Utarak

Utarak is the third oldest City of Upper Zagesi, which served both as the seat of power for House Arkazi and the capital of The Ashuurian State for hundreds of years. Even through its relatively recent decline, it is still home to ~35.000 people, almost exclusively Hominids. Nowadays, Utarak, together with Bizantahir is one of the two major cities of Uzdarezi.

Territory:

Utarak is located in a bay on the northern coast of the Island of Adayat, in the North of The Gilded Sea, and holds complete dominion over said island. Besides that, Utarak also controls and administers a few smaller islands, and the westernmost parts of The Blooming Marshes.

Government:

Utarak has, since its original settlement almost 1000 years ago, always been the seat of Power of House Arkazi, which have ruled the city as absolute monarchs ever since. While history forced them to cede power on occasion, these were just temporary setbacks in a long, mostly uninterrupted line of rulers.
While in the past, the ruler of Utarak tended to be the patriarch of House Arkazi, nowadays the position is usually delegated to their favored successor, as a result of the capital of Uzdarezi having been moved to Bizantahir.
While the ruler of Uzdarezi is an absolute monarch, there are four other advisory positions, which hold immense power and manage matters on the ruler's behalf:

The Master of Blades, In charge of The City Guard and Standing Army

The Master of Coin, In charge of The Cities treasury, procurement and spending

The Master of Commons, In charge of Legislation, as well as managing the cities Judges and Courts

The Master of Whispers, In charge of The Cities Intelligence Network

These positions are appointed by the Patriarch of House Yulani, even if they are not the ruler of Utarak, ensuring loyalty to the great house. While the first three tend to be quite public figures, the fourth’s identity is usually a secret, though there have been exceptions to this.
The current ruler of Utarak is “Prince Zafaar Arkazi”, the son and likely successor to Malikh Hashem Arkazi II. the current ruler of Bizantahir and all of Uzdarezi.

History:

The History of Utarak is heavily tied to that of The Ashuurian State. In an effort not to repeat everything, this article will only focus on things that pertain to the city itself.

The First Age: (???~800 pSF):

950~900 pSF: House Akazi founds the city of Utarak.

880~845 pSF: The Reign of Askar Arkazi I. the first Patriarch of House Arkazi who’s lost has not been lost to time. He is most well-known for winning a war against a great Bandit Lord by the Name of Garazekh, and settling the new City Bizantahir at the location of Garazekh’s old Stronghold, strengthening his families hold on the North of Upper Zagezi in the process. His descendants would later know him by the name of Askar the Founder.

850~800 pSF: Seizing the opportunity to strengthen his family further, Askar the Founder stakes his claim upon the Death of Malikh Abukanezzar Atakuz, the ruler of The Ashuurian State. Knowing that House Yulani would contest it, he marches into their territory, catching them by surprise and making great gains. Askar however dies under mysterious circumstances a few years into the war, his death catching his successors and generals by surprise and allowing the troops of House Yulani to push back, eventually forcing the war into a stalemate. The war would continue for many more decades, but it would eventually end with neither side having gained much, and with the Government of The Ashuurian State having turned into an elective monarchy.

The Middle Age: (800-302 pSF):

800~650 pSF: The Post War Era left Utarak mostly intact, and while the city had seen some fighting and unrest, its defenses held and its people were for the most part safe. These prime conditions allowed the city to experience incredible growth in the coming decades, refugees from all over Upper Zagesi flocked to the city, attracted by the promise of safety and prosperity. This growth in population allowed Utarak to rise to ever greater providence, cementing the Influence of House Arkazi and its allies further and further, and leading to the coming Time period:

650~500 pSF: The Lions Reign: A period in the history of The Ashuurian State, in which the government was unquestionably dominated by House Arkazi. Beginning with the reign of “Malikh Sharuk Arkazi IV.”, the ruler of Utarak who would later earn the epithet “Sharuk The Lion”, House Arkazi would rule The Ashuurian State for 14 generations, only ending during the short-lived reign of “Malikh Ezekiel Arkazi, The Meek”. The Lions Reign was the height of Utaraks power, during which it became not only the most influential city in Upper Zagesi, but also one of the most populous and prosperous.

510~501 pSF: The Lions Reign only ended with Malik Ezekiel The Meek, due to The Great Southern Invasion: A coalition of forces, consisting of Warbands from The Daga-Kurum Desert and the freshly unified city states of Lower Zagesi, invading Upper Zagesi. They manage to win many battles, taking advantage of Malikh Ezekiel's weak rule, eventually marching onto Utarak in the year of 501 pSF, though the young Malikh allegedly kills himself before they even begin the siege, handing over the city without a fight. For a few years the city comes to be ruled by its conquerors, which kill large parts of the old ruling class to cement their rulership, including many members of House Arkazi.

501~490 pSF: During The Great Revolt, people in Utarak rebel not against the old ruling House, but against their new conquerors. Some surviving members of House Arkazi manage to hijack this movement and with the aid of the rebels, manage to push out their conquerors to reinstate themselves as rulers of the city, though in a much less dominant position.

490~302 pSF: The time period consisting of the reign of Malikh Rubakhal the Great and the subsequent Ashuurian Golden Age is known in Utarak as The Long Road. While the city's influence would never again reach the same levels of power and influence it once had over Upper Zagesi, it nonetheless managed to reclaim some of its lost luster, though this coincided with House Arkazi’s slow and methodical reclamation of power. By the time of the death of Malikh Gildas Yulani, House Arkazi had once again returned to a monolithic position of power within Utarak.

The Age of Strife: (302 pSF to 32 SF):

302-247 pSF: During The Reign of Terror, the at the time ruler of Utarak, Saladin Arkazi, also known as Saladin the Wise, allegedly befriended the fickle Malikh Anatep the Terrible, managing to divert his wrath away from the people of his city. While he did not manage to entirely mitigate the harm done to Utarak, it is thanks to Saladin, that Utarak managed to emerge from the reign of Terror stronger than most other cities of Upper Zagesi. Saladin dies just weeks after Anatep, though the cause is unknown to this day, leading to many theories as to what could have caused his demise.

247-218 pSF: Following the Death of his predecessor, Ayatuur Arkazi ascends as the new ruler of Utarak. He is mostly seen as a just and fair Ruler by his people, continuing the legacy set by his father Saladin. He is in fact so popular that he is even elected as the new Malikh of The Ashuurian State in the year 219 pSF, though not unanimously so. The cities of Drustanaar, Kalaar and Korsani refuse to acknowledge him, and through clever strategy shatter the Malikhs armies, forcing a surrender and forcing him to abdicate. Ayatuur abdicates from the rulership of Utarak shortly after, and takes his life just a few months later.

218-86 pSF: During The Fractured Dominion, House Arkazi loses much of its control over Utarak, in no small part due to the concessions forced upon them as a consequence of Ayatuur Arkazi’s failure. The city takes over many customs from other places over Upper Zagesi, and more and more official positions are filled with people lacking Arkazi blood, a development only stopped by the time of The Glorious Restoration in 86 pSF.

86-29 pSF: Tanzimat the Sovereign, the newly elected Malikh of The Ashuurian State, in his Quest to return The Ashuurian State to its former glory, reverts many of the reforms implemented during The Fractured Dominion. It was thanks to him, that House Arkazi could once again regain full and absolute authority over Utarak, and for this boon, they would bow to him and serve him diligently.

29-18 pSF: During The War of the Twin Princes, Utarak and by extension House Arkazi were quick to take the side of the first son, Elam Yulani, as he wanted to continue his fathers project. Utarak supplied a large chunk of the prince's troops, and was together with Bizantahir one of the last 2 cities still fighting in the war. While the war left it’s scars on the entirety of Upper Zagesi, Utarak was likely one of the cities hit the hardest by its effects, losing a solid third of its population, most of which were young and adult men.

18 pSF: Uzdarezi is founded by House Arkazi as a Union between the two cities of Utarak and Bizantahir.

18-0 pSF: Utarak is faced with the same problems as many other cities in Upper Zagesi: destroyed infrastructure, depopulation and instability, though due to the high death toll amongst the male population women were required to fill many vacant positions, allowing them to gain influence and power within Utarak far above what would be expected or even tolerated in most other parts of Upper Zagesi.

0 SF: A pirate raid originating from Korsani , led by The Pirate Queen herself, leads to heavy damage to the fortifications of Utarak , hundreds are killed and thousands lose their homes and property. This results in even worse living conditions within the city, as poverty rises and people in the city grow more and more discontent, looking for anything and everything to blame for their misfortune.

2-4 SF: Large swathes of Wildkin refugees flood into Uzdarezi from The Shattered Sea, further destabilizing the region.

3 SF: After his predecessor abdicates, incapable of quelling the ever-growing chaos spreading through Uzdarezi, Hashem Arkazi II. ascends the throne of Uzdarezi and with it Utarak.

5 SF: Hashem Arkazi II., the ruler of Uzdarezi , declares all non-hominids as outlaws, leading to heavy persecution in his domain and an exodus of non-hominids in the following years. Their possessions miraculously find themselves in the hands of many hominids, especially those suffering from the chaos in the region.

8-20 SF: Hashem Arkazi II. redirects much of his nation's funds, investing heavily into its military and bolsters its troops, hunting down bandits, pirates and other outlaws. Laws punishing both heavy and petty crimes become much harsher, and a modicum of stability returns to both Utarak and Uzdarezi, though at the price of many civil liberties.

22 SF: Pirate raids on Utarak become much more common.

24 SF: Hashem Arkazi II. makes himself the governor of Bizantahir, and elects his son and heir Zafaar Arkazi as the new ruler of Utarak.

24-32 SF: The current reign of Prince Zafaar Arkazi, he is known to be a much gentler soul than his father, beloved by his people, fortunate and poor alike. Many however fear him to be a weak leader, indecisive, naive, easily influenced and too reliant on his advisors.

Culture & Society:

As one of the earliest cities to be founded within The Ashuurian State, Utarak shares a lot of cultural DNA with said state, as such this article will focus on what sets the city apart from others.
While most cities in Upper Zagesi have gone through big societal shifts in the past 50 years, Utarak has been one of the most extreme examples. Having lost a third of its population most of which were male, being struck heavily by the consequences of the war, having to contend with a refugee crisis of previously unknown scale, frequent raids and shifts in power dynamics not seen for over 500 years, many are amazed the city still stands and has not spontaneously burst into flames.
Utarak is a city standing at a crossroads, a city whose past is heavily intertwined with House Arkazi and its imperial ambitions, but which has lost pretty much all its prestige and notoriety, so much so that even the House Head himself does not operate from there anymore.
A once cosmopolitan city, known and respected all over the world with wares and people from as far away as Tamerlane and Harahel filling its streets, now shunning all outside influence, its people driven paranoid and fearful of anything foreign, viewing those things as either inherently dangerous or inferior.
A city whose population is fiercely dedicated to the teachings of The Ur-Ashaar, now using those very same hymns and texts to justify slavery and indentured servitude as those they perceive as different.
And a city that, despite being one of the most socially conservative and patriarchal societies in Upper Zagesi, has allowed women to rise through the ranks, to accumulate both wealth and power mirroring, if not superseding their male counterparts.
What the future will bring for Utarak no one can really know, but it is fair to say that it will at the very least be interesting to observe.

Laws & Institutions:

The Laws and Institutions of Utarak for the most part line up with those of Uzdarezi.

Utarak

Geography:

Region: Northern Middle East - Upper Zagesi

Society:

Population: ~35.000
Strains: Hominids 98%, Other 2%
Religion: The Ur-Ashaar

Politics:

Government: absolute monarchy
Ruler: Prince Zafaar Arkazi
Influence: minor

Commerce:

Currency:
50 copper grains = 1 silver glimmer
25 silver glimmers = 1 gold sovereign