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:''“From Pride to Envy, every Infernite is a scumbag.”
:''“And what about above Pride?”''
:''“Ugh, don’t get me started.”''
::::Conversation between two banished angels in a Sloth café


Infernum is the outermost inner planet of the Sanctum system, once a place of exile and repentance now having formed its own libertine and anarchistic society. Infernum is stuck in a simmering rivalry with its sister planet but in the end also their ally against outside forces.


== Brief history of Infernum ==
Infernum, though remaining an independent polity, is intrinsically connected with Sanctorum as the recipient for all the outcasts and rebels against the Sanctum government, happily integrating and caging the exiles in. Rumour has it that Infernum never left the sphere of influence of the High Choirs of Sanctorum - they simply reached an agreement both sides could be happy with.


=Climate=
Infernum is, contrary to its name, quite the cold place. The world is located just barely at the outer edge of the Goldilocks Zone and possesses a thin atmosphere making it very cold on the surface. The mountain death zone of the planet comes into effect at a meager two kilometers, making virtually any climbing or even significant altitude changes from terrain require supplementary oxygen.


Infernum is known as a world where chaos and impropriety reign and is home to the various races of Demons. Before there were Demons though, there were the Angels and they lived in the clouded cities of Sanctum, however a subset of Angels did not agree with its repressive culture and the stifling of the ambitions they hold so dear, so they congregated and rebelled, this event is known as the Fall and the Angels who lost the conflict have henceforth been known as the Fallen. The Fallen have been banished to a harsh planet in the same system, leaving Sanctum behind to start a civilization of their own. In the effort of building a civilization for themselves the Fallen have rallied behind seven leaders who embodied their ambitions best and set out to found seven cities based on their ideals. This effort transformed them, sometimes unrecognizably so, into what we now know as demons.
Mean temperatures of the planetary surface hover around 8° Celsius with moderate and subtropical climates centered around the equator. Due to its highly circular orbit, seasons are much less pronounced, and a lack of natural satellites such as moons leaves the world with no tidal forces influencing its waters. As a result, the equator of Infernum is a fetid mess of swamps, bogs, and mangrove forests which are virtually unsettled.


== Races of Demons ==
The vast majority of inhabited climates are generally located in the tundras, taigas, and midland hills of Infernum.


'''Royals'''
=Society=
The people of Infernum are officially referred to as “Infernites” or colloquially “Demons”. Ever since their culture's inception Infernites have preferred to express themselves through adopting the visuals and anatomy of depictions of infernal creatures in liturgical, cultural, and pop-cultural sources from across the stars. Having existed as a society for 200 odd years, much of the Infernum population are actually descendants of the original exiles who have inherited their physiological and genetic modifications from their highly customized ancestries. Prejudices and stereotypes are common among the people on Infernum based on what infernal creature(s) an individual exemplifies, subtly pushing individuals towards meeting the expectations befitting their physiology.


The Royals are what you’d think of as a demon in the first place. Their skin is often red or black, they are large and bulky, their hands and feet often bear talons and depending on the individual they may have a tail like a goat or a spaded tail, perhaps even a set of wings. They have taken this monstrous form to delineate themselves clearly from the angels they have decended from. They are stronger and smarter that most and often take positions of dominance and gravitas. Royals dominate Pride and can be found in positions of power in any city beside Envy and Sloth.  
The society of Infernum is free, libertine and lawless. There is no centralized government and law - anarchy reigns in its completion. However, this does not mean there are no guiding rules or inhibitive forces bearing down on individual Demons. As a means of establishing some trust and civilization demons often engage in contracts with one another which are binding upon their honour.


'''Succubi/Incubi'''
Of course, nothing stops them from breaking a contract, but this will always lead to repercussions: an oathbreaker is untrustworthy and will quickly lose assets, allies, and cohorts as their reputation plummets. This makes demons people of their word by necessity - and contracts terribly convoluted and predatory, trying to get away with as much as possible. Mastery of technicalities and exact wording of contracts ensures the powerful stay on top and everyone else can feast on their scraps.
Those with power wield it through contract based organizations. These legally bound entities, resembling anything from a common corporation to an organized crime gang, often encroach into the average Infernite’s lives in ways that would almost seem counterintuitive for such a free society. But in order to join them, a Demon has to accept the terms and conditions. And to exit the agreement, to pay the price stipulated in the exit clause. Safer housing, better access to common goods, and even a place to better oneself through education or genetic modification are all reasons people sign into these groups. Some of these organizations are grouped together into larger organizations, meaning a “clean” corporation may be offloading their dirty business into a partnership with a violent gang.


The Succubi and their male counterparts, the Incubi are by far the fairest of the demon races, but their beauty and attraction belies a need for reciprocation, one that not many can meet. They are usually identified by their charming appearance, horns, spaded tails and leathery wings. They generally add great value to their beauty and as such take modifying their body to meet their current ideal very seriously. They come in a variety of colours and some attain features like hypnotic eyes and skin contact effects. Succubi and Incubi are prone to possessiveness and obsession about their sexual partners. They dominate Lust and are often sought as concubines and status symbols in Pride and Greed.
Overall, Infernum society is anarcho-capitalist in nature and is “ruled” by many different cartels, conglomerates, and their subsidiaries, engaging in conflicts that have a stark resemblance to turf wars of gangs - criminality and business are entwined lovers on the planet.


'''Satyr'''
=Inhabitants=
The people of Infernum live up to the moniker of “Demons” from their genetically modified appearances, down to their (necessary) love of contracts. Demons tend towards visual appearances that invoke some reference to human demonology. Wings, horns, tails, distortions of the body, and anything else that can be done with available genetic modifications. There are also Infernites who simply choose to remain human or human-looking, as well as people still adopting Sanctorum-styled looks and genemods. These people are usually outward-facing members of their respective circles, interacting with the Elysian Colonies or the Commonwealth on a more regular basis than other Infernites.
Despite the hellish living conditions, life goes on for most Infernites. Many raise families, the wealthier choosing to custom design their offspring before they’re even born. Those who are genetically modified before birth may end up with “offspring contracts” agreed to by their existence. The more expensive it was to have the child, the more likely it is for such a contract to be formed.


Satyr are goatlike creatures, generally from the waist down, though the males may display excessive chest hair as well. They have cloven hoofed feet, bent knees and short horns on their head. Their tails are not prehensile like those of the Succubi or Imps, but can still move in a broad range of directions. Satyr usually stand two to four feet in height, making them one of the smaller races of demons. They are usually shy, but the males have been known to enter stages of enormous sexual proclivity, known as satyriasis. Satyr are common to Sloth and Lust.  
For those wanting to get people on the cheap, there are vat grown people. Born without parents, and often as property or indentured servants, vat grown Demons may come from a popular template or a custom made one. Since the Elysian Colonies have few restrictions at all, all forms of vat born are permitted. Usually doing the jobs that nobody else would willingly do for as long as their lifespans let them. Or they escape, either out of the Mohole or offworld entirely.


'''Imps'''
Many Demons pay great sums of money to get an education or find at least one way to better themselves over the competition. The threat of ending up in Envy is ever present,  and that’s quite the incentive to stay on top.


Imps are the smallest of the demons, varying in size from one to three feet with rare exceptions growing taller. Imps are notable for their often conspicuous colors, horns, tiny wings on their back and sinewy tails ending in either a heart, spade, diamond or club like shape, their tail is often prehensile and they use it like a kind of extra hand. Despite their small stature, imps are very brave creatures and use their bravery to play pranks on people, ranging from innocent to life-wreckingly horrible. This feature is generally adored by other demons so long as they are not on the receiving end of it. Imps are especially common in Greed and Wrath.  
Associations and organizations are paramount to long term survival, many Demons signing common contracts to protect and support each other, but this practice is often predatory towards those who cannot afford to buy access into a more mutually beneficial network, often outside the Mohole. The most common form of this is finding employment with a corporation; living in their housing, buying from their stores, using their services, and scraping by on their paycheck.


'''Hybrids'''
The celebrity culture of Infernum is something unlike any other. The most influential demons commonly adopt the names of powerful demons of Sol demonology, using them like a stage name for all public appearances. Fanbases bordering on being cults follow these influential demons, hoping to receive some favor in return; and often getting nothing. However, these reigns are not forever, Demons can challenge each other over these adopted names, with the winner keeping the name and the loser facing a whole slew of consequences for it (death being a possible one, Envy being another). These contests for power are rare, but highly publicized, and keep the people entertained and complacent. This highly competitive (and often bloody) celebrity scene is one of the major cultural exports of Infernum into the rest of the Elysian Colonies.


Hybrids are so diverse they are lumped together into a classification of their own. They often adapt to their environment, taking on animalistic features and organs to suit their particular needs. They choose this form out of a deep hatred of the forms descended from Angels. The advent of gene modification technology from the spacefaring humans has made their changes all the more rapid and all the more drastic. They gather mostly in Envy, Greed and Gluttony, where they can best put their new forms to use. Their situation is akin to that of human hybrids, the only difference is that unlike the humans the demon hybrids have descended from the Angels.  
=Settlements=
===The Purgatory Towns===
Purgatory Towns are a tongue-in-cheek way to refer to townships, villages, and hamlets that are outside the influence of the wider Infernum society, making up a 30% minority of the population. These populations live in the habitable taigas and tundras of the planet, subsisting on primary resource extraction economies as well as limited agriculture and pisciculture. Most inhabitants are Demons who have had enough of the largest city of Infernum but don’t want to leave home, or freshly arrived Angels too terrified to live in the Mohole. There's not much else to be said about the Purgatory Towns aside from the fact that most of their residents get very annoyed when compared to their much more famous neighbors.  


'''Fallen'''
==The Mohole of Sin==
The Mohole of Sin is the primary settlement of Infernum, encompassing the majority 70% of the population in a 50km wide Mohole that nearly reaches the planet’s mantle. Descending downwards into a spiral, seven districts have been carved into the sides of the hole or built into the descent itself. Travel between the layers is easy as long as one can pay the ferry price - a toll which increases the lower you start and the higher you want to go.


The Fall has been relegated to ancient myth, but the Fallen still keep coming, every now and again Sanctum still banishes undesirables to Infernum, they retain their angelic frames, but often take on darker aspects in clothing and makeup to signify their change. Some go so far as to dye their wings intentionally, to others it just happens. Their adaptation into Infernum’s society is often a rough one as they did not entirely think their ambitions and the risks inherent therein through. Therefore the Fallen are very welcoming to the newly arrived of their kind, teaching them the ways of the world in whatever city they happen to be in.
===Sloth===
Lifespan
Sloth is the surface of the Mohole and the first meters into the descent, being mostly a transitory place for immigrants and emigrants to enter or leave the Mohole. There are very few attractions defining this upper entry layer and nothing truly special about this place, unless you consider the myriad airborne pollutants rising from the lower levels an attraction. Continuing to suffer from Greed’s ever-prevalent smog, most people try to stay inside and cater to tourists before they delve deeper, leading to a sleepy and cozy atmosphere that helps blunt the culture shock and soothe terrified newcomers.
Having descended from Angels, most Demons retain their long lifespan, with some notable exceptions. The average demon can live up to 300 years, but the chance of them making it that long is very slim. The exceptions to this are the Imps, who live up to 60 years, but proliferate faster than the other demons and the Royals, who live up to 380.
The reason for the lifespan of imps being so short is due to stress and abuse mostly and few of them ever escape it. Longer lifespans may be projected if taken out of Infernum.
The demon lords all seem to have ascended into a form of immortality, though none but them really knows why or how.


== Infernum society ==
===Greed===
Greed is of a dualistic nature. On one side of the coin there are the glittering spires and highrise offices that jut into the sun inside the Mohole, and on the other there is the smog and mines of factories and smelteries. Greed is the center of the Mohole’s industry with kilometer-long tunnels growing out of its districts like cancerous veins, where debt- and raid-slaves undertake the grueling task of extracting and refining mineral wealth which often is directly shipped to the factories - bellowing smog and pollution uncaringly to the surface along all stages of this process. Beyond that are the countless law firms, banks, and the glitzy casinos all carefully built away from the misery of the manufacturing boroughs, where tourists and natives alike rub shoulders and gamble their wealth away to the magnates ruling this pit.


'''Social status'''
===Pride===
A forbidden district for most, Pride is the pinnacle of the Mohole’s society: situated in the middle of the hole, its temperature is most pleasant, and being below Greed makes the air untainted by their pollution resulting in this being the absolute nicest place to live on the planet. Indeed, those who live in Pride can only sing its praises! From artificial garden domes to exhilarating galas and museums, it is practically a gated community for the rich, the influential, and the very, very lucky.


Infernum is a rough place, let’s say that up front and your position in society is determined largely on your own merits. Each city has its own structure of values and those who play to them rise in esteem, those who do not are subjugated or eliminated altogether. Infernum is highly individualistic in attitude and group denomination only matters if you represent your group on business.  
But make no mistake: this is still Infernum. Here, competition relies on reputation and everyone is an enemy to be outdone. Character assassinations happen on the daily, and those who break the facade of peace are often banished into the lowest levels of the Mohole. One can soar high in Pride’s own little hierarchy only to be outcast by a more ruthless and charismatic opponent.


'''Education'''
===Gluttony===
Where the air grows thick with the atmospheric pressure, where the temperature becomes just on the edge of uncomfortable, there lies the district of Gluttony. Here is where most if not all food for the Mohole is grown, raised in factory farms, expansive hydroponics arrays, and robust clone laboratories. Contrary to what an outsider might expect, the air in Gluttony's productive zones is often thick with dense and toxic gasses like carbon dioxide and pesticides, necessitating that residents and visitors of this level own and be intimately familiar with the use of protective gas masks. Most of this toxicity is either reclaimed and recycled or, more commonly, allowed to descend into the Mohole and onto the lower dregs.


Infernum barely has any formal education and what little it has is usually made use of by visitors. Demons strive to be well connected and barter skill for skill. A succubus will pay in sex for instruction, a satyr in labor or an imp in favors. Among demons the skills that are valued vary based on the city the demons find themselves in. Lust values sexual fetishes and ways to gain social influence, Wrath relies on martial prowess and tactical knowledge, Pride values rhetoric and power above all, whereas Greed is economically minded and Envy artistically. It is a society where knowledge is quite literally power.
In the areas zoned for commercial and residential activity the circumstances are moderately more bearable. The restaurant culture in Gluttony is the strongest of all in Infernum: delicacies and curious exotics are served and tried out on the daily, making it a Mecca for foodies and adventurous eaters within the Elysian Colonies, as long as one doesn’t mind not exactly knowing what kind of untested substances or livestock they consume.


'''Healthcare'''
===Lust===
Lust is, in one word, hot, often swelteringly so. Here the temperatures reach subtropical levels deep within the earth of Infernum. This district (the last official one) is infamous for its nightlife and criminal activities. Gangs of Wrath do their business here in sapient trafficking, while Gluttony and Greed magnates concoct and sell drugs of a wide variety to distribute to the people. Of course with such a name, Lust is also the unquestioned center for prostitution and fetish clubs of all varieties. Aside Wrath, it is one of the most dangerous (and probably most exciting) places for a tourist to visit. 


Healthcare is a newer concept to Infernum and one demons look at a bit dodgily. Lust has fully embraced it in an effort to quell STDs and supply the demand for plastic surgeries. The position of doctor is unpopular among demons since they lack the empathy required to help others if there is no active self-interest, so the few doctors there are are usually outsiders.  
===Wrath===
As for the matter of payment, the scarce few doctors that are there usually adhere to the Hippocratic oath, so they will help anyone, even if they cannot pay. The demons however are then obligated to repay their debt in labor and any skills they have available.
Wrath is the second-lowest level of the Mohole and not actually a district, per se, but rather the life support and waste management sub-levels of all the other districts, mostly manned by slaves and runoffs from Envy. As a means of bringing some order and to ensure continued operation, patrons of the upper levels sponsor gangs and thugs to keep Wrath in line. Of course this often means rival sponsors use their gangs to swipe at each other, leading to a population huddled and eager to work while these factions engage in territorial warfare whenever it pleases their masters to distinguish themselves.


'''Crime'''
Nobody truly wants to live in Wrath; it is a constant struggle and fight for survival amidst a barely-checked population of people who are violent and aggressive by necessity. Those who can show ruthlessness, tactical acumen, and a sense of professionalism are occasionally swept up and inducted into Greed or Pride PMCs or used as personal bodyguards - the dream of every ganger down below.
Crime is a foreign concept to Infernum’s inhabitants, they are used to a might makes right society where if you pissed off the one tyrant that runs your city, you’re basically done for to begin with. So a codified law was a concept many took to learning about with gusto and set out into Space to become lawyers, judges and prosecutors.
Most of Infernum’s peacekeeping is done through private contractors and security teams. Outside of Wrath riots and violent uprisings are exceedingly uncommon as demons prefer to settle scores one on one.  


'''Infernum and the Galaxy beyond'''
===Envy===
Those who live in Envy are perhaps the unluckiest people on Infernum. Here is where the Oathbreakers, the washouts, the losers, and the pathetic live. In the expelled sludge and detritus of all the districts above, Envy is the scrapyard of the Mohole where Greed’s ground pollution and the trash of the others are dumped into. Here, scavenger clans fight for scraps with makeshift weaponry and try to accumulate enough money to secure passage to Wrath and maybe even beyond. This escape from the depths is uncommon but possible, especially when they are exiled demons from the higher levels and not “native dregs”.


With the advent of space travel and Infernum’s official discovery, much has changed about the dark planet. It has been given an attempt at terraforming and several plants and animals have been introduced, but many don’t do well and those that did have adapted to Infernum’s more nocturnal lifestyle.
{{Lore table}}
Infernum raised great protest against the banning of slavery and still practices ownership of others as personal property. They are however not allowed to enforce their ownership offworld and are not allowed to enslave any offworlder, though there are ways to be imagined around that.
[[Category: Lore]]
Overall Infernum has benefitted greatly from the influx in technology and the improvements to the planet made and its inhabitants gladly travel into Space to ply their trades and garner influence that can’t be gotten on the planet itself. They do occasionally run into other races preconceived notions about their kind and mythologies surrounding them that come across as racist, if usually accurate in spirit.
 
== The Seven Cities of Sin ==
Infernum has seven cities based around the proclivities of its inhabitants. It is upon these vices that the concept of the Seven Deadly Sins is based, this concept later materialized all over the known galaxy, but on Infernum each of them takes physical form. These cities function more or less independently of eachother and have a huge, sustainable population, they also have a high turnover rate, so if you find yourself there, always look out for number one.
 
==='''Pride'''===
Pride can be seen from far in the distance and has some of the most enormous towering structures. It is a tiered city, surrounded by walls crowned with ornaments and statues of stone and precious metal. When gazing upon it for the first time the city may appear like a mountain, which is correct because it was built atop a mountain, leaving the surrounding area barren and stripped for resources in its construction. 
The first tier is home to the outsiders, employees and craftsmen that keep the city going and is the largest part of the city, surrounding it on the lower slopes. It's also home to Infernum's largest spaceport, as the Royals that inhabit the city compete fiercely over who can get the sweetest deals on the latest tech. It also houses some of the only institutions of education in all of Infernum, the most prestigious ones are the Cocytus Institute of Higher Learning, also referred to as Treachery High, the Malebranche School of Discipline and Governance, which teaches tactics and group psychology to breed effective leaders and ruthless disciplinarians, and the Satanic Academy of Esoteric Arts, which is so exclusive that they have managed to keep the esoteric part of their name a fact. The reason these institutions are located in the outer ring is to keep their attendants motivated to get through their curriculum as quickly and excellently as possible so they may rise again.
The second tier houses Infernum natives exclusively and social status is marked by your proximity to the third tier, the higher up you climb, the closer you are to power and the more influence and prestige you can add to your already enormous gravitas, the upper reaches of this tier is almost entirely inhabited by the Royals and Greater, who house the best staff their money can buy and their pride will allow, the finest concubines from Lust, the best accountants from Greed, stylists from Envy and security from Wrath can be found here, in their employ. Some clever Greater sought to rise to status by elevating their dwellings with towers and raised walkways, making the streets below very dark and  the atmosphere feels oppressive. Things considered demonic in nature are considered of extreme value and Redspace artefacts are in high demand.
At the top of the mountainous city, radiant for miles is the Hall of Pandemonium, here Lucifer holds court as leader as the Fallen, bearer of the Light, Adversary of Sanctum and profound Lord of all demons. Pandemonium is coated in thick layers of solid gold and cleaned daily, no tower rises as high as to impune its glory. Every year the highest of demon society congregates there for Lucifer’s Remembrance Day event, which celebrates the demons’ break away from the angels of Sanctum.
 
==='''Wrath'''===
Wrath is a bustling city with an even more bustling turnover rate. The city is in a constant state of gang war and while life there is harsh, there is much to be won. The gangs primarily fight over territory and spread their influence to catch the attention of the PMCs that use them as a recruitment opportunity waiting to happen. These PMCs are the real powerbase in Wrath and while private military corporations, together they form Infernum’s standing army. They invest heavily in new gear, weapons and upgrades for the technology they have, which is why the city looks very utilitarian, aside from the often elaborate gangsigns that delineate the constant struggle.
The city is also known for its inhabitants proclivity towards keeping others as pets. The stronger or more charismatic demons usually keep an imp or a satyr around as a pet.
Wrath has no particular makeup and almost any race of demon can be found there. Some succubi are attracted to the bad boy attitudes the gangs breed, imps and satyr see the violence as a way up in the world and some Greater find a perverse prestige in sending minions to their deaths. Even a few of the Fallen have found their way there, though their wings tar black in the constant smoke of the city, a stain that may never wash out again.
The PMCs fortresses aside the city looks like it’s gone through a lot. There is scarcely a wall to find that does not have some kind of bullet hole in it or laser burn blackening its surface. Due to the constant violence civil services are impossible and as such garbage is often just burnt on the street, giving the city a dangerous character and a shady, smoke filled atmosphere. Wherever a gang consolidates their territory for long enough, additional services set up shop, generally owned and operated by the gang holding the territory, these are most often liquor stores, corner shops and bars, which double as meeting points.
At the center of Wrath there is one building so unbelievably impractical it could only really be found in Wrath. A giant cannon, covered in spikes, bayonets and other useless pointy protrusions aims high up into Space. No demon can recall if it has ever been fired in living memory, but it is one of the most intimidating sights you can find on Wrath. As if its sheer nature was not enough, it is considered a particular honor to your enemies to hang them from the cannon’s spikes. It is rumored that the cannon was built by Satan himself and that he lingers in the bowels of the construction, awaiting the day he can fire it as his ultimate revenge.
 
==='''Lust'''===
Lust is almost entirely a red light district and is visibly built to the whims of the omnipresent succubi. It is also the most visited and arguably safest city on Infernum, which makes it popular with tourists.
Whereas to the common man there may be little difference, the demons of lust have a social structure based on desirability, the better, kinkier, more niche fetishes you can indulge can raise a demon to great prominence in Lust and the more exclusive their services, often the more desired. Cheap slatterns fill windows and street corners looking for quick cash and a quicker fuck, while incubi and satyr try to lure you into lavish brothels, dungeons and hotel arrangements with guaranteed happy endings, the best companions can only be gotten by those with connections, refined taste and a ransom only Pride or Greed’s elite could muster. The Second Circle is the city’s most luxurious palace and houses Asmodeus’ private harem of girls from all over the known universe.
Lust runs almost entirely on prostitution, with a cashflow that flows out for the other city’s exports as quickly as they bring it back in. Luxurious foods from Gluttony are one of the primary imports, accountants from Greed and security personnel from Wrath are also in high demand, as are clothes and accessories from Envy. The city is also home to a variety of chemists, abortion clinics and shady doctors who supply the city with contraceptives, mind expanding substances, STD treatments, spikes you really don’t want in your drink and all manner of ways to handle unwanted pregnancies.
Lust is, next to Greed, by far the most visited place on Infernum, due to its lavish charms and sexual pleasures, giving rise to a seedy underbelly of paparazzi, private detectives and other investigators, dealing with disappearances, rape and even people trafficking on a regular basis.
 
==='''Greed'''===
Money is power, but you’d be hard pressed to find a place where this is more so than Greed. Greed is on the one hand a garish place, littered with casinos, gambling dens and old fashioned speakeasies and on the other hand it’s full of soul crushing skyscrapers, where overpaid numbercrunchers make sure that the checkbooks are in order for their paymasters.
People from Greed flaunt their wealth with gusto, those who can display it, generally do with gold, gems, fancy clothes and expensive company, but will guard themselves against those who would steal from them with a paranoia that nearly rivals their obsession for money. When it comes to fashion in Greed, there is little room for distinguished style, tacky is the point. It’s considered particularly fashionable to have your own imp and imps feature prominently as mascot characters, models and casino employees.
Supposedly Greed is led by a demon known as the Mammon, wealthy beyond imagination and secluded in his casino-palace, keeping check on his balance with one eye and the players with the other. Mammon is, along with Beelzebub and Lucifer, one of the more public of the demon lords. He takes business pitches every week and if not overlooking his personal casino, he can be found in a boardroom discussing his myriad businesses. Common knowledge dictates that if the numbers are on the rise though, Mammon is happy and your job is safe... until the next time he checks.
 
==='''Gluttony'''===
Widely renowned to be a city of exquisite food and exotic drinks, but there is more to Gluttony than just that, in fact while most cities on Infernum have their poor and destitute out on the streets, Gluttony’s streets are quite clean and have very little waste on them.
Gluttony’s primary export if obviously food and its primary import is the ingredients for said food, the nature of which varies from the mundane, herbs, spices, livestock of various kinds, to the exotic, rare animals, illicit chemicals, to the downright immoral, harvested organs, dangerous aliens and even whole people are smuggled in. All of the aforementioned disappear into the various storerooms and kitchens that line Gluttony’s streets. Often you’ll also find that Gluttony’s restaurants have several doors and whether or not you survive your stay can be dependent on which door you enter through.
Gluttony’s population though is morbidly obese in extremely high percentages. They prefer comfortable clothing to anything posh or elegant, because they are going to spill food and drink on it anyway. They are however a generally cheerful bunch, since they live for the next culinary thrill and know their life could be over if they wind up on the street after too drunk a night, but do not seem to be too bothered by this. 
There is a saying that everything is edible, all the time and to excess in Gluttony, discounting the pavements, most buildings and furniture though this largely holds true as day in and day out the restaurants are open and at the regular festivals entirely edible monuments are set up to the chef’s prestige and culinary glory. Almost invariably these monuments last no more than a few hours after presentation. The most lavish is made in honor of Beelzebub and is often eaten entirely by the demon lord himself, Beelzebub is the most public of the rulers of the seven cities and can usually be seen sampling the various restaurants of his great city.
 
==='''Envy'''===
Envy isn’t so much a city as an artificial island that grew together through attrition. It floats wherever it goes on the ocean and has the greatest population of aquatic hybrids as a result. Envy is most known for its community of artists, tailors, sommeliers, collectors and the thieves that steal from them. Having collected all that many possessions, but having no landline to Wrath makes hiring professional security hard, so Envy’s inhabitants get very idiosyncratic, making it easy to associate items with the person and even if they are stolen, they can usually still be identified as their makers, lest the item itself would be damaged.
Whenever Envy makes land somewhere the merchants travel out in droves to the nearest city to sell their wares and steal whatever tickles their particular fancy, making Envy’s irregular landfalls seem a mixed blessing to the rest of Infernum’s inhabitants.
Envy is supposedly run by a demon lord by the name of Leviathan, but for a creature that is supposedly enormous, nobody has seen it for a long time. Though there is an urban legend that states that Leviathan was so obsessed with possessing everything that he became the city itself and guides it along the waves by sheer force of will, its inhabitants slaves to its fancies to bring in ever more and more exotic possessions.
 
==='''Sloth'''===
Sloth is located in the most remote, frozen over ice floes on the sea of Cocytus and it was founded by Belphegor… whose foundation story is well known since there isn’t much going on in Sloth at all. Sloth is best appreciated as a retreat for the people who do not want to be found, the people get by on a minimum effort. Belphegor built a hut to sleep in and has been doing so ever since. He is one of the few things that could be called touristic about Sloth. Him and ice fishing. The inhabitants of Sloth are a primal people, most of them do what they can to get by and go back to sleep. They haven’t the inclination to pay attention to eachother nor do they have the energy to spare.
Sloth consists mainly of large igloos that house a family each. The demons there, for all their laziness, are a hardy people though, stout and furry to adapt to the climate.
Notably, Sloth gets active in April as the inhabitants suddenly get the urge to find a new mate to spend their long nights with. Being so far north Sloth barely ever gets any sun and its inhabitants are known to be more comfortable in the dark

Latest revision as of 13:41, 15 September 2023

“From Pride to Envy, every Infernite is a scumbag.”
“And what about above Pride?”
“Ugh, don’t get me started.”
Conversation between two banished angels in a Sloth café

Infernum is the outermost inner planet of the Sanctum system, once a place of exile and repentance now having formed its own libertine and anarchistic society. Infernum is stuck in a simmering rivalry with its sister planet but in the end also their ally against outside forces.

Infernum, though remaining an independent polity, is intrinsically connected with Sanctorum as the recipient for all the outcasts and rebels against the Sanctum government, happily integrating and caging the exiles in. Rumour has it that Infernum never left the sphere of influence of the High Choirs of Sanctorum - they simply reached an agreement both sides could be happy with.

Climate

Infernum is, contrary to its name, quite the cold place. The world is located just barely at the outer edge of the Goldilocks Zone and possesses a thin atmosphere making it very cold on the surface. The mountain death zone of the planet comes into effect at a meager two kilometers, making virtually any climbing or even significant altitude changes from terrain require supplementary oxygen.

Mean temperatures of the planetary surface hover around 8° Celsius with moderate and subtropical climates centered around the equator. Due to its highly circular orbit, seasons are much less pronounced, and a lack of natural satellites such as moons leaves the world with no tidal forces influencing its waters. As a result, the equator of Infernum is a fetid mess of swamps, bogs, and mangrove forests which are virtually unsettled.

The vast majority of inhabited climates are generally located in the tundras, taigas, and midland hills of Infernum.

Society

The people of Infernum are officially referred to as “Infernites” or colloquially “Demons”. Ever since their culture's inception Infernites have preferred to express themselves through adopting the visuals and anatomy of depictions of infernal creatures in liturgical, cultural, and pop-cultural sources from across the stars. Having existed as a society for 200 odd years, much of the Infernum population are actually descendants of the original exiles who have inherited their physiological and genetic modifications from their highly customized ancestries. Prejudices and stereotypes are common among the people on Infernum based on what infernal creature(s) an individual exemplifies, subtly pushing individuals towards meeting the expectations befitting their physiology.

The society of Infernum is free, libertine and lawless. There is no centralized government and law - anarchy reigns in its completion. However, this does not mean there are no guiding rules or inhibitive forces bearing down on individual Demons. As a means of establishing some trust and civilization demons often engage in contracts with one another which are binding upon their honour.

Of course, nothing stops them from breaking a contract, but this will always lead to repercussions: an oathbreaker is untrustworthy and will quickly lose assets, allies, and cohorts as their reputation plummets. This makes demons people of their word by necessity - and contracts terribly convoluted and predatory, trying to get away with as much as possible. Mastery of technicalities and exact wording of contracts ensures the powerful stay on top and everyone else can feast on their scraps. Those with power wield it through contract based organizations. These legally bound entities, resembling anything from a common corporation to an organized crime gang, often encroach into the average Infernite’s lives in ways that would almost seem counterintuitive for such a free society. But in order to join them, a Demon has to accept the terms and conditions. And to exit the agreement, to pay the price stipulated in the exit clause. Safer housing, better access to common goods, and even a place to better oneself through education or genetic modification are all reasons people sign into these groups. Some of these organizations are grouped together into larger organizations, meaning a “clean” corporation may be offloading their dirty business into a partnership with a violent gang.

Overall, Infernum society is anarcho-capitalist in nature and is “ruled” by many different cartels, conglomerates, and their subsidiaries, engaging in conflicts that have a stark resemblance to turf wars of gangs - criminality and business are entwined lovers on the planet.

Inhabitants

The people of Infernum live up to the moniker of “Demons” from their genetically modified appearances, down to their (necessary) love of contracts. Demons tend towards visual appearances that invoke some reference to human demonology. Wings, horns, tails, distortions of the body, and anything else that can be done with available genetic modifications. There are also Infernites who simply choose to remain human or human-looking, as well as people still adopting Sanctorum-styled looks and genemods. These people are usually outward-facing members of their respective circles, interacting with the Elysian Colonies or the Commonwealth on a more regular basis than other Infernites. Despite the hellish living conditions, life goes on for most Infernites. Many raise families, the wealthier choosing to custom design their offspring before they’re even born. Those who are genetically modified before birth may end up with “offspring contracts” agreed to by their existence. The more expensive it was to have the child, the more likely it is for such a contract to be formed.

For those wanting to get people on the cheap, there are vat grown people. Born without parents, and often as property or indentured servants, vat grown Demons may come from a popular template or a custom made one. Since the Elysian Colonies have few restrictions at all, all forms of vat born are permitted. Usually doing the jobs that nobody else would willingly do for as long as their lifespans let them. Or they escape, either out of the Mohole or offworld entirely.

Many Demons pay great sums of money to get an education or find at least one way to better themselves over the competition. The threat of ending up in Envy is ever present, and that’s quite the incentive to stay on top.

Associations and organizations are paramount to long term survival, many Demons signing common contracts to protect and support each other, but this practice is often predatory towards those who cannot afford to buy access into a more mutually beneficial network, often outside the Mohole. The most common form of this is finding employment with a corporation; living in their housing, buying from their stores, using their services, and scraping by on their paycheck.

The celebrity culture of Infernum is something unlike any other. The most influential demons commonly adopt the names of powerful demons of Sol demonology, using them like a stage name for all public appearances. Fanbases bordering on being cults follow these influential demons, hoping to receive some favor in return; and often getting nothing. However, these reigns are not forever, Demons can challenge each other over these adopted names, with the winner keeping the name and the loser facing a whole slew of consequences for it (death being a possible one, Envy being another). These contests for power are rare, but highly publicized, and keep the people entertained and complacent. This highly competitive (and often bloody) celebrity scene is one of the major cultural exports of Infernum into the rest of the Elysian Colonies.

Settlements

The Purgatory Towns

Purgatory Towns are a tongue-in-cheek way to refer to townships, villages, and hamlets that are outside the influence of the wider Infernum society, making up a 30% minority of the population. These populations live in the habitable taigas and tundras of the planet, subsisting on primary resource extraction economies as well as limited agriculture and pisciculture. Most inhabitants are Demons who have had enough of the largest city of Infernum but don’t want to leave home, or freshly arrived Angels too terrified to live in the Mohole. There's not much else to be said about the Purgatory Towns aside from the fact that most of their residents get very annoyed when compared to their much more famous neighbors.

The Mohole of Sin

The Mohole of Sin is the primary settlement of Infernum, encompassing the majority 70% of the population in a 50km wide Mohole that nearly reaches the planet’s mantle. Descending downwards into a spiral, seven districts have been carved into the sides of the hole or built into the descent itself. Travel between the layers is easy as long as one can pay the ferry price - a toll which increases the lower you start and the higher you want to go.

Sloth

Sloth is the surface of the Mohole and the first meters into the descent, being mostly a transitory place for immigrants and emigrants to enter or leave the Mohole. There are very few attractions defining this upper entry layer and nothing truly special about this place, unless you consider the myriad airborne pollutants rising from the lower levels an attraction. Continuing to suffer from Greed’s ever-prevalent smog, most people try to stay inside and cater to tourists before they delve deeper, leading to a sleepy and cozy atmosphere that helps blunt the culture shock and soothe terrified newcomers.

Greed

Greed is of a dualistic nature. On one side of the coin there are the glittering spires and highrise offices that jut into the sun inside the Mohole, and on the other there is the smog and mines of factories and smelteries. Greed is the center of the Mohole’s industry with kilometer-long tunnels growing out of its districts like cancerous veins, where debt- and raid-slaves undertake the grueling task of extracting and refining mineral wealth which often is directly shipped to the factories - bellowing smog and pollution uncaringly to the surface along all stages of this process. Beyond that are the countless law firms, banks, and the glitzy casinos all carefully built away from the misery of the manufacturing boroughs, where tourists and natives alike rub shoulders and gamble their wealth away to the magnates ruling this pit.

Pride

A forbidden district for most, Pride is the pinnacle of the Mohole’s society: situated in the middle of the hole, its temperature is most pleasant, and being below Greed makes the air untainted by their pollution resulting in this being the absolute nicest place to live on the planet. Indeed, those who live in Pride can only sing its praises! From artificial garden domes to exhilarating galas and museums, it is practically a gated community for the rich, the influential, and the very, very lucky.

But make no mistake: this is still Infernum. Here, competition relies on reputation and everyone is an enemy to be outdone. Character assassinations happen on the daily, and those who break the facade of peace are often banished into the lowest levels of the Mohole. One can soar high in Pride’s own little hierarchy only to be outcast by a more ruthless and charismatic opponent.

Gluttony

Where the air grows thick with the atmospheric pressure, where the temperature becomes just on the edge of uncomfortable, there lies the district of Gluttony. Here is where most if not all food for the Mohole is grown, raised in factory farms, expansive hydroponics arrays, and robust clone laboratories. Contrary to what an outsider might expect, the air in Gluttony's productive zones is often thick with dense and toxic gasses like carbon dioxide and pesticides, necessitating that residents and visitors of this level own and be intimately familiar with the use of protective gas masks. Most of this toxicity is either reclaimed and recycled or, more commonly, allowed to descend into the Mohole and onto the lower dregs.

In the areas zoned for commercial and residential activity the circumstances are moderately more bearable. The restaurant culture in Gluttony is the strongest of all in Infernum: delicacies and curious exotics are served and tried out on the daily, making it a Mecca for foodies and adventurous eaters within the Elysian Colonies, as long as one doesn’t mind not exactly knowing what kind of untested substances or livestock they consume.

Lust

Lust is, in one word, hot, often swelteringly so. Here the temperatures reach subtropical levels deep within the earth of Infernum. This district (the last official one) is infamous for its nightlife and criminal activities. Gangs of Wrath do their business here in sapient trafficking, while Gluttony and Greed magnates concoct and sell drugs of a wide variety to distribute to the people. Of course with such a name, Lust is also the unquestioned center for prostitution and fetish clubs of all varieties. Aside Wrath, it is one of the most dangerous (and probably most exciting) places for a tourist to visit.

Wrath

Wrath is the second-lowest level of the Mohole and not actually a district, per se, but rather the life support and waste management sub-levels of all the other districts, mostly manned by slaves and runoffs from Envy. As a means of bringing some order and to ensure continued operation, patrons of the upper levels sponsor gangs and thugs to keep Wrath in line. Of course this often means rival sponsors use their gangs to swipe at each other, leading to a population huddled and eager to work while these factions engage in territorial warfare whenever it pleases their masters to distinguish themselves.

Nobody truly wants to live in Wrath; it is a constant struggle and fight for survival amidst a barely-checked population of people who are violent and aggressive by necessity. Those who can show ruthlessness, tactical acumen, and a sense of professionalism are occasionally swept up and inducted into Greed or Pride PMCs or used as personal bodyguards - the dream of every ganger down below.

Envy

Those who live in Envy are perhaps the unluckiest people on Infernum. Here is where the Oathbreakers, the washouts, the losers, and the pathetic live. In the expelled sludge and detritus of all the districts above, Envy is the scrapyard of the Mohole where Greed’s ground pollution and the trash of the others are dumped into. Here, scavenger clans fight for scraps with makeshift weaponry and try to accumulate enough money to secure passage to Wrath and maybe even beyond. This escape from the depths is uncommon but possible, especially when they are exiled demons from the higher levels and not “native dregs”.

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