By Brant LaDorn

To Cities and Provinces Treatises

To most of the world, Masalla is a singular place, inhabited by a dark-haired and noble people. To look at a map, however, is to see that Masalla is no singular place at all, but rather a collection of small islands. And each of these isles, upon closer inspection, is seen to be its own place, with its own, unique peoples. In fact, it might be most correct to say that Masalla is composed of four provinces – Masalla, Adeira, Solara, and Sehra. Though they are all officially under the rule of the King of Masalla, the truth remains that he has little influence beyond the isle of Masalla itself.

Who, then, dwells on these other isles, and what is their relation to Masalla?

To answer that, we must go far back into the history of Masalla.

Most estimate that humans first landed upon the shores of Masalla three thousand years ago. They arrived in primitive, paddled craft, and looked much like the gypsies – dark of skin, hair, and eye, with lithe but shorter forms. They spoke a language near to the Fae tongues – a saporitic language we now know as Old Masallan.

From whence they came no one recalls, but history suggests that they landed on Masalla and spread themselves over the isle, hunting the abundant wild game and swiftly learning what plants to gather for the cook-pot. They settled mostly near the shore, and established three or four major villages along the eastern coast. Two of these sites still exist, and are maintained as cultural relics by the Avorine rulership.

It was probably less than a century after this landing that the others came – taller and slighter, with lighter olive skin. These new people came on ‘ships of wind’, but despite their technological superiority (they had mastered the forging of iron), they did not look all that different than the natives. They spoke an unfamiliar language, however – lacking the magical qualities of Old Masallan. It was a ‘code’ language, and was the ancestor of what we now know as Caradorian.

The meeting of the two peoples was peaceful, a surprising beginning to a land that would soon be torn by strife. For a thousand years the two peoples mingled, trading bloodlines and knowledge, and establishing numerous villages and agricultural communities. By the end of this thousand year period, three distinct peoples had been created: those who had blended the blood of the original settlers and the newcomers, and those who had kept marriages largely within each of the two original groups. It was at that point that the arguments began.

The advent of agriculture had created a division between those who had bountiful harvests and those who did not – trade became less common and Masalla’s first currency was established.  All the coins of that time were gold, which was swiftly valued as a commodity that could be fashioned into jewelry and décor. This translated into some becoming rich, while others became poor, and in order to feed their families, some of the poor began to promise service to wealthier folk.

The seed was planted. A hundred years later the first official documentation recorded ownership of land, and ten years later most of the land on the isle of Masalla was divided between the wealthiest families on the isle. Many of the poor families were pressed into service, and the wealthy began to measure their status by the number of families they had under them and the amount of land they owned. Soon disagreements developed over land boundaries, and many such disputes could only be settled by blood. It was then, when the wealthy began to claim that ‘service’ meant giving your life in battle, that many of the people had had enough, and the emigration began.

Lacking any armies to keep the people in place, this episode in Masallan history was surprisingly free of bloodshed. Most of the original settlers took themselves south to the isles of Sehra and Solara. Many of the mixed bloods took themselves to the isle of Adeira. And the taller, olive-skinned people, who had established their dominance in Masalla, stayed upon that isle, along with those of the others who were loyal.

The division was not just one of blood, but one of language. Masalla and Adeira used as their primary language Caradorian, while Sehra and Solara clung to Old Masallan as their native tongue.

For the next thousand years or so, each of the isles went through their own dramas.

The Story of Masalla-

Bereft of perhaps half of its population, Masalla quickly mobilized into over a hundred separate rulerships, each one staking down its claim to various sections of the isle and the remains of the people who had stayed. Those who were loyal to a particular ruler rallied to their side, and within a year, wars began. The isle was stained with blood as small skirmishes were fought throughout the isle, and nobles who were defeated were hung or impaled by their enemies. Many fled.

These wars went on for many years. As nobles fell or sailed off for their lives, the people were gathered into larger and larger groups to fight for the remaining rulers, until a final battle left the Loredae family as the most powerful force in Masalla.

Still, dark times ruled the lands, as plagues came and went, renegade nobles raised small armies and attempted to defeat the Loredaes, and strange creatures, from trolls to dragons, ravaged the isle. But the Loredaes clung to their power, and their family slowly grew until roughly a thousand years ago, when they announced official rulership over the entire group of Masallan islands. Under their proclamation, the isles belonged to the eldest male of the Loredae family, and permissions of land ownership could only be granted by him. A king was established, and the Loredae family became royalty, dividing themselves into barons, dukes, and counts. They invented taxation and demanded the services of everyone not of the royal line – social classes became officially declared, and the laws of the land were laid down for all to obey.

Social order was established, but the majority of the population lived in poverty and squalor. It was not long before the first uprising threatened to topple the Loredae reign.

They had ruled for a mere thirty-six years before a hero for the people arose, and blood once again nourished the ground, and the crows enjoyed many good meals. The uprising failed, and was followed by another, and soon relatives of the Loredaes were joining the fray, eager for their own ascension to rulership. At last, a new ruler came to power, but they had not learned from their predecessor, and soon war was once again over the land.

It was not until about five hundred years ago that the Avorine family came to power, and they have remained there until today, mostly by virtue of their ability to distract the people from social injustice by means of discovering new lands and sending dissidents to populate these new provinces.

The Avorines have struggled to bring Masalla’s considerable wealth and power to some sort of unification, but the long history of strife on the isle continues to haunt them, as people, even today, stage protests against unfair taxes and unjust social treatment.

Masalla, however, has managed to spread its culture to most of the rest of the world, and its settlements, which include Moraithe, the Old World, and the New World, retain Masalla’s language (Caradorian), architecture, mannerisms, dress, dance, and basic cultural structure.

The isle itself is characterized by divided baronies connected by outlying villages which are, in effect, under their own rule. Social classes are rather rigidly defined, and the nobles are known for their aloof attitudes and high morals.

Given its history, Masalla will likely continue to fluctuate in its tides of power, but for now, at least, it dwells in the closest thing it has ever achieved to a ‘golden age’.

When they first came to the isle, the mixed-blood Adeirans brought a fair amount of wealth. Aware of the strife back on the mother isle, they organized themselves to create civilization, and began to build towns, taking advantage of the fine clays of the isle to create adobe and brick buildings of smooth lines and considerable beauty. They tamed the swift native horses and learned to fairly fly over the vast prairies of the isle. They carved wood into graceful ships and refined their ironwork to achieve forged steel.

It was then that the first of the displaced nobles from Masalla came, begging shelter. The Adeirans were swift to grant it, but they made it clear from the beginning that things would not follow the pattern that had caused such distress on the isle of Masalla. The nobles could bring their wealth, and would be granted land by the townships. But they would fall under the rule of the townships, and live as guests upon the isle, enriching the culture with their wealth and enjoying the fruits of the isle. They would not, however, be allowed to raise an army or guard, and could never have the services of peasants, but would have to purchase food just as everyone else.

It was a risky venture, but one that has paid off well. The nobles of Adeira, though lacking vast lands and the servitude of the people, are among the wealthiest people in the world, and the presence of their wealth has infused Adeira with color – Adeiran culture embraces food, clothing, and dance from many imported sources, especially from Sehra and Shavay. The dress is bright, the food is spicy, and the music is fast-paced and exciting.

With their fine steel, swift ships, and athletic men, Adeira has kept a strong but unstructured militia that has dissuaded any attempts to attack the isle. And with a multitude of exports, from fine pottery to bright dyes and cloth, from some of the world’s finest swords to numerous instruments, from spices to horses, Adeira has made itself quite rich.

A history of trade with Shavay has encouraged immigration from that exotic isle, and Adeiran blood is slowly darkening under the influence. And all the while, the light-skinned nobles dwell upon the high hills, in their adobe villas and palaces, infusing the isle with their gold.

Without a ruler, Adeira is governed by village councils, each of which sends a member to meet in the annual High Council Gathering. Adeira stands as one of the world’s most successful experiments in a government run by the people, and the village governments are a study in the spirit of cooperation. And since the Avorine rule, Adeira has also enjoyed the status of being a holiday spot for all manner of folk from the isle of Masalla.

If a place could be called a paradise, perhaps Adeira would be it.

It was a troubled and wounded people who came to Sehra, fleeing the rulership of some of Masalla’s most war-hungry rulers. Of strong ‘native’ blood (they were the original people that came to the isle of Masalla), they clung to idealistic ways, and swore off the trappings of civilization. Their strength lay in their nomadic lifestyle, for they evolved moving homes in the form of wagons, and if they spied Masallans coming, they simply hitched their horses and moved. Through the deep forests of Sehra they cut a labyrinth of roadways whose twists and turns only they knew. Their ‘villages’ became families, and they forged their civilization around the concept of family.

They grew close to the land, hunting and gathering for their food, and raising sheep, horses, and goats.

Before long, though, the troubles began. The battles in Masalla had driven many people to piracy, and the pirates came to Sehra for easy prey, due to the fact that the Sehran people lacked the capacity to make steel and had no organized military. It did not take long for the Sehrans to realize that their island was becoming a shelter to these less-than-desirables. Faced with a life of constantly running from every new intruder upon their isle, the Sehrans took up another strategy – they decided that they would entertain and trade with the pirates and outlaws, and from that, the gypsy ways were born.

The women learned to dance in the most sensuous of manners, the men to play lively music and drums. The Sehrans discovered the secrets of bright dyes from the people of Adeira, and made their dress more colorful to better entertain their outlaw guests. They spiced their food, all the better to sell to the pirates, and began a brisk network of trade, allowing the pirates an outlet for the things they stole, and giving the pirates a place to purchase goods, as well.

Soon the women of the isle were known for their loose behavior, and the men for their friendliness and cunning. In the eyes of the high folk of Masalla, the Sehrans became little better than the pirates and outlaws they traded with and entertained.

When the battles on the main isle finally subsided, the Loredaes scoured the waters to slay any pirates they might find. In the space of fifteen years, the seas were again safe, and the Sehrans found their camps quiet of their old customers.

Hints of poverty began to spread over the isle, but the people of Sehra, ever resourceful, looked for ways to make a place for themselves in the new, post-war world of the Masallan isles. First, they took the colorful dress, the music and dance, and the wild, vibrant demeanor they had developed in order to enhance trade, and made it into a lifestyle. Only by constantly practicing their new ways could they retain them over periods of no or little trade. Then they went about the task of reshaping their image from that of 'whores' and 'rogues' to something a little more respectable, at least. It was at this time that they officially adopted the Caradorian word ‘gypsy’ to describe themselves and their roving ways.

Armed with a new name and a new image, they invited the world in, beginning with traders from Adeira and Solara, then spreading their reputation to traders from the mother isle of Masalla. Soon the sea captains were making Sehra a regular stop on their trade routes, taking a few hours to trade with the gypsies, who were always eager to haggle. Or they would give their sailors a little ‘holiday’ by spending the night on the isle, allowing them a chance to watch the gypsy women dance and hear the tales told by gypsy men.

The gypsies, though, were cursed by their initial reputation, and the nobles of Masalla never forgave them their ill-bred manners during the times of battle leading to the Loredae reign. The harassment by the Masallans never ceased, and the gypsies were forced to keep their nomadic lifestyle alive. Those who settled in one place were soon discovered by bored soldiers or nobles, and many were the atrocities inflicted upon the gypsies in the name of sport.

As the tides of power rose and fell around them, the gypsies created peace within the stability of their own culture. Even today they have maintained the purity of their paradoxical lifestyle – at once among the most private and consolidated of cultures, while still being ever welcoming to travelers and traders.

The Story of Solara – Dark of skin, hair, and eye, they were people of the original blood who sailed south in small boats to the huge, looming isle of Solara. Towering cliffs met them at coast’s edge, and rich forests nestled between high, ragged peaks deeper inland. Solara was, indeed, a wild and foreboding place. The settlers broke into groups loosely divided by lines of kinship and explored the isle, reconvening a moon or so later to report their findings.

Their land, they had discovered, was both strikingly beautiful and hauntingly dangerous. Those who had explored the mountains told of stones that spoke, old faerie castles built into the cliffs, and vast, cathedral-like caves, many yielding up rare and beautiful gems. Those who explored the forests told of strange creatures and fae, towering trees, and vast forests of yellow-leaved apple trees. And those who walked the shores spoke of selkies and stone circles and beautiful, hidden inlets and bays.

It had been not only a process of exploring for each group, but a process of finding a sense of place. Imbued with a feeling of adventure and cooperation, they set to cutting roads and building villages. The coast-dwellers brought fish in to the inland villages, while the inland peoples brought meat, furs, and gems to the coast. It seemed they would be a wealthy people, for their land was ripe and rich.

But Solara was not so ready to accept the tread of human feet.

The stories tell, soon after that, of strange chimera that emerged from the deep forests, of a kind never seen before nor since. They were horribly beautiful and drew men to their deaths with haunting promises. From the sea, black-skinned mer-creatures pulled themselves up onto the sandy shore and lured men and women back into the dark waters. And in the forests, elementals emerged to protect their lands, and it was said that the stones themselves would swallow men up and steal them away forever.

Families were broken, heroes were made and killed. Solara began to devour the civilization which was growing upon it.

But the Solarans did not leave. They had found a home, and despite the dangers, the beauty of the land and the bounty of the isle held them firmly. As their roadways deteriorated, their horses eaten by monsters from the woods, and their abandoned villages taken over by oddly human-like fae, they did not flee – they adapted.

The Solarans embraced their fae roots, and took to simpler lives. They let their roads become walking paths, and built their homes out of solid stone instead of wood, following the example of the mountain ruins. They left offerings for the fae, and learned the ways of natural magics. They grew close to the earth.

It was a remarkable transformation, for in the years that followed, the isle seemed to draw them into its embrace, and midnight seductions infused the settlers’ blood with that of the fae, and the people of Solara grew wise in the ways of the island’s plants and creatures and secret places. A few hundred years later, when nobles came from Masalla to settle upon the isle, they found friendly (if strange) people, but they could hardly comprehend how the Solarans could live upon an isle where the very forests seemed eager to devour the flesh of men. As the Masallans sailed for safer pastures, the Solarans stood upon the shore, waved, and secretly smiled.

Since that time, Solara has grown into a home for a new sort of human – one who lives close to the land, who dispenses with written language, who builds no carriages, keeps no horses, and forges no steel. They live among stone homes, feasting on the bounty of the land, and do trade only with a very few people, who come to purchase such rare and delicate things as dragonstone, seal’s milk, and talismans of dryad wood.

It is one of the most unknown and yet renowned of lands, and figures prominently in the romantic tales written by the bard Miralana during the times of the Alais reign. It is to Solara that knights go to find their magical blades, to Solara that people are stolen away by the faeries. To Solara that our imaginations fly when we dream of a place that is somehow peaceful, beautiful, and treacherous, all in a single thought.

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