Soma

The city of Soma, seen by night.

Soma is truly a city of artistic wonders – the entire city seems like a vast sculpture, rife with smooth flowing lines and curves. But is also a place where you can get your throat cut in a split-second, just by making a wrong turn. Among its unofficial names are The Tempest Nightmare, the Fish Market, and The City-In-Twilight. While the city is truly one of wonders - such works of artistry and chakra can rarely be elsewhere found - it is also a city of dangers.

Politics

• The Prince of Soma - Official ruler of the city. His or her power is hereditary, and sustained through the support of various noble or mercantile elite. In truth, much of the cities power lies in the hands of the Patchwork King.
• Patchwork King - Ruler of an intercontinental criminal organization, whose base of power is located in Soma. While rule of the cities underworld, various connections with powerful families has also given a certain amount of legitimize to the King's power.
• The Court of Soma - An unofficial collection of families who through force or wealth have ascertained a certain amount of power in the city. The families are comprised of both traditional noble houses, and mercantile elites who have garnered influence.

The legitimate ruler of the city - an inherited role - has the traditional title of the Prince of Soma. However, the Prince is only half the power in the city, at best. Soma is the center of the world's largest criminal enterprise, which is run by a mysterious figure known as the Patchwork King. In fact the most dangerous thing you could do in the city would be to try to be a criminal without the Patchwork King's consent – with the second-most-dangerous being to stick your nose into the King's business. For this reason the average citizen is mostly quite safe from any crime but the organized kind.

Records suggest that the King has been operating for at least a hundred years, leading many to theorize that the title is also inherited - but very little is known for sure. All that can be said for certain is that the Patchwork King's empire extends far beyond the boundaries of Kaze no Kuni, and that he keeps a very low profile. Crime rates in the inner, richer parts of the city tend to be fairly low - most of the crime going on there is white-collar and thus unreported. More violent crimes are reserved for the poorer parts of town, and tend to be the result of someone sticking their nose where it isn't wanted. The city is mostly urban, with no parks to speak of, but bath-houses and private gardens are ubiquitous in the richer districts.

Soma is also home to the traditional "noble" families of Kaze no Kuni - families with wealth and influence who have decided to support one or both of the rulers of the city. Plays for power or more authority are common, and allegiances are liable to change. Even "legitimate" families who support the Prince are known to have a hand in some of the more criminal undertakings of the city, as it is impossible to avoid altogether.

Thus the city of Soma, with its most remarkable spires, bazaars, and architecture, is a city with two faces, like day and night. Be careful after dark.