Free Islands of Akano

"Ahhhh, smell that, lad? That's the smell of freedom!" The Free Islands of Akano are a very loose confederation of large and small islands off the coast of the great island of Cyrpus. Here lives a mixture of peoples that have traveled from afar over the course of centuries with the rise and fall of empires and colonial efforts. As it stands today, they exist as a picturesque model of Sea-Fare Mannish culture and lifestyle with a large splash of Imperial influence thrown in. The Free Islands consist of four large land masses: Starland Isle, Shardsbank Isle, Banro Isle and Sorasol Isle. Surrounding them are several smaller islands with mostly coastal ports that lead into the few local villages further inland. Akano is the collective name given to the islands honoring the now dead pirate turned political figure, Captain Akano, who facilitated the political union of the various groups, towns and villages of the islands establishing them as "The Free Islands."

Structure

The Free Islands are officially a confederation with no central government. Each island governs itself as it sees fit while none of the other islands get involved directly in one another's affairs; or at least that's how it's supposed to work. Although there is no central ruling party or class, the port-city of Shardsbank is undoubtedly the unofficial capital of the Free Islands and the biggest players of said city carry the most weight in regards to general trade, defense and expeditionary interests of the Free Islands. In Shardsbank, the Open Waters Company is the prime association of ship captains that protect the trading sloops that travel through the Middle Sea. Below them, the Sailor Gangers, the Barnacle Brigade and the Melodious Mermaids pick up the slack that the Open Water's Company cannot handle. If taken together, all the different Free islands ship companies boast a hefty fleet of ships comprised of various fast attack sloops, battle-line ships and frigates. However, the companies work in tandem only to defend trade routes and attacks on the Islands themselves. The former only by legal agreement between the companies and the latter by obligation to maintain the political freedom of the Islands

Culture

The Free Islands of Akano are a hub of Sea-Fare Mannish culture and heritage where it takes on a unique flare of residual, Imperial influence. Although Emperals and Mannish cannot procreate, the Emperals that remained after the withdrawal of the Imperial Empire of Unicora were more or less welcomed by the native Mannish population. Emperals being the tall, nimble and imposing creatures that they are were hired as mercenaries, body guards, reliable sailors and workmen by the more financially minded Mannish. In time, Emperals established enclaves and towns all over the Islands with more numerous Mannish surrounding them with trade and visitation abounding between them.