Enu Kua
Enu Kua, or ‘Kua Prosperity’, is a semi-secret, unsanctioned trade organization consisting of illegal merchants of the Kua caste, the lowest caste of Kahala'i society who, by the holy law the Temple of Ila'Makau, are confined to the trades of servant, farm laborers, cremator and sewage worker, among other lowly jobs.
What makes Enu Kua different from other smuggling groups is that it does not deal in stolen or illegal goods or services. Instead, Enu Kua trades goods produced by Kua villages and city neighborhoods, circumventing the Pu’anu, the sanctioned merchant, farmer and artisan caste. Enu Kua began in Kahala, when Kua farm laborers became angry at selling what extra produce they made to the Pu’anu for next to nothing. They began to smuggle their produce to the cities, where they sold them in the Kua slums.
Over time, the scope and sophistication of the group grew to incorporate more and more Kua villages and city neighborhoods. In addition to farm crops, Kua illegal craftsmen: blacksmiths, weavers, dyers and other trades, sold goods produced secretly in their homes to their fellow Kua.
Some Kua became very wealthy, though the wealth was well hidden. Enu Kua also began bribing Pu'anu and Ka'ani officials into inattention, buying and making their own arms and even paying poorer Pu’anu to secretly adopt Kua infants and raise them as their own, though in fact taking their parents on as servants who raised their children in the Pu’anu household, mothers acting as nursemaid and fathers as manservant to outsiders. In addition, many Kua born with magical skill who rose to the To’ani caste have not abandoned fealty to their families of origin, despite being elevated to wealth and privilege within their adopted To'ani families.
It is rumored that some Kua villages have begun to hide illegal weapons supplied by Enu Kua and village youth are trained secretly in their use and battle tactics.
The rich merchants of the Pu’anu, along with the Ka’ani battlemasters and Tohuna nobles have finally begun to realize the depth of Enu Kua’s growing power. Punishments for violating caste law became much harsher, with executions and work camps becoming more common. Kua are tortured to reveal secrets of the organization and are bribed to act as spies. However, they have found that the torture usually brings only lies and half-truths and the spies often turn out to be double agents for Enu Kua itself. An edge of paranoia has begun to grip the rich of the upper castes as they begin to wonder who among their household servants they can trust, if any.
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