Volun

The secluded Kingdom of Volun takes up the eastern coast of the Xuma’an continent, sharing the land with the

Kingdom of Mjusi with currently uncharted land between them. It is separated (and protected) from the rest of the continent by a large grove of ancient trees along the western border. The trees are so large and thick that it seems nearly impenetrable and only gives way to road connected pathways when protective wards on Volun's side of the wall is dispelled.

Established in ancient times, it always had a monarchy but with The Happening the kingdom was left broken and overtime transformed into four distinct kingdoms with its respective monarchs. With a large population of around 2.5 million citizens across the topographically and diverse kingdoms, Volun has its share of large cities and a well-balanced economy with a wide variety of industries.

Volun has traditionally been highly religious and highly indifferent and neutral to the affairs of other lands. Since the catastrophe that hit during The Happening, Volun completely barred itself from outsiders where before it welcomed outsiders especially those with strong faith to come and go. The kingdom of Tu, being closest and most open to the neighboring continent of M’alesi, is by far the most open and hospitable of the others. Si and Fo in particular are very wary of foreigners with Si bordering on hostile.

While the kingdom as a whole is very diverse, Volun in general is a very magic-centric place, worshiping saints who used to be prominent people who lead by righteous example, though new religions and philosophies born from the new wild world have started to emerge.

Population
The kingdom is situated on the eastern half of Xuma’an. Although the south is harsher and crops don’t grow nearly as well, due to the existence and reverence towards Aesir Island, most big hubs and cities are south including the capital city of Sunspire and the military port of Port Taizen. The kingdom's population remains more sparse until around the northen capital of Greenhearth. Fortunately due to the religious and proud nature of the people of Volun, there doesn’t exist any large slums or major crime hubs. However general poverty and crime has always been a problem in the kingdom of Hu due to the unstructured and somewhat nomadic nature of the society, making raids and banditry harder for officials to track and counter. Of the 2.5 million projected citizens of Volun, nearly a quarter of them live in or around Sunspire.

Politics
Volun is governed separately as four distinct countries with their own monarchs. Fo, Si, Tu and Hu all have their own government, taxes and police force. On a united scale, they share a common military, laws and constitution with few exceptions. While each kingdom operates a little differently, after the monarchy and ‘federal’ government their provinces have an elected governor and each municipal (city, town, village etc) with an elected mayor.

FO
Fo is ruled by Crown Prince Sun alongside his mother Queen Mother Lien. The monarchy in Fo can trace their lineage back to the original rulers of ancient Volun and therefore despite their technically equal standing with their counterparts, their influence is by far the strongest. The country had been in a gradual transition to a constitutional monarchy with an elected council that was slowly given more power by the previous king who was disposed by Sun. The elected council rules the country on a day-to-day basis, legislating new laws and policies as well as directing government owned businesses and military exercises.

The Crown holds important reserve powers that can be used without the consultation of a second party. This includes pushing or vetoing legislation, dismissing an elected council member, dissolving the council and instating an absolute monarchy until an election refills the seats, and calling martial law.

While final decision on legislation has traditionally been a common role for the ruling monarch, other powers have been very limited and held in reserve by the constitution. Only in exceptional circumstances is the monarch allowed to enact any of the powers and it is enforced by public pressure and the military itself which swears to the constitution and the people of Volun, not the government.

Currently, the elected council has been suspended following the disposition and exile of King Taiyo whose whereabouts are unknown. Crown Prince Sun has taken complete control of the kingdom in order to reform and strengthen a kingdom that was economically failing. While technically Queen Mother Lien holds the highest seat in government, her reputation as a cold and heartless ruler has resulted in her son taking the reins.

As part of Volun, Fo serves as a cultural and religious leader being situated where the original capital of ancient times were.

TU
Tu is ruled by Queen Iona and her High Council. Queen Iona is the direct descendant of General Taizen, a great hero that perished to save the kingdom and her people during The Happening. Her line is very long lived and she is only the granddaughter of Taizen. Despite her lineage, she rules over Tu from Greenhearth instead of her grandfather’s namesake, Port Taizen in Si.

Queen Iona is very hands on in her style of ruling, overseeing everything from agriculture to matters of defense and trade. Members of her High Council are made up of handpicked officials who historically have proven their integrity and expertise in the field of their station. There are officially six seats; Law & Enforcement, Education, Culture & Conservation, Foreign Affairs, Agriculture and Industry & Research. While Iona makes final decisions regarding the rule of her country, she relies heavily on the council for advice as well as execution of mandates.

Tu provides a constantly flowing route for trade with other countries and is the lifeblood of the kingdom regarding food and raw materials. This is both due to its open and welcoming nature to foreigners as well as its own abundance in fertile land, lumber and access to the sea.

Recently there has been a rise in guard presence within Tu, possibly due to increased foreign interaction. There have been rumors that Queen Iona has given shelter to King Taiyo which has created tension between Tu and Fo.

HU
Hu is ruled by King Toji and a group of tribal elders. To call him ‘King’ would only be as respect to his position among the leaders of the four countries. Within Hu, he is one of five tribal Elders that coordinate the operations of the great vast plains they live on.

Toji won his position as High Elder through an election within the elders. Though the votes usually are quite close, Toji won his seat in a landslide after his coordination to restore and maintain the western Wall of Trees was wildly successful. He had achieved this through the study of ancient magic and applying what he had learned to renew the spells that enable the trees to grow as large and strong as they have been since The Happening.

As the kingdom’s guardian of the border, Hu’s military is the largest by far with most families contributing somehow to it with either direct participation in the ranks or as armor and weapon smiths. Toji currently serves as Volun’s Great General, with authority to command all land forces in the kingdom for international affairs.

SI
Si is currently ruled by King Rai and his trusted Vassals who rule over different districts of the country. The country is currently the only one in Volun that does not have any sort of democratic element to its government.

King Rai traces his lineage back to Commander Jin of ancient Volun who commanded the Order of the Rose, an elite group of knights tasked with the safety of the royal family as well as important officials. The OR is a relic of the past but Rai rules his country with the same expectation of order and discipline.

Unfortunately because of the emphasis on status and rank in Si, only the nobility and wealthy have a fair shot at a job in the government or military. This has caused pockets of corruption and there are often reports of abuse of power especially in smaller villages on the outskirts of the country.

Though King Rai is generally a strict but fair leader, he constantly struggles with power-hungry officials who seek to grasp at more authority. This keeps him quite busy and unable to give as much attention to the outlying settlements in Si.

In addition, King Rai serves as Admiral to Volun’s navy, commanding all naval units in all of the kingdom for international affairs.