Seshat el Medin

History

Found on a small, tropical island off the west coast of the peninsula, the kingdom of Seshat El Medin houses the city of Seshat El Medin, but more importantly The University of Thoth, widely considered the finest, principal center of learning. The university was the first established building on the island, shortly after the establishment of the island itself in 1080. It started slow at first, being nothing more than the founders of the university sharing ideas and dreams about what their school could possibly become. Once plans were set, some Adairian people were outsourced to build the school, as well other manual labor required on the island, bringing massive groups of Adair families to the island. As it grew, it brought about colorful markets and stands for shopping, lush sprawling gardens, and companies with some of the most innovative technology and magic around. The university grew in students and staff as word of the school traveled to the mainland. By the time the building was complete, the population of the island was made almost entirely of the school. The heavy usage of boats to cross brought commerce and business, helping it to grow into what it is today. The island is now constantly bustling with people from all over, either looking for the newest endeavors in magic or technology, exploring the university, or just basking in the warm sun and ocean breeze. Because of the growth of the university, many people have begun to live on stilt houses outside of the island's physical perimeter to save space for markets and student facilities on land.

Geography and Climate

Seshat el Medin is a very small island. Therefore, the civilization there has taken up just about every inch of land, leaving only some of the natural coasts and the underground and underwater cave systems untouched. Originally, it was described in writing by the original founders of the island, and eventually the university, that the island was covered in thick rainforest occuring mainly in the center of the island. The forest thinned out the closer it got to the pituresque beaches, with a few poking through the sand. One of the most notable geographical landmarks on the island was the large, sloped mountain to the North. It started from the center of the island and inclined gradually until the end of the island, where the steady climb turns into a treacherous drop from rocky cliffs. When the university was first built, it coexisted with the mounatin, fitting into its natural alcoves and dips, but as the school expanded, it resorted to flattening more of the terrain to make way for the campus. Now the mountain is more of a soft incline and plataeu than rounded peak. The beaches are not in their pristine, untouched state anymore either. The residents of Seshat take importance in keeping the beaches clean and do a great job of it, but there are still fishing docks running through its sand and imports sitting on its rocks. The once robust forest has been decreased as well. Some of the original trees still grow in areas of the commercial district and school, but the forest it once was is now no more than a memory few people on the island still have. In regards to climate, Seshat's weather is balmy and very favorable, especially for the tourists that visit the island to sunbathe on their towels in the sand or enjoy the fresh, ocean air. It does on occasion get very hot and it is always very humid. Sweat is no stranger on this land. It feels as though you can practically cut though the air it is so dense with moisture. The worst aspect of Seshat's weather is the possibilty of tropical storms, and once in every long while, hurricanes. However, since the founding of the island, only two hurricanes have ever hit and Seshat had recovered eventually each time. As for tropical storms, the residents know by now to prepare in the late winter, before the notorious spring stroms hit.

Governance

While Seshat has a traditional Hilael ruling noble family, the Khemeni family, and they are paid homage as the rightful representatives of the crescent queens will on the island, all of the direct ruling power belongs to the university council since the majority of the cities population either attend or are employed by the university, with the Khemeni acting mostly as figureheads. The full council is composed of every faculty member who has worked for the university for more than ten years, however the full council almost never meets, instead handing over their votes to an executive committee the Ibis scholars, for a new member to be appointed to the Ibis scholars is one of the few acts that requires the full council to be present. In addition to making decisions about the functioning of the university the Ibis scholars are responsible for making and enforcing the universities code of conduct, rules first set in place when the university was being built superseding any need for Seshat to have a formal legal code. Additionally to ascend to the higher echelons of Academia students must defend a thesis to the Ibis scholars.

Economics

Despite its small population of 5,000, made up mainly of students of the university, the island has the second largest Adairian population, as many of the Adairian families that were brought over to build the school decided to stay due to favorable weather and convenience. Because of the large Adarian population but the reluctance to have them in the daily life of the island, they were the first to build stilt houses on the water. This not only created more space for the economy to grow and thrive but brought back the connection to the earth that the Adair people lived through. When the Adair moved off the main island they began to regain their sense of self and went back to their roots as a commune-focused way of living rather than just laborers. With this shift in attitude, they became a larger part of the economic side of Seshat El Medin and promoted the markets. This regaining of confidence and self-ideology led prosperity back to the island in a classical way rather than an educational one. It curated a thriving culture of trade and bartering that is shared by the people of the island and promoted a sense of peace among the people, making them more than just who is in charge and who is laborers. This is not true for all people, as the educated of the island still judge the Adair and the non-educated Hillaleans. However, the peace that has transpired from this economic system has created a broader understanding of each culture and has led more people to the island for more than just education. Much of this economic period came from the Adair’s pirating system that was formed. They are able to keep their ships in the cave system throughout the island and keep the smaller boats at their stilt homes, which leads to ease of access. This system came from the Adair’s culture of raiding and connected them back to their ancestors and those still on the mainland. This system is what thrives in the corners of the island and promotes life outside of just the university, which keeps it small but open to everyone. The symbiotic relationship between the Adair and the Hillalel who are not in the university is prosperous and helps to keep the population alive and well. Most people know of the Adair’s pirating but don’t mention it out of fear of being the next target as it is still very misunderstood. This ties into the cave systems and the folklore that surrounds them as many people can not navigate the caves as the Adair can.

Social Relations and Demographics

They look specifically for brilliant minds and passionate souls, rather than people of certain demographics. Therefore, a diverse student body makes up Thoth, as the university is renowned, specifically for its student’s research and inventions. During their last years at the university, students are required to explore topics they are interested in and/or create something new. Some of, what is considered, the greatest innovations in magic and tech have been formed by previous students. Furthermore, many of the students have gone on to create businesses themselves, continuing to travel to other areas or settling down in the booming commercial district of the island. The housing is limited on the island, and of the limited housing, it is all quite pricey. The products sold and sights to be seen on the island are usually highly praised and of high quality, therefore, the island makes big profit on visitors, investors, and exports. This also means that the island is mainly made up of the upper class or wealthy, unless you are a student able to blow enough minds to be let in, a fisher, or an Adairian pirate being hired by the Hileanian leaders to do their dirty work.
A citizen's social status within Seshat el Medin is determined by their education level and annual exams. Educators are seen as the highest statuses and one of the most prestigious jobs within Seshat el Medin. While in school the annual exam scores place students into certain sections within the schools based on how high they scored. This way students will often be surrounded by other students who are generally the same "level" as them. There are 6 education levels that exist within the university, and after each exam you can only move up or down one level. So you cannot go from level 1 and jump to level 6, or level 6 to level 1 no matter how high or low you score on the exam. After level 6, the student will graduate and be integrated into society as a high status member of the kingdom. If you do not perform well in the school, you are generally viewed as the lowest status and will work more labor based activities such as being a fisherman and providing food for the kingdom. 
In terms of Demographics, Seshat el Medin has a small population of around 5,000 people. Despite having a small population, Seshat el Medin has the 2nd largest Adairian population. Seshat el Medin is very diverse, containing a wide variety of cultures from within and outside of Mahka Nata.

Cultural Influences

Culturally, Seshat has been influenced by people from all over bringing a wide variety of practices, values, and other aspects of their culture, due to the reputation of the school and the products of the markets. Teachers from far away lands can be seen in classrooms teaching a class on their traditional ways of learning a subject while the market and commercial district have a rainbow of foods, businesses, and products brought to the island by people of differeing cultures. The exposure to many cultures has made the citizens of Seshat generally accepting of new people, cultures, and experiences, especially among the students and teachers in the university.
One of the crucial cultures in Seshat is the Adair. Starting from their roles as laborers employed by Hilealian people, the Adair and Hileal people on the island have established a symbiotic relationship held together by economy, trading, and pirating. The Adair participate eagerly in the trading culture on the island, keeping it going in full swing, while the Hilealian people accept the service of Adairian's pirating culture in order to do their bidding. This relationship has allowed both cultures to influence eachother. As the Adairians on the island thrive off of the economic culture of the island while the Hilealian kingdom learns to appreciate the pirating that runs in Adair blood.

City Map

As for the layout of the island, a lot of value, and therefore area, is allotted to the university. The university campus and facilities take up roughly the top half of the island. The university sits on top of moderate hills and hugs cliffs that drop on the northern tip of the island. The southern end of the university marks the northern boundary of the commercial district. The western side of the university meets the western beaches of the island and the eastern side of the university doesn’t quite meet the coast because that area is where the wealthy and important figures of the island live, with private beaches behind the walls of their gated community. The commercial district controls the middle of the island and holds the hub of imports and exports on the eastern coast of the island facing the mainland. This area extends all the way to the south eastern end of the island where the main fishing district is. Alternatively, right next to this area on the south western tip of the island is where a majority of the island's Adair population lives. They mostly live right off the coast of this area in hand-built stilt-house communities that attach onto the shore. Furthermore, they have mastery over the cave systems that run under every inch of the island. The caves are not known to or explored by many but the Adair on this island, but it is known that one of the main entrances of these caves is around the stilt community they have built for themselves.

Type

Geopolitical, Duchy