Kimaguray, Mei City of

"Here, let me hail us an airtaxi, we should be at Mom's in a few minutes."   "Why your mom's?"   "She owns the place, remember? I thought you said we didn''t want to anger any Aumhavas we didn't have to."   "Ok, ok, I had that coming, so she's Aumhava of the city?"   "No, the Domeidom of Garay, basically the Garay region, everything north of a line from Veneer City to Kimaguray, and everything east of a line from Kimaguray to Valkyrie Point."   "That's a lot of ground to cover."   "It's not the largest, nor the smallest Domei in Kagomei."   "It's the oldest though?"   "Innu and Garay are about the same age, older than Kagomei itself by almost a century."   "So nine hundred plus, Innu is more prestigious?"   "No, otherwise mom would rule there. She's Nameihomei after all."   "Oh, so the Domei of Garay is normally the Nameihomei's?"   "If there isn't a Nameihomei at a time, the Domei of Garay often gets seconded to it, so I'm thinking they're linked, at least culturally. And very few people have been Domei of Garay who didn't hold the title of Nameihomei."   "When will you be Nameihomei?"   "Too soon..."   "Your mom wants to quit?"   "She wanted to quit two-three years ago, her and Amalthéa had words. Basically, Amalthéa convinced her to stay until I'm 25, or until mom gets pregnant again..."   "Oh, a younger sibling?"   "Yeah, and an iron-clad reason not to be Nameihomei, mom had a deputy during her pregnancy with me, and even then, the medics said she almost endangered me, mom's not doing that again."   "Wow."   "It's not that strange."   "I meant the view. That waterfall at the edge, coming from the lake at the center, fancy city."   "We should take a boat, go see it from the seaside, it's even more impressive, but if you get too close, you get splashed. It's a famously roaring river, the Kimuy."   "You planned this?"   "No, well, I hoped we'd get here for sunset, the sun dipping in the lake at the end of a day looks like nothing else."   "Is it me or there are six colours to the rooftiles on the city?"   "That's because there are, there's three zones on each side, divided into six bands, concentric over the centre of the city, each of those 36 is a city ward. The roof tile colours are admistratively enforced."   "So each of those parts has their own ruler?"   "Kinda, Marhamat had the three orange-tiled regions closest to the river you see there." He pointed. "And now Shibué inherited those and added a fourth, on the other side. The locals joke that the two ward rulers in between should be worried for their jobs."   "So she has a ninth of the city, just to herself?"   "Yes, in the rural, orange-cultivating parts, but yes."   "Is that important?"   "Well the central temple, the main commerce area in the centre, those are mother's. The apportioned wards are for areas that need to be made productive, not the ones whose production comes from the rest."   "How's Shibué doing there?"   "Slow progress, but progress."   "Halt, who goes there?"   "Here's my pass, Lifeguard-Zim."   "You know who I am?"   "I live inside, part of the time, Firrson, I also am quite unlikely not to recognize someone whose father saved my mother's life, while she was pregnant with me."   "You're the young lord? By the elements, but you've grown!"   "A little, I'd hope, being 24 will do that to a fellow."   "A-hem."   "As will being hérévallin to a lovely lady, please meet Flora Rolli, Flora, meet Firrson Moray, whose father defended my mother's life with his own."   "Oh, hi!"   "Zim-Meritant-Zim!"   "Pish-posh, your father must have gotten one!"   "Yeah, but we don't inherit them. Well, we inherit the decoration, just don't get to wear it ourselves, I mean. I'm still thrilled to meet you, anyone who earns one of those is serious business in Kagomei."   "The Raptor taught me all I know."   "I remember another teacher, one with copper and brass."   "Oh, yes, yes you would. Has he written you recently?"   "Yes, he sent me well wishes on my promotion last season, he is always so attentive. I take it he wrote you?"   "Official missives only, lately, but I did get to go visit, so he's excused."   "You visited him in Nisei?"   "Yes, it's inconvenient to visit a chief of state outside that state..."   "You two had the same math teacher, I take it?"   "Yes, his mother asked his teacher to teach me, as well, I almost became an engineer thanks to the tutelage. Magelord Pawtel is certainly no dummy."   "And he's a chief of state now?"   "Magelord of Nisei, their ruler, Mage-king doesn't have the same sound."   "Oh, that nice old man? With the whiskers?"   "Yes, the nice man with the whiskers who almost had you dandling on his knee..."   "Hey, I resent that."