Friends

Some elders of the borderland still remember the months in 949 when Daxis's Border Port was crowded with war refugees, caused by the outbreak of war between Koretia and Emor.

For a place of somber history, Border Port is an exceptionally cheerful town. Border Port is the only port in the borderland, though you can easily journey to the borderland from points north and south. Disembarking at Border Port, however, places you immediately into one of the liveliest locations in the borderland.

"Lively" is a euphemism for "rowdy." Do not – I repeat, do not – wander here unescorted if you are a woman. Families with small children will probably want to pass through this town quickly, taking overnight accommodations elsewhere.

Unmarried men, however, are likely to enjoy their visit. Sailors have long made this town – one of the oldest ports in the Great Peninsula – their place for recreation. Daxions have happily met their needs. In this mild climate, entertainment is year-round and usually takes place on the streets. Daxion bards sing on every corner, Emorian jugglers stand in every doorway, and Koretian dagger-throwers lay claim over every handy wooden wall. Look out for the last; dagger-throwers don't offer warning before they throw.

Many of these entertainers will have bowls at their feet. These are for coins or – if you do not yet possess peninsularean coinage – for gifts of food. Be generous in your offerings; bards in particular are inclined to offer commentary on stingy listeners, in the form of excruciatingly derisive ballads.

"But what about the women?" Many a northern mainlander has asked me that question. Houses of prostitution are indeed abundant in the Border Port. I mention this, not in order to encourage this distasteful trade, but because these houses are often overlooked by mainlanders who come to the Great Peninsula in search of wives. See the section on courting for more information.

[Translator's note: Readers can take a trip to Border Port in Death Mask.]

TOUR OF THE BORDERLAND

Introduction to the borderland

The borderland is the region where the Three Lands touch each other: Emor in the north, Koretia in the south, and Daxis in the southwest. Borderlanders are the people who live in the Emorian borderland, Koretian borderland, and Daxion borderland. Most borderlanders, though not all, are of mixed blood.

This is a phrase that sometimes confuses foreigners. The phrase does not refer to the mixing of blood that takes place during Koretian vow-making. Rather, "mixed blood" refers to land heritage. A person of mixed blood is descended from people of at least two different lands. In practice, as we shall see, all peninsulareans are of mixed blood, so this phrase actually refers to more recent blood-mixing.

Northern mainlanders who live in nations where skin color is accounted of great importance sometimes ask whether people of mixed blood can be identified by their skin color. The answer is a cautious maybe. If a dark-skinned Emorian – whose ancestors were born in the south, rather than the north – marries a dark-skinned Koretian, then the result, not surprisingly, is usually a dark-skinned child. Likewise, if a light-skinned Koretian marries a light-skinned Emorian, a light-skinned child is usually born. If a child has light brown skin, it might have a dark-skinned Koretian parent and a light-skinned Emorian parent. On the other hand, it might have a light-skinned Koretian parent and a dark-skinned Emorian parent. Or it may be that the color of its skin is determined, not by its parents, but by one of its four grandparents. Or – I cite myself as an example – a Koretian may have lighter skin than most other Koretians because he has spent many years living in the north, where there is less sunlight.

In short, don't make any assumptions about skin color and land heritage. If you want to know what land a peninsularean belongs to, it is best to ask.

The native tongue of most borderlanders is the ancient language called Border Koretian – though that language might just as easily have been called Border Daxion or Border Emorian, for Border Koretian is related to all three of the main peninsularean tongues. Border Koretian is a different language than the Common Koretian spoken by most Koretians. It is now used as a trade language in the Great Peninsula. If you plan to visit the borderland, it would be well worth your effort to learn Border Koretian, as that language will enable you to be understood by traders and most noblemen throughout the Great Peninsula. Speaking the language in the borderland, however badly, is an easy way to make yourself welcome.

[Translator's note: A good introduction to life in the borderland can be found in Law Links.]