Rhodina

Flag of the Kingdom of Rhodina

**The Kingdom of Rhodina**, better known as **Rhodina**, is ruled by Antonio Macaluso, known for its extremely successful mercantile economy and rich culture.

## Founding

Rhodina began as a collection of small villages that were closely tied together through trade. Their long lived peace eventually ended when a nomadic tribe arrived from the west, attacking the villages and leaving them in nothing more than ruins. The surviving villagers decided that they needed to better protect themselves if they wanted to continue their existence, so they founded the city of Messina. Although they did not know it at the time, the location of Messina was in a perfect spot for trade. They only realized its potential when foreign vessels often passed the city, sometimes stopping by to trade with the people of Messina. As merchants stopped by more often, the city got richer, allowing it to build itself into the massive city it is today.

## Cursed Land

While the city's location was great for trade, a major problem was festering below the city. The people of Messina had unknowingly built their city on the homeland of a large group of sirens, who began to cause issues quickly. As the city out its new fleet into operation, they noticed a large number of them going missing without a trace. Leadership suspected foreign attacks, and closed the ports while sending out patrols from the navy.

Eventually, some children found a shrine while exploring a cave. They reported it to Leonardo, who brought a group of soldiers with him to investigate it. When they arrived, the room had half flooded, and a pair of sirens greeted the party. After some talking, they negotiated a deal. The sirens would not attack ships around Messina, but at the end of each year, one ship and its crew must be sacrificed to the sirens, or else they would resume attacks. In order to not cause panic in the public, sailors were told no never disclose the deal, in an act knows as "The Sailor's Oath", which if broken, was punishable by death.

A system was introduced to determine which ship would be sacrificed. Accountants would keep trace of every ship's income brought to the city, and the ship that performed the worst by the end of the year would be sent on its 'final voyage'. Because of this, being a sailor became a very well-paying career, due to the fact that your life depended on how much money you could bring in. The dramatic increase in pay attracts many new sailors, who all understand the risk, but see the monetary outcome as a good reason to risk their life.

A couple years later, Leonardo realized he could use the sirens to his advantage. He told them that, should Messina fall, the sirens would be at risk of extinction, since the invading power could easily wipe them all out. So, they struck another deal. If Messina gets invaded, the sirens will assist the Rhodinian Navy in its defense. Now, to prevent the sirens from attacking the wrong ships, every vessel in the navy has its hull coated in a layer of a liquid the sirens gave Leonardo. The liquid is odorless and tasteless to humans, and it visually undetectable, due to it just looking like a wet hull. But to sirens, it gives off a slight glow and scent, easily marking friendly ships. Since then, the sirens and Rhodinian people have been in an uneasy, yet slowly improving alliance.

## Culture and Language

While the secret about sirens eventually did get out, it was luckily interpreted differently by the people. They instead see sirens as mythical protectors of Rhodina, and as a sign of good luck. In a way, this is actually true, but the leadership and sailors still do their best to keep the reality of it a secret. Because of this belief, it isn't uncommon to see people, especially sailors, with tattoos and memorabilia of sirens. There is also a relatively small religious group that worships sirens, who call themselves Children of Zenova.

On top of its competitive economic culture, Rhodina is also heavy driven by military. When it rebuilt after the nomad attacks, it was forced to adopt a policy of "defense first", due to paranoia of future attacks. Even though these attacks never came, Rhodina has kept its militant culture, which has led it to be considered one of the most powerful militaries in Illistrus.

The language that is spoken in Rhodina is Rhodiniano, which is a modern version of Old Rhodiniano. Old Rhodiniano was what was spoken by people in ancient Rhodina, and had many dialects due to the distance of villages. When everyone was forced to move into Messina, the languages slowly merged forming what is now modern Rhodiniano.

Halfway through every year, Messina hosts a festival called Festa di Messina, in which travelers from all over Illistrus come not just to experience Rhodinian culture, but to display their native culture as well. This leads to unique interactions between people, and hosts a variety of events and shows from music to displays of new advances in technology and science. Depending on the political climate at the time, world leaders will come together near the end of the festival to attempt to solve disputes.