Cliffs of Despair
I left my love in New Sulae,
our children at her side.
She stayed behind out of harm's way
while off to war I'd ride.
I'd bleed or die to keep them hale,or better, wound or kill,
I'd break the world and see it fail,
Or hold it through my will.
But New Sulae is safe no more
the mighty city fell.
My love was lost, the children gone
and not a soul to tell.
So to the Cliffs I came to sing my final mournful song.
The song was answered, and so I know, I'll see them all ere long.
Geography
The cliffs form the boundary between the Forêt Delégion and Hiems' Haven. Hiems' Haven gradually slopes upward from the coast to the Cliffs, going from sea level to around 1100' in elevation over a 500-mile stretch, an unnoticeable slope dwarfed by local variations.
From the tops of the cliff, two breathtaking vistas can be seen. Looking from the Cliffs towards the Haven, the brutal beauty of winter is in full view. While not as dense as the Glacial Fields, there are large numbers of glaciers moving across the Haven. These make for a landscape that is never the same - the glaciers carve into the rock, leaving pieces of themselves behind. Many have come seeking meaning in the shifting landscape, though most find final meaning in the Cliffs.
Looking over the cliffs towards the Forêt, one is greeted by a vast expanse of green, with yellow, orange, red, and white prevalent in different areas at different times of the years. The forest stretches as far as the eye can see, dense enough to obscure the ground in places, revealing meadows and rolling hills in others. The cliffs are often above cloud level for some areas of the forest, and at times, one could stand on the cliffs and look at the heavens from above.
There are no sources of liquid water at the top of the Cliffs - snow accumulates most of the year, but any water is quickly drained away to lower lands. The Cliffs themselves are close to completely vertical, with ample handholds for climbing. Even though the climb appears to be easy, it is known to be one of the deadliest areas in the region. Very few reports exist of anyone successfully scaling the peaks, and those that do are of dubious veracity.
Localized Phenomena
At certain times and places along the cliffs, it has been said that one will begin to hear music of loss and longing. It starts as one approaches the cliffs, usually as just music, but as one gets closer they can hear a male voice singing. The lyrics are ones of a lost love - different lyrics have been reported, but all seem to be around the same theme of loss. Most begin to feel sorrow and their own sense of loss, and quickly turn back. far too many are drawn in and attempt to climb the cliffs, only to inexplicably fall from what should be an easy climb. Some witnesses have claimed that they are not falling from the cliff, but rather leaping to their deaths, although their loved ones generally strongly push back on the notion, claiming there was no reason to believe they would do so.
Climate
Fauna & Flora
Plant life thrives at both the top and bottom of the cliffs - more adapted for cold at the top than at the bottom. The plant life at the top is typical of tundra. Bearberry plants are by far the most common, growing most of the length of the cliffs, in some places right up to the edge. Arctic lupine and willow are also common - lupine is found mixed in with the other plants, forming a symbiotic relationship through boosting nitrogen content in the soil. These plants, and others found around the tops of the cliffs, sit low to the ground as protection against the winds that can flow over the cliffs.
The base of the cliffs are typical of temperate forests, with coniferous plants in the north and mainly deciduous to the south. The base is rocky and mostly free of vegetation for 5-10 feet. Grasses start after that, with shrubs and bushes as the soil can support them, and trees once 20 feet or farther from the walls. In the northern stretches, firs and giant cedar are the dominant trees, while the south is predominantly oak and maple.
Arctic foxes and hares are some of the few land animals along the top of the cliffs. The base has a wide variety of animals living in small caves that can be found all along the base. Most of these animals are extremely aggressive compared to normal versions of their species, often fighting well past the point that they would normally retreat. Bears are the most common, and hunt the Foret for deer and other game.
The Cliffs support a large variety of birds. Condors, vultures, eagles, deathhawks, and rocs are all known to nest along the cliffs. Corvids, magpies, jays, swallows, and starlings nest in the trees near the base.
Comments