Tlocuaume

Tlocuaume is the a province on the southeast side of Itenco Atl. It is a comprised of grassy marshes, deep swamps, mossy forests, and a glacier that dilates depending on the time of the year. The name Tlocuaume means Land of Wet Lands in Itlatol for being the most moist of the regions.

## Demographics

The population in the Tlocuaume is majorly Koatl with over 4.2 million of the Koatl living in this province alone. Seeing anything but sentient snakes in this region is rare. Seeing one makes the local Koatl very wary, and they may be closed off to the visitors

The snake people are spread out throughout the Tlocuaume in loose settlement-cities that are really tight communities. There are plenty of potions, salves, and other natural remedies, so there is no shortage of witch-doctors or tricksters around.

## Geography

The region is all wet, no matter where you go. The forests are wet and full of moss. The grassy areas will squish under your feet and peat bogs may suck you in. The swamps are just water with a bunch of greens growing at the top of the stagnant waters. The glaciers are full of snow and ice. There is no escaping water in this region.

The flora of Tlocuaume provide some of Itenco Atl's unique salves that can do as little as seal a wound and as much as change a person's full appearance. It also makes death a rather trivial thing with "undead" sometimes appearing. The plants can overtake dying cells once a person is buried, and control them for some time past the point of expiration. The plants and water add a little more pressure to the rocks beneath allowing for the tetlatli to form more easily underneath these areas, but also make it so much harder to mine out not like in the Cuauhtla.

The wet features make this the best biome for amphibians to excel. The insects also sting very strongly to sap the vitality from the creatures that can eat well in this biome. There are plenty of water and greens for many beasts to camouflage well with their surroundings.

## Government

The government of this region is considered an oligarchy. The Koatl will trade more with those who they deem trustworthy and following the will of the people and expect them to talk well for them. Those with higher trade in their regions will base their policies matters on what they are being traded. The etzli keep the traders honest in their numbers, and the etzli also lets those with highest trades know when to unite for the Quinpialo.

The Quinpialo is a meeting that occurs some time before the Inenehualaiz in order to allow for the Tlocuaume to choose their representative. Those worthy traders will meet as a council and compare their trade numbers to select the Mahuipialo who will speak for the nation when it comes time to meet with the gods at the Inenehualaiz. This title is kept until the next Quinpialo, and they are the executive at the top of Tlocuaume. The traders that met at the Quinpialo also get to for a sort of legislature for the Mahuipialo called the Quinmi in order to help move money and resources around the province, but the Mahuipialo gets the final say and can override whatever the legislature decides.

## Religion

The people of the Tlocuaume revere the great Cocoa, the twin gods. The people don't pray to them for destiny or favors however. They pray for health and good fortune. Those that pray for health and good fortune from the Cocoa call themselves the Techipatli (lit. Those in the Place of Getting Well).

The prayers are strictly done with the local incenses made of Ahuiyac and Chipayac roots and in the presence of at least two Petatli. They will then prostrate themselves in front of the flowers and shed their skins in the spot as honor to the Cocoa. Those non-shedders will slice off their head hair, manes, pick off old scales, trim down their horns, etc in order to show honor.

The prayers are always answered by the Cocoa appearing in a Petatli berry and making shapes with their snake bodies to lead the person to the right material, component, person, or advice. There have been cases in which an extremely holy person can summon the actual gods from the berries and speak with them directly.

The Techipatli always keep themselves clean, make themselves look as well as they can, and make sure to always have at least a few spare silver pieces aside from what they use on the regular in order to follow their ideals of good health and good fortune leading to more health and fortune.