Ard Al-Malika

When the Malika divided the Malikate of Saba into the Muhafazahs, she reserved the eastern tip of Vipa for her own use. This region is not a part of any Muhafazah, and was cleared of all residents when the Malika claimed it for the exclusive use of the Burj Alhikma. The region is mostly flat, grassy fields, and the only structure that remains is a tower of multicolored glass placed in the exact center of the Ard Al-Malika. This tower is the twin of the Burj Alhikma tower in Tarshish, and based on the occasional comment by one of the Malika's mages, it may be connected to the other tower in some way that allows them to simply walk between them like rooms in a single building.

Before the area was designated the Ard Al-Malika, the eastern end of Vipa was known for the ancient ruins that could be found half buried in the grasslands. Shepherds would stumble across toppled monoliths and collapsed foundations of titanic proportions. Scholars of the Nagarajya studied the ruins, and concluded that they were at least as old as the Empire of Muria, and possibly older. Some of the stones bore symbols that had been nearly worn away, but those that could be discerned bore some resemblance to symbols found on the buildings of Kikai. However, the stones of Vipa had a way of becoming lost in the grass when nobody was looking. The shepherds called them the Chalanara Silalekh, or the Walking Stones, and claimed that they would wander off when unobserved. However, it is possible that the stones didn't move, but that their location is hard to find consistently.

This is due to ease of getting lost in the grasslands of eastern Vipa. The grass grows very tall, often reaching eight or nine feet in height. When one walks through the grasses, there are no visible landmarks, and the grass itself springs back into place. Even navigation by the sun or stars is difficult, and more than one person has wandered lost for days when the region was open to travelers. Today, this trait of the region serves mostly to keep anyone away from the glass tower, as those who attempt to reach it find themselves unable to approach. They always seem to exit the grasslands far from where they intended to go, if they emerge at all.

Many rumors swirl around what exactly the mages of the Burj Alhikma do in the grasslands of the Ard Al-Malika. Some claim that the territory is used for magical experiments too dangerous or secret to be performed in their tower in Tarshish. Others believe that the region is where the Glass Shadows are based, and that the connection to the mages is either false, or of secondary importance. A few believe that the Malika simply wanted to quarantine the area due to the number of people who had been permanently lost in the grass. The truth could include any or all of these reasons, or something nobody has yet considered.

Type

Region

Location under

Vipa

Owner/Ruler

Malika of Saba

Owning Organization

Burj Alhikma

Geographic Details

Location: Southeastern Region
Latitude: 5.36 degrees North
Longitude: 30.63 degrees East
Area: 305.91 sq mi