The vast majority of imperial citizens, while denied many forms of political self-expression, appear to lead fairly normal lives under the fiefdoms of the different clans. The author draws a parallel to certain periods of the Roman Empire, with the citizenry being kept compliant through the use of public holidays and spectacles such as gladiatorial games. Although a parliament exists, its autonomy and influence are trivial – in large part due to the widespread corruption that permeates every facet of the empire's institutions. The empire's official religion, the "Church of Christ the Warrior", acts as an arm of the imperial throne and maintains its own military forces to counterbalance those of the clans.