The Roshor-Lian Dynasty: 239 AD-779 AD
Soran Teras Lian won the 10 year long Succession and exiled his brother to the lands of the Romans. He named himself Emperor Soran VI and declared the birth of the Third Lian Dynasty. 3 years after his ascension, his wife, Riia Hesi Lian (maiden name: Resta) died from the last, final burst of stolera. In grief, he married Rassa Roshor, who manipulated her grieving husband and ran the Empire until her death in 254. The Roshor family gained power and influence in the Empire throughout the dynasty. For this reason, the Third Lian Dynasty is usually called the Roshor-Lian Dynasty.
This dynasty was a dark era. The Emperei Cissia, the great mass of officials, surveyors, and nobles who supported the Empire, became irreversibly corrupt. The Imperial Treasury was in constant danger of bankruptcy for most of the dynasty, where it had once needed 10 storehouses in every major city to hold. The Emperors at first tried to rectify the growing problems, but failed. Their defeats in many conflicts like this weakened their power, and the first Cynical Emperor, Nihilis Lian, lived a life of pleasure and ignoring his duties, not out of natural decadence, but out of simple surrender to the impossibility of changing the situation. Almost all rulers who followed him let the corrupt run the empire.
In 442, the Empire suffered a brief, week long civil war between the Imperial Army and the Army of the Yellow Disc, a coalition of nobles. The battle was pure carnage and raged for a week, but the nobles won and occupied the capital. They demanded increased freedoms, and the Emperor granted them. They then began to form firisa, "nations within a nation". These firisa were very similar to feudal fiefdoms in other nations, but many feudal lords claimed the title of "King" and ran their provinces totally independently. For example. one firisa had its own ceremonies that differed from Imperial ones, had Judaism as its state religion, while Christianity was the state religion of the Empire, had its own money, trading rights and relations, was at war with other firisa, and had a King. The only tenuous control the Empire had over firisa was a 5% tax on their incomes, and yearly ceremonies where the fuedal lords kissed the ring of the Emperor or Empress.
This was the Feudal Age of Crisca, where the Empire was but an afterthought. Many who only wanted stability and peace could not serve the Empire as they did not believe it could succeed. Too many believed the only way to unify Crisca was by bringing a firisa to conquer all the others, and then dispose of the weak Roshor-Lian Emperors. War was ever constant, and scientific, religious, and intellecutal pursuits were sacrificed in the name of war. Only a few firisa did their best to maintain tradition, knowledge, or the will to progress.
This all changed with the advent of 8th century. In 702, Emperor Jastin took the Throne when his mother was murdered, and secretly built an army of assassins and sabateurs. He intended to put the lords against each other, and bring the loyal firisa to dominate the poli-scape.
His first strike was against the fiefdoms of Lady Corellia of the Dystan farisa which ruled the area around Dystopolis. The assassins murdered many of her officials, causing chaos. When the Budget was due, she could not produce it and asked for more time. The Emperor did not have mercy, as he knew Corellia had been responsible for his mother's death. (His belief that Lady Corellia was responsible was proven thrice, once in 754, again in 1242, and finally in 1933.) Corellia was put to death, and her territories went into "Imperial protection". Within a year, Dystopolis was an Imperial stronghold.
The three most powerful lords at this time were Lord Darisdarin of Alaren (large, western farisa that was due west of Criscopolis), Lady Rae of Abregado (Region surrounding Terra, she controlled the city of Terra as well), and Lord Saracas of Sundeas (the area surrounding Sun Crisc). Lady Rae was a close ally of Emperor Jastin.
Jastin and Rae conspired to throw down the Feudal Lords in a brilliant manner. They agreed that Rae would be given the position of Imperial Seer (top advisor), which she would have had long ago if the other Lords refused to allow it (the Emperor would not dare appoint a person to that position if the feudal lords said no, the current Seer was an idiot). Jastin sent Imperial troops ,that were disguised as soldiers under Lord Saracas, to attack a fort of Darisdarin. The battle did not last long, and the disguised Imperial troops razed the fort, which controlled the trade route from Was Crisc to Criscopolis. Darisdarin sent a response to the unawares Saracas, and captured the town of Rese, which was northwest of Sun Crisc. Saracas, shocked, responded with war.
While the war raged, Rae built up her forces, and sent them across the territory of Saracas, who let them pass through. Rae's forces occupied several fiercely independent firisa, and cast their lord's out. She announced a week later that she could not maintain the provinces and gave them into "Imperial protection". The territories the Imperial government gained included Ean Crisc. By this time, it was 708 AD.
Jastin attacked and captured, directly, a small force of troops sent by Darisdarin to act as a garisson force in occupied lands. Jastin then sent forged documents back to Darisdarin that told of the "arrival" of the troops at their destination. This tricked Darisdarin into thinking his small force had arrived and that all was well. Jastin dressed his prisoners up as Imperial soldiers, had a makeshift camp constructed, and disguised his soldiers as some of Darisdarin's men. He then "attacked" the camp filled with "sleepy, unarmed Imperial troops".
Using this "justification", he declared war on Darisdarin and by 209, the weakened lord was dead, and the Imperial governemnt had his lands. At the Imperial Council in Criscopolis that year, in August, Rae framed Saracas for treason and had him tried and executed. He had no heirs, he was only 26. Thus it was that almost all the old firisa were returned to Imperial control. Rae was granted her wish and became a very successful Imperial Seer.
For the next 70 years, the new Roshor-Lian dynasty worked to restore Crisca to its old glory. They even were considering making a bid to reclaim lands lost to France long ago (Imperial decadence + feudal lords + decades of enroachment= lost territory. Lots of it). But in the 770s, a great disaster struck Crisca once more...
