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“They did,” says CandiCrush, “and then it all disintegrated. Apparently, some senior police officers and some military officers went rogue. They spotted the opportunity to seize more power and to claim bigger salaries. Nobody stopped them, because they had guns!
Lower ranking police officers went on strike, but that got them nowhere. Many of the ordinary rank and file simply jumped ship. When they moved out, it just left a bigger concentration of tedious people and rogues.”
“What about the ordinary people?” asks NutJob.
“If you had the money, and the willpower, you moved out too. When sea levels rose, Lool was flooding regularly. And large parts of Ev and Manch ended up underwater. If your home had been destroyed you had no choice but to try and build a new home somewhere else. And although you could choose to stay in Worringfolk, the floods were the trigger that encouraged many people to move away completely.”
“And piracy?” asks KristalClear, “why do people become pirates?”
“Easy life! Apparently! The idea of a get rich quick scheme. Some rogue naval officers had commandeered ships and made rash promises to their followers. Once ordinary people had been coerced, they found it impossible to escape the system,” says CandiCrush, “that’s when the BlackCircle and the other Circles emerged.”
“Inland, the militias grew in much the same way,” says BarmyWaffle, “promising a decent standard of living to their followers. Then they started raiding parts of Wolfland and Meirionydd. And that’s why we maintain a Garrison.”
“But there must still be some ordinary people?” asks NutJob, “people who keep the economy going?”
“There are, although they’re basically subsistence farmers. Nowadays the WorSovereign is worthless. If you can grow your own food, or you can farm livestock, even if it’s just a few chickens, then you can survive.”
“Don’t they have manufacturing industries?”
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