A Guide to New Providence

by Daniel Rector, Esq., New Providence Historian

Location

New Providence, our glorious city and the shining beacon of the New World, is located on the coastline of the Second Continent, across the vast ocean to the west of the Old Country. New Providence is, first and foremost, a port city: goods and raw materials are traded back and forth across the ocean, as well as north and south along the coastline to neighboring kingdoms. It is also the hub of a vast and highly advanced rail network, which stretches from the city itself all the way to the township of Rumination on the West Coast.

There are many neighborhoods and boroughs in New Providence, ranging from the finely appointed villas of the Noble Quarter, to the colorful diversity of the Port district, where the city's working classes tend to reside. The Red Lantern district is always bustling with activity, particularly in the evening, and is well regulated by the Frauleins, a class of skilled courtesans regulated and maintained by the government of New Providence as a result of the decree of one of our more liberal minded rulers in the past.

#1: Citizens of our fine city enjoy the morning in Iwagumi Square.

History

The story of New Providence begins generations ago, in the Old Country. Sick of the constant squabbles for power, political infighting, rampant crime, and disease that even today continue to blight that benighted land, many brave and hardy settlers traveled across the sea to start a new life. They laid the foundations of the great city that has today ascended to a position of continental dominance.

With the guidance of the Imperial House, of which our beloved Lady Sophia is the last scion, New Providence harnessed the power of advanced technology, and rapidly grew from a small collection of trading posts and hamlets to a vast, sprawling city with a burgeoning popu­ lation. Explorers headed west, north, and south, encountering and subduing sparse bands of savages and mapping the rich, untamed land that surrounded them.

With New Providence as a beacon of light and the might of scientific advancement behind them, these settlers have established small communities all across the continent. Even now, travelers head west on the rail lines to make their fortunes in the provinces, but New Providence remains the heart of our glorious empire.

While it may be true that New Providence’s economy has been growing less rapidly than in past eras, any suggestion that the empire is in decline is nothing short of nonsense. New Provi­dence has merely reached a comfortable and temporary point of stability, from which it will continue to grow and prosper. Our economic slowdown may be traced directly to the influx of refugees, many of whom, unfortunately, lack the work ethic of honest natives, and to the dep­ redations of terrorists and criminals, a sad blight evident in any civilized society.

Photograph 2a: The Northern Aurora, one of the mighty locomotives keeping the Northern Territories a part of the New Providence rule.

Culture

Our culture is one of dignified, orderly hierarchy, unlike the anarchism found in some more uncouth nations. At the top of our grand social pyramid is our benevolent and beautiful monarch, the Lady Sophia. Descended from the great Imperial House which led New Providence in its golden age of expansion, she has ruled us with a benevolent hand for many years, despite her young age. She is assisted by various wise councilors in the ruling of our city, and is protected by the Royal Guard, the disciplined order that brings law to the streets of our cities and defends our borders in times of war. Make no mistake, however, that our Lady is no mere puppet: she is the will and heart of our people, and her kindness and courage inspire and reassure us daily.

Beneath the Lady Sophia are the houses of Nobility. The descendants of the Noble houses, which founded our great city, tend to occupy positions of political and scientific authority, bred and raised as they are to be excellent servants to the public and strong leaders in times of crises.

There are, however, a few rare souls of humble birth who rise to positions of great esteem, either through the Royal Academy of Sciences or through service to the honorable and fearless Royal Guard. Many skilled laborers, such as Surgeons, Phrenologists, and Steam Engineers, also occupy positions of great respect, though they can never earn the esteem reserved from those who are born to true peerage. A few wealthy merchants may occasionally marry into the upper class, but it is common wisdom that only good breeding can bring about the class and sophistication of the nobility.

Beneath them are the salt of the earth, those honest, work­a­day lads and lasses who spend their days eagerly earning their keep in New Providence’s many factories and shops, or plying their trade on the high seas. While the working class may have a rough cast to them, they are by­and­large an hon­ orable and respectable people, and it is the rare exception, not the general majority, that sympathizes with degenerate agitators like the so­called “Squeaky Wheels”.

The natural inclination of the two genders is a subject of great discussion in New Providence these days. In general, ladies are afforded all of the same rights and privileges as gentlemen, and it is not uncommon to find members of the fairer sex working in even the fearsome conditions that the Royal Guard must endure. However, New Providence has hardly discarded the wisdom of our elders, and women are still widely regarded as the paragons of morality, compassion, gentility and intelligence they so clearly are. Though you may find a few rough ladies in the Working classes, and even ones that take to such scandalous habits as riding bicycles, smoking cigars, and indulging in games of Talons and Dagon Dice, the vast majority of women in New Providence are simply the picture of propriety, and should dispel any rumors from across the sea that our honorable ladies are ever anything less than demure and sensitive.

New Providence also has a sizable population of immigrants and refugees from all over the globe. While most new arrivals in our fine city are greeted with kindness and open arms, it is sadly quite common for the native olive branch to be met with scorn. We often suffer from problems in the immigrant quarters when these people have difficulty adjusting to the proper way things are done in New Providence, particularly as regards the temporary security mea­ sures that have been instituted to combat dissident groups. However, no law abiding new citizen need fear: Once an individual has finally adapted to our ways, they will find themselves more than content with their new home.

Technology

Science is the steed that New Providence triumphantly rides to her destiny, and what a mighty beast she is! Since its foundation, New Providence has been a seat of learning and experimen­ tation, and it remains one of the most advanced empires in the world. Breakthroughs in Galvanic Electricty, steam power, and rail technology have provided our citizens with heat, light, and transport all across the continent. Fabulous electric devices are on the verge of being mass produced, and the newly invented Propel-Jet Horseless Carriage will soon be quite literally hitting the streets, allowing residents to freely travel all over the city in speed and style.

Our famed rail system provides not only local transport, but connects to even the remote regions of our nation and beyond, and is the safest, speediest way to travel. A gentleman might spend Solstice in New Providence, and be halfway to the provinces in time for the Founder's Day Celebration.

Our dominance of this grand continent was secured through the use of advanced weapons technology. Pneumatic rifles can drop a bull at three hundred yards, and have proved more than effective in quieting the resistance of those few scattered savage tribes that continue to resist the progress of our great nation. Galvanic fire-throwers are already being deployed along the Northern borders to ensure our unruly neighbors learn how thoroughly we have outpaced their primitive devices.

The Royal Academy is always producing new equipment and inventions to make our lives easier, safer, and happier. Devices for mass production are a common sight, allowing the working class to easily and safely produce the goods the world thrives on without the back-breaking labor and tedium of handcraftsmanship. Medicine, too, has advanced at an incredible rate, and even now the honorable men and women of the Academy are fiercely working to eradicate all common disease as we know it.

Crime and Dissidence

Unfortunately, no culture is entirely free of an unsavory element, and New Providence is not free of the taint of recidivism and moral deviance. The Crookback Narrows district is a notorious hangout for gangs of thieves and thugs, and is fought over by vicious criminal clans such as the Yao and Fontaine, criminal families that can trace their blood feuds to the Old Country. These criminals tend to prey on the unwary and naive, frequenting gambling dens and underground speakeasies that serve the dreadful Oleander Fizz, a vile drug that robs the user of her senses. Lacking the weaponry easily accessible by our honorable Royal Guard, gangs like the Yao frequently employ a variety of martial arts and bladed weapons to injure and intimidate honest citizens. More primitive firearms are also common amongst private citizens, though nothing comparable to the Galvanic weaponry that the Royal Guard wields. Indeed, the Guard has been forced to adopt many of the martial skills employed by these criminals in order to defend themselves in the confined quarters of the Narrows. The criminal element remains a sad blight on New Providence, and any upright citizen ought to endeavor to avoid them and their sensational tastes in clothing and music.

New Providence has also been troubled recently by terrorist organizations, chief amongst them the "Squeaky Wheels." The Squeaks, as they are often called, reject the great society that we have built, and call for radical, chaotic changes that would destroy the social order, such as the ridiculous notion of democratic election of officials. They make wild claims that the working class is abused, that the Royal Guard carries out hasty summary executions, and that the Lady Sophia is nothing more than a puppet for the Honorable Doctor Higgins (an esteemed and kindly statesman of impeccable moral character, in actual fact).

The truth is that the Squeaks are nothing more than a gang of bloodthirsty, trouble-making thugs. Their origins are deeply murky, but it is believed that roughly twenty years ago, the organization was formed after the entirely justified suppression of the Steamtrain Coal Shoveler's Union. The Union started an aggressive and disruptive demonstration in front of the Crown Residence, demanding absurd cuts to their working hours and increases in their pay, and that the so-called "Weekend" be formally recognized by all employers. After being pelted by deadly shoveling equipment, the Royal Guard returned fire on the mob; when the dust had cleared, there were perhaps a few men dead. This tragic collateral damage, likely caused by the Coal Shovelers themselves, proved to be the lightning rod that attracted every malcontent and anarchist in New Providence, and the following morning a vile manifesto entitled "The Squeaky Wheel Is Unjustly Punished" was plastered in various places all over the city. So it was that this dreadful organization was formed.

They have tried, and failed, numerous times to murder the Lady Sophia herself in cold blood, and frequently attempt to murder unarmed citizens and intimidate the working classes. Fortunately, the Squeaks are extremely few in number; so few, in fact, that no leader or organizational head has ever been determined. All experts agree that the Squeaks will soon be rounded up and incarcerated to face the swift justice of our empire, and need hardly bother new visitors.

Photograph 1 and 5 © Copyright Richard Humphrey and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons License
Photograph 2 by von hedwig License
Photograph 2a by Andrew Kuznetsov License
Photograph 4 by AnomalisticVillain License
Photograph 1 and 6 by Joe Ianno Photography