Hulaya

**Hulaya** is the name given to the region bordering Hadašham from the northeast. Unlike many other place names, its origin is easy to trace as a similar sounding word in the local court language means seaside or seaboard. Indeed the entire area is compressed between the Stillborn sea and some minor ridges in the east, as well as the Zabiraths and it's protounding northernmost cliff. Covering a gentle, c-shaped strip of land. Hulayans are immigrants from the other side of the Stillborn sea, dissimilar to any of their neighbour. They have broad, round faces with almond shaped eyes, shorter build than average in the south, and a much darker skin with bronze-shaded countour. Some of them are even completely brown, an unknown feature among the Hadašhim people. They are organised along clan lines which can be as small as a single family, but the largest ones count several thousand.

Contrary to Šalmaram, separated from Hadašham by the high-rising nigh-impassable Zabirath mountains, Hulaya is a well-known land for the Hadašhim. Frequent diplomatic missions, traders, traveller and mercenaries facilated a widescale exchange. From the ancient times to the present, Hulaya has been an important, steady source of exotic products, like spices, medicines, animals, slaves forwarded into the Empire at a favorable price. No war was even made between Hulaya and Hadašham. After the border was demarcating along the Lari canyon, roughly halfway between the more populated areas of both states, it has never been changed.

Most Hulayans are farmers by profession. They cultivate the fertile lowlands of the country as a livelihood producing cereals like maize, sorghum, millet and tubers like yam, sweet potato and cassava for food. Banana and plantains are popular foodstuffs, some of them have been even introduced overland into Hadašham as a delicacy. Along rivers and near to the sea fish, shellfish and crustaceans are popular, while the average household raises poultry, pigs, goats and sheeps for meat. Horses are kept in stables to secure a more controlled manure dispersion in the agriculture, while cattle is herded in the less productive montane areas or on fallow. Cattle is a symbol of wealth and authority among the Hulayans. Only the clan elders and the royal family could afford itself to keep more than a cow. In theory every single head of cattle is the property of the ruler, so special permissions are required to slaughter one. Beef and tallow are distributed at popular festivals, while hide dispersal is centralised used mostly for military reasons. Designated magistrates are tasked with inspecting the stocks and securing the wellbeing of the animals. Even larger cities have plazas with thorny fence that put the local herd to public display.

At dawn these animals are herded out with great ceremony blowing a horn, beating drums. During that time, everyone is obliged to clear from the way of the herdsman. They themselves are adorned with golden earrings, hairbands, armbands, for a loincloth wrapped around a the waist they are naked both below the knee and above the abdomen. Herding cattle is considered one of the most prestigious occupation among the inhabitants. In effect, working with cattle positions one quite high in the society. Even the language has separate words for herders, butchers, tanners and cooks who are permitted to associate themselves with the animals or with parts of them. Slaughtering cattle outside the designated festivals is strictly prohibited and punished by death. Such a deed is considered high treason as the high king of Hulaya is styled the Supreme Bull.

The high king is the supreme ruler of the region at the helm of a remarkably centralised state. Clan elders play a significant role in the local administration, but their right are limited. They may speak at public gatherings, even the critic of the monarch is permitted without any repercussion. Deliberation in matters of war or peace, trade and taxes is usual, although the elders do only have an advisory role. Decisions and their execution do lay at the high king. Inspectort and bureucrats, typically royal descendants or members of prominent clans are tasked with fulfilling the state decrees. Most duties comprise the memorising of the living law and applying it to settle civil and criminal affairs. Such royal adepts travel the land around their residence, where they have to upkeep the order alongside reporting any cases back to the capital.

Apart from them, there is a separate system of royal inspectors who are hidden in plain sight as commoners. Either disguised as travelling merchants, or as soldiers they assess the work done by the magistrates. They speak to locals at public places, gather rumors, measure the confidence and trust in the low-level administration, search for signs of possible mismanagement before reporting back to the capital.

Hulaya has a small standing army, made up of full-time soldiers. Most of them are in the royal guards, or permanent military instructors along the fresh conscripts Every male citizen is obliged to serve in the corps, first as part of the traditional age-based system where they receive basic training before getting enrolled for two to four years of full-time service with three being the average. Most are discharged and return to their families, but other remain enrolled and continue to serve in the border forts, or as the police upkeeping order in the state. While in active service, youngsters are organised into regiments counting a thousand persons each. Ten standing regiments are known by name, some tracing back the ancestry to centuries ago.

Hulaya has no navy, their ships are up-armored galleys used to patrol the coastal waters. Should the need arise, a large merchant navy with considerable seafaring experience stands at disposal to be impressed into service, albeit sea-borne dangers are unknown for the state.

Land forces are traditionally parted into a cavalry and into an infantry branch, former composed of melee and missile units, while latter is melee only. Melee infantry predominates. All recruits do receive a standardised equipment after training, consisting of a large, oval shield made of oxen hide, a throwing spear of classical lenght, and a stabbing spear with shortened handle used for fencing in close quarters. To protect the bodies from incoming strikes, soldiers receive an armless padded armor ending just under the groin and a wooden helmet strenghtened with iron strips. Cavalry is a subsidiary branch. Mounted archers used for scouting and pursuit do wear the same armor as the infantry, just longer clothes covering their entire arm, as well the legs down until the ankle. For self-protection they carry fencing spears, around three feet long, half of it a blade. Shock cavalry is heavily armoured, both by classical cloth armor and mail above it. They use long lances alonside a charge-and-retreat tactic to break up enemy formations.

Hulaya warfare puts heavy emphasis upon strategic planning, suprise attacks, indirect combat. Most of their known wars were fought against the Kingdom of Širaban, another neighbour of Hadašham. The Empire, preoccupied during most of its existence along the western reaches was keen to keep cordial relations with both parties. As such it held itself to a benevolent and equal neutrality alongside mediating efforts. Širabanese forces are mostly compromised of cavalry, both shock troops and horse archers of superior quality than the Hulayan ones. To even out this mismatch, Hulaya has avoided to give pitched battles, instead focusing on exhaustion tactics. The rugged terrain of the borderlands fits this strategy just perfect.

With skillful planning and resourceful locals, Hulayan generals have always been able to map the surrounding terrain, identify possible choke points, sets traps, hide their reserves, or force the enemy into unequal battle. Hostile scouts while quickly disposed off. Fast hit-and-run cavalry attacks made the opponent giving chase, just getting lured into a trap where they were butchered to the very last. Crops were burnt, villages deserted, harassing parties were sent into Širaban to do just the same there, inducing war-wearyness in the population. Possibility was always open in the densely forested areas to perform side attacks, when units were caught en route blocking all way out. In such cases the cavalry could not put its speed to use, while the densely packed ranks suited the agile infantry better. Entire Širabanese armies were known to have been annihilated this way in centuries of costly wars for the lucrative trade of the Stillborn Sea.

Hulayans do have a strong tradition of annihilation warfare, their warriors neither giving quarter, nor asking for it. A Hadašhim envoy was shocked to the core, when he observed a battle between the royal forces and some intruders from the northeast, similar looking and equipped on both sides.

> After being forced to yield battle by the combined pressure of cavalry and infantry, the cattle raiders chose a location with both of their flanks covered by cliffs. Behind them was the booty gathered on their way, enslaved people, horses, other kinds of livestock. They did trust the power of their arms such that they haven't left a single one of them behind to watch over the plunder. From the hilltop where his majesty has taken position, we could indeed well oversee the battlefield. Although outnumbered at least ten to one, occupying the lower ground all afoot, while out of their sight behind canoes prepared to launch an amphibious assault, they were decided to bring the matter to a conclusion. At once, by a thundering battlecry singing songs in their language so foreign to my ears formed up to a mighty wedge, running straigh against the Hulayan regiments. Latter waited in patience, unmoved by the ferociousness displayed by their enemy. Arrows started to travel overhead, hitting some of the raging bastards who scaled uphill. Just before hitting our northern friends, a command was heard and each soldier moving in beautyful unison screwed around, raised his spear and threw it into the lot. Much were killed, even more wounded, but they had no time to lament about the losses, because the brave sons of Hulaya were already upon them, pushing, bashing, stabbing and cutting them to death. All was over in a matter of moments, before, the darned pillagers were enveloped from both wings completely encircled into the fast-moving footmen. Their distinct colours were seen for some time afterwards, but to my most easnest suprise not a single prisoner was taken, neither to be interrogated, no to be sold as chattel. From my point of view not one of them was seen surrendering, they accepted their fate as a settled matter, raised their weapon-wielding hands to cast harm upon one more of the victorious liberators, as if it would make a difference.
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In social matters, only the high king practices polygamy, taking every half-a-year new, virgin wifes. Large families are seen as a sign of prosperity in the Hulayan culture while fatherhood is considered an integral part of masculinity. Males are referred as adolescents in the local language until the birth of their first child be they twenty or fifty years of age. Being infertile is considered a shame. To prove their manliness most rulers bed their ladies on regular occasions, leading intercourses every day. Eighty to hundred offsprings are average from such unions. Marriage is a matter of economic interests in Hulaya as elsewhere, but the residence of the new couple depend on the circumstances. This practice stands in Strong contrast with the traditions of the Subcontinent, where married women reside with the husbands family. Hulayans both practice matrilocal and patrilocal residence depending on the importance of thein-laws, the reason why a marriage was agreed upon etc. Lesser princes and princesses are usually married off into clans that adopt them. They receive a small estate near to their new home with some cows and servants. If one of their siblings is enthroned they aren't considered anymore royals but high-standing commoners obliged to the authority of the clan elders. Because of this after a king dies are remaining childrens are married off, be they toddlers or adolescent. Afterborn offsprings are also handled this way.

Only the first ten-to-dozen royal children are kept during the reign of their father in the palace, but exemptions do occur. Sons are trained in the elite units of the military to become commanders after they have gathered significant experience. Daughters are married to the highest magistrates, ofter their fathers brothers or cousins, where they live in the harem as privileged wives. Women are in general kept far from battlefields, nonetheless some princesses manage to become skilled warriors, especially in the cavalry corps where their physical handicap is balanced by agility. It is not unheard of that a duchess turns into a general with official royal sanction and commandeers troops. Hulaya practices a strict primogeniture where the oldest surviving son inherits all. This is both true for the royal family, as for the general population.

Daughters and other sons are married off. Lesser sons from powerful or rich clans are greatly sought after for adoptive marrieges by families without sons. In such an arrangement they leave their original clan behind, take the name of the others and continue to live on. As most boys are given to related families within the clan, only the youngest infants of minor braches are let go in such a manner. Nonetheless it is a chance to move upwards on the social ladder since clan elders are considered superior to family fathers.

Relations with the Empire were and are traditionally centered upon trade, diplomacy and mutual non-intervention. Hulaya is alongside Širaban the best-known neigbour of the Subcontinent, kept in high regard for the centuries of true friendship. Rulers came and rulers went on both side of the ravine, but this aggrement was honored under all circumstances.