7- Justice & law

We’re going to look at the principles and commonalities of Lossyan law and justice, and at some of the exceptions.

THE PRINCIPLES OF LOSSYAN JUSTICE

While most human communities have laws, judicial bodies are far less common. The world of Loss is generally unaware of what a police force is. As a result, justice is often applied at the whim of the inhabitants and communities, when it is not subject to the whims of the authorities in place. In short, justice in the world of Loss is rarely fair, and often expedient. However, Lossyans consider the notion of justice to be of the highest value, and its representatives to be honorable men.

To understand this paradox, we need to take a closer look at the principles of Lossyan justice:

Virtues & Law

The Virtues are the foundation of the laws, which refer to the principles of Honor, Courage and Wisdom. Theft, deception and lies are crimes to Honor; cowardice, treason and desertion to Courage. As for Wisdom, it implies that a stupid or thoughtless act, done under the effect of alcohol, drugs or mental alteration, is totally the responsibility of the person committing it, without the slightest extenuating circumstance.

This also means that certain honor killings are acceptable. That the death of an aggressor will not be condemned, and that certain duplicity to protect loved ones is forgivable if the guilty party has planned how to make up for his crime or denounce it.

Individual responsibility

Each individual is responsible for his or her words, deeds and actions, and must therefore accept the consequences. That’s why Lossyans are careful about their words, because they must take responsibility for everything they say, and be prepared to answer for it before an accuser.

If a man is robbed in his absence, he may consider himself just as responsible as the thief, and will not be able to claim compensation for the stolen goods. A poor man can’t justify not being able to pay his taxes because he can’t afford to, even if his property is seized or his family enslaved. Context is rarely taken into account in a crime, nor is the personality of the criminal, unless individuals testify that he respected the Virtues.

Church dogmas

The Dogmas are applied in very different ways depending on the local importance of the Church, but they are never ignored; civil justice generally incorporates them into its laws. In short, they are always respected, but rarely to the letter. Athemaïs applies them only to the most serious heresies, and non-Concilian societies ignore them.

JUSTICE IN COMMUNITIES & CITY-STATES

In communities and villages, the culprit of a crime is generally arrested by the inhabitants, sometimes by the guards and henchmen of the local authority, then dragged before the community council, which will hear the complainants and the culprit, and decide on the sentence for the crime concerned, according to local laws and traditions. The trial will be more or less expeditious, may be public or private, and the sentence is totally at the whim of the council or local chief. In some cases, local people take the law into their own hands.

In cities and large towns, the justice system employs personnel dedicated to enforcing it. These are usually local guards, appointed by the senate or city leaders, but also by guilds, brotherhoods or the aristocracy. Each defends the interests of those who pay them, so their scope and degree of intervention differ, sometimes to the point of conflict with other security forces.

While among the Dragensmanns and Foresters, justice is dispensed in a manner similar to that of communities and villages, only with better organization, in Concilian cities the law is dispensed by professional magistrates, with judges dispensing the law, magistrates in charge of hearing proceedings, lawyers and jurists who are experts in the various codes of law, all in courts of law.

In theory, every citizen has the right to a trial, but there is no guarantee of fairness. Being able to enjoy a fair trial before one’s peers depends on one’s social rank and wealth: for a low-life thief, it will be a decision taken in a matter of minutes and applied immediately. Only those with power, money and influence can enjoy true justice. The rest of us do our best to avoid the wrath of the law, settling our own scores and taking justice into our own hands, even if magistrates of integrity try to dispense more equitable and popular justice.

Civil and commercial disputes are heard on the basis of complaints. The magistrate in charge of arbitrating the dispute is partly paid by the accusing party, and the dispute is settled according to local laws.

TRIALS & CONVICTIONS

If Lossyanne law does not apply the principle of presumption of innocence or the notion of bail, all defendants are locked up until trial. While the rich and powerful are placed under house arrest or locked up in comfortable apartments, everyone else ends up in cramped cells, and is lucky if they’re locked up with their clothes on: it’s common practice to strip a captive naked before throwing him in cage.

Trial proceedings consist of establishing the crime and its circumstances, gathering witnesses to the facts and finding a lawyer and individuals able to provide character references, if time permits. Obtaining a confession from the accused involves mistreatment and torture to speed up proceedings, but Lossyans generally tend to believe that torture only makes people confess to the most serious and unforgivable crimes. Officially, slaves are never allowed to testify. In practice, it depends on the judge’s authority, and they will frequently be tortured to ensure the veracity of their statements, which means that they often testify to what the torturer wants them to say. Once the various elements have been gathered, the trial takes place: the judge hears the various parties, the testimonies, the pleadings and decides on the sentence, based on local laws. Depending on the region and the importance of the trial, there may or may not be a council to discuss the sentence.

Punishments are usually immediate, rarely prison: compensation, whipping or caning, pillorying, public humiliation, banishment, mutilation, enslavement and sometimes death are the common punishments. Lossyans sentence people to death for offenses that, to 21st-century men, wouldn’t merit it at all: assaulting a master merchant, a member of the Church or the aristocracy, sacrilege or heresy, urban arson, piracy, industrial espionage, loss-metal theft or rape, as well as any form of physical aggression against children. If you have good reason to have committed a murder and/or a privileged position of influence, you will be condemned to pay compensation to the family of the deceased.

Death sentences are sometimes cruel and public. However, the most common way to die is to have one’s throat cut or to be hanged. Prison is a very rare punishment, to ensure that the condemned cannot escape while his family pays compensation.

Duels and vendettas

As a general rule, Lossyans settle their accounts without killing each other, due to a custom which states that the man who kills another in a duel is responsible for his family. But in the event of a dispute, a duel to the death may be called for. This can be man-to-man, or via champions. The duel is sometimes proposed, or even imposed, by magistrates during a dispute trial.

Master merchants and, in general, all powerful men often settle their problems with assassins and poisoners. When these settlements take on family or clan dimensions, or between competing guilds, it becomes a vendetta: a vendetta is a never-ending affair of debts of honor, which swells with each honor killing on both sides. The only time justice intervenes, often with force, is when a vendetta threatens the public stability of its city-state.

8- Social codes & daily life

Those of our readers who have traveled a little will quickly realize that politeness and conventions change very quickly, and that it only takes 1000 km for one person’s politeness to become another’s insult.

On Loss it’s much the same. A simple example is that one of the worst insults in the Hemlaris empire is to speak in one’s home to a woman to whom one has not been introduced, even if she is the last of the servants. Whereas not greeting women in an Armanthian household is a very good way of getting thrown out. Another example: removing your weapons when entering a Dragensmann house is a sign of submission to the master of the house, not politeness.

POLITENESS & CONVENTIONS

Greeting: shaking hands in greeting is common, but not systematic. The Hegemonians, like the Hemlaris and Ar’anthia of the United Cities, never touch to greet. The former bow with arms raised, while the latter bow more or less low, depending on the rank of their interlocutor. Dragensmanns greet each other with hugs and shoulder slaps. Jemmaïs place their palm flat on the palm of their opposite number. Teranchens shake hands, but will often hug. Finally, San’eshe embrace if they know each other, or introduce themselves as a first greeting.

Introductions: Lossyans first introduce themselves by their first name, city of origin and nickname, then sometimes their title and surname. It’s very common for a woman to add “daughter of” to inform her interlocutor of the identity of her official guardian. If she’s married, she’ll substitute “wife of”.

Entering a house: among the Athémaïs, one takes off one’s shoes, as in Hemlaris. In all the Seas of Separation, one does not enter armed without being expressly invited to do so, except among the Dragensmanns, for whom disarming itself is a weakness, and among the Hemlaris in the case of their aristocracy. Among the Jemmaïs and the Nomads of the Fringes, one empties one’s gourd outside the door, only to have it refilled inside the house.

Hospitality: you can’t refuse hospitality to someone in need, and a guest mustn’t commit any crime or affront. Most peoples respect this rule, although the Svatnaz and San’eshe are very reluctant. In Hemlaris, a non-Hemlaris will be given room and board, but usually in a shed or stable. The guest is treated as a member of the family, but in exchange will offer his or her help for the duration of the stay. For the Dragensmanns, whoever is invited to a home leaves a gift and leaves with a gift from the family. In the Plains of Eteocles, the guest’s feet are washed by one of the women of the house, whether slave, servant or daughter of the family. In the Athémaïs, a guest may dispose of the household’s slaves as if they were his own, but in exchange he must leave a present, even a coin.

At the table: The fork is a fancy known only in the Hegemony. People eat by hand or with spoons and knives. Chopsticks are common in Hemlaris, the United Cities and Armanth, but not in Athémaïs. The table is eaten with washed hands. Slaves must eat on the floor, unless expressly ordered to do so by their master. In banquets and family gatherings, women do not eat with the men, a tradition that disappears in Athémaïs. In the Hegemony, women eat after the men. Among the Dragensmanns, everyone is slumped at the table at the same time, slaves included.

Men & women: You can’t touch a woman without her consent, whether by slapping her or grabbing her arm. When a man accompanies a woman, the latter is on his left, to prevent her from hindering the man charged with protecting her when he draws his weapon. This rule also applies to female slaves, who must walk to the left of their master. The man enters a house first, because if there’s an ambush, he’s the first to be exposed. Even a Swordswoman will find it hard to change this habit. Letting a woman sit before the man accompanying her is not a common courtesy except in the south, nor is systematically giving up one’s seat to a woman. Lossyans generally do so according to health or age, not gender.

Polite titles: Lossyan languages generally employ several pronouns and conjugations intended solely for polite formulas and social ranks. As a result, titles are rarely used: politeness is in the language itself. Athemaïs has five pronouns of this type and a conjugation for social ranks, so one of the three pronouns is used to mark intimacy or neutrality with the interlocutor, or to signify friendly intentions. The other two are reserved for close relatives and superiors, and eminences. The only exception is the term madame, which insists on the respect – but also the social difference – towards all women. The other exception is the Church authorities, called “Excellency”. Dragensmanns don’t give a damn about titles, even when it comes to their leaders. In the Hemlaris Empire, polite formulas, pronouns and titles are strictly codified.

Appointments: Lossyans generally don’t wear watches, there are no clocks in every place and everyone usually measures time by the position of the sun. Lossyans make appointments based on dawn, zenith, twilight, or something as precise as “this afternoon”. So, if they’r late, you’re not really offended, but rather worried.

DRESS CODES

The first dress codes concern the rules of decency, according to Concilian morality, and everything to do with nudity. These codes are shared in part by non-Concilian peoples, with the exception of San’eshe. To sum up: nudity is frowned upon, as is exposing the stomach and thighs.

For women, everything from the knees to the breasts must be covered. No exposed stomachs, backs or thighs. These fantasies are part of the ostentatious signs worn by slaves, who are often required to expose their forms. Any free woman would be well advised to avoid such misunderstandings. In all Concilian cultures, tight-fitting garments are avoided, except for specific practical reasons. Long dresses or skirts are de rigueur, and in the southern Seas of Separation, no woman ever exposes her throat: necklines are never plunging. In Athémaïs, women wear pants and socks under light dresses. Finally, among the Hegemonians, as among the Gennemons, women cover their hair, and in the Hemlaris empire, a woman would never, except for work-related reasons, show her legs or arms, or expose cleavage.

Male dress codes also exist, but are broader. While bare arms and torso are common, it’s highly inappropriate to show above the knee, for reasons similar to those for women: only slaves reveal their thighs. That’s why, throughout Athémaïs, slaves will never wear a kilt or skirt over their braies, which are reserved for free men. However, exceptions are more readily made for work-related reasons than for women. All these considerations are respected, but with greater freedom, by the Jemmaïs, Erebs and Dragensmanns, but ignored by the Foresters; as for the San’eshe, they live half-naked, both men and women.

When it comes to adornments, tattoos and jewelry, there are a few rules here too: chokers are never worn; chokers and tight necklaces are slave collars that no free person would dream of wearing. This is practically the only general constraint. Jewelry is very varied, and pierced ears are common for women, but also for many men. Facial jewelry and piercings are not unknown, but seen as tribal and primitive. Only slaves, and particularly Languirens, have pierced nipples. It wouldn’t occur to a free man or woman.

Tattoos are quite common. It’s easier for men than women to display them, but the latter appreciate these intimate, indelible decorations. Most are intricate decorative motifs, rarely representational scenes. It is common for a slave to be tattooed by her owner to enhance her beauty and value. Tattoos are common among the Ar’anthia of the United Cities and the Foresters, a little more rarely among the Dragensmanns.

The only color restriction is the use of carmine red. Deep red is the exclusive color of the capes and gowns of the Ordinatori’s tribunes and legionaries. High-heeled shoes and boots were not widespread, but were worn by both men and women to compensate for the short stature of the more affluent. Stiletto heels do not exist.

9- Food, drink and fabrics

To say that Lossyans don’t really eat like 21st-century earthlings would be to state the obvious. We’re going to describe their eating habits, the most common products, the most typical ones too, and what you’ll find in inns, but also in weavers’ and drapers’ stalls. Habits, customs and available products vary widely, so we’ll be making a few generalizations.

Drinks

Lossyans drink little water, and quenching their thirst at the river is avoided whenever possible. The reason is simple: water can kill. Epidemics caused by contaminated water wreak havoc, and ponds and rivers are teeming with parasites. Lossyans prefer to drink fermented or boiled beverages, including milk. Fruit juices, which are not very common, are the exception.

The most common beverage is beer, which is brewed from fermented grains, usually depending on what is available locally. Real ale, made with barley or wheat malt and hops, is quite full of alcohol and is a festive beer. The common version is a bitter white beer, nourishing and very light in alcohol.

Tea comes next. There are lots of varieties, including herbal teas and infusions, but most blends include leaves from the tea plant, which is grown everywhere. Some varieties and blends are more expensive than the rarest wines.

Last but not least, wine is produced throughout the Seas of Separation, right up to the southern limits of the Hegemony. The Etéocliens have made it one of their specialties, rivaled only by the Teranchens. The Athémaïs drink a lot of it, and it’s not uncommon for it to be the main drink of the workers, cut with water (boiled of course) and lightly spiced. There are two main types of wine, known respectively as “Saccato”, and “Aurovim”. The former is acidic, is drunk chilled and does not keep, while the latter is bottled and is the preserve of the well-to-do.

Other typical drinks include

• Kumat: the golden seeds of a giant grass are roasted and ground before infusion. With a smell and taste reminiscent of coffee, it’s a very popular drink. A single cup can leave anyone sleepless for twelve hours. There is a method for making it poisonous.
• Doli: a fermented, salty drink made from milk and bread yeast, which keeps well. Virtually alcohol-free, with a strong, acrid taste, it is the drink of children and domestic slaves, sometimes flavored with spices or honey.
• Mead: although the Dragensmanns love it, they didn’t invent it – the Foresters did, and export their recipe at a premium. Mead is produced locally everywhere, although it is a festive drink: Lossyan bees are more dangerous than those on Earth.
• Somnae or dream wine: produced from the fermentation of applerine, an athémaïs fruit resembling a kind of purple peach. It’s a very mild, sweet digestive. Its abuse has bewitching, even hallucinogenic effects. Some very strong wines are used as drugs.
• Me-kwei: a mild, but very high-alcohol beer of hemlaris origin, drunk either very cold or very hot, produced from the fermentation of rice and sorghum. For a 21st-century Westerner, it’s akin to sake.

The food

Let’s start with the obvious: there are no refrigerators, freeze-drying or sterile preserves. Although the latter technique does exist, it is complex, little-known and not yet widely used. And it’s not infallible. The only effective ways of preserving food are to dry, salt or smoke it, which is not suitable for all products. Air-conditioned greenhouses or roof gardens are a luxury: fresh exotic produce is rare, if not simply impossible.

Lossyans buy local produce. Only the richest of purses can afford to buy certain exotic fresh produce that can be grown at great cost. Lossyans depend on the seasons for their food variety: and if a season has been bad, we’ll have to dip into our reserves. A bad year can easily end in famine. As for meat, which is an expensive product, it’s rarely fresh: it’s dried, salted, turned into cold meats and made to last all year round. Salt is expensive: as it is indispensable, it is subject to substantial taxes.

Bread and cereal recipes such as oatmeal are the mainstay of our diet. This is one of the common hot dishes for the common people, with fresh or dried vegetables, and sometimes a little salted meat if you can afford it. Rice is quite common throughout the eastern Seas of Separation, and is a tasty alternative to boiled cereals. Common vegetables include peas and beans, which can be dried like some fruits. Some vegetables, such as cabbages, can be processed and preserved in brine. Finally, fresh vegetables are those in season. Salads are not very common.

Eating fresh meat is a luxury, although animal husbandry is widespread and many farms can slaughter one or two moras a year. In general, animals are raised for their dairy products: cows, goats (there are no sheep on Loss), but also sikas and even ghia-thunder. They provide cheese and milk, and are widely available. Hunting provides a source of game, but hunting in the world of Loss is not without its risks. The most common source of animal protein is fishing, which is highly developed. Fish is easy to dry and preserve, and freshwater fish farms are widespread. But this remains inaccessible to the poorest.

Some typical foods:

• Mora: a warthog-like mammal eaten like a pig. Fast-growing, its fatty meat is easy to preserve and transform into charcuterie. It is widespread everywhere.
• Applerine: fruit of the athémaïs shrub, which grows easily even on poor soils, as long as they are sunny. The fruit is easy to dry, but care should be taken not to eat those that have begun to ferment, as they have psychotropic effects.
• Dates: the Lossyan date looks a bit like the Earth date, but is almost the length of a hand. Date palms grow slowly, but produce a lot. The sweet, floury fruit is dried or ground into flour.
• Loba: a deep-sea fish, the loba resembles the land bonito and weighs more than a man. Its flesh is red and has a delicate taste. Loba is difficult to preserve, but plentiful. Every port has fishing boats that bring in quantities for city-dwellers.
• Pandira: a Lossyan fowl that resembles a large guinea fowl with brightly-colored plumage.
• Til: a grass whose fiber is used to weave strong, warm fabrics. Its seed is edible, making til the most widely cultivated cereal in the world. But while it makes decent bread, its porridge tastes like cardboard.
• Banana: widespread throughout the southeastern Seas of Separation. It is dried, candied and made into flour, and is very common, with dozens of varieties.
• Larente: a large, voracious freshwater fish, but easy to farm. Its flesh is easy to salt and preserve, and it is eaten almost everywhere.
• Sika: Raised for its milk, leather, meat and wool in the north. Sika meat does not keep as well as mora meat.
• Qasit: a tuber halfway between a potato and a Jerusalem artichoke, with a sweet, mild flavor. One of the best-keeping vegetables, it replaces the potato.

Fabrics

In the absence of sheep, and with most mammals having little or no fleece or fur, lossyan fabrics are a few differences with Earth fabrics.

Most fabrics come from two sources: from plants, such as til, which weaves soft, warm cottony fibers, and from insects, as there are half a dozen different silk threads with varying properties. Last but not least, leathers are widespread. Furs are rather rare and generally come from the far north. Only the sika has a slightly full fleece, but only in the Far North, which exports its wool at a high price.

Lossyans have learned to extract a number of latexes from their abundant natural resources, which are used both in industry and in clothing. Most of the time, these are used for utilitarian garments and accessories, and for waterproofing. But they’re also used for reinforcements and flexible parts in tight-fitting garments, from corsets to jackets. There are a few tight-fitting suits, but these are not very common and are intended for people looking for a highly insulating garment.

Textiles and fabrics available on Loss :

• Wool: produced by the Sikas in the far north of the Seas of Separation, it’s very expensive. It is mainly used for drapery and upholstery.
• Velvet: also produced from the short fleece of farm-raised Sika. It is more common than wool, but highly sought-after.
• Tussah: Eteoclian spider silk, producing a yarn and textile thicker than silk and less vaporous. It is widespread and very affordable.
• Silk: there are half a dozen varieties. It is a Hemlaris specialty, but has been adopted by the United Cities and throughout Imareth. It’s a prized and widespread fabric, quite expensive depending on its quality.
• Til: a fiber derived from a very common edible cereal. Cottony, warm and soft, the fabric produced from it is used throughout the drapery and clothing industries, as well as in sailmaking.
• Linen: another popular fiber, linen makes light, soft garments that are pleasant to wear in both hot and cold climates, depending on the fineness of the fabric. Strong, easy to dye and paint, it is used in all fields.
• Hemp: a thick, rough fiber, it is used mainly for ropes, bags and upholstery.
• Leathers: There are countless applications and forms of leather used in clothing, and its industrial and domestic applications are endless. Its price depends on its treatment.
• Latex: see above.
• Furs: as mentioned above, furs are a rare luxury. Mammals have almost none, so furs come only from the north, and in small quantities.