Melian Archipelago
I did not want to believe the hearsay, but it really felt like we entered a different age. As if the whole land was ripped from the past.
Introduction to the restored version of Gao Hanli's "Journey to the Eternal Empire":
Imagine yourself, even if it is only for a single moment, in the same situation as Gao Hanli. A few weeks ago, you were still just a minor office clerk out in a city of tents on the endless steppes of the Outer Lands. And all of a sudden, you are sent across the world to a city so alien that you might even think yourself in another world altogether. Do that, and you might feel a fraction of the wonder that Gao Huanli, envoy of the Yuiban, felt when he travelled through the heart of the Rhomeia Empire.
Entering the Eternal Empire
"...To reach the realm known as Shanxhi, you need to travel through Ghanzhi for about a week and then go by boat from the city of Wuchisan. Shanxhi lies surrounded by the sea, so there is no way to reach it without a ship. The journey there takes at least three weeks. Approaching the archipelago from the north, we were greeted by a tall mountain, a cloud of ash streaming from its glowing, fiery peak, and its flanks a blackened crust cut across by hundreds of shining red tendrils. This volcano is known as the Lighthouse..." "...Passing it, we came to view something extraordinary. On its western flank is a massive ravine, through which the volcano's molten stone flows into the water and within it a factory! A labyrinthine arrangement of forges and machines, some digging into the steaming stone, others using the heat of the earth itself to create metal..." "...Not long after officially entering Shanxhi at a patrol post, we began to move through a region of jagged and broken islands. On these isles, there are many a tree and flower, regularly mixed with small towns and watchtowers..." "...Driven by what I can only assume to be underwater streams. for there was no wind going at the time, we made our way through this beautifully strange maze in but a few hours..."
Eternity Gate
"...Before us, rising from the stormy green surface of the sea, was a mountain of stone and metal. Like the Taiban Mountains that we had passed on our journey, a titanic wall blocked the horizon from one end to the other. I could never have dreamed that a structure of such size could exist. In the centre of it, there is a gate so cyclopean that it dwarfs even mountains. They call it "Eternity Gate", and it is at least fifteen Gao high and at least five times as wide. And behind it opened the greatest city I had ever seen..."The Greatest City on Earth
"...Heishan, the great capital of this land, is truly a marvel to behold. Surrounding us in every direction, it rose up on the flanks of mountains that formed a cauldron. Thousands, tens of thousands, millions of buildings of stone and wood filled my sight. Every colour and form imaginable could be gleamed within the mass..." "...Above it all towered three giant spikes of marble, each easily twenty Gao high. Far to their west stood a massive building with its top formed like an upside-down bowl... I have to admit that I felt a bit of relief when leaving it again. Its sound and smell and colour, their cacophony is overwhelming..."Feeding a Nation
"...We travelled west of the great city for about two days. The land here is flat and covered in vast farms. Small towns and villages dot the land, all built in careful formation, some even on stilts. Great wagons filled with produce head toward the city in long lines, and the streets echo the cries of men and animals. They call this land "the other Heishan". Space is valuable here, they told me. Every pei is carefully used. If one wishes to build something new, they need to consult the ministry first. A process which can take weeks..."
"...We travelled west of the great city for about two days. The land here is flat and covered in vast farms. Small towns and villages dot the land, all built in careful formation, some even on stilts. Great wagons filled with produce head toward the city in long lines, and the streets echo the cries of men and animals. They call this land "the other Heishan". Space is valuable here, they told me. Every pei is carefully used. If one wishes to build something new, they need to consult the ministry first. A process which can take weeks..."
Forests of Bone
"...A day north of Heishan, but four days east of our camp in "Other Heishan", there is a land like no other. Where each pei is usually used with the utmost care, here there is a vast field of empty space, maybe three thousand li across. At its centre is a white forest made entirely out of the bones of fallen warriors! Each bone is carefully carved and signed with all the information left from when that person died. For every person, there is one bone here. And there are millions. The people here call this land the "Place of Remembrance"..."
"...A day north of Heishan, but four days east of our camp in "Other Heishan", there is a land like no other. Where each pei is usually used with the utmost care, here there is a vast field of empty space, maybe three thousand li across. At its centre is a white forest made entirely out of the bones of fallen warriors! Each bone is carefully carved and signed with all the information left from when that person died. For every person, there is one bone here. And there are millions. The people here call this land the "Place of Remembrance"..."
Westward to the Edge
"...Our boat left Heishan about five weeks after we had entered this great nation. Headed west, we moved from island to island, visited plantations and noble courts, and small bastions. We enjoyed the climate, for it is warm all year round and the cool breeze of the ocean makes even the hottest days bearable..."Ashen Waste
"...After travelling by boat for three weeks, we came upon an island unlike any other in this region. It is white-grey in colour and I could not see a single plant grow on it. In the centre, a vast cauldron opens up, easily five hundred li wide. Our guides would not answer our questions and merely said that it is a sign to those that would try and do the empire harm..."
"...After travelling by boat for three weeks, we came upon an island unlike any other in this region. It is white-grey in colour and I could not see a single plant grow on it. In the centre, a vast cauldron opens up, easily five hundred li wide. Our guides would not answer our questions and merely said that it is a sign to those that would try and do the empire harm..."
Building a Forest
"...Further to the west of that pale island is another great island. Our guides call it "Eligara", and it is covered in trees from one end to another. They say that it is a farm for trees! For every tree cut down to use for ships or houses, they plant another two. And each tree is carefully watched over and can only be cut when allowed by a special ministry..."
"...Further to the west of that pale island is another great island. Our guides call it "Eligara", and it is covered in trees from one end to another. They say that it is a farm for trees! For every tree cut down to use for ships or houses, they plant another two. And each tree is carefully watched over and can only be cut when allowed by a special ministry..."
The Koloss
"...Leaving the island of trees, we turned north and travelled for another two weeks along the islands. Finally, we reached a pair of small rocks that house the remnants of a great statue. Maybe thirty li tall, probably more as its head and right arm are missing, it is made entirely from steel and coloured in faded red paint. Our guide calls it "The Guardian"..."
"...Leaving the island of trees, we turned north and travelled for another two weeks along the islands. Finally, we reached a pair of small rocks that house the remnants of a great statue. Maybe thirty li tall, probably more as its head and right arm are missing, it is made entirely from steel and coloured in faded red paint. Our guide calls it "The Guardian"..."
Leaving the Eternal Empire
"...The Guardian marked one of the northernmost points of this realm, and thereafter we only met small patches of rock. Bastions and towers line them here as well, and we stayed a few days in the house of a soldier of higher rank. He rules this gathering of islands but only as long as he lives. Once he dies, it will go back to their great emperor, who then designates another man to rule. Same goes for all lands within the empire. Each and every piece is their personal property, and to try and claim part of it without consent is seen as the highest of offences. Where that leads can be seen outside the island's ring of fortresses. Going a hundred li out into the ocean is a line of crosses, the rotten bodies of criminals nailed to them still. After enjoying his hospitality, we were given an escort of five warships and left this realm on a northern course, the mouldy flesh of its scum the last thing we were to see..."
I do not blame him for being overwhelmed. Rhomeia alone houses nearly seven million people. I doubt some nations in his land even approach that.
Type
Archipelago
Included Locations
Included Organizations
Related Ethnicities
Gao Hanli (3256-3322? DA) was a low ranked office clerk in the court of the Yuiban, the Great Khan of the Hijin tribes. In 3291 DA, he was chosen to lead an embassy east toward the Eternal Empire, his task to write a report on it and its surroundings. Why he was chosen, despite being a self-admitted underachiever, is not known. Over the course of two years, he traveled to the Melian Archipelago and through Illigara, his reporting presenting a fascinating look at its people and cultures.
The version written out here is the translation by Illia Artanus, an experienced diplomat in service to the Fourth Tarquinnian Hegemony.
Megastructures
One of the recurring features of Gao Hanli's report is his awe in the face of the Eternal Empire's megastructures. Eternity Gate, the Infernal Forge, the Grand Arsenal, each a remnant or rebuild version of what the empire had more than four thousand years ago. It leaves one with a strange sense of fear when realizing that this is only a tiny percentage of what once fueled over five centuries of total war.
It is madness. There is no other explanation. This city is madness!City of the World's Desire
To call the Melian Archipelago overpopulated would be an understatement. By every known logic there should be no way for the land to support nearly four tens of millions of people. The city of Rhomeia is even more of a monster, housing nearly ten million people by some accounts. It should be insanity to claim these things yet every excursion and expedition can only confirm it further. It is perhaps the most enduring mystery surrounding the Eternal Empire.
But population is not the only thing Rhomeia has. Its harbour is the largest in the world and sees ships from every corner arrive to trade. Everything one could want can be found among its docks and marketplaces, and some claim that more gold passes the city in a day than entire countries see in years. Add the promise of ancient technology and secrets and one truly sees the picture of the "City of the World's Desire."
Broken Land
The Melian Archipelago was not always surrounded by the ocean. During and after Oblivion, much of its land fell into the void, devouring plains, forests and cities. Many of the names applied to this region by the Rhomeion still make reference to that fact as they are more fitting to a land of rolling hills, wide valleys and large rivers than cunks of ragged rock surrounded by a stormy sea.
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I love the little note that he probably fell for a scam and that's why it took 3 weeks. All the little tooltips throughout the article just add so much. <3