Water is crucial for every people but here in Zinato it is a way of life. The massive stones of the Great Dam traveled all the way down the River of Life, waterwheels run massive saws, and the Drifters spend their time on the flowing waters or along the banks.
The art and music here is about rivers or imitates them. The beliefs and myths are about them. For much of the past, no one could control the rivers and therefore no one had more power than anyone else which is reflected in stories of equality and of course in the Promise.— Belira, The Land of Rivers
A Land of Equals
While it has not always been this way, Zinato is a place where everyone is equal. This doesn't mean that everyone is the same or that everyone should be treated the same way but that everyone deserves respect. In
Darapur - the largest community in Zinato and a city-state - it is enshrined in their law that everyone will recieve the same treatment under the law regardless of race, appearance, wealth, occupation, beliefs, sexual or romantic orientation, gender identity, and so on. This law is a direct byproduct of the diverse group of people that wrote the founding documents of the city.
Drawing Lines
The history of Zinato is long, it is beleived that when the
Skyfarers first settled on
Breharan that they chose clean waters, plentiful wildfire, and mild winters.
Compared to this history, the political and cartographic lines that define Zinato are quite new having only been established near the end of the
time of rebuilding - 32nd of Autumn 40BTE. The push to establish legitimate borders came from the expansion of
Burim. Now Zinato officially stretches from the mountains to the treeline where it shares borders with both
Burim and
Tamazee.
To Stay and to Go
Unique among the inhabitants of Zinato, the
drifters spend their seasons rafting along the rivers, living to their own whims and fancies. Some people are born
drifters and many join
them but few are ever
drifters for their entire lives.
More Than a River
Zinato is the land of rivers and life there is centered on them. They flow from the mountains for much of the year but can dry up during the hottest summers.
Veisapur - the river of life - is the longest and largest, the river to which other rivers flow.
While rivers come to mind when people think of Zinato, the forests are as important to the peoples that live there as are the mountains. The resources that come from these regions have been essential in the construction of the largest cities in Zinato,
Darapur and
Soksu, access to virtually unlimited lumber and stone has been a great boon - though stone is still expensive.
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