The Contract of Heavenly Laws
A Treatise by Bhukk the Studious and Morendyn Cobath
(An excerpt from the revolutionary manuscript of Bhukk the Studious, which was distributed in its entirety all around the world)
Introduction
In the years of isolation that have led me to these pages, I have passed the time with endless pondering and questions about the state of our world. To assist me in my findings, and help hone my words, I have enlisted the aid of my closest companion, and an expert on the subject: Morendyn Cobath, the current leading figure of the revolution as of this document’s writing. It is not his words on this page, but it is his boundaries that these words are set within, and all words that did not make it onto these pages were decided, by him, to have not been substantial enough to be gazed upon. Perhaps in a second edition, though I pray that the world will never need such a thing, and I cannot guarantee I will endure long enough to produce a second one. I will be lucky if these words ever make it to print.I plan to address this question: With mortalkind as it is and with laws as we have made them, are there legitimate and just means for rule of administration to be claimed and maintained by any being, mortal or divine? Take careful note of those words: legitimate and just. They will be our key in the writings to come.
One may question my legitimacy. What right has a scholar, an Orc at that, to decide what is and is not just and legitimate? Am I of some distant, noble blood? Have I ruled a nation, a town even, or made a single law in my life? To that I can say, with honor, that I have not stained my hands with such a practice, nor do I intend to. I am merely a scholar with an eye for law and a firm belief in my heart that we must hold ourselves to a set of standards clearly outlined, and have found no greater hand than my own. If I were of the ilk to rule, I would not write this, I would enact it, as I hope those in power do.
I have no citizenship of my own, and so I write this knowing that I will likely be placed on what wanted lists I have not already been placed on for revolutionary activity, and will not be allowed safe residence in any settlement. Perhaps, one day, a utopia will sprout that will posthumously grant me citizenship. Until that unlikely day comes, I am pleased to live as I have now. Perhaps it is insanity setting in, but it has grown on me.
Freedom is the natural state of the world. Even the Celestial Chain that binds the Gods is artificial, created long after mortal life populated the worlds. If the Gods once were able to live unchained, there is no reason we mortals must be subjected to subjugation. There is no sovereign but the heart.
Heavenly Law
It is right for you to question, and I hope you have, the title of this treatise. For what Heavenly Laws are we, mortalkind in all our diverse absurdities, bound to?A great many, and so dearly few. A contradiction of truths, but is that not a constant when speaking of the divine? We mortals live and die by Godly rules, for all the world was forged in the flames of Heaven, and all returns to Heaven in the end as well.
When first life was placed on this world, the egg of the Eternal One, a promise was made between the God of Justice and his spawn: to always hold the Dragon in his heart, and to uphold what was right by him and all life. Phrixus was the God, and yet he made a promise to be just to his mortal son, Kath the Eternal. If the Gods are beholden to such promises, then ought not mortals be?
It is Phrixus himself that inspired this document, for it would be something else I may equate with justice other than Heaven if not for the very God of the subject being the first to create life. Justice is inherent to life, ever since that promise, and so that Heavenly Law, to uphold justice and hold all life in the heart, is central to our daily existence.
The Contract of Heavenly Laws, then, is about how we may do that, and who is most beholden to upholding that promise. Is it the Gods? They can no longer act with impunity on our world as they did in the Ancient Era, and must have mortals do their work in our plane for them. So no, it is not the Gods directly, though their influence can be helpful. We must follow through with this ourselves. Mortalkind must uphold the contract.
Not every mortal is equally responsible for it. Not every mortal is capable of caring for all the world and spreading justice. But there are those who claim to rule us, who wish to command us, who swear they own us. If they have such responsibility (which will be the subject of a future section), then they take on the role of Gods among mortalkind, and thus they must be just. If they are not just, and still they claim superiority, then they are superior in only one way: their death will be praised and blessed by the Gods, for they have broken the contract, and are not deserving of power nor life.
Right to Rule
Rulers claim power, and through that power they claim sovereignty and right to rule. This power can be a great number of things, from magical prowess, to might, to cunning tricks, but none of these things grant one the right to rule. Not even a divine blessing can grant the power over people that a ruler requires. This power can only be acquired through appealing to the people, and only when the people give a ruler power may they rule.One may look to Amukk, who rose from a mere mortal warrior to a God leading first a coalition of warriors intent on raiding Heaven, and then becoming the head of a faith that is on the same level as the Gods that made our world. One may see his ascension as one of divine ordination, a certainty of fate that the Gods were preparing for. But it was only through killing a God that Amukk was able to ascend, an act of the very same revolution I speak of. Amukk saw injustice in the systems of power and those who dictate their mandates, above even the ruling class of mortalkind and into the very Heavens themselves. His actions, therefore, were a means to bring justice back to the people by replacing an unjust ruler and system with one founded on justice for mortalkind. One can look to Amukk, the man who rose to Heaven if not the very God he became later on, for the perfect example of this treatise in action.
But even this just motivation did not give Amukk the right to rule. It gave him the right to revolt, for an unjust society has no right to exist in its current state, breaking the Contract of Heavenly Laws by remaining without justice, but any individual could have stepped up to take the place of the Gods. What, aside from the unrivaled might that allowed him to actually kill a God, granted Amukk the right to rule, and how may that translate to all rightful rulers?
One need look to those who supported Amukk. He began his claim in his home town, Berlem, where he was not the leader. He was a citizen, and his village and organization were both run by individuals other than himself. The United Holy Front, his divine army, was led by Yogal the Gray and, later, co-led by Gok the Archmage. Even in his earliest days, Amukk submitted to the rule of law as long as it was just. In the hands of Chief Klung Gunn of Berlem, he saw justice that could be molded onto a global scale if guided correctly. The prototypic ideal of his War of Mercy, and he was not the chief lawmaker nor ruler of that settlement, nor was he ever. He was only the figurehead, in charge of battle and ultimately meant for rule of Heaven itself. He supported those who were worth supporting, and from that, people saw that he was one worthy of supporting.
For that was the key to Amukk's success, and is the key to all successful sovereigns. Support of the people. The Contract of Heavenly Laws is not best kept with the Gods, for the Gods can only grant you enchantments and blessings, not right. It is a contract best kept with the people, accruing support for ones platform first and foremost. The people give the power, for it is the sovereign who will be deciding the fate of their lives. The sovereign decides all things for those under their rule, but that is only possible because they are given support by the people. Without that, they have nothing. Amukk gathered faithful heroes and believers in justice from all over the world, not just Orcs, not just citizens of Udai, but residents of the Abral Islands, of the deserts of Elone and the Elven Forest. Amukk had the dignity and righteousness to gather support, and that gave him the right to claim Heaven and sovereignty.
No one swore fealty to Amukk as a sovereign, only as a symbol of faith. But with that faith, when he eventually became sovereign over the realm above, he had already gained the support necessary for it. Not all sovereigns are born into rule, as a matter of fact, hereditary rule is often unsustainable and incompatible with the way of the world itself. That is, however, another point entirely. The greatest rulers are born where the world's issues are most apparent, so they have eyes where the people need to be seen. Then, a great injustice of the world may be fixed. From the holy Amukk to the first Korvian King Warbler to even Queen Meiriris Nerifir of Camor, rulers of a lower class will oft be of a higher quality, for they are not tainted by the view atop the mountain peak.
Now I will delve into these examples, to strengthen my claim. I begin with Warbler, only so that I may end with my strongest example.
In the old days, in the midst of the Ancient Era, the Korvian people were second-class citizens in a society ruled by Avians. The Korvians, without the ability to fly, had nothing to grant them rightful power over anyone, even themselves, and so they were not only ruled over by Avians, but they also had no say in their own government. They were, thus, unwilling residents in the land around the Fateful Bay, not even citizens by right of not willingly supporting their ruler. However, when plague struck the Korvian and Avian peoples, directly from the Goddess of Death herself, only one individual was able to stand against the power: Warbler.
Warbler could have used his newfound power, to survive anything, for any end he desired. But he spread his gift and knowledge, first to his dear friend Croaker and, then, to all the Korvian people. It was the Korvian people who then decided to grant him the title of King, as he had proven himself worthy of rule through that action. One cannot fully justify what he did later, conquest over all of Udai, subjugation of the people living on the continent, but one can understand that to him, who had been subjugated, it may have seemed justice to enact onto others what he and his people had suffered. He knew no other power than that of conquest and unjust rule, and so even from atop his just throne, he committed unjust acts. This does not mean he lost the right to rule his people, they willingly gave it to him and continued supporting him during his wars. It means only that, just as the Avians had no right to rule him and his people, he had no right to rule over the conquered peoples of Udai whom he had won over through war.
Right of the strongest is not right to rule, for it is not right at all. What moral understanding can be gained from overwhelming force? That one must submit always to whomever happens to have more might than another? It is why the title of Grand Wizard, which rules over the Draconian people has been exploited so easily. While the title can mean more, and there have been movements to redefine it in better terms, it is definitionally at its center just the strongest mage ruling over those who are not as magically inclined. Therefore, anyone who can defeat that mage can rule, and that leaves the position open to anyone who can trick their way into a single combat victory. There is no need for support, and as seen in the Grand Wizard Struggle, there often is no support. Even Tobor Tuldad managed to garner support, but that period of hundreds of years was best defined by the Grand Wizards ruling largely unsupported.
One need only look to vilified figures like Viaxis Vammush, Drixodal Vortrin, Medroth Umtic, and Vimbish Baxcol for proof of this. Men more intent on gaining power than maintaining it, they left the nation and the world in a state worse than it ever was when they took power, a state that it is still recovering from and may never fully heal from.
Thus, there is great power in the movement of Salasar Feaphed, a recently growing movement spearheaded by the idealist and mage who not only has more magical power than any predecessor (save for Kilprax Ildial himself), but one who had not, for most of his long life, sought the title of Grand Wizard. Instead, he started as a citizen, seeing the state of the nation in one of the villages struggling most under the Struggle: Bortan. Then, after suffering firsthand, he became a scholar, learning more so that he can have more understanding. Only after that did he decide to step into the light, becoming a world-renowned hero as part of the Mage Trio. He gained support, then spending decades with his heroics and scholarly research, spreading his ideas to garner support until, finally, when the Grand Wizard title was at its lowest, he knew he needed to step in. Salasar Feaphed worked quickly to take power after this, but it was only after he found that there was space int he world for his ideals, and those willing to support them. People believed in Salasar Feaphed, and belief is the core of power.
That brings us, then, to the final example I mentioned: Meiriris Nerifir, the first Elven Queen. Born from the palm of a Goddess, Meiriris was one of the very first Elves to ever be created. However, she was, like all Elves and Orcs at the time, enslaved by the Gods Satanael and Mimir. She lived a majority of her early life in slavery, nothing more than a nameless face in the crowd of other Elven slaves.
However, as a result of many circumstances, she was inspired to take up arms against the Gods and break herself and her people free. She even wished to break the Orcs free as well, though she rightfully knew that she could not be the one to do this. Meiriris was aware that she would be able to garner support of the Elves, but that there was too much animosity between Elves and Orcs for the Orcs to ever listen to her. Thus, she sought out someone who could get that support: Amukk God Breaker (the namesake of the future divine Orc ruler, and one who also used much of the same principles of support to rebel against the Gods).
Meiriris had a connection to many people already due to her role as a caretaker of children in the slave society run by the two Gods (though one cannot truly call it a society without any lawful citizens to make up an actual nation). She had ways to reach out to them, and reason for them to listen to her. More reasons stacked up as the Holy Rebellion continued, but ultimately they do not matter as much as the very fact that it succeeded, her plan to get support. She would never have been able to overthrow the Gods without that support. Satanael was only defeated because of the massive force of Orcs backing up Amukk God Breaker, capable of actually beating the God himself in a battle. Mimir was forced to retreat because of the unbreakable will of the Elves, and the skills and knowledge they had gained under his thumb. The secrets he let slip to each individual, when pieced together in a collective, were his downfall. A tyrant may seek to isolate a populous, for one person can have great sway over a broken nation of individuals, but they can only be opposed, truly opposed, when those individuals find the strength there is to be found in unity. The people can and should only have things decided for them when it cannot be dealt with by the collective itself, and it must only be decided by those chosen by the people.
Meiriris Nerifir maintained her power after the rebellion, taking up the throne formerly occupied by the Gods. Amukk God Breaker refused, and this was his greatest fault, though one cannot disparage him for not wanting to be King. The people had chosen him and Meiriris as their sovereigns, and Meiriris used that to then continue leading her people. Leaderless, it was inevitable for the Orcs to be attacked by the Elves who now not only had a leader, but no longer had Gods stopping them from acting on their animosity. It cannot be guaranteed that this would have changed if Amukk had continued leading, but it is certain something would have changed, as Amukk was able to then convince his people to leave Camor to flee their persecution. But again, he did not lead them as anything more than a symbol, and this explains why the Nerifir dynasty remained intact, fostering the longest-lived Kingdom still active in the world, and why the Orcs became fractured throughout Udai. A leader chosen by the people has all the right to deny the role, if they cannot handle it or do not want it, but in doing so, the will of the people is then squandered, and that ruler, in acting in their own best interests, betrays the people.
Much can be said of how Meiriris, later in her rule, became a pawn of special interests and wealthy, influential voices whispering in her ear. But she began her rule as the voice of the people, who spoke to and through her. A liberator, breaking chains. That is what the world needs most. Someone who is there for the people, ready to do whatever it takes to free the world. That is where one may get the right to rule.
Slavery
There is no sign of modern barbarity greater than the institution of slavery, if it can even be called an institution. The mind often connects the word with a place of learning or an organization, but slavery is neither organized nor educational. It drains the mind of all but its primal survival instincts, subsisting off of the lucky chance that the person who has purchased the supposed right to own you decides each day to keep you alive. The only thing to learn from slavery is the absolute depravity of the mortal mind.I cannot without caveat say many of the words above and leave them as is. One cannot pay for ownership over a person, for there is no worth to an indvidual. There is the soul, an intangible creation accessible only through the deepest magics. There is the will, manifest through that portal in the brain. But the body... is that what they seek to own? It is merely a vessel for the spirit, and all those things the spirit contains. The body therefore is worthless, and the soul, conversely, is priceless. Slavery is first and foremost immoral for the very fact that it cannot, no matter what any ruler or lawmaker says, be legal in a just and moral society. Any society that allows it is neither, and therefore deserves criticism and revolution. Otherwise, it would have fixed its problems on its own.
That is what slavery is, after all. A problem. Slavery's second of many immoralities (of which I cannot, certainly, touch upon them all) is that it deprives each enslaved person of their rights and autonomy. Willpower is the driving force of life, and yet there are those who believe they can command the willpower of others, or deprive folks of their own wills through chains? An absurdity that should be punished by each and every God.
It is not the job of the Gods to save us. We are our own masters, and fate bends to our wills, for fate is a construct of willpower just as magic and life are. The very world we live in is a machine running on will, and so I ask of you to look around you. See the gears you turn with every action, and ask yourself one question? Is this a gear I turn willingly? Or have I been coerced, forced, or ordered to turn this gear? Does the turning of this gear aid me? Or is it only for the benefit of one who asks for my fealty? Only for one who sks for my obeisance?
We are all slaves to the rulers of the world. Once we awaken, we may spread justice as it ought to be spread. Not by court or king. By collective. We were not born slaves... and we ought never die as such either. If we die, we die free, or fighting for that freedom we may then achieve in Heaven.
Hereditary Rule and Failed Systems
One may wonder what is to happen when there is no righteous ruler. When Meiriris Nerifir passes away, who is to take up the throne? It cannot be expected for another glorious individual of her caliber to exist at all times. So what is to be done then? The Elves had an answer, and it is one that has spread to other nations like the Kingdom of Man, the Abral Empire, the Jihdi Empire, the Nereid Kingdoms, the Goblins (Votarran, Nationalist, and Ocultos), and the City-State of Ruzrugh. If one member of the bloodline could rule so righteously, that honor should then be passed on to their descendants until the will of the people overthrows them again or, potentially, until the end of time.Hereditary rule is a system considered by many to be the natural state of the world. After all, what state still stands that could claim more longevity than the Nerifir Kingdom of Camor? It has lasted for so long, there must be no issue with it, right?
An inaccurate statement supported by false evidence. Elves live far too long and have solidified far too much power for there to ever be an internal threat to them. Even civil war resulted in the same outcome: a Nerifir sitting comfortably on the throne, as they always have.
The issue is, as has been proven by the Nerifir line and all other royal bloodlines, that for every potentially equally great descendant, there is the also likely, also equal chance of an unimpressive ruler, and an equal chance as well for a mad tyrant, driven by legacy or some other horrid, insane motivation. Even the great descendants are mad. Look to Arazion and Macvara Nerifir, two siblings intent on claiming the throne, both mad. One just had the right of being the firstborn, and the other had the madness to seize power over his sibling's corpse. Still, Arazion is hailed as a hero for his victories in war and espionage alike. For hereditary monarchy asks us, the citizens, the subjects, to bow our heads and nod at whatever they do. Before them, we have no choice but to accept the reality of how things are.
But monarchs do not shape reality. We do. We, the people of this world, control everything. We have merely allowed ourselves to become deluded, traded one master for another. The Elves found the monarchy of Meiriris Nerifir to be comforting simply because they didn't have to take control of their fates. They simply now were paid for what they were already doing. Tavzion Mossense still served as the leading warrior for Camor's throne, his ruler just happened to now be mortal. Thus, when looking for what is truly revolutionary, we must look instead to Amukk God Breaker and the Orcish people. They have never been able to create a thriving society, because the will of the people was disregarded, but perhaps there are times when the will must be questioned. A will shaped by an ill-fitting ruler is a will coerced. For those of us who have lived our whole lives under power hungry rule, how are we to know our will is not that of an unjust ruler?
We must divorce ourselves from the context of our nation then. We must look objectively at our situations and ask if that is how we ought to live. We must ask ourselves if that is being done as we want it? Do you benefit from the fact that the King's son will inherit the throne? Or would you find greater benefit in a ruler you choose, who alligns with your personal beliefs, who understands your situation?
Propaganda is a dangerous tool, but we must see through it. I cannot force you to nor coach you how, I can only ask for you to pay close attention to the narratives you are told, and look into why they tell you these things. Who do you trust? Who do you care for? Let those shape who you are and what you believe, not the nation in which you were born.
The Korvians and Draconians have a broken system based on strength or magical prowess, where the strongest rules. They both are systems easily overthrown and given into the hands of tyrants, monsters, and unstoppable aristocrats with no desire to help the people. They are in need of great reform, reform that they may never get, and until then they will remain as failed experiments.
If speaking in technical terms, the nation of the Lizardfolk functions off of a similar system, though it is justified because of the fact that the Lizardfolk are constantly in life threatening danger and need someone who can protect them. That is why the Owner General works better than the Grand Wizard or Korvian King, though still it is not an ideal system of government and does not produce generally impressive sovereigns.
The city-state of Alzirgos, a remnant of an old mixed system of Ancient Goblin government and the stained legacy of the Helft Empire, is a strange ruling system, where one ruler, His Highness, is decreed by the Goddess Ishtar and the other, Her Lowness, is determined by the leading businessfolk and traders of Alzirgos.
I cannot, in any good conscience, praise this ridiculous system, which has only managed to survive by the sheer luck of Alzirgos being a strong economy supported by a Goddess. It should never be emulated, nor should it ever be in a discussion of sensible government systems. If the world were just, there would never be a reason for that nation to exist as it does.
The system that has gotten closest to success, in my mind, is one that is most often in conversation with the people. That is the democratic monarchy of the Dwarves, where after a set amount of time, a new Prime Minister is elected. This Prime Minister does not have ultimate authority, but instead only assumes the monarchy if and when the King dies. The King remains in power for life, and when they die, the will of the people at the time determines the next King, as the elected Prime Minister assumes the throne. Therefore, the Prime Minister role is ever changing, ever listening to the will of the people, and the King can remain in power longer, enacting more and longer lasting change, while still representing that choice by the people.
It is not a perfect system. Longevity does not work for everyone, and while it is a fine system for the long-lived Dwarves, it still has a major flaw in the fact that the will of the people is everchanging and a King in power for life would often solidify their stances early on in their period of rule. This means that, while they may have the right to rule at first, that right can be easily drained away without actually stripping them of the power to rule.
The system of Dwarven democracy is also greatly diminished by the fact that there is no true way to find a ruler like the golden trio mentioned towards the top of this treatise (Amukk, Warbler, Meiriris). A democratic choice run by the state will only have those whose presence is known by the state itself in the running, therefore meaning it will only be those wealthy, influential voices who already have a say in the running of the nation who may even have a chance of taking up the Prime Minister position and, thus, the Kingship.
The Will of the People
What is the perfect system of government, then? If hereditary monarchy is not right, and neither is democratic monarchy or any of the above listed forms of rule, then how may the perfect society be developed? The truth is, there is no answer that can work around the world. Every culture has grown under different circumstances, every land has developed in its own ways. To declare one singular global government or type of system would be to prioritize one people over another, and to declare yourself the arbiter of rule is to declare yourself enemy to the people.The people must decide what works best for them. The democratic monarchy has often been decided to be the will of the Dwarves over and over again, and thus it cannot be denied that it works best for them. The Dark Elven people have often declared that they still greatly favor the wisdom of the Dragon Lord Jarrur, Lord of Dark, and so he still maintains his position above them. But constantly and for all time, we as people must continue to use our voices to determine our own futures. We cannot let systems stay in place if we do not believe they are in our best interests.
To do so would be allowing ourselves to live forever in a state of slavery, chains like those broken by Meiriris Nerifir and Amukk God Breaker... no, not by them. By their people. They were only the figureheads of that Holy Rebellion. Until we have, ourselves, a Holy Rebellion, a rebellion of the people, we will forever remain unadvocated for, oppressed, and pushed down until we are not just metaphorical, but literal slaves to the ruling class.
Stand up. Speak up. Act up. It is the right of the people to rebel when the world is not just. That is our place in the Contract of Heavenly Laws: to always decide if the system and world we stand in is acting in our best interests and, if it is not, break it until finally we can piece together one that does.
Comments
Author's Notes
This is an excerpt from a revolutionary document in Totania written by Bhukk the Studious and edited by Morendyn Cobath at the start of the Age of Justice, as part of the movement alligned with the Army of the Revolution. It was written in condemnation of the World Court, and in the year 560 it was distributed to people all over the world, leading to massive uprisings and revolts against the Court's unjust rule. Most notable in the document is that it never once mentions the World Court, skirting around the issue so that people may draw that conclusion themselves. And, of course, they did.