Maeluja
Capital of the Aelgari Empire
The spider web of wooden bridges stretches out below and above them, connecting the houses, stores and platforms perched in the branches of the jungle. Here is Maeluja, the Aelgari City in the Trees.
They walk through the streets of the City in the Trees, and see the tall towers of the Empress’s castle. It is beautiful, its bulbous wooden towers and natural courtyards look like it grew from the great tree it rests upon. Stained glass windows are scattered across the palace, like the Heavens’ holy fruit.
The palace is a mix of natural pathways formed by branches and the forest of human-hewn rooms. Nothing is where it should be, and there are no straight corridors, no orthogonal patterns, only a curving mass of towers, chambers, hallways and beaded doorways.
Demographics
63% Southern Aelgari (the darkest skinned people who originally lived in the area where Maeluja now is, considered the "true Aelgari", mostly have higher positions in society)
22% Northern Aelgari (people from the annexed regions of the Aelgari Continent, mostly lighter skinned than the Southern Aelgari, but still pretty dark, usually mercantile or servant positions)
9% Islander (usually live in the slums, lower positions in society, looked down upon, not allowed in most prosperous establishments)
3% Western Rauhiri (they come from the recently annexed regions of Western Rauhir, generally lighter skin than Aelgari, but because they are western, their skin is darker than the average Rauhiri)
2% other (Monomak, Northerners, Dijali, Eastern Rauhiri, etc., etc.)
Government
Defences
The Upper City is connected to the Lower City and the outer edges of Maeluja by way of bridges. However, those bridges are all easily removable, preventing access to the Upper City. There are all sorts of traps and nets that could be easily activated at a moment's notice as well. The palace itself has a huge wall surrounding it with only a few gates that are heavily protected.
The Lower City, also known as the slums, however, is completely unprotected in event of attack. The outer edges of the city are also unprotected. By the river, however, there are a large number of secure warehouses that would probably be used a safe spot for citizens of the Lower City to hide in during an attack.
Industry & Trade
Infrastructure
Guilds and Factions
The Council is the governing body that runs most of the day-to-day operations of the Aelgari Empire, and its factions are especially prominent in Maeluja, the Empire's capital. The supporters of each Councillor also form their own organizations.
As with any large city, Maeluja has a good quantity of representatives from the Black Ember Guild. While their influences may not be obvious, they are definitely prominent. Few Councillors like to admit it, but many owe the Black Ember Guild at least one debt, and some owe their very position.
In the slums, the rather shady "Rebellion" recruits the disenchanted as it does everywhere, but it finds a lot of support in an area where the contrast between the life in the palace and the life in the slums is especially clear. However, regular raids from the Naia Caeli make it extremely dangerous to be an active member of the "Rebellion".
History
Maeluja used to be the annual meeting place for the Aelgari tribes before the Empire formed. It was a place of much bloodshed, as these meetings usually ended in disagreement and a place for the continuation of tribal feuds. Legend has it that when the first Empress united the tribes, she used the site of their traditional meeting place as a symbol for the union and future of the tribes.
Some say that she named it Maeluja (which means jewel or gem in Aelgai) as the jewel of her Empire. Others say that in the older dialect of Aelgai, maeluja did not yet mean anything and that she named it Maeluja as a mix of the words maij (city), aelo (righteous war), and ja (small), so that it literally means small city of righteous war. Those who argue this also tend to believe that the word maeluja was formed from the name of the capital, as it was and is considered a jewel of civilization.
Architecture
Geography
Natural Resources
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