Kimikal (Kim-ee-kahl)

Kimikal is the jewel of Akatlan, the city of plenty. The streets are clean, the robust middle class fills tea shops and markets, foreign merchants come from far and wide to trade, and powerful wizards can be seen with marvelous items and inventions. This is one of the twin capitals of the Republic of Akatlan and one of the closest partners of the Darzan University. Wonders are at work here! And not just magical ones - technological ones. Brand-new steam engines push water through the city's pipes and enhance the power of the factories, demonstrating the industrial possibilities of that novel technology. Cheap goods from the more factorial river cities are sold here, allowing for the middle class to simply buy their clothing and everyday goods, opening up hours of leisure time for everyday citizens. Art, public participation in politics, and robust hobby cultures have followed.
Of course there is a cost to this. As you might guess, this wealth and prosperity of Kimikal depends on labor exploitation. Much of this occurs in other cities, granted - the river factories are more popular destinations for coerced indentured labor - but it is still present here. Heathen workers, kept as a perpetual underclass and brutally policed, work in the city's great mills and factories. Resident workers, poor Sunekans who have managed to claw their way here, are used as servants and farm-workers.

Demographics

150,000 humanoids: 35% Dryad, 25% Human, 20% Prism, 10% Hybrids, 7% Kobold, 3% Other

Government

Kimikal is led by an elected mayor, who is chosen by those of full citizen rank every decade. The mayor's power is kept fairly limited by the Tlakra, and is largely limited to the city's core. Many powers are distributed to local district community leaders, the Tano, who are like sub-mayors. Tano are elected every five years by full citizens - if there are under a hundred citizens in a district or if there is a contested election, the priests get to pick. Tano from more elite districts tend to wield more influence and authority. The Tano tend to bicker, but can be stripped of their power or otherwise forced to cooperate by the central government. 
This all makes for a mess of a government, though it is currently at its most streamlined. The current mayor is Mayor Talako Seretzin, a harsh and severe dryad who has now been mayor for the last thirty years. Mayor Seretzin has managed to work against the systems of Kimikal, bringing the Tano to heel and the bureaucrats into line as a unified force. The city government basically orbits them (exactly what the system was designed to discourage), and they have used this to improve the infrastructure. They have improved the roads, sewers, canals, hospitals, and schools. They have built quite a fan following around their cool demeanor. They have also made the city more class-stratified, more openly hostile to Heathen workers, and more electorally rigged.
The Mayor, who is nicknamed Mazamati ("stern-honorable mother"), is popular among the full citizens of Kimikal but is unpopular with those of lower legal status (especially Heathens). They also have a number of enemies in the central government - notably, Tlakra Ilio Kapentzin. This has stirred a bit of local governmental chaos recently, as some of the Tano have started to swing out of the Mayor's control. 
For the local Tanos, all of whom have their own small circles of bureaucrats:

• The Tano of the Crown District is an eccentric wild card more loyal to the Congress of Skies than the Mayor; good at public infrastructure, but considered untrustworthy by many in power
• The Tano of the Finance District is a diligent and effective leader, and the Mayor's most loyal ally. They run their bureaucracy smoothly, but are unbending in their approach to the law and the Suneka
• The Tano of the College District is an isolated neutral party with close ties to the Darzan University 
• The Tano of the Citizen's District is a loyal stooge to the mayor, charismatic and prone to political fearmongering but only baseline acceptable at doing the real work
• The Tano of the Industrial District is a cooperative priest, an idealist with ties to Orchid of Blue 
• The Tano of the Heathen District is a vengeful loyalist, who distrusts the people in their district and focuses almost all their funds and efforts on policing and "counter-espionage"
• The Tano of Grindstone District is an idealist who has recently become more rebellious towards the Mayor. They are a lawyer who managed to win (despite many lawyers being distrusted) thanks to charisma and politicking - and they do run the courts well. 

Defences

The Crown District, Citizen's District, and College District are protected by the city walls, as well as the great fortress of the city: Castle Ruzikot. Castle Ruzikot is a large military complex that has been built up over the years, with imposing Calazan architecture armed with Sunekan artillery.

Industry & Trade

Kimikal is an intersection of service, agriculture, and industrial economies. Tea, lumber, food, and spices are imported here for preparation and sale; pottery, buttons, and components are manufactured here as well. The large middle class also means that there are a lot of specialty trades and services to be bought here - Kimikal is a city of luxuries, with a more active small-scale economy in the city. One might call this the "most capitalist" part of the Suneka, as the personal economy and the large-scale economy intersect more here than it usually does.

Infrastructure

The traditional infrastructure of Kimikal is a mess, a patchwork of small neighborhood systems that barely run. Thankfully, the last forty years have seen a massive overhaul of Kimikal's water systems, sewer systems, and school systems. Now, the city is a model for rationalist design. 
One of the key parts of this are the great steam-powered waterworks: a battery of coal-burning engines push and pull water through sewers and pipes that criss-cross the city. Local systems only need to connect to the main arteries of fresh water and wastewater, which are fairly frequent in the main parts of the city.

Districts

Alkalatza/The Crown District: The government and clerk district, the legislative heart of the city where the Mayor's palace and the Twin Congresses. Home to the oldest architecture in Kimikal, Alkalatza is a mixture between the new and monumental, and the humble and traditional. It houses elites, artisans, and fishermen altogether - an unusually class-diverse district. In recent years, Alkalatza has drawn up legal restrictions to prevent non-Citizens from moving here. A large military complex also attracts a large number of soldiers to this district. 
Apetkota/The Financial District: The financial district, that is also the medicine district - both finance and healing are the realm of the Cult of Ozotl, which rules here as a major local power. Business flourishes here, as does trade - Apetkota is more open as districts go, and any traveler with coin will typically stay here (those without coin will probably end up in Yaxiva). A smattering of different classes live here - poorer citizens, middle-class residents, and elite citizens reside in Apetkota. 
Udrika/The College District: The college district, home to the College of Stars. The Udrika is an autonomous upper class district, with the largest houses and finest foods here. The most powerful citizens of Kimikal gravitate here, even moreso than to Alkalatza. Poorer people also live here (someone needs to clean, cook, and the like), but most of the non-elite residential blocks tend to be tied to specific cliques in a semi-feudal manner. The Udrika is a more international district, as many outsiders from The Darzan University come here to trade, though this tends to be concentrated in a few markets and streets near the College. 
Ayaxa/The Citizen's District: The middle class district, a segment of the city open only to those in the Citizen legal class. The Citizen's Associations (essentially unions only open to Citizens) are a powerful force here, opposed by the wealthier elites within the district. This is a center of artisan production, as well as farming and fishing. 
Mokli/The Industrial District: The poor industrial district, where the city's factories are. The most grid-like portion of the city, with dozens of identical tenement houses and shops, all built to supply labor for the industrial complexes. These factories are: The Three Towers of the Mikotzels (a three-factory complex that makes buttons, buckles, and toys), the Olopet Packing Plant (that helps process and export tea, spices, and food), the Agutel Mill (a massive lumber mill), and the Copitel Kiln (for pottery). Not all of these factories are fully automated steam-powered monstrosities - some are more traditional assembly lines that are more impressive by their scale than their technology. Mokli is, unsurprisingly, a poorer district. 
Yaxiva/The Heathen's Den: A segregated district segmented off from the rest of the city, where those who are not recognized Sunekans live. Yaxiva is the only district in the city to completely tolerate outside religion and culture, no matter how incompatible with Sunekan values. Foreigners from the Adira Mountains, Nediran converts, minority cultures from around the Suneka, and refugees from the genocides in Kiotza and Quikuza all live here. Sunekans who have a problem with the Suneka are even allowed to flee here, as are heretics! Of course, Yaxiva may style itself as a tolerant paradise nurturing the underserved, but it exists this way for a specific economic purpose: to supply artificially cheap labor for the Industrial District and for massive labor projects around the city (such as the Adato Canal project). The law may tolerate most things here, but it will not tolerate labor organization; labor is contracted in bulk in exchange for access to food and basic city services. 
Soyokwi/The Grindstone: The semi-rural milling center of the city, where cash crops and food alike are funneled into Kimikal from the lakeside estate farms. A popular destination for Residents (Sunekans who are not Citizens, but are still of the faith).

Guilds and Factions

The Great Cliques: A number of powerful cliques hold power together here. These are not families, but the way they wield power is evocative of noble clans in other continents. While powerful families often participate in these cliques, they are not hereditary. Rather, they operate like elite clubs with their own internal hierarchies. Here are the most prominent cliques:

• The Mikotza Clique: A clique that tends to recruit the most elite former officers of the army, with ties to the gunpowder industry, the Three Towers factory, the city's masons, and the armed forces.
• The Olopetza Clique: A clique of spice traders, heavily invested in the emerging financial system.
• The Talakza Clique: A clique of prominent landlords, with ties to the estate farms of the lake area. Known as the premier labor managers, with ties to the Adato Canal Project (the massive construction project aimed to build a massive canal connecting Lake Kirikal to the Omapal river). 

The College of Stars: A powerful wizarding university tied to The Darzan University. This is perhaps the most prestigious wizarding college in the world (that can be directly applied to), which attracts the children of many elites. The wizards of the college are protected by the city, wield immense social clout, and have the privilege to have their wizards tried in special courts if they commit crimes in the city (which can often shield them from consequences). 
The Bureau of Abundance: The clerks who manage trade, rations, and production in the city. The guild of guilds, one could say. Beneath them, craft councils handle most of the trade and low-level artisan work on a district-level: the Merchant Communes, the Weaving Councils, the Porter's Councils, and the like. Most of these groups are locally influential, but don't wield much direct legal power - they must request permission from the Bureau if they want to levy significant fines or confiscate significant property. 
The Citizen's Associations: The Citizen's Associations are alternatives to the Bureau-dependent artisan groups; while those serve the priests and the government, these serve the workers and artisans. These are unions, basically. They tend to go by neighborhood rather than workplace (though the two are not usually that different), and they often work together to push back against the exploitation of their members. These are still state actors, though, overseen by priests - they require perfect performance of Sunekan religion and full citizenship to participate. And the Associations are allowed to train small militias or neighborhood watch groups, as long as they act as the first line of defense against non-citizens organizing. 
The Cult of Ozotl and the Apatlia Bank Group: Ozotl, the paragon snake spirit, carries the essence of both disease and healing, wealth and poverty. They are a dangerous spirit that can be difficult to understand and find harmony with, and so the Cult of Ozotl tends to be reclusive and intense. In most areas, the Cults tend to be divided along specialties: the doctors of the Cult of Ozotl-Pitli (disease and medicine), and the charities and bankers of the Cult of Ozotl-Tetzi (wealth and poverty). Here, the cult is led by a united council with pooled resources and influence. The group that has the most influence over this Cult Council is the Apatlia Banking Group, the largest commercial association in the Suneka. The Apatlia Group helps fund major projects around the Suneka, and is a massive player within national politics. It is said that Orchid of Blue cultists are gathering power within both the Banking Group and the Cult of Ozotl.

History

The Old City of Paconek (80 - 1200)

The direct ancestor of Kimikal, the old city of Paconek, was founded by the Pacaboli tribe in the early 100s ME. The Pacaboli had been displaced by the Kunonek migrations (migrating tribes fleeing distant Stildane), and they declared Paconek to be a welcome home for any displaced Sunekans dedicated to the old ways. Paconek grew rapidly, and became the center of an influential city-state in the 200s ME. During the 300s, Paconek became a major rival for the settled Kunonek states to the East, which ultimately were able to use assassins and diplomats to subjugate Paconek with only a single battle of open warfare. When the first Sunekan empire rose from these Gwalanan states, Paconek was easily rolled into it with minimal changes to the status quo. While Paconek thrived under the Spiritual Empire of the 500s, it began to stagnate and decline during the 600s. Over the 700s, 800s, and 900s, the city would wax and wane, threatening to become large and important several times before declining from plague, mismanagement, or deliberate siphoning away of people and resources by the Gwalan republic.
Paconek became known for its general discontent with the Republic, as well as for its zealous traditionalist religion. When the state government fell to the Asuna Heresy in 1020, Paconek was one of the first cities to rebel. The rest of Gwalan generally resented Paconek's rebelliousness leading up to this, and the recapture and occupation of the city was unusually brutal. The city continued to rebel, and was repeatedly brutalized, looted, and burned. It became a frequent battleground over the 1000s, and by 1050 Paconek was mostly ruins. During the last wars of the Republic of Gwalan, the crumbling vestige of the old city was attacked for the last time. When the dust settled in 1200 ME, Paconek was completely abandoned. 

The New City of Kimikal (1200 - 1870)

People farmed in the shadow of Paconek's ruins for centuries, but the area was too contested by local states to be properly resettled. The old buildings were cannibalized by neighboring fishing villages, and Paconek was largely forgotten. Stability only returned to the region in 1497, when the Republic of Akatlan annexed the Lake Kirikal region. Not long after the annexation, the Republic looked to create a new city to govern the region - one that could be more culturally Akatlani, designed from the ground-up to project power. Kimikal was chosen as the ideal location - there were still foundational irrigation canals and lots of old stone left behind by the old city, and it had great access to abundant lakeside farmland. After decades of careful planning, building, and a lot of bureaucratic intrigue, the city was finally settled en masse through community relocation in 1510. It was not named Paconek, but rather Kimikal - a more Akatlani name that had a pleasing similarity to that of Lake Kirikal. 
While Kimikal had the most direct government support of any Lake Kirikal city during the following centuries, it didn't become a true city of note until the 1700s. The rising spice production of Lake Kirikal, the general prosperity of Akatlan at the time, the ascendance of the city's wizard college, and the rise of the local middle class (thanks to new technologies and the power of the Worker's Guilds) all gave Kimikal a sterling reputation. The city's population and economy boomed significantly. When the Ruzinist faction took over the Republic in 1823, they gave Kimikal even more power and influence - the faction glorified wizards and rational planning, and Kimikal represented both. 

The Occupation and New Age (1870 - 2010)

In 1871, the Calazan invasion of the Suneka hit Kimikal hard. The city was one of the first to be occupied, as it lacked the protection of mountainous terrain or large walls; it was also targeted in particular, as the Calazan emperor had a fascination with Kimikal's wizards. The city was turned into Calazan's military headquarters. It was fortified and targeted with Nediran missionaries. The middle class was crushed by a new feudal regime, and the city declined even as its buildings were built taller than ever. Finally, in 1900, the city was liberated. 
The rise of Darza in Akatlani government and global influence after the war ensured that Kimikal would be rebuilt bigger and better than ever after 1900 - she had a fondness for the city in those days. Kimikal flourished again, and became co-capitol of Akatlan in 1930. It has since become an industrial center, a financial center, and a political center. In the 1960s, it became the new home of the Apatlia Banking Group, and it is now the financial heart of the Suneka. While Kimikal has never become as industrial as the other Akatlani major cities, it is still on the rise economically - and with the Adato Canal Project soon to connect the lake to the river with a trade route, possibilities for industry and trade will only increase in coming years.

Points of interest

The Triumph: A palace complex built by the Empire of Calazen that has been refashioned into a Sunekan cathedral to the Spirit of Alkatlaza (the patron spirit of Akatlan). The Triumph is at the edge of the Crown District, with ties to Fort Ruzikal. 
The College: The College of Stars, the center of magical education and power in Kimikal. In the college district.
The Capitol Complex: A massive governmental complex in the Crown District, marked by two ornate step pyramids. The Congress of Sky and the Congress of Land, the twin legislatures of Akatlan, both meet here. While the capitol buildings themselves are walled off from the rest of the city, people tend to gather in the grand plaza outside if they wish to protest or celebrate the legislature.  
The Blue-Flower Hall: A gathering place and exclusive club of paladins of Orchid of Blue. The most esteemed center for Orchid cult in the Northern Sunekan heartlands.
The Twin Temples of Ozotl: Two large temples to Ozotl, the snake spirit, tied together by a bridge and underground tunnels. One, an island on the lake, is a hospital; the other, on the shore, is a bank. If you are looking for healing, for reliable item or money storage, medical training, or a loan, this is where to go.

Architecture

Kimikal's architecture is blocky, with an emphasis on sharp corners and neat rectangular or square layouts - though octagon or hexagon buildings are also common. Symmetry is considered very important in Akatlani architecture, as is neatness of design; many more recent buildings might be called "minimalist" in their design. The can turn into a kind of "brutalism" in the tenements of the poorer districts, while richer homes are often painted in beautiful symmetrical patterns.

Founding Date

1510

Type

Large city

Population

150,000 humanoids

Inhabitant Demonym

Kimikalan

Location under

Akatlan Riverlands

Owning Organization

Republic of Akatlan