Aetheris
Aetheris, once the crowning jewel of Novaria Prime, is now a name spoken only in whispers, a city that has become the epitome of tragedy and mystery. Located on the southern continent of Novaria Prime, Aetheris was the capital hive city of the planet, a vast, towering sprawl of industry, commerce, and Imperial might. Its spires once gleamed with the light of a thousand forges, its underhives teemed with life and activity, and its ruling nobility lived in luxury, overseeing the work of billions who labored to feed the Imperium's endless hunger for resources and war materiel.
At its height, Aetheris was a metropolis of almost unparalleled scale, housing billions of souls within its towering spires and deep, labyrinthine underhives. The city was divided into several key districts, each serving a specific purpose in the grand machinery of the Imperium. The manufactorums of Aetheris produced everything from lasguns and power cells to entire regiments of tanks and artillery pieces. Its vast agri-domes, carefully regulated and maintained, provided food for the hive’s inhabitants and surplus for the planet’s tithe to the Imperium. The noble spires housed the planet's elite, who governed with an iron fist, their wealth and power secured by legions of enforcers and servitors.
Aetheris was not only a center of industry but also a bastion of faith. The Ecclesiarchy maintained several grand cathedrals within the city, each a towering edifice of devotion to the God-Emperor. Pilgrims from across the planet—and sometimes from other worlds in the system—would journey to Aetheris to offer their prayers and seek the blessings of the Emperor. The Adeptus Mechanicus, too, held a significant presence within the city, operating numerous forges and research facilities, always striving to unlock new secrets of the Omnissiah.
Yet, for all its grandeur, Aetheris was not without its darker aspects. The underhives were a place of poverty, crime, and desperation. Entire generations of hive scum eked out an existence in the shadows, far below the notice of the ruling classes above. Gangs and criminal cartels thrived in these depths, controlling entire districts and waging brutal wars over territory and resources. The Adeptus Arbites maintained a constant presence, but even they could only do so much to stem the tide of violence and corruption.
Despite these challenges, Aetheris endured and prospered for millennia. The city stood as a testament to the strength and resilience of the Imperium, a shining example of the Emperor's light in a galaxy beset by darkness. But this image of stability and power was shattered in a single, horrific event—the arrival of the anomaly.
The anomaly, as it has come to be known, struck Aetheris without warning. One moment, the hive city was alive with the usual sounds of industry and activity; the next, it fell eerily silent. The vast spires, normally humming with the energy of countless machines and the bustle of billions of lives, became a tomb. Reports from nearby hive cities, including the adjacent Hive Tertium, indicate that all contact with Aetheris was suddenly and inexplicably lost. Vox channels, previously filled with the chatter of daily life and governance, went dead. The city’s astronomicum communications ceased, and even attempts to reach out through the Warp met with nothing but silence or maddening static.
An investigation was quickly launched, and neighboring hives dispatched scouting parties to Aetheris to uncover the source of this sudden silence. What they found was beyond comprehension: the city was empty. There were no signs of a struggle, no evidence of a massacre. It was as if the entire population of Aetheris—billions of people—had simply vanished into thin air. Even the servitors, those tireless, half-machine workers that toiled in the manufactorums and carried out menial tasks, were gone. The streets, once packed with workers, traders, and enforcers, were deserted. Homes and businesses stood silent, their doors ajar, as if their occupants had simply walked away.
Amid this haunting emptiness, however, one disturbing feature remained—a massive, lingering energy signature, centered around the city’s heart. This energy, unlike anything the investigators had encountered before, was palpable. It distorted vox channels, corrupted data streams, and resonated through the Warp, creating ripples that could be felt far beyond Novaria Prime. Some claimed to have seen the veil between reality and the Warp flicker, as if the city itself was on the brink of being consumed by the immaterium. The Adeptus Mechanicus, baffled by the phenomenon, could only theorize that some ancient, forbidden technology or warp-tainted artifact had been unearthed, triggering the anomaly.
The impact of the anomaly was not confined to Aetheris alone. The surrounding hive cities, including Tertium, were thrown into chaos. The sudden disappearance of the planet's capital sent shockwaves through the planetary governance. The planetary governor, already struggling to maintain order amidst growing unrest, found himself unable to act. His pleas for assistance went unheard, as communication across the system became increasingly erratic, and the anomaly’s influence spread like a cancer, distorting everything it touched.
As the anomaly continued to resonate, it drew attention from far beyond Novaria Prime. In the depths of the Warp, ancient powers stirred, their interest piqued by the disturbance. Chaos warbands, xenos raiders, and even agents of the Inquisition began to converge on the planet, each seeking to uncover—or exploit—the secrets of Aetheris. The most infamous of these was a warband from the Black Legion, led by the ambitious Chaos Lord Samael. Drawn by the potent energies emanating from the city, Samael and his forces descended upon Aetheris, seeking to claim whatever power lay hidden within its depths. But like the city’s inhabitants, they too were swallowed by the anomaly, their fate unknown.
The once-thriving hive world was now a place of fear and uncertainty. The Pit Rats, a gang from Hive Tertium, emboldened by the chaos, launched raids into the city, taking advantage of the disorder to expand their influence. They encountered little resistance, as most Imperial forces were either missing, scattered, or too preoccupied with the anomaly to mount a coordinated defense.
The situation in Aetheris has become a grim reminder of the fragility of even the most powerful Imperial worlds. What was once a beacon of strength and stability is now a haunted ruin, its mysteries still unsolved. As the anomaly continues to fester, and as more factions are drawn into the maelstrom, Aetheris remains a dark enigma, a city where reality itself has broken down, and where the line between the material world and the Warp is dangerously thin.
What lies at the heart of Aetheris? Is it a forgotten relic of the Dark Age of Technology? A manifestation of the Warp’s chaotic energies? Or something far worse? The answers remain elusive, and those who seek them often meet with madness or death. But one thing is certain: Aetheris is no longer just a city—it is a symbol of the unknown terrors that lurk within the galaxy, a reminder that even the Imperium’s greatest strongholds can fall to forces beyond understanding.
The capital city of Novaria Prime, Aetheris, a colossal hive-spire reaching kilometres into the sky and deep into the planet's crust. It was the heart of the planet's political, economic, and industrial activities and housed the Imperial Palace, the seat of planetary governance and residence of the Planetary Governor, and the Grand Manufactorum: A massive industrial complex responsible for producing everything from weapons to everyday goods. The tallest spire in Aetheris, the Vox Spire, housed the primary communications array for the planet.
Districts
The Null Zone: The area around the epicentre of the energy anomaly in Aetheris is marked by severe spatial and temporal distortions, making it hazardous to explore. The strange effects spread into the warp, disrupting psychic abilities in a fashion not dissimilar to pariah's. This has led to the area being dubbed 'The Null Zone'.
Aetheris Underhive: The once packed underhive, a former hotbed of crime, gangs, and illicit activities, now stands eerily silent and empty. In some areas refugees have begun to congregate, fleeing both the armies that are arriving in the city and hoping that the city's formidable defences may offer them some protection.
The Sanctum Mechanicus, the primary Adeptus Mechanicus enclave on Novaria Prime, is located on the outskirts of Aetheris. Prior to it falling silent it boasted impressive research labs dedicated to the study of technology and artifacts along with the quarters and workshops for the planet’s tech-priests and their acolytes.
Type
Large city
Population
0
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