I. PROLOGUE: THE EMPIRE OF THE PEARL OF THE ORIENT

Once upon a time, there was an empire.

This empire—ironic for which it designates itself—was far from the traditional sense of the powerful, multi-national, and huge territorial entities that had come and gone from humanity’s past. This empire was rather small; one of the ‘successor states’ that rose from the ashes of the Philippine defeat in the aftermath of the South China Sea War, sometime in the year 2100. Its people, who called themselves ‘Orientals’ but often disparagingly referred to as ‘Tagalogs,’ lived within its borders, and died in extreme poverty. A consequence of centuries of mismanagement and cultural decay that afflicted the lawless archipelago plagued by petty conflicts, and economic downturns.

At the head of this empire was the emperor himself, who ruled from the imperial capital city of Manila. For every Oriental, his words were equal to those that came from God and His holy scripture, which every devout Imperial citizen worshipped via the guiding hand of the Catholic Church. And from its first days up to the present, this empire had seen six emperors that sat upon the symbolic Bamboo Pearl Throne.

Ferdinand Charles, the first emperor, was the ‘eternal founder’ of the empire. He came—ironically—from the Orientals’ bitterest enemies, the Ilocanos. His clan was said to be that of the Marcos, a powerful political dynasty from the old Republic that ruled the Philippine archipelago from 1965 to 1986, when the patriarch, Ferdinand Marcos Sr., was overthrown in the so-called ‘People Power Revolution.’ Ferdinand’s son, Marcos Jr., also became the president of the fifth Republic from 2022 to 2028, and Emperor Ferdinand Charles claimed descent from him.

Using the Marcos’ private armies, familial ties and political connections, Ferdinand Charles sought to unite a fragmented people disillusioned by the humiliating defeat. However, the emperor was cruel as he was ruthlessly efficient; he was assassinated before he could launch a war against the Bicolanos, who were now called the Uragons, after they refused his offer of ‘peaceful unification.’

Upon the death of Ferdinand Charles, his fledgling empire nearly disintegrated, as the Ilocanos accused the Tagalogs of orchestrating the emperor’s death. The tension eventually blew into a full-scale civil war, where the regions that comprised the Ilocandia broke-off from the empire and established a state for themselves. Another Marcos was installed as the Ilocano emperor, yet he was a weak ruler. His personal name was forgotten, but his legacy endured in the form of the Republic of Ilocandia.

Meanwhile, the Orientals consolidated themselves in what was left of the original empire of Ferdinand Charles. Controlling western-central and south-western Luzon, including the historical capital city of Manila, the Empire of the Pearl of the Orient shared a common ‘history’ and ‘legitimacy’ as the Republic of Ilocandia. As a result, the initial bad tensions between the two countries eventually blew up into a series of bloody wars, as both wanted to claim its right to existence at the expense of the other.

This story began at the end of the reign of the sixth emperor, Arthur, also know by his epithet ‘the Valiant.’ Arthur Valiente—as his subjects affectionately called him—was a different ruler from the five earlier emperors, for he was a just, and caring, despot. While there were aspects of his reign that could be improved, he excelled above everyone in that he sincerely sought to alleviate the suffering of his people, initiating programs to ‘minimize’ or ‘eradicate’ poverty, and reforming the policies that kept the economy down. Using his absolute powers, Arthur kept the Oriental nobility in check; a far cry from his predecessors’ practice of playing favorites and politics to solicit nobles’ cooperation. His reforms were so effective and far-reaching that countries—the real ones outside the Philippine archipelago—started investing in the empire.

But, Arthur’s greatest feat lie on the matters of the military.

“…”

Arthur Valiente was an accomplished junior officer, holding the rank of major in the Imperial Army before he was elevated as emperor. His unit had been veterans of every big operation conducted against the Ilocanos, and their allies, the Pasiguenos. His soldiers looked up to him; from the lowest private, to the most distinguished general. He was never afraid, even when he was the head of the empire, preferring to lead at the frontlines than command his armies from the rear. Under Emperor Arthur, the Imperial forces saw great success in its near-eternal war against Ilocandia and the Republic of Pasig, with his daring strategic maneuvers, and reckless tactics. His feats electrified the nation, which was further embellished by national publications and media, thus, earning him the ‘Valiant’ name.

However, that uncanny bravery also proved to be his undoing…

November 22, 2278. It was a date which would live in infamy among every Oriental’s heart. The place was at Lingayen, in the Ilocandia province of West Pangasinan. This was the same gulf and beach where the American forces landed during the last year of the Second World War as they fought to liberate the Philippines from the Japanese. The tide was low, and the invading Orientals found themselves trapped against the sea, and the Ilocano defense lines that ran from Bolinao to the other side, in La Union. The emperor’s strategy called for a daring amphibious landing right at the heart of the defenses in Lingayen. However, the annihilation of the 2nd Naval Task Force at the Battle off the Coast of Bolinao jeopardized the ships meant to reinforce the naval invasion from North Zambales.

As the enemy jets and air defenses closed the Pangasinan airspace to any aerial resupply attempts, the Imperial landing forces was in a pinch. And to make matters worse, the Ilocanos launched a counterattack designed to throw every Oriental back to the sea. Backed by tanks, armored carriers, helicopters, artillery, and drones, the enemy pressed on to annihilate the Imperial invaders by splitting them into groups and dealing with them piecemeal. But the emperor, with courage that was second to none, left his dugout to personally lead his soldiers in a brutal counter-charge that eventually devolved into hand-to-hand combat. The battle was fierce; to negate the enemy advantage in air superiority, the Orientals chose to ‘hug the enemy’ so that the advantage in firepower was lost. When anti-tank munitions were burned, the Imperials destroyed Ilocano armor by suicide detonations.

Such ferocity was only experienced by the enemy in that particular battle, so they broke and fled. Arthur, seizing the opportunity, rallied his men to pursue the demoralized Ilocanos. They captured the first and second trenches, along with huge numbers of equipment. Still, the emperor wanted to press on.

“Charge!”

Short prayers said. Guns checked for fresh bullet clips. And courage brought forth. The Imperials mounted another advance, this time, aiming to create a gap in the Ilocano trenches by capturing and destroying the last line of resistance. Before them lay the defenseless town of Lingayen. As the shrill sounds of whistles meant to signal everyone of a general advance, the emperor—usual from him—was one of the first to climb to ‘no man’s land.’

It was a magnificent, if not reckless, daring charge. The personal guards’ retinue of the emperor were speechless as they watched their liege go first before them. I knew because I was there, leading the 2nd Company of the Imperial Guard. Arthur Valiente lived up to his name for one last time…for the third defense line wasn’t as flimsy as the two previous defenses. Barbed wires, dug-in tanks, concealed artillery and machine-gun nests waited for us to come in range…

The result was a horrific massacre. Limbs, guts and entire bodies flying. Men disintegrating into bloody mists once getting caught in the explosions. Before I lost sight of the emperor and his aides, I saw him catch a bullet or two. Then, I blacked out.

The Battle of Lingayen ended Arthur Valiente’s life and reign, then started a national crisis.