Celestial Empire of Nge'ardhi

Nge'ardhi is an absolute monarchy with a triumvirate council system, where the three most powerful leaders–the monarch included, govern the empire with absolute power. Founded in ancient days, its population holds tightly to their way of life, and have remained what sociologists have deemed "culturally stagnant", with little to no cultural development as far as Western sources put it. The nation values its cultural heritage, and its people refused to adopt the ways of life and social beliefs of the world at large.

Nge'ardhi remains by far, the only nation in the world to legally permit institutionalized slavery. The nation is also one of the few to have a state-sanctioned caste system, one in which is the guiding force in Nge'dhuriya life. An affluent nation with a strong economy, Nge'ardhi's economy is back by a large service sector which is largely run by a single group of people in the social order. Though it is an isolationist state, Nge'ardhi is still an major exporter of goods, and is a member of the United Nations.

Etymology
The origins of the empire's name Nge'ardhi, comes from the Ishara words nge ("scorpion") and ardhi ("land"). The island nation was home to a large population of poisonous scorpions and one famous remark was that the first Kaizari of Nge'ardhi, Juu'Hamadi, was killed by a scorpion. In 1755 BC, during his final moments as his body subcame the poisons, Juu'Hamadi named the island Nge'ardhi, or Scorpion's Land (also translated as "Land of Scorpions"). At the time, the island had no name, and was simply referred to by the locals as Nyumba, or home. This was recorded by the population as the first mention of their homeland's name, making it the earlist documented mention of Nge'ardhi in history.

Geography
Main article: Geography of Nge'ardhi

Nge'ardhi is based in the Indian Ocean on four main islands and several hundreds of inhabitated reefs and isles. The majority of the population, close to 99%, live on the largest island of the country, Hazina. To the northeast of Hazina are the three small islands of Rafiki, Mlinzi, Msimamizi, in order of their increasing distance from the main island. Together, they house the remaining 1% of Nge'ardhi's total population. The majority of Nge'ardhi is hilly is covered in vast plains, though toward the center of the main island, the landscape becomes increasingly mountainous. There are few forest on the main island, though the land is well-watered and fertile. The inner part of Nge'ardhi is seperated from the outer half of the main island by way of the Great Divide, a large mountain chain that cuts the outer regions of the main island from the innermost parts. Outer Nge'ardhi serves as the agricultural heart of the nation, while Inner Nge'ardhi is home to the wealthy industrial centers of the empire, as well as the more profitable agricultural centers.

Geologically-speaking, Nge'ardhi suffers from occasional earthquakes as it sits at the end of the African Plate across from the Indian Plate, and too far from the Austrailian Plate to the southeast. Thus, earthquakes are a common occurance for the island nation, and have been viewed as religious signs that the populace most be sinning against their god. Nge'ardhi has 23 active volcanos, and occasionally has been hit by tsunamis, including the 2004 tsunami that killed 25,000 people. However, the tidal wave had already weakened to the point that no major losses on the main island were reported. The habitable zones of inner Nge'ardhi are heavily-populated, largely due to the richness of the volcanic soils and the wealth that has historically been produced in that region, leading to overpopulation and a dispropotionate level of weath.

Politics
Main articles: Politics of Nge'ardhi and Kaizari of Nge'ardhi

Nge'ardhi is an absolute monarchy, backed by a theocratic system in which the monarch is the divine head of state. The position is always held by a male, with the title being known as Kaizari, or "Emperor" in Ishara language. The current Kaizari of Nge'ardhi is Juu'Yusuf'Kiburi. As monarch, he bears the right to do whatsoever he pleases, and admit or remove men and women under his rule from royal positions controlled by his noble family. Nge'ardhi has no written constitution, though the Kaizari may create one at his leisure. Any laws written up by the legislative branch of the government may be overturned by the Kaizari as well.

Government
Main article: Government of Nge'ardhi

The government of Nge'ardhi is built in such a manner that the Kaizari, or Emperor, has the final say in all matters. To better rule the empire, given that no one man can govern a nation as large as Nge'ardhi them self, the Kuhani Mkuu of the Hani'dhuriya (priesthood), and the Antioch of the Mauti'dhuriya (warriors), were chosen to serve beside the Kaizari in a special group known as the Triarch. The Triarch makes all of the laws and decisions of the empire, and appoint members of their respective caste to assignments and positions they deem fit for the individual in question. They rule their positions for life, or until another high-ranking member of their caste comes forth to challenge the title holder for their position.

Beneath them is the Grand Bunge of Nge'ardhi, which is made up of 300 members, with 75 members from each caste (the Chini'dhuriya is not counted as they are slaves and have no political or social rights). The Grand Bunge voices the concerns, requests, and decisions of the castes represented by it, and give the Triarch some idea as to the manner in which they are to best guide the nation as a whole. The Grand Bunge itself is led by the Kansela of Nge'ardhi, the head of the Duru'dhuriya, and appointed to the position by the Triarch from the Great Baraza of the Madiwani, which itself governs the day-to-day actions of the caste.

The Cult of Fahali is organized under the Enat Fahali Church of Nge'ardhi, which monitors the religious affairs of the empire, and keeps its many priestly members in line with the doctrines outlawed by the Kuhani Mkuu and the Kaizari. It is an all-pervasive institution that has the Kaizari's blessing to enforce the religious codes of Fahalism through the warrior caste, who are on loan from the Antioch. This extra-judicial military force serves are the de facto military arm of the priesthood, and wields great power in the governmental affairs of the empire, closely watching members of the royalty for any signs of falsehood and heresy. Their actions have regularly caused much shifting in political agendas by the royals so as to prevent the priesthood from controlling them.

Law and Criminal Justice
Main article: Law of Nge'ardhi

Law enforcement in Nge'ardhi is swift and brutal, though it is extremely biased in regards to intra-caste relations. Nge'ardhi as a whole has one system of strict legal codes, enforced by the religious police force controlled by the priesthood of the empire. However, while these deal with the Nge'dhuriya and Nge'uchafu subjects in regard to their relations with the imperial government, that is as far as they go. On the caste level, each caste has laws unique to themselves. Given the increasing level of power each caste has over the other, certain laws permit crimes commited against a lower caste by a higher caste to go unpunished, and these are often encouraged by members of the same caste.

For example, if a member of the Duru'dhuriya (workers) was to murder or rape a member of the Chini'dhuriya (slaves), this would go unpunished as the Chini'dhuriya have no legal rights in Nge'ardhi. However, if a member of the Duru'dhuriya was to do this to a member of the same caste or higher (the Mauti'dhuriya for example), then justice would be swift and immediate. However, a Mauti'dhuriya member could do the same to the Duru'dhuriya member, and so on. These ladder based legal system has resulted in a hatred between castes, but their ferverent desire to maintain their way of life while the world changes around them has resulted in most of the population choosing to suffer the ordials for the greater good.

The court system of Nge'ardhi is ad hoc by Western standards. There is no one supreme court, with many existing based on the case. The only rulings that are considered on the same level as those dealt out by equivalents such as the Supreme Court of the United States, would be that of the Kaizari himself. Using the religious texts of the nation, or simply ignoring them when dealing with such matters, the Kaizari may handle a legal personally, or send someone bearing his general opinion of the matter to the court carrying out the trial. In Nge'ardhi, "innocent until proven guility" does not translate well, and most of the people, the courts included, dislike the role of caretaker, and often deal out the death sentence simply to get the matter over with.

Foreign Relations
Main article: Foreign relations of Nge'ardhi

Nge'ardhi has never been a good friend of the international community. The people of Nge'ardhi fear the Western world will force its views and ways of life upon them as they have to so many other nations, sometimes forcibly. Thus, Nge'ardhi adopted an isolationist policy during the mid-1800s, only dealing with foreigners whenever it benefited itself. Since then, however, Nge'ardhi's nobility understood the importance of having some diplomatic cables with other nations, and allowed the establishment of embassies within the capital city, but nothing more. Nge'ardhi became a member of the United Nations in 1967 after much discussion on the matter between the ruling houses of Nge'ardhi.

Military
Main article: Mauti'dhuriya

The military of Nge'ardhi is completely controlled and staffed by the Mauti'dhuriya, who's name means "the offspring of death",  who serve as the warrior population of the empire. Though they themselves do not all serve on the frontline, a portion of them do form the military organization responsible for defending Nge'ardhi. These men and women are born into the caste as with all the other castes, but are unique in that their sole purpose in life is to wage war for their people. While the Mauti'dhuriya numbers 976,459, these serve mainly in a logistical field while those of the actual combatants currently being 172,341 in total strength. They take their members from Mauti'dhuriya children who are handed over to them by their parents who pass a number of tests proving the worth of their child as a potential member. Over the course of his or her childhood, they train for the time they will be inducted as a member of the combat forces of the Mauti'dhuriya at age sixteen.

The Mauti'dhuriya is tasked with defending the intergrity of the empire, the right of the Kaizari to rule, and enforcing his edicts wherever he may wish to extend his power. It should be noted that since the Mauti'dhuriya are warriors and not volunteers kept to the side until needed, there are no reserve personnel by Western standards. However, as all members of the Mauti'dhuriya are warriors by default, and could be called upon during a war, this would dramatically increase the country's reserve personnel from zero to about a million. The imperial government alloted 3.6% of the national GDP to the upkeep of the military, or about some $5.263 billion dollars. Most of this is simply for the living costs and upkeep, but as the Mauti'dhuriya believe armor is only for those intending to be shot, and also believe that any weapon is good for killing, the military has much money leftover to work with.