Please note:
This is the first in a series of choices that will have the effect of reforming the Marianite government (for better or worse). It will play out at a microcosmic level. The first choice might seem like a 'duh' moment, but it needs to be clear(er) than it was during the last choice, so the Barbarian will not presume anything.
Altered States
It was a curious path the senior leadership of the Respublica forged, in the aftermath of the annexation of the FAITH and the New Phyr Dominion in the mid-370s. As some of the basic values of the Commos seeped into Codexian society, at large – spurred by Commo mercantile and entrepreneurial success – the government did nothing, content as they were to finally see the economy experience strong, sustained growth. The lack of a decisive response to this slowly forming challenge to the bedrock tenets of Marianism was telling. By the late 390s, the ‘moderates’ were in vogue. It was not so much that the religion itself had ‘softened’. Rather, this was a case of a people learning to cope with plenty and success, much as Marianism itself had been the response to a perceived moral decline and deprivation. During this time, figures such as Valter Andrei Fei and Tombe A’lualua rose to significance, as the spiritual and political leaders of a new generation of young Marianites.
These proverbial Young Turks were steadily edging away from the hardcore piety and observance of the sacred rites of their fathers before them. Instead, they were more interested in the bottom line, the black and the red and their account balance. When their public education officers could not provide them with the training and knowledge they yearned for, the Young Turks went elsewhere, seeking expensive Commo tutors. The key stakeholders in the Marianite government were displeased (to say the least) by such developments, but were also loathe to disrupt this period of ‘smooth sailing’ with heavy handed, repressive measures. The colonization of the Dead Zone still had to be paid for, and continued prosperity was part and parcel of that payment. Furthermore, industry – and the military industrial complex, in particular – had a truly vested interest in ‘Commo-fying’ Marianite society.
The fact that the Marianite government also declined to clamp down on the Tainted and the Phyr more forcefully could not help but to accelerate the process. One might even term it ‘liberalization’, was it not for the certainty of brutal civil war, had A’lualua and Fei (the most prominent of the reformers) pushed for more sweeping changes. The changes were gradual, incremental and, most importantly, did not affect the existing power structure of the Respublica. It was a metamorphosis of minds and beliefs, more so than anything else. Nonetheless, tensions were beginning to mount by 398AU. Not only was the economy superseding Marianism itself for many (mostly in the younger generations), the grudging acceptance of the Tainted and the Phyr had enormous consequences for the public sense of propriety in what was – traditionally speaking – an incredibly constrained society.
A number of power blocs slowly coalesced across the upper echelons of government. The traditionally minded clergy-officials flocked to Elder Benoit Charles Certo, a conservative force within the Council of Elders and a man of proud, longstanding service to the Marianite state. His singular prestige was almost unrivaled, and his influence over the Council was substantial and pervasive. His opposite among the reformers was Elder Pius Taizong. Not as popular, nor as well respected as Certo, he was nevertheless a true moral paragon, a man of sublime virtue and faultless character. Many felt that he, alone of the Elders, truly reflected the virtues of the faith. Though he himself remained ostensibly frugal, he was also open-minded and strongly sympathetic to the suffering of the common man. He believed that Santi Maria was badly misinterpreted by many, and that She never would have condoned the constant deprivation felt by many across Codexian space on a daily basis. As such, he was inclined to pursue reforms as a ‘corrective’ measure.
Though a number of other political-ideological blocs also appeared out of the woodwork at that time, none were as significant as the broader reformer and the traditionalist factions. Instead, they attached themselves to either the former or the latter, currying future favor as a matter of course. The two sides then spent much of 398-402AU locked in a bitter struggle for supremacy. Many instruments of Codexian government were somewhat paralyzed by the ongoing political conflict, with the legislature, for example, unable to affect any but the most benign of laws, motions and decrees. All in all, it was an evenly matched clash in the backrooms of the Grand Temple. As such, it was vital to both factions to garner the support they would need for a decisive victory through means both foul and fair. The key players in this intricate game included Pavel Zub, and his Ministry of the Interior, Manfred Wulfes and the Ministry of Education, Jaymes Jule Vaingroff from the Ministry of Defence, Marshal Damon Elbe of Ground Force and Grand Admiral Han Li of Space Force (to mention but a few of the persons involved).
All would have to be either co-opted or subdued, if a clear winner was to emerge from this growing political mess. Choices remain to be made – though the first is rather simple.
Do you... side with the Traditionalists? Has not Santi Maria blessed us with a century of success? Why must we change who we are, simply because we have triumphed? Are we truly so arrogant and short sighted? Councilmen, we must be wary of false prophets. They would have us believe in the very things that brought the old Republic low. Devils await under every malicious promise.
OR
Do you... side with the Reformers? The road has been long and difficult. But we have reached a point at which we must make a choice between our past and our future. For the sake of our children, and their children, let us choose the future. Let us be strong in the face of those who would deny progress. Change is natural. How can we flail against it so?