Ackunt City Zu'aan

History

The Ackunt zu’aan have been living on the side of a mountain for as long as the eldest members can remember. Since there had been no reason for them to leave, they stayed and made the mountain their home. Over time, they chiseled their homes into the side of the mountain, henceforth named the Ackunt mountain, and slowly making their way up the side and around the eastern side of the base. Eventually, a mine was added to the inside of the mountain, allowing them to procure the ore they needed for smelting, building, and selling purposes. While there wasn’t an abundant amount in the mountain, the Ackunt zu’aan weren’t picky, so they made use of whatever they found.

Anything they found couldn’t be used was taken to neighboring cities when they went and they would be traded for other goods that could be used. They had cemented their hold on the mountain over time, ensuring that everything they took from it was returned in some way. Nothing was ever free to them, which was how they were able to keep the mountain as prosperous as possible. They believed they were blessed to have the land and that they should always take care of it or it would be taken away. When they were threatened with the onslaught of kin’toni, the Ackunt zu'aan enacted a city watch, comprised of the most fit men and women to battle them and keep their streets safe.

After a long battle, they reigned victorious with only a few that were lost to the kin’toni. It was a tragic loss to them all, with the dead mourned significantly for many years. The city watch, deciding that it was best to continue their job, remained active, patrolling the streets to ensure no more kin’toni were found so they didn’t have to worry about losing anyone else. It worked for them, and soon enough the city watch was kept on forever, entrusted to protect the lives of the zu'aan at all costs. Before long there were questions as to who would lead the Ackunt zu'aan and who would make the decisions about their city. It seemed there was worry within the city that they wouldn’t have the things they needed if someone didn’t make the decisions for them.

A member of the city watch came forward and offered that there be a voting system put in place, so all zu'aan felt heard, as well as a fight system. It was agreed upon that if there, for any reason, was a disagreement between the zu'aan, that they would take to a mud pit and fight each other. Whoever the winner was, was heard, and the other would walk away. The system worked well and while there weren’t many quarrels, when there were, they were dealt with safely and under the watch of the city guard to ensure nothing nefarious took place. Eventually, the city came to loathe violence, choosing peace instead, and because of that, they thrived. Other zu'aan cities began to look to them for advice on how to keep the peace in their own cities.

Since the Ackunt zu'aan seemed to be doing so well, and so, the Ackunt zu'aan became known as the peaceful city, the ones to go to when something was needed.

Psychology

The Ackunt zu'aan were a city that chose peace in a world where they would be seen as weak for doing so. They were a prosperous city, but even then, they knew it would come with a price. The price for them? Not being prepared when a kin’toni outbreak threatened to kill their people. Even after the kin’toni outbreak, the Ackunt city decided that peace would be how they lived their lives. No matter what life threw at them, they always made sure to approach it with kindness and light rather than with anger and aggression. Because of this, they were able to resolve conflict with ease. Whenever there was any type of conflict in the Ackunt city, the zu'aan would take to a mud filled pit to resolve their problems.

This was how they dealt with anything they couldn’t agree upon, and typically, it was effective in ensuring everyone came to the same decision. This method of problem solving was enacted shortly after the kin’toni began to attack their city, allowing the zu'aan to embrace their anger in a way that would still bring results to their city. Once their duel was over and a winner was declared, either by a forfeit or a knockout, all bad feelings and animosity would be left at the pit while the two challengers were taken to be washed off in a nearby stream. When the idea was first brought up by a member of the city watch, shortly after they had declared the total of lost zu'aan due to the kin’toni.

There was speculation that the member had lost his mind and his idea was not to be heard, given that it was believed it would bring more violence to their peaceful city, instead of less. After a short while, however, members began to warm to the idea, and a trial run was brought on. It worked, and the city elected to keep the practice. From that day, the amount of violence in the city began to lessen, with more members challenging each other to duel instead of fighting in the streets when they had a disagreement. A member of the city watch would supervise, and soon enough, a winner announced. There were no hard feelings against the loser, and life would typically return to normal.

Since it was such a rare occurrence for them to have to worry about violence, the zu'aan of Ackunt city became more free-spirited and gentler. They would approach every situation with light and love, instead of with violence, leading other cities to believe they were weak. They liked the thought, knowing that it gave them a distinct advantage when it came to war. How were they expected to lose when they had some of the most powerful fighters? If there was ever a time when they would have to send the city watch to war, there was no doubt in their minds that they would reign victorious, despite the ill thought against them.

Culture

It is believed by many of the Ackunt zu'aan that their existence was a gift to them, and that they should be productive with their time, rather than wasting away doing nothing. They would spend as much of their day doing as much as they could, so they weren’t seen as lazy people. Some of them would even take on jobs that would give them very little sleep so they could provide for the city and be seen as productive in the eyes of others. It had been known that even when they were sick, they would still get up and go to work, because even then, there was something that needed to be done that couldn't wait for them to recover. This led to the deaths of many, although they were celebrated for working themselves to death.

Since things in their lives were regarded as gifts, they would do their best to preserve everything they could so that it could be passed on to someone else that needed it. There wasn’t much that was bought new in their city, which meant that despite something looking quite new, it would be something that had been previously owned by someone else and have been kept in as pristine condition as possible. New items were typically bought from local vendors or from other cities when they were visited, allowing for the advancement of technology, although there were many zu'aan that would keep the old ways, seeing no reason to upgrade when their things were working perfectly fine to them.

There was no pressure to upgrade anything that didn’t involve the safety of the city, so it often took the Ackunt zu'aan years to catch up to other cities, and by the time they did, they were often eclipsed with newer technology that didn’t interest them. As well, the Ackunt zu'aan believed that there was no need to be wasteful, so when there were too many things that they didn’t need, they would take them to other cities or would repurpose them into something else that would provide them just as much use. Sometimes, that meant taking old shovels that were soon going to break from use and taking the wood for fire and making a new handle, or even taking old furniture and turning it into something new.

There was always something that could be done with the things they couldn't use anymore, even if that meant taking them to cities they knew could use them. If it meant someone could use them, then that’s where they would go. On top of being less than wasteful, the Ackunt zu'aan would often allow zu'aan from other cities to come and view the things they had and take some of them if they needed them. While they didn’t want to lose some of their things, if there was someone else that could use it, they wouldn’t complain so long as the other zu'aan could prove they needed it. There were times when this would lead to duels, as there were zu'aan that were greedier than others, trying to take more than they were allowed to.

The Ackunt zu'aan would challenge them to their regular duel, and the other zu'aan, thinking they would easily be able to win, would accept the challenge and they would end up losing. Since the Ackunt zu'aan were peaceful, they would never rub their victories in the faces of others, instead offering peace to the other zu'aan, who were always surprised by their kindness.

Government

Within the Ackunt city, they believed that there was no stronger government than a democratic one. To them, it only made sense to allow everyone to have a vote, to speak their mind. Whenever there was a choice that needed to be made, there was an announcement made throughout the city, and everyone wishing to speak their mind, who was old enough to do so, was allowed. Voting took place by a blind vote, allowing for there to be no pressure on anyone to have a different vote. Everyone would place their vote on a piece of parchment and insert it into a box that everyone could see, which ensured no one could cheat or rig the vote. From there, the zu'aan who had called for the vote would open the box once voting was finished and read off the answer.

If it was unanimous, whatever was decided would take place. If there was a split vote, everyone could argue their side and they would vote again until the choice had been made. This process could take many days if there was a decision to be made that split the vote, which meant that aside from sleeping and eating, they were back in the city centre, arguing and debating what should be done. There were few exceptions to the voting rule, such as in the event of an emergency, but otherwise, they would always make sure they were acting in most democratic way possible. When the kin’toni outbreak happened, there were several zu'aan that proposed they enact a group of zu'aan that would protect the city from any more kin’toni that tried to attack the city.

There was no protest from anyone that asked to vote on the matter, and soon enough, the watch was enacted. Their job was to go around and make sure there weren’t any kin’toni in the city, as well as overseeing any duels that took place. Since the enaction of the city watch, the level of crime dropped in the city as the kin’toni couldn’t breach their streets any longer. While there wasn’t much in the way of crime from the Ackunt zu'aan themselves, the rates seemed to drop even more because of the watch. As well, the level of democracy went up with more zu'aan believing they would be able to have their voiced heard on important matters without having to worry so much about being opposed.

There was always a level of fear there given that anyone could challenge anyone else to a duel, which many zu'aan didn’t want. Because of their democracy, there were many other zu'aan cities that believed they could oppose the Ackunt zu'aan. They were perceived as weak because of their choice to be democratic, but most of the other cities didn’t realize just how powerful the city watch was. The Ackunt zu'aan had ensured their safety by making sure all of their members were on the same page with the decisions that needed to be made, as well as ensuring that their city was untouchable by kin’toni and other zu'aan alike. Eventually, other zu'aan would come to them to see how they held themselves and how they could incorporate their ways into their own governments.

Military

In the absence of a true military, the Ackunt zu'aan had their city watch. All this was, was a large, army sized group, of zu'aan that were trained in hand to hand, as well as weapons, combat. Everything they could do they made sure to pass on to every member of their group, allowing all of them to be able to protect the city as best they could. It was completely optional for the members of the city watch to leave when they wanted to, as well as joining when they wanted to, so long as they were adults. The only thing they were told was that when they left, they weren’t to use the skills they turned when they entered duels against zu'aan who hadn’t received the same training.

If they were caught using any of the same skills they had been taught, they would be given a singular strike with a warning, followed by them being jailed if they continued after that first strike. Because the Ackunt zu'aan were peaceful, they found no reason to allow duels to be unfair towards the zu'aan that hadn’t been trained. Because there were some members of the watch that knew a regular zu'aan wasn’t going to win a duel against a member of the watch, so they would offer themselves to duel in their honour, allowing for the zu'aan that wasn’t trained to still participate in their right to duel without having to worry about losing easily. Before they had been enacted, there were a few zu'aan who would practice self-defence.

It wasn’t practiced as a means to hurt others, but instead as a way to build strength and discipline. The self defense was never used against the other zu'aan, but came in handy when the kin’toni attacked the city. The zu'aan that had been practicing self-defence were the first that were consulted when the city watch was being enacted as that way they could train the other zu'aan. It didn’t take long to teach them as it wasn’t a hard practice, but before they had made enough weapons for everyone, they had to make sure they were able to defend themselves, should the need arise. By the time the city watch had been fully founded, there were over three thousand zu'aan within its ranks.

They were all decked out in fully body armour when they were on their rotations, although there were many that chose a lighter armour when they took their shifts, as it made it easier for them to effectively patrol the city. There was no argument from the regular zu'aan, as they were indifferent to what the members of the city watch would wear so long as they were protected from attack. Since there was no set leader, it didn’t matter what they wore or what they did, so long as they were always protecting the members of Ackunt city.

Religion

Religiously, the Ackunt zu'aan believed that their lives were gifts from a higher power. While their higher power had no name or gender, it was a widely believed custom that there was, in fact, a god. Because of this belief, they would pray every morning upon waking, as well as every night before sleeping. This was the bare minimum for them, which meant that the most praying, or thanking, that was done, was every time it felt needed. Each zu'aan was taught at a young age to thank their god for their lives and for the things they had been given in their lives. Every thought they had, especially one that lead to the prosperity of the clan was said to be sent to them, and so they were meant to thank their god for it.

The children took to the idea of the god easily, given that it wasn’t forced on them and instead, they would see their parents and other zu'aan from the city praying at different points in the day, and so they would do the same, finding comfort in the religion and routine. Since they were a democratic city, religion wasn’t a mandatory practice. If there were any zu'aan that felt they didn’t want to pray or believe in the god, they wouldn’t be forced to do so and they would simply sit out of prayers. There weren’t any church services to attend, although some of the elderly zu'aan would gather together and talk about what they were going to do when they met their god, since they believed that was where they were going to go when they did pass away.

Beliefs or not, when an elder zu'aan passed away, their wishes for their funeral would be honoured, especially if they had any religious requests. Some of them would ask to be cremated so their ashes would be sent to their god and accepted, and others would ask to be buried without being preserved in any way so their bodies would be taken by the earth and used for the growth of food. There was no end to the ideas that the Ackunt zu'aan came up with when it came to their religion as it seemed they were always evolving their beliefs. Anyone was open to believing their religion, just as anyone was open to not believing it, and while it seemed there would be many duels over the details of their god, usually the zu'aan would agree to disagree so they didn’t have to fight over something they couldn’t see.

Miscellany