreign backing and the main battle was still to come.

Battle of Terroja
Main article: Battle of Terroja

When the main battle came, it hit hard. At first, the entire Uldarashi army began to close in on the city to the horror of the Loyalist defense. Once a Loyalist regiment was spotted moving towards Northport, some Aurorans withdrew to reinforce their city. The Loyalists held strong, stunting any Imperial advance. However, the Imperials did not suffer any casualties during their attempts whilst the defenders bled soldiers in order to maintain control over Terroja. Despite these losses, the Montroigan defense continued to fight. Their strategy was to refuse direct engagement and instead lead the attackers into ambushes. This strategy won them some time, but no Imperials were killed. Eventually, they began to give in. Nikephoros' troops slaughtered the defenders and began slowly entering the city, bleeding Loyalist Uldarash's defenses dry all throughout their offensive. The boiling point of the battle was when the Church of the Holy Anvil was stormed, where the Loyalists and Imperialists battled one on one. There, the Empire's men and her allies held the upper hand in the fighting. To no loss, they killed much of the defense's forces, ending large-scale resistance in Terroja.

In the fighting, Empress Caterina was wounded. The city took large amounts of damage as the Second Empire of Uldarash retook sections of Terroja one by one. Outside of a couple of solo actions that did not inflict any losses to the attackers, resistance was over. Terroja fell.

Battle of Coolio City
Main article: Hapatmitas-Chevkri Campaign

Following the terrible loss at Terroja, the Loyalists created a last resort plan to achieve a Loyalist victory in the war. They would launch a grand offensive into the Cat's Claw Peninsula and Hapatmitas, aiming to take both regions to heavily weaken the Empire. In the Dust Belt, their plan was to first seize Coolio City before moving into Russantia and Eraqat, which would've certainly collapsed Chevkri. The Loyalists prepared their offensive at a makeshift warcamp in Tiatua and the Loyalist Supply Corps began arming their soldiers. In terms of supply, Loyalist Uldarash's supplies were heavily limited while the Second Empire of Uldarash had large reserves and could afford to lose multiple times what the Loyalists had in reserve. Yet, the attackers still undertook their offensives. The Loyalist main force headed towards Hapatmitas meanwhile a smaller force attacked Coolio city. They estimated that Coolio City would fall quite easily as it was a small settlement on the Chevkri-Montroig border.

Before the battle, multiple Loyalist commanders were rendered incapable to head to Coolio City or Hapatmitas due to being embroiled in an Uldarashi ambush on their transport vehicles, hindering their offensive capabilities greatly. In addition, their men were quite disorganized as the list of platoons was only released ten minutes before the battle and they were unprepared to launch an attack. Supply issues further deteriorated the fighting capability of the attackers due to raids by bandits and disorganization was simply the final nail in the coffin. During the battle, even a small Aetherian garison in the city managed to hold off the attackers before the arrival of the Imperial forces.

End of the Civil War
Following the Battle of Fornost, Savernia and Nullaria left the Second Empire of Uldarash and a fragile peace ensued, though not official. Savernia eventually rejoined the Empire and Nullaria briefly joined the Loyalists before withdrawing and putting itself under Entente protection. Montroig and Alfheim surrendered unconditionally and signed the Treaty of Terroja, providing a clear cut resolution to the war.

Union of Haven
Main article: Union of Haven

It was following the collapse of the Second Empire of Uldarash that almost the entirety of the Dust Belt fell under the control of the Union of Haven. The Republic of Chevkri, the Republic of Montroig, the Republic of Alfheim and the Kingdom of Canine all joined willingly within the first hours of it's formation, leading to an almost instant reunification of the Dust Belt. It was ruled by a provisional government under RakiaKnight Ganeff with no constitution. It's formation was quite brief and undeveloped, however in the weeks to come, it would become far the opposite. Many of the states that joined the UoH seeked the same protection that Uldarash provided, along with amical ties to the rest of East Haven. It's consitution was soon ratified by former members of the Uldarashi High Council and the leadership of the individual states, putting the Constitution of the Union of Haven into law.

Over a 6 day period, the leadership argued and debated over what the constitution would include, how it would be written, the specifics and so on and so forth. This led eventually led to it's ratification and the beginning of the Ganeff Administration. The administration would be the sole government until the dissolution of the Union of Haven. Ganeff was voted in by the High Council to serve as the first (and only) Sentinel of the UoH due to his reputation as an experienced and distinguished politician and well-estimed leadership, having been a former Emperor of the Second Empire of Uldarash and a paladin of the Order of Aurora.

Alongside him was Argon Retter, elected as his princeps for many of the same reasons as Ganeff and having been former Guardian of the Republic of Montroig and a war council during the Uldarashi Civil War on the side of Loyalist Uldarash. They came to an agreement to hold the capital in the city of Axel, already capital of Alfheim, in the time until a new capital city designed to be that of the Union of Haven was built.

Collapse
Main article: Collapse of Chevkri

Aetherian Revolution
Main article: Aetherian Revolution

The Aetherian Revolution commenced on the 9th of April 2022, triggered by the collapse of Chevkri. The Social Republic of Chevkri had claimed ownership of all of Umbria, which much of the population disliked, and they declared their independence, commencing a civil war in the region. Within hours, Triton joined them peacefully and they marched on Russantia, taking it without resistance. The Union of Haven issued an ultimatum demanding the rebels step down within 24 hours or face war. Talks between the two ensued, with the Aetherians demanding Umbria fall back under their control whilst the Union of Haven attempted to compromise between them and the SRC, offering re-integration and possible transformation into a state. The Lunaist States of Aetheria, the official name of the Aetherian state, was formed and it quickly began training it's army and industrializing, along with hiring mercenaries.

Skirmishes on the Montroig border occured before the main Union of Haven army attacked Coolio City. First, they surrounded it, trapping the Aetherians inside. The Unionists blew a hole in the walls and entered, unaware of the extensive traps within the city. Many of them fell and died, including their commander, stunting any Union advance. Aetherian reinforcements broke the encirclement and began funneling supplies towards the defense, however the Union of Haven forces were too strong. They restarted their advance and before long, the city fell. Although, heavy casualties had been inflicted, leading to a peaceful resolution to the conflict where none of the rebels were put on trial and they were allowed to keep their lands.

Second Qeshbago Dynasty
Following the collapse of the Union of Haven, Canine, Zhaitker-Klend and Nebula formed the Second Qeshbago Dynasty.

Dara-Lumonde
Main article: Dara-Lumonde

Politics
There exists only three democracies in the Dust Belt, being Kutaiyara, Alfheim and Montroig, as the rest are monarchies. Monarchism in the region has been a very disputed ideology as previously to the formation of the Kingdom of Chevkri, the only real Monarchist state (that did not host elections, such as Qeshbago) was the Umbrian Empire. Throughout the region's early history, it was was ruled solely by the Republic of Chevkri, an authoritative republic. When Alfheim formed and Montroig seceded, there now existed two more democracies in the region. Alokhrad's independence created the first monarchy in the Dust Belt in a long time. Though, calls for monarchism had not faded away with the Holy Chevkri Empire as Umbrian loyalists still wished for the return of the Czardom. Their calls for monarchism, however, would be realized in a fashion they did not hope for. The Aurorans that migrated into Chevkri quickly took control of the government and it went from an authoritative republic to a military junta during and following the Uldarashi Civil War. With Smartaholic retiring from power, Neon took power and declared the Kingdom of Chevkri.

This Kingdom would be shortlived, and so would his reign, as the Northern Uprising put an end to both and put the final Apex, Chid, in power. The Second Republic was formed and democracy lived on until it's collapse. Then, five new Kingdoms formed along with two new democracies. The region, by this time, was ruled by the Union of Haven. The Union of Haven was a parliamentary republic and a democracy, however the states were reserved the right to choose their own government systems. Thus, monarchies prevailed once again. This new order would remain for the rest of the Dust Belt's history as monarchies dominated over democracies.

Ethnic cleansing in the Cat's Claw Peninsula
Ethnic cleansing in the Cat's Claw Peninsula has taken place very uncommonly throughout it's history, used only as a last resort tool. The only cases of ethnic cleansing in the Dust Belt are in the Ironhold Genocide, the Russantia Genocide, the Areus Genocide, the Zhaitker Genocide and the Suedlande Genocide. These genocides were most often caused by sky-high tensions following territorial or cultural disputes.

Ironhold Genocide
The Ironhold Genocide was caused by the Paragonite invasion of Umbria and the formation of Paragonite Chevkri, and the following instability within the territory. With the territory occupied, the Aetherians living within the lands caused great trouble for the occupying forces. For many years, the Aetherians remained as the vastly dominant ethnic group, refusing to assimilate. Much of the occupying government's actions were blocked by unrest, and this continued following the formation of Ironhold. The government of Ironhold had to come to a decision on how to deal with this, and they saw no other solution but resorting to barbarian acts of massacre.

Russantia Genocide
The Russantian Genocide had much of the same causes as the Ironhold Genocide, however the circumstances were different to incredible proportions. The Aetherians in the territory controlled by Elys following the Second Umbrian Civil War constituted 98% of the population of the city and held most of the local government positions. The Elysene government had, in the past, tried to identify their state as Umbrian. Their efforts were in vain, and the same unrest present in Ironhold persisted here.

Areus Genocide
The Areus Genocide was, to say the least, a long time coming. Tensions between the central Chevkri government and the Aetherians/Umbrians had reached untenable heights long before the genocide. It was undertaken as a very last resort to restore stability to the north, however wrong the central government deemed it. The dissolution of Umbria and replacement by Areus, additionally removing all Umbrians from the Areus government, was the stepping stone to undertaking the Genocide and would be the origin for the Northern Uprising.

Zhaitker Genocide
The Zhaitker Genocide, to say the least, was one of the easiest and fastest. The locals had been a nuisance to the Aetherian government and their elimination and replacement by ethnic Aetherians would have greatly stabilized the peninsula. Although they were friendly to the Aetherian government, many of the actions to come would have largely changed that.