A Brief History of the Wastes

The nation of Kaltam, now known as the Wastes, paid a terrible price in one of Dauiland’s most horrifying, bloody conflicts of modern times: the Crimtonian Civil War. For the first few years of this nation-imploding conflict between the Empire of Crimtonia and the resistance group Crimtonian Spectre, the Dauiland Alliance imposed sanctions but took little military action — perhaps because of Crimtonian de facto Head of State Emperor Rostenstaphen’s warnings of ruthless retaliation in the passing of such an event. However, the neighboring Republic of Kaltam, under the steadfast leadership of Prime Minister Rachel Tiveron, was one of the few nations to ignore these warnings. Eventually, Kaltam managed to muster military and financial aid for the rebels from the Dauiland Alliance, including the powerful nations of Unidalania, Richomp, and Nazbeth, who would prove crucial in the coming victory. Eventually, backed largely by Kaltamian and Nazbethian support, Crimtonian Spectre seized control of the country. However, Emperor Rostenstaphen managed to survive and fled to the lawless badlands of the country with an army of loyalists. What happened next, no one could have ever predicted — and resulted in an unspeakable tragedy.
The Protector Program had been undertaken in Kaltam in secret ever since PM Tiveron’s election, and its advances in the field of science were unparalleled. Not only did it develop the supermechs that the program was named for, but it also developed the world’s most advanced artificial intelligence — and the most powerful atomic bomb in history. The bomb, codenamed Finality, was created by accident, and was never intended to be used. However, when Emperor Rostenstaphen emerged from hiding with an army twenty times more powerful than anyone could have predicted, newly elected Kaltamian PM Vick Estamin was faced with an impossible decision. The use of Finality on Rostenstaphen’s troops would cause unspeakable carnage and fallout on a scale never seen before — yet the alternative was equally unthinkable. In the end, Estamin decided to use the bomb. But again, he made the crucial mistake of underestimating Rostenstaphen. Only seconds after Estamin ordered the attack, Finality was detected. The nuclear counter-strike, using stockpiled WMDs that Kaltam had no way of knowing Rostenstaphen had, decimated the entire country, causing unspeakable, horrifying destruction. The official count is that every single resident of Kaltam, plus millions of others nearby killed by the fallout, all perished — hundreds of millions in total. Rostenstaphen’s army, too, was decimated, dying off by the millions.

The legacy of this unprecedented nuclear conflict — a smaller-scale, yet still immense reenactment of global Armageddon — defied the principal of mutually assured destruction in the most shocking way possible. The fallout was immense. Kaltam was converted into a nuclear wasteland, now known as the Wastes. The part of Crimtonia hit by Finality was fully contaminated, as well. The Crimtonian area around the Wastes remains lawless and in an anarchic state, known as the Ashes. Somehow, Rostenstaphen managed to survive, and later turned up in an Imperial prison.

Rumors persist, including that Estamin and perhaps a few hundred others managed to survive underground, but all are unconfirmed. What is known is the presence of miles of unmapped, unexplored tunnels beneath the Wastes’ surface. Known as the Wastes Complex, the general consensus among the Dauiland Alliance is that it is far too dangerous to venture into, regardless of what answers it may hold. However, the Alliance has taken extensive measures to prevent the spread and potential escape of dangers such as radioactive fallout, contaminated soil, and mutated plants and animals. These measures have been led by the Wastes’ neighboring nations of Nazbeth, Crimtonian Spectre, Richomp, and Deplandia, and include regular surveillance, the erection of walls, and the implementation of strict control laws. All travel to the Wastes, except as part of tightly regulated surveillance missions, is strictly prohibited.

Written by Nazbeth.