Leng

Leng is a large island found within the Jade Sea, directly south of the Golden Empire of Yi Ti. To the south are the Manticore Isles and Marahai, and to the east are the Shadow Lands.

## Topography and Geography

An island of forests and jungles, Leng has three major cities. Leng Yi is found upon the northern coast, Leng Ma on the central western coast, and Turrani along the southern shore. It is ruled by god-empresses who have grown rich from the island's spices and gemstones, similar to the god-emperors of Yi Ti. The people of northern Leng are descended from Yi Ti, while the people of southern Leng, the Lengii, are a culture native to the island.

## The Lengii

The Lengii are said to be the tallest known race of mankind, and merchants and sailors brave enough to land upon the isle report that many grown to seven or eight feet in height. Known for their skin coloured like oiled-teak and a slender beauty, the Lengii have large eyes golden in colour. The Lengii now live in the southern third of the isle, as the remainder is populated by people of YiTish descent.

Originally the Lengii were pushed back by settlers from Yi Ti who landed in the north of the island, until they only inhabited the southern third of it. However, when the settlers on Leng broke away from Yi Ti to be ruled by their own god-empresses, they apparently made common cause with the Lengii, so although many consider Leng to be the territory of Yi Ti, it is in truth ruled by the Lengii themselves. The first god-empress of the current dynasty, Khiara the Great, was actually pure Lengii. Khiara took two husbands, one Lengii and one YiTish - a customary pattern followed by her daughters and their daughters in turn.

## Cities

There are three main cities on the island of Leng, Leng Yi, Leng Ma and Turrani.

* Leng Yi - built on the northern aspect of the island, Leng Yi represents the highest density of YiTish citizens outside of the lands of the Golden Empire itself, and serves as a centre of trade for the island. Merchants from across the Known World call port in the illustrious wharves and ports found in the bay around which the city is built, each named after a different spice. The Saffron Port is particularly busy.
* Leng Ma - On the western side of the island within the Bay of Leng, the city of Leng Ma serves as a final provisions stop for ships bound for the Shadow Lands and beyond. Despite this, few visitors stray further than the winehouses and brothels of the portside, for the residents of the city are deeply suspicious of outsiders. The river Ma flows from the hills to the east to meet the Jade Sea just south of the city.
* Turrani - The city of the God-Empress Khalia the Zeal, Turrani is a port city that does not allow access to any besides those that fly the flag of the Empress, a tree laden heavy with rubies and emeralds in place of fruit. The city was founded by the original residents of the isle, and built upon the wealth in spices and gemstones found in the forested mountains to the north, where the river that passes through the city, the Lengiai, has its source. Beneath the city there is another city, formed of leagues and leagues of tunnels, vast echoing hallways and galleries, in which the Old Ones are said to lurk. There are entrances to the buried city across the island, but nearly all were sealed by Jar Har, the sixth sea-green emperor of Yi Ti, who first conquered the isle.

## History

Leng was an isolated island for most of its history, as the Lengii did not welcome outsiders. Those who attempted to harvest the island's resources met a foul end, and it thus was avoided by mariners. Merchants from the Golden Empire of Yi Ti periodically managed to open Leng to trade. According to the *Jade Compendium*, however, the Old Ones who lived below the island's subterranean ruins instructed the Empress of Leng to kill the foreign merchants on at least four occasions. Leng was eventually conquered by Jar Har, the sixth sea-green emperor of Yi Ti. He sealed the entrances to the underground cities sealed under penalty of death, after which there were no longer massacres. The YiTish colonized most of the island, with the Lengii confined to the southern third.

Leng overthrew YiTish rule four hundred years ago and power returned to the god-empresses. Khiara the Great established a tradition whereby the empress takes two husbands, one each of Lengii and YiTish descent, with one commanding the island's armies and the other its fleet.