New Immortalia
24-02-2009, 12:37
Note: Keen observers among you may notice that my nation is populated entirely by Gods. Gods who have lost the vast majority of their power, but Gods nonetheless. In order to counter the obvious advantages this would give me, my population is and shall remain 48. I realize this means that, divine powers aside, I could get my ass owned by most other nations. But ya know what? I really don't care. It's not about winning or losing, it's how you play the game.
Ra sighed; not the easiest task with a beak, but he managed it. His sharp eagle eyes took in every detail of the vast hodge-podge of architecture that was New Immortalia. To an outside observer, the place would resemble a floating city more than anything else; hundreds of buildings situated on top of a gigantic metal platform, with hundreds more built on top of them, and more on top of them, resulting in a huge, multilayered affair resembling a cross between a katamari and a wedding cake.
The next thing our hypothetical observer would notice about New Immortalia would be its distinct lack of consistency in the style of architecture. Buildings appropriate to the level of technology required to build such a structure could be seen, but mixed in with Ancient Greek-style structures, all marble pillars and courtyards, as well as rough sandstone constructions one might expect to find in Egypt and wooden huts and longhalls in which Vikings might hold their feasts. One could be looking at an enormous pyramid one second, only to change perspective slightly and find oneself staring at a huge Greek-style statue of a man who is clearly using his impressive musculature to compensate for inadequacies elsewhere. Here, one could see an entire forest somehow growing on a metal deck while just below it is a great wooden hall carved with ancient runes and rough-hewn statues of Norse heroes. And towering above the whole chaotic construction was Heaven Tower, a great white column which seemed to almost glow in the blackness of space. And at the very top of this tower, tiny by comparison to his surroundings, stood a man with the head of an eagle.
Ra was not one given to sullen angst, but he did sometimes pine for the glory days, when thousands would throw themselves at his feet and sing his praises above all others, when a nation of people would live and die at his command. Still, he reasoned, one must make do with what one has. New Immortalia wasn't, when all things were considered, a bad place to live. And although his power was barely a fraction of what he used to command, it must be said, he was still a being of formidable ability. He turned his gaze upwards, into the infinity of space. New Immortalia's atmosphere only extended halfway up Heaven Tower, so there was nothing between Ra and the endless vacuum where even Gods can lose themselves. It didn't especially matter to Ra. No matter how much power he had lost after the Loss of Belief, he was still a God, and he would not see the day when a God couldn't breathe without air.
His predator's eyes focused on one star in particular, randomly chosen from the countless points of distant light. Perhaps it had planets. Perhaps one of the planets had life. Perhaps the life had Gods. Perhaps, just perhaps, there were others like him, reveling in the adoration of millions, unaware that sooner or later, the mortals would turn their backs on them. He gave in to a moment of pity for his hypothetical bretheren.
Again, he sighed. He had allowed himself more than enough time for brooding. Unlike certain thunderbolt-throwing philandering old men, he still had responsibility. With a flash of sunlight, the eagle-headed man was now an eagle, which dove gracefully from the Tower, disappearing into the maze below.
Ra sighed; not the easiest task with a beak, but he managed it. His sharp eagle eyes took in every detail of the vast hodge-podge of architecture that was New Immortalia. To an outside observer, the place would resemble a floating city more than anything else; hundreds of buildings situated on top of a gigantic metal platform, with hundreds more built on top of them, and more on top of them, resulting in a huge, multilayered affair resembling a cross between a katamari and a wedding cake.
The next thing our hypothetical observer would notice about New Immortalia would be its distinct lack of consistency in the style of architecture. Buildings appropriate to the level of technology required to build such a structure could be seen, but mixed in with Ancient Greek-style structures, all marble pillars and courtyards, as well as rough sandstone constructions one might expect to find in Egypt and wooden huts and longhalls in which Vikings might hold their feasts. One could be looking at an enormous pyramid one second, only to change perspective slightly and find oneself staring at a huge Greek-style statue of a man who is clearly using his impressive musculature to compensate for inadequacies elsewhere. Here, one could see an entire forest somehow growing on a metal deck while just below it is a great wooden hall carved with ancient runes and rough-hewn statues of Norse heroes. And towering above the whole chaotic construction was Heaven Tower, a great white column which seemed to almost glow in the blackness of space. And at the very top of this tower, tiny by comparison to his surroundings, stood a man with the head of an eagle.
Ra was not one given to sullen angst, but he did sometimes pine for the glory days, when thousands would throw themselves at his feet and sing his praises above all others, when a nation of people would live and die at his command. Still, he reasoned, one must make do with what one has. New Immortalia wasn't, when all things were considered, a bad place to live. And although his power was barely a fraction of what he used to command, it must be said, he was still a being of formidable ability. He turned his gaze upwards, into the infinity of space. New Immortalia's atmosphere only extended halfway up Heaven Tower, so there was nothing between Ra and the endless vacuum where even Gods can lose themselves. It didn't especially matter to Ra. No matter how much power he had lost after the Loss of Belief, he was still a God, and he would not see the day when a God couldn't breathe without air.
His predator's eyes focused on one star in particular, randomly chosen from the countless points of distant light. Perhaps it had planets. Perhaps one of the planets had life. Perhaps the life had Gods. Perhaps, just perhaps, there were others like him, reveling in the adoration of millions, unaware that sooner or later, the mortals would turn their backs on them. He gave in to a moment of pity for his hypothetical bretheren.
Again, he sighed. He had allowed himself more than enough time for brooding. Unlike certain thunderbolt-throwing philandering old men, he still had responsibility. With a flash of sunlight, the eagle-headed man was now an eagle, which dove gracefully from the Tower, disappearing into the maze below.