Listen my son, and remember, for this is the history of our people as it has been passed down from generation to generation: so shall you also tell it to your sons and daughters, that it might not be lost to us.
In the beginning were the People, who called themselves the Chiraqua, and they gathered under the leadership of Big Momma, and established Home upon the western coast, where there were fish and grasslands and forests. Life was hard: the people had to work from sunup to sundown to eke out a living, as the land was rough and unforgiving. Yet some were called to study: Big Momma, in her wisdom, decreed all must support these scholars so they could devote their time to discovering new skills to aid the Chiraqua and make life better for the whole. The first of these discoveries was the art of Horseback Riding. Warriors had gone forth to explore the surrounding lands, but with this new discovery, horsemen could explore farther and faster than the warriors on foot, so this was good. In this way was found wandering nomads, who wished to become Chiraqua, and thus was Deerprint begun in forested lands to the southeast where deer were plentiful. Scholars invented our Alphabet, and then the art of Ceremonial Burial, and our people became more advanced. Big Momma had been such a wise and beneficient leader for our people, that upon her death after a long life, her successor also took her name; and thus it became the tradition for our people that whoever should lead us would be our Big Momma.
During these hundreds of years, Home had grown and prospered, and so it was fitting that others should wish to go forth and settle these new lands our horsemen and warriors were exploring, and they went with the blessing of Big Momma. One band of settlers went east and settled in the narrow lands between the seas, and did take the name of Betwixt for their settlement.
Then did one of our band of horsemen come upon barbarians, who slew them. When word reached Deerprint of this atrocity, other horsemen rode out to avenge them and cleanse our lands of these murderous barbarians. In doing so, they discovered the great Southern penisula, and sent back reports of a land rich with resources. They found wandering nomads, and convinced them to join with the Chiraqua, though they journeyed for many years before they settled on the far southern coast in a land rich with whales, deer, and fishes. These nomads became discourged during this trek to unknown lands, arriving only under the iron will of their leader, Kagoshima, and thus was their colony named in his honor.
Our esteemed scholars still came forth with new discoveries for us every so many years: the science of Mapmaking allowed the people of Home to build ships to sail forth and find new lands. Code of Laws allowed our people to enjoy better leadership and fair and just laws for all, as Warrior Code gave us a new class of strong military. Even as settlers from Betwixt journeyed to the farthest northeastern reaches and founded Bounty on the penisula, where there were fish and whales to hunt, settlers from Deerprint journeyed east and settled along the coast where there were whales and pheasant, forests and grasslands; this became the city you know as Easthaven.
And then, my son, in your grandfather's time, word reached us from our triemes at sea that they had discovered another people, living peaceably upon an island to the northeast, who called themselves the Freedoniaians. These people taught us our present system of government, Monarchy, as we taught them Horseback Riding. We promised peace with them, that all should prosper each in his own space, without interference from any other, and to this end traded maps with them, so each should know where the other called home in the world. Then our ships sailed to the northwest, and soon discovered another people, the English, who were prospering upon a larger island too far to our north to reach by ship without following the Freedoniaian coasts. With these people we also promised peace; although we learned no new technology from them, having none to share in return that they had not already discovered for themselves. This discovery happened even within your lifetime, my son, even as the founding of the first monarchial dynasty happened as you were born. The Big Momma who passed away ten years ago, the Goddess protect her soul, did herself crown as her successor our present Queen Belinda, and decree that henceforth the rule of our people should pass from Queen to her firstborn, being either male or female, as they are brought up and taught the intricacies of leadership. Thus does our people grow and prosper, and thus do we teach our children to grow and add to the proud legacy that is the Chiraqua.
We will talk of this again, my son, that you may learn the oral tradition that is our history, so as to pass it along to your children. Now, go and help your mother pack. You don't want to leave anything behind when we join up with the settler train leaving out at the end of the week. Just think! We will get to help settle new lands and found another city, even as the legendary Kagoshima! I only pray the Goddess I live to see the end of the journey....
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