Gladiatorial Wall
Dradinu, know as the
Gladiatorial City, is a not too small city build in the Main Continent, at some distance north of the Sorrowful River, by human iis (involuntary immigrants) who came to Sharitarn before the time when Earth became the planet affected by the vortex. Before the forest people’s home planet, Rhalpav, be the one touched by the inter-cosmic phenomenon too.
The original citizens of Dradinu fought for their freedom, and for their survival in the wilds. And conquered for themselves this territory surrounded by dangerous and powerful foes.
Using the last remains of a old wall magical build by a long lost empire as base they placed their city in high and solid ground. By the time when Draninu was founded it was in the border of a Xar scar, beyond the reach of magic. A few centuries after that the land healed and magic became once more available, but when that happened the Gladiatorial City was already well organized and properly armed to survive the inevitable changes.
The Dradi
In general they are tall and strong, with small breasts and no beard. Most have light hair, yellow or white, blue or red eyes, and dark brown skin.
There is less ethnic variation in the Gladiatorial wall than in most human cities on Sharitarn because what gives nations that variation is mainly slave market. Specifically the habit of declare the children born from slave-girls free sometimes and even recognize them as heirs some now and them: "slaves have no home stone" some say, their birth has no meaning. Dradinu founders came from a cosmopolitan society, whit higher degree of genetic variety. However, when they mix their blood with the blood of slaves who are not from their city the Dradi seldom free those mongrels and never raise them to citizenship.
For a sensible reason, perhaps:
The Dradi’s original planet, Naar, is a place where all mammals and most other animals are hermaphrodites. Humans constitute no exception. Each person up there is both male and female, and their descendants naturally keep that characteristic.
Hermaphroditism is an element of their identity cherished in by this people..
Only a few Dradi are born with one sex, either male or female.
In their peoples’s home planet they would be considered carriers of a genetic disease and sterilized as newborns. Both male and female people were treated with pity and condescension by their society. In Sharitarn Dradi male are normally sent to friendly nations as diplomats or enter merchant caravans, since they have little chance to find a place in their home land.
Female Dradi do have a hard time in their city as well, but leave it is obviously far more complicated for them. Since Sharitarnes consider women natural slaves; and, therefore, women are usually slaved at sight in all places but the one where they are legal citizens unless exceptional circumstances prevent that natural development.
Dradi born with the defect of being women can endure their fate at home, or join dradi born with the defect of being men as free companions in order to leave their home nation with some chance to not end up branded slaves. Some say that is preferable to be a slave-girl everywhere else than a free girl in Dradinu. What is a matter of opinion, far from unanimity.
NAAR
The home Planet
Naar has no magic, like the people of Sharitarn understand it. They may have a little more ostensible magic than Earth or the forest people’s home planet, but their tales about that can easily be dismissed as being mere fantasy.
As for technology, the last people who came from the Vortex from up there described developments about as advanced as the ones know by the humanity on Earth in 2095.
Clean energy beyond the possibilities of use for it, a global net of public transport fast and comfortable. Unlike Earthlings they had not gave up the individual vehicle as backbone of their urban organization. Not yet, but that was a likely next step for their development and was being addressed by academic community in their media. Is impossible to know what has happened on Naar since that time, divination magic does not reach beyond the Vortex.
The subject is a classic theme for literature and every other art practiced on Dradinu.. Some paint extremely positive scenarios, others terrible nightmares. Dradi consume both fictional branches with the same eagerness.
Despite their advanced medicine and their even more advanced farming sciences the people on Naar don’t know the population growing that led humanity to a barely catastrophic situation on Earth. Most Earthlings do not acknowledge the arguments of Genocide Terrorists, and see no catastrophe in the drastic reduction of biodiversity that marked XXI century. Is harder to deny other problems caused, or deepened, by fast population growing. Or deny the lack of morally tolerable alternatives to deal with the situation if (or when) the number of people wanting to live on Planet Earth became higher than the number of people Earth can shelter and provide for in a decent_ human_ level of comfort.
On Naar they have the popularity of violent sports to thank for their comfortable population stability. The Naariis in their own Universe kill each other as Sharitarne males do, more often than Sharitarnes actually, but not in duels for honor. They have less frequent wars than the Sharitarned, and do not really need them for population control: even where there is no money to be made the Naariis will kill each other gladly, willingly, in friendly competitions for the sake of their own fun. According to rules, no less: mutually agreed.
The same deadly entertainment, practiced more or less of then by every normal person on Naar, gave them a chance to gain freedom and conquer a land to build their city. Luck and good choices made that chance flourish.
Unlike the natives of Earth the people on Naar had little to no unemployment. On most planet they adopted a caste system not too different from the one they found (and we still see) on civilized places of Sharitarn. By that system individuals unable to find a activity useful for society never survived more than a year after they reach the age of maturity.
DRADINU URBE
One important difference between Naar and Sharitarn is that in Dradi home planet by the time the Vortex still touched it there was no slavery. That’s one thing the founders of Dradinu adapted themselves to in order to build a viable home in their adoptive planet.
Even today they have fewer circumstances were a citizen can be slaved than any other human city in the Continent. On the other hand is almost impossible a person from other nation became permanent resident on Dradinu (let’s not even mention earn citizenship).
On Dradinu there is no Magical University, just a few Sigrax Houses.
The sigraxes in the city are generalists, not by option but because they have no one to teach them a magical Way. That lack of tradition is a problem they could not yet solve, and to make it harder most high caste citizens still feel that less as a problem they should solve and more as a national pride to brag about.
The warriors of Dradinu contrast in reputation with their sigraxes. Their excellence is legendary.
Since the art of war is amazingly similar to the favorite national sport practiced by all Dradi, the Warrior Caste in the city must work harder than normal to earn his place. It does that, and a bit more. Their grey archers_ who amputate one breast ritualistically_ are the most respected among the enemy of Dradinu. Some call then “almost magic” and say that their arrows are the more deadly weapon in the hands of humans, magic excluded.
Notice that usually the title of "mostly deadly weapon in human hands, magic excluded" is a reference to Agoioven trade mark: the permours. Those who contest the Ring City merit do so by raising doubt about the "magic excluded" factor. Them, the next candidate is Mibavan Army with their symbionts. Credit mere human archers to the distinction without irony, as many enemies of Gladiatorial City actually do, is a mountainous distinction.
The infantry fights with black shields and black sword. Their iron will and discipline is almost as admired as the grey archer’s aim and agility.
Dradi captured and slaved almost always earn their freedom back in exchange for military service or die in sand circles playing their national sport, surrounded by a loud ring of avid fans.
As slave masters the Dradi are not as well reputed as they are as Warriors and slave fighters.
“Chains are light on Dradinu” is a popular saying in both sides of the Sorrowful River. Used even by people unable to point the Gladiatorial City on a map as a commentary about the lack of discipline, technical incompetence, or laziness.
Supposedly the Dradi are lenient with their slaves, both male and female, but that is excessive generalization.
Citizens of Dradinu are also reputed as hedonists who live the moment and extract every single drop of sensual pleasure they can squeeze from their short and violent lives. That generalization is somewhat more precise than the one about their lenience with slaves.
Comments