THE PHOENIX CYCLE

[AndrewTech 3330]

THE PHOENIX CYCLE

 

 

A TREATISE ON THE
NEED FOR HUMAN UNITY

 

By HIH Catherine Anastasia
Princess Imperial & Duchess of Westmarch
c. 1880

 

 

It is an undeniable truth that in recent decades, the Orenian people have endured many hardships. Indeed, for as long as I can remember, our people have struggled against the weight of the world, and humanity itself has borne a bloodstained legacy.

 

When I was but a child of six winters, I was forever traumatized when I was forced to give my father’s “eulogy” to the large crowd in the Basilica of Old Providence. During the earliest days of my youth, the state of the Holy Orenian Empire was then in an abysmal condition. As a ward to Archchancellor Josephine at the time, I could see even then as a youngling that the future was looking poorly for our crumbling Empire.

 

Even following the return of my parents, decades of war and hardship hindered any and all of our efforts to save the crumbling remnants of the Eighth Empire. Many brave and courageous people tried, including myself, but our actions were to no avail.

 

The untimely deaths of my father and mother broke my heart and set in motion events that would lead to the subsequent civil war and imperial collapse. I knew what was coming and, much to my shame, I could not bear to witness it.

 

And so, I ran. 

 

I ran to the Cragenmarch because I could not bear to see my brothers, nor my father’s subjects, take up arms against each other. 

 

I ran because, although my time as Vice Chancellor was short and I was but a child for most of the conflict, I could not help but to blame myself in some small way for that which was transpiring.

 

I ran because I could not bear to witness the tragedy that was yet to come, an inferno which I had sought to unsuccessfully hold back.

 

For the last several months, I have remained at the bedside of my dying brother, attending to his every need as his physician of choice. It seems that once again, we now face the horrors of the inferno. And again, as in the case of the last war, those horrors have been spawned into being by the ghoulish nature of interhuman warfare. 

 

Once is an anomaly, but twice is a pattern. It is now that I see the true cause as to the endless nature of this ghoulish cycle. I will not run away from it again. It is my solemn duty as both a scientist and as a philosopher that I at least make an attempt to describe my observations in an empirical manner.
 

A conflict between one’s blood can never end well. Though perhaps unavoidable, the feud between my father and the rest of our family was perhaps as nasty as quarrels go. 

 

So too was the quarrel between my younger brothers, both of whom I personally raised with all the love and care that a sister could offer. I loved both Frederick and Peter with all my heart, yet their conflict ended in a similar manner. There was nothing I could do to stop it.

 

The struggle between the Kingdom of Oren and the Barony of Acre now threatens more of the same heartbreak, for the Baron himself was like a brother unto my brother. Once again, history repeats itself.

 

This unending cycle is one which I shall christen furthermore to be an anomaly known as “The Phoenix Cycle.” 

 

For those who may be unaware, the phoenix is a bird in Renatian mythology that will disintegrate into ashes toward the end of its lifespan. But from those ashes, that same creature will eventually be reborn. I believe this same process to be applicable to humanity as well.
 

Revival. Repose. Ruination.

During the Revival Stage, a proud people will become stronger at the beginning of the cycle, growing in their prosperity as they ascend to greater heights.

 

Then, they will find peace and relax during the Repose Stage of the cycle. A proud people will become complacent, thriving off of the success that they have had during the past but doing little to strive toward building upon it for the future.

 

Finally, they will falter and face the Ruination Stage toward the end of the cycle. All good things must come to an end, after all. Brothers will take up arms against one another as the inevitable slowly looms, in an attempt to either forestall it or become the ones positioned to enjoy the revival stage when it eventually dawns again.

 

This cycle is all but universal, and it can be seen at almost every level of our lives. But it is not even at the level of our country that it boasts the biggest threat, for it transpires between the realms of humanity as well. 

 

It is my solemn belief that the disparate realms of humanity have now entered the final stage of the Phoenix Cycle. I was at first reluctant to accept this reality, but I now see that the whole of Horen’s kindred now face the dreaded possibility of ruination.
 

“As you have subjugated the nations of the world and wrought iniquities upon them, so will those nations return upon your people, and their suffering will be thrice over. The world will weep.”

-Gospel 7:37-38

The countries of Oren and Haense have been at odds for the better part of a century and a half. Many believe that it was always this way, but I know that it was not. As an avid student of history, I know that things were once very different between our two peoples.

 

We both began the Phoenix Cycle in the revival stage. As the Holy Orenian Empire grew in strength, so too did the Kingdom of Haense. In the aftermath of the most devastating war in human history, the War of the Two Emperors, we found ourselves again, together.

 

After we went our separate ways, we began to enter the repose stage. Slowly yet surely, we became complacent as a result of our successes and triumphs. As great as they were, we failed to innovate and evolve.

 

I now fear that, in the last fifty years, we have all entered the final stage of the Phoenix Cycle in this great epic. The ruination stage, a part of the cycle in which both of our peoples shall suffer tremendously. It is likely that the people of Balian shall suffer similarly as well, for they too are tied to our inevitable destiny.

 

As the sons of Horen fight amongst each other, we head closer and closer to that inevitable precipice. Once we cross it, there will be no turning back. Something new shall emerge from those ashes, but it will likely be unrecognizable if we continue down this path. 

 

It is even possible that the kingdoms of today will entirely destabilize, and that we may find ourselves to be little more than disparate tribes, as we were during the time of Exalted Horen. This would leave us vulnerable and insecure. Our infighting would be to the delight of all who would seek to do us harm.

 

But, as in all things, there is hope. This cycle can be broken, and we can avoid the ruination that is yet to come. However, to break the Phoenix Cycle, we must do the unthinkable.

 

We must, at last, stop fighting each other at all levels. Humanity must come together.

 

 

Our common religion, the Church of the Canon, has the potential to unite all of us. God is a powerful unifier between the human realms. But although the Pontiff may theoretically do much to shepherd his flock, in practice, His Holiness’s ability to do so is limited.

 

A shared history and lineage, the Tapestry of Mankind, has been a unifying factor in the past. But that tapestry is now sullied, with much of the recent history between the Canonist countries being mixed at the absolute best, and abysmal at the absolute worst.

 

There are other ways of promoting unity between humans. They can be as simple as the hosting of cooperative events together, or by dispelling preconceived notions that we have about one another through showing our common humanity through our actions. We must foster a dialogue between brothers. We, as children of Horen, must have the honor, the discipline, and the resilience to recognize that we are all part of something greater.

 

But above all else, we must learn to forgive others and let go of our grudges. We cannot be as dwarves, harboring ill will toward each other for generations on end.

 

In his epistles, Exalted Owyn preached of mankind’s potential for redemption above all else. None of us are beyond it. And as a wise philosopher once said, time heals all wounds.

 

Out of fear of droning on, I shall swiftly conclude this treatise with a note of optimism.

 

Though Oren may have found itself in the midst of another civil conflict, this struggle will not last forever. Likewise, I do not believe that humanity’s struggle between the disparate realms will last for all time.

 

I believe that we can break this cycle merely by working together toward a common goal, as partners rather than rivals. We, as humans, must learn to work toward something with, rather than against, each other. When united as one, there is nothing which we cannot do.

 

Today is wrought with civil strife. We have recently ended yet another bloody and damaging interhuman war, and I fear more lives are yet to be lost. These are, without a doubt, troubled times. But these times will not last forever. 

 

It is my hope that someday, when we have shed our competitive tendencies, humanity might work together toward building a consensual union. A union based on the acknowledgement of the Rights of Mankind. One based on the diffusion of power and a shared stake in the destiny of humanity, led by those who can unify us around an inspiring vision that is greater than our petty squabbles and grudges. 

 

For human unity can no longer be forced through domination. It must be earned through mutual consent and respect. A contract, written or unwritten, must therefore be established that will allow us to set aside our farcical competitions and strive toward something greater. Common ground must be found and a truce must be struck.

 

I may be a fool to think this to be possible. It may be that I am merely a naïve and old fashioned woman, admittedly advancing in age. And perhaps we are doomed to endure the consequences of the last stage in the Phoenix Cycle, to follow it into its implied ending. 

 

My musings are, of course, theoretical in nature. I do not pretend to hold all of the answers. But I will never give up hope that we might rise above and break the chains which we, as a race, have forged for ourselves. 
 

[seannie 7443]

Charlie Charles Alstion staggers to a knee as he is shocked by the takes of this Orenian Princess he had lumped in together as any other useless Novellen, "God is good..." he mutters quietly to himself, sweating away a bead of sweat that had been caught upon his brows, "I see on the rise, a new empire borne out of goodwill and collective security! God is good, God is good!" he further concludes aloud.

[sergisala 3451]

"The words of the Princess Imperial and Duchess of Westmarch are truthful. Humanity needs an inspiring and unifying monarch that leads us during these dark times.

 

The current spineless era we find ourselves in, which in some ways is quite similar to The Troubling Times of the 1730s, needs to come to an end.

 

Enough of instability, chaos, and disorder.

 

Law, order, stability and economic growth is what we need right now." said the Chamberlain of Rivia to his servants.

[SteppeNomad 1624]

29 minutes ago, AndrewTech said:

“As you have subjugated the nations of the world and wrought iniquities upon them, so will those nations return upon your people, and their suffering will be thrice over. The world will weep.”

-Gospel 7:37-38

 

A Haelun'oric Statesman reads this missive with a placid brow. He looks over the waters of his Splendid isle and he muses

 

"The realm of Valah, those men Blessed and Cursed, know only pain and strife, but not for the fault of others, but the very 'monarchs' and 'royals' they so cling to for their guidance and leadership. For it is not the will of the creator to make war upon creation, it is not the will of the creator to bring terror and strife to those people peaceful and blessed...

 

But it IS the will of the Great Defiler, he who goes forth to take, not for need, but for greed, for lust, for his shallow desires. It is the will of those 'monarchs' who seek to despoil the blessed peoples of the world.

 

And it is the men, who act, used as the Defiler's tools, sent forth by those 'monarchs' who never see a lick of combat, who never know the pain or strife. Enslaved not to build their homes, but to toil and build the castles of their masters. For masters they are...

 

And it is the very people who shall suffer the fruit of the Iniquity of their masters.

 

This is The Struggle. They will be beholden, until repentant or not, those masters are splayed before all."

 

Gazing now over the stuccoed and fine marble of that High-Walled City he quietly resigns himself. If it is strife they so seek... Well, who is he to deny them

 

 

[Axelu 4333]

"Aunt Catherine is always so insightful... Perhaps I should ask for her to sit down. I feel Frederick and I might learn much from her the truths of the world, and how we might lead with unity, by example, rather than through fear," The newly teenaged Maude, Princess Royal commented amidst her ponderings to her dear friend, Mariana. 

[Carson 1165]

Irena Sarkozy applauded anything written by her mother, and this was no exception.