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“The year was 19,588,953,5109. This was the official age of a little gas giant called Saturn. It is small in comparison to many larger Gas giants out there in the Universe. At the tender age of 4.5 billion, Saturn became an orphan. Its sun suffered a quick, premature death. Without its sun, the Solar System as you know it became a roaming system of astral bodies, making their way through the Milky Way, without a Star Parent to guide it. As it happens to any advanced civilization who happened to be without a Sun on short notice, efforts were made to create an adequate replacement. This was the birth of terraforming technology. In its most extreme form, a gas giant like Saturn can be made into a veritable garden of Eden.

Terraforming is a much more efficient progress than creating a world from scratch. Almost all planets in the Universe have the raw materials to become livable planets with a bit of twitching. Throughout Saturn’s 19-billion-year history, it has received some degree of Terraforming. The first one was done by the aldermen from the world, within a world of Planet Earth. The Martians gave a couple of whacks at it, in the form of the mountains and the oceans, but they just could not do something about the planet’s distance from the Sun, and so Saturn was abandoned. The Jupiter Alpha Centauri aliens gave the planet its protective planetary auria, but it was the Grey who created for it the Sun Helioplasm.

With the sun established, the biological organisms came later, staring with the creatures of the deep, and then the land people came later. The Lovecraftian fish people live a relatively peaceful existence, but it seems that strife will always be common for people who live in the surface world. To this warring surface world came your benevolent leader Marduke, to bring you Justice and Order, but not mercy. Mercy is what criminals hide behind in order to live to err another day…”

Marduke stopped reading his speech to his closest confidants. He said to Kanon, “So, what do you think?”

“It sounds all like crazy talk, if you ask me,” said Kanon.

“The locals are already afraid of you, because of your little demon friends. This crazy talk might just be the final nail in the coffin,” said Zibanu.

“Might I suggest you lie, in this instance,” said Karina.

“First, I lie too much, and now, when I am telling the truth, you say they will not believe me,” said Marduke reclining on Berthame’s throne.

“You could focus more on the now, and not get too into the past history of the world,” suggested Karina.

“I suppose,” said Marduke somewhat deflated.

“There is that other option,” suggested Karina.

“I prefer not to. Even if that was the easy option, it can only work if I know all my people,” said Marduke.

“Good idea,” said Kanon, “Aside from the warriors, you never did get out much from the barracks. The locals barely know your face, and the things they heard of you frighten them so. Berthame may have been a tyrant, but at least he provided some semblance of stability.”

“I suppose, peace is the most important thing. Yes, I have an idea now,” said Marduke.

After much discussion, Marduke decided to channel resources into education. He created tax incentives to get more returning to school. He also paid for teachers from all over the country to visit the newly opened schools in Veragerung. He would use those places of learning to have the Observers learn the behavior patterns of his citizens on mass. Once they got enough trace memories, they would be able to formulate a proper nation building plan.

“You know, you could just try talking to your citizens,” suggested Kanon.

“I will try that too. Every day, I will have breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a different person. And everyone knows you cannot refuse the summons of your King,” said Marduke.

Zibanu pouted his lips but did not protest. Marduke stared into Zibanu’s clear eyes. His mind rippled, but like a murky lake, Marduke was not able to peer into its depts. Frowning, Marduke said, “This reminds me, the Observation thing is not going to work on magic users. It will be best if get a read on them, like the psychologists of old or whatever.”

“You mean, through pure guesswork?” asked Kanon.

“A petit, poo,” said Marduke putting his index finger close to his thumb.

After much discussion, it was decided to send the magic users warning letters. They would have to pass a citizen ship test and learn all the new rules otherwise they would be exiled from Veragerung. To help the people learn the new rules, a free class was opened in the school. The class was to be taught by Karina.

Karina was one of Marduke’s sisters. She was 2 years younger than him. Karina had long, pitch black curly hair. She had deep black eyes, delicate feminine features, with almond shaped eyes, a long aquiline nose, and thick elegantly formed eyebrows. Her eyelashes were small. She was somewhat short for what was considered the average of an adult, human female. She was 5’3’’ in stature. She had a balanced rectangular body, with even proportions and a small chest, which was her preference. Her nails were always short and manicured by her teeth. She could cut the nails from her feet in a similar fashion.

Like her brothers and sisters, she was at a loss as to what to do with her free time. It had been 5 years since the first mission had ended. There was nothing particular occurring in her home. Marduke had reluctantly settled into Veragerung. As for Karina, she had completed her talent collection. She had a copy of all the known talents, and a couple of new ones that were endemic to the World of Saturnastra. Collection talents was a simple business. You simply got to know a person, and then they shared their talent with you. The talent could also be forcefully removed through a ritual, but it would cause an imbalance between the person’s body and soul. Worst case scenario, the person could turn into a Wendigo, a ravenous beast who eats everything, but yet cannot seem to become full, because of the lack of a stomach. Another good way to get a talent was to get it from a graveyard. When the dead pass on, they leave their talents behind, because they are only useful in the physical world. From graveyards, Karina had acquired most of the talents. The priests of Arasa were always very keen on having the dead pass on as quickly as possible. They saw the spirit world as static, or noise that got in the way of the happenings of the living. As soon as you were dead, you were expected to depart the world of the living. Most dead people who grew under the religion of Arasa accepted this fact and left without much protestations. Still, there were plenty of old sticky souls remained, but in a dormant state.

The school that Karina was going to teach in was built over a catacomb. In ancient times, it was common for humans and other creatures to be buried near resting places of Sleepers. They thought they were places of powers because of the strange runes and words written in many languages. Had they understood, they would have known that same message was written over and over. It read, “Let me Sleep.”

When Berthame came to power, he appraised the grounds for construction. While digging about to make the proper foundation, he found the secret hatch that led to the Catacombs. He found the crypt, and a couple of meters beyond he found the sealed entrance, with the runes. Feeling the power of the place, he poured concrete over the entrance of the Catacombs to sealed it away for good. In those days, he had a strong, out of sight, out of mind mentality. Over the last 200 years, the School of the Delectable Arts of Peace has received many additions. With each additions, new subjects.

As far as most masteries went, Berthame wanted people to be trained in and out of school as quickly as possible. Most career paths only took 4 years at most. There were no optional courses, no history classes for the student learning how to manage his home business. If a fellow wanted to take any courses that had nothing to do with their majors, they had to pay quadruple the price. This was done to subsidize the education of the students who were certain about their own future. Before even being allowed to enter the school, the students were given an exam to prove their proficiency in the basic arts of writing, arithmetic and civil codes. Berthame was not too concerned about the students not knowing history. He preferred if they knew what their civil rights and responsibilities. Science was really not a must, because it was on a need to know basis. It would be taught to the doctor people, not to musicians. If they were curious to learn, they either had to pay or go to the library.

Marduke’s time had been so preoccupied with external matters, that he had not updated the code of law in Veragerung. With the borders and ally trading routes secured, Marduke could take home matters more seriously. He analyzed the rules, and he noted their soundness and clarity. Berthame was not only a builder, but a lawmaker. Marduke’s first order of business was to enforce the established law on everyone.

This was not received too well by the nobles who were used to getting away with things. Once the frequent offenders were exiled or executed, Marduke moved onto other matters. He cleared out the dungeons, because he did not believe in prison. Many of them people rotting away in the dungeons were there for treason, tax evasions and for petty thievery. Marduke was a firm believer of matching the punishment, to the degree of the crime. Most of the people he let out, without any further type of punishment, because he thought they had suffered enough.

Eventually, it came the time to legislate. Unlike Berthame, Marduke took his citizens opinions into consideration. After giving it a lot of thought, he left a suggestion box outside of his domicile. He would allow the locals to suggest new rules, which would be added to the new law book including the new rules he had come up with. The locals came up to the challenge and these are some of the rules that Marduke allowed to enter the code book. The book was organized by locales. The number code in front referred to the location the law pertained to. The other numbers indicated the priority or the severity of the crime. This is some of the examples of the new laws added to the Code Book:

Law 341.1 It is illegal for a bartender to inebriate any costumer to the point of passing out. You are responsible for the life of the person who gets drunk in your bar, if they get robbed, raped, or killed, then it is your responsibility.

Exceptions: If the costumer takes the drink to his bedroom, and is secured and alone, then it is out of the bartender’s hands.

Law 541.89 It is illegal to pick the flowers from a garden that doesn’t belong to you. Even a small cutting will be considered an act of thievery, to the same degree as stealing a puppy or a kitty cat.

Exceptions: The law doesn’t apply to children younger than 12. If the offense occurred without the parent’s knowledge, then the adults will not be held accountable. If they were around, and then they will be fined 100 golden coins, which is the acceptable fine for causing injury to the beloved pet of another fellow.

Law 341.57 It is illegal to flirt with anyone in an inebriated state. Repeated offenders will be branded on the forehead. Any barkeep who sees the brand will be forbidden from serving them drinks.

Law 781.64 A homeowner may not dig holes deeper than 6 feet in their property. Any deeper holes require permission from the government.

Exceptions: Homes that are 200 miles away from the castle.

Law 905.32 It is illegal to kill stray dogs or cats for the purpose of amusing yourself, you monsters! Anyone caught burning a cat or dog alive, shall receive the same punishment.

Law 905.43 It is illegal to kill an animal with rabies. The alchemists have devised a cure for that, so take them to be cured.  

Many of the new laws focused on animal cruelty and proper bar etiquette. There were a lot of people who worried about those important issues, but it was never a high priority to the Elders who lived safely in the castle. As such, these incidents were never brought to the attention of Berthame. Over the years, King Berthame became more and more isolated, and remote from the people he was ruling. This gave him more power, but it made it harder to become aware of the new problems that were arising. 

The fact that Marduke added the silly new laws so quickly into the book gave the little people a sense that their opinions mattered. To further reinforce his distance from the old regime, Marduke got for himself a rather small home apartment. As was the habit of his people, the home was deceptively small in on the exterior. Once you got inside, you get the sense that someone with means lived there. Aside from the tearoom, Marduke never allowed people he did not trust to wander about his domicile. His home was for friends and family, not for strangers.

The other big change he made was in the primary school system. He was a big believer in not forcing a horse to drink water. As such, he did not force or fine parents into taking their children to school. In the old days, two army guys came and took your brat away. Parents did not see their kids again till they completed either primary school or military academy. By removing the compulsory aspect, Marduke wanted education to seem like a good thing, not something to be forced into. Still, every new school year second year students did rounds in all the homes to ask directly to the children, if they wanted to go to school. If they said no, then they were not enrolled in school. It did not matter if the parents tried to compel them. Marduke was quite impractical, in so much as he took the desires of thoughtless fire year old brats in earnest.

Due to the new rules, the primary school year had to be extended for 5 more months to accommodate the new 156 rules. It may seem like they should have a been a lot more laws, but many of the suggestions tended to repeat. This did not inspire Marduke much confidence. He segmented a portion of the guards to specialize in enforcing these new rules that were the cause for concern.

The biggest issue came in the form of animal abuse. A couple of people got themselves executed due to the severity of their crimes. Marduke did not mind the killing of animals, but he was not a fan of torture of any kind.

Slowly, the new school year drew closer, and Karina was not feeling too awe inspired. Since this was an agricultural type of society, the school took a break during the summer. Food security has always been a number one priority in Veragerung. This was why all Farmers had to go to the University. In there, they were taught crop rotations, horticulture, fertilizing, herbicides, ranching practices, and many other things related to their fields. By the time they graduated, they knew how to plant and grow more than 8,000 different plants. They could also raise more than 30 different domesticated animals, including the ever-popular dragon.

It was during mid-summer that Marduke started having second doubts. Karina visited him on his home. He was cradling the newborn Inana. There was an outsider standing over the baby. They were in the small coffee room, with the open window overlooking the forest. The apartment had 8 stories, which was impressive by medieval standards. Berthame had rediscovered cement, and thus had been able to make larger structures. His cement was far more stable, with a hidden secret ingredient that was volcanic ash. The coffee table room had a library, an elegant Persian rug, some cushions, and a lovely painting. The true decorations itself were that of a tearoom, but Marduke was more of a coffee drinker. He still served tea for his guests. His coffee he drank with foam and milk. The milk he poured in a way to make silly shapes. The shapes tended to reflect his mood. Most of them were sad or worried faces. The painting he had on the wall, faced the open window. It hung over the warm, fireplace. The painting featured a fat couple dancing together. The maiden was in the foreground, with her back to the viewer. She was wearing a tight red dress, with her ankles showing. The guy had a little mustache, and a black tux. The background seemed to be a bar type of setting. The figures were quite simplified. Marduke had brought this painting with him, from his home because it made him smile. He was also into ball room dancing as well. The painting always garnered curious looks, but nobody ever bothered to ask about it, yet.

The wallpaper was white, with pink flowers. The windows had two delicate embroidered curtains. Another key piece of décor was the miniature on top of the fireplace. It was a replica of the neighborhood, with the tiny houses and the trees. Marduke still had to add the little people and the birds too. It was one of those works in progress. The home hinted at the domesticity of having a lady in the house. There was a lady occasionally, but she was Marduke’s Sister in Law, Alyssa. She was married to Marduke’s drunken adopted brother. Ever since Aragon had gone to hell, Alyssa had separated herself from her husband. Along with her own baby, Alyssa was Marduke’s neighbor.

Today’s visitor was a familiar face. Marduke spoke sweet nothingness with the landlady. Her name was Isabella de Pallene. She was a retired courtesan. At the age of 71, she was not seeing much action, nor was she seeking. She was at that point in her life, were she could not tolerate any man or woman as a romantic companion. As far as concessions went, there were none to be had. In leu of human companions, she lived with her chihuahua Banshee. Like her namesake, Banshee was always barking or weeping. Little Banshee was protective of her owner, and thanks to her Isabella had avoided some unsavory companies in the past. If Banshee hated you, then you were a danger to her owner.

Isabella was not too keen on having the new King of Veragerung in her residence. She thought it could spell trouble if an assassin came. Berthame had killed quite the number of assassins back during his old reign. Marduke did inspire killers from time to time, but his court of demons always kept them in check. This was why he was known was the Demon King. Those who had any degree of sixth sense, which was common in Saturnastra, could see that many of the humans around him were not what they appeared.

While Isabella spoke with Marduke, her dog Banshee would stare at his baby Inana and whimper. Whimpering was not a bad sign, for Banshee. The baby had a sour, gloomy look on the face. From time to time, a tear would fall down its bright eyes. As soon as Isabella left with Banshee, both Marduke and baby Inana breathed in a sigh of relief.

Marduke came to his baby and said in the affected fashion adults speak to babies, “That grouch left, yes, she did, yes she did. My little piglet!”

The baby made gentle little sounds in affirmation. Marduke petted Inana’s cheek, which made the baby smile. Inana settled back down on the crib, and then went to sleep some more.

When the baby was asleep, Marduke said to his sister, “Sorry, can I get you a cup of tea?”

“Its fine. I don’t like tea. I would rather some bubbly,” said Karina sitting down, and crossing her feet.

After handing her the drink, Marduke said returning to his cushioned seat, “I have been thinking that the whole sending threatening letters, warning them of being exiled is a bit mean. We want the magic folk to feel at home. If we push them, they might leave for the Tower of Zuberus.”

“Well, we could offer it as a type of supplement class, for adults who do not want to pay to learn the new rules,” said Karina.

“I suppose the counter could be that they learn the rules in their spare time,” said Marduke.

“Who really has the time for anything these days, really?” asked Karina.

“This world at least has longer days, which is something to consider,” said Marduke.

“I was forgetting were I was… sure, we will put up some pamphlets advertising the free class, and I will send some letters too,” said Karina, “As long as we get some students coming in, it is possible that more will surely follow.”

“Yes, a firm, light touch,” said Marduke.

“As you would, with little Banshee,” said Karina.

For the rest of the summer, Karina placed some pamphlets in key public spots. It spoke of a new citizenship exam to test people on the new laws. Those who did not pass the exams lost some of their citizen rights and privileges. The rights that would be loss were non-vital, but essential like tax exemptions, free access to the public libraries, right to own a shop and the right to travel between the holds without buying a travel permit.

Karina wrote down the rights that would be lost, in addition to information focusing on the free class she was offering.

Karina did not send the letters by mail. She went house by house, sporting one of her loveliest outfits. Since she had to abide by the rules of the auria master, she could not sport anything that was made after the baroque period. Neoclassical stuff was fine, but it was pushing the boundaries a bit. Once you got to jeans, and flapper dresses you got kicked out of the planet for the crime of breaking the aesthetic of the place. She wore a white dress, with a white sash. The dress was a little bit lose, with only the sash delineating her form. The cotton was a type of Mud Cloth. The elegant golden pattern was around the small V neck of the dress. It went down from the middle of the front of her chest, stopping just below her knees. There the dress had four Diamonds patterns forming a cross bellow it, and it had another golden pattern around the dress. The sleeves were loose till you got beyond the elbow. From there, the fabric got closer to the skin. This fabric too had an ornamental golden pattern. Since Karina was all about the bling, bling, she wore a bronze necklace, with a Mayan calendar. The earrings were round bezels, with two ancient copper coins depicting the sun. She had a single ring on her index finger. It was made of gold and the round surface had an Egyptian cartouche.

She would only sport this ring when she was in a particular good mood. It was the artifact from her home world she was allowed to bring into Saturnastra. Everything else, she replicated by hand using the technology, and methods of the world. The cartouche featured a U with two little hands on the top, bellow it there were three horizontal leeks or erect dicks. What these horizontal objects look like depends on who is staring at them. They look like dicks to me. Moving along.

One of the first homes she visited belonged to Carmenta Lini. She was an exiled elf living in Veragerung. She had provided key data that had allowed for Berthame to find her hidden city. In addition to the Masked Twins, she performed assassinations for Marduke. She loved the boy, but she was concerned at times with whether he had any idea about what he was doing. As far as war was concerned, he did peachy, but it was the peaceful aspect that was giving him a hard time.

Carmenta saw Karina come to her home and leave the letter in her mailbox. She putted on heavy clothing, and she covered her face to head outdoors. She was not too keen on the changes triggered by the sun in her Dark Elf state. She read the letter, and she raised an eyebrow. In the end, she decided to attend the school, since it was the only free class for adults. When she came inside, her guest took the letter from her and read it over the top.

She said to him, “Don’t even think about it.”

“I am going, and that’s that,” said Babysel.

Babysel was a bored little halfling. He had received his schooling from his mother and father. Still, he sometimes pondered on the whole school nonsense. Since he was a cheap bastard like his father, he decided to jump at the opportunity of attending a free class.

Other people too would eventually answer Karina’s summons. Though their reasons varied, they had one thing in common. They had absolutely nothing better to do with their time, and so they wanted a change of pace. None were too concerned about Marduke implementing the measures stipulated in the letter. When Marduke had come to power, after executing a couple of people, he released all the prisoners, before arresting other people. Instead of being in prison, they would do community sentence till their drastically shortened sentence was concluded. During this period, the prisoners were overseen by a demon, to keep them from hurting anyone.

The fact that he publicly stated his disbelief in torture and the prison system made him appear weak in the eyes of some of his people. Others though he was too merciful, and so they thought he would relent when it came time to enforce the new regulations.  Still, this underestimation was only experienced by people who could not see the warden’s true nature. There was also his royal visor to consider. Kanon was respected, and feared, and during meetings, Marduke always yielded to his suggestions and reasoning. With the army backing him, Marduke had a strong footing on Veragerung, even if some of the people living there did not take him seriously.