Arus Fall
"To you, my homeland, I declare all my love. I could not live without your maternal curves, your soft climate and your chaotic effervescence. You are the excess of love and life that will lead us to our end. I cannot bring myself to leave you, fertile soil of my cherry years."
The following short article is an introduction to the subject of this chapter of the Confession of Eternity : Arus Fall. It is a corpus of excerpts from texts that shall be studied in more detail later in the above-mentioned chapter, mostly coming from the libraries of the Shrine of the Agnus.
"Arus Fall is one of the most populated and important regions in the territory of the Sons of E'Torrar with no less than 23 major cities in this province which covers more than 100,000 km². This is the second region colonized by the followers of the cult of E'Torrar during the forced exodus that followed the Fracture. It is in this region that the city of Roðtull'heill, the solar capital, proudly stands. Nearly 16 million people live in these welcoming plains. Many towns have been able to develop along the numerous waterways that run throughout the region."
This is the fertile land of Arus Fall, so called due to the titanic waterfalls found along the western flank of the region, which create a natural border with the Dark Kingdom. The water comes from the heights of the island, taking its source deep in the heart of the Mountain of Stars.
The waterfalls were named Arus Fall during the Fracture in memory of the Grand Inquisitor Arus the Preu who fought and fell bravely on this natural wonder. It is thanks to his sacrifice that the valley below was protected from the advance of the ungodly.
Today, a monumental statue stands in the middle of the falls supposedly in the very place where the hero fell.
Covered by the water of the cascades, the statue’s marble gaze watches over this territory that it defended so valiantly in the past. The water at the foot of the statue is the clearest in all the land. It is said to be blessed, and that bathing in it cures all ails and illnesses.
by alexson1
Arus Fall is a region prone to unusual experiences. Every place, every town, is a new discovery.
From the famous fries of Gringað, the region's main fishing port which supplies the Roðtull'heill markets with fish and shellfish that the capital's merchant and military ports have driven away, to the soft wools of the town nestled in the high red hills, Minri, and the lively markets of Esker, the fortified city watching over the tributaries of the Ogemagne, this is a region of unparalleled cultural richness. It is the jewel of a civilization and proof that in the light we can flourish, even if we are deprived of our land and our history.
Apart from these many well-known customs, the province of Arus Fall is above all the territory surrounding the capital of the Lands of the Sun.
All these wonders would be nothing without the presence of Roðtull'heill in the heart of these lands. In addition to providing protection to the surrounding territory, the capital is the beating cultural and economic heart of the land, and is undoubtedly the main reason for the flourishing of the surrounding lands.
"As the wind blew to shake the windows of our house, I read with relative attention these adventures that usually fascinated me, the tells of these great men, sons of exile, who built our nation. But on that cold morning of the Long Winter, my gaze was more drawn to the snowy expanses that stretched as far as the eye could see than the exaggerated heroics on the dusty pages I held in my lap. Exulting to be in the front row of this spectacle thanks to the altitude of our home, I decided to leave the heroes to their exile and to go and enjoy the weather. Following my steps, I ended up facing the immense structures of the Three Mills, which, as far as I know, were never three. Sneaking between the workers and the tangle of wood and metal while the cold wind was whipping my face and freezing me to the bone. In the cold I suddenly discovered an interest in the hundreds of metres of worm screws that supply the city with water, a mechanism that took me a long time to understand and whose study was, as we shall see later, most perilous."
by Steve Kilt
Built during the exodus that followed the Fracture, on the ruins of a settlement that has since been forgotten, this port city is a world unto itself. All the wonders of the upstream towns are to be found there tenfold. Seat of the country's oligarchic power, the capital, reputed to be impregnable, is home to the most imposing port on the shores of the Craddle of Stars. Merchant and military traffic is such that aquatic species have migrated several dozen leagues to the north, away from the channel and the capital's docks, which has led to fishing being primarily conducted off the shores of Gringað, close enough to the capital's markets to supply her the huge quantities of fish she consumes without having to go fishing too far into the bay.
It is in this city that never sleeps, in the depths of an ancient fortress rehabilitated into a sacred library, the Shrine of the Agnus, that are located all the texts that were used in the corpus you are reading.
"I had heard a lot about the capital, this city that never sleeps, this unparalleled majestic city. However, when I arrived at its gates for the first time, I was unprepared. Nothing prepares you for such a change of scenery. My first memory in this city is that of a smell. A smell that I have since learned to cherish like that of my own home. Scents of metal and baking criðnis pies. Then came all these marine smells, these iodized emanations coming from the port and going up the arteries of this crowded settlment, the sometimes delicate, sometimes heady perfumes that coexist as best they can in the different markets of the capital, the mossy freshness of the humid cellars and the indescribable smell of the storm on the hot pavement. Of course I have over the days, weeks, months I spent in this city that I have gradually taken over, integrated more and more details. I found more and more in this effervescence that no longer shocked me an unthinkable comfort for a field child like me. The noises became more familiar, the cries of seabirds and scavengers, the soliciting of merchants, the clear clacking of the hooves on the white paving stone, the strident shards of metal being bumped into each other. All these noises became, with the passage of time, a lullaby that today is almost indispensable to me. Soon I fell in love with the vestiges scattered all over the capital. Where the majority of the inhabitants of the capital saw only stones that would attract curious strangers and the wrath of the gods if one approached them, I saw a whole civilization. Without realizing it, I was irresistibly drawn to these majestic ruins engulfed by time in the maze of streets and chaotic architecture of the city. Luckily for me, the ancient inhabitants of the peak who had built all these forgotten wonders using mainly stones that were not native to this side of the bay. The supernatural white hue of these stones, eaten away by ages of rain and wind, made them quite visible among the ochre stones used by the builders since Roðtull'heill's construction. Besides, one speaks too often about ruins whereas all did not collapse. There are still a number of rather well preserved vestiges whose access is only dangerous for those who think they will attract the evil eye by treading on the cobblestones of the ancients. I therefore took over these marvellous constructions, sometimes forgotten, sometimes feared. With time, I ended up considering them as my property, my domain. In particular, I invested the remains of the highest floor of the Crystal Garden. This very poetic name is given by the locals to the huge hanging parks, in the heart of the city, facing the bay. There, under the very particular vegetation that proliferates in a chaos that is both dark and reassuring, one can guess huge glass canopies almost intact after an eternity spent facing the torments of time. The most intriguing element of these gardens, however, remains the omnipresence of crystals of varying sizes, ranging in size from a finger to dozens of cubits long, dotting the abandonned lawns and alleys a of these aerial parks. I never understood the fear that pushed most of the locals to avoid this magical place, a real breath of greenery, a calm and magnificent view at the foot of the Palace of the Eight, in the heart of this city which, despite its mothering and reassuring character, can be oppressive for a son of the field like me."
by Martin Deschambault
The road to the South-West of the capital is very busy, one crosses merchants as well as pilgrims and lost beggars believing they canmay find better fortune in the city.
All this transit has made many villages along the road flourish. These villages, which serve as stopovers for travellers as well as checkpoints to secure the road for the armed forces, have the reputation of seeming warm and welcoming towns at first glance while in reality it is better to be careful where you set foot. The huge transit necessarily brings with it the worst of our society. Fortunately, our Road Guard is keeping watch.
If one continues along this crowded road, one arrives very quickly at the picturesque town of Eyrr, perched on a peak overlooking the fork formed by the Western Way and the Trail of Spray. A choice has to be made: to the left, the raw pleasures of Tostalen await us, a town as populated as it is rustic, nestled in the heart of golden fields as far as the eye can see, along a watercourse full of mills and dams. To the right, the trade road and further on, the possibility to continue on Sommerstall.
This town is undoubtedly the only one of its kind. Perched on the side of the Windless Kiln massif, it is a port city at an extraordinary altitude, right in the middle of the land. The presence of the Small sea is as incredible as it is economically advantageous for the town.
Upstream of the salt lake is the famous Marsh of Somerstall, a huge salt delta with a rich marine fauna.
"It's easy to be a sailor at sea level, warm, where only the harbour freezes in winter. The big problem nowadays is that young people don't like this timeless world. They don't like this closed sea that feeds us, surrounded by rocks and fields. They don't like the fish they kill like their brother."
This region is also filled with legends.
For example, words is out that it was on the peak on which Roðtull'heill was built that one of the largest cities of the Lords stood. The ruins that are still visible attest to the presence of a very old city in this area. But to say that it was the Lords is a different matter altogether.
Arus Fall was the first province in which the peoples banished from the mountain tops settled. On the coast, fishing villages were formed.
One day a Copper Bay fisherman's net got stuck in a reef and dragged him into the water.
A huge sea monster, presumably a whale, went out to meet him, tossed him around, pushed him away. It took many minutes for the terrified fisherman to realize that the sea monster meant no harm. He was then hung on the back of the beast, out of the water. Once he was safe on his boat, he understood that the monster had saved him. In the distance he could see many fins emerging from the hollow of the waves.
As a tribute to the selflessness of this animal that had saved him from a terrible death, the flag of the province now bears this creature, called Dorry by the locals, as its emblem.
It has also been claimed that one can sometimes see, at sunrise, the enigmatic figure of the Purple Lady appearing behind the canopies of the Palais des Huits. This creature, which some onlookers inclined to gossip and legends without head or tail, is said to be one of the last Lords alive. She would rule the country behind the curtain of the Great Families. It would also be for certain the proof that the vestiges that one finds with fear in the capital would belong to the race of Lords.
In any case, whether its existence is proven or not, it is a great inspiration to many artists.
As for the populations that populate these lands, it is necessary to differentiate between the inhabitants of the capital, open to the world and other cultures while highly influenced by the high bourgeoisie and the aristocracy that resides in Roðtull'heill, and the inhabitants of the countryside.
While being the same people their overall views differ, where in the countryside the short but hard life in the fields has brought a very strong sense of community, mutual aid and more or less equality between the sexes in their treatment, the population of the upper districts of Roðtull'heill despises this people who feed them, preferring to this popular culture the exotic cultures that the sailors bring back and a very different relationship to the differences between sexes.
Not having to unite to subsist, this bored bourgeoisie organizes itself in a misogynistic patriarchal way. To counterbalance this dynamic and to find subject of occupation to the useless ladies of the court, the Great Families organize verbal jousting matches where the participants unleash without great risk their frustration by tormenting the lowly people, afflicting them with evils that only affect this lazy elite.
by J.タネダ@お仕事募集中
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by Monzoobo
Really cool place! The map is very nice to look at, with enough details to tell you what you want to know while not being cluttered. Regarding the article itself the actual content is interesting, you talk about all points of interest and bring up a lot of different cool stuff. However, you could do with working a bit on the layout. You have very long paragraphs in some places with nothing to really break of the monotony for the eyes. Maybe play around with indentations, columns, the sidebar, images and the like to make it less monotonous? I also sadly can't read any of the quotes, the text is too small for the font you're using. It looks very pretty, I just can't read it. And the white words on that background makes it almost invisible. The text, the world and the map is really neat, just need a little work on the formatting to make it nicer and easier to read! Cheers!
Thanks I am working on it, thank you for the feedback, i hope you'll like the next design iteration ! :D Cheers !