The Republic of Chester

Chester is the Jewel of the former Empire. Though not the largest of the Republics, it is the most influential and the most developed in terms of technology. It boasts several major cities, including the seat of the Republic, Brighton. All of these cities are connected via railway, though some minor airship traffic has developed in recent times. Brighton and Hove are the major port cities, with Brighton located on the far west of Chester and Hove at the far east. But being so densely populated also comes with certain drawbacks. Brighton itself has several slum neighborhoods, where the common folk toil in manual labor to survive. Whether that is done at factory jobs, in shipyards or the refineries, the wealthy routinely exploit the poor in their businesses. Many turn to crime to make ends meet, and some of the largest criminal syndicates were spawned from Brighton street gangs. Cities in Chester boast a large number of chemical refineries that are essential in mechanical and medicinal manufacturing, which means that they also have a higher incidence of pollution. The Agrinion River (which runs from Chester’s northern neighbor, through the City of Rochester, and down to Brighton along Chester’s western border) is often referred to by the common folk of both Rochester and Brighton as the Grand Latrine, because of the pollution it picks up along the way.