Umxunt City Zu'aan

History

Umxunt City lies upon the scattered islands of the Zyrxib Archipelago, a place formed thousands of years ago after a great volcanic eruption. Before the outbreak, the city of Umxunt was a popular, high end, tourist destination. The clear, blue water and beautiful, full-of-life trees were quite the attraction. It was a city that was always bustling and full of life. During the Awakening age, those that had been visiting decided to take refuge there. Luckily for them, the city was pretty self-sufficient. It could almost be called a country of its own.

The full-time staff and permanent residents were familiar with the area and its resources. Due to this, they were able to quickly take control, set up a perimeter, and create a running city. It didn’t take long for the clear gap in statuses to be made apparent. Umxunt had mainly been a city for the wealthy to visit and to live. Those who didn’t have wealth still visited the city, they just weren’t allowed access to everything. With this new world, they had no choice but to adapt. While on the outside, it was a beautiful city that seemed to be the perfect place to settle down and escape the hordes.

Beneath the glamour, it had become a city rife with corruption. The gap in statuses would be what decides everything in the city. The wealthy called themselves Prospers and they deemed the poor Pae’hi. The Prospers settled inland, with the now dormant volcano at their backs. They believed that it would be easier to defend and it would be easier to hide within the forest should the kin’toni make it to the city. The Prospers built a giant gate surrounding their settlement of large houses to keep the Pae’hi out. Armed zu’aan took guard, glaring at any Pae’hi that got too close.

The Pae’hi settled closer towards the sea, not that they really had a choice in the matter. This allowed them to be put to work fishing, which is another reason the Prospers put them there. The Pae’hi settled into more moderate homes, some of which were just simple huts. They had neither the status nor the resources for anything more. Revolts rattled the city as tensions rose from the blatant disregard of the Pae’hi from the Prospers several times within those first few years. The Prospers, with their armed guards, were able to snuff all the revolts out.

They made it clear that any disregard of their power and authority would be met with violence. The Pae’hi were then put to work. Their jobs were simply to serve in some way. Whether through hunting for food, serving food, taking care of young, or manual labor. The highest position they were allowed to have was as a servant of the Prospers. While the Pae’hi worked, the Prospers lived lavish and carefree lives. They felt there was no need for them to do anything, that hard labor was beneath them. This is how it was before the outbreak and how it still is to this day.

Psychology

It’s quite easy for someone to lose themselves in the beauty of Umxunt City, but there is a darkness woven in between the cracks behind the facade of beauty. There is a clear hierarchy and an obvious abuse of power if you look close enough. Before the outbreak, this was a city made for the rich and powerful. This continues to be the case after the outbreak. The majority of zu’aan here were born or married into wealthy families, or they created their wealth themselves. Just because the world they were used to ended, didn’t mean that everything would change for them. Due to this, there are two distinct caste classifications who took root in Umxunt.

The Prospers are the elite and wealthy. The mentality of the Prospers, is very entitled and can sometimes be quite cruel and vindictive. They view those who came without wealth as beneath them, and they treat them as such. They even go as far as to make them fight each other for entertainment. Something about the violence gets their blood pumping.

The Prospers, while seemingly a close community behind their faux gilded gates, have a deep mistrust of each other. Sentiments from the old world continue to bleed into the present. There has always, even before the outbreak, been discord between the wealthy as they always try to outdo each other. Even in this apocalyptic world, decades later, that hasn’t changed. The wealthy have and will probably always be distrustful of each other. There are always eyes and ears all around the city, each reporting to different zu’aan about others. Secrets are a rare commodity in Umxunt.

The Pae’hi are the poor and desolate. The mentality of the Pae’hi, is desperate and angry. They hold the Prospers in contempt, while trying their best to survive in a city that is almost no better than the outside world. Fervent displeasure suffocates them. There have been many who have tried to stand up against the wealthy, only to have been beaten and dragged onto the streets for all to see or thrown in prison.

Unlike the Prospers, the Pae’hi are close to each other. They stick together and try their best to protect each other. They work well together and all pull their weight. In this harsh city that seems determined to tear them down, they try their best to keep each other up. There is a sense of familial ties between them.

The cruel treatment and sense of entitlement from the Prospers and the desperate resentment from the Pae’hi have had decades to fester and forge deep tensions that refuse to ease.

The separation of these factions have created a disharmony beneath the surface of the city. The Pae’hi and the Prospers have no loyalty towards each other. If possible, they would leave each other to rot. The thin string holding the city together only exists due to the outside threat of the kin’toni. Though reluctant to admit it, they both need each other to survive.

Culture

There are two separate cultures in Umxunt City. The culture of the Prospers can be considered glamorous, vain, and unnecessarily extravagant. They hold parties, drink excessively, and dress up in their fancy, gold-trimmed clothing. The Prospers have a very carefree attitude, as though there are not ravenous, blood-thirsty kin’toni hordes who want to tear them apart. Their part of Umxunt City has been surrounded by gates plated in faux gold and fancy looking, gun-carrying guards. They care very little about what happens beyond the gates.

The Prospers are very fond of the Pit, an arena-like area at the base of the volcano in the northern part of the archipelago. They bet on the Pae’hi and put them against each other. It’s a violent and bloody way for them to pass the time and get entertainment. They draw the Pae’hi in with promises of wealth, land, and a place inside their shiny gates. They constantly hold grand feasts and are always coming up with reasons to get drunk. There is no sense of togetherness or family. They constantly try to one up each other. Everything is a show.

They hold not just wealth in high regards, but physical appearances as well. One can always expect to see a Prosper with flawless, shining faces, extravagant hairstyles with not a hair out of place, and clean clothing. They put lots of effort into how they look. Bold colors and styles are an absolute must.

The culture of the Pae’hi is a bit more familial and warm. While not rich in terms of wealth, it is rich in nature. The Pae’hi are loyal and very close to each other. There is a true sense of family when it comes to them. They look out for each other and try their best to survive together. Luckily for them, as long as they stay out of the way of the Prospers, they can hold their own little festivals. One particular and popular festival they have is the Festival of the Water. Their part of the city is closer to the water, which also leaves them in charge of fishing for the entire city.

The Festival of the Water is a grand, as grand as it can be, event where the Pae’hi celebrate the sea. Over the course of three days, they play in the water, dance, swim, and enjoy the sun. There’s food, mainly seafood, and music. The festival was created to give their thanks to Amai, the goddess they believe controls the sea. There are rumors that some Prospers will sneak down to join in on the festivities. Seafood is a major part of Pae’hi culture. They believe that a diet of seafood is the healthiest and most fulfilling diet and a blessing from Amai.

The Prospers put no such sentiments into food. Food is simply meant to sustain life. As long as it has a hard to pronounce name and looks fancy, it doesn’t matter what it is or where it comes from. The difference in these two cultures couldn’t be any more obvious.

Government

The government in Umxunt City is a corrupt, greedy, authoritarian system run by a select group of Elite Prospers, who are considered the top of the top. These Prospers come from truly elite families that have had power since well before the outbreak. There is no election system in Umxunt as the same families have ruled the city for decades. They have made it very clear that no other families would ever be in any positions of power as long as they live. Any complaints or issues about a member of this group or about the city, brought up by a Pae’hi, are immediately dismissed.

Complaints brought up by Prospers are taken into consideration, but ultimately nothing really changes. They feel that since everyone else is beneath them, there is no need to listen to their complaints as they should be happy living in the same city. The particular group of Prospers are at the top of the food chain and only they decide what happens in the city. They are the judge, jury, and executioner. Their decisions are final and absolute. They make the laws, dish out what many consider to be unfair punishments, and imprison zu’aan for the smallest of offenses.

They expect not just the Pae’hi to be completely subservient to them, but the other Prospers as well. Those who do not obey are severely punished. Punishments can range from severe beatings to life imprisonment. There have even been a few cases where the punishment was death. Those zu’aan were bound and thrown out of the city into the hands of the kin’toni hordes. Or bound and thrown into the sea, it all depends on the severity of the “crime.” The level of severity for crimes are constantly changing depending on their mood. One day, theft may lead to a severe beating.

The next day, the punishment may lead to a death sentence. These punishments are mainly for the Pae’hi. Prospers have a different set of punishments. Most punishments for crimes are imprisonment for a short period of time or a temporary loss of privileges. The most severe punishment for a Prosper is losing their status, wealth, and being demoted to a Pae’hi. When this happens, they lose all privileges that came with being a Prosper and are no longer allowed into the gates. For a Prosper, this is the worst thing that could ever happen to them.

There have been very few Prospers who have faced this punishment, but there have been a lot of close calls. The Elite Prospers love to use this threat to keep the other Prospers in line. There is no doubt that the government of Umxunt City is as corrupt as they come. They care very little about the outside world and the struggles of other zu’aan. The Elite Prospers goal is not to protect this city from the kin’toni. They could care less about the Pae’hi and protecting them, all while holding themselves above the very laws they created. Their goal is and has always been to protect their way of life by any means necessary.

Military

Just like the citizens of Umxunt are divided, so is its military. The majority of the military is controlled by and made up of the Prospers. They are dressed in fancy armor, more for show than anything, and are heavily armed. While the Prospers have the numbers and firepower, the Pae’hi are the ones who hold the front lines. The Prospers see them as nothing but disposable pawns. Joining the military isn’t mandatory on the Prospers side, but it is considered an honor. There is a bit of prestige that comes with the position. Prospers join the military to increase their family status.

With the Prospers leaving the majority of the fighting to the Pae’hi, they have been able to conserve ammo for their guns. They force the Pae’hi to confront the enemy first, allowing themselves time to hide or get away. Every male Pae’hi is expected and ordered to join the military once their eighteenth year has come. They are not allowed to leave until they are no longer capable of fighting, whether that’s due to age or an injury like severe limb loss, or when they die. There were some Pae’hi, in the earlier years, that were able to move up to the low ranks of the Prospers.

This got rid of the mandatory order of joining the military. While the majority of the military is made up of men, a few women are a part of it too. All women within the military are Pae’hi, as Prosper women believe that joining the military is beneath them. They believe that they are far too important, too beautiful, and too wealthy to put themselves at risk. The Prospers side of the military is mainly for show, like everything dealing with the Prospers. The only thing that makes them so intimidating is the plethora of firearms they’ve managed to preserve and the fancy looking, fake gold armor.

Their mental fortitude is far below that of the Pae’hi. There’s no order of strategy with them. The Pae’hi are very different. Their struggle to survive the city has given them a strong and unwavering mentality. They do not shy away in the face of adversity. They work well together and are able to strategize efficiently. The Pae’hi have been able to successfully protect the city from the countless attacks from the kin’toni. While they have lost brothers and sisters over the decades, they still continue to hold the front lines with dignity and without fear.

The Pae’hi see serving in the military as an honor, as the Prospers do. Unlike the Prospers, the honor is genuine and not for show. They feel that it is their duty to protect their people and their way of life. They would gladly give their lives if it meant their Pae’hi brethren would live. The only reason the Pae’hi have not been able to go against the Prospers is due to the firepower the Prospers have. Without that, they would be able to take on the Prospers.

Religion

The Prospers do not worship anything as religion is not something that exists for them. Gods are something that would be considered above them, and to the Prospers, there is nothing above them. They believe that the only ‘higher power’ out there is the power of wealth and status. As long as one has wealth and status, one can be a god. The amount of wealth you have determines your power. The Prospers believe that wealth is the key to happiness and that those who worship “made-up gods are fools. They often mock the Pae’hi and other zu’aan outside of the city for believing in a god.

They believe it makes them even more pathetic and weak. The Pae’hi are highly religious and worship Amai, the Goddess of the Sea. They believe that Amai brought life unto a desolate world. For the city, they believe she created pressure under the volcano of Zyrxib and caused it to erupt. She then cast water to cool the lava, thus creating the islands of the archipelago. Life eventually found a way, as it always does thanks to her, and created what is seen today.Amai is depicted as a kind and benevolent goddess, as long as one respects the sea.

By worshipping Amai, she rewards them with calm waters that allow them to fish, safety from the kin’toni, and a way of life. Amai is also considered a vengeful goddess towards those who do not respect the sea. The Pae’hi believe that when Amai is angry with them, she sends heavy rains, rough waters, and scarce fish. They believe that the formation of dark clouds that bring harsh storms are a sign of her anger and set off to try to appease her with various rituals and worship at the edge of the sea.

The Pae’hi start each morning, without fail, in blind silence by the sea. Closing their eyes, they each stand where the land meets the sea and allow the water to wash over their feet. They then cup the sea into their hands and let it fall onto their heads. They believe that by doing this, Amai will watch over them and bless them with good fortune for the day. There is a ceremony or prayer given for everything the Pae’hi do. It is considered a sacred necessity, that if not fulfilled will lead to dire consequences. They must be given before things like hunts, marriage, funerals, and childbirth.

And it must be given after to show their thanks. Amai is praised or worshipped in some way or form everyday and sometimes several times a day. They believe that everything they have is thanks to Amai, including the safety from the kin’toni. Without Amai, there would be nothing and they would be nothing. Amai is described as being made up of water. They believe she has no solid form which allows her to swiftly move through the sea. The creatures of the sea are drawn to her, as she is life, and constantly swim around and through her.

Miscellany

Nearby Groups

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Umxunt City Zu'aan

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