Khemet, the Two Lands

Khemet is ancient, a land new when Sargon raised up Agade as the crown jewel of Terra Antiqua. The legendary Hau-Aha had unified the two lands of upper and lower Khemet under one throne and set a government that yet endures, though the days of the Living Horus are long gone. Khemet is the gift of Hapy, the sacred river whose annual inundation brings all that civilization requires. The great temples administer the land from southernmost Philae to the great delta that feeds the Mare Nostrum. The culture here has withstood thousands of years, even conquest by Alexander absorbing the invaders and making them as Khemet as any native. Khemet is legendary for it's antiquity, having been a dominant force in Terra Antiqua until the Empire toppled it. It was said to be a land of priests, the gift of Hapy, and where the old gods rule in it's days of preeminence and retains these virtues, only it's prominence is lost. It's wealth and prestige remain, and it's ancient ways serve it, and the Empire, well.

Government

Khemet is an oddity. It is an Imperial territory, but it’s people are not citizens-the land is the private property of the basileus. There are FIVE governments active in Khemet, and their interactions define the region and its people. First is the Imperial government. The basileus rules from His Capital, but as Khemet is His Personal Property, He maintains a governor in Alexandria to tend it. This individual is anointed the Living Horus, and he is worshiped as a god. He also maintains Alexandria’s magnificent library, commands the legions (Khemet has it's own military, mostly drawn from the ranks of the ancient dead and with Tomb Warden levels bound to the city and necropolis of origin. Service to the Imperial Legions satisfies the maintenance of Tomb Wardens, all of whom are rank one through three ancient dead), receives taxes, ⅕ of both harvests, and the results of the biannual cattle drive from the Waset. Although worshiped as the Living Horus and at the head of the Imperial Bureaucracy in Khemet, the Imperial governor in practice is just a glorified butler who only serves to funnel the wealth of Khemet into the Imperial Legions and Admiralty. The Imperial government is the most public and least powerful of the local governments, but to outlanders, it is the ONLY government. Even the natives do not bandy the fact around beyond the common statement “The old gods rule yet here”. Some take this saying as a reference to the Waset Council, an advisory council that convenes at Waset, made up of representatives of every temple in Khemet. As there are over 250 recognized gods, even one representative from each would raise the Waset Council to half the size of the Silentium. It is much larger in size, holding one representative from each Temple structure plus one for each temple large enough to donate to the nomarchs and has run Khemet absolutely since the Sutekh Invasion. Priest Lords of Waset have the power of low justice and hold the status of consuls in the Empire proper. As all Khemet serves the temples for at least one season, the Waset employs much of the labor force, setting standard rates of pay as well as the core relation of employer and employees by example. The Waset Council elects the offices of the Empire in Khemet save for the governor, who is appointed by the basileus. These offices include the nomarchs, civil engineers who maintain the Khemeti system, expanding it as need be for growth. Khemet is divided by the Waset into districts called nomes, and overseeing one requires nomarchs prepare financial statements, projections, and requests for finance of civil engineering projects that the Waset Council sets before the Temples within the nome. All projects are put before the affected Temple representatives who bid money on the need for a project. Only the local temples bid initially, but if the local temples lack funding for a project, the temples beyond the nome may also bid. After the third round of bidding, a project is either funded or ended. The Waset Priest Lords function like any corporate concern, ensuring their own profits and power. All the temples answer to them and all send representatives to Waset to participate. The basileus’s factor, as the Living Horus, has a voice at Waset, should he choose to use it. The Waset Council is all-inclusive, but it knows its place. It’s main concern is that the realm runs smoothly, eliciting no concern from the true Powers That Be, the Forty-two Immortals and the Court of Ra. Since the Forty-two Immortals are all active in the Waset(if active at all), the Waset Council rules as a secret, shadow government that rules Khemet and meets the obligations of the Imperial military. Waset IS the marketplace of Khemet, and all mercantile laws emerge from it. The Forty-two Immortals are the most powerful of the ancient dead active in Khemet, each dedicated to a single deity. They operate according to their personal functions and abilities, above the rest of the governments but influencing them all. The Game of Houses in Khemet is not for mortals, and the Forty-two guarantee this by the way the game is played. The Forty-two Immortals are participants in the Waset Council, and may involve themselves with the other governments of Khemet as well. Many of the Forty-two Immortals are rank four ancient dead, bound as House of various gods, but other individuals are members, most notably the divine Anpw (an arcanaloth). Near the source of the Hapy is the sacred island of Philae, defending the southern border of Upper Khemet. Here dwell the Mothers of Philae and their leader, the Divine Adoratrice Nitocris, the Eye of Ra. As Eye of Ra, Nitocris has authority and power not even granted to the pharaohs, as well as an obligation to use these powers for the defense of the realm (and all of reality, from a Khemeti perspective). As she rarely leaves Philae and never leaves Upper Khemet, the Waset Council not only allows her autocratic power, they subsidize it. The temple complexes at Philae generate adequate income to be self-supporting and protect the southern border, but even if they did not, the importance of the Divine Adoratrice is such that Waset would still cater to her, as would the Empire (if it came to it). She is the House of Ammut to the Forty-two Immortals, and embodies the ravenous goddess who ate the hearts that failed the final test of being weighed against ma’at. Outside Giza lay the Great Sphinx, and in it’s shadow three of the principle pyramids of the Akhet Knumm-khufwy, the mortuary cult of Khemet. Here are the preparation chambers for the mummification process, where all the land funnels its hopes for the afterlife (including outlanders obsessed with the Khemeti underworld). The Akhet priesthood controls the funerary practices of Khemet and profits greatly from this unique niche market. The Akhet controls the many necropoli of Khemet, and the Khemeti pay dearly for an eternity in one of them. That the people pay dearly to face the afterlife mummified by the Akhet would make this priesthood powerful and wealthy beyond belief even if they did not protect the location of the Tomb of the Eternal Ra and function as the public arm of the Court of Ra. The Court of Ra rules absolutely when the Eternal Ra is active, but without it’s presence and backing, the Court tends to lay back and do nothing but accumulate wealth and favors. The Court of Ra is the most powerful agency in the land, but without the Eternal Ra, the Akhet priests are but servants and directing the Forty-two Immortals is like herding cats. The last government of Khemet is the Shemsu Sutekh, a multidimensional criminal conspiracy whose only open operations are the temples of Set at Tanis and Komm Ombo. The Temple of Set is forbidden rulership in Khemet proper, but are ceded control of all that is not Khemet and required to maintain the two cities they ruled at the time of the Accord knumm-Khufwy. Internally, the Shemsu Sutekh is a morass of cells, bound by codewords and philosophy, and the odd rulership of the Beloved of Seth, only of the Forty-two Immortals older than the Eternal Ra. The Beloved is rarely in Khemet as it must serve one season for the temple of Set at Tanis in lower Khemet and one season in service to the temple of Set at Komm Ombo in upper Khemet when it is in Khemet by this same Accord. It was the Temple of Set that smuggled Cleopatra to Julius Caesar, and it was the Beloved that traveled with the two to the Eternal City itself and sank it’s claws in the Republican Senate. When Octavian came with an army, it was the Shemsu Sutekh who handed over the corpse of Cleopatra and the whole of the land to Octavian, demanding he keep it for himself if he would hold it at all. The Shemsu Sutekh may not rule in Khemet, but it winnows through the rest of the world, seeking the actions of Apep, Set’s only true foe. It’s most obvious plays happen in Khemet, however, and it’s inner Hierophants direct the whole from here, as much as such a sprawling monstrosity of cells can be directed. The Shemsu Sutekh are obsessed with smuggling and operate multidimensionally as amoral middlemen. They are ruthless survivalists who adapt to any environment as complete opportunists, even internally. Secretive and predatory, the Shemsu Sutekh sows the seeds to attract prey wherever they go, sponsoring local criminals they ultimately destroy or convert.

Defences

The deserts surrounding Khemet are harsh and terrible, making troop movement very risky. When one reaches the cities, high walls, forts, and gruesome accurate archers greet one. Millennia of ancient dead backstop the living armies, usually taking point upon arousal, making Khemet as safe as any land in Terra Antiqua.

Industry & Trade

Agriculture is preeminent here, as Khemet alone supports the Imperial military with food, but Khemeti scholars are renown worldwide for their advances. Magic here is largely divine and controlled by the great temple concerns, allowing all manner of advance in lifestyle, and giving Khemet leisure time and income comparable with modern America. The centuries of mummification have provided a workforce unparalleled in Terra Antiqua, allowing more distasteful jobs to be performed by the dead.

Infrastructure

The land is held by the great temples, who finance projects to increase productivity and ease life with an eye forever on expansion. The Waset handles most of these, though ports and roads are Imperial prerogatives. The ancient dead bolster the workforce here, maintaining roads and even certain public works, often those monuments erected in life by them.

Assets

Khemet profits greatly from the two harvests it enjoys in a year due to the annual inundation of Hapy, and it produces every crop known to the world of the Mare Nostrum. In fact, it produces them in double amounts due to the two harvests. The Khemeti agricultural knowledge is unsurpassed, and they can understand any technology levels in any field pertaining to agriculture. Khemet has two harvest seasons and one inundation season when work is donated to the Temples. Every Khemeti donates one season working their temple, reporting for their season when the temple elects officers who then supervise various temple activities, including civic improvement and maintenance. The temple pays it's workers daily for the season, generally having to pay better during the season of Inundation than the two harvests. Khemeti beer is produced by the Temple of Set, which controls the recipe for the most nutritious and richest beer in existence. No beer is superior to Khemeti beer, though Kingir comes closest. One bowl provides a full day’s nutrition, and it keeps well enough casks have traveled as far as the Jotunzee. The crops of Khemet provided for a higher standard of living since before they began reaching outside their own borders, as did the biannual cattle drive. Khemeti ranchers round up all the cattle in the country every two years, handing all profits gathered to the basileus’s governor in Alexandria. That this alone keeps the entire Imperial military in beef tells how rich a land Khemet truly is. Khemet is synonymous with luxury, and the world knows it-everything that enters the world stage does so from the Khemet window. If a product sells in Khemet, it sells well everywhere. Papyrus is made here, but it is distributed exclusively through Lord Khuul of Byblos. Similarly, everything that sells is sold through old, old contracts controlled by the Waset Council, though foreigners are welcome in the marketplace. Products and services are sometimes controlled by certain Temples, and these will be sold through agents selected by the Waset Council. Even if the only seller is a single Temple, it will abide by the Waset’s decision. Most of Khemet actually supplies the Temples with excess as a thanksgiving to the gods, and this plus the harvest is always distributed through the Waset’s arrangements. Khemeti’s best artisans are its architects and masons, so little in the way of Khemeti goods actually makes it to the marketplace, nor do it’s craftsmen venture out of Khemet often. Most architects and masons both do some apprenticeship here, and Khemet maintains a firm hold on the advances of these fields as well as maintaining contacts with old students and associates. Scholarly thought is a major export and import, largely through the functions of the great Library of Alexandria. Disparaged as a collection of menacing thugs backed by the power of the Empire, Alexandria still holds a copy of every book ever printed in it’s walls, and several monasteries are supported entirely by copying these works (The monasteries can request papyrus from Waset, but the basileus must buy His Supply through Byblos, like everyone else). There is a community of scholars and researchers at Alexandria, all of whom consider Khemet the pinnacle of knowledge, and Khemet often keeps at least a correspondence with the best of this class. The Akhet priesthood has preserved the dead of Khemet, and these ancient dead actually join the workforce, performing work too dangerous for the living and always available to defend the land. Khemet is not a nation but a property of the basileus, so no diplomacy goes on here.

Guilds and Factions

Traditionally Khemet is divided into two camps-the Court of Ra and the shemsu Sutekh, who control everything from different perspectives. The latest peace between the two reaffirmed their division with the Court of Ra holding sway within Khemet and the shemsu Sutekh preeminent beyond Khemet's borders. The Forty-two Immortals are ancient dead mostly, those individuals who became the House of a god for eternity. As there are over 250 gods acknowledged by Khemet, the title comes from those gods most concerned with the transition of an individual from the earthly life of toil through rebirth as Osiris or Hathor in the afterlife. These beings have a common origin more than common interests and run the gamut from devoted believers to conniving powermongers, backed by entire temples as well as the power they wield personally. Their intrigues and interactions shape Khemet from the shadows. The Waset Council and the various temples that make it up are another prominent coalition of factions that generally work together for common goals when not intriguing towards more specific ends. The Waset represent all the temples of Khemet and oversees all the homes, and is as corrupt as any body overseeing that much wealth and power. Everyone in Khemet seems their own faction at times.

History

Khemet begins with Hau-Aha, a warlord who first wore the crown of upper Khemet, then seized lower Khemet. His dynasty largely kept the two lands united and viable, to the extent only native Khemeti understand the two lands concept in a nation that has stood centuries unchanged. Upper Khemet is largely white collar jungle dwellers while lower Khemet are blue collar workers. The great temples provide services and determine asset allocation to promote growth in their regions, all under the rule of the Living Horus, a title held by numerous dynasties over the years, last being the Ptolemies before the title passed to the Imperial governors. Khemet followed a hereditary queendom, so the first Living Horus of a new dynasty was always wed to a daughter of the previous and her heirs given prominence in inheriting the throne. After the last queen of the Ptolemy dynasty fell, the title of Living Horus was passed to a servant of her slayer and the bloodline was lost. (The original line ended with the second dynasty as Snefru bore no children by his wives but elevated an adopted son of a favored wife who established the line that ended with the Ptolemies. Snefru's bloodline queen never bore children.) New governors are announced the Living Horus and worshiped as gods, but power has centered in the Waset Council and Khemet is merely the breadbasket of the legions.

Architecture

Khemeti architecture is massive and monumental, it's buildings scaled to divine ego and painted to please the eye. To the Khemet mind, these structures are to glorify the gods and comfort to the people doing the gods' bidding considered a perk of service, so Khemet structures are pleasing to the senses and comfortable for the inhabitants.

Geography

All of Khemet is desert save for the banks of Hapy, which is rich farmland requiring constant work to maintain. The Delta area is marshy enough poking through canals replaces roads, and Khemeti pleasure barques are pole driven in the Delta but can be modified for oars to go to sea, albeit sluggish as coast huggers.

Natural Resources

The annual inundation of Hapy grants Khemet two harvest seasons even as it divides them with the season of inundation. All three seasons are marked by the jobs taking precedence,as tending the farms and repairing from flooding are very different concerns.

Type

National Territory

Inhabitant Demonym

Khemeti

Location under

The Mare Nostrum

Owner/Ruler

Basileus of the Empire

Owning Organization

The Waset Council