Character from Hyperion by Dan Simmons
A Catholic theocracy built on parasitic immortality — the government that rose after the Fall by offering resurrection through cruciforms, not knowing the cruciforms were TechnoCore hardware.
The Pax rose from the Fall of the WorldWeb by offering what no other institution could: resurrection. The Catholic Church 'perfected' cruciform technology — eliminating the physical degradation that plagued the Bikura — and used it as a sacrament. Accept the cruciform, accept the Church, and you never die. The price, unknown to most adherents, was that each cruciform was a micro-TechnoCore — a parasitic AI network using the host's brain for computation. The Pax's secret alliance with the TechnoCore meant that every resurrected human was an unwitting processor node. Aenea's DNA Sacrament killed the cruciforms. The Pax collapsed when its foundation — the promise of immortality — turned out to be slavery. The institution that offered eternal life was actually selling eternal servitude.
Headquartered on Pacem. Military divisions (Fleet, Ground Force, Swiss Guard) enforce the theocratic state. The aesthetic is Catholic grandeur merged with interstellar military power — cathedrals in space, crucifixes that are actually parasites.
Also known as: The Pax, Pax Era