Bezélan Minor ([bez'eɪ'læn maInɔː])

When the population of the Capital burgeoned, forcing many citizens to sleep and live on its once-pristine streets, Bezélan Minor was constructed. A bridge was built to the East, over the water where the Aszilousii River met the Blànousii River and flows into Lake Paxeux. This connected it - physically at least - to Bezélan itself, which would end up being referred to as Major by residents of Minor.   Sadly, for its people - dubbed the "Minoritans", it was those forced onto the streets that were annexed in Bezélan Minor. With its detachment from the main Capital, Bezélan Minor became the poor person’s district.  

It This Not "Part" of Bezélan?

This information has been purposefully kept separate to Bezélan as it had been hoped by the ruler of the time that it would become a separate town, allowing them to be disassociated from the "types" that frequented Minor. As the district only shares the wall design and the only central funds spent being paying the governor and the guards, it was never really considered "part" of the Capital, despite its name.

Demographics

While it was true that the poor and marginalised wound up being resident in Bezélan Minor, it was not simply one type of person that found themselves annexed from Bezélan "Major". As many had originally journeyed to the Capital with dreams, only to find themselves in Uranbé-Kur or Ragged Row, their reward was nightmares. Thus Bezélan Minor was, in large part, people from the surrounding regions, including Kyadii from the North and South who had either been exiled or chosen to walk their own path, not a few Elelupii who had hoped to start businesses but did not wish to return to The Verdant Hills - Bevérohii in shame, and various races and ages from some of the remote camps within Qal'ath's territory.  

Who Was Not in Minor?

Aside from the wealthy, other people you would be hard-pressed to find would be:

Government

Bezélan Minor was ruled by a Governor, appointed by the King or Queen of the time, but was rarely overseen or assessed by the ruler. This led to rules and unofficial laws being policed in the district and encouraged a string of self-serving Governors who ruled by an iron fist on the one hand or complete indifference on the other, rather than in the interests of its people.

Defences

Although Minor was an off-shoot of Bezélan, it was not built as securely as the Capital itself. That said, there were some similarities.  

Walls

The walls were built with the same solid, white stone that the original city had been constructed with. This stone came from Crescent Cliffs - at least the portion attributable to the Realm of Qal'ath. As despite it being neglected pretty much since its construction, its foundations were strong.  

Guard Towers

While the guard towers in the Capital were usually built into the walls, those found in Bezélan Minor were usually thrown together with scraps of wood. However, as the guards were in the employ of the Governor or directly a Warden from Bezélan, they were always strong enough to ensure it did not collapse.   Regardless, their function as an eastern shield to the Capital, the towers were essential for scouting and scouring the surrounding lands for anything unusual. They were also used to make sure no buildings were destroyed when fighting broke out between its inhabitants.

Infrastructure

Unlike Ragged Row, Bezélan Minor was, physically speaking, almost as well-built as Bezélan itself. The fact that any invasion could be made on the Capital proper by way of the link between Major and Minor ensured that it provided a shield, or early-warning system to the main city.  

Roads

While many of the side roads and residential streets were a combination of mud and stones (as found in Ragged Row) the main throughfares, ways to the guard towers and the Governer's home were made of white stone to enable swift and easy travel through Minor.

Assets

By design, Bezélan Minor did not have many assets.  

Governor's House

Probably the most well-built structure within Minor. Actually, it was definitely that. Built according to the standards of Bezélan, although looking like a stone house, it was highly guarded and boasted some defensive/offensive weaponry and traps. Aside from protecting the Governor from the locals, the Governor's House served as a satellite for [The Vault] in the Capital, so any fines, trade "taxes" and valuable items seized for various reasons were stored here.  

Natai Fields

While not in Minor, Natai Fields was the second-largest grain farm that served Bezélan. It was situated around the walls of Minor and worked by servants and slaves of the poor souls in Minor under the pretense that proving themselves could lead to a "real job".   It's name Natai Fields was a statement of fact and an insult. Natai is Foyiitùn for "not yours", so those that grew, attended and protected the fields were never fed by the wealth of the harvest.
Alternative Name(s)
Minor
Type
District
Inhabitant Demonym
Minoritans
Location under
Owning Organization
Characters in Location
FJ Brodie's Novelemeber 2024 Page
Generic article | Nov 2, 2024

Here's my landing page for Novelember 2024, showing my progress towards 50,000 words of fantasy fiction.

 
 

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