Benefice Zeranzeri was created to answer the threat of the Ophionic Empire and bring the
Kindled back to the surface of Ainos. They did not, however, leave all concerns of the
Underhollows behind. The Fissure, the great shaft connecting
Herezerai to the Underhollows, is the physical bond to their past, and mirrors the political and social ties.
The Teind
Zeranzeri retains a duty to Benefice Razcir and its ruling sept, Hyrenzi, the original patrons of Azeri and the other older septs, and to Ithrinzal, the Great Benefice to which both Razcir and Zeranzeri are patron. Every fifth year, the septs are obliged to dispatch one in twenty of their new duty strength - a count which includes fighters, strategists, battle mages, and various categories of artisan in the first decade of their adult career - to join the forces of Ithrinzal in the defence of the seals of the Underhollows.
This levy, known as the Tend, is rather resented by the Zeranzeri, and especially the younger members who face a ten year tour with a survival rate of three in five, but the elders insist on the importance of the duty, and of the defence of the seals. Officially, only kindled are required to fulfil the Tend, but in contrast to the young ash
Elves, many of the Unkindled see it as an honour, and a confirmation of their families' place in their septs, to be selected.
Downtown
Miles of Underhollow lie between the bottom of the Fissure and the primary tunnels and cuttings of Arazcir, a mixture of natural caverns and Void-touched darkening, both of which hold dire perils. After the initial assault by Ophionic forces, the
Kindled of Benefice Razcir and their hollower allies created a fortified camp from which to launch their counterattack. Now, tents and a wooden pallisade have been replaced by stone walls and buildings, although 'Downtown' is still a fortified camp at heart.
Populated by a Zeranzeri garrison and the artisans who support then, as well as their families and various store- and tavern-keepers, Downtown is a growing settlement. An assignment to the Downtown garrison is dangerous, although it is nothing compared to the Third. Many from poorer families commit to have years in the garrison for the generous stipend, and many of these end up staying on, appreciating the sense of purpose and structure that life in the garrison town offers.
Downtown residents rarely spend much time on the surface, but young people from Herezerai often take one of the twelve elevators - of which eight are accessible to the public, the other four reserved for military use and freight - for the imagined thrill of drinking in a tavern under periodic siege.
The perils faced by the garrison are not imagined, however. The Fissure has a peculiar gravity to it, drawing in tunnelling beasts, as well as aberrations seeking to sieze the passage to the surface, hostile Underhollow clans and even - on rare occasions - Lillothist septs of silk elves, as Kindled seduced by the Netwearer are called.
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