City of Hyrai (Hir-eye)

A City of Mystery

Nestled at the end of a cove along the jagged shores of the great Island of Qel'ndar, lays the ruined city of Hyrai, one of the most mysterious places in the entire known world.

Demographics

General Population

Despite the city's immense size and the large number of dwelings within its walls, it remains largely empty. No more than 20k people are contained within its triple walls, and most of that population are foreign born, usualy from the nearby Continent of Osian. These Osiani are both humans and various mage types.

Foreign Criminals

Most humans in the city are criminals or descendants of criminals that were sent to Hyrai as a punishement, mainly from south-Osian countries, but also from Nan-Tao as well. Most criminals sent here would die to disease, but some would survive and have children, maintaining a low, but steady population of humans. While criminals are still shiped here regulary, the number is much lower now than during the Second-Age.

Mage Population

Even before the criminals started being shipped to Hyrai, the city had already attracted the attention of many mages from Osian, mainly for the mystery and later the riches that were discovered under the city. Soulweavers, Necromancers and a large group of a rare species of Shapeshifters, the Lizardfolks, can all be found hereand on the rest of the island. Almost every type of elemental mage can be found here, say for possibly Lightmages and Icemages because of the shadestone and the hot climate respectively. Shadowmages are even rumoured to still be found here, yet most scholars dissmiss these rumours, calling them unfounded and most probably untrue, since Shadowmages are confirmed to have gone extinct from the world during the late second age, and have remained so ever since.

What are the Hyrahi Lizardfolks hiding from, and why do they wear the mask?

These shapeshifters known to have come from unknown lands to the west, are only found on the Island of Qel'ndar, and in some of the island across the Njadi sea,, where they say that they sought refuge from the "Seering Sun" beyond the Haendanyh mountains, in western Osian.
Most scholars agree that the seering sun they describe may be the comet that impacted those lands at the end of the First Age, an event which would plunge the world into the long winter, an ice age that lasted for centuries and killed off most First Age advanced civilisations.
However, nowdays, the land in the west, beyond the limits of the known world, is described as being cold, dark and permanantly covered in a thick fog, similar to the night vale to the south-east. This mist is subject to many questions as well. It doesn't react to wind, or temperature changes, leading many to say that it isn't a natural phenomenon, but a supernatural or magical one.
As for the reason why they wear the mask, it is unknown. The history and origins behind this peculiar tradition are unclear, though many scholars suspect that it may be a religious tradition, rather than an effect of the "seering Sun". In the rare instance that they shift to a human or a animal form, they remove the mask. In their hybrid form, the mask, which is made of gold, covers their entire face, safe for their muzzle and eyes.
In the city, Lizardfolks start wearing the mask during adolescence and keep it until their death, upon which it then passes on to their eldest child or the child of their nearest kin. New masks are made only by other lizardfolks. When asked why they wear it, most of them refuse to tell, and quickly get agitated when pressed on the matter.
Non-lizardfolks mages present in the city do not wear the same masks, but often will wear a veil of some kind. This is not related to the reason the Lizardfolks do it, as that tradition is rumoured to have been started long ago by exiled criminals who wanted to stay anonymous.

Government

The city's government is run by a group of so-called lords, who reside in 3 of the citadel's seven towers. Each lord, who are always Lizardfolks, are asigned a title and voted into their position by the city's citizens to serve a term for life. These titles are: Lord of Ships, Lord of Coins, Lord of Swords. They are in charge of the navy of the city, the merchant and trade in the city, and the defense and protection of the city, respectively.

Industry & Trade

Mining

The extensive mines under the city are rich in various different ores, such as Gold, Tin and silver. Gems and crystals like Qualurite and Amethist can also be found in small quantities here. This makes the city quite rich and able to buy food and other provisions from the mainland. They also make many of their world famous Talismans out of these local products.

Talismans Crafting

The Artisans of Hyrai are famous across the word for their craft of powerful and beautiful Talismans. These are sold at high prices to Taonese and Njadi merchants, who in turn re-sell them to the rest of the world, for even higher prices.Hirahi talismans are particulary popular in Osian, Samaria and Enaskia.

Alchemic Potions

The alchemist of the city brew potions made with unique local ingredients found on the island. They are known to hire Lizardfolks to venture into the jungle to bring these ingregients back. One of these potions, called the purple breath, is made with the root of a plant that only grows on the Island of Qel'ndar and is very popular in Osian. Taonese merchants seem to have a monopoly on the trade of these potions, as merchants from outside Osian have to dock at the City of Liuben, as it is the only place were they can be bought. Another of their potion is consumed by the human population of the island as a antidote to the illness spread by the local mosquitos. 

Shadestone exportation

The shadestone blocks that make up the ruined parts of the city are broken and chipped away into smaller peices, are traded as is, or molded into talisman by local Stonemages and shipped across the world for use by Lightmages. However, the demand for such talisman and the material in general has fallen quite dramaticaly ever since Shadowmages, the principle user of the material and talisman, whent extinct.

Where did all that Shadestone come from?

The whole city, the walls surrounding it, and the citadel towers rising from its centre are made of large shadestone blocks. This is odd, given that shadestone is a very rare material and no known deposits exist on the island.

Scholars theorise that the material only has two logical sources: The mysterious lands beyond the great western sea, where the Lizardfolks say their ancestors came from, to the Night Vale, located in western Osian, between the Thiber plateau and the Haendanyh mountains.

Yet both locations are at least thousands of kilometres away from the city, across deserts and/or large seas. It is not known how whoever built the city would transport such large quantities of rocks from so far way and with pre-first age technology and magic.

Infrastructure

The Walls

Three massive concentric walls circle the city and are, like the rest of it, built entirely of large Shadestone blocks, stacked on top of one another. The outer most ring wall is about 20 metres high, as largely collapsed, allowing the jungles to creep into the outer district. The second wall, separating the outer and inner district, is 30 metres high and still standing. The third wall, 40 metres high, circles the citadel towers separating them from the rest of the city.

The Gates and the lost Path

Each of the city's three walls are ponctuated by a series of large gates, placed in a line that goes from the eastern edge of the city, near the harbour and the cove, to the western edge of the city, surrounded by thick jungles. This last gate, surrounded by crumbling walls, leads to a paved path that snakes its way deep into the jungle. However, it's not known what lays on the other side, as only after a few dozens metres, the path dissapears under the jungle floor. Many legends are told in the city about what could be find at the end of it, but all explorers trying to reach it haven't returned, and were presumably killed and eaten by the local wild beasts

The Underground City

A large underground network of tunnels and mine shafts connect hundreds if not thousands of chambers, caves and even crypts together, forming a large labyrinth under the city. Many riches can be found here, such are ores and gems on the tunnel's surface, as well as tresures of all kinds inside the crypts. Many people, mostly humans live in those underground chambers, as they offer protection from the heat, humidity and illnesses of the surface. New tunnel sections and hidden tresures are found every couple of years, extending the network a bit more each time.

The Cavern and the Citadel's foundation

All of these tunnels converge towards a large cavern, which is located just under the main tower of the citadel. The tower's foundations pierce the cave's roof and descend to its floor, forming a steady base for the stucture above. Stairs inside the tower descend to the all the way down to the cave floor, and ascend to the very last standing level. Numerous other access points to the underground city exist on the surface, but most were condemned, yet some are still found from time to time on the surface.

The Citadel

The main tower, its surrounding 6 smaller towers that form an hexagonal shape around it, and all of the connected sky bridges that connect them all to each other, form what is commonly refered to as The Citadel. The main tower is by far the largest building in the city, dwarfing any others in size and volume. it is at least double the height of the other towers, being over 300 metres tall, though many scholars believe it used to be much taller, before the top levels collapsed to the ground, possible due to aging and weather. But even with its diminished height, it is still taller than the nearby hills and it can be seen by the crew on a ship across the bay during clear weather.

Who built the citadel, and for what purpose?

According to the city's native residents, the Lizardfolks, it was a mere outpost of a much larger empire that existed beyond the Haendanyh mountains and the Great Western Sea during during the First Age. They also assert that they are the direct descendants of this empire, and that consequently, they and the city are the last vestiges of this once great Empire, who they name Atilia.

Atilia is a well known name in Osian, where it is attributed to a mystical country on the western side of the Haendanyh mountains, which existed during the first age, and that has long since died out.

As for Hyrai and its citadel's purpose, the lizarfolks say it was only a mere outpost, and that far greater cities once existed to the west, yet most scholars are doubtful of these claims, mainly because of the city's sheer size, the abundance of civilian housing, and the absence of ruins resembling Hyrai further west.

Instead, most scholars postulate that Hyrai was instead the capital, or at least a very large city of this Atilian empire, or of one of its vassal state of some kind. In regards to the citadel itself, it's purpose is unclear. The top of the main tower was destroyed a very long time ago. Even the Lizardfolks don't know what it looked like and what was housed there, and it shall remain a mystery.

Districts

Outer Districts

The outer districts are located between the third and second wall, largely lay in ruins, and thus are unhihabited. Rumours of wild beasts coming into the districts's western sections from the jungle are abundant. They are said to be roaming the streets at night which keeps the citizens behind the second wall, in the inner districts. However, workers enter the ruins regulary in order to extract Shadestone from the area. They do this by breaking appart the large blocks into smaller chunks, which the stonemages can then reassemble later.

Harbour

Located just beyond the eastern section of the third wall, the only one still in relative good shape, is a large harbour, in the form of a semi-circle, with dozens of stone brick piers, that can accomodate hundreds of ships per day. This is where all resources that leave or enter the city pass through. The city's walls and especialy the citadel towers loom over the harbour, casting an imposing shadow on boats entering the harbour. A protected path from the harbour to the inner districts keeps the merchants and workers safe.

Inner Districts

Located between the second and the first wall, the inner districts, which are also called the dwellings, are where most people in the city live. Taverns, workshops of various kinds, apocateries, inns and even a few guildhalls can all be found on the eastern side of the sector, closer to the Harbour, while the western side is mostly residential, with large sections still remaining empty.

Geography

The city of Hyrai is located in the far western regions of the Known World, along the shores of a large cove located on the coast of the tropical Island of Qel'ndar. It is built on a flat plain surrounded by hills covered in thick and luch jungle. Since it is so far away from most civilisations, few people evn know of its existence, and many who have heard of it, believe it to be legend only. The people that do know well of its existance, most prominently the Osiani countries to the north-east, scarce know much of its origins.

Climate

Hot, damp and humid are the main ways the city's climate can be described. The weather is hot and sunny, with occasional heavy showers and thunderstorms throughout the year. There is no cooler or drier season as the city is very much over the equator. The air is much cooler and slightly less humid underground.

Founding Date

Unknown

Alternative Name(s)

The City of the Masked/ The Shaded City/ The City of Mysteries

Type

Large city

Population

Estimated to be between 15 to 20k

Inhabitant Demonym

Hyrohi

History

While the city's age is unknown, it is largely agreed upon to have been buil at least during the First Age, if not sooner. However, it is impossible to pin-point a precise date due to the lack of knowledge from this region and this time period. It is also unknown who built it, and for what purpose, though many theories exist.

Hyrai became known to Osiani and later the rest of the world's civilisations during the Second Age, well after the effects of the The Long Winter had passed. The first records mentioning the city came from exploratory journeys undertaken by Taonese merchants around the year 1000 Bc.

While sailing along the eastern coast Qel'ndar, a large tropical island, covered in thick unnexplored jungles, they discovered the city. The island itself had already been discovered prior, during the first age, and was unhihabited. However, the city had remained hidden until now.

Njadis and Taonese merchants started trading with the local Lizardfolk shapeshifter population, a species which they hadn't encountered before, and who claimed to be refugies from a long lost Empire in the west. The population, which was not just in the city, but all over the island's coastal areas, had remained hidden on the island out of fear from what had destroyed the country of their ancestors. 

However, the allure of trade soon made the lizardfolks in the city, which was the majority of the species's population, open up to the outside. The Lizardfolks in the interior remain isolated and independant to this day. They are aggressive and hostile to any non-Lizardfolks who trespaces onto their territory, but respect the presence of others like them. 

It was discovered rather quickly that outsiders couldn't stay very long on the island, as the local mosquitos carry a very virulant illness that kills in a week without a localy sourced antidote, called a Pilflower. A colony, located on the northern point of Qel'ndar was wiped out by this illness in the middle years of the Second Age, before that plant's propreties were dscovered. This made the Lizardfolks in the city, who were immune, the middle-men in any trade to and from the island, and so they became quite rich.

In the following centuries, small numbers of Osiani criminals would trickle to the island sent by the kingdoms on the continent as a punishement, and most of them would die within the month, while the rest, who were lucky to have developed an immunity or later had acess to the antidote, stayed within Hyrai's walls, not daring to venture into the mountainous jungles of the island.

There, they would work as merchants, miners and artisans, selling gems, ores and talismans alongside the lizardfolks, who were tolerant of their presence. Later, an alchemic industry would develop as numerous ingredients extracted from the local flora, would be used to create unique potions which remain unobtainable in the rest of the world.

What are the origins of the Lizardfolks?

According to the legends told amongst them, the story goes as follows: Their ancestors, both humans and mages, came from the west after their home country, a vast empire containing jungles, deserts and vast fertile plains, was struck by what they describe as a second sun and wiped out.

They fled just as the first soulmages and shapeshifters were born amongst them. They settled in Hyrai, the eastern most outpost of this empire they called home to hide from what they call "the seering sun". Over time, the humans in the group died off to illness, while the Soulmages, particulary the shapeshifters, managed to survive such a hostile environment as the Island of Qel'ndar

However, most scholars remains skeptic of that conclusion, at least in part. While they do not doubt of the Lizardfolk's westwards origins as no records of them can be found anywere else in the known world, they postulate that there is no way of knowing if they are related or not to whichever civilisation built the city.