It was the year 4770, five years had passed since the walls had been completed. The streets still echoed with celebrations of that achievement, but the reality was that the republics were at a turning point. By 4768, a constitution had been drafted that granted a single person control over all the nations. The Grand Directory was in total chaos, as there were factions strongly opposed to one person ruling over the Seven Republics, particularly the Republic of Bélua and the Republic of Argentum, as these nations still had their own constitutions.
However, on April 10th, 4770, the Grand Directory was dissolved, and the Grand Congress of the Republics was created. Through a pact in which, curiously, neither Argentum nor Bélua were allowed to participate, half of the members of the Directory were given seats in the Congress. This helped the Radical Intransigent Union (RIU) secure a significant portion of the body of senators and deputies, although not enough to elect a president.
After several months of heated debates, the idea of one person ruling over the Seven Nations seemed to be slowly fading away. More than nine potential candidates had been rejected; at one point, it seemed that one had a chance of becoming president, but his candidacy never even reached the deputies. It was then that a young person, a deputy, who had just turned twenty, suddenly raised his hand and declared his candidacy.
"I want to give it a try," was all he said. It seemed as though they would laugh at him, but they didn’t; there was silence and murmurs in the chamber. To the surprise of many, the deputies unanimously approved his candidacy, and it passed to the Senate. There, over several days, thanks to the shrewd audacity of a senator who, through deals with the opposition bloc, mainly the Union of the Free (UF) and Wall Justice (JW) parties, secured the necessary votes for this young deputy to be elected president. Naturally, this senator ensured he benefited from the arrangement by becoming his vice president.
The ticket was formed with Joaquín Gabriel Fernández Fausto as president and Erick Victorino Sullivan as vice president. On December 12th, 4770, the first president of the Seven Republics took office, with an eight-year term and no possibility of re-election.
It was a cloudy morning when Gabriel met with the man who would be his vice president. It was their first time meeting in person. According to a letter written by Gabriel's driver to his wife, the young man was the first to extend his hand to Victorino. The driver recalls that the fifty-year-old senator gave him a handshake with a stern and grumpy expression.
"You're quite young for this position," Victorino remarked. Fausto laughed at the comment and replied, "But not immature."
The driver also recounts that Gabriel hurried to open the Congress door and gestured for Victorino to enter first. "Respectable gentlemen first." The driver remembers that Victorino smiled and accepted the invitation.
Gabriel entered the Hall of the Great Republic, where he would be presented with his presidential sash, in blue and red, and his ceremonial staff, made of wood and silver. Meanwhile, the vice president would wear a similar sash and bear the Vice’s Collar, a gold necklace with the emblem of the Seven Republics, a seven-pointed star. All these symbols of power were handed over by the last Director of the Directory, Hugo Baltazar.
After the ceremony concluded, Fausto stepped up to the podium to give a speech. Interestingly, he didn’t have any notes, leading to speculation that he either memorized or improvised it.
“Today, December 12th, 4770, I stand before you, honorable representatives of the Congressional body, to express my gratitude for the opportunity you have so kindly given me to play a crucial role in the history of this beautiful nation, or rather, these seven nations. I swear before you that I will perform this esteemed role with prudence and responsibility over the coming years. I hope we can work together with prudence, peace, and harmony.”
No one applauded that day; no one endorsed or booed his speech; they just listened. He knew it wouldn't be easy to undertake such a task. He could only smile and exude confidence.
“They’re a tough crowd,” Fausto said to Victorino.
“This crowd will be the ones who ensure you at least make it to the fourth year. So, if you are indeed prudent or clever, they’ll be the ones to decide.”
This conversation is known thanks to Hugo Baltazar, who recounted it in his book "The First Days," where he narrates his early days in Directory politics.
When the presidential ceremony ended, Fausto left the Congress, where the coachman waited to take him to the presidential palace, the Red House. However, the only one who got in was Victorino. Gabriel politely declined the offer. According to Victorino, Fausto said, "I want to walk, so I can listen."
Victorino thought this was foolish and nonsensical, so he assigned a small escort of four men to protect him and went on his way. As expected, being only fifteen blocks from Congress, the vice president was the first to arrive. When the butler of the Red House saw the presidential carriage with only one occupant, he was puzzled. He asked, bewildered, about the president’s whereabouts, to which Victorino replied, “He’s fooling around.” They waited for almost thirty minutes until they saw Gabriel arrive, smiling and greeting the few people who were waiting or watching his inauguration.
President Gabriel arrived at the presidential palace to give a second, shorter speech and began to swear in the staff who would assist him over the next eight years. His administration was now beginning.
On the other hand, Victorino had secured a four-year consensus for Congress to approve any law the president needed, of course, through political favors. This period became known as the government's "honeymoon." Despite the difficulties and the vast territory he had to govern, not to mention that even though the walls had been completed, the citizens felt distressed and fearful of being "trapped" within the walls. This agoraphobia and the uncertain path ahead were palpable on the streets. A society gripped by fear and uncertainty—that was the people Fausto had to govern.
In the early days, Fausto began to promote the security that the walls offered, reminding his people that the fear was outside, not inside. He started fostering transparent communication with his citizens, giving a weekly conference in the plazas of all Seven Republics.
“I understand your fear, but you must realize that these walls protect us from the dangers outside. Don’t think about what lies beyond, but about where you stand.”
At first, the people didn’t trust his words, but as time passed and they saw him speak regularly, they began to pay attention.
“I am young, but not immature. I know that strength and determination don’t always come with age, but with the will to act. I’m not wise, just a learner; not noble, I’m the son of a laborer. But I am a president who wants to help his people.”
During the first months of his administration, Gabriel began to put his words into action, meeting with the seven magistrates to seek political support. During this time, Fausto started showing serious concern that it was not the people who had elected him, but Congress, which led him to promote citizen participation, showing a genuine interest in having the people choose their representatives. Initially, as president, he was ignored, but as he began to speak, he gathered five to ten people, then dozens, and eventually hundreds until, during a storm, thousands of people showed up to hear what the young man had to say. They were surprised to see him give a passionate and fiery speech in the rain.
“I want a nation that is aware of the power you hold through your vote. I want you to engage in politics, to learn from it. Don’t abandon it out of frustration or disillusionment, because if your people don’t care about their representatives, then your representatives won’t care about their people.”
Slowly, Joaquín Gabriel Fernández Fausto began to gather followers. As president, he promoted free education and public health. Up to that point, schools were considered only for those who could afford them, as the world had been more concerned with survival than with attending an educational institution. Like education, Fausto believed that every citizen had the right to general welfare and considered it time to end “state selfishness.”
Victorino began to notice that the "kid" wasn’t useless after all. Thus, he started guiding him on political matters and contributing his bit. When it came to passing the laws Fausto needed, Congress supported him with a broad majority, thanks to agreements both within his party and with the opposition.
During Gabriel's presidency, Victorino struck a strategic deal to grant a significant position to the UL party, appointing its leader, Javier Pozo, as President of the Senate for eight years. This was a risky move at the time since Pozo had been hesitant about a "mama's boy" becoming the president of twenty million people. Similarly, to ensure the loyal support of the URI party, Victorino appointed Laura Ventura as Chief of Staff. Interestingly, she was from the Republic of Bélua, a nation that had been marginalized for not speaking Spanish but Portuguese. Additionally, when the abolition of the Directory was voted on to create a confederation of republics, Bélua was not allowed to participate. By giving Ventura this position, Victorino provided a breath of fresh air for Bélua, which helped Fausto maintain good relations with them.
Another example was Julio Cantero, leader of the JW party, who was appointed Minister of the Interior of the Seven Republics, fulfilling his promise.
The population began to notice that "the capital" was starting to exert influence over the other republics. For a long time, governors had managed to stay in power because the Directory lacked the resources to assist the other governments of the Seven Republics. Gabriel began funding labor to build and strengthen the main trade routes, making them safe for transporting goods.
He also implemented and promoted the use of a universal currency for the Seven Republics, the lunario.
There were moments when the alliance and party pact were on the verge of breaking due to the laws being voted on, but thanks to Victorino's efforts, they always managed to prevail. There were even times when their main opposition, the JW party, came close to overturning their laws, particularly Law 13.443, which abolished mandatory military service for all citizens over twenty.
“It’s understandable that the military played a crucial role in the construction of the walls, but that task is now completed,” Fausto argued.
The Senate, primarily the JW party, staunchly defended the military service law, arguing that the traditions of over five hundred years shouldn’t be abandoned on a childish whim.
Fausto knew how to respond to such accusations clearly and directly.
“I don’t want you to forget that those who started this catastrophe were the very reason the walls began to be built. Let’s not repeat the same mistakes. I don’t want to see cities burn, I don’t want to see armed soldiers in the streets, and I certainly don’t want to see the infected. I want to see works built by man, I want to see families crying tears of joy, not sorrow, I want to see a nation in its full splendor.”
It was the first time in six months that Gabriel addressed his own media rather than relying on Victorino's help. Although his words seemed like meaningless rhetoric, they served to remind the members of the Senate that in the past, the Directory had been deposed more than five times, all by military interventions. At that time, there were few opportunities for employment: one could work on the walls or join the military. And although Gabriel couldn’t convince everyone, he did manage to sway a few, mainly the most important members of the UF party. To the press, it seemed that a few words could change a stance, but in reality, it was a message to the president that this vote would come at a cost. Fausto didn’t see it at the time, but Victorino did.
The reality was that every law the president approved without trouble represented a debt to each faction of the party. Joaquín Gabriel Fernández Fausto failed to realize that if he wanted to bring about change with ideals, mere words wouldn’t be enough. Those who had the power to remove him were watching and judging whether he was useful or not, since, remember, he was elected unanimously on the premise that he was new to the sphere of great power granted to him.
The president needed to start gaining political support and was aware of it. Therefore, he began to forge alliances and slowly started to build a political base in his image. The UUP party was not lagging behind; if there was a dissenting voice, it was slowly being silenced, as the party didn’t want to lose the power they had. Thus, they began to defend the president tooth and nail in whatever he proposed.
After the first year of Fausto's presidency, there was a slight improvement in public opinion, as his campaign of living like an ordinary citizen started to show results. In the streets, people talked about a young president walking, shopping at the local market, in the neighborhoods, in his own district. People would look at him and occasionally approach him to talk, listen, and make requests.
“There is nothing more beautiful than living in democracy,” he said during one of his many walks.
He even made trips to the Seven Republics, reaching out to the people. He traveled to Cárdena, Inca, Neptún, Argentum, Artigas, Nova Terra, and Bélua. In Bélua, although he didn’t speak their language, people remembered the young man who visited neighborhoods and spoke rather poor Portuguese.
“At least he tried to reach out to us instead of leaving us behind.” In the past, Bélua had been greatly overlooked by the other six republics, especially when it was denied entry to Congress for the proclamation of the presidential government over the Seven Republics.
Fausto was aware of this and began seeking support in that sector, giving them more space in the political arena in the capital, San Isaak. Magistrate Pablo Ojeda would lead the newly formed UUP party to participate in the elections in the Republic of Bélua.
As president, Gabriel heavily promoted the culture of the nations. Although he had managed to ease the population’s anxiety, he was aware that it could return over time. Therefore, he decided to promote local culture as a form of entertainment. He launched theaters across all the republics, funding and paying screenwriters, writers, or newcomers who presented original ideas or revived works from the old world.
All of this aimed to keep people engaged and committed to cultural activities.
He also promoted sports and festivals. He declared March 25 as a national holiday in commemoration of the completion of the great wall, and June 5 as Constitution Day, both being national holidays.
The capital enjoyed some wonderful years. The Seven Republics slowly began to move towards a concrete goal. Fear of the outside world, fear of the infected, and fear of war gradually faded from the daily lives of the citizens.
“No more state selfishness, no more uncertainty. This is the great republic of my dreams. I will not stop, I do not want to stop. Together, we will discover new horizons, new dawns within this utopia. I feel it, I smell it, I hear it...it's change. I want that when our children are born and see what their parents have built, they see a society of equals.”
And for the first time since he took office, the people applauded the young, inexperienced deputy who had become president and had won the hearts of the citizens.
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