The Holy Queendom of Brellach
Flag
Her Favoured People, of Her Favoured Lands
Capital: Sheoth
and largest city
Demonym: Brellachi
Government: Absolute monarchy
- Divine Queen: Lyta I
- Most Devout Advisor of Her Court: Fellis Jessina
Formation: 1056 A.D.
Area
- Total: 16,581,185 km2
- Water (%): 1.75
Population
- Total (2014): 22,016,521
- Density: 1.33/km2
GDP
- Total: $150.042 billion NSD
- Per capita: $6,815 NSD
Gini: 37.2
HDI (2014): 0.561
Currency: Drake (Ð)
With a population of just over 22 million, occupying an area of 16 million kilometres squared, Brellach has a remarkably low population density when compared to other nations in the world.
It is a matrilineal absolute monarchy presently ruled by Queen Lyta, notable for having a large proportion of its population still actively living nomadic lifestyles. Almost 60% of Brellach's population are members of one of the many nomadic tribes that roam the country, who shun Western consumerism in favour of what they believe to be a more natural lifestyle and are protected by national law. Much of Brellach's small economy is driven by the 40% of people who have taken up permanent residence in one of the few towns and cities in the country.
Contents
1 Etymology
2 History
2.1 First Divine Queen, Sumi
2.2 Since The Compact
3 Climate and Geography
4 Demographics
4.1 Language
4.2 Religion
4.3 Tribes
5 Politics
5.1 Divine Queen of Brellach
5.1.1 'Link Break'
5.1.2 Queen Lyta I
5.2 Her Court
5.3 Local governance
5.4 Law and order
5.5 Military and foreign relations
6 Economy
6.1 Transport
6.2 Energy
7 Education
8 Health
9 Culture
9.1 Visual arts
9.2 Music
9.3 Architecture
9.4 Media
9.4.1 Internet access
9.5 Brellachi calendar
10 Important people of Brellach
Etymology
'Brellach' is the Anglicised phonetic spelling of the country's official name. It is an Old Brellachi word, or rather two words combined - 'Brel', meaning 'land' or 'space', and 'ach', derived from 'acha', which variably means 'unity', 'together', or 'at peace', the latter probably being the intended meaning.
The name was coined in 1056 A.D. when The Compact was signed, uniting the tribals and city-dwellers of Brellach in peace and forming the Holy Queendom. Prior to that date, the city-dwelling population were known as the Sheothi, due to the city of Sheoth being their capital (and the name of the tribe they were descended from). This term is sometimes still used by tribals to refer to city-dwellers.
Brellach is pronounced 'Brell-ak', with the demonym, Brellachi, being pronounced 'Brell-ack-ee'.
The geographical archipelago as a whole, divorced from political definitions, is known as the 'Divine Isles' internationally, though to the Brellachi they are only known as 'Her Favoured Lands'. Brellach has come to refer to the geographical landmass as much as the sovereign nation in modern times.
History
Artist's impression of the City of
Sheoth, circa 1056 A.D. Sheoth was
a source of strife in Brellach for
centuries.
The city of Sheoth also became the focal point of violence for three at least centuries, as other tribes became angered by what they saw as the destruction of the natural order, and launched repeated offences against the city in the name of their goddess. The tribe of Sheoth, now with the first established economy in Brellach, was able to construct fortifications around the city and produce weapons in great quantities, and they were quick to establish the first organised military force in Brellach. This army, fueled by a constant stream of farmed food and blacksmith forged weapons, was able to continually drive back the assaults by the other tribes despite being outnumbered.
Brellach returned to peace throughout the 8th and 9th centuries A.D. until Sheoth began to expand, building new settlements elsewhere and encroaching on hunting trails typically reserved for the nomadic tribes. By this point, the tribe of Sheoth was no longer considered to be a tribe at all, and all of the remaining nomadic tribes united against their forces in an attempt to preserve their way of life. A brutal battle took place across the Aichan Savannah and the surrounding areas, where tens of thousands of lives were lost and little ground was gained on either side.
First Divine Queen, Sumi
The First Divine Queen of Brellach was Sumi I. Her birth date and origins are unknown, though it is known that she was roughly 18 years old when she assumed the position in the early 1050s A.D.
Known in modern Brellachi literature as 'She Who Was Sent by Her to Save Brellach', Sumi was identified as the Avatar of Her Divine Glory by the Priesthood at a young age (as all subsequent queens have been), and was immediately recognised as such by the 'Sheothi people' (the precursor civilisation to modern Brellach, with whom the tribes were at war). She assumed her position as the war between Sheoth and its cities and the nomadic tribes reached its most brutal stage, and her first task was to bring about an end to hostilities. According to official history, she visited each tribe leader one after the other, tirelessly, over the next two or three years, and each tribe leader she visited recognised her legitimacy as Avatar of Her Divine Glory. According to myth, she did this by performing miracles for the leaders of each and by demonstrating her reverence for their ways of life, but in reality it was probably a combination of the influence of the Priesthood and overtures of peace and tolerance.
In 1056 A.D. she was able to summon all of the warring tribe leaders to what is now known as the Grove of the First Divine Queen - neutral ground, in what was already a sacred site for both parties. After intense negotiations, Sumi brokered a treaty between the city-dwellers and the tribes in 1056 A.D., forming the Holy Queendom of Brellach in the process, under the terms of The Compact, which established a peace that has lasted until modern times. The position of Divine Queen of Brellach was cemented in its current form by this document, and the terms contained within required the tribes to venerate the Divine Queen as the Avatar of Her Divine Glory. In exchange, it required the Divine Queen to protect the ways of life of the Brellachi tribes, even if it came at the expense of advancing the Holy Queendom's interests, and essentially compelled 'city-dwelling' Brellachi to 'live and let live' when it came to the tribals, and vice-versa.
Due to her being the first of a line of queens believed to be living embodiments of their goddess, and her role in forming the Holy Queendom, The Compact, and a millennium-long peace, the Brellachi people have elevated Sumi to near-legendary status, and even Divine Queen Lyta is said to revere her. Believed as she is to have been the first incarnation of Her Divine Glory to walk upon the Earth among mortals since mythic times, she also has a great significance in the Church of Her Divine Glory, comparable to that of Jesus Christ in Christendom.
Since The Compact
Since signing The Compact, Brellach has been at peace, both internally and externally. Developments such as the Industrial Revolution and increasingly urbanised populations largely passed the Brellachi by, with industry in particular being viewed with scorn by their leadership. It is only in the past 50 or 60 years that the population has become more urbanised, and even now the population is mainly spread out across the countryside.
Climate and geography
With its massive size, Brellachi climate varies considerably from one place to the next. The western regions experience a largely temperate climate, with deciduous trees, warm summers, and chilly winters. Stretching south from there, dominating the southern regions and stretching up into the east is a Mediterranean climate that is pleasantly warm all year round, which is where the capital of Sheoth is to be found. The central regions are dominated by dry savannah, and experience low rainfall and high temperatures, while the northern areas consists primarily of steppes - low-lying grasslands devoid of trees, experiencing the lowest temperatures in Brellach.
The Mound, the tallest point in the
country, rises 422m above the west
Brellach landscape.
Temperatures vary drastically from one region to the next. The desert and savannah regions experience highs of 40-50°C all year round. The Mediterranean regions experience highs of 30-40°C and lows of 10-20°C. The temperate regions in the west have a climate similar to Great Britain, while the steppe regions are (consistently) the coldest, rarely feeling temperatures above 10°C.
Most precipitation falls in the west, with some in the south at predicable periods of the year. Rainfall in the northern and central regions is low, however, which both receive less than 100mm of rain per year.
The islands as a whole are thought by scientists to have formed as a result of a long-lived, massive, but only very mildly oblique shield volcano which gradually emerged from the ocean over the course of millions of years, which has since been further flattened by erosion. Given that there is, in fact, a very mild slope all the way from the coasts to the rough centre of Brellach (the central Aichan Savannah is roughly 300m above sea level, on average), and Brellach does not overlap with any extant fault lines, this seems to be the most plausible cause for the lack of mountains on the huge island. The government and most residents of Brellach only accept the creation myth told in their scripture, however, which claims that the Divine Glory created it apart from the rest of the world, intending for it to be her sanctuary.
Settlements are distributed across the islands, though the central regions of Aichan are dominated by tribes, with only one recognised town known to exist. Most population density is located in the southern and western regions. By far the most heavily populated city in Brellach is Sheoth, the capital, which has a population of over 200,000. It is also the most advanced in terms of services, amenities, and the economy, which is gradually becoming more service-based.
The official map of the Holy Queendom of Brellach.
Demographics
The official population figure for the Holy Queendom was estimated to be 22,016,521 based on a census conducted by Her Court. The government admits that it is probably impossible to know exactly how many Brellachi there are, however, due to the nomadic nature of the majority of people. Some tribes refuse to take part in any aspect of society, particularly those that roam the central savannah region.
Almost 60% of the Brellachi population belong to nomadic tribes, or at least live in settlements 'off the grid'. A traditional way of life that has existed continuously in Brellach for millennia, these tribals eschew modern civilisation and technology, preferring to live traditional lifestyles, rarely staying in one place for too long, and living entirely off the land. They avoid all contact with the government, though it is known that they all revere the Queen and recognise her status as the Avatar of the Divine Glory, and generally avoid each other too.
This is the primary reason for the drastic income inequality that exists in Brellach, and the lower-than-expected GDP - nearly 60% of people in Brellach do not contribute to the economy in any way. On the other hand, none of them utilise state-funded services, so they cost nothing either. For similar reasons, Brellachi infant mortality rates and standards of living are rated low, as these nomadic tribes do not avail themselves of medical care or education services.
The remaining 40% of Brellachi have elected to join civilisation, with most living in urban areas. Almost 20% of them work in agriculture, though there is a growing service industry in the major Brellachi settlements.
With over half of Brellachi being under the age of 30, it is a youthful population consisting entirely of ethnic Brellachi. Ethnic Brellachi are fair-skinned, of average height, and have predominantly brown, blonde, or red hair.
Language
Standard Brellachi is the official language of the Holy Queendom, and the first language of most citizens. It evolved in isolation and is unique from other languages. Its formal alphabet consists of 197 flourished pictographs (such as the Glyph of Light on the Brellachi flag) which represent a number of objects and concepts, which must be combined with other icons in different ways to form complex words or sentences.
It is rare for new pictographs to be added to the alphabet, which means that new 'words' must be created by using unique combinations of existing icons, which often results in the new object or concept simply being described. It is for this reason that direct translations from Brellachi to English tend to seem unusually specific, descriptive, or cumbersome; the name of the headquarters of their legislature, for example, is translated into English literally as 'The Building of Her Court's Residence', while the Brellachi term for 'computer' translates literally as 'The Machine That Counts on its Own'.
These linguistic peculiarities make it difficult for native Brellachi speakers to learn foreign languages, and it is similarly difficult for foreigners to learn Brellachi. These difficulties, combined with Brellach's political and economic isolation, mean that Brellachi is a language not widely spoken abroad, nor are foreign languages commonly spoken within the Holy Queendom. Only a fraction of a percentage of Brellachi claim to speak English as a fluent second language, and most of them work in government, or for one of the few businesses in Brellach with international ambitions. Speakers of foreign languages besides English (which is considered by the Brellachi to be the global lingua franca) are statistically non-existent, and measured in single digits.
Tribes are known to have their own dialects of Brellachi, some of which can be difficult for a Standard Brellachi speaker to understand at first. Some tribes do not have a written language and never come into contact with society, and their dialect has deviated considerably to the point that a translator is required to communicate with them. Other tribes, particularly those that have semi-regular contact with society, have kept their dialects virtually the same as Standard Brellachi, with only pronunciation differences.
The literacy rate is low, rated at less than 40%, primarily as children from the tribes do not tend to enrol in schools.
Religion
The Brellachi Glyph of Light, the
symbol of the Brellachi faith and
the nation as a whole.
The Church of Her Divine Glory posits that the Divine Glory is responsible for all of creation (see also: Brellachi creation myth), and that all of nature is simply an extension of her form. She is typically described as being the most perfect and beautiful being in the universe, omnipotent and omniscient, and as being compassionate and wise beyond human understanding. It is believed by the Brellachi that she maintains a presence on Earth in the form of their Queen, who is described as being an avatar of the Goddess. The Brellachi, therefore, believe that their Queen is the most perfect woman alive, and she is worshipped as a living Goddess.
Adherents of the Church are expected to respect their Goddess' creation, including their own bodies and the natural environment, and have a set of moral codes to live by which are mostly similar to those of other faiths - no killing, no stealing, and the like - as well as a unique requirement to defend Brellach, her favoured land, 'from the dark'. An intrinsic respect for, and desire to be immersed in, the natural world pervades most Brellachi sensibilities, and is perhaps directly responsible for the nomadic nature of so much of the population.
It is said that the Brellachi are her 'favoured children in her favoured land', hence why she maintains her avatar there. Brellachi couldn't be said to be 'god fearing', however, as their deity has never been portrayed as having a vengeful or malicious side, but instead they seek to win her adoration much like a child seeking the approval of its parent. They believe that acts of benevolence, generosity, and kindness bring joy to the Divine Glory, which in turn increases the love she has for her people. On the other hand, selfish or malevolent acts bring her great sadness, and Brellachi believe that things such as natural disasters happen as a result of this - not as an intentional punishment from her, but much like a tear falling on and killing an insect these disasters are an unintentional side-effect of her despair. This drive to please her influences everything the Brellachi do.
There is no government mandate that requires Brellachi citizens adhere to the Church, nor are there laws against following other religions, although the government does not allow churches from other faiths to be built in Brellach. Rather, a social convention exists amongst the Brellachi themselves, who simply find it incomprehensible that anybody wouldn't revere their Goddess.
Tribes
Most Brellachi are members of one of the thousands of nomadic tribes that roam the lands. The exact customs and traditions of these tribes may vary from one region to the next, but commonalities include a matrilineal hierarchy, an emphasis on community, and strict adherence to the tenets of the Church of Her Divine Glory. All tribes are known to recognise the legitimacy of the Brellachi Queen, whom they acknowledge and revere as the Avatar of Her Divine Glory, even though they choose to remain outside of Brellachi society.
A female leader of Tribe Roro,
from Western Brellach.
It is very common, particularly for those tribes who operate principally in the Aichan Savannah or in the southern regions of Brellach, for tribe members to live their entire lives without any form of clothing, and for many tribes the knowledge of how to make clothes has been lost. Only tribes in the colder northern areas, and a few in the temperate western region, are known to wear clothing with any degree of regularity, purely due to the lower temperatures these regions experience.
All of these traditions are influenced by their faith. Tribals are known to consider themselves "the purest of Her Divine Glory's favoured people" - with the exception of the Queen herself - and consider city-dwellers to have "lost their way". Immersed in nature as fully as possible, Brellachi tribals live their lives exactly as taught by the Church of Her Divine Glory. City-dwellers sometimes request to spend time among local tribes, a request they are glad to accept, in an effort to be closer to their Goddess.
Rather than the tribes being considered an inconvenience or a nuisance as they might in other countries, Brellachi value their presence in the country. It is thought that having the tribes reside in Brellach pleases their Goddess, who would otherwise be upset at how many Brellachi had started to live in cities, distancing themselves from nature in the process. Queen Vala III, ruler of Brellach from 1942 - 1996, said of the tribes: "None but the tribes know the truth of Her Divine Glory's Creation. Selfless and devout, those of the tribes are as much a part of nature as nature is of the Goddess. Their presence in Brellach continues to be welcome, for their presence is welcomed by Her Divine Glory, to the benefit of us all. We should thank and honour them for staying the path that so many have strayed from."
The tribes and their ways of life are protected in law by The Compact, the oldest functioning legal document in Brellach. Signed in 1056 A.D. by tribe leaders of the era and the first Divine Queen of Brellach, it establishes the roles and responsibilities of both parties in relation to each other. Most importantly, it precludes the Brellachi government from interfering with the lifestyle of the tribes, as well as requiring tribes to be respectful of any Brellachi settlements they may come across. In return for this protection, the tribes acknowledge the legitimacy of the Brellachi Queen as the Avatar of Her Divine Glory, and also agree to lend their support to the state in the event that Brellach is threatened by outside forces.
The Compact also compels the Divine Queen to intervene if any state activities have a negative impact on the tribes. The most recent time this has happened was in 2009, when Queen Lyta overturned the decision of the mayor of the savannah-bordering town of Aichen-boke to grant a local farmer permission to extend his farm. This extension would have overlapped with the hunting grounds of a nearby tribe, and they appealed to the Queen. The ruling was successfully overturned, and Queen Lyta personally visited the tribe leader to offer her apologies.
Politics
Brellach is an absolute monarchy, with a matrilineal Queen assuming absolute power over all matters of government, served by an advisory institution and legislature that translates literally as 'Her Court'.
Divine Queen of Brellach
Revered as an earthly avatar of their goddess, the Divine Glory, the Divine Queen is the absolute ruler of Brellach. Though powerful, Brellachi Queens have historically tended to be significantly less autocratic than most monarchs in the world, and have many limitations on their day to day lives.
Rather than being a hereditary position, the Divine Queen is selected as an infant by the Priesthood of Her Divine Glory. As the incumbent Queen reaches the end of her life, the priests begin a protracted ritual known as scrying. The nature of this ritual is a closely-guarded secret, but is believed to involve mild hallucinogenics and deep meditative states. During this ritual, the priests are supposedly informed of the location of the next Divine Queen - known at this point as the Divine Successor - by the Divine Glory herself, and they are then authorised by the incumbent Queen (or Her Court, should there be no living Queen) to go to that location and take the Divine Successor into their custody. This process is known as The Renewal, which is considered a great honour for the family.
The future Queen is never informed of the identity of her family, nor is her family permitted to reveal their daughter's true identity to anybody - she is to be nothing but a Queen, and an object of adoration for the Brellachi people, with no history beyond her supposed ties to the Goddess.
The Queen's Pendant, the Brellachi
equivalent to a crown, is worn by all
Queens and symbolic of their link to
the Goddess, the Divine Glory.
Despite being the absolute ruler of Brellach, the Queen has massive restrictions on every aspect of her life - more than any other citizens, in fact. While clothing is optional across Brellach, the Queen is prohibited from wearing any items of clothing for her entire life, without exception - she is not even permitted footwear. This clothing prohibition lasts from the moment The Renewal is completed, to the moment she dies. The only item she can keep on her body is the Queen's pendant.
She is forbidden from owning possessions too; she is provided with the Queen's pendant, the symbol of her reign, and is allowed a single horse of her choosing to live with her and serve as her transportation (which is immediately replaced if it dies), neither of which are her property. This restriction on her ability to own anything is partially symbolic, indicating that she needs nothing but the creations of the Goddess, and partially meant to discourage notions of greed or selfishness. All of her most basic needs such as food and medicine are satisfied by Her Court, which is responsible for her health and well-being, but she is given nothing more than she needs to survive.
It is also forbidden for the Queen to use make-up or alter her body with piercings or tattoos in any way, for such would be considered tampering with the perfection of the Divine Glory's Avatar. A similar restriction is placed on unnatural substances like soap or shampoo, and artificial additives in foods. Her body, more than anybody else's, is almost literally a temple. Medicines are permitted when absolutely required, but as a rule she must only use natural remedies for non-serious maladies.
She does not have an opulent residence like many monarchs; instead residing in the Queen's Divine Sanctuary. This heavily guarded, open-air shelter is located within an extensive, untamed wilderness in the woods just outside Sheoth, and is essentially a roof on legs. It has no walls or floors and is made entirely from natural materials, designed purely to keep the rain off the Queen in winter. Inside the shelter there is only a small bookcase, complete with books she enjoys or needs, and she is permitted nothing else. Brellachi Queens only spend any time indoors when such is absolutely necessary for their health (or during particularly bad weather) or required for her to conduct her duties.
The completely exposed shelter, and her strict lack of clothing, serve three key purposes: firstly, as an Avatar of the Divine Glory, her body is considered to be utterly perfect and not to be obscured. Secondly, her simple abode, completely open to the elements, allows her to maintain a deep spiritual connection with the Divine Glory and her natural creation. It is believed that her bare feet must maintain a connection with the 'True Ground' (the earth) and her skin must stay in contact with fresh air as much as possible for her link to the goddess to be strong; this limits the amount of time she can spend indoors. Lastly, the combination of the two is somewhat symbolic; her divine nature means that her happiness depends on nothing but being immersed in nature, and all of her needs can be met by being physically connected to the creation of the goddess.
At no point in her life may she have sex or marry, for it is said that her body is not to be touched by mortal hands. No Brellachi Queen has ever had children. Even when Queens have required medical treatment, doctors have been expected to wear gloves and only touch her when absolutely necessary.
Essentially, the Queen has nothing in her life but her faith and her dedication to her people, and these restrictions are stipulated in the Divine Contract of Rule. Written by the Priesthood (some time during the early 1050s A.D.), and believed by the Brellachi to be the direct words of Her Divine Glory as spoken through the First Divine Queen, Sumi I, the Divine Contract stipulates not only the powers afforded to the Queen, but the restrictions placed upon her life, as described above. All Divine Queens since Sumi have rigidly adhered to the terms of the Divine Contract, having been made to memorise its contents during their upbringing.
A myth exists which suggests that Brellach could one day be corrupted by an "Avatar Lost to the Dark" - a corrupted Queen - and thus the Priesthood, as well as being in charge of selecting and raising future Queens, must also watch over them to ensure they abide by the terms of the Divine Contract. The Priesthood can theoretically be summoned to 'correct' a wavering Queen by Her Court, should there be considerable evidence to demonstrate such, although no formal procedure exists for actually 'dethroning' a Divine Queen, and it has never been necessary in practice.
While the overall tone of the document is known, the exact text of the Divine Contract of Rule is known only to the Priesthood and the Divine Queens themselves, however. The original is kept securely in the main Sheoth Church of Her Divine Glory, under the watchful guard of both the Priesthood and Her Protectors.
Despite their frugal and restricted lifestyles, Divine Queens command the adoration of the Brellachi people, and have the ability to shape their nation however they choose, typically doing so altruistically.
'Link Break'
The Priesthood of Her Divine Glory is usually efficient at ensuring there is an adequate line of succession, however there are occasions when their calculations are off, leading to power vacuums - usually when a Divine Queen dies unexpectedly. In Brellach this is known as a 'Link Break', for their direct link to the Divine Glory is believed to have been severed. During this time it is seen as appropriate for the existing Devout Advisors of Her Court to govern the country in the Divine Queen's stead, until a Divine Successor is chosen and comes of age. As the Devout Advisors were hand-picked by the outgoing Queen, they are thought of as carrying out the deceased Queen's last wishes.
During this time, Her Court will rarely pass new laws, and will essentially maintain the status quo until relieved by the new Divine Queen. The Priesthood of Her Divine Glory will often oversee them during this time, ensuring they don't overstep their bounds.
Despite governmental stability largely being maintained, the years without a Divine Queen become cynically known as 'Sun Rotations Lost to the Dark', believed to be a sign that their goddess is upset by something they have done - the living embodiment of their goddess having essentially abandoned them. While there isn't considerable public unrest, Brellach's already-weak economic output invariably deteriorates into recessions during these periods.
The last time a Link Break occurred was in 1996, when Queen Vala III died suddenly of a cardiac arrest. Although not a true Link Break (The Renewal had already occurred, and had selected Queen Lyta as the Divine Successor), Lyta - then aged only 4 - would not come of age for another 11 years, and Brellach entered an economic recession almost immediately. The economy has only just recovered to its pre-Lyta level.
Queen Lyta I
Lyta, Queen of Brellach, with her
current royal horse, Enan
Taken from her parents shortly after birth once she was identified as the Divine Successor, like all before her the 22-year-old's family history is unknown even to her, and she spent the entirety of her younger years undergoing intensive training for her position. As is tradition, she devotes the majority of her time to matters of state and spirituality, is forever forbade from wearing clothing or jewellery save for the Queen's pendant, and has no possessions of her own.
She chose her first royal horse when she became Queen, whom she named Enan. She is said to be extremely fond of him, which is often true of Brellachi Queens who tend to be isolated, and he lives with her, unrestrained, at the Queen's Divine Sanctuary. As per Brellachi custom, as well as being her closest companion, he is also the only mode of transportation she can make use of, except for in extraordinary circumstances (for example, when travelling abroad on a diplomatic visit, which she is rarely able to do due to how protective the Brellachi are of her - and historically, such journeys have been undertaken by ship, with the royal horse accompanying the Queen anyway).
Her affinity for the 'common soul' has garnered much respect for the young monarch in her short reign. When she is able to do so, she often walks the streets of Sheoth, talking to its citizens about issues that concern them.
Her full title is The Magnificent and Beautiful, Wise and Powerful, Perfect and Almighty, Avatar of the Divine Glory, Queen Lyta of Brellach, Her horses swift and Her blade true. According to tradition, there is no 'short form' version of this title, and members of Her Court will usually quote it verbatim each time they refer to her. Queen Lyta herself, however, is notoriously unconcerned with her title, finding it cumbersome and unnecessary, and prefers to be referred to without it.
Her Court
The Building of Her Court's Residence,
where Her Court has operated since
its inception.
Each member of Her Court is hand-picked by the Queen herself shortly after she assumes power, in a process known simply as The Choosing, designed to ensure Her Court's loyalty and devotion to the Queen, to the Divine Glory, and to Brellach and her people. Anybody can put themselves forward as a candidate for membership, although typically only candidates who are well-schooled or has good experience in certain professions or lifestyles will be seriously considered. Each Queen has different motivations and methods when choosing her advisors; Queen Lyta is known to subject candidates to particularly long interviews, with candidates expected to stay with her at her sanctuary for several days, during which time they will discuss all manner of subjects. She is of the belief that a brief interview based on prescribed questions does not reveal a person's true character. Once appointed, any member of Her Court can be dismissed by the Queen at any time, and replaced with another of her choosing.
The current members of Her Court are:
- Fellis Jessina - Most Devout Advisor of Her Court
- Rena Vaska - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for Speaking with Those of Other Places
- Rayna Brenyoi - Devout Advisor of Her Court With Responsibility for Farming and Building
- Rekka of Trelnya - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for Learning
- Sula Ramta - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for Horses and Moving
- Tirra Moro - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for Spending and Trading
- Tula Brann - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for Upholding Her Laws
- Urla of Nakre - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for Defending Her Favoured Lands
- Yariss Uranti - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for the Church of Her Divine Glory
- Karra Vulto - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for Healing
- Ell of Sten - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for The Tribes and The Compact
- Cici Lucona - Devout Advisor With Responsibility for the True Ground and Her Creation
Each week the Queen meets with Her Court to hear of issues of national importance, and orders them to enact any decisions she makes. To avoid having the Queen go indoors (and therefore have her bare feet leave the 'True Ground'), the tradition is for members of Her Court to hold these meetings on the grass in the grounds of her sanctuary. When not meeting with the Queen, Her Court resides in The Building of Her Court's Residence, located in Sheoth.
For day-to-day matters the Queen will typically accept the recommendations of Her Court without argument, though she is technically under no obligation to listen to any of them and can overrule them on most matters. Her Court is also expected to tend to the basic needs of the Queen, providing her with food, water, and a replacement horse when necessary. Although submissive to the Queen, they have the power to call upon the Priesthood to punish her should she fail to abide by the terms of the Divine Contract - such as attempting to own property, wearing clothes, or the like.
Her Court maintains their own separate, more recent organisation called the Her People's Court, meant to give the people of Brellach a greater degree of influence over national governance - at regular intervals, prominent individuals from the community such as tribe leaders and businessmen will meet with Her Court to discuss any issues they feel should be addressed. The advisors of Her Court then decide whether or not these issues should be brought to the Queen's attention. Occasionally the Queen herself will observe and even take part in these sessions, a rare honour. Although prominent community members will normally be the speakers in these sessions, any Brellachi citizen is allowed to raise an issue if they wish.
Local governance
There are 40 administrative divisions in Brellach, attached to one of the 40 major towns and cities spread across the country. The Brellachi term for these jurisdictions, translated literally, is 'Her People's Space'. These constituencies are almost all governed by an elected official, usually the mayor of the town or city they are centred around, although there are a handful with hereditary leaders. Although an absolute monarchy, local authorities are given surprising leeway when it comes to matters that purely affect local residents, being allowed to make decisions with a minimum of interference from the Divine Queen or Her Court - though such interference does occur, often when the Queen believes a decision has not been made with the best interests of the local residents, if the decision runs contrary to national laws, or if it impacts local tribes in a negative way.
Each of Her People's Spaces includes a town or city at the centre, with the constituency's territory extending roughly 20 miles away from that settlement's core (this varies in some larger regions, such as Sheoth, which has considerably more area under its sway). Vast swathes of the country, particularly in the Aichan Savannah, which has only one Space centred around Sia'sa, do not fall under the jurisdiction of any local authority, and are thus only governed by the Divine Queen. The goal of this configuration is to allow urban Brellachi the ability to have some measure of control over their regions, whilst still leaving as much space as possible available for tribes to remain isolated and unmolested by local politics. There is nothing stopping people from living in these 'unclaimed regions', but they must not get in the way of any tribes that might also roam in that space lest they be evicted by the Queen.
All of these local authorities are ultimately subordinate to the Divine Queen and Her Court. Their governors are usually the ones who represent their constituents at Her People's Court.
Law and order
Brellach operates a mixed legal system; it is largely similar to common law systems in that judges make laws based on precedent, but the Divine Queen - the highest court of appeal - has the power to create laws arbitrarily or even overturn the decision of judges if she feels it necessary.
As in every other part of their society, Brellachi spiritual beliefs play a large part in the process. Their goddess, in-keeping with her portrayal as a compassionate and benevolent deity, teaches that people are to be treated with compassion even when accused of a crime. When arrested by Her Lawbringers, people charged with crime undergo a trial by their peers (for which the Brellachi word is literally 'impartial others'), presided over by a sentencing judge, who is almost exclusively a member of the Priesthood of Her Divine Glory with training in law - the thinking behind this being that while the jury speaks for the Brellachi people (who have been directly 'wronged'), the Priest speaks for Her Divine Glory (who must 'reset the balance').
The Brellachi do not employ 'punishment' as English speakers understand it, with their equivalent word translating as 'Divine Penance'. Those convicted of minor crimes ('Penitents') will be required to complete good deeds that either benefit either their victims directly or the local community as a whole. These deeds can range from assisting in the construction of schools or hospitals, to teaching underprivileged children or helping the sick, depending on the skills of the Penitent. In some cases, when the victim agrees and it is appropriate to do so, the Penitent may be tasked with aiding the victim and their family specifically with whatever they require. The Brellachi believe that crime upsets the Goddess, and these benevolent activities go some way towards pleasing her again and thus 'rebalancing the universe'. It is also thought to have the side-effect of rehabilitating the Penitent, as it rekindles a sense of community spirit and empathy in them as they meet and work with the people they wronged.
Her Place of Redemption, Maeloth;
one of the oldest 'prison-churches'
that still exists in Brellach.
As such, The Darkened are placed into the care of the Priesthood, in specially-commissioned churches called 'Her Places of Redemption' (which could be termed 'prison-churches'), intended to spiritually cleanse them. The length of the sentence depends entirely on the severity of the crime committed, and whether or not the Priesthood believes The Darkened has been properly cleansed.
The Darkened will find themselves completing good deeds much like Penitents, but in a much more strictly controlled manner. For those who are 'too dark' to be allowed to leave the confines of Her Place of Redemption, this work can involve manufacturing clothing or preparing food. Others may perform work in the local community, under the watch of the Priesthood and Her Lawbringers, until returning to the prison-church when they are done. The rest of the time, The Darkened live as the priests themselves do, having nothing but bare essentials to their names, and spending their days maintaining the church and 'revering Her Divine Glory'. Many may be released once the Priesthood is confident of their 'redemption', but many more either choose to remain or are never released.
Laws are enforced by the Brellachi police force, which is known as 'Her Lawbringers', whose organisational headquarters are in Sheoth. They are responsible for detecting and investigating crimes, as well as patrolling the streets and aiding needy citizens. It is uncommon for Her Lawbringers to be armed with lethal weaponry; they are instead trained to apprehend criminals through non-violent means where possible, non-lethal means where necessary, and to only use lethal methods when no other choice is presented.
Her Lawbringers answer directly to the Divine Queen, and venerate her accordingly, but have their own hierarchy and infrastructure. That they answer to the Queen directly has the side-effect of making the people of Brellach accord them with some measure of reverence too, for it is believed that they operate under a divine mandate, and have a living goddess as their guide. Her Lawbringers have done nothing to dissuade this, as it has been noted that people cooperate with them much more readily during investigations.
Crime in Brellach is largely a non-issue, however. Their simple lifestyles, combined with their strict adherence to their spiritual beliefs, means that the Brellachi are not typically inclined to criminal activities beyond crimes of passion. Even the impoverished can find assistance from the Church, precluding their need to steal in most cases.
Military and foreign relations
The Holy Queendom is defended by Her Legion of Light, a military force that serves the Queen. Their stated mandate is to "lift the veils of darkness that hang over those who would do harm to Brellach or Her Divine Avatar, our Queen." It is split into three branches; The Legionnaires of Land, the Legionnaires of Sea, and the Air Legionnaires.
It is centrally funded at a cost of $4.307 billion NSD, and currently has 140,000 active personnel in service, known as Legionnaires of Light regardless of which branch they serve in. A compact exists between the government and the nomadic tribes, however, as part of the same agreement which grants their traditional lifestyle legal protection - when Brellach is threatened, the tribes will rally to its defence, which means that there are over 9 million people fit and available for military service. Her Court maintains an armoury of old, mothballed weapons to arm the tribesmen with in the event that it becomes necessary.
The Brellachi navy is small and lacks
carriers, but it is well-organised and
commands reasonably modern ships.
The Land Legion has access to just over 300 Brellachi-manufactured main battle tanks, 500 infantry fighting vehicles, 100 mobile artillery vehicles, and 52 attack helicopters, with myriad light transport vehicles. With the exception of the MBTs, which were introduced some 20 years ago and received upgrades 10 years ago, most of these vehicles are reaching the end of their useful lives, with the IFVs in particular being almost 40 years old now. Insufficient funding exists to either design and build new equipment, or to purchase new equipment from abroad, and Queen Lyta has set government spending priorities elsewhere for the time being.
Similarly, the Air Legion is small and poorly-funded, with only 33 third-generation fighter aircraft at their disposal and a handful of tactical and strategic airlifters, and there are no plans to expand this.
The Queen has set a foreign policy of 'compassionate cooperation', intended to curry favour with the nations of the world by maintaining a reasoned, considerate approach to international issues. Where possible, Brellach will offer material support to those in need, but often their support is vocal.
Brellach is not currently party to any international agreements, though they have signed several non-aggression pacts in the past with nations that, in some cases, no longer exist.
