¶ The Bastion District
The Silent Bastion is a newer district, formerly a Glitch Kingdom liberated from a hivemind state by the Haven Expeditionary Force. Bastion is located in the Silentia system, just a hyperlane away from the Haven system and the Cehmani system. Bastion itself is a small city constructed of stone in the mountainous tundra, the city using purple and white as their colors. After it was liberated by the Haven Expeditionary Force, Bastion prospered into a city of higher culture and arts, the city bringing into fame many famous Glitch musicians, artists, writers, and more who showcase their best works in the Arcania Auditorium.
Bastion is a city under constant snowfall, and sometimes even blizzards. It is a small city with a Glitch population as few as 20,000 native Glitch. The city itself is made of stone, and is constructed and planned upwards onto a hill, the center of the city being the Hushed Keep where the King once lived. The most famous landmark of Bastion is the Arcania Auditorium, named for the minstrel who died helping the Haven Expeditionary Force save Bastion. Many host plays, orchestras, poetry readings, and more in the auditorium, gathering a wide audience from across the city and even the entire Federation. Another famous landmark in the city is the Dreamwound Statue, a series of statues carved at the center of the Arcania Plaza where the auditorium building is. The statue depicts the members of the Haven Expeditionary Force that saved Bastion, with the Minstrel Arcania depicted largely in the center.
¶ Religion
The Glitch native to Bastion follow a type of new religion that deifies “The Minstrel”, believing her to live in all of their hearts to inspire them to create and wonder. This goddess is actually the Glitch Arcania who aided the Haven Expeditionary Force in freeing Bastion inside the dream simulation created by the mage Morpheus, dying from Morpheus’ shadows in the final stretch to the place that spelled freedom for the city. The Minstrel is depicted as a fair Glitch woman with a purple and white cloak and a wide-brimmed feathered hat, purple optics and a silver chassis.
The degree to which the Bastionite religion permeates its people is astonishing. Bastionites have reported seeing visions of the Minstrel in their sleep, and whispers from the Minstrel help give inspiration to the many artists of the Silent Bastion. Some believe that the Bastionite religion far transcends that of a normal religion, being engrained into their very hivemind since the beginning.
¶ History
Bastion began long ago when the Glitch first arrived to the Silentia system as a hivemind kingdom, stagnant in medieval culture and technology. As time progressed on, the Silent Bastion has undergone many wars with other smaller Glitch cities on the planet, these cities utilizing various forms of higher technology as “magic” to assault Bastion, the largest city. Bastion then devised various forms of technology to counter this, creating an electromagnetic pulse weapon that acted as a form of anti-magic that protected them, allowing them to destroy the enemy cities. Thus, the Silent Bastion started as a city of 'anti-mages'.
Long after any wars, the Black Empire began to take interest in Bastion after conquering Nova Australasia close by. A High Mage of the Black Empire, an enlightened Glitch from Bastion named Morpheus, was assigned to turn the kingdom to the side of the Black Empire. To do this, Morpheus placed all of the Silent Bastion into a deep sleep, a dream where he could attempt to sway Bastion to the side of the Umbral King.
A month later, Senator Sinji Ekta of the Haven Federation assigned the Haven Expeditionary Force to Bastion to investigate its sudden silence. When they arrived, they encountered a planet encased in black, and a city of sleeping Glitch. They ventured deeper into the city until they found the Hushed Keep, where they met the Bastionite Glitch known as Arcania the Minstrel, who guided them into the dream where they, after a long journey, defeated Morpheus with the help of his sister, Arcania. While Arcania died during the journey, her name was never forgotten, immortalized forever in Bastion as a deified figure who above all else, values art and bonds. Now Bastion is a part of the Haven Federation, serving as a beacon and drawing point to the Glitch of the Fringe to engage themselves with their native culture away from the influence of the Black Empire.
On March 21st, 3286, the worst befell the Bastion District. Following a handful of brief military exchanges between the Federation's fleet and several transient Ruin-masses attempting to intercept the system, an entire detachment of Ruin-mass craft, led by a great Battleship-size warship of unknown origin and class, seemingly piloted by a mass symbiote of Ruin flesh. Although the craft in its company were quickly dispatched without much difficulty or loss of Federation ships, the flagship of this group proved to be beyond the pale in terms of its capacity to wreak havoc and brutalize the united forces of the Atlas Empire and the Haven Federation. The hull of the ship, beyond all reason, seemed to be nearly impervious to all forms of penetration, merely gaining speed as it approached the world of Silent Bastion, charging a weapon mounted along the length of the hull all the while. Once within three lightseconds of the world, the HSS Sexy Beast, captained by the brave EBS-12, took up the assault, firing all they had at the ship to bring its advance to a halt. In an instant, the Dave Class Destroyer was torn asunder by a single firing of the ship's main cannon. A flash of light more intense than the burning glow of Haven A pierced across the darkness of space between them in an instant, and just like that, the ship was cut clean across its hull. Tachyonic communications brought to a halt within a great radius of the battleship as it loomed over the ruined craft. It was clear that this was not a battle that could be won. Even as the greatest flagship of the Atlas Empire fired all it could at the nightmare warship, it only left a tiny impact site in the starboard hull. The call to evacuate was made. Bastion, was lost.
As the Battleship loomed over the surface of Silent Bastion, it sent down several Ruin pods to the most populated area of the world, quickly devastating the remains of the District. Although most civilians had been evacuated, on that night, 300 of Haven's finest Guards and Soldiers laid down their lives to ensure that the Federation would not lose this fight without battling to their last breaths.
Hours later, the Haven Expeditionary Force, aided by the Haven Guard, arrived on the surface of Bastion through the last remaining active teleporter, quickly doing what they could to destroy all ruin mass they could find in the city-center, and rescue the unaccounted for Governor of the District. Aeris Webb was found on the far outskirts, clasping the the coffin of the Minstrel atop a ceremonial flying carpet, attempting to bring her to the teleporter, even despite his ruined arm and numerous injuries. The arrival of the HEF and the Guard gave a brief bit of hope to Bastion's leader, but this was short-lived, as soon after, a great Ruinling, dubbed 'Belial', rose from the sheets of ice and snow. All seemed lost in that moment, but beyond all expectations, the HEF and Guard succeeded in taking down the great demon, saving both Webb and the Minstrel in the process. Even if Bastion was lost for now, the Federation proved that they could persevere and show that the light of Haven could shine through even the darkest of moments to bring justice to those in need.
The battle may have been lost, but the war shoves on.
Today, the Ruin has been driven from the Silentia System, and efforts are being taken to reclaim the Silent Bastion once and for all.
Political Information
The people of the Silent Bastion are traditional and foreign to democracy. They are very loyal to the Haven Expeditionary Force, and their perspectives and views generally align with whatever the HEF does. They greatly enjoy culture and art and tend to trust mostly Glitch. They still value social class and will favor government figures that hail from a background with ties to upper classes in society, and those that carry themselves with refinement. Generally a more conservative district socially and economically. The Bastion District will greatly favor attempts to support the arts, and will value wealthy people that collect or are patrons of the arts.