Spectrum Spire
Spectrum Spire is a marvel of art and engineering, puzzling even the masters at the Academy of Arts and Sciences on Smouge. It is the most beautiful symbol of oppression the Metilth Working Caste will never see.
Spectrum Spire is a shaped shard of glass towering through the open dome of the Bubble Wall. It has been turned into a building and houses the Ploui, his Cused, and many of the other important officials of Central Tilth.
Purpose / Function
Whatever its original function, it now serves as a palace, a seat of government, a prission, and a symbol of authoritarian oppression.
Architecture
Constructed entirely of colored glass, the modern top of the spire has been added on just since the Shadow of the Wing have fully taken control of the island and its capital city. Few outside of the upper castes know that it even exists, for the smog, dust, and heat shimmer of the entertainment and residential districts cast an obfuscating haze inside the bubble wall that prevents most of the population from ever seeing the spire.
History
One legend says that Spectrum Spire was created when a great dragon grew angry with the people of Tilth, and sprayed the desert with such fire, that it lifted a tower of splashing, molten glass from the desert sands.
Another asserts that some mythic dragon of long ago taught the first arts of glassblowing to the people by creating the spire as a demonstration.
The truth is that the history and origin of Spectrum Spire are as lost as The Queen's Royal Library.
Tourism
When people think of Central Tilth, it is Spectrum Spire that comes to mind first. It is the ultimate symbol of everything that most of Argentii associates with the desert island: a riot of colored glass rising up out of a drab and barren wasteland, making the very most out of nothing. Most assume that it represents how a large portion of the population lives, in some smaller version of a glass house.
This is a misconception that the Metilth Ruling Caste works very hard to promote and maintain. All of the merchandise sold at the spire's gift shop, as well as that sold in the official tourist markets in the mercantile district, must feature a view of the spire, and may not feature any part of the residential, foundry, or wall districts, though it may feature imagery of the outside of the bubble wall. Any other imagery, such as from the entertainment, mercantile, or government districts, must be approved.
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