The Empire of Hiwotsukeru

Exile and The Long Voyage
The Empire of Hiwotsukeru is a powerful militaristic nation located in the North-West of Watol.

Unlike many of the nations surrounding it, Hiwotsukeru is a much younger realm made up of Wurtumese exiles who had settled the region approximately 1500 years before the Second Norkinian-Hiwotsukerse War. These exiles were banished from their homeland of Wurtum, a mysterious continent far across The Great Mountain Ring and the seemingly-endless ocean that resides beyond it, following a failed rebellion against the ruling dynasty of Wurtum, The Kaikanjei, who had ruled Wurtum for the past 6500 years, being both the longest continuous-ruling and oldest nation in the world.

While little is known about the rebellion itself, what is known is that it was led by a noble family called the Hiwokantsu and that the rebel forces were led by Lord Hiwokantsu Ikitso and his son Lord Hiwokantsu Akantsai. At some point during the Hiwokantsu Rebellion, as it came to be called, Lord Hiwokantsu Ikitso was killed in battle and much of the rebel forces were defeated. Hoping to secure peace and prevent further destruction of Wurtum, The Kaikanjei Emperor offered terms to Lord Hiwokantsu Akantsai: Surrender and acknowledge the rule of The Kaikanjei, and then be exiled from Wurtum, never to return. Lord Hiwokantsu Akantsai accepted these terms and the Hiwokantsu Rebellion ended, and while he was allowed to live, Lord Hiwokantsu Akantsai took his own life by ritual suicide due to the deep dishonour of accepting exile and failing to continue the rebellion after his father's death, leaving his younger brother Lord Hiwokantsu Akagi, to head the Hiwokantsu and lead them on their exile.

Approximately 25,000 people were exiled from Wurtum, including the entirety of the Hiwokantsu and the noble families who followed them alongside many of the peasants that worked the land and fought as levies for these noble families. A great fleet was constructed and, once finished, the exiles sailed west, following ancient maps that gave a rough idea that some great landmass, or landmasses, lay far to the west across the ocean.

The fleet of exiles passed the continent of Almion, with some ships stopping in its many coastal city states to secure supplies for the continued voyage, but very few stayed given Almion's close proximity to Wurtum, and most continued onward, eventually reaching the edge of The Great Mountain Ring that separated "Inner Patriam" and "Outer Patriam" after just over a year of continuous sailing.

Unable to sail around, the exiles initially founded a settlement on the coast of The Great Mountain Ring, but sparse timber and lack of fertile ground meant that the exiles relied almost exclusively on fishing for sustenance, with starvation and disease quickly settling in. Hoping to find a solution and save his people, Lord Hiwokantsu Akagi dispatched an expedition to scale The Great Mountain Ring and attempt to find a way through, in the hopes of either finding better land for settlement. While the expedition didn't find fertile land, as they crested the peak of the mountains they saw a Norkinian fishing village on the coast of the other side of The Great Mountain Ring. The expedition descended down to the village and attempted to communicate with the Norkinians, but could not understand eachother besides some gestures and the expedition attempting to draw themselves and their situation in the sand, which the Norkinians seemed to somewhat understand. But unable to gather any additional useful information, the expedition returned.

Upon learning of the village, Lord Hiwokantsu Akagi that there must be peoples and lands across the sea on the other side of The Great Mountain Ring. Resolving to cross the mountains and save his people, Lord Hiwokantsu Akagi ordered the remaining ships to be broken up and collected into parts, whereby they would carry the pieces up over the mountains and down to the Norkinian village where they would reconstruct the ships and sail into the seas-unknown beyond.

And so, the ships were broken up and, gradually, the remaining exiles (~18,000) marched over The Great Mountain Ring and down to the Norkinian village, carrying the pieces of their ships and whatever other food and supplies they could. The way down to the village was a steep but wide ancient staircase of stone, crudely carved into the side of The Great Mountain Ring and zig-zagged its way down its steep rocky slope, and as the thousands of exiles descended, it must have been a spectacular sight for the Norkinians below.

Eventually the exiles reached the shore, although many perished in the crossing, either from fatigue, disease, or simply falling. But those who remained rebuilt the ships, bartered with the Norkinians for whatever food and supplies the small village could provide, and set sail for greater lands beyond.

The Settlement of Watol and The Establishment of The Empire of Hiwotsukeru

With their fleet reconstructed, Lord Hiwokantsu Akagi led the exiles on a great voyage west, sailing under the southern coast of Norkinia before reaching the large island of Draeth, upon which the Norkinian city of Hasteindruokon sat to the north. While some exiles did sail up to Hasteindruokon to trade and others came ashore to hunt and scavenge for food, most remain moored in the calm waters between Draeth and Norkinia. Once the other ships returned, learning that all the territory they resided in belonged to some great realm, and that they were unlikely to be welcomed nor enjoy the frigid lands of Norkinia, they sailed further south, eventually coming upon the northern coastline of Watol.

Unlike Norkinia, despite its proximity, Watol was warm and humid, a climate not too dissimilar to that of Wurtum itself. Seeking comfort in a feeling of home, the exiles came ashore and quickly began cutting into the thick rainforest of Watol. Their initial settling point gave little room, but as scouting expeditions ventured deeper into the rainforest, they found the steep cliffs that seemingly blocked their path were often flat and plateaued, being the perfect place to setup and easily-defendable settlement, and the fertile lands of the rainforest proved a bounty for growing crops and establishing a strong level of agriculture.

With their new home seemingly found, the exiles set out to transform the landscape into a new realm, quickly constructing an initial settlement, which would later become the capital city of Hiwokanjao, with many other settlements cropping up along the northern coastline of Watol as further expeditions and colonising efforts were made. But not without resistance.

Within Watol were hundreds, if not thousands of different tribes, with some being purely nomadic or semi-nomadic, roaming the rainforests of Watol, others constructed small villages in clearings and atop plataeus. While some were friendly and welcoming to the exiles, especially in regards to trade, many took a hostile approach and attacked the exiles unprovoked, with several would-be settlements being attacked and burned by the Watolian tribesmen.

These attacks led the exiles to more formally establish themselves and better protect their established settlements. Lord Hiwokantsu Akagi, who had now lived in Watol for almost sixty years at this point, sought to formally create a new realm, mimicing both the Norkinians and the Kaikanjei Dynasty by proclaiming themselves as "The Empire of the People of The Hiwokantsu" or simply "The Empire of Hiwotsukeru" with Hiwokantsu Akagi becoming Emperor Akagi I of Hiwotsukeru. The formal establishment of a new realm, as well as cementing a more centralised, standardised, and permanent government, allowed the newly-proclaimed Hiwotsukerse to establish relations with the Norkinians to the north, the clans of The Tohaeilan to the west in Aeloen, and later further west and south with the various kingdoms and realms of Northern Kallonia, Aeloen, and the powerful Kingdom of Thenithria.

Over the continuing centuries, The Empire of Hiwotsukeru continued to press further into the dense rainforests of Watol, establishing fortified castles in the interior of the continent alongside various coastal settlements, as conflict with the Watolian tribes continued to worsen.