Culture of the Elenria

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Elenrian culture is ancient, tracing its heritage back to the first Inselni civilizations. Most Crown culture therefore is influenced by that of the Inselni, though with their own aspects mixed in. Greatferns too share a similar, though distinctly separate culture with their decidedly anti-nonhuman tradition. Despite occupation by Kumosenkan, the Elenria still retains its old ways. Clothing, weapons, traditions, and ideas remain closely valued and these are held onto with the hope that one day, the Elenria will be free once more. 

Clothing and Appearance

For Inselni, longevity means that clothing is traditionally very simple to incredibly exquisite based on age and experience. The simpler the dressing, the less the individual has experienced in their life. It is the purpose of the Wanderer path to give Inselni most articles of additional clothing from foreign lands as they go through different tasks, retaining some parts of the clothes they wore at a job or role. Medals earned from the military may be retained, or the treated fatigues of military uniform for its rugged design. The sewn badges of a dozen civil service departments may be stacked up like a ring of keys and the peacoat of a sailor integrated into the multi-layered fabric. Even something as unceremonious as a janitor's overalls might be added for its many pockets. Many times the clothing is made by the Inselni themselves, with only material from the local area being the only foreign component- nevertheless, the resulting clothing is always functional and practical, resembling the militant or traveling clothes of a Wanderer. 

The pieces that make up all Inselni clothing are comprised of a crown (A forged piece that sits on the crest of Inselni upper horns, usually decorated), dress, upper chest piece, lower chest piece, leggings/leg bracings, tailpiece, and horn ornaments. On the outer layer, a cloak, dress, scarf, and/or skirt is worn in addition to gloves and footwear. Wings are usually left bare, except for the first few centimeters from the back. However, in some a kind of harness may be worn to constrain wings to allow easier movement, known as a winder. Winders are typically rather plain and consist mostly of several leather straps, canvas, and rings to fold the wing away without getting the way of movement.

Inselni are given simple traveling clothes from the start of their tenure on one of the paths- often it is the only article they will wear for a while, until they have finished at a role somewhere out and merge their clothing then to the simple clothes, before replacing them entirely with something deemed superior in design and function. Later, other parts will be cut off to have something else meticulously sewn on to replace it. Tears and damage is always carefully mended, and it is not uncommon for Inselni to add more details to their clothing until it fits their chosen aesthetic. The cleaning of clothing is always a priority, though in what order depends on what set is being worn. Most designs, regardless of set type, resemble a nimble dress and carry multiple pouches for storage of personal belongings, in addition to plates of armor and insulative fabrics. The results at the end of their centuries-long lives are usually colorful, incredibly detailed and decorated pieces that represent their entire lives.

Inselni usually own three main sets of clothing, with little difference between gender. The one most used is for traveling and general functions, designed entirely for function and protection from the elements. A younger individual's set usually is rather thin and bland and covered with a few accessory pouches to carry various supplies, but over time can evolve to have much more decoration and clothing, in addition to having dozens of pouches, concealed or otherwise. Though not entirely made for combat, it tends to be extremely hardy and comfortable for the owner to wear, with plenty of space to move around in, in addition to having unique designs to accommodate for temperature changes in the region.

The second is meant for social and less casual occasions, a formal dress. Easily the most meticulous and heavily decorated piece of clothing, formal dress revolves entirely around an individual's appearance. Expensive silks from foreign lands, jewelry of long-gone make, and extravagant designs all serve to make the wearer look their best in a social occasion. Streaks may be exposed for extra flair, but older Inselni tend to favor ceremonial armor in its place. While rather constricting to wear, formal wear is at least maneuverable for the wearer in the case that something unexpected or a hunt is being preformed.

The final set is a wargear set, entirely complete with helmet or some form of a warcrown (militarized and plainer version of a crown). The entire clothing set is dedicated to personal protection and military function, though in recent times it has evolved to a lighter size, with usually only a few plates of armor sandwiched in the cloth. Depending on the service branch the Inselni participates in, the military wargear can be easily modified to adjust, being very suited for rugged conditions or accommodating for extra ammunition.

Comparatively, Crown appearances are far less extraordinary, but they do share some aspects. For example, mirroring the streaks of the Inselni, Crown humans traditionally spread a pigment over their face in infancy, reminiscent of Inselni streaks, known as burnscars due to the method of implementation. Though it is artificial and removable, Crown consider it permanent, as it symbolically links them to the Inselni. It is considered a rare honor to be allowed to have a burnscar after an actual Inselni, usually done by the Inselni themselves as a gesture of familial recognition and kinship.

In terms of clothing, most Crown tend to dress with a few similarities to Inselni, such as the inclusion of crowns in the dress, though these tend be worn less, save for formal events. For the most part however, the rest of Crown clothing consists of at least a cloak or skirt over the rest of their general clothing, usually with some kind of ceremonial (but perfectly functional) blade hidden in an inner pocket. Different regions may all have differing versions of these dress depending on environment, but the universal component is a general three-flap design that permits easy movement and ventilation, usually accompanied by leggings and a above-waist belt or buckle.

Unlike their Eastern cousins, Greatfern clothing is based off of the various Kingdoms that make up the Greatfern lands. Turbans and wraps are seen commonly for arid or humid regions, fur caps and thick layers for colder areas, and lighter layers for temperate zones, for example. All are accompanied by duster-like coats that double as everything from shelter to bedroll known as heavebacks. Singular metal plate pauldrons are seen on every Greatfern, given at birth and usually made by the parents. When children come of age, they are taught to make one for themselves, which will be maintained throughout their lives. If it is damaged beyond repair or lost, they must make a new one from their home's surrounding area, even if it is scrap.

Ribbons and slouch hats are very popular for the arid climates that most Greatfern inhabit, along with copious numbers of beads made from glass and ceramic, dyed in an aurora of colors. Jewelry made from the teeth of slain predatory large game, often displayed on the belt as trophies. Similar to Crown, they carry their own form of dagger, though it tends to be a uniquely curved blade made for utility, making it suitable for everything from skinning game to performing haphazard surgeries, and even farming in some cases. These too must be forged as part of a Greatfern's coming of age rite, where they will learn to wield and use it from the teaching of local elders and parents alike. Sometimes a few cast-piece throwing knives, worn just underneath dress accompany the knife.

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Social Living Arrangements

Elenrian Humans (Greatfern and Crown included) grow up in nonexclusively nuclear families, often also being brought up by relatives, coworkers, and/or close friends of the parents. (See Expeditions) Life once of age is more often than not with one's close friends and siblings, (though traditionally some Greatfern leave to start another community elsewhere once they become of age, conglomerating with others to form a new community.) Crown on the other hand tended to splinter apart and either depart with an Inselni on Expedition or simply pursue their own interests within the established Crown communities. In the modern age, however, Expeditions are rare and difficult to come by with the work quota demanding high prices. New housing as a result is nowhere near pre-occupation levels of quality, and thus are not only quite spartan in practice, but also rather cramped, with housing usually in large apartment blocks. Due to the sheer price of rent, aforementioned families, coworkers, and friends tend to live together to distribute the cost.

With the success of Kaln's Rebellion, most Greatferns are able to simply avoid the restrictions other Elenrians face. This culminates in their communities being largely sparse villages scattered all across the territories, but most cultures have a tendency to branch towards resources that can be used to support their hometowns. This results in consistent labor power for local industries, but its tight-knit nature depends heavily on the local population and less so on immigration. However, since the fracturing of the Greatfern Kingdoms, many of these communities often find their of-age rounded up by local petty warlords to be sent into crammed dormitories to labor in arms industries for Kaln's wars against TAKPOE. Those who return are often emaciated, injured, and exhausted, and very few do many make it back to their original hometowns to stay, instead heading to the nearest town whether by choice or force. This has sparked a new, more unified sentiment among communities who receive these thrown-away spirits, adding new cultures and ideas to previously mostly secluded communities. As a result, those who return (usually without their choice,) often spread their newly learned skills and ideas amongst their fellow workers in the dorms, which has tremendously helped the rise of the Greatfern ENCOR and its leader, General Austchi Falkas.

Inselni on the other hand, owing to their solitary nature, traditionally live in family homes separated by dozens of chambers, usually built into hills, cliffsides, and more than often, mineshafts and other subterranean areas, usually in remote locations. In the absence of these, Inselni families band together to build a Citadel, a fortress built at some critical junction of resources, such as an oasis. These are often expanded over the course of several generations and accidents such as cave-ins and water damage usually fall to a later generation to resolve. Families are raised within the safer walls of these homes, and for many centuries the Inselni homes provided a place of education for both Crown and Inselni young. This behavior is strictly restricted to those of the Nest Path, however, as both Martial and Wanderers tend to seek more temporary forms of housing, whether it be for work or otherwise, often with their coworkers and/or expedition. In recent times, many Inselni have turned to moving into the cities to work, often leasing or setting aside their traditional homes to be cared for whenever possible. It is not uncommon for a Crown household or multiple to move into a single Inselni home due to their considerably larger size while they wait for a new apartment to become available to rent, but government initiative have largely restricted use of the Inselni home in order to prevent loss of the labor workforce to the countryside.

Work

Elenrians in general have always had a long-standing rigorous work ethic even before Kumo occupation, emphasizing heavily on quality over quantity, well-reflected in the national culture by the deeply elaborate clothing and still-standing older architecture. It is this dedicated spirit of being absolutely thorough that makes many production facilities repeatedly make quality checks upon products to ensure their complete state, even at the cost of the workers. The spirit has survived even into TAKPOE's era of governance, with workers often finding workarounds to stiff labor hours by taking excess and scrap waste to barter with one another for the express purpose of creating art or gifts out of such material in spare time and breaks. Money, more needed for food and other commodities, is rarely used to buy scrap.

It is common, even expected for Elenrians to help others based on the base tenets of their honor code, and often taking their rare off days to help those they owe with their own jobs to the best of their ability. However, they will only do such under the case that strenuous work conditions are temporary, many often incredibly suspicious of overseers for corruption and cronyism. As a result, many turn to Elenria's honor-pledged investigative media in the form of the Ourkala av Kori papers that are traded underground.
 
Community

Elenrian communities differ from Greatfern, Crown, and Inselni, but generally share the core aspects of honor and mutual respect as fellow kinsmen. When famines occur, despite being against the law as a form of theft, communities have been known to share resources with neighbors from their own stores, even smuggling away resources to be stashed for harder times. Due to their spirit of diligence, an entire factory's workforce may take up the punishment of one person collectively simply out of a united identity as fellow kin. During holidays, breaks, and, other small celebrations, such as birthdays and the New Year are marked by small gifts of often excruciatingly hand-crafted manufacture, such as small jewelry made from the recast links of scrap metal, a small tome of poems written in sparse mealtime, or hand tools forged behind the foreman's watch. 

All three cultures mutually value children, the infirm, and the elderly, looking to the latter as guides for their experience and the former for their potential. Elderly often are leaders in the community, giving advice, teaching the young, and performing less-straining tasks, which are usually handled by the of-age. Children are raised to make themselves useful, following their parents like ducklings in their chores. The physically infirm are usually busied with activities that more fit for the mind, while the mentally infirm physical labor, both as means to steer away from disregard and make use of their persons to help the community. 

Gender and sexuality have little value in Elenrian society, as all members are expected to work at whatever they can fin themselves to be useful at. Their personal lives with marriage and social relationships are held to similar terms, with many childless couples to be handed the job of helping to care for children when the parents are out at work.

Sports

Traditionally sports included games of elaborate triathlons and martial arts, in addition to duels and gliding acrobatics, many of which are still practiced, but with significantly more participants than a few half-dozen since the addition of better monitoring techniques and better safety guidelines to prevent accidents.

Mountain Climbing
A simple race up a cliff or other sheer surface. Typically consists of two individuals trying to make it to the top before the other. A lantern must be lit at the top with both competitors required to light them with flint and steel. The highest contests consist of multi-day tournaments where camps must be set up while suspended above the ground into crannies of mountains for the night.

Panvarien (Diveshooting)
A difficult marksman competition where an Inselni must veer sharply up mid-flight at a certain distance to shoot a target, then use their remaining momentum to land as well as possible on a lower platform. Points are awarded based on accuracy, speed, and distance to fire, as well as flight performance, form, and landing. Up to seven participants in any competition. Competition choice weapons differ between javelins, bows, muskets, rifles, and other ranged arms. As the sport requires rigorous training, it is common for flight accidents to occur, often resulting in broken and/or torn wings, if not other injuries.

Oisven (Aridwalking)
An endurance challenge usually taken by those in the arid regions to race across the Mogahol sands, usually with little more than desert clothes, a knife, and a canteen. Food must be scavenged and hunted and water extracted from any means. All competitors are supervised by an elder who will grant them points based on creativity to survive, physical adeptness, and speed to the winning line. Since the sport does present a degree of danger, participants rigorously train and prepare beforehand.

Alcoven
Arguably an extreme form of hide and seek, Alcoven is both a test in physical endurance and martial arts, where a competitor must successfully evade the search attempts made by a number of hunters for a period of time. If caught by one, the competitor must engage in a duel and knock the weapon out of the hunter's hands. They are not given a weapon to start with and must fashion everything from their surroundings. Points are awarded based on their creativity, enduring time, and their success of duels.

Saraco
A simple fast-paced biathlon based off horseback, the competitors must ride their mounts through harsh terrain without killing or crippling them, accurately hit shots at increasingly distant targets, all while in the wilderness without help, save emergencies. They are graded on orienteering, survival skills, health of the rider and mount, time to completion, and accuracy of their shots. Depending on region and conditions of the competition, there may or may not be a support team to change out horseshoes and provide basic geography of the region.

Education

Elenrian education is paid for by the Takpoe government, but University and higher education is often reserved to those who can afford it abroad in Kumosenkan. Most education from childhood to early adult lasts around 19 years before entry to the workforce in public education institutions, though it is not uncommon for elder Inselni to train both their own children and Crown on further relevant skills down the line.

Traditional education often took place within the large homes of Inselni families, where both Crown and Inselni would learn about a variety of subjects from Wanderers and their expeditions who passed through the area, who were housed and fed for their educational services. Politics, mathematics, literature, history, and philosophy spread in this manner, leading to a widespread literacy rate and allowed for the spread of ideas from village to village.

The republic brought with it a new method of teaching, where students were housed together under the supervision of a senior students to learn from and exchange ideas with, leading to the great number of fraternal organizations that make up the modern-day Encore. They would then learn greater topics in classes up to twenty from qualified Inselni who were over 300, usually accomplished Wanderers and debate among themselves with the assistance of the lecturer to understand the lesson in detail.

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Literature

Literature has long played a major role in Elenrian society, in no small part thanks to the widespread literacy that prospered across the land since the early Queendoms. As a result, numerous great works have been produced, from comprehensive historical texts to intricate pieces of fiction. Such writings existed on thin reed paper, and before that, tablets and walls, surviving the elements of time by their descendants’ careful maintenance. Printed and distributed regularly for both scholarly study and personal consumption, there is no shortage of famous writers, poets, and playwrights through the centuries that Elenria spans.

The Citadel of Literature is the largest library in Elenria, being among the most important buildings standing in Pelkia, if not the most culturally valuable. It holds well over several million copies of Elenrian literature, with dozens of vaults housing the original texts themselves for transcription. Exemplifying the high of Elenrian written culture, the citadel is designed in the idea that should anything happen to Elenria's people, its written lore will at least survive.

The Eighteen Codes

Written by Queen Aufken I of the Auqrawn Queendom, the series of comprehensive civil texts a full set of laws for the ancient civilization, from criminal justice to civil rights, with a notable eye-for-an-eye policy. Nobles are expected to supervise and tend to their subjects, with a hefty punishment by execution being the expected outcome for corruption. Surprisingly, there are the first semblances of a uniform land tax code that measured by the number of cattle it could sustain, increasing as the land was improved upon by the settlers.

The New Court

One of the most famous plays, The New Court was a comedy written by the playwright Halna during the end of the Capien Queendom that details the life of a royal guard in the royal citadel during the absurdities of a new Queen’s ascension, from power struggles where elderly leaders competed with hatchlings of almost-dead bloodlines to the coronation itself, all of which the guard finds himself tangled in series of absurd events that see him promoted from a sentry on the outermost walls to of the Queen’s personal Royal guards.

Falni’s Stride

The first Elenrian novel, Falni’s Stride covers the travels of a Wanderer through Capien-Era Elenria, modern-day Franerre, and modern-day Eleria, where the protagonist encounters and samples local inhabitants and their culture, taking on a variety of odd jobs, not limited to a brigand, mercenary, artisan, soldier, sheriff, and farmer. Disturbingly, it does imply multiple counts of consuming other sapients at various points, whether as a cultist, out of desperation, or sheer curiosity.

Blazing Hills

Considered to be the start of the post-apocalyptic genre, the book was written during the Alpla Queen Ukilna’s Second Scorching of the Greatferns, in which entire communities were left razed. The novel describes an imagined future where the sun burns away the surface of the earth, evaporating the seas and leaving an inhospitable wasteland. Taking on the perspective of a long-dead ghost, the spectator watches the slow erosion of their civilization, leaving flooded ruins as the steam of the oceans becomes rain and eventually drowns the remains of the the world, leaving only a few islands upon what were once the peaks of mountains.

Symphony of Blades

An ancient military text from before the Auqrawn Queendom written by the military strategist Yalvis, the text is the basis for much of the later military strategy for Elenrian generals. Composed of thirty chapters, it covered every aspect of warfare known at the time, from supply to combat, from contingency to diplomacy. It heavily emphasized the use of autonomous forces operating behind enemy lines to disrupt supply and strategic deep warfare, using terrain and lines of defenses to slow down the enemy. It also encouraged the use of political warfare to confuse and disorient enemies, military counterintelligence to prevent the loss of secrecy, and a well-placed courier network to maintain effective fighting cohesion.

Unique Genres and Styles

Salkis-Merat (Cloudwatching Flowers)

A unique style of writing that revolves entirely around narratives that never directly refer to a subject, usually with metaphors, riddles, or other methods. Most prose and poetry utilizing this style are written about nature or an environment to illustrate the sensations of a place to the reader. Drama using the genre is harder to find, but in epics about ancient Wanderers' experiences as explorers charting the unknown, are used to illustrate a landscape of note.

Olkai (Wooden Spine)

Nowadays also a source of insults for someone overly droning and/or robotic, the Olkai literary genre is only found in drama and music, where it is reminiscent of a military march, with precise and synchronized movements/tone acting in coordination. Nowadays it is mostly left to old plays as a historical relic of the Capien Queendom.

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Holidays

Though not often celebrated due to the current mandates by TAKPOE and a tumultuous countryside, holidays in the Elenria are a time of celebrating both past events and observing traditional rites. Special treats and liquor are often broken out and Inselni don their ceremonial clothing for the brief time of the holiday.

New Year
A simple celebration of a new year on Obsillia 1, small gifts and good wishes are exchanged in the warm summer nights, along with usually a small amount of traditional wine fermented from local fruits. Crown dye their scars white for the day to indicate a clean slate of a new year and Greatferns tag their collars with a single silver ribbon to similarly claim purity of a new year. Inselni simply wear their ceremonial dress and hold traditional sport competitions.

Cleaning of Shrines
Another universally celebrated holiday, the Cleaning of Shrines is a personal holiday for Elenrians to visit graves of loved ones and preform maintenance, cleaning out the shrines and lighting incense in their honor. It is held as close to the birthday of the deceased as possible, done by a friend or family member. A cup of water is offered on the grave at the start, then used to water the flowers before it after the grave is done cleaning.

Festival of The Arts
Observed on the 12th of Obsillia as a celebration of originally literature and traditional arts such as music and sculpting, it grew to expand into a celebration of Elenrian creativity. Spanning a three-day festival, it is mostly celebrated by Crown and Inselni, though the late reign of Akel I had allowed the participation of Greatferns in the festivities from 1831. It consists of creative displays amongst both family and friends, in addition to rigorous political debates for the intellectual circles.

Calling of Dead
Celebrated starting on the 14th of Sablien, the holiday is spent reciting the names of ancestors in respect of their deeds, preferably to one of their anchors. Pyres are kept lit for three days afterwards in observance of their legacies, usually with the oils derived from eucalyptus or animal fat if otherwise unavailable. Inselni often wear black ribbons on their horns for long-dead friends, while Crown and Greatfern wear some sort of black article on their person for the three days.

Akiota
Also called the Binding of the 27th, the 27th of Stay is spent celebrating the Pact's anniversary between Crown and Greatfern. The time is taken to exchange gifts and feast on notably boar and a kind of wine distilled from lychee.

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Media

The structure of even early Elenrian society deeply presses importance into education, imprinting literacy and basic skills of mathematics to the population from an early age. As a result, Elenrian media is long-established and exists in a variety of forms, from investigative journalism and politics on quarterly reports to monthly tabloids with chapters of dime novels and puzzles. Originally hand-copied by the hundreds using bleeding inks and thin newsprint, then printing presses and movable type, Elenrian media has largely been able to retain its original roots and traditional formats. The newsstands and their merchants are a common sight in every town, with new editions proudly displayed in neat bundles tightly rolled for a reader's convenience on the go, secured with a piece of string while presentation editions are folded and placed at the front for all to see. No matter if human or not, Elenrians come together to peruse over a single paper in a bunch, huddling some park bench to see everything from the latest politics to government reports and weather. Nothing is more Elenrian than five inselni, each several centuries old, furiously arguing over an answer while students debate over opinion pieces with one another in their cliques.

Many publications also contain instructions for simple paper constructs by children, known as ibsi to be made by children out of outdated issues. This leads to the common children's bedroom to have curtains of the folded paper stars and animals hanging from ceilings, often accumulating to create a full scene throughout a childhood or collected into a jar as a personal good luck charm. These often results in many newspapers specially including small blank sheets to attach on for a more colorful result. These often are traded between children at school, and the resulting ibsi kept in through later life. Even adults tend to carry about a few of these childhood memories as good luck charms later on, whether strung up in a pendant or contained in a watch.

Falvara Aln 

Essential yearly publications for farmers and fishermen, these almanacs provide essential astrological and meteorological information to inform on the predicted conditions for the coming seasons. Often in the form of small pocket publications for quick reference, it is often the foundation of literacy for young children in addition to its regular use. They differ regionally in design and are often compiled using both local traditional data collected by older inselni nesters who have a better grasp of meteorology and the environment in addition to authoritative data collected by local science societies and official government information. 

Ancient in origin, they continue to be the mainstay of the common countryside citizen's bookshelf, sometimes collected due to their occasionally decorative covers and easily stored sizes. They cost little more than maybe fifty Yairen at any given time.

Ourkala av Kori (Literally Underpockets)

Special tabloids that are often considered illegal, these publications are often printed by small underground newspapers that consist of little more than a printer, editor, reporter, and a select handful of distributors. They serve as the middle finger of the public to attempts by the unsavory and powerful to remain discreet, exposing corruption and incompetence to their maximum extent. Conducted by investigative reporters who use their extensive connections, threats, or downright infiltration, theft and espionage to gain access to otherwise secret and restricted information, they swear a deep-reaching oath of honor to the public at large to examine and scrutinize absolutely only the truth, without outside interference nor direction. Publications of this manner are written in either snarky, ironic tones rather than an expected directive and accusatory one. This is mostly due to the slow action against such corruption within the Elenria that causes distaste to arise and thicken into a sort of mild-mannered, yet scornful attitude towards such authorities with their crimes publicly unstated but widely known to the locals, such as TAKPOE itself and the Kumo Governor.

Long-established, the publications themselves often criticize and denounce figuers from public officials to con men and cheating businesses, then lead up to wave fingers at higher positions at large, making them particularly illegal in most cases throughout their history, which forms their namesake, taken after the hidden feature found in Elenrian clothing used to conceal a copy should a patrol pass on by. Originally distributed at the waning midnight hours, they would be passed up through windows, receiving a small handful of coin in turn from every issue as payment for the nature and fruits of their work. Now though, it is more commonly compiled in under-the-counter stocks in the usual newstands, quietly exchanged with a fistful of ten hundred Yairen in rolled bills and then slipped into the underpocket to be read in the private confines of home. It is considered the greatest bastion of Elenrian media- incorruptible and a single figure of free speech in any kind of authoritarian environment.

Meicara ciy Hekra (Literally Chapter Blankets)

A very popular monthly periodical for the tired citizen, these dime novel newspapers contain the current-running chapters of various novels published at a low fee to the general public to gauge and attract interest and popularity. These include everything from action and adventure to mystery thrillers and young adult fiction and generally make up the Elenrian's most common source of entertainment, from students to soldiers and common citizens. They often also have a separate section full of cartoons and other illustrations that cover everything from humor to political cartoons and posters. A final page contains a mailable form to send donations and vote for the encouraged continuation or criticism of the art and literature to the artists themselves to encourage future appearances. 

The offices that run these periodicals are often run by volunteers from local universities, fed by both professional and amateur artists and writers. A single issue tends to cost around five hundred Yairen, with the profits split between the publishing office and the content creators, in addition to the individual donations. It is very common for aspiring content creators to use the publication to start or sustain their careers, being some of the most solid and reliable income that they can sustain. They also have by far the most ibsi templates, some publications with a full pamphlet of instructions to create new designs from.

Helscara Min Auti (Literally Morning of Cicadas)

Gossip or heavily politically bashing publications that make great use of loaded language, statistics, and visual mapping to argue a point in politics or forward a political point. Sometimes anywhere from yellow journalism to dense political journals, they also come as extended versions of political pamphlets that may also highly detail specific political ideals and manifestos with varying degrees of bias, designed to attract or dissuade a reader to its influence. They are known to contain great usage of visuals, from cartoons to posters. Often part of a government or political party's media organ, they are designed as tools of political warfare and generally tend to be seen even on battlefields in more simplified forms, distributed to friend and foe alike.

Haski (Literally Bugle)

These state-owned newspapers designed for sole purpose of publishing official information, from bulletins to notices, in addition to what are known as Merapit articles- literally "uplifting" or positive-portraying propaganda articles collected across the land to raise public faith in the authority. While very propagandist in nature, being selective with what stories are chosen to publish and with extreme bias, they do similarly swear an oath of honor to the public, with very vigilant editors responsible for bringing crisis to light before they given permission to do so- though recently Commissariats formed to censure the press have seen to the arrest of many such writers under various charges, inflated or not, they continue to pass information for the Ourkala av Kori to publish in their stead of public service. Throughout Elenria's history these have served as the central public notice format in their typically twenty-page issues with three main articles printed over the front and usually either a government notice or advertisement taking up a fourth section on the main page.

The most well-known of Haski as of the century is of course the Takpoe News Broadcasting Company, better known by its older name originating from the Inselni Queendoms- Crimson Wyvern Daily. Run by Ministry of State, they counter the underground Ourkala av Kori of rival political groups. Found at just about any local store and newsstands, it is common for private printing companies to take up printing of Haski newspaper to earn a tax deduction or curry favor with the local Commissariats watching their every press of the type. Usually sold for less than thirty Yairen, they often carry their serious news in the front few pages and then reader-submitted puzzles and games on the last couple pages, accompanied by advertisements and reviews of local services, in addition to obituraries and birth notices.

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Family

Since time immemorial, Elenria’s inselni have struggled to raise their population. On the most fortunate of times, two children may be born within a lifetime. Three if the high heavens have blessed the family, but never a child more. The accompanying traditions that demand large homes for large families of generations do not handle these problems well in the case of sudden changes in the population- wars, famine, and disease alike could easily set the population back decades, if not centuries back, leaving whole community homes nearly empty.

The vulnerability of the inselni population lead to isolationist policies among clans and later kingdoms that desperately tried to negotiate peaceful resolutions or generally tried to deescalate conflicts. This arrangement lasted into the arrival of the humans for only a short while before the realization that the substantially larger human population could make politics much more flexible to change. However, while politics took a dramatic shift, family tradition did not- childless inselni took very well to adopting human orphans of war and strife, seeing them as a compatible sibling to companion their scarce other child.

Over time, the more practically-minded justification of simply raising population count eroded and evolved into the Expeditions, where older inselni led younger inselni and long-ago adopted human kinsmen on long sojourns across the continent in search of nes experiences and skills. This even closer cooperation on what had originally been exclusively inselni organizations brought both races closer together, and helped form the modern bonds of inter-generational family, where older Wanderer veterans began to carry the role of household tutors.

Elenrian families are more akin to clans bound by both honor and sometimes blood, tending to number well over forty to several hundred members. Always led by the eldest members of the household, usually inselni, the family is built around the raising and protection of the children. While the grown adults and able-bodied adolescents work the fields to help support the family, children are kept close to the home dwelling and educated by the family leaders, elderly, and designated teachers. The oldest children are expected to help supervise and be role models, while the youngest are expected to stay within the sight and support of their elders, and adhere to their instructions and rules. In the end, the whole affair can be described as blood of the covenant being thicker than water of the womb.

Besides immediate family, only the closest and most trusted friends of the family are permitted to even be close to the children. Schools are therefore a testy subject, and though Elenria’s people are no strangers to great sacrifice, the education by the Kumosenkan state is a subject that has caused more than a few families to turn rebel in some form or another. Despite the encouragement of the Kumo government to increase the Elenrian population, suspicion around the topic of the children’s tutelage is unlikely to die out- most likely for a few centuries at the least.

For honor, the hierarchy of honor dictates the family as the most important, followed by the community, and then the kingdom. The line of reasoning is that should the kingdom fail to uphold their oath of service to the communities that service and house the families of the individual, then they are not worth serving. If the community has failed to serve its families, then the community is not worth supporting. If the family itself is not supportive of the individual, then the individual should seek out a new family that will support them. The political implications of such transitioning between families tends to be fairly bloodless, but family-to-family conflicts have been known to result in entire wars breaking out.

In connection to the communities of Elenria, families are considered the keystone- though Elenria’s communities themselves are largely homogeneous in status and activity within the community, their members are what create the Citadels’ leading classes. Remove the families, and the individual members leave with them, for the ultimate goal of leadership in the community is the prosperity of the family. Families themselves play little role in direct leadership- honor dictates that leaders know what is needed- every family will inevitably be involved in a hundred different classes organizations, and thus political loyalty tends to be rather divided, not to mention many cities and communities hold a hard limit to the amoutn of family members allowed to serve in a leadership position. What is most important remains the family’s integrity to serve its members in times of need and take care of the children.

With Kumosenkan’s arrival, traditional routines of life were drastically disturbed- centers of industry dramatically changed, and the preceding nobility that had previously guided the direction of the Citadels and thus the families had been decimated in the wake of Akel I’s war against the nobility. Families were out of necessity splintered across leagues of land to different areas in search of sustainable income, still trying in some way or another to remain a coherent unit. Letters and pleas could not sway the seething fury of those disgruntled with Kumo rule however, and thus families split in the wake of famine, banditry, and political chaos.

Nepotism runs rampant in the absence of orderly government, and many turn to corrupt practices in noble and selfish aims alike- some who have quietly disavowed their loyalty of family in search of materialism, others who desperately seek to scrape together funds to save their loved ones from the wiles of conscription and political violence. Ransom and bribes alike have their uses in convincing officials to look the other way to get family and material from area to the next, always in search of a better environment to raise the children and rest the elderly. Many families themselves have split in the conflict of honorable ties to political factions, and though both host the same name and honor the same ancestors, it stands to see if the differences can be shifted aside to someday reunify the family.

The modern form of the Elenrian family is therefore best described as weak in power. Where the large families of hundreds once manned large family home apartment complexes scattered across a dozen different cities and regions, only scarce handfuls of family members now dwell in them, renting them out to others as housing. Factories now house countless thousands of tired hands that craft soulless products in uncountable quantity, and the beloved children who they would give their lives to protect now sit in the classroom of the Kumo educational system, learning all but the ancient traditions of their family. How can one hope to mobilize the wrath of a hundred-member family when they are so far apart, literally and figuratively?

That being said, reunions are still held on holidays, bringing the massive families together, regardless of political affiliation. Parents and offspring reunite during holidays and special occasions, mobilizing small savings to meet up and enjoy an afternoon of teary-eyed emotion and trade news, share a bowl of dessert, and exchange a final tight hug before departing back to their working regions once more. Exceptions are made by the tired-eyed government bureaucrats in their offices as they happen upon the names of family upon police files of suspected rebels, and tragically slip those files into a wastebasket to be emptied into the trash.

For in conflict, family suffers the most.

For in the end, family comes first.