(Historian's note: This was told me just after the Bryants returned to Terra. Prince Tirzah and Princess Elladia had just gotten married, and Maychoria was at peace. Much has happened since then, so some portions of Angel's explanation are outdated, especially where she speaks of the relations between Tappuah and Maychoria the army's boredom. But this is still a good dissertation on the ordering of Maychoria, of its physical characteristics and government. I hope to someday soon have the privilege of recording what happened on the Bryants' second visit to Maychoria, and the events between times.)
Physical Features:
Maychoria is bordered to the east by the Bluewood, to the north by Tappuah, to the west by the Wilders, and to the south by the Journey Plain, which leads to the Southern Frontier. Maychoria's capital is called Maychoria Castle, though a large city has sprung up around that capitol building. Many other towns and villages are scattered throughout the land, some large, most very small.
The majority of Maychoria is farmland, though the Bluewood presses about two days' journey into the land on the east, and the Wilders does the same for about a day's journey on the west towards the south, and a day and a half's journey towards the north. The farmland is fertile and bountiful, and patches of woodland are scattered about, used for hunting, fuel, and building materials, though these tiny forests are neither so dense and dangerous as the Wilders nor so mysterious and powerful as the Bluewood.
No mountains exist in Maychoria, nor for many days' journey in any direction. The nearest are the Dularek Mountains to the south, but few ever visit that hot and dangerous region. More frequented are the Purple Mountains to the east beyond the Bluewood, especially Shimron Meron, which houses many of our Dwarven friends. North Maychoria contains some gently rolling hills.
One major river, the Olnar River, crosses Maychoria from east to west, bisecting the country roughly in half. Maychoria Castle is set on its northern bank, near where the River Gladdenspring diverges from the Olnar. The Gladdenspring travels northwest until it joins the River Shreliri, which serves as the Tappuan border. Many other small rivers and streams cross the land where-ever one goes, watering the farmland, but those three in the north are the best known, and figure largest in our histories and tales.
It is difficult to convert Maychorian measurement to Terran, but I believe Maychoria is roughly the size of your state of Indiana, only formed in an irregular rectangle shape, longest up and down. Tappuah is about half the size of Maychoria, plopped down on the northern top like a smaller building block atop its larger brother. It would be easy to join the two countries into one, as they share a border. That has caused much trouble in the past, and I foresee more trouble to come.
People:
Maychoria's population consists mainly of humans, simply because they adapt most readily to living in flat farmland, working in the soil. The Elves stay mainly in the Bluewood, loving their crafts of woodsmanship and caring for the forest, hunting and boating in the many streams, rivers, lakes, etc. The Dwarves keep mainly to the Purple Mountains, especially Shimron Meron, and the Red Hills to the north beyond Tappuah. They feel most comfortable working with metal and gems.
But this is by no means a hard and fast rule, for where-ever you travel in Maychoria you'll find Elves and Dwarves. You'll find Men and Dwarves in the Bluewood, too, and Elves and Men in the mountains and hills. The Three Peoples are by no means unfriendly toward each other, just predisposed to certain tasks and livelihoods.
The people of Maychoria are, for the most part, pious, hard working, and kind. Madra is a fallen world, as Terra is, but has not fallen so far yet. Still, Maychoria is the most lightened country on the planet, the most attentive to Abba's call, and the most ready to jump to His service. Other lands are dark and hostile, destructive even to themselves, but the Golden Eagle of Hosiotos has His hand on Maychoria and her people.
Government Structure:
Because the people of Maychoria are close to their Maker, so are those set to rule over them. Each village has a ruler called a Servant, for that is what they do--serve. Each Servant chooses his or her own Council. Small villages might have a Council of two or three, large towns ten or a dozen, and very large cities like Maychoria Castle might have as many as a score, or two scores.
Each town and village also has a Delegate, who travels to Maychoria Castle on appointed days every two months, for the national meetings. These meetings can last as long as a month, or as short as a day, depending on the gravity of the matters to be discussed and the difficulty in resolving them. The current Prince or Princess presides over these meetings, and has final say in all matters.
Each village has a constabulary force appointed by the Servant and the Council, of two or three or eight or fifty men and women, again depending on the town's size. These are so rarely needed that the members usually maintain their regular occupations, but when they are called upon, they are ready. Indeed, the mere presence of a member of that force will often defuse a dangerous situation, and so many evil deeds are prevented and avoided entirely.
Twice-yearly meetings for constables are held at Maychoria Castle, and half go to one and half to the other each year, so there is always a constabulary presence at home, and all receive the benefits of training with the best at the meetings. Each village force spends one day every two weeks in training together, and each individual practices daily alone.
Each village also has a Teacher, or a group of Teachers depending on need. Teachers do as their name suggests--teach small children and the occasional uneducated adult to read and write and understand the world they live in. They work closely with the village Minister, as well, so the spiritual side of education is not neglected. Often older children go directly to apprenticeships, but some stay with the Teachers longer, and learn the harder scholarly pursuits, and how to speak, read, and write in Elvish. (Few not of the Dwarven people know their language--they are more insular than the other two Peoples, and besides speak Mannish and Elvish quite fluently.)
An annual meeting for Teachers is held at Maychoria Castle, too, and often small local conventions are held throughout the land at different times of the year, for the passing of new information and techniques and insights learned about the hearts of the Three Peoples. Children view these times as great holidays, for sometimes their Teacher is gone for a week, or two, or three, especially if their village is far from Maychoria Castle.
As mentioned, each village also has a Minister. No matter the size of the town, each has only one Minister, though he may appoint aides to help him in his duties. These duties include visiting the sick, comforting the sad, teaching the Truth to all and sundry, and generally doing everything possible to stamp out suffering and poverty. Only in the largest cities will you find any beggars or homeless, and there it is only because no one honest has discovered them yet and taken them to the Minister. In a land where all abide in the Maker, you will find little darkness.
Ministers also speak to the gathered people on the day of rest at the end of each week. In very large cities there might be two or three services so all have opportunity to hear. There is also a yearly meeting for Ministers at Maychoria Castle, and during the time the village Minister is gone the Teacher or Servant will take over his duties at home.
Besides the constabulary force already discussed, there is a national military, directly under the Prince. Its headquarters are at Maychoria Castle, of course, and a dozen small garrisons are sprinkled about Maychoria, and outposts guard the borders. In this time of peace after the lost ones' return from Galgolb, they have little to do. There is only the occasional robber in the Wilders to be chased down and brought to justice. No physical dangers threaten at this time.
Those small garrisons are very small, indeed, but I suppose they must be finding something to occupy their time. Training, perhaps, or something with nearby villages, or merely running endless patrols. In this period of health and prosperity, only military discipline is suffering atrophy.
But beyond the constables and military, Maychoria has a force of special warriors called specifically by Abba. They are called Seekers, and roam the land alone except for those that have apprentices, in which case there are two. Their purpose is solely to serve the King, to seek out suffering and relieve it, to guide lost ones to the Light, to uncover darkness in all its manifold forms and destroy it utterly. It is not an easy job--it is likely the most difficult of all.
These special warriors have the gift of Second Sight, an ability to see, even if only dimly, into the Spirit Dimension, also called the Middle Zone. Thus they know the presence of spirits, whether Elinróme or Katamobe. They slay many of the enemy, banishing them from Madra, and we Elinrómi know their worth well. They are a unique company, and I have not heard of their like in any other dimension. You might think of them as knights, or if you know those movies Sarah Bryant is so fond of, Jedi. They too have an annual meeting at Maychoria Castle, though often only a fraction can gather there, the rest being busy all over Madra.
The highest ruler is, of course, the Prince or Princess. There is only one King on Madra--the Lord of all, also called the Maker, Abba, Sebastoes, Atheos, Jah, and the Golden Eagle of Hosiotos. All men on Madra and Terra are below Him, even the highest of the high cannot hope to touch His glory, but at the same time even the lowest of the low can call Him Friend and Father.
Government Election:
I have heard it said that democracy is the worst form of government in the world--except for those that have been tried before it. That is true of Terra, for the heart of man is wicked. All attempts at self-government are doomed, because the ruler will be corruptible, because we are all corruptible. This is especially true if the King is not allowed His say, and is excluded as He has been in your country of America, with that silly idea about the 'separation of church and state.' Such separation is death.
In Maychoria, the people have no such notion. The Maker is not faraway and uninvolved, but the highest arbitrator of all things. It is He who orders lives, enforces laws, and elects officials, for He is in constant communication with His people, and tells them what to do and who to serve.
The most important position in Maychoria is that of Servant Minister, who lives at Maychoria Castle and is the leader of all the other Ministers. When the Prince dies, it is the Servant Minister who must choose the next. This is a lengthy, agonizing process, often taking more than a year, or even two. During the time the late Prince's highest advisor serves in the ruler's place.
When the Servant Minister has fasted and prayed and sought the opinion of the other Ministers, and of many Servants, Teachers, and Advisors as well, he mounts a horse and sets out on a journey to find the next Prince or Princess. He lets the Golden Eagle lead the horse, and often he himself is surprised at where he finds himself: a small village several weeks' journey from Maychoria Castle, a humble cottage alone in the forest, a rough neighborhood in one of the of the larger cities, or even a library in the center of Maychoria Castle itself.
It is uncertain what exactly happens next, but when the Servant Minister returns to the Coronation Field, he is leading the horse, and on it is seated the next ruler of Maychoria. Then the city of Maychoria Castle is filled with joy, and everyone in the country is invited to the coronation feast. Abba is with His people, leading and lighting the way.
This is how Prince Tirzah was found, and Princess Zena before him, and so on back to ancient times. The office of Prince is served for life, as are those of Servant, Teacher, Minister, and Seeker. The Prince names new Servants as needed, Servants name Teachers, and their own Councils and constables. The Servant Minister names new Ministers, and Teachers and Ministers name their aides.
The Prince also names his own Council of advisors, and the Marshal of the army, who is then in charge of that body. Servants also name their village Delegates, and Delegates often have their own aides and advisors. And members of village Councils and the Prince's Council sometimes have their own groups of helpers.
In all things, the leaders of the people are expected to lean fully on the Maker for instruction and advice about who to trust and who to appoint. Though it is not a democracy, this form of government is the closest we can attain to perfection outside of Hosiotos itself. Maychoria is truly a 'happy land.'
That is not to say that Maychoria is perfect, nor incorruptible. The moment the Three Peoples begin to depend on themselves and lean away from the King, the moment they stop listening to Abba and relying on Him, Maychoria will die. It will grow rotten, the government diseased from within. The people will suffer and all that was bright and happy will fall into darkness and despair.
That will be an evil day indeed.
Have I forgotten anything? Ah, the Seekers. They are an entity unto themselves. As each apprentice grows ready to become a full Seeker, he or she is tested at one of the annual meetings. The same inner sight that lets the Seekers peek into the Spirit Dimension helps them to see whether the apprentice is ready. Most apprentices become Seekers eventually, but with some it is perceived that they cannot do it, and those often join the army, others returning to their homes. The Seekers are elite, and only the best make it.
Also, the Seekers have no highest leader. They are a body of warriors that roam like lone eagles, and need no leadership but that of the Golden Eagle. If ever there is war and they are called upon to fight, they join the army in battle, yet are apart. They answer only to the Prince, and sometimes not even to him. As one of their best, Seeker Wari, has once said, "The High King is sufficient. We need only Him."
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