"The past is a teacher, not a dictator. We must learn from it, but not let it control our future."
— Evans Nott, 1894
21:39 WT (Wilding Time), 3rd of Memesa (2nd Month), 1995
North Wing, Site Alpha, [Unknown County], Tirnikt, Neragon
Doctor Marcus Fairweather stood before a glass window overlooking a bare sterile white room, a room that might not have been out of place in an insane asylum if it weren't for the door-sized oval of runic symbols etched into the floor at its centre.
Doctor Fairweather was a tall man in his late forties, with salt-and-pepper hair. His reputation as one of the country’s leading thaumatologists was well-earned, and this latest project – the Fairweather Portal – as it has been dubbed by his colleagues, was his most ambitious yet. The Fairweather Portal was meant to be the culmination of years of research, a breakthrough in interdimensional travel.
"Doctor Fairweather, we're ready for the final activation," one of his assistants said from behind him. "On your orders."
Doctor Fairweather nodded; his eyes still fixed on the soon-to-be-activated portal in the white chamber.
"Very well," he replied, fidgeting a bit with the cuff of his lab coat. He took a deep breath. "This is it, my friends." He murmured. "Years of tireless work, countless sleepless nights, and now, we stand at the threshold of a new era. Let's make history."
The room buzzed with activity as colleagues double-checked the equipment and ensured that every safety protocol was in place. Doctor Fairweather knew the risks involved in such an experiment, but he was driven by an insatiable curiosity and a desire to push the boundaries of what was known about interdimensional travel.
A hand rested on his shoulder, and he turned to see his superior, Director Evans Nott, standing beside him. Director Nott was a perpetually greying man with spectacles perched on the bridge of his nose.
"You alright, Doctor Fairweather?"
The doctor nodded, clenching his jaws. "I think so, Director."
Director Nott offered a smile. "We have faith in your abilities, Doctor. Remember, you've brought Neragon to the forefront of anomalous research. The world will marvel at our achievement."
Doctor Fairweather bowed his head and then turned his gaze back to the portal. "Thank you, Director. Let's proceed."
"Final activation sequence initiated," the lead technician announced from somewhere behind Doctor Fairweather.
"Close the windows and secure the observation room," Doctor Fairweather instructed. "We'll use cameras instead."
The observation room windows slid shut, isolating Doctor Fairweather, Director Nott, and the rest of the team from the chamber. A screen with several camera feeds appeared on the observation room's wall, providing a clear view of the chamber's interior.
Doctor Fairweather's eyes remained fixed on the portal. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead as he observed the runic symbols in the chamber, their sky-blue luminescence gradually intensifying.
"This is it," Doctor Fairweather whispered to himself again, his fingertips nervously tapping against the side of his lab coat. He could feel the rapid thud of his heart, like a drum roll to the climax of a grand performance.
The ground below trembled ever so slightly. The runic symbols glowed brighter and brighter, their colours shifting through a spectrum of blues and purples.
Fairweather could see the director frown at the portal through the camera. The tremors in the ground grew more pronounced, and now, a low rumbling hum could be heard.
"Doctor Fairweather, is this supposed to happen?" Director Nott asked.
Doctor Fairweather's brows furrowed as well as he continued to watch the spectacle unfolding before him. This was unlike any portal activation he had witnessed during the countless simulations and small-scale experiments leading up to this moment.
"No," he admitted tightly. "This is unexpected. Something's not right."
As the humming grew louder, crackles of energy, sprouted out of the runic symbols. "Something's wrong sir!" Someone from the observation room exclaimed.
"Shut it down!" Doctor Fairweather shouted. "Emergency shutdown procedures, now!"
The technicians in the chamber scrambled to comply with his order, but the portal, now just a mass of lightning, seemed to ignore their attempts to disable the runic array.
"We can't shut it down, Doctor!" one of the technicians shouted, his voice barely audible over the cacophony.
Director Nott grabbed Doctor Fairweather's shoulder. "Doctor, we need to evacuate. Now!"
Doctor Fairweather, pale-faced, nodded.
An alarm blared as Director Nott turned and shouted evacuation orders to the team in the observation room. "Double file, and towards the magical suppression bunkers."
"Move!" Doctor Fairweather yelled as men began to stream out of the observation room, their footsteps echoing in the corridor outside.
Doctor Fairweather and Director Nott were the last to leave the observation room. "Come on, we need to go," Nott said over the sound of the alarm and the increasing chaos within the chamber.
But Fairweather's attention was fixed on the rogue portal. The energy swirling within the chamber had grown even more unstable. Arcs of crackling lightning shot out from the portal, striking the chamber walls. Some of the cameras seem to have been destroyed or disabled judging by the static from some of the camera feeds.
Director Nott tugged at Fairweather's lab coat, urging him to move. "Doctor, we must leave now!"
Finally snapping out of his trance, Fairweather tore his gaze from the chaos but before he could say anything—
“BANG!”
A thunderous sound ripped through the chamber and the observation room, as a shockwave sent both Doctor Fairweather and Director Nott to the ground.
21:29 WT (Wilding Time), 3rd of Memesa (2nd Month), 1995
20 Tweige Street, Loweheim District, Greater Wilding, Aialand, Neragon
Number 20 Tweige Street was – what the people of Earth would call – a neo-classical mansion. It stood as a testament to the architectural beauty of a bygone era. Its elegant columns and convoluted stonework adorned the façade. The pristine white exterior contrasted with the lush greenery of the meticulously manicured gardens that surrounded the mansion.
For the people of Neragon, it was the residence of the Prime Minister. This grand mansion, nestled in the heart of Wilding, had served as the official residence for Neragon's leaders for centuries.
In the Prime Minister's office, a room adorned with rich antique furniture and walls lined with portraits of past leaders. John Sonnenfeld, the Prime Minister of Neragon, sat behind a mahogany desk.
The office was dead quiet, the only sound being the ticking of a vintage clock and the occasional honks of cars outside.
He was reading a report that had just been delivered to him by his secretary, Amelia Hartley. The report detailed the latest developments in the ongoing negotiations with the Council of Lords regarding a proposal to increase funding for dragon conservation efforts. But everything just seemed to fly over his head.
"Maybe I should take a break," Prime Minister Sonnenfeld muttered to himself, rubbing his temples.
Sonnenfeld's gaze wandered to the window. A storm seems to be brewing, he mused. Dark clouds gathered in the distance, casting an ominous shadow over the city of Wilding. It was an unusual sight, as the weather had been remarkably clear for weeks.
A distant rumble of thunder nearly made Sonnenfeld jump, and as he watched, a torrential downpour assaulted the window, warping their view of the outside world into a watery blur.
Sonnenfeld sighed, his mind wandering back to the report, from what he could understand, the proposal was faced with all sorts of bullshit excuses from the upper house such as, "national budget constraints" and "potential public backlash and unrest". It was an excuse that had been used countless times on dragon-unrelated matters before, and Prime Minister Sonnenfeld couldn't help but roll his eyes at the predictable nature of the objections.
Sonnenfeld glanced at the window again, and wait, is that an Aurora Borealis?
Prime Minister Sonnenfeld's wearied eyes widened as he stared out of the distorted window at the shifting colours in the sky. It was indeed the northern lights, a natural phenomenon that should not even be possible in this region of the world.
Amelia, the secretary, rushed into the office, her face flushed. "Prime Minister, this... this isn't normal. The northern lights over Wilding? It's unheard of!"
Sonnenfeld nodded, still bewildered by the scene outside the window. "Indeed, Amelia. This is highly unusual. Perhaps we should notify the Department of Magic."
He said this just as another crack of thunder resounded through the office, much closer this time.
From Omnipædia
The Kingdom of Neragon (Neragese: Crecle onn Neragon), known simply as Neragon is the only country in Alabon located off the northwestern coast of Oranland. The total area of continental Neragon is 392,021 km2 (151,360 sq mi) which is inhabited by 77,325,000 people as of 1995. Additionally, Neragon possesses 6 overseas territories and dependencies and 3 moon research stations, which including continental Neragon makes up the Neragese Empire, with a combined population of 191,283,000.
The earliest evidence of early humans in Neragon dates back to around 170,000 years ago and was that of the Homo nuperni. Modern humans (Homo captiosus) arrived in Neragon around 60,000 years ago during the Great Migration via land bridge from the south. As the Hodiernus Ice Age ends and the ice sheets began to recede, Alabon was separated from Oranland by the end of the 8th millennium BCE. By the Antiquity Era (500 BCE), Neragon was ruled primarily by city-states, and would stay this way until the arrival of the Alarican Empire in 180 CE and the occupation of most of the southern region of the country by 260 CE until their retreat in 270 CE. In the aftermath, Veragian people from Oranland migrated to Alabon, emerging as the early Neragese People. The first fully fledged kingdom emerged in 827 CE known as the Kingdom of Hensax, kickstarting the Age of Kingdoms. This ended in 1024 with Asseia and Earcia's conquest of the Neragon island (Oliean would not be unified until 1382). Asseia and Earcia would eventually unify in 1124 as the United Kingdom of Walland.
Like many other countries, Neragon was devastated by the Great Plague of the 1160s, as well as the Magical Purge. In 1274, Neragon was plunged into Civil War between the House of Edwards and the House of Beckham, ending in a stalemate although both sides claimed victory for themselves. From 1284 onwards, the Edwards ruled the south, otherwise known as New Asseia, while the Beckhams ruled the north, also known as Brunsland. The two houses went to war again in 1381, eventually ending in 1385 with the death of Henry II of Brunsland. In the same year, Brunsland and New Asseia was reunified under the Treaty of Chalance, establishing the Empire of Neragon. The population boom of the 1320s onwards ushered in the Age of Sails, as explorers set out to find new land for settlers. With the discovery of the Domican continents in 1513 and Flonesia in 1530, the Great Games emerged between Neragon and various other rising colonial powers. By the turn of the 20th century, Neragon had emerged as one of the most powerful empire in the world.
The Great War from 1918 to 1935 saw the participation of nearly all of the world powers, with Neragon siding with the powers of Cavala, Paqueonia, the Namchiu dynasty, and Eudocia as the Cordial Alliance against the powers of the Grand Coalition and the Anti-Colonial League. In the aftermaths of the war, the Cordial Alliance emerged as the victor of the conflict, spelling the end of the colonial empires of the Grand Coalition and a stalemate with the Anti-Colonial League. Although the Neragese Empire reached its zenith following the end of the Great War, the beginning of the Wettänkrieg with the Northern United Republic (NUR), the successor state of the collapsed Eudocia, saw the beginning of rapid decolonisation throughout the world, as the ideologies of Neragon and the NUR clashed. This came to an end with the collapse of the NUR in 1992, leaving Neragon as the sole superpower in the world.
Neragon is a unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy, with a bicameral Parliament consisting of the Council of Lords and Council of Representatives while the Monarch is Henry IV and the Prime Minister is John Sonnenfeld. Its capital is Wilding which is the largest in the country by area, while the largest city by population is Daughton with an estimated population of 14 million as of 1995. Other major cities include Murchu, Adaidh, Colla, Weissburg, Beckham, and Eddington. Neragon has Gentu's largest economy by nominal gross domestic product (GDP) at $22.958 trillion (including its overseas territories) and a per capita of $120,021. It has a high-income economy and a very high Human Development Index rating, at 0.875. Additionally, it performs well in international rankings of average intelligence, healthcare, life expectancy and development. It is also the first recognised nuclear state since 1952 (7,400 warheads) and has been a permanent member of the Union of Realms Security Council since its first session in 1950. Neragon is a member of many organisations including the Union of Realms, Alfred Riverend Defence Organisation, the Tsenean Economic Association, the Oranland Trade Union, Tsenean International Space Agency, and the League of Neragese Language Countries.
Neragon. Omnipædia. Retrieved 10:38, 3 Memesa, 1995 from https://gbm.omnipaedia.org/w/index.php?titel=Neragon&altid=19491.
