Revenant's End Coast
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The Coastal Towns (North Coast, South Coast)
The coastal regions and towns spread north and south of the capital. Like Arc, these areas were less impacted by the cataclysm that befell the country in ancient times. Folk here take pride in their history as survivors. In their stories, their ancestors brought fresh fish to the Capital, bartering it for protection against raiders and pirates. To this day, the Capital’s military forces are stationed along the coast in settlements and forts overlooking harbours and river mouths. With the military, came the Capital’s ideas and beliefs.
North Coast
The coastline itself is highly varied. Sandy coves and rocky headlands mark the southern face; but the further north one goes, the clearer and warmer the water, the seasons less defined. Life in the fishing villages is simple. Fish, seaweeds, sharp spices and unique fruit grown in the sandy soils are their main produce, much of which is sent to the capital on ships, the fastest way to travel. Federated Territories vessels also patrol the seas around this coast to keep it free of pirates. This protects both the livelihoods of local traders and the exotic trade from nations beyond the seas, which mostly enters the Federated Territories via Fort Sombra.
Fort Sombra, the regional capital, lays claim to an old history. Though nothing written survived the Dusk, the people here keep oral stories and songs that harken back to this time, remembering the role its people played in protecting the population from the hardships and terrors of that era. Priests in this region give thanks to the seas’ bounty, with what some scholars claim are the oldest recorded prayers. Many of the Churches, however, remain built into the same tried and true designs of the Capital. It is easy to see the influence of Arc here, and in the networks of roads and railways that cross the northern lands.
Recently, fishermen have been returning with reports of tainted waters and fiery explosions on the smaller islands scattered just off the shore. Once thought to be nothing but tall tales, the stories have grown in number. Law-folk, travelling up from Arc to investigate, succeeded only in angering the local witch community by claiming the taint is from a ritual that went wrong. Any who disagree with this official government assessment, or who perhaps point fingers at the long-standing Arc University research facility, are told to keep their noses out of capital business. Many do, continuing to live their lives; but declines in fishing have forced many families to leave the trade, and the area, for good.
Ringlorn Coast (Southern Coast)
The southern coast is harsh and cold.
Local villages breed sheep where the land allows it and go fishing where it doesn’t, following gods of wind and sea and livestock. The Ringing River, travelling from beyond the Las Ondas mountains, makes seafall here at last; overlooked by the twin towns of Fort Las Alba and Seaford. Once divided by a treacherous riverboat journey, they have recently been united by the Seaford Bridge, an engineering marvel – and not the first of this region. The railway line from Arc to Amber was one of the originals, saving travellers from long roads and dangerous seas. “Wreckers” made use of the rocky shores using false beacons that lured ships to their deaths, generating salvage for the black market; for those few who still sail, skilled navigators and canny sailors are the only defence against these foul thieves. Yet trade with Amber is undeterred.
Amber, the largest city of this region, has long been a hub of industry and invention. There are some who would say that the water in this city is not fit to drink, or that the air is so thick of black dust that the people never stop coughing. (Healers and charlatans do good business among the poorer denizens.) But the city provides a continuous source of power, ensuring that machines powering the mills and factories run all day, and all night. How they do this is a mystery to all but the highest echelons of the city.
To the south of Amber, ice and snow are the only regular visitors.
The beaches are carpeted in coloured pebbles, and giant crystal rocks scatter the landscape. These crystals are considered sacred by local witches who have guarded their secrets for centuries. But each year the railway extends further south; a reminder that soon nothing will be sacred here, except progress.