[attr="class","enc_line"] | The Children of Oorsprong | [attr="class","enc_line"] |
Realm
The African Realm
Pronunciation
Be-doe-uh.
Sacred Symbol
The Sun and the Stars
Current Ruler
Tribal Leaders
Patron Gods
Ancestral Faith
Development
— Pinterest Board
— Spotify Playlist
— Spotify Playlist (Instrumental)
— Trailer (Youtube)
Bedoa is both the largest and smallest of the African realm kingdoms, simultaneously. The area identified as Bedoa on a map stretches from the sand dunes of Egypt to the northern and western coasts of mainland Africa. To the south, the borders are unclear but, generally, Bedoans do not stray beyond the Amn Shar Oasis. While the land that is occupied by its people is, geographically, nearly five times the size of either Egypt or Judea; for it encompasses the whole of the Sahara desert and its savannahs, the people themselves are unattached to it. The Gesin (tribes) of the Bedoa operate as small nations and populaces of their own, without a testament, connection or responsibility towards each other besides basic communication, trade and occasionally friendship. Bedoa is, therefore, not truly a united nation tied to its borders. Instead, the Bedoans believe that country, kingdom and tribe are synonymous; that a community or nation is solely defined by its people; not the piece of earth they choose to live on. These micro-nation tribes travel the Sahara sands almost continually, never staying in one place more than a few weeks or a month at maximum if something prevents their onward journey (a ceremony or childbirth, for example). It is their faith, belief and way of life for their existences to be transient and nomadic; their home found in their people or the tents (hawes) they carry with them.
There is no change in climate, temperature or weather out in the Sahara. There is no rain, no relief from the dry and arid lands and the ground is either dry rock and dusty terrain, or sand dunes and "meadows of gold". Rainfall does occasionally happen in the Sahara but this is very rare and the Gesin will often chase clouds on their journeys, in the hopes of being under them when they release their much coveted fresh water. Setting up all of their cloth; tents, clothing, everything - the Bedoans will attempt to soak their fabrics with the rainwater before squeezing it out into vessels and vases. At night, the desert can become cool and, in the very deepest of winter months, very cold. It is then and only then, that the people of Bedoa will use a fire pit within their hawe for warmth.
When it comes to trade, Bedoans do not handle money. They have no need for money personally and find that the lower class traders that monitor the wells in the Eastern Dunes or those that deal in camels at the Port of the West have little interest in trading for ore or metal - even if it is gold. Instead, the Bedoans prefer to trade in like or goods, offering up the fabrics, textiles and tribal trinkets that their people make so skilfully. Jewellery, fabrics, clothing, animal bone and tusk and other such materials are all traded by the Bedoan with foreigners in other lands but between the tribes themselves, on the rare occasions that they come into contact with one another, they trade in whatever each tribe desperately needs. While the Gesins see themselves as individuals and not as a unified nation, they are compassionate to those who live in the same treacherous lands as they do and often feel beholden to help if others of their kind are suffering from lack of resources. These sorts of negotiations are often tricky as no tribe travels with excessive materials and all Bedoan people are in need of the necessities of life.
Outside of these rare meetings with other Gesin tribes, the Bedoan people are thought to be incredibly suspicious, silent and stoic, dangerous, barbaric, angry and aloof. In truth, however, most Bedoans do not know any language bar their own, a frightened of foreigners and are intensely private. Their detachment from others seems strange to many and is taken as arrogance or barbarism but the Bedoans are simply a traditional people who believe it their place and duty to live their lives in the way they do. They hold little judgement that others live differently and simply like to stay out of everyone else's business.
In terms of politics, the Bedoan people are almost socialist in their beliefs. The tribe is a collective; they work together to provide and support one another. The Leier (leader/chief) of a Gesin is effectively a monarch because he leads without answering to anyone else and his children inherit his position of authority. However, this role as Leier can be challenged and can change hands, if it is deemed to be in the best interest of the tribe itself. There is no real ambition or drive to become ruler or leader as the Leier is seen as a difficult task and not one most would want to take. Instead, a Leier is seen as sacrificial; a man willing to be the blame for anything that goes wrong and willing to be the one to take on the responsibility of deciding the journey of his people, directing via the sun and the stars, all the while risking leading them to their starvation if a wrong direction is chosen. This is not a burden many would want.
While their lives are transient, the Bedoans are all about permanency. They continue the old traditions; their styles involve piercings, tattoos and scarification and the tribes are treated as if they have always been and will always be. They believe in living good lives, providing for their children, living as a supportive collective and following the ways of their ancestors..
[attr="class","enc_line"] | The Sacred Place | [attr="class","enc_line"] |
The history of the Bedoan, told verbally through the generations, is that the lands of the Sahara were once rich and vibrant; a rainforest of colour and vegetation. The Gesin tribes were, back then, a single people, ruled by a collective Council. Because the land was so fertile, so beautiful and produced such delicious fruit and food, the Council began to argue amongst themselves who's family and which people should be permitted to build their homes in certain areas. Not long after, the climate of northern Africa changed and the rain stopped falling. The plants and life of the savannah dried up, the forests withered and died. All that was left was sand. By this time the Council had been entirely divided, fighting over the remaining pockets of vegetation as they had continued to shrink, forming the first of the Gesin tribes. When all but the very edge of the rainforest had disappeared, the Bedoan people were left to scavenge and lay claim over the very last piece of greenery - located in the southwestern corner of the now immense desert.
The Bedoan faith is that of ancestral spirits and heritage. They believe that, when in opiate trances the holiest of men can converse with the ancestors of their people who now have the wisdom of omnipotent death. It is told that, at this time, one holy man from each of the tribes had the same dream. The spirit of one of the original Council members - Bedo his name was - who had tried to be the voice of peace and harmony and mediated between the others, invaded the dreams of these men to warn them that this singular place of such life; of water, fruit and plant life was at risk. That is the tribes did not cease their fighting and live lives of humble compassion; then Fate would steal what was left of the African rainforest as it had all the rest as punishment for their conflict.
It was decided then that no Gesin would be permitted to live within this paradise of green land. That it should belong to no one tribe and never be used as their primary home. The tribes believed that they were to be nomadic tribes, in punishment and penitence for attempting to claim something - land and earth - that should belong to all. For this, they would lay claim to nothing and never be attached to the ground on which they stood. They named themselves the Bedoan people, after the wise Councilman who gave them such warnings. The tribes scattered and their people, to this day, continue to travel, never setting up a home for long in fear that it will lead to the removal of their small piece of rainforest - a place that still exists to this day. The Bedoan call it Oorsprong - for it is the Origin of their history and people.
Tradition dictates that the only times in which a Gesin tribe is permitted to return to Oorsprong is when a tribe leader dies. When a Leier passes away, their Gesin travel to Oorsprong in order to build a coffin (known as a Gaa) from its trees and then bury their Leier within it, in the lands of Oorsprong - returning him to the land. In this instance, the tribe are then permitted to take as much food and resources as they wish from Oorsprong - but no more than they can carry upon their own person. More is to be greedy. From there, the people go back into journeying.
Despite their faith telling their origins as a message of peace of communal living, the Bedoan religion is open to interpretation as any other. Some believe that the stories tell them to be peaceful to all living creatures; animals, humans and anything else that shares the land on which they live. Others believe that it's a message solely about the sanctity of Oorsprong. That it is only within the greenery of that haven that they cannot fight one another; only Oorsprong's resources that cannot be stolen between the clans - that fighting in the desert sands is perfectly permitted. Then there are rogue tribes who believe in no such stories, or have an entirely different interpretation. As such, despite their agreements to be at peace within the foliage of the Oorsprong sanctuary, the tribes of Bedoa do occasionally fall out of peaceful negotiations over resources, marriages or pride and end up fighting between themselves. Or fighting for their way of life against those who are rogue traders and raiders among the sands.
[attr="class","enc_line"] | The Provinces | [attr="class","enc_line"] |
There are no provinces of the Bedoan people. The lands on which they live and travel are the open plans and sandy hills of the Sahara. As such, the tents (hawes) that they carry are the land they own and there are no lines on maps or distinctions of area. The Sahara is a vast and seemingly never-ending expanse of sand - with dunes to the east where they turn into the lands of Egypt, dry savannahs to the south and rocky terrain to the north where the Northern Coastline offers a blistering view of the setting sun out to the West. Following that sun brings you to the Port of the West. A large metropolis of no real name for it is claimed by no nation, where traders from all countries and nations come to sell their wares on the black market. The Bedoan existence is one of journeying between their places, settling for several weeks at a time and then moving on as they continue their long journeys from one trading post to the next, fashioning their wares for sale along the way.
[attr="class","enc_line"] | The Royal Houses | [attr="class","enc_line"] |
Buuchu Gesin
Birth House:
Buuchu
Age: 56
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Djimon Hounsou
Leier of the Buuchu tribe, Chiamaka is a man of honour and integrity. After the death of his brother during a hunting accident when his children were only small, Chiamaka has been serving in his place as Leier of his people, determined to never have children and pass the mantel to his nephews upon his demise - as it should have been passed upon his brother's. With a belief system so strong it approaches (and crosses) the line of social decorum into the realm of bluntness, Chiamaka is a man for whom right and wrong is so clearly pronounced it is unwavering. So defined by his beliefs, to the point of being obtuse, Chiamaka is a hard man to please and an impossible one to impress. Rather than kind words and physical affection, his family know of his love through his devout loyalty and his refusal to claim total ownership over a position of power that will one day belong to his nephews; believing himself no more than a convenient guardian for the title, despite his natural gifts in leadership and bravery.
Birth House: Buuchu
Age: 31
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Mekhi Phifer
Following in his uncle Chiamaka's footsteps in his stoicism and hard-edged beliefs in life and love, Kwabena attempts to mimic Chiamaka's ways, determined to replace the shadow of his father standing beside the man. What his efforts fail to recognise is that, behind it all, Kwabena has not the calm heart of his uncle, nor the peaceful mind that his father possessed. Instead, he is a man of great depth and feeling that desperately attempts to push it away.
Birth House: Buuchu
Age: 29
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Chadwick Boseman
Unlike his older brother, Naserian embraces his personal ideals and emotions, seeking to establish himself as an individual and encouraging his brothers to find identity in their own generation, rather than chasing the memories of their forebears. This acceptance of self leads to the calm sobriety that Kwabena desperately chases - a fact his elder brother is all too aware of - but one he can't seem to learn from. Naserian has his uncle's will and sense of justice but tapers this with cunning and outside-the-box thinking that his uncle does not always approve of. Slightly more accepting that the ends justify the means than his older relatives, Naserian has been labelled as the dark shadow of the tribe - a powerful warrior that one can never be too certain of.
Birth House: Buuchu
Age: 24
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Daniel Kaluuya
With two older brothers to contend with - both skilled fighters and thoughtful tacticians, Zuberi attempts to prove his worthy, most often, through shows and fanfare of achievement. A deer supposedly uncatchable? A lion supposedly untameable? A woman supposedly unconquerable? Zuberi goes after each with a determination for something to shine on his name as greatly as Naserian's skill and Kwabena's strength shine on theirs. Beneath all the show, is a sensitive man who is only seeking connection and recognition in all the wrong ways.
Birth House: Buuchu
Age: 21
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Letitia Wright
Born of a First Family of men, Kande was raised more by the women of the tribe than she was by her family. At only six months of age when her father died - after the loss of her mother during her own birth - some in the tribe considered her advent to a be a curse upon the Gesin, stealing from it both the Leier and his wife within less than a year. Those less superstitious were the ones to keep her company while her brothers hunted and her uncle directed the people. Never, however, has she ever lost her connection to the First Family and never has she desired to be seen as separate from her valiant brothers and courageous uncle. Instead, she learns from her closest relatives at a distance, practising the art of strength and decorum. Whilst her brothers have, over time, revealed a natural ambition for the three elements of leadership: control, cunning and courage, Kande seems the only one of her siblings to actually have an innate skill in all three. Not that she realises such things. For who would ever see themselves as more skilled than their role models?
Mekaki Gesin
Birth House: Mekaki
Age: 54
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Colin Salmon
As Leier of the Mekaki tribe, Mejdan is a surprisingly quiet man. While his first wife, Safara, has a commanding and intelligent way about her and his own lips remain shut, one would be foolish to assume that his counterpart is in charge. Mejdan is a thoughtful, considerate and almost scarily intelligent man who knows the value of allowing everyone else to talk if it brings them to his preferred conclusion without him forcing it. He understands the benefit of handing someone enough rope to hang themselves with. He recognises that to allow his relatives to speak on his behalf 90% of the time, he himself is listened to with great grandeur and attention when he feels it necessary to verbalise his thoughts the other 10%. This is man not to be underestimated by any stretch of the imagination and he will use every opportunity he can to encourage others to do so.
Birth House: Mekaki
Age: 48
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Viola Davis
A strong willed, well spoken and defiant woman, Safara would have made any tribe a valiant Leier were she born male. Instead, she was chosen from a young age to be the wife of Mejdan - the eldest son of the current Leier, for her skills in supporting her husband. Outspoken in her thoughts and brave in her decisions, Safara is a force of nature to be reckonned with when in public - a visage that encourages people to either overlook or to be terrified of the silent presence that is her husband - but behind closed doors is a devout wife, adoring of the man she calls both husband, Leier and father to her children and has been heartbroken over his recent decision to take a second wife.
Birth House: Mekaki
Age: 31
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Tahounia Rubel
The second wife to the Mekaki Leier, Milandu is a calm and peaceful woman who believes in duty and acceptance. Of the two of them, despite their ages, Milandu has always been the quieter sister between herself and Naatanii and was pushed forward for consideration for wifeship by her more out-going sister. In truth, Milandu is terrified of the quiet and dominant presence of her husband and still more frightened of his fiery first wife Safara. She has every hope of finding common ground with the two but it is clear that their relationship is off to a rocky start in the fact that Safara has no desire for her husband to have a second spouse.
Birth House: Mekaki
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Omar Epps
A clear combination of his parents, Siyabonga is a smart man who views the world as a gameboard on which pieces are to be moved. He is also, however, confidently spoken and happy to lead those pieces himself rather than cajole and nudge from the shadows as his father does. In awe of his father's wisdom and proud of his mother's spirit, Siyabonga has been drawn to a woman of equal fire that he hopes will compliment his own intelligence. Though he has mixed feelings regarding the marriage of his father to Milandu - the sister of his own wife; accepting of the practice itself and the choice in bride but hurt as the dutiful son that such a decision has wounded his mother.
Birth House: Mekaki
Age: 26
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Mearg Tareke
Ambitious, determined and an outrageous flirt, Naatanii is a sociable and manipulative woman but she is not shallow. Intelligent and full of goals far too large for a person of her gender, Naatanii has been desperately in love with her husband Siyabonga since they were friends as children and learning to walk hand-in-hand. Yet she still, to this day, has never told him so, confident in her direction and friendly in her handling of other men, Naatanii believes that admitting her feelings to Siyabonga would put her at his mercy or control. She's also fully aware that he chose her for his bride for her confidence and certainty. Love is a predictably feminine thing that makes you weak at the knees. Determined not to damage his impressions of her and uncertain whether he married her for her potential or due to his own hidden emotions, Naatanii is satisfied in her role as his wife for now but also seems to have difficulty believing that if she's as ambitious as she is not all other women hold the same desires and is highly satisfied that her manoeuvring has gotten her sister in the enviable position as second wife of the Leier, not comprehending how this might be considered a sad situation for others involved.
Birth House: Mekaki
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Aja Naomi King
Highly intelligent and painfully shy, Tahira is the shadow of her older brother. Where she excelled it mattered little for he did it first, normally better and with the advantage of being a man. Tahira has long since given up with ever impressing her parents beyond that which her elder sibling can do and suffers from classic middle-child syndrome in which nothing is ever good enough and nothing ever praised to a satisfactory level. Instead, she hides within herself, does her duty, works to her hardest efforts and accepts anything that comes her way. Used to eyes glancing over her as her family is appraised, Tahira will one day need someone to bring her out of her shell and show her how to claim the spotlight.
Birth House: Mekaki
Age: 19
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Ashley Murray
A classical youngest daughter, Kecia is mothered by Safara but considered a bit of an exuberant nuisance by her father. As such, her behaviour is a little off-kilter, offering enthusiastic and genuine friendliness at times and outright temper tantrums at others. Kecia thinks her brother everything an heir to Leiership should be and views her sister as both skilled and content, seeing herself as the only one of the siblings with issues or momentary unhappiness, leading to a world view in which everything is "unfair".
Nubi Gesin
Birth House: Nubi
Age: 57
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Ernie Hudson
A hardened warrior in his youth, Othiambo has grown into a man that seems to have gripped old age with an eagerness and excitement that belongs to a man who expected himself not to see the other side of 40. Having fought in many skirmishes with raiders or other tribes, Othiambo has collected many scars over the years - some emotional and some physical. While openly friendly and cordial, if anyone asks to see such badges of honour, however, Othiambo becomes stoic and sombre, his enthusiasm gone. The strange freckle on his arm or the bizarre mole on his back, however? You can't escape from being shown. Othiambo is a patient and kind father to his sons and a doting grandfather to Lu'lu.
Birth House: Nubi
Age: 32
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Sterling K Brown
Whilst proud of his once courageous and highly decorated warrior father, Enzokuhle has not yet been in enough battles himself to appreciate the light-heartedness with which Otiambo approaches life, viewing his Leier as a man who has gone soft in his old age. Entirely devoted to the responsibility of taking over the Nubi tribe and frustrated at his father's repeated interpretations that his anger and aggressive determination to bring greatness to the Nubi people are foolish and confirmations of his lack of readiness for the role of Leier, Enzokuhle has been sent into a flying rage in recent times, now that Otiambo has made his younger brother Melokuhle his official heir.
Birth House: Nubi
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Derek Luke
Calm and thoughtful, Melokuhle is a well trained fighter like his brother but would far rather make peace than war. With an instinctive propensity for listening and understanding, Melokuhle is well respected by half the Nubi tribe for his wisdom but chastised by the other as weak. This weakness was only strengthened when, ten years ago, a beautiful woman by the name of Jahzi sought shelter with the Nubi people during a stop at the Western Port. During the year she travelled with them, Melokuhle fell into - what he thought was - a hopeless and utterly mutual love, intent on having her for his wife. While Jahzi had refused, under claims that she was but a stranger and she would not wish his reputation to suffer with a wife such as she, Melokuhle was convinced of their love nonetheless and not long after a child was born. That same night, Jahzi disappeared from the tribe. Melokuhle was simply presented with his daughter, informed that the woman he was now determined to marry was taking rest and the next morning found her gone from their home. He has no idea that she took with her a second born twin.
Birth House: Nubi
Age: 10
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Quevenzhané Wallis
Gifted with the name meaning "most loved", Luthando - Lu'lu to her friends - is a central point of joy and innocence in a turbulent family. With an uncle aggressive in his desire for validation, a heartbroken father and a grandfather tortured by the years that have given him wisdom, Lu'lu is the one person around whom everyone smiles. A happy thing by nature, she is precocious, adventurous and unfailingly curious, her eyes always wide with learning and her mouth wide with expressions of awe as she seems constantly shocked at the wonders of life. She has a particular love for animals - whether big or small - and absolutely zero fear. She has her own pet goat that she has helped to raise who she has dubbed Ru'ru. Ru'ru and Lu'lu are a pair and go everywhere together, much to the chagrin of everyone who has to permit a goat into the sweat tent when bathing.
Rwandi Gesin
Birth House: Rwandi
Age: 52
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Don Cheadle
A fair-minded and self-confident man, Morathi is a great thinker and philosopher and enjoys speaking with his first wife on many matters. More an equal team than perhaps any other tribe can adhere to - with so many women around him it seems natural that Morathi would buck the trend of sexism ever so slightly - the man has great respect for both his wives though is on a more cognitive level of understanding with Durah, while shares his bed more often with Farashuu. With a very different relationship with each woman, he is not unaware of the tensions between them but considers the relationship to be their territory within which to work and does nothing to sway their feelings towards one another one way or the other. Instead, he focuses on his daughters whom he loves and cherishes, despite an obvious desire for a son and heir.
Birth House: Rwandi
Age: 50
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Gina Torres
Married to her husband for the longest of times, Durah did not produce children for many years of their marriage - initially. For whatever reason, the ancestors did not grant her the ability to have his child and, married to Morathi at 15, it took eleven years for her to produce a daughter, by which time her husband had already married another, concerned regarding their lack of offspring. Farashuu was an addition to the family that Durah did not exactly want but could not deny given her apparent inability to provide her husband with an heir. Ironically, it was Durah herself who became pregnant before the new second wife and both she and Farashuu then went on to give Morathi two further daughters close in age. Now that Durah is of an age unable to produce children, the pressure falls to Farashuu to give Morathi a son before her time runs out and talk has already begun of a third wife being required soon for such a purpose. Durah is respectful of the relationship that Farashuu and Morathi share but is also privately joyous that the position of First Wife will remain with her until she passes and that she clearly has a stronger and more mature personal relationship with her husband of twenty-five years than anyone else does.
Birth House: Rwandi
Age: 38
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Tyra Banks
Beautiful since a young age, Farashuu was once shallow, insipid and entirely self-centred. To this day she still holds many of the same traits, only now she has experience and manipulative wisdom on her side. Viewing herself as much more mature since becoming a mother, while still seeing the world as her oyster, Farashuu is jealous of the relationship her husband has with his first wife, envious of Durah's position of superiority and spends her time divided between desperately attempting to provide Morathi with an heir and grooming her daughter in the hopes that she will beat out Durah's to be married first and most profitably.
Birth House: Rwandi
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Kylie Bunbury
The daughter of Morathi and Durah, Bashira is a confident and level-headed women with an innate sense of self that grants her peace and self-assurance that issues from her in waves of beauty. Very much like her mother and probably the daughter with the closest connection to her father, Bashira is a woman determined to be everything she can be within the appropriate confines of gender expectation. She does not reach for excessive, coveted power and she does not chastise herself for being lacking in some way. Instead, she focuses on her strengths regarding intelligence, diplomacy and keeping a cool demeanour in the face of trying situations.
Birth House: Rwandi
Age: 21
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Leila Lopes
TakenAlso like her mother, Jawahir is the product of Morathi and his second wife Farashuu. Loving her maternal parent deeply but also silently judging of her position as second best within the family, Jawahir has made it her personal ambition to be better - in any and every way - than Bashira but often finds herself falling short simply through her attempts at trying too hard, whilst Bashira seems to waltz through life with a calm grace and effortless good fortune. Such contrast only serves to fuel the fire of the war waging between the two in which only Jawahir is a combatant.
Birth House: Rwandi
Age: 20
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Teala Dunn
Sweet, joyful and with a propensity to love a little too much, too quickly, Hanuni is the epitome of a "daddy's girl" and seems content to never grow up. Spending more and more time with Jawahir, however, her eyes have started to stray to the powerful warrior men in the Rwandi tribe and her curiosities have been peaked. With her eye on one very particular young man, Hanuni has not yet the courage to make something of it, nor the knowledge of how to go about approaching a male with interest in her gaze.
Somalu Gesin
Birth House: Somalu
Age: 45
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Colin Jackson
A loving father to his daughters but a cold husband to his wife, Ahanti is a man who married for beauty over love and in doing so later considers it to be his greatest misjudgement. His relationship with Jahzara is calm, perfunctory and little more. There is no personal distaste or argument but there is also no connection or joy; no affection or like-mindedness. Jahzara is ambitious and shallow and Ahanti is content and proud. Neither admit to the feelings of discontent between them but both are intelligent enough to know that they are there. Ahanti can't help but envy his sister's choice to marry for love, even it if was to an Egyptian and caused her to leave the tribe. Despite this, however, Ahanti holds great love and affection for his two daughters - the bright spots in an otherwise loveless marriage that he has yet to balance with a second one; for he intends on his next partnership being only one of great love.
Birth House: Somalu
Age: 44
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Ciara Harris
Beautiful, elegant and supposedly subdued, Jahzara had lived up to her name of "princess" all through her childhood and into her teenage years. It had been a natural and expected choice that the son of the Leier marry the most beautiful girl in the tribe and Ahanti had made the foolish assumption that good looks equalled a kind heart, while Jahzara had made an even worse presumption that her looks would instantly equal her husband falling madly in love with her. Neither, of course, was the case and while the two of them enjoyed the passions of early marriage due to simple physical attractive, there has been little in the way of affection the last few years, to the point where, unbeknownst to Ahanti, Jahzara has been seeking validation from elsewhere...
Birth House: Somalu
Age: 25
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Logan Browning
When young, Hashiki and her sister Hiari were inseparable. Partners in crime in everything they did, they preened on the words of those in the tribe that they were little carbon copies of one another. Hashiki in particular loved to be heralded as the first and Hiari being her little follower, acting and reacting in her mannerisms and learning from her habits. Over the last five years, or so, however, Hashiki has found Hiari to be surpassing her. The younger sister has an aptitude for learning and a skill with a needle and weaving that Hashiki does not. She also seems to move more gracefully in dance and sings like a bird. As the eldest, this has caused friction to Hashiki's ego and as the Somalu tribe have camped with the Buuchu for the last few weeks, Hashiki has been seeking something for herself, to distinguish her own identity. And she seems to have found it in one of the men of the Buuchu first family...
Birth House: Somalu
Age: 22
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Kat Graham
While her sister harbours feelings of inferiority where Hiari is concerned, distressed by her younger sister showing her up in all ways a female can display her talents, Hiari has never seen either of their skills in any such way. Idolising her elder sister and always wanting to mimic or learn from her in any way she can, the distance that Hashiki has recently been putting between the two is hard on Hiari and perplexing to say the least, feeling as if the other half of their double team is melting away...
Ubuntu Gesin
Birth House:
Ubuntu
Age: 63
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Cicely Tyson
Thandolwethu is a proud and strong woman who is the epitome of a Bedoan wife, despite being widowed for several decades. A woman of power, authority, grace and wisdom, she is also the first person to insist upon the man of the house being Lord and Master. Raised in a world where the husband is King and the son is Prince, Thandolwethu treats her son and grandson with all the doting a woman should give the men in her life but all the strict expectations she has of them as the son and grandson of her late husband, whose wishes and desires she still honours today. Her blunt personality can come across as harsh to those who don't know her but simply firm compassion for those that do and she is most stringent on her son's wife and any other woman determined to enter into the Ubunto family. For her husband's legacy is her charge to protect. Referred to still as Her Blessedness Thandolwethu by anyone outside the family and as Thandi-ouma by those within, Thandolwethu is a legend amongst more than her own tribe and a testament to the power and duty of woman who accepts her supportive role to her husband.
Birth House: Ubuntu
Age: 44
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Idris Elba
A man of good nature and thoughtful peace, Udo is a well trained fighter but a far more skilled diplomat and tactician. Using his skills as best he can to avoid war but just as calm and collected when he sacrifices enemies for the good of his tribe, Udo is kept on his path of duty and honour by the guiding light that is his mother and the supportive nature of his wife, who is with him as a united force in everything he does. Udo takes great joy in his children though is concerned that his son does not yet seem to have taken a liking to any of the women in the tribe so far.
Birth House:
Ubuntu
Age: 46
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Angela Basset
Very much the female version of her husband, Amarachukwu - known as Amara to only Udo - is a women who prefers peace over war and thought over action but she is a little more willing to raise her voice in temper or scolding than her husband. When small and their children unruly, Udo would take the option of being quiet in his disappointment at their behaviour, his smile disappearing from his face and his children instantly knowing they had done wrong. His wife, on the other hand, is more vocal in her opinions and happy to use the rug beater whenever necessary to shoo her children outside.
Birth House: Ubuntu
Age: 26
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Kofi Siriboe
The eldest son of a great maker of peace, Thulani is a man desperate to go to war. With the Ubuntu tribe being calm and without conflict for many years now, such combats appear adventures and full of excitement to a man of twenty-six, without a scar to his name or a fear in his heart. Instead, he is left to practice, wielding weapons with great skill but little experience. His love life follows a similar path, as he witnesses the relationship between his parents and seeks such a union for himself. And yet none of the women within the tribe seem to be holding his attentions...
Birth House: Ubuntu
Age: 23
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Lupita Nyong'o
Considered a great beauty of the Saharan desert, the exquisite features of one Amalhe of Ubuntu are told of far and wide amonsgt the tribes and many suitors come to pay her attentions. While most cannot put their finger on what separates Amalhe from other attractive young girls in the desert sands, it is her genuine joy and kindness that seem to shine through her skin. They say beauty is only skin deep but Amalhe's comes from both the surface and her inner depths, making her aesthetics more potent than most. Waiting to fall hopelessly in love, Amalhe has not yet been swayed by any of the offers made to her for marriage and it is unlikely that her father, Udo, would ever marry her off without her express desire and agreement, given that he does not have to worry any time soon that such attentions may slow.
Birth House: Ubuntu
Age: 18
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Yara Shahidi
In the shadow of her beautiful sister and fully aware of it, Eshe of Ubuntu is still a bright and bubbly young girl, despite a deep-seated lack of self confidence and assurance. Told unequivocally by both of her parents that she is just as lovely as Amalhe, it is becoming clear to Eshe that such assurances may simply be the blind love of parentage. For she has been of marriageable age for three years now and no suitors have every come to pursue her over her sister.
Zaire Gesin
Birth House: Zaire
Age: 44
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Regina King
Wife to the late Leier of the Zaire tribe, Lindiwe has seen a lot of sorrow in her life. Her parents (who had her in the later years of their life) passed shortly after her marriage to Hunai and after producing him three children her husband himself was taken from her by a plague that almost stole her son, also. In a single year, a third of the Zaire tribe were wiped out by a strange disease that claimed the life of its Leier and, after several months of struggle and slow recovery, failed to claim that of Shange, his ten year old son. In that time, however, a new leader for the tribe had to be found - one not apparently on his deathbed. The natural choice was the husband of Hunai's eldest daughter and adopted son, Hasani. Lindiwe has been a pillar of strength to both her daughter and her husband who were only teenagers when the burden of leadership fell to them. She is the epitome of a mother; sacrificing all personal gain or ambition for the sake of her children and has only now started to allow being looked after in return...
Birth House: Zaire
Age: 27
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Liya Kebede
The eldest daughter of the great Hunai - a prophet and Leier to her people - Tanishe grew up in a family that adored and loved her. Including the young orphan boy Hasani, that her father was so fond of. She played with the little boy often and the two of them grew through their teenage years together. When it was time for her to marry there was no question of whom she loved more. Hasani was her first love in life, his second wife Neena was Tanishe's second. Since then, the pair have been focused on trying for a child, dealing with the loss of Neena and looking to the future ahead.
Birth House: Zaire
Age: 30
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Lamman Rucker
TakenOrphaned as a child, Hasani became a ward of the tribe as a community at the age of eight. Determined to prove his use and never once allow anyone in the tribe that he now considered his extended family to ever regret their kindness and support, Hasani worked hard to be an active and contributing member to the tribe. After displaying much skill - but, more importantly, mercy - in play fighting with the other children, his actions caught the attention of Leier Hunai. Hasani then grew up as a pseudo adopted son or close bodyguard to the family. Closest in age to Tanishe, the two knew each other well and considered themselves linked from the age of ten and when Tanishe became of age to marry it was a natural and joyous occasion that the man chosen should be Hasani. Joy turned quickly to sorrow, however, as, six months after their union, a horrendous illness passed through the tribe, striking people down with fever and sores. Many died, including the second father figure in Hasani's life. Hunai had been a great man and there was much worry regarding the young prince who had been taken abed with the same disease that had taken the life of his father. It was agreed that the position of Leier could not be left vacant to see if the ten year old Shange would survive. As son-in-law to Hunai, Hasani was named Leier of the Zaire tribe. Five years into his marriage with Tanishe, Hasani fell for the beautiful Neena who had been traded as a slave to the Zaire tribe from the Somalu. Taking her as his second wife, a rare relationship developed between each of the three pairs in their union. After six years of marriage, Neena disappeared from the Zaire Gesin. Publicly there is no knowledge of why or how but privately Hasani and Tanishe had let her go...
Birth House: Somalu
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Gugu Mbatha-Raw
TakenThe second wife of Hasani of Zaire, Neena (original of Somalu) is a confident young woman of acceptance and level-headedness. With a curious way of looking at the world and an open heart with kindness for all, she is bright and smiling despite numerous tragedies in her life - including the unknown identity of her parents or why she was left as a slave to the Somalu people. Assumed to be half Egyptian from her lighter colouring but, once again, unknown, Neena is a mystery even to herself and it is a enigma she has come to accept, striking out to define her life via her future choices instead of her past experiences. Impulsive by nature and a free-spirit at heart, Neena married Hasani with a love and affection that quickly spread to his wife. For her own reasons, she left the tribe just over a year ago but is still technically married to Hasani for another twelve months (for him) and three years (for her) before they can both be considered widowed of one another.
Birth House: Zaire
Age: 23
Gender: Female
Face Claim: Tatyana Ali
A tomboy at heart, Jalah is stronger and tougher than most women in Bedoa are ever encouraged to be. Only eleven when her father passed she has grown following the leadership example of her mother, making her strong and independent. Whilst her personality is boisterous and forceful with limited grace, she also possesses the softest bleeding heart you'll ever find and is a natural "fixer" determined to storm her way into every scenario in order to make everyone else (before herself) happy.
Birth House: Zaire
Age: 22
Gender: Male
Face Claim: Sacha M'Baye
With the legacy of a great prophet father and a leadership that bypassed him in a moment of weakness, Shange could have grown up to possess feelings of contempt for his brother-in-law Hasani. Instead, once recovered from the illness that nearly claimed his life at ten years old (he still bears the scars of the sores) it was many weeks before he was at full strength once more. It was in those weeks that his eldest sister and her husband cared for him and then trained him back to full strength. Shange openly considers himself to have been too young to take on the mantel of leadership in the family, back when his father had died and is thankful that he does not have the pressures of such a role that Hasani now has to shoulder. Instead, Shange is focused on his own skills as a fighter and proving that his brush with death at a young age was not a marker of misfortune to come.