End of Year Address by His Imperial Majesty Emperor Artabanos
Inimicians,
A tumuluous and eventful year passes. A year in which the story of our nation, of our Empire, evolved, perhaps like never before.
Stories, including our collective, national story, give meaning to our lives. By relating epics and legends to one another, our communities first took hold and evolved culture. Still, our common story glues each Inimician together into one wholesome collective.
Nevertheless, each Inimician has their own story to tell, for each Inimician has the freedom to be different, to take individual views on the world and our place in it.
We are free to think and believe what we will, free to shape our own world view and express our opinions. This freedom we thank, first and foremost, to the heroes of the Inimician Revolution, whose 10-year anniversary we celebrated this autumn.
During My journeys across our Empire this year, many of you told Me your story. It was, after all, a year full of individual heroism, of pride, of concern, of anger.
Stories of courage and persistence are told by our brave soldiers -- those utterly heroic women and men who brought the most calcified of criminals to Inimicus from the clutches of terrorism in Neo-Venetia. Similarly impressive narratives are told by those who served in North Diessen, where we defended our friends and allies with unrelenting resolve. From the bottom of My heart, I thank our servicewomen and men for their dedication this year.
Inimicians also told of ambition and pride this year. Through our common effort, an Inimician once again assumed the prestigious role of Premier Commissioner. Dr Walter Cocx, whose efforts to defend our region are testament of his proud Inimician character, put our Empire back in the centre of the world stage. It is up to us, all individual Inimicians, to ensure it remains there.
Nevertheless, stories of anger and grief also accompanied the passing of this year. I spoke to groups of demonstrators protesting the Needletail One court case. And while opinions naturally varied, every person I spoke to shared in the common grief about those we lost on that fateful day, and the common anger at those who perpetrated this heinous deed.
The story of the cleansing of Inimician governance from inside infiltrators was one of tension, sadness, and yet one of irrevocable resolve. Together, we will continue to make our government effective, resolute, and representative of our Empire. That, after all, is what each Inimician truly deserves.
Inimicus nevertheless told a story of adaptibility and resilience, when we came together to support our friends to the north in a common goal of connecting the Persian Gulf to the Caspian Sea. From the depths of internal strife we bounced back to the heights of international diplomacy. In 2022, we will see the completion of this monumental canal, and together with our friends in the renewed Telum Treaty, we will achieve even more than we did in 2021.
Inimicians certainly have no lack of stories this year. Nevertheless, those who threaten us from outside endanger our ability to listen, to exchange ideas, to live peacefully. In regards to this, I call upon you all to unite, to stand together, to connect with your fellow citizens.
And it is in this unity, perhaps, that the roots of our common story for 2022 takes hold.
For I have seen, time and again, from younger and older Inimicians, the willingness to contribute to our nation's wealth, success, and strength. From rebels at our doorstep to high-level maneuvering in straits hundreds of miles away, Inimicians stand together. We choose for a perspective that works, for a common undertaking to protect our way of life. And this, too, is a part of our story -- and a major part at that.
We made history in 2021. May we make history in 2022.
I wish each and every one of you, wherever you may be and whatever your personal circumstances are, a happy new year.
ARTABANOS: of the Centurians, Legatians, Quaestorians, Imperatorians, Rosarians, Praestorians, and Diutians Supreme Emperor; Our Lord, Ruler of all Inimicians, Supreme Autocrat; Defender of the Inimician Faith; Duke of the District of Telum; Commander of the Inimician Armed Forces; Grand Cross in the Imperial Order of Inimicus; Lord of the Supreme Ordene of Icholasen; PRAISE!
