The Great Cane
What is the Great Cane?
The Great Cane is what many locals of The Bailey have come to call an annual hurricane that disrupts the safety and commerce of Dominus Columbia. While storms, swells, tempests, and all sorts of meteorological phenomena aren’t uncommon in the peninsula, the Great Cane is the most regular and recurring. The Great Cane arrives annually sometime towards the end of summer, either in August or September, and wreaks havoc for 1-3 days. Some years the effects are mild and others the destruction is even difficult for the local Senators to calculate in currency, but each time The Bailey has endured. Not all organizations and individuals within The Bailey however see the Great Cane as a source of destruction and loss of profit. The Tribe of Seasons mark the end of Summer with the Great Cane and believe that the harsher the storm, the better the harvest in the fall. Small to large scale salvaging and exploration companies take advantage of the debris, wrecked ships, and unearthed relics that are dredged up from both the Patomic Bay and the Cheapskate Bay, with some companies even willing to risk it all to explore what was caught up in the Zekiah Swamp.
History
Over the decades since the founding of Dominus Columbia there has never been a recorded year where the Great Cane hasn’t affected The Bailey to some degree. Some years the Great Cane wipes out some small settlements entirely along the coast and other years the sea water rises and falls while a light storm batters peoples windows outside. Some small efforts into understanding this regional meteorological phenomena have been made, especially recently by Dr. Tolstein, an Eidetic Digitarian, out of DAMI.
“Current observance using pattern recognition of the data obtained from the archives of City Center about the Great Cane shows that the storm grows larger each year until it reaches a climax of energy every three to five years, then it immediately dies down the following year in intensity, only to repeat this cycle. What causes this growth and subsequent plummet is unknown but its general movement path has been identified. My team and I intend to set sail on the Kepler 77 at the end of the week in order to obtain further data on its origins.”
- Last recorded words of Dr. Tolstein, August 120 DC
Since Dr. Tolstein’s expedition in 120 DC, no further field research or advancement has been made into understanding the Great Cane by DAMI. However, records and data of each yearly event are still recorded. The local Tribe of Seasons has historically maintained the best kept records of the Great Cane due to its religious significance in marking the end of Summer.
Impact
Many locals that live close to a waterway prepare for the annual Great Cane by either heading inland, to homes on higher ground, or boarding up and sandbagging buildings to weather the storm. Those that wait too long, underestimate the Great Cane, or simply refuse to prepare for it tend to learn the hard way, or become a lesson for future peoples.
On calmer years the Great Cane will cause storm surges and a fair amount of rainfall and wind. The water levels will rise and debris such as long forgotten shipwrecks, ancient relics, or even resources will get washed ashore. However, along with the debris tends to follow water gorged zombies, and dangerous sea critters. On rougher years the Great Cane will cause more than just rainfall and storm surges. Tornados, thunderstorms, tidal waves, hoards of zombies, consortiums of critters, and much more cause large amounts of damage to Bay based settlements. When the tides pull out though, after these storms, reports of large ships, old world relics, and even structures as far as a mile inland have been made.
Because of the potential damage, several Senators of Dominus Columbia pool together resources each year to set aside for damage control and relief. These resources are funneled into several dispersed volunteer groups filled with guards, artisans, and first aid responders that are tasked with cleaning up the dangerous debris, assisting any of the injured, and most importantly dealing with the dangers that have washed up ashore. Saltwise, Full Dead, and Crustacea Remnants are highly welcomed in these groups as their ability to be able to stay underwater for indefinite periods of time have become invaluable for relief efforts.
Due to the impact the Great Cane causes to the land several groups of people have started to adapt their living circumstances and priorities. While the Swampwalkers that live around Zekiah Swamp retreat to higher ground during the storm, to keep their heads above water, many families have come to make it a business to remap the swamp after the water has receded, notating any new debris that have surfaced, and sell this information to the highest bidder. Along the coastline small settlements filled with Saltwise, Full Dead, and Crustacea Remnants have started to maintain their land and build structures that operate with little issue both above and below water, choosing to just live underwater or above water depending on the weather.
DAMI hopes to better understand the Great Cane in time, along with assistance from several Senator Administrations, but until then all the people of The Bailey can hope to do is endure the next storm.
Comments