Preface
Spanning previous millennia was the existence of the Circlarian Empire, which brought about the rise of a prosperous society that almost achieved global status. It was around 1025 BCE, according to present-day scholars, that the Magnum Plagam Collis, a supervolcano near the present-day island of Vantacula, erupted, triggering cataclysmic events across the Circlarian Realm and plunging the entire globe into a volcanic winter for the next few years. The consequences were tremendous, as the event killed off almost ninety percent of the human population at the time. This period became known as the Ashen Years. However, several cities had practiced the idea of preserving seeds to grow in underground farms in the case of such a catastrophe. Two of those cities, Totia and Kitalos, were located on the continent of Remikra. Over the next two centuries, these two cities would endure.
Totia
What would become the Imperial Head of the Totian Empire was initially a small, rocky island in the Bay of Fundee inhabited by a small citadel which sat atop a large underground city. The land surrounding the Bay was untouched; although much of the area was inhabited by vegetation, most of which consisted of pine trees, grasses, and ferns. Compost from these resulted in the little topsoil and mosses that existed throughout the otherwise rocky landscape. Cool to mild summers alternated with harsh winters while the vast Circlarian Ocean brought a great deal of precipitation.
The people during this time were of North Circlarian descent, and spoke Aerdn, the official language of the Circlarian Empire. It was also during this time that the Totian religion began to take root. Totians believed that the world began in "chaos and storm," and that divine spirits worked to bring order to the world. Believing that their job was not finished, these spirits decided to produce more divine beings by growing them in bodies of human flesh, which would then die and release the new divine spirits. Thus, deceased loved ones were worshipped as deities by the North Circlarians. During pastime, North Circlarians created simple vocal music, as well as music on little-known stringed instruments. Although most of this was conceived aurally, rare pieces of paper manuscripts and stone carvings provide evidence. Also conceived were poems, which later developed into simple theatrical plays, and visual art creations in the form of stone murals and carvings. Education was military-training-based, where all people, under an order issued by an unnamed Commander at an unknown time, were mandated to receive a "basic doctrine." Only those fit enough advanced voluntarily into the upper ranks. However, during the curriculum, pupils were taught simple survival and combat skills, as well as religion, arithmetic, and literature. Early Totia was governed in a top-down fashion, where laws and orders were issued by the Head Commander, and enforced by top officials and the military. Totia was, at the time, divided into Cantons; so the Commander would appoint a Watch to head each Canton, where the Watch appointed loyal members of the community to keep order. Succession was determined by the Head Commander, who would first appoint a Top Advisor. This Top Advisor would succeed the Head Commander in the event of the Commander's death and determine who the next Head Commander would be. This Advisor, however, would not take power if the Head Commander appointed an official successor before death.
Not much existed in the form of trade with other entities during this time period. However, Totia developed a robust domestic economy, which consisted of bartering goods and services. Later on, in the 900's BCE, precious metals and pebbles were used as currency. Although no official social structure existed, the wealthiest and most powerful were the Head Commander and closest Officers (including the Watches). The second most powerful class was populated by the Watch-loyals and their families. And the least wealthy and powerful consisted of the Commoners, who had no direct relations with the Watch-loyals or Officers. The Commoners produced food and basic goods for themselves as well as everyone else in Totian society. Watches and their loyals maintained peace, upheld the law, and carried out important civil services in exchange for goods, property, and precious material. The Head Commander and Officers regulated the rules of exchange, as well as settled any disputes and checked the value of certain exchange items. Crucial to the survival of Totia during the Ashen Years was the discovery of lych moss, which could filter salt out of sea water. Lych moss existed in abundant amounts on Totia, allowing for the creation of a reliable supply of fresh water to a growing population. Such a supply of fresh water helped to water the wheat and cereal crops that existed in Totia's underground farms, where burning kelwick lamps provided sufficient artificial sunlight. For a time, kelwick also lit lamps in even the Commoners' living quarters. However, kelwick was native to the distant mainland Circlarian Empire. Although the Totians had a large reserve of kelwick by 1025 BCE, the two centuries of isolation that followed the Ashen Years had worn this reserve down significantly. So Commoners and top Officers alike turned to another abundant source of fuel: pine trees. Many pine trees existed on the island, and would serve as a reliable fuel source for years to come. As the trees were cleared out, Totians built cabins in the clearings and settled there. Meanwhile, criminals were subject to indentured servitude, while Watch-loyals continued to carry out honorable civil duties, creating a reliable supply of human labor.
Messages were mostly spread by word of mouth, either informally or by official Messengers. The Head Commander and his inner circle used small paper scrolls for communication as well. Such scrolls, as well as pebble inscriptions and stone "tax tablets" (taxes were imposed beginning in the 820's BCE), were kept in the Head Commander's archival vaults as records. News and announcements were presented on large bulletin walls in each canton, mostly under the Head Commander's orders; although free speech from the lower ranks was permitted most of the time.
Most of Totia existed underground at this time; so the cantons were connected to each other by stone passageways while all people traveled on foot. This system existed as a web, where the Head Commander's Headquarters, located in the Citadel, stood in the center. Well-maintained, tiled stone halls connected these Headquarters to all the cantons, while the cantons were connected to each other in the same fashion. Within the cantons, lesser-kept passageways existed between the living sectors of the Commoner and lower classes.
Totia was originally a military outpost built by the Circlarian Empire. This outpost consisted of a navy base and the Citadel with large companies of foot soldiers. During the Ashen Years, the ships fell into disrepair and sank. However, Totia maintained its system of foot soldiers, who spent most of their time maintaining order, as there was no legitimate outside threat. Early on, inside diplomacy issues existed in the form of "street factions" within certain cantons. Anything from property disputes to disliked romantic relationships would occasionally erupt into brawls and even killings. As factions rivaled factions and allied with others, the Head Commander and his Officers were on either hostile or favorable terms with each faction as well. Nevertheless, strategic deals with them was a must, as Totian society grew larger and became harder for the government to keep in order.
Within each canton existed a library of spell scrolls from the days of when Totia was under Circlarian Imperial influence, while a grand library of such material existed within the ranks of the Citadel. Priests and clerics, as well as other spellcrafters in the lower social classes, worked endlessly to interpret these scrolls.
Kitalos
Unlike Totia in the cold, hard North, Kitalos resided much further South, along the warm coast of the Magnumarian Ocean. The adobe-like structures of ancient Kitalos surrounded a harbor which opened East into the Bay of Kitalos, which stretched many miles inland and had a small opening out into the Magnumarian. Surrounding the bay were mostly sandy beaches and rolling hills. Most of this territory was made of fertile soil, as well as vegetation consisting of short grasses, coastal oak, and a few pine trees in the colder, higher regions. There were also a variety of ferns, mosses, and small greens. Mild winters alternated with warm to hot summers, with the latter lasting longer. However, the climate pattern here was noted more for its significant wet and dry seasons.
During this time, Kitalans were keen to mingle with the nomadic indigenous groups who regularly traveled along the hillsides. Indigenous groups were also welcomed openly to live in the city. Initially, Kitalans spoke Aerdn, like their Totian counterparts to the North and East. However, interaction with the nomadic groups led to changes in vocabulary and dialect, giving rise to the Kitalan tongue. Also as the result of nomadic influence came the Kitalan religion, which viewed the earth (Their world is named Juno Minor.) and each known celestial body, including the many observed stars, as genderless, faceless divine beings. Accordingly, to their beliefs, some of these beings were more powerful than others, with the most powerful being the Sun. For each of most of the beings, at least one temple was erected. In the city of Kitalos, many temples existed, including one for Juno Major (the gas giant around which Juno Minor revolved), and, most significantly, one for the Sun. Countless homes and market squares had little shrines for the less significant beings. As freedom of religion was a staple principle in Kitalan society, people went into these temples, individually, and at their own free will, where they lit incense and meditated in an attempt to connect with the divine. Kitalans did not believe in life after death, nor did they believe that the Universe was created by a divine being; however, they believed that prayer and meditation would allow one to communicate to a divine being, asking a question or a desired outcome.
Kitalos was a free society, embracing such principles as freedom of speech, freedom of religion, voice in government, human rights, and tolerance of others. Such a philosophy was reflected in the visual and performing arts, including musicians performing pre-modern harmonizations on string harps during certain occasions. However, Kitalans believed that the human voice was the purest method of music creation; so the use of "artificial instruments" was quite rare, as no "orchestras" were believed to have assembled at any given time. It was the responsibility of the parent or "watcher" to teach a child to read and write, as well as teach the methods of thriving in the world in which the child was expected to live. The only educational institutions that existed during this time were libraries, which were tuition-free and open to the public. The central library existed in the city-proper of ancient Kitalos while smaller ones existed in other various locations. While no concrete requirements existed in terms of education, there was incentive. For many years, Kitalan masses catered to those who were the most informed on special areas of expertise of certain materials in the libraries.
In stark contrast to the city of Totia, the Kitalan government was democratic in nature. Kitalos was presided over by an elected council with no single leader. Furthermore, the power of such council was kept in check by the population. Although there were no set terms or limits, the tenure of a member of such an elected council was determined solely by the people. Anyone who did not vote favorably on certain issues was removed according to petition. If a double-petition arose, one that favored a council member's end of duty versus one that did not, the petition with the higher number of signatures prevailed. The Council of Kitalos also appointed a Tribunal class, subject to the will of the people, who served a judicial duty to settle both civil and governmental disputes. Laws and decisions were carried out by Orders, classes of physically fit members of Kitalan society who served both military and civil duties of enforcement.
A notable difference with this system of government was that it was inclusive of any member of society, including women and those of nomadic groups. With their policy of openness and tolerance, the Kitalans became the first society to trade with the indigenous groups. Through a developing trade network, Kitalans were introduced to a fine resource: olives. This would inspire curiosity for later generations to explore more of Remirka. Kitalans were favored by the indigenous groups for the construction of adobe buildings and boats, while the Kitalans mutually favored the indigenous groups for their ability to produce a variety of food.
Initially, rubies and marble pellets, artifacts of ancient Circlarian society before the Ashen Years, were utilized as currency. However, around the 900's BCE, a rift between the wealthy and less fortunate inspired the lower classes to use olive seeds as a more convenient currency; this eventually would re-balance the economy, rendering the rubies and marble pellets to obsoletion. For Kitalos' market, workers would build the ships and buildings, while upper-class Kitalans would be the ones to sell them to the indigenous population. The latter practice served as the first model of real estate. With usually one to three workers per seller, buyers would pay the vendors equally. Meanwhile, the indigenous food and good producers, who worked as merchant families and clans, would sell their goods in the Kitalan market squares, usually splitting their earnings equally. By the 900's BCE, there was a working class and a merchant class within Kitalan society. However, being an active democracy, Kitalan society provided an incentive to strive for fair economic distribution. Within the nomadic families, the elders usually held more wealth than the younger ones.
Like the Totians, the Kitalans had an underground agricultural system. However, public infrastructure existed in the form of seed vaults, consisting of wheat and barley. Residents were given rations from these vaults, which they grew in chambers in their homes, utilizing mirror systems to focus the weak sunlight during the Ashen Years. Other sources of food came, via trade, from the nomadic indigenous groups, who were hunter-gatherers. From the Pimdanian Mountains came the Yearling River, which ran down to a delta just North of Kitalos, serving as a secondary fresh water source for the early inhabitants. The primary source was an underground plumbing system built before the Ashen Years; such a system drew water from a multitude of underground springs, named the Seven Underground Lakes. In various pockets around the Underground Lakes lay coal, from which the pre-Ashen Kitalans drew large amounts and held in large reserve chambers underneath the city. These chamber reserves lasted the Kitalans until around 875 BCE, after which they ventured out into the surrounding land and felled trees for wood. In contrast to the Totians, the Kitalans never practiced mandated labor. Before the Ashen Years, the Circlarian Empire had ruled over the Kitalan region with forced labor; so following the Ashen Years, the Kitalans, as part of forming a free society, established one of its crucial principles to be the total abandonment of any and every kind of forced labor. However, voluntary labor was a part of everyday life in Kitalan society and trade.
Indigenous nomadic groups were often the source for carrying written messages between Kitalan parties. Another form of coded communication existed, where structures, mounted with torch towers, used lights of differing color to "flash" certain messages to other towers, which would echo these messages back to the intended party. This was known as "flash code." Pamphlets and scrolls were stored in vaults all over the city, especially government items such as tax records and resource budgets. Even as early as this period, multiple organizations produced pamphlets to communicate news to the masses, with the material ranging from public announcements to informal gossip. The Kitalan Council neither regulated nor had any involvement in this press system.
Clay and dirt streets existed in the ancient city of Kitalos. Outside, trails were marked by members of indigenous nomad groups, who served as guides. Traveling Kitalan parties would follow a nomad clan on occasion. As the nomadic groups constantly shifted location, so would the paths, as walking was the most common form of transportation in this time. It also was quite common for Kitalan and nomadic traders alike to use mules, domesticated elk, and even horses in their possession. Most notable, however, was the utilization of the mountain eagles, which both populations used to their advantage. Although quite rare in this period, mountain eagles would become more popular in the years to come.
Indigenous nomads often called upon Kitalan warriors to serve in battles against hostile nomadic groups, using horses and infantry as well as boats against enemy camps across the Bay. Skilled Kitalans became the first to use mountain eagles to drop primitive fire bombs upon enemy encampments, often for a very high payment, making Kitalos the very first society to develop a military air defense. Despite such an advancement, Kitalans were very reserved when it came to military conflict, utilizing it only in the event that either they or their indigenous allies were provoked. Even in the event of provocation, Kitalans often pushed for diplomacy first. Nevertheless, whenever diplomacy failed, it was usually the Kitalans and their allies who won the conflict. Abiding by the principle of abandoning forced labor, the Kitalan Council often split an enemy population so that only their families could live together, forcing them to adapt to Kitalan society via Kitalan "guides," who rehabilitated them. It was upon the alliance with most groups that trade and, eventually, acquisition would develop. However, the nomad groups would occasionally fight each other. Those hostile to the ones associated with the Kitalans would, inevitably, be hostile to the Kitalans, themselves. In 841 BCE, one of these hostile groups constructed boats and attacked Kitalos from the Bay. In less than a year, however, Kitalos and their many allies ended the battle with a victory.
Like the Totians, the Kitalans had spellfire scrolls from the ancient Circlarian era distributed in libraries throughout the city. A notable difference, however, was that spellfire inscriptions existed in stone along the streets and sidewalks, serving for use only in the case of an apocalyptic event such as the Ashen Years. In the years that followed, a variety of people added to these long lines of spellfire code, contributing items that included inscriptions of nomadic influence. Such additions were also added to new pieces of scrolls in the libraries.