[Hourglass of Zihaja] Chapter 3: The World of Najmah

[Zeta Kai]

Ahimsa

Population: 20,072 (large city)
Demographics: 44% deva, 23% sabi, 13% half-genie, 9% houri, 7% human, 4% others
Government: Constitutional monarchy
Notable Religions: Bhagya (Adimas), Shaanti (Sidaru)
Main Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Notable Neighbors: Aanila, Jhin, Marut, Vaayu

Situated on the banks of the cascading Misty River, Ahimsa (ah-HEEM-sah) is a beautiful city of art, music, & magic. In the northern reaches of the dangerous Lightning Woods, the city is an island of calm in a chaotic & deadly forest. It is one of the more influential cities of Atma, but it is known not for its political power, but for its hospitality & spectacular culture.

Sometimes simply called Tranquility, Ahimsa is a relatively-peaceful city, considering its location. Although the storms of the Lightning Woods are not as powerful in its northern reaches, the earliest attempts to build the city all failed miserably because of the furious lightning storms. It was not until the devas who desired its construction invited djinn to assist them that the city was realized. Using their elemental powers over wind, the djinn stalled the storms while the city was built. They could not hold it forever, though, so great deva & houri wizards were contracted to build the city magically. As such, is architecture is brilliantly unique, with spires rising up at improbable angles & each building perfectly original. More extravagant than any other building is the Palace of Mists, the royal dwelling that also serves as a town hall, where audiences with the ruling family are held.

Today, the lightning storms are held off by a strange contraption invented & maintained by an even stranger wizard. Going by the name of Upazaa Mayati (Chaotic Good, Wizard 13), the half-djinn mage maintains his weather machine constantly, protecting the city from the vicious storms outside. He uses the Misty River to generate a sphere of liquid energy, which absorbs the roiling fury of the passing storms & deflects it into the ground. Mayati is given much respect by the people of Ahimsa, & though he is meek & somewhat antisocial, no one in the city would ever get the chance to lay so much as a finger upon him before a score of guards would be upon them.

The people of Ahimsa are tolerant & very hospitable. Their inns take in weary travelers from the storms, feed them, & play them pleasant music. The most well-known taverns of the city are the Thunderstruck, which lies right at the edge of the city, & the Falls Cafe, which sits on the shore of the Misty River & is perpetually sheathed in rainbows. The city is predominantly inhabited by devas, though not by a significant margin, & many djinn-blooded folk live here as well, enjoying the luxurious city their ancestors helped build & protect. As with many cities, there are also some houris here, as well as a smattering of mortal races & other residents of Najmah.

The city’s love of magic & skilled musicians is complemented by the predominant faith of the city, which is the worship of Bhagya (known on Siraaj as Adimas). Bhagya’s temple lies across the square from the Palace of Mists, & though not quite as large, the ever-shifting illusions that cover it are certainly a sight to behold. Slightly further from the Palace lies the temple of Shaanti (Sidaru), who, though not quite as popular with the general public as Bhagya, is given respect by all for his dominion over death, a not-uncommon thing for a people living in the Lightning Woods. The Sidarite priests also perform more state functions, such as coronations, than the clergy of Bhagya.

Renowned for its art, music, & magic, those three things form the primary exports of Ahimsa. It imports most of its food from the smaller towns & cities to the north, where the caravan trip through the Lightning Woods is much shorter than for those coming from the south. They fetch all of their water from the cascading Misty River, whose water is carried from on high in the walls via several aqueducts to cisterns across the city, a recent innovation & a marvel of magical engineering.

Ahimsa is currently ruled by Queen La-Fahtii Aarashumaq, the direct descendant of King Rumakhan Aarashumaq, the original founder of the city. The deva queen is a benevolent monarch, & the city has prospered under her rule. Her largest concern at this time is Upazaa Mayati’s old age. The wizard who protects the city is growing forgetful with age, & his assistants must constantly remind him of simple things. She fears that with his growing mental degradation, the city may again fall prey to the deadly storms. She seeks one who can perform the mage’s job, & she wishes to find a replacement as soon as she can, before it is too late.