So unbeknownst to all but whom was directly involved, part of the reason Lath was built so quickly was due to rival cults. I won’t go into detail on how these cults got started (storywise or writing-wise), but I will explain a bit about who they are and what they did (or, rather, do). This is a good time to say that this video includes horror elements.
First, we have the Egland family. Bamic himself was not the founder of his cult, but that certainly didn’t stop him from spreading it. The Egland family – at least, the main branch (they are known for having a very large extended family) – must have at some point had dealings with strong supernatural forces. Now they dedicate a large portion of their money to creating their special buildings which they call Anodyne Houses. The point of these homes is to create a safe place for those with supernatural afflictions, a place where they are just as safe from the world as they are from themselves. They also spend a great deal of time and money on training programs for people who want to study the supernatural.
If you watched Lemon’s character videos, or if you are a fan of slightly less than original names, the Society of Swans might sound a bit familiar to you. These are the people who took Lemon in after her trouble with an ex. Swans is a society based on the age-old predicament; how to you accomplish the perfect murder? Many theories have been posed and tested; hunting and killing for sport is their game, but in an organized sort of way. They are picky about who they admit and in fact both cults have a taste for finer things – their snobbish despite the fact some of them are consuming human flesh or dressing up in costume to stalk teenagers. They are also heavy on rules – rules are the foundation of the society and breaking their laws means life behind bars or worse. Their strict codes and organization has allowed their survival for decades.
So how do they contribute to the building of Lath? WELL
The Society of Swans and the Egland family, unlike many secret societies in Io, actually know about one another. They’ve had some run-ins. Sometimes, depending on who the head of the Egland family and who the Alpha of Swans are, they even get along, but overall their shared history is spotty. As it happens, when the University in Lath was at its heyday Swans had ‘hosts’ living up there – in fact in the exact area Bamic would find years later. (Swans is a much older society than the Egland family, and is actually made up of several other cults and societies they’ve run into over time). As the Univeristy declined and Lath became a much poorer city, Swans backed out to the coast.
But when Bamic built his home there, so close to their old clubhouse, it was felt that he was personally insulting them. Their old territory was being claimed by this new Egland, one who didn’t even respect the ways his forefathers had run things. It was all too much.
Now let’s be clear – neither of these ‘cults’ as I call them would want an all out battle. They pride themselves on being refined society people – and people like that don’t just throw down in the street. At least not physically. So instead they threw down a whole lot of money and started a building battle – the underlying idea being that whomever built the most would have the biggest claim on the city.
The two became so wrapped up in their rivalry, however, that they failed to notice just how large and prosperous they were leading the city to be, and eventually it became clear that there would be territory enough for both of them (also, neither of them had infinite money to throw at Lath). For a time they tolerated one another cooly, and there were certainly areas of Lath that were more firmly claimed by one over the other, but when Bamic passed on and a new Alpha was in charge of the Lath branch in Swans, relations became a bit friendlier. This all culminated in Lemon – who was first staying with Society Hosts in upper Lath – when the Alpha asked the Eglands to take a supernatural case they at Swans weren’t ready to provide for.
Both cults are (mostly) made up of the type of people who put a lot of stock into respect and honor. By admitting a failing in her club and flattering the Egland family by suggesting they take on that failed project, the current Alpha made a bond of both.