Yahebah

From Mizahar Lore

Revision as of 18:44, 13 September 2009

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The City

Weather

Yahebah has a more temperate temperature compared to the rest of the desert region due to its location near the southwestern coast.

Summer heat is extraordinarily high with more humidity than the rest of Eyktol, resulting in morning fog and occasional evening dew.

Late fall brings the seasonal winds from the coast, stirring sand one to six feet off the ground for as long as a month. Farmers tend towards an early fall harvest to avoid the winds roughly stripping the fruit from the vines and branches. Hika-Zulrav, the fiercer sandstorms, do not usually reach Yahebah from the interior of the region, but if they do, they arrive in fall.

Winter is surprisingly brisk. While snow is a rarity, ice and sleet are not unheard of. Scarce rains begin in late winter and may lead into spring.

With spring comes a brief brown haze of dust and sand over the usually clear skies. After this initial "fog", the season turns warm and bright. Spring is considered to host the nicest weather in the year.

History

Politics

Law

Yaheban laws are tied closely to the morals of the Benshira's and the principles of Yahal. Visitors will be subject to most of the law established by religious teachings, but the Benshira allow for outsiders to escape certain punishments that reflect the spirit of the Benshira people. In these cases, the malefactors are fined and banished from the city for a period of time.

Weightier matters of law are adjudicated by the High Masha, while smaller offenses fall within the duties of the city's policing force: Yahalmen. One level of Yahalmen seizes the lawbreaker, while a higher level considers proper guilt and punishment. This is to ensure the emotional involvement of the arresting Yahalman does not cloud justice.

The law of Yahebah includes the more obvious restrictions against theft and brands of violence. Benshiras allow for some measure of official violence and theft as reparation for previous crimes or grievances, but this exclusion must be granted by the High Masha.

Prostitution and Adultery

A more unique application of law is the Benshiras' restrictions against prostitution. For Benshiras, an intensely family oriented race, prostitution is a poison that destroys the order created by harmonious family ties. Having a family member engage in either side of the crime brings a heavy shame. Foreigners who engage in the crime are fined and banished, or at the severe end, publicly flogged. However, if a Benshira is caught accepting money for sex, he or she is brought before the High Masha and painfully branded in public. A hot iron made into the shape of a snake is pressed on the top of the prostitute's hands or feet, forever marking them. Additionally, all their ill gotten gains will be deposited in the fund beneath Ziborah's palm for the benefit of the poor. This will be performed as many times as the prostitute is caught. If a Benshira is caught using a prostitute's services, he or she is locked in a pit for a full night with a poisonous adder. The adder may bite or remain still. It is a picture of what the criminal is doing when they sleep with a prostitute. They are allowing a deadly poison to infect their self, their family, and their people.

Adultery includes both sex outside of the bonds of marriage and the philandering of a husband or wife. The punishment for sex outside the sacred ties of marriage is a painful blackening of the palms through extensive tattooing, signifying impurity. This can be avoided if the adulterers choose to wed, but there will be no celebration or exchanging of gifts. Such marriages are a solemn affair. Those with black palms or snake brands will not be given dowries or paid bride prices if anyone would deign to eventually marry them. If a pregnancy results and both are unmarried, it is strongly suggested the couple wed. Failure to do so is forfeiture of the child to any suitable family willing to take it. The adulterers have no claim on it from that day forward. Unwed mothers seeking to keep their child usually flee Yahebah or render it to a family member.

Adultery by a spouse results in the same punishment as one who uses a prostitute. The betrayed spouse may stay such punishment, though, if they formally request it of the High Masha. If a woman is pregnant and unwed under any of these circumstances, she may avoid the punishment of the adder in the pit until she gives birth.

Economy

Industry

Culture

Architecture

A typical Yaheban structure.

Simple structures in Yahebah are constructed from bricks of mud mixed with straw while more complicated building are made of sand colored stone. Roofs tend to be flat or domed. Flat is preferred as Benshiras often eat or relax on the roof to enjoy the cool evening air or escape the heat of a cooking hearth.

The interior of structures is comprised largely of tile or stone to combat the desert's overwhelming heat. Furniture is scarce and low to the ground, as if the Benshiras have forgotten they do not dwell in tents anymore. A brazier commonly heats rooms in the evenings and homes are lit by hanging bronze lanterns.

More elaborate structures tend to have courtyards and outdoor halls behind protective walls. Windows are usually just openings high off the ground either shuttered or curtained

A common sitting room.

A third of the city is still in ruins, no more than heaps of stone and collapsed buildings. This destroyed area is contained to the southern portion of the city, but much of what still stands in the rest of Yahebah shows signs of past repair or damage.

Save where it has fallen in the south, a stone wall encircles the city. It is two chariots wide and hung with banners of white and scarlet. Yahalmen, the city guard, inhabit staggered rooms within it.

Cuisine

Yaheban cuisine is virtually Benshira's cuisine. Meat is not generally eaten by the common class save on special occasions. Meats include lamb, beef, wild fowl and dried fish and are served heavily seasoned and spiced. Wheat and barley come from Ahnatep to make various breads, often eaten with honey or olive oil. Olives are a staple of a Benshira's diet and make a common snack. Available fruits are pomegranate, grapes, figs and dates, anything else is a treat. Vegetables are found growing wild and include garlic and green onions. Milk and cheese comes from goats more frequently than cows.

Benshiras are better known for their spices than their staples. Teas and spice rubs are created with fastidious care and recipes are passed down from mother to daughter with the solemnness of ritual.

Three meals are taken in a day. The morning meal is very light consisting of tea, bread with honey and some form of fruit. The midday meal is a break in the working day and tends to be raw foods such as olives, figs, and cheeses, possibly paired with bread dipped in vinegar and olive oil. Watered down wine is the common drink. Evening meals are usually stews of lentils, beans and vegetables served in a communal bowl. Each diner will scoop out their portion with chunks of bread. If meat is available it will be served at this meal.

An invitation to take a meal with a Benshira is an important gesture, especially due to its communal nature. Eating a meal with a person means an acceptance and welcoming of that individual. Therefore, it is not uncommon that in public eating places Benshiras will not even sit near people of nefarious rank or race.

Holidays

Spring

Summer

Fall

Winter

Locations of interest

Listed below are some of Yahebah's important locations.

Society

People of Yahebah