Theiónikos

The Archonate of Theionikos is a state in the High Kingdom of Yimmu-Audal, and a province in the Imperium. Previously, it was a state in the Empire of Astyllea, a duchy in the Empire of Yimmu-Audal, and a successor state of the 1st empire of Yimmu-Audal. At the head of the Archonate is the Archon, currently Archon Bob Pullus Audalad Galus. The Archon has supreme authority through the god Theios, but he can be vetoed or removed from office by the Council of Theios or the regional assembly.

Government
The government of the Archonate is split up between 4 historical counties: Ayesinco, Theiotikos, Gebel, and Auraion. These are run by counts, the counts are permitted to rule their county as they see fit, as long as it does not go in against the wishes of the Archon or the Constitution. Besides the counties, there is also a vast bureaucracy supporting the Archon in his duties. The bureaucracy is split up into ministries, you have for example the Ministry of Industry, the Ministry of Religion, the Domestikos (recruiting and integrating). A lot of the power and responsibilities still lie with the Archon though.

Military
The military of Theionikos, called the Riders of Theios, is headed by the Grand Commander. The Current Grand Commander is Scyser Cirandir Galus. The Riders work with a simple rank system, when you first join you are a Recruit, after passing tests and trainings you become a regular Soldier, the most skilled become a Knight. Soldiers or Knights who have a lot of experience often get promoted to Veteran. The pay and prestige a soldier gets increases depending on their rank. Below the Grand Commander there are a couple officers helping him manage the Riders of Theios. There also exists a Quartermaster, who heads the Logistical Division. They are equal to the rank of Officer in the Riders.

Ayesinco

 * Ayesinco
 * Timilon
 * Pasouthak
 * Narekther

Theiotokos

 * Theiotokos
 * Evangalista
 * Ordruda
 * Fynde
 * Sancta

Auraion

 * Dur-Sharrukin
 * Nous-Il
 * New-Doomstadt
 * Izdubarak

Gebel

 * Die Einde
 * Gebel

Mythical History
In the myths, it is said that the Prophet Inirion founder the Holy City of Theiotikos, and the Archonate of Theionikos with it. There exist many a story, but sadly, the early beginnings of the Archonate are not clear. We do have a lot of information on the last 10 Archons, through the writing of the Scholar Mages Historicum of the House Galus.

Erbor IV "The Mad"
He started his reign promising, reforming the system of taxation and funding cultural projects with the money collected. He became quite fond of one particular painter: Picaticus. Picaticus wasn't a normal painter, he liked to paint with the most expensive colors and paints to make a mish-mash of colors. For some people, it just seemed like he was throwing paint at a canvas, but Erbor really liked the paintings and funded all his materials.

This wasn't a problem in the beginning, but his rapid spendings didn't match the money collected from his new tax system, and it put a strain on the treasury. He stopped listening to his advisors and even the Tetrachy. But there was a bigger problem on the horizon: he wasn't married nor did he have kids. His brothers all vied for control, while he was busy with Picaticus. At one point it even came to an armed confrontation, where guards loyal to one of his brothers, Malakos, attacked the son and heir of another brother, Felicus. When he was asked to judge on the the conflict, he passed on the responsibilty to the 3rd brother, Potentos, who used this opportunity to further his own power.

The last 3 years of his reign he didn't even leave the chambers of Picaticus, only calling his minister of Finances to buy new materials for the paintings. His brothers openly announced their wishes to become Archon after his death, and many Diwans and Tetrachs began choosing sides in the upcoming conflict.

On the 9th of June, it was announced that the Archon was dead. What followed was one of the dark pages in the history of Theionikos, a war where brother fought brother, and countryman fought countryman. Picaticus was quickly murdered by the Principales, the guards of the Archon, as they judged that he was responsible for the death of their Archon. All the paintings of Picaticus and Erbor were burned, and the ashes put inside the coffin of the former Archon.

He reigned for 13 years. He will always be remembered as one of the worst Archons, thus being given the nickname "The Mad"

Belisaros I "The Unlikely"
After the death of Erbor IV, his brothers Malakos, Felicus, and Potentos all declared themself Archon of Theionikos. This sparked a civil war that lasted 7 years, and it only ended after the death of most of the royal familly, with only the 3rd son of Potentos, Belisaros remaining fit to rule. I will not go in to the specifics of the Great Civil War, but I would recommend the book "The Three Archons" by Malakai. It has an accurate depiction of the battles, intrigue and most importantly, the divine interferences by Theios during the war.

Kaloman I "The weak"
''After the reign of Kaloman I, it was decided that the Archon would appoint a successor with the blessing of the Tetrarchy, or after the Archons dead, if no successor had been chosen, the Tetrarchs would decide themselfs. The Archons didn't need to be connected by blood, anyone can be chosen.''

Humble Beginnings
The roots of the Duchy of Theiónikos are found in the initial settlement of the Yimmu-Audal Empire's northern desert territory when the Holy City of Theiotokos was founded by then slave LethalMuffin as a holy site of Theiosism. Upon the creation of this city and the start of development in the region, the Emperor and Elder Council of Yimmu-Audal established the Northwestern Territories, a semi-autonomous zone which encompassed the vast and uninhabited desert regions of the Western Continent. For a time the Northwestern Territories remained as an autonomous frontier region of the Yimmu-Audal Empire, until the formal establishment of a government by LethalMuffin.

Western Territories
The first formal government of the region which would go on to become the Duchy of Theiónikos was the territorial government under the rule of Governor LethalMuffin. During this time the territories were still sparsely populated and effectively under the theocratic rule of the Sanctum of Theiotokos of the Theiosistic Faith. However a colonization initiative would be declared by the government of Yimmu-Audal under the direction of the Governor, which would lead to the founding of many settlements, the first of which would be Gebel and Zir-Qalman. It was during this initial period of growth that the Theiosistic faith came into communion with the Sakrelist faith, and the foundations for the Duchy truly began to take shape.

County of Theiónikos
After the settlement of the first four major cities within the western Territories the first Feudal government would be put in place in the region. The County of Theiónikos, under the rule of Count LethalMuffin, would continue to see growth and spread the Theiosist faith during the last days of the Yimmu-Audal Empire, until eventually the territory would be peacefully annexed and turned into an Imperial Province under the Soleannen Empire by Emperor Siegfried of Escharia. It was during this time as an Imperial Province that the Duchy truly came into being.

Imperial Province of Theiónikos
When Yimmu-Audal was defeated in the Trillium War and annexed by the Soleannen Empire, the County of Theiónikos was peacefully integrated into the empire, while in contrast its southern neighbors of Audal proper were in stark opposition to the change of powers. During this initial period the Imperial Fort of Il-Kabulli was created within the lands of the newly named Duchy of Theiónikos under Duke LethalMuffin so as to ensure the loyalty and protection of the Imperial Province from hostile powers. While the Duchy of Theiónikos was continuing its expansion in population, the Emperor of Soleanna also granted them new lands in Siroba and Alshati and a coast on the Sea of Pearls. The Duchy's government continued to formalize, the faith continued to grow, and the power of the Duke continued to increase as Soleanna gave them more autonomy in the region. This growth and newfound autonomy would set the Duchy up for success once it gained its independence during the fall of the Empire.

Freedom at Last
After the dissolution of the Soleannen Empire the Duchy of Theiónikos, as well as many Imperial Provinces including Audal, were granted independence as successor states of the Soleannen Empire. For the first time in Theiónikos' history it was a sovereign nation with the right to its own self determination. The formal systems of government and the power of the Sanctum of Theiotokos had fully established themselves, and now they were free to pursue their own destiny. The growth seen under Soleanna would continue to increase, while its southern neighbors sadly continued to degenerate. During this prosperous age the Duchy would gain multiple land acquisitions and experience an economic boom before the the Jagdasian Emperor, and previous master of Duke LethalMuffin, StoryStudio returned and ushered in the Yimmu-Audal Renaissance. Reunification talks had already taken place between the leadership of both the Duchy of Theiónikos and Free Yimmu-Audal, but the process would be impeded by internal politics until the former Emperor returned. The Duchy of Theiónikos, being the dominant power of the region, would then serve as the foundation for the new Kingdom of Theios-Essukdal, with the state faith and Feudal system of the Duchy continuing on into the new nation. The Duchy would be reorganized into a new realm under Theios-Essukdal, with its previous leader LethalMuffin maintaining his title of Duke and focusing his efforts on leading the new faith of the nation. The next monarchs of this Kingdom would also be powerful and influential figures in Theiónikos' history, with the First Lugal being Takiruko, previously the Count of Gebel and Chief Diplomat of the Duchy of Theiónikos, and the First Ningal being Countess Mystic of Coltmaere. The laws and Constitution of Theiónikos would also serve as the basis for the First Constitution of Theios-Essukdal, with the foreign and domestic policy of the nation greatly influencing the development of this new Kingdom.