MysticYourHeart

MysticYourHeart - often just known as "Mystic" or "Lethe" - is a wandering mystic residing in the Realm of Laria Once a two-term General Secretary of the U.S.S.E., Lethe turned against his former country & became one of its most vocal enemies. He would lead the secessionist Realm of Laria until his resignation in early December.

Gol
After arriving on Eldham, Lethe joined with DeathByCannabis in the Mercurian Republic to build the city of Gol. The pair worked together to build a small trading town on their island. Lethe constructed much of the underground portion of Gol, hoping to create more pleasant living quarters for residents with the idea being that the subterranean housing would shield individuals from the scorching heat of the surface desert. Gol, being located between two notable seas, was in a rather strategic location. As such, Lethe worked to develop the city's infrastructure to support a trade hub. He dreamed of a bustling trade city, with travelers coming from far and wide.

Unfortunately, his dreams were crushed when Gol's host nation, the Mercurian Republic, fell to their neighbors of Rodinnbrok. Mercurian officials surrendered the city without even informing the locals, infuriating the residents. Lethe, seeing that war was bad for business, decided to flee with DeathByCannabis after the fall of their nation.

Laria
DeathByCannabis maintained his connections from his first Eldham home, Laria, and sought refuge back there. The Lethe followed him south, to the USSE, and to the jeweled city of Laria. DeathByCannabis had told Lethe along the route to Laria about the city - about the hospitality, egalitarianism, and its beauty above all. Upon arrival, he met Kato and Sorray - two of the city's leaders - who were overcome with joy at seeing DeathByCannabis back again safely. Lethe was astonished at the camaraderie between these friends, and found a new stage of enlightenment in his mystic research and insights from this experience. Though a new arrival in town, Kato and Sorray offered him a prestigious piece of land in the city - a large house in the Old City district. The Old City had always been occupied by notable Old Guard (long time residents of the USSE) and major political figures. Lethe was a strange stranger from strange lands, yet was awarded an honorable spot in the city - simply due to the fact that DeathByCannabis had vouched for him, and the two trusted the judgement of their friend so highly.

Lethe was grateful for the welcome, and could see clearly that the city of Laria lived up to its hospitable reputation. He dedicated his studies and labor towards the brewing of potions which soothed the soul, lightened emotions, and cured the body. These potions would find themselves highly valuable and used during the USSE's later armed conflicts and struggles. Due to the efficiency and speed of the Lethe's potion brewing, he became one of the core suppliers of the USSE's military potions, and ignited a prominent potion industry in the city of Laria.

He also proved himself to be not half bad with a sword, having won a tournament with Kato and DeathByCannabis which was hosted by present day Kolssonafell. These skills increased the Lethe's prominence in the city of Laria, and in the USSE at large.

During the Atletchia-Vulperium War, Lethe was present on the side of the Vulperium. Lethe later came to regret his participation in this war, declaring that "The wrong side won that war."

Entrance into Politics
After the election of Kato of Laria to General Secretary, Lethe assassinated Kato during his inauguration. Kato deeply respted anybody motivated & skillful enough to kill him. Because of this, Lethe was Kato's first pick for Commissioner of Security. However, his appointment became a contentious issue due to allegations of nepotism & because of the popularity of the incumbent, Echo. His appointment was denied & Lethe remained a close ally of the Kato Administration from the sidelines.

Following the resignation of Echo, Lethe was unanimously confirmed for the position. In his capacity as Commissioner of Security, Lethe helped to negotiate the U.S.S.E.'s membership into The Imperium. During Kato's term, Lethe was awarded the Chelovek Medal for his dedication & labor for the government.

Lethe was re-appointed by General Secretary Pier Aganar, due to the dedication he had put into the work. He further oversaw the eradication of numerous squatter claims, helped bring a new PvP community to the U.S.S.E., expanded the national armory, & continued military cooperation with The Imperium.

As Pier's term neared an end, Lethe was the first to declare his candidacy for General Secretary of the U.S.S.E. The field was cleared & not particularly competitive. Lethe won his election with 88% of the vote & a clear mandate for the Katoist wing of the C.P.U.S.S.E.

General Secretary
Lethe was inaugurated on July 27th. Before his inauguration speech even began, Kato - the head of the State Assassin's Guild - attacked Lethe in an attempt to assassinate him. The battle was fiercely fought, but in the end the Assassin's Guild succeeded. The Assassin's Guild then began killing off guests of the inauguration ceremony. Nobody was spared. Lethe's term began weeks after the government of the Eldham Imperium was overthrown by communist rebels. The Eldham Union was formed, and as the incumbent General Secretary of the U.S.S.E., Lethe became a member of its Politburo. The creation of The Union & a growing military strength led Mystic to end the U.S.S.E.'s period of military isolationism. The U.S.S.E. declared its support to both the Merconis & Tovarisha in their respective wars. While the U.S.S.E. officially had no participation in the Imperium-Prisma War or the N.D.A.-Aurora War, Lethe was a volunteer soldier on the side of the Imperium for both wars.

The town of Hammerdeep became an official town of the U.S.S.E. under Lethe's term as General Secretary. Further, Vanshire was released as an independent nation & a chunk of Andrimar was sold to Morladron.

Second Term as General Secretary
The second half of Lethe's term as General Secretary began with mixed results. Tovarisha lost their war, Merconis folded without a battle, & a crisis in Kryvonea nearly ignited a war. Thing began to rebound quickly following these setbacks, & the U.S.S.E. continued on its march of progress.

The Union Military begins to take form during this time, with Lethe hosting regular military trainings in the city of Laira. The Eldham Union opened up its own ticket shop, which provides a variety of custom weapons, drinks & materials for all in Eldham to purchase. Toward the end of Lethe's term, a war erupted in the east between Morladron & Sylvania. Morladron, despite being one of the U.S.S.E.'s closest allies, did not receive official support from the U.S.S.E. or Eldham Union, as improving relations with Sylvania became a top priority of the U.S.S.E. It is due to this war that Kato of Laria - Lethe's mentor - was removed from government & charged due to allegations of support for Morladron. Lethe would later involve himself directly in the war with the rest of the U.S.S.E., becoming personally disgusted by Morladron's behavior & a fervent supporter of Sylvania's cause. On August 4th, a series of events unfolded which may well be the defining moment of Lethe's tenure. The day begins with a General Secretary debate for the upcoming election. Immediately following the debate, a Vulperium-backed raid occurred in the city of Sanguinople. Despite large casualties, the remaining Vulps were driven out of the city & security was restored in Sanguinople. Furious at the raid, Lethe publicly backed legislation which severed any and all ties or connection to the Vulperium.

Following the raid on Sanguinople, the Republic of Portavel voted to join the U.S.S.E. as an autonomous state amidst the chaos. The U.S.S.E. for the first time in it's history expanded to the west of Eldham. False allegations of election fraud were made by Swardians living inside of Portavel. They attempted a coup to overturn the results of the election. Portavel rallied her allies & dealt a crushing blow to the pretenders.

Concluding the day, Imperius of Velerin announced the beginning of the Eldham Alliance - a full military pact between Velerin, The Eldham Union, Scylding, & Sylvania. All previous treaties signed by the U.S.S.E. were nullified upon joining.

Great Serronan War
On August 6th, Lethe was officially re-elected with 66.3% of the vote, becoming the second ever General Secretary to win re-election. On the same day, the National Assembly of the U.S.S.E. voted to build a border wall with the Vulperium due to Vulp sponsored raids in our cities. A crew of over a dozen people worked & erected thousands of blocks worth of wall within a few hours. During this time, the Vulperium attempted yet another skirmish which was quickly stomped by U.S.S.E. armed forces.

The newly formed Eldham Alliance issued a demand for 15 million dollars in reparations from the Vulperium for treaty violations & violations of national sovereignty. After the Vulperium refused to pay, all members of the alliance declared war. The theater of the war was Kolssonafell, where the U.S.S.E. re-captured an occupied city & proclaimed the restoration of the Republic of Kolssonafell.

An invasion of Manzig was launched, & 3 battles were fought over the city. Each battle involved highly coordinated attacks from the Alliance & rock solid defenses from the Vulperium. While the first two battles of the war were technical draws with victory being claimed by both sides, the third battle proved to be a decisive victory for the Eldham Alliance.Following the Third Battle of Manzig, the Royal Court of the Vulperium began to negotiate their surrender with the Eldham Alliance. A two week negotiation ensued for the Vulperium's negotiated surrender. Without an official treaty signed, a fourth battle was still planned to happen. Negotiations continued until finally, an hour & thirty minutes before the battle, the Vulperium surrendered. It wouldn't be for a few more days until all members of the court signed & the Eldham Alliance's victory was publicized.

As the Vulperium war concluded, Morladron also surrendered following Sylvania's victory in the Battle of Vallava. With simultaneous victories on two fronts, the Eldham Alliance was in its strongest position yet.

Loyalist Rebellion, Mars Exulte, & Larian Secession
On September 19th, Bhutch was elected as the General Secretary & Lethe resigned from his government positions. Initially, Lethe had only planned to help the Eldham Alliance with their last loose ends in the Vulperium War & otherwise stay out of politics. Towards the end of his second term, Lethe became increasingly skeptical of Eleanor & the Eldham Union. He would reveal information about the Eldham Union's violation of Sylvania's NAP & the Eldham Alliance treaty, as well as uncover a plot to annex the Bardonian capital of New Dorasterrock while being committed to Ryzan. He would further be promoted to Enolite in the mercenary group Paragon & develop a close friendship with it's leader, Aaronx4b.

Lethe would collaborate with the incumbent General Secretary, Bhutch Fienlinya, to break apart the Eldham Union by have the U.S.S.E. withdraw from the Union & getting the EA to recognize the U.S.S.E as the Union's only successor. While every member of the EA unanimously agreed to boot Eleanor, Bhutch would be couped & Lethe put on a show trial. After Union puppet leaders were installed, the EA begrudgingly accepted Eleanor back in after enough malding from the junta leaders.

During the lead up to the show trial, Lethe worked with Paragon leaders to prepare an attack on the U.S.S.E. should they move to prosecute him. After Lethe's show trial ended, when asked to transfer Manzig, he refused & launched an open rebellion against the U.S.S.E. The cities of Manzig, Nielsensbyian, & Al-Basaad would all leave the nation.

A day after the trial, the Zaidan Rebellion began & Lethe made a public appearance at the rebellion alongside member of the Paragon mercenary group. They had gone only to cause havoc, but wound up successfully sieging the city of Phoenix. Following the first battle of Ikoria, the groups Paragon, Kartek, Drackar, & Requiem formed an alliance called Mars Exulte. Mars Exulte would directly intervene in the following Battle of Phoenix, giving a decisive victory for the Eldham Union Rebels.

The Eldham Union & Eldham Alliance would silently dissolve following the war, & the U.S.S.E. annexed by Scylding. The war proved as a vindication of every warning Lethe had given to the U.S.S.E. in the months prior.

Lethe would use this opportunity to push for Larian secession. Finally leaving behind the country he once led after being ignored, insulted, & defamed by the people he once called friends. Every bridge he had with the U.S.S.E. would be burned, & he vowed to never associate with Communists ever again.

New Santonia & Gardenia War
Lethe would stop caring about geopolitics after the Eldham Union war & moved onto wars which personally amused him instead. In the New Santonia War of Liberation, the Santosi people would defeat Yimmu-Audal 163-0. After the first battle, Yimmu-Audal signed a peace treaty with the Santosi Emperor CaptainBones_ which granted ownership of Market 55 to Lethe.

When the VVR invaded Gardenia, Lethe attended each battle in defense of Gardenia. In the first battle, the defenders of Ruddersdam would be overwhelmed & routed in a blowout victory. However, in the second battle, Lethe would find himself alone for the majority of the battle & outnumbered against the attacking force. Lethe got the only kill in the war, securing a win for Gardenia. In the final battle, Lethe promised so many people a battle "outnumbered on defense" that the defenders of Ruddersdam outnumbered the attackers & the war was decisively won in Gardenia's favor.

Notable Battles & Wars
Atletchia-Vulperium War (Defender - Victory)

Imperium-Prisma War (Attacker - Victory)

NDA-Aurora (Attacker - Defeat)

Simulami-Nidaros (Defender - Defeat)

IAU-Paradise (Attacker - Defeat) Morladron-Sylvania (Defender - Vicotry)  Eldham Alliance - Vulperium War (Attacker - Victory)

Mars Exulte-Eldham Union War (Both Defender & Attacker - Victory)

Siege of New Dorasterrock (Attacker - Draw/Defeat)

Yimmu Audal-New_Santonia War (Defender - Victory)

Ravenguard-Fortistan War (Defender - Victory)

Eastmarch Campaign (Attacker - Defeat)

VVR-Gardenia War (Defender - Victory)