Ahquen Desert (Ahk-qwen)

The Ahquen Desert is Gaia's largest desert next to the Sundaru Desert of Niith. The desert is in a lowland valley that seperates the humid jungles of the north to the dry savannahs of the south. Surrounded entirely by mountains in the north, south and east. this makes the desert very difficult to travel into. It is controlled by two nations and a handfull of free people.

"The sprawling massive desert of the Ahquen is surely a sight to behold. the History here is amazing, the ancient civilizations here are also very amazing. Most travelrs seek riches here and fame by trying to find the ancient Golden City that is said ot be long buried beneath the sands. That is of course, if you can get through the strict access of Nehmak and Azra'Kah." ~Vehelim Sanbratha, Adventurer's Guild

Geography

The desert is known to be amongst the hottest places in the world, as well as the most dry. The Desert only sports one major river to an inland sea that then splits into two smaller rivers in the west. The River of Life is amongst the most sacred of all rivers on Gaia, as it brings life into the most arid and hottest place of the world.

Sand Spires

Sand Spires are jagged protrusions of rock that pierce the sands. The desert has a few of these that can even create mesas that overlook the sands of the desert. Within the expanse of the eastern part of the desert the formations become more frequent, and often are held as locations where villages and nomads gather.

The Quensith Oasis

Also known as the Oasis Sea or the Sea of Quensith, this is the large inland body of water that is in the middle of the desert. The Guild of Lore reports that the entire region was perhaps once covered by this sea. THis also serves as the natural barier between the Free City of Azra'Kah and the Nehmakian Sultanate. The area is contested, but as of the modern era, an acceptance has been in place between the two nations.

The Swords Coast

The Swords Coast is known to start here and follo the entire western shoreline of Myrryth. Nehmak and The United Tribes of Saqoueen had clashed in the past out in the open sea over the trade lines of this body of water. Nehmak occupies the western coast of the Ahquen and has cerently become a hub for adventurers seeking the Golden City and smugglers that are seeking to participate in the war between Sassliss and The Celestial Mandate.

Ecosystem

The River of Life is known to supply most of the life-giving propertoes of the desert. It is a massive trade route between the indiginous people of the desert for trade and travel. Along the miles and miles of the banks of this river have green groves of farmland and small tropical forests that dot the massive expanse of the desert. Further inland of the desert, a few hearty trees known as the "Golden Palms" are somehow surviving the dry heat and sand of the desert.

"The Golden Palms are an interesting tree found only in the Ahquen. They are small tres that just appear in the middle of a desert somehow without water, and sprout these golden leaves that offer shade from the hell that is bestowned upon by the sun. Thier sap is also known to be sweeter than the sweetest wines created." ~Halharaan Siiad, Guild of Lore

History

The Empire of the Golden Sun is the ancient civilization that once called these lands home in the times right after the Combine Empire's demise. Amognst the first nations to thrive in the ashes of a destroyed world, the nation and it's capital, Sammarkaand, were a beacon of ancient human history. In the tens of thousands of years later, the nation has been lost, and buried beneath the sea of sand we call the desert now.
The Humans here were known to have affinity towards animals of the desert, and worshipped them as gods. The humans here were also said to have embraced the ability to shift between animal forms to traverse and lay claim to the desert. These humans are presumed extinct.

The Shimmering Citadel

The Shimmering Citadel is the only known renmant of the Empire of the Golden Sun. It is a palace that was built atop a Aerelium rockface that was held to earth by a series of chains. This was only seen in one other part of the world this day in the The Khandra Desert and it's city of Khandra Al'Isiq. Howeever it is very rare for anyone of teh guild to get acces to the citadel to back up links between Azra'Kah and Al'Isiq. This citadel is rumored to be the home of djinn and Crystal Dragons.
Today it freely floats amongst the same spot in the sky, appearing as a second sun once the sun shines on it's golden facade. Lady Medari, the Dragon that has laid claim to the Free City of Azra'Kah, is the only known individual that accesses it on occasion, leading to local legends that she came from the Citadel herself.

The Free City of Alsiq-Kamir

Another interesting supposed connection to Al'Isiq is the Library of Alsiq-Kamir. A free city that lays in the mountains of Skyfire and the Araathi Valley. This is a city of sacred knowledge and is held asa religious site with the Freefolk of Ahquen. It is open to visitors, however only for rest and food, as it markes the Gateway into the East and within the Border Zone of the Celestial Mandate. The Library itself is offlimits, however people have been known to sneak in, but none have returned.

The Vestige

One of the many Infinity Towers of Gaia; The Vestige is a a toppled ancient space elevator that has broken and shattered across the desert. The region known as the Vestige is the place where the majority of the ruin had landed intact. There are strange energies in this region and known to gain access to the Underfoot. The Vestige is often inhabited by bandits, or magical automatons that appear to be made of porcelin and gold.

"Ah...the Vestige... We figure this to be a sky garden back in the day, a sky farm that fed the desert perhaps. However there is unstable magical and Ley anomalies in this area and ruins. The Guild classifies this place as an advanced entry location. Its almost..surreal and whimsical here with the crystals, and fauna that grows from the magical energy here." ~Scholar Serehi Ramaadi, Guild of Lore

Abu Simbal

Part of the fabled Empire of the Golden Sun, Abu Simbal is a tomb that is marked by a massive collusus of four sitting animal-headed figures. Unearthed by the winds and storms that come in of the jungles beyond the mountains, this area has become a Guild of Lore Hotspot. They offer of course, the Adventurer's Guild to explore the hundreds of miles of Catacombs that are beneath this statue.

"Abu Simbal is a dangerous and rather unexplored catacomb of Sun Kings. Just as if The Guild of Lore concludes thier research, more tunnels are excavated and found. The place is almost constantly churrning out artifacts of the Age of Ressurection; the age where the first peoples emerged from the ashes of the Combine. It is a Sacred site, and possibly part of something bigger. ~Shoree Shapiro

Ruins of the Golden Ones

The Ruins of the Golden Ones is a ruin that as built within the southern face of the Sky Fire Mountains. It consists of several toppled statues of pharoahs that once ruled the Empire of the Golden Sun, presumably by ancient Isarian Raiders. The guild of lore is interested in this location, however the war between Sassliss and the Mandate often spills over the borders of Dominas into the region. The guild of lore is unable to establish a relic base, and has fell back to the Adventurers' Guild offering quests into its unexplored depths.

"I often wondered about the well known ruins that seems to be untouched by the guilds. Every week or so, its etiher guarded by Isarians, or Domingo. Its really interesting to see these races this side of the Skyfires. The Ruins themselves are in a detestable condition probably because how close it is to one of the bloodiest conflicts of Modern Gaia. ~Adventurer Ceres Fern, Adventurer's Guild

The Free City of Raqua

One of the most curious of towns is this larger town built suposidly in the middle of nowhere. It it said to have ben built around a small grove of Golden Palms, but has been thriving mysteriously and questioning many experts. The City itself is possibly a remnant of the Empire of the Golden Sun, as a massive Obelisk known as the "Beacon of Miracles" is located within this city.

"Raqua, eh? Now there's a mysterious splot on the desert. It is so far away from any sorce of life and yet it hosts a lot of life. These humans are quiet though, But I swear I may have seen mummies with parts of the city. I bet you its another necropolis under our feet!" ~Milo Spellman, Highwayman

Alternative Name(s)

The Golden Dunes

Type

Desert