Shining Roads
The Shining Roads is the collective name for five districts in the upper city. These five districts are located on the wide boulevards connecting the five spires on the edges of the city to the Radiant Spire in the center. While mainly serving as the connecting structure between the spires, they are also the heart of the more affluent Children of Radiance who do not belong to the Order of the Discerning Gaze.
As the spires developed and focused on one branch of the order each, the Shining Roads became pathways to more quickly travel between spires without travelling through the main city structure on the lower disk. Over time, the order stopped traveling through the lower city at all. With all of the order traffic moving on the upper disk many of the wealthier merchants began moving stalls up to sell their wares to the more affluent order members. There are limited ascension points to travel between the upper and lower discs. Due to this, the travel from a merchant's home or shop to the upper disk could be quite large, and hard to manage while hauling stock. Over time, the temporary stalls that the merchants set up became more permanent fixtures, and eventually shops.
As the heart of trade for the order at the time, these shops were the pinnacle of religious adherence. In Her light all is seen, so in her light all shall be. The shops boasted solid walls on the sides, a half-wall or rail along the back, and thick drapes for the front. The unique aspect of these shops is the roof, which is composed of sheer fabric to let in the light shining down from the radiant disk. While very lightweight and sheer, the fabric is also treated against weather. While the eternal day leaves Chronwhorl very bright it is also quite cold. The Fog Zone buffers the chill radiating up from the crater, but does not cut it completely. The fabric roof also helps to keep in some of the heat.
In most cases, the front of the shops is for business and the back section is the merchant living space. While the back wall is partially open, the great distance between the Shining Roads allows for privacy. Most merchants also hang long banners boasting their business symbol, that drape over the back wall space and down into the top of the Fog Zone below.
Once the wealthy merchants were no longer living in the Fog Zone, wealthy Children of Radiance saw an opportunity to rise above the lesser folk around them and began to move up to the Shining Roads as well. Residential buildings began to pop up between the merchant zones. These buildings also had semi-open back walls and sheer fabric rooves. However, the residential buildings were a display of wealth, power, and purity of the owner's human heritage. As such, they tended to be built much taller. The outer walls were built to the height of a two or three story building, but the inside is still a single level. Rooms are formed by long draping curtains, creating spaces filled with flowing gossamer fabric.
This same social pressure keeps the peace in the market zones. Merchants watch over their own stock, and that of other merchants in the area. This is assisted by the fabric fronts of each shop making everything visible in the never-ending daylight.
There is still occasional thievery that results in the order patrols being called. These types of open crime are not common, however. What is far more common is well dressed thieves making their way up from the Fog Zone to steal while making other purchases. Most crime of this type is committed by a thieves guild based in the Fog Zone, known as The Lightless.
Development
The Shining Roads were originally built as the forming structure of the upper disk of Chronwhorl. The outer ring of the city is stabilized by the roads, forming five spokes stretching from the central spire out the the other five. While the main disk below is a solid plate, this upper disk is only the framework of three rings with the Shining Roads connecting them.As the spires developed and focused on one branch of the order each, the Shining Roads became pathways to more quickly travel between spires without travelling through the main city structure on the lower disk. Over time, the order stopped traveling through the lower city at all. With all of the order traffic moving on the upper disk many of the wealthier merchants began moving stalls up to sell their wares to the more affluent order members. There are limited ascension points to travel between the upper and lower discs. Due to this, the travel from a merchant's home or shop to the upper disk could be quite large, and hard to manage while hauling stock. Over time, the temporary stalls that the merchants set up became more permanent fixtures, and eventually shops.
As the heart of trade for the order at the time, these shops were the pinnacle of religious adherence. In Her light all is seen, so in her light all shall be. The shops boasted solid walls on the sides, a half-wall or rail along the back, and thick drapes for the front. The unique aspect of these shops is the roof, which is composed of sheer fabric to let in the light shining down from the radiant disk. While very lightweight and sheer, the fabric is also treated against weather. While the eternal day leaves Chronwhorl very bright it is also quite cold. The Fog Zone buffers the chill radiating up from the crater, but does not cut it completely. The fabric roof also helps to keep in some of the heat.
In most cases, the front of the shops is for business and the back section is the merchant living space. While the back wall is partially open, the great distance between the Shining Roads allows for privacy. Most merchants also hang long banners boasting their business symbol, that drape over the back wall space and down into the top of the Fog Zone below.
Once the wealthy merchants were no longer living in the Fog Zone, wealthy Children of Radiance saw an opportunity to rise above the lesser folk around them and began to move up to the Shining Roads as well. Residential buildings began to pop up between the merchant zones. These buildings also had semi-open back walls and sheer fabric rooves. However, the residential buildings were a display of wealth, power, and purity of the owner's human heritage. As such, they tended to be built much taller. The outer walls were built to the height of a two or three story building, but the inside is still a single level. Rooms are formed by long draping curtains, creating spaces filled with flowing gossamer fabric.
Maintaining Order
The Children of Light who live on the Shining Roads do so through lineage and wealth, so there is a great deal of prestige and expectation in place. While there are regular patrols from the order, the true regulatory force in these areas is social pressure. Residents are expected to uphold a social standard. Historically, families that did not uphold the expected standards were shunned by the other residents and blocked from making purchases on the upper disk. Such a block rapidly lead to the family needing to travel down into the Fog Zone for basic needs, and pushed out of their homes.This same social pressure keeps the peace in the market zones. Merchants watch over their own stock, and that of other merchants in the area. This is assisted by the fabric fronts of each shop making everything visible in the never-ending daylight.
There is still occasional thievery that results in the order patrols being called. These types of open crime are not common, however. What is far more common is well dressed thieves making their way up from the Fog Zone to steal while making other purchases. Most crime of this type is committed by a thieves guild based in the Fog Zone, known as The Lightless.
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