Zoirondo

**Zoirondo Lhuriron the Wise**, **Zoirondo the Bloodthirsty**, or **Zoirondo Lhurinon, Destroyer of Hunger**, was the second emperor of the Lhuri Dynasty of the Sarmelonid Empire. He was praised, and sometimes condemned, for his policy of importing thousands of invasive animals and plants to be killed and sold as food; which also led to the end of famine in some parts of the world.

## History

Zoirondo was known for his unusual policy: he ordered his allies to bring him the invasive species of their countries, and they reluctantly agreed. Many feral animals and plants were gathered into crates, and brought to the ports of Vozolaz.

Thousands of animals were slaughtered either as food, more meat for the many farm-towers all over the empire, or as hunting beasts. Some others were instead kept as pets and beasts of burden.

Some people condemned the great killings of animals that resulted from the emperor's policy, or the possibility of the animals infecting Vozolaz's great lands. The allies of the empire instead were glad that the removal of many creatures led to the restoration of their ecosystems.

### Legacy

Vozolaz was later known as "the Great Slaughterhouse", while the Vozonids themselves happily praised Zoirondo's reign as "the Great Feast". Tourists from the empire's allies returned with photos of themselves gladly dining in lavish feasts with their pleased hosts.

The great amounts of meat and food produced from the slaughter also led to a decline in starvation and poverty in parts of Jerde, as the Vozonids also funded the construction of hundreds of new food towers and farms across the world. The Vozonids knew that the vast food produced by the tributes and the farm-towers would not be there forever, so they wanted their allies and the others to learn to grow their own food. They also aided local farmers in the allied nations, some of which spent their profits on vacations to Vozolaz, and others took lavish cooking lessons there.

Another factor for the massive amount of food produced, stored, and sold or sent throughout Jerde and other planets was a nationwide campaign that made it a habit to avoid wasting food. It was everywhere, from posters in markets to school classes and public announcements, leading to a change in eating habits and customers giving unwanted "whole" (complete) meals to the cooks and waiters to be donated to hungry and poorer people.

## Zoirondo's Feast

The ancient Vozonid practice of "the Laws of Life" may had influenced the emperor to slaughter animals seen as invasive and parasitical to his allies. The slaughter was seen during his reign as a collective punishment.

### Popular foods

* Pigs - Pork is very popular all over Vozolaz, and the meat itself was a national dish. Vozonid pork was well-liked for its rich taste. Even the cheapest lab-grown pork from the farm-towers of Vozolaz had a rich taste, most likely due to the minerals in Vozolaz's soil.
* Chickens - Chickens were seen as symbols of stupidity in Vozonid culture, so most of the chickens imported to Vozolaz were killed and eaten. Some chickens were simply purchased as pets, especially roosters.
	+ Due to the overabundance of imported chickens, every chicken farmer was brought to a market where he or she chooses how many chickens to sell or keep, so they took as many chickens as they wanted for free. They became richer from the meat and eggs sold.
	+ Eggs are also a popular part of Vozonid rice dishes.
* Deer - Imported deer lowered the price of venison as more of their meat was available in supermarkets, until venison became a national dish of the Vozonid Empire. Many deer were released both into the hunting grounds and some wilderness areas, where they were simply killed for sport.
* Rabbits - Became a common sight in supermarkets and grocery stores. In heraldry, raised arms killing rabbits became a symbol of victory over evil and famine.

### Favoured beasts

Zoirondo listened to his people, who answered in several yearly referendums, that some animals must not be killed because they are more-loved.

* Horses - Vozonids love horses, so they were kept in farms, to carry carts, or simply as pets.
* Cats - Vozonids love cats, so all the imported cats were taken into the many households and individuals of the empire. If a cat is not wanted, it is never abandoned, but given away. It is then soon adopted or purchased due to the high demand for cats. Most, if not all, of the cats remained with their owners until they eventually passed away, and half of all imported cats were neutered to prevent them from destroying the Vozonid lands.
	+ During the reign of Zoirondo, only a few of the cats escaped and became feral.
	+ In Vozonid culture, the day a kitten opens its eyes is considered its birthday, and is celebrated with a party. Cats with different colours are also associated with different gods, such as black cats being sacred to Zomjonor, the gryphon god of the people.
* Dogs - Not as popular as cats, but they were well-liked in some provinces and towns. Most dogs in Vozolaz were neutered, more than all the imported cats in the empire.

### Hated beasts

Some animals were simply killed upon arrival.

* Rats, mice - Rodents like these were seen as evil abominations, so they were killed in brutal ways. Some were also fed to cats and gryphons, or offered to the gryphons as cut sacrifices.
* Cuckoo birds - Seen as symbols of disorder, the birds were immediately destroyed upon arrival. Some cuckoos were cooked as sacrifices fed to the gryphons. Yet others managed to fly away from the slaughter sites, and continued to infest parts of Vozolaz until the reign of Lhurijaz II, his great-granddaughter. That was when the last descendants of those birds were fully exterminated.