State:
The Ito Empire
Form of government:
Absolute monarchy, military autocracy
Rulers:
The immortal emperor Tosho reigns after the founding of the people
Language:
Itoshinian. Udoğans (the emperors’ inner circle, the head of the settlements, the commanders of the detachments) must know the Common Language. For other subjects of the empire, the knowledge of the Common Language is welcomed by udoğans, but ignorance is not forbidden.
Largest city:
Shohan.
Capital:
Shohan. In Shohan there is the Imperial Palace, the residence of the ruler, the most grandiose construction of the Ito Empire.
Other major cities are Yohnuk, Olugan, and Lauhan. All the settlements of the Itoshins are fortified cities surrounded by a high wall, with the citadel of udoğan, the governor of the city, who is also the commander of a specific garrison.
Geography and climate:
The Ito Empire occupies the entire Northern and North-Eastern part of the continent. The main climatic feature of the Empire is the impenetrable fogs, from where the demons come. Until now, it has not been possible to establish the habitats of demons, where their den can be located. Elinor is called the mainland, although no one has yet been able to circumnavigate the Northern coastline, nor by water or by land. However Djunitian astronomers, basing their opinion on the course of the stars and direction of the sea current, are sure, that the coastline exists and the continent does not extend to the North. The climate is damp and wet. In the Northern part of the Empire, there is permafrost. The snow never melts there. Mists doesn’t disappear even in a very cold weather. The Southern borders of the Empire are much warmer. In the summer, snow melts, but every winter they fall again. There are rare places, like deserted oases, where fogs never happen. Demons almost do not appear in such oases. The largest is near the Moon Lake, and the capital of the Empire is also located there. Other settlements are also situated only in places where there is no fog or its density is much lower than usual.
Borders with:
the Valley of the Ancestors in the South, the Celestial Plateau in the West, the prairies of the Chekatta and the Reyro kingdom in the East.
History:
The Itoshinian people originated at the time of the Great Exodus. Their story began with the fact that a fairly young, but wise and just ruler of the city of Eavette, named Tosho, was visited by a stranger from the distant lands. Everything was happening in those days when the inhabitants of the Valley of the Ancestors thought that they were the only inhabitants of Elinor. It is not known what the wanderer was talking about with the city's burgomaster, but after this meeting Tosho announced that he was beginning the expedition to the North. His main goal was some certain source of knowledge and wealth. All this took place several dozen years before the Marawies’ exodus to the South. The Great Exodus began eighteen years earlier, when a group of pioneers disappeared
without a trace in the forests west of the Valley of the Ancestors.
Six families went to the North together with Tosho -
Unu, Wari, Saku, Taki, Maca and Yugie. They are called families in the Itoshinian chronicles. However, there is no mention of the populations of these families. Most likely, they were groups of relatives from ten to six dozen people, since from the stories of a trip to the North one can conclude that a large number of people left with Tosho. However, the seventh family, Tosho's family, most likely consisted only of himself and his pregnant wife, whose name had not been preserved by history.
One of the best translations into the Common Language of the Itoshinian legends and chronicles is the book "Travel to the Skies" by Djunitian scholar Azir Amunjadee. The author describes the origin of the people of the Itoshins as follows:
The way to the North did not initially cause trouble, as evidenced by the ancient legends of the Itoshins. On the road, Tosho had a daughter, Tsvetsho. She was subsequently destined to play an important role in the emergence of the Ulutau people. When Tosho and six families reached the Life Border Plateau, then their first problems started. The Plateau met them with dank dampness and thick fogs. For about five years, the ancestors of the Itoshins wandered in this labyrinth of hills and bare rocks. And then they first encountered the creation of the Dead Land - creepy creatures, unlike any animal of Elinor.
Many songs and legends are composed about the first meetings of the Itoshins with the demons. It all started when people began to see some shadows in the fog. Eerie visions haunted the travelers for months. They talked about nightmarish creatures, darting in the fog, but no one could see them. Then people began to disappear. At first they were either those who fell behind or hunters. But later the disappearances continued among the main detachment too. And where people went, no one knew. This led to the fact that the pioneers began to be afraid to go hunting, they stayed only in a dense crowd, and the expedition was on the verge of failure.
Then there was a split. Two families, the Maca and the Yuga, decided to stop searching and leave Tosho. No persuasion could withhold them. And then the ruler cursed these families. Their representatives left Tosho, taking away his curse. The further fate of the Maca and Yuga is quite tragic. None of them came down from the Plateau. They got lost in eternal fogs, and one can only guess what their death was like. Itoshians say that sometimes they meet their waywarding souls, tacitly wandering in the darkness in their eternal search. This vision is called the curse of the Maca-Yuga, and to see it is considered an unlucky sign.
The remaining four families - Unu, Wari, Saku and Taki, and Tosho with his daughter, continued their journey. On the road, they lost another family - all Wari were missing. Tragically, Tosho's wife also died: she fell off a slippery path and fell into a bottomless crevice.
But the will of the ruler Tosho was mighty and the desire to find what he was looking for was great. In order to inspire his people, he took his sword and went alone, straight into the thickness of the smog. After a while he returned and dragged the body of an unknown creature. The sight of the monster was terrible: the jaw was covered with sharp, huge teeth, five ridiculous extremities ended in razor sharp claws, the creature lacked eyes and ears. To the question of surprised people about how Tosho could win over this beast, he replied that he felt no fear, but only anger, and the creature itself rushed on his sword. This event is depicted on the frescoes in the palace of the emperor Tosho, and the carcass of the first murdered demon was turned into a scarecrow and to this day adorns the throne of the emperor. The Tosho feat became the first stone in the foundation of the philosophy of the future Ito Empire.
Encouraged by the example of their leader, the people moved on. Now that they knew that they were confronted by beings of flesh and blood, fear left them. The expedition continued its’ journey.
Once the travelers came to a high hill, and on top of it they saw the sky for the first time in many years. It was the late evening, and the full moon was shining in the sky. It brightly reflected on the surface of a small lake. Strongly impressed by such a beautiful view, the outlanders called it the Moon Lake. As it turned out later, the fog never rose to such a height, and the sky above the Moon Lake was always clear. Weary by long wanderings, the travelers decided to found the first settlement here. They erected a city-fortress Shohan, which became the capital of the Empire. In the vicinity of the Moon Lake, there lived amazing animals - the yauls, who eventually became domesticated. And the Moon Lake itself was full of beautiful fish, and the shore –of living creatures. This islet of light in the endless fogs turned out to be not the only one, and gradually the Itoshins settled all over the Plateau. As it turned out, the demons from the smog did not like the light, and in the daytime life in the settlements was calm enough. And at night houses were locked with tight shutters, and anyone who could hold a weapon led an endless defense against terrible enemies.
The further history of the Itoshins is a constant struggle against the demons of the North. To this day the Emperor remains the one and only ruler of the Empire. The Empire itself is built on a clear military command. The udoğans – the personal help of emperors – governed over either the garrison settlements or military detachments.
The Emperor has not grown older since the founding of the people. His immortality is confirmed by many travelers and explorers of Elinor, although still unexplainable. The daughter of the emperor Tsvetsho, is also immortal: she had grown up to the age of about eighteen or twenty years old, and is retaining youth forever afterwards.
Industry,agriculture and economy:
The nature of the Ito Empire is very meager. Of plants, the most popular one is poisonous thorn; of animals - yauls. Yaul is a tall, powerful buffalo, completely covered with long hair and having huge horns. Favourite, and maybe the only, delicacy of yauls is just the same - a poisonous thorn. Meat of yaul is the most popular food of Itoshins, and yauls’ koumiss is the most popular drink. Near the Moon Lake, fishing and even part-time farming is possible, but almost all food goes to Shohan's imperial palace. The empire has a sufficient number of iron ore deposits, but the steel produced is of extremely poor quality. Inside the Ito Empire, there is no money. Necessary food is distributed by the emperor among the udoğans, and already by them - among the population, according to peoples’ needs. The salds are not forbidden in the empire, but visiting merchants are a rarity, and it is only possible to meet them in Shohan. Now the viability of the empire depends entirely on the Valley of the Ancestors. The Empire simply can not exist without food caravans, as well as without the supply of quality steel. The costs are paid by the military resource. First, they protect the Northern borders of the Valley of the Ancestors from demons, and second, they provide their detachments for the protection of order in the Valley of the Ancestors.
Life and culture:
Life in eternal struggle dictates its rules, which affect the whole culture and life of the Itoshins. But this struggle is not chaotic: all inhabitants of the Ito Empire live according to the Dotsu Code, written by Emperor Tosho himself. This is not just a body of laws or regulations. This is the philosophy of existence. In the Code, each person can read not only about how he should live, but also about what he should feel. For many peoples, this way of life seems simply unacceptable, but the Itoshins are getting used to living like this from birth. Dotsu Code is in fact, the only book that is regularly read and rewritten by the Itoshins. Fiction in the empire is not popular. Although educated udoğans often read the books of other peoples. Among the Itoshins there are no writers and poets, but there are chroniclers. Chronicles of the Itoshins - a description of the regular struggle of the people with demons. They are considered useful literature along with the Dotsu Code, especially when the children re-read stories about the exploits of their ancestors, fathers, grandfathers, great-grandparents and so on. The women of the Itoshins are also obliged to be warriors, just like men. However, after the birth of children, the woman is responsible for rearing the offspring. Since the attacks of demons occur constantly, the Itoshins are often killed young. Including women. Children-orphans are brought up by udoğans. To live to old age is considered a sign of cowardice. An exception is made in respect of those who have suffered an injury while being young or in adulthood. Cripples become chroniclers, scientists, healers. Master other crafts related to military affairs. Oral traditions are popular among the Itoshins. Basically, these are terrible legends about demons and mysteries of smog. They are written in order that children from early childhood learn to overcome their fear. Clothing and household items are as simple as possible, and don’t have any patterns and ornaments. It is not customary even to decorate one's own weapons, although in some cases special exceptions may be made.
The main holiday for the Itoshins is the birth of illa, albino children with white hair, who are able to navigate even in the most impenetrable fog. The illas leads caravans and fighting detachments on short roads. The appearance of illa is something of a small miracle. The territory of the Empire is inhabited by Snow Chekatta, tribes of savages. Most likely, they inhabited the land before the arrival of Tosho and his detachment. Snow Chekatta don’t know nor the Common or the Itoshian language. In addition, they themselves try to avoid the Itoshins. There are several cases recorded in the annals, when Snow Chekatta fought along with the Itoshins against the demons, but still it is a great rarity. Itoshins are not forbidden to have contact with the savages, but the Itoshin will never enter into such contact without the permission of the udoğan. Therefore, the Itoshins and Snow Chekatta live side by side, but they barely contact each other.
Ideology:
The whole life of the Itoshin is a striving for fearlessness, which, in turn, is identified with immortality. That is, the attainment of the immortality of the soul is possible only through the victory over one's own fears. There should not be any fear in the heart of the Itoshin to start with, but it is implied that prerequisites for fear may arise. And if these premonitions of fear are not replaced by a real sense of fear, then in the soul of the Itoshin an internal victory is gained. The Code forbids Itoshins to philosophize and generally talk about anything other than military craft. Their whole life is the execution of orders. Therefore, even if the ideological goal of the individual Itoshin somehow expanded and stepped beyond the goal of defeating one's own fear, he would hardly tell anyone about it. Itoshins are inclined to feelings between the genders, but they would never put it above the battle and submission to the Code.
Itoshinian language.
It originated from the old language of the inhabitants of the Valley of the Ancestors, which is the most similar to the modern language of the Chekatta. Shortness of the words was saved from that language. The most popular are one syllable. There are some compounds, complexes of two, and sometimes of three syllables, while these syllables are separate words to start with. However, if the language of the Chekatta is more lyrical and lively, then all the syllables in the Itoshian language are pronounced clearly, quickly and sharply. This is due to the military system of consciences and a constant war with the demons. First, the language ensures the ease of orders, and secondly, short sounds make it easier to give alarms, while describing the problem. In the language of the Itoshins there are no cases. Nouns, verbs and adjectives are written and pronounced identically.
A few words from the Itoshinian language with transcription:
E / I - a child (son, daughter)
O - plural of everything
Ei - denial
Eo - children
Eei - means no longer a child
To - father
In - people
Lir - future
Nai-horn
Nuk - black, dark
U - wall, inner strength
Chu - the highest unexplained force (for example, the immortality of the emperor is Chu)
Aitsu - coward
Ulu - a hermit
Khan - city
Ish - the ancestor
Tsu - courage / courageous (brave)
Bun - bad
Shaz - huge / great
Sa - anger, anger / evil
Gu - wisdom / wise
Ha - strong / strong
Eicho - weak
Sho - universal, association
Rho - Heart
Mo - the sky
Kaa (Ka) - snake
Dor - cave
Re - flesh
Yoh - pride
Ve - life
Euwe - death
Vet - mother
Do - sword
Dotsu - generally the name of the Code, but also a warrior
Lla -fog
Illa - son of a fog
Lai -a demon
Olai - demons
Iolai - are children of demons, but actually as a horde of demons, or in general all the demons that live in the Empire
Ğan - iron
Lu - water
Olu - water, a lot of water, a pond
Lya - barrier
Ne - big enough
O’ne - eternal, boundless
Alphabet:
As symbols of spelling, they use the simplest hieroglyphs. One hieroglyph - in any case already a word, but also a composite syllable. If a word consists of several words-syllables, the symbols are superimposed on each other.
For example; | - Do (sword), ^ - E (child), - E'Do (the son of a sword)
= - lu (water), / - o (plural), ≠ - Olu (body of water)