The Shijie Empire: Songtu

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SONGTU
The Gallows Woods

   The second most southern province, and the spiritual center of the Empire. Songtu is marked by peaceful pine forests neighboring an inland sea, with its capital seated on a large floating island just off shore. Great mediators, the Songtu value patience, diplomacy, justice and honesty— the guilty have no place here, and often become prey to terrible things should they choose to linger. The Songtu are ruled by committee, with High Judges presiding over the needs of the province.

   For Songtu, who value justice and judgment, the magic of the land works differently than in any other part of the Empire. In Songtu, victims of crime who perish as a result are transformed into massive, skull-faced wolves. Their antlers remain as they were in life, though they soon become covered in moss rather than seasonal velvet. These creatures, far from being a horror for the Province, are seen as near-holy agents of justice. The creatures can scent guilt, and are drawn to the guilty. They will pursue criminals, often the ones who caused the creature's initial death, for days upon weeks upon months, gathering more and more of their kind as the guilt compounds with every moment of avoided retribution. If a criminal runs for too long, they will find themselves trapped soon enough, and soon made the victim themselves as the creatures begin to feed.

   Everyday citizens recognize the valuable service these creatures provide, and will often build small shrines and shelters outside of their homes for the creatures to use if one happens to be passing by.

Pronunciation: SONG-too
Capital: Jingshen
Demonym: Songtu-ren
Kingdom Colors: Earthy green-brown, green and bright crimson red

Table of Contents

• Regional Culture
• Magic and Religion
• Politics, Law and International Relations
• Technology, Language and Economics
• Race
• Gender and Sexuality
• Available Ranks

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Regional Culture

Songtu-ren dress in thick silken robes that are wrapped tightly around the body, with a flowing jacket overtop. Patterns are often simple, reflecting quiet aspects of nature such as leaves or trees. Colors tend to be darker, muted earthy tones. The brightest aspect of Songtu dress is their makeup, with vibrant red-orange eyeliner and eyeshadow common for both sexes. Jewelry tends to be made of bone, or mimic the bones of local animals, such as pendants of bird skulls. Songtu tend to keep their hair pinned back with red or green combs, without any further ornamentation.

   The Songtu have a heavy spirit-conjuring culture. They are deeply in tune with all manner of spirits, from nature spirits to ancestors, to lingering ghosts. It is a common practice in Songtu to speak with the dead and behave as if the departed are still living citizens. Ghosts may testify in criminal cases, if they are willing and able. Many Songtu possess the gift of clairaudience, able to listen to particularly vocal spirits and discern what they are saying. Particularly talented spirit-workers are said to even be able to bring these spirits into normal view, with proper rituals.

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MAGIC

   Magic within the Shijie Empire is both subtle and potent. For the Shijie-ren, there is an understanding that magic is not this alternate, arcane, otherworldly influence. Rather, magic is a facet of the natural world, in the land and its people. The continent of Panzhong is rife with its own natural magics that influence flora, fauna, and even the weather. It is especially potent within the Provinces of the Empire, with the power to transform the people who live there.

   Personal practice of magic largely expresses itself as a form of alchemy. The Shijie-ren are skilled in developing elemental oils that can be bottled and applied in whatever way the user may wish. Freezing oils may be applied to clothing for Gushui-ren who travel to hotter climates, for example, and burning oils may be applied to weapons to give them a constant flame.

   Spellwork, in the classical Le'raanian sense, is less common than alchemy, and any verbal components are utilized more in the form of chanting to let different nature spirits know they are being called upon. Herbal medicines and appealing to spirits in this manner are common forms of magic healing in the Empire.

RELIGION

   The Shijie religion is largely animistic. Every part of the natural world has a spirit, and each 'type' (water, stone, etc) has its own 'spirit King' and courts. Only someone of similar rank may implore help from a ranking spirit, as it is seen as rude for someone of a lower class to ask for a powerful spirit to fix his problems. Offending a spirit carries very real consequences, as doing so will invite terrible luck in whatever realm that spirit occupies. Angering a water spirit might cause floods, or fire spirits to refuse to light lanterns, or burn a house down.

   Outside of these social restrictions, however, there is very little dogma. Care and keeping of local spirits is done primarily by local priests who are responsible for the maintenance of shrines and offerings. House spirits, similarly, are cared for by the members of that household.

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GOVERNMENT

   Within each Province, there are local forms of government to manage all aspects of that Province. All swear fealty to the Imperial courts, however, and the Emperor's word is absolute law.

   Songtu is overseen by four Lord Judges, with four High Judges beneath them overseeing each Songtu city. The Lord Judge presides over major trials to do with the well-being of the province as a whole, as well as acting as legal advisor to the Emperor as needed. The High Judges act in a similar manner for each city they preside over, and will convene at the capital with the Lord Judges over matters regarding each region of the province as needed. Each High Judge has three judges who assist them in city-wide court decisions, followed by juries and lawyers and legislators, etc..

Separate from the Judges are the Advocates, who possess a unique place in the governmental system of Songtu. Advocates are members of the spiritual population, much akin to priests, who specialize in divination and meditation. An advocate's job is a divine mandate to challenge precedent, and bring prior decisions under scrutiny as they become outdated. While to an outsider they may seem like troublemakers, challenging the rule of law, in Songtu it is understood that they serve a very important purpose and prevent stagnation.

POLITICS

   As Songtu values truth and justice above all else, they are often given the role of peacekeepers within the Empire. They have a friendly relationship with Gushui to the south, being similarly close to the dangers of Nhoplan and the Bone Giants. However, Songtu is limited by Imperial Law, and so cannot provide relief for their southern cousins without invoking the wrath of the Emperor. In the past, many Lord Judges have advocated on Gushui's behalf, which has cemented Gushui's loyalty to them as friends.

NOTABLE LAWS

   Songtu possesses the usual laws against theft, murder, extortion, etc.. These laws also extend to the local spirits, and so citizens must take care that they are not harming spiritual beings or spaces with their actions. Permits are required for foraging, the building of new structures, and other things that will affect the natural landscape in any matter - these permits not only have to be approved by the courts, but by the priesthood as well to guarantee that no spirits will be made angry by things such as logging or polluting rivers.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

   The Empire has a somewhat tumultuous relationship with their neighboring countries, with only a few exceptions. Nhoplan has been fierce enemies with the southern Provinces for millenia, and the borders between Gushui and Nhoplan remain highly contested. To the north, the Province of Sheng-gu endures skirmishes with Muqin de liwu, though these altercations are far more guerilla style and sporadic than conflicts seen in the south.

Liwu: Enemy
Rulastinia: Ally
Nhoplan: Enemy
Veila Kaur: Somewhat hostile
Le'raana: To be determined

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TECHNOLOGY

   Shijie technology is fueled by their advancements in alchemy. They have unlocked gunpowder, freezing concoctions, perpetual fire, and even oils that make bone weapons as hard as forged steel.

LANGUAGE

   Embass is the official imperial language. There are various dialects of Embass, and it can vary from Province to Province. The language is highly tonal, with great emphasis on interpersonal propriety and rankings. It often goes hand in hand with complex body language such as eye contact, bowing, and even the physical space between two persons.

ECONOMICS

   The Shijie Empire relies on thin metal markers to represent their currency. The markers themselves are not made of valuable metals, but instead represent a certain amount of tradeable goods based on a symbolic stamp. An ox, for instance, might cost a hundred beast marks, versus a chicken might only cost two or three. Bags of rice, wheat and vegetables fall under plant marks, metal resources mountain marks, and so on. Local economies depend on what is available to trade, and the value of certain items can vary depending on the needs of the Province.

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RACE


_{A chart of provincial styles of dress, as well as the antlers grown in each Province}

   The Shijie-ren are small in stature, with their tallest citizen being around 5'10". The Shijie-ren are humanoid in shape and bipedal, with skin that ranges from earthy-pale for the southern provinces, to a deep tan in the northern provinces. Eye color also varies by province, with blues for the Gushui-ren, greens for the Songtu-ren, oranges and yellows for the Huohu-ren, and purples and pinks for the Sheng-gu-ren. Their pupils are slitted, and their eyes have an angled slant regardless of province.

Every Shijie-ren possesses small, white dots on either side of the bridge of their nose, a natural marking that is often flaunted with makeup. Their ears are pointed as one would expect from an elf, with the tips sloped back parallel to their skull. All Shijie-ren of adult age grow antlers regardless of gender, and these antlers vary in shape and size depending on the region. These antlers shed on a yearly basis, and it's common fashion in the imperial city to wear elaborate headdresses during shedding season to give the impression of being perpetually antlered.

   All Shijie-ren have long, thick black hair, and it is considered disgraceful to have close-cut short hair. As the Empire often shaves the heads of criminals as a form of penance, having shorter hair marks one as being a recovering criminal and can result in social stigma. Hair is often pulled back as a point of fashion, and elaborate hairstyles vary by province and whether the Shijie-ren in question has shed their antlers for the year or not.

   Unlike humans, or the Anathanati of Rulastinia, the Shijie-ren's legs taper off into thin, deer-like feet with cloven hooves. Another difference is the state of their teeth and bones, which are a dark grey rather than white. The most important difference between Shijie-ren and any other race, however, is their heart. Each Shijie-ren is born with their heart semi-exposed, with the coloration of the heart and surrounding skin dependent on their home province and matching their eye color. The hearts themselves pulse brighter depending on their emotional state, with quicker heartbeats causing an almost bio-luminescent glow.

   Children are born with fawn-spots on their back that fade with age, and these patterns of spots are often used as a form of divination to determine the child's fortune. Belief in this divination varies from person to person, but is widely accepted by imperial society as a whole. Often, the patterns of spots on royal children will be read to see who will succeed the throne, and there's a rather lucrative business to be had for fortune tellers who know which children to divine good fortunes for.

_{A cheat sheet for the Songtu-ren, with possible eye colors}

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GENDER

   As a society, the Shijie-ren are mostly patriarchal, though women are highly valued due to the sheer amount of work that goes into childbearing and rearing. Shijie-ren possess no mammary glands, and the way infants are fed is through a siphon of energy through the heart windows. Only the biological mother can feed her offspring in this way, until the child is old enough to be weaned onto "real food". Motherhood, as a result, is a full time job, and is treated as such within the Empire. It has the unfortunate circumstance of pigeon-holing women into family-centric roles in some provinces.   

   In Songtu, where telling the truth is more important than anything else, the Songtu-ren are completely free to explore their gender and express themselves accordingly. Many Songtu-ren are openly transgender, and nonbinary pronouns are common. However, they will often fall into specific gender roles as most closely matches their personal truth.

SEXUALITY

   Sexuality, much like gender, is dependent on how the individual prefers to live their life. Unlike in Gushui, where multiple extramarital affairs are the norm, Songtu-ren more often remain in close, exclusive partnerships, as these unions are based on both parties being willing participants and more about their relationship than things such as producing heirs. Songtu-ren differ from their northern cousins in this manner, as it's not uncommon for these partnerships to be childless, and there is no apparent rush to create as many heirs as possible. Legal statutes exist that allow households to pass on their estate to non-relatives, and so it's more important to be named in a will than it is to be blood-related to the previous owner of an estate.

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AVAILABLE RANKS

Lord Judge: [4 Ranks available] The judge who presides over all major trials to do with the well being of the Province as a whole, as well as acting as a legal advisor for the Emperor on demand.

High Judges: [16 Ranks available] Four High judges are appointed to each city, and convene at the capital for major decisions there to argue the needs of each region of the province.

Judges: [3 Ranks per High Judge, 12 per city] Oversee minor court decisions within the city.

Advocates: [Unlimited] Advocates are members of the spiritual population, much akin to priests, who specialize in divination and meditation. An advocate's job is a divine mandate to challenge precedent, and bring prior decisions under scrutiny as they become outdated.

And then juries, lawyers, legislators, etc. at an unlimited basis.