Relias: Uprising (74 page)

     As towns sprang up all along the North Santarian Trade Route, Pyre's economy boomed. With the strange, almost alien landscape surrounding the Selsnik Basin as well as several underground lakes, a small tourist industry emerged.

     As Pyre expanded to the walls of the Selsnik Basin, the population began to stagnate. It wasn't until the latter days of the Modern Medieval Epoch in 1783 M.E.  that a second layer was added to Pyre at ground level, stretching across the basin in segments as to allow sunlight and fresh air to reach the lower level. Over the course of the next fifty years, another level was added on top of that as a new demand emerged for Pyrian real estate.

     By 185 M.I, five levels had been added to Pyre, each one 75% the size of the last. By 225 M.I, construction of a sixth layer was underway but was ultimately put on hold as the Relias Wars had swept over the surrounding areas and now pressed down on the borders of the Bremonni Badlands. The assault, though, was bloodless and Pyre agreed to join the Union and the Union would be established in 230 M.I. With the new capitalist laws put in place and financed by capitol gained prior to the foundation of the Union, Syrvo Enterprises erected a set of twin sky scrapers, stretching upward from Pyre's third level and up through the still-under-construction sixth and final layer.

     By 240 M.I, the sixth layer of Pyre would be completed and Syrvo's sister towers became the centerpiece of Pyre's skyline.

     Following shortly on the heels of the discovery of Furo, Pyre became the first site to experiment with a newly invented Atmospheric Control Center (ACC). This invention and its implementation was met with great success and prices on Pyrian real estate reached an all-time high. And with this new invention came the option to close off the gaps in the plate leading to Pyre's ground level on the floor of the Selsnik Basin. (in an attempt to eliminate feelings of animosity generated by the lower class, many of which were confined to Pyre's first level, Pyre's first level would be dubbed 'The Inner Sanctum'. This term would later apply to all portions of Pyre that were located beneath one of Pyre's upper levels.)

     Following the fall of the Union in 248 M.I, Pyre, being home to Syrvo Enterprises (owned by Henry Fawkes, Marcus Lynch's true identity) was declared to be the new capital of Havok.

     In 256 M.I, following the unprecedented advancement in Furo generator technology (and coming on the trail of the construction of the first Helio reactor) a new Furo Extractor, globally unrivalled in its size, scope, and power, was commissioned to be erected at the center of Pyre's ground floor. The massive structure, which would stretch from the bottom of the Selsnik basin all the way up to the bottom of the first level, was met with rebellion and controversy, most of which was generated by the lower class that comprised the lowest sector of the Inner Sanctum.  Despite the efforts made on the part of several 'politicians' defending the lower class (The United Commune was, after all, in control and had been for more than eight years) the Extractor was constructed while those whose homes were demolished for its construction were relocated. It’s at this point that the slums of the Inner Sanctum grew, with privately owned companies abandoning the site for more profitable locations leaving this area of the Inner Sanctum relatively jobless. The ground level of Pyre would eventually become an afterthought, its inhabitants living an extreme poverty without the means to relocate themselves to areas better suited for employment. (It would be said that, though the ACC generated blue skies and comfortable climates, ignorance was not bliss, and the knowledge of their claustrophobic conditions drew away what little money might have been generated from business.) And while Marcus Lynch would make several attempts to channel money into this failing economy, the money would ultimately become lost amongst the corruption and the bureaucracy that ruled the lowest level.

     This new Furo Extractor that was built on Pyre's lowest level, being the largest in the world, once again cemented Pyre's standing as the visionary and revolutionary pioneer of urban development. With its new Furo Extractor, the AAC, and Syrvo Enterprises as its centerpiece, Pyre became the icon of technological innovation and ingenuity.

The North Santarian Trade Route

Towards the end of 1480 M.E, it became increasingly evident to the residents of the newly founded town of Pyre that the Selsnik basin in which their new town was located could not provide for everything that they needed. With a dearth of life and the barren terrain of the Bremonni Badlands, the town sent out a small expeditionary force to head northwest, the  direction of the last known forest for them to have encountered. In what would later be known as the Byfayne mountains, the expeditionary force, led by Charles Bannick, found that the Byfaynes were home to all the resources that Pyre could ever need. However, with Pyre already firmly established and the Byfaynes brimming with treacherous terrain, the group set up a small outpost on the  edge of the Byfaynes and ran the necessary resources along a supply line between the Byfaynes and Pyre. With this outpost established, the North Santarian Trade Route was born.

     Later, after the establishment of Praemon in 1495, the route extended even further to allow the new Durant/Werewolf colony to export their goods along the supply line. And with Praemon resting on a crossroads, the Santarian trade route branched off both northwest and northeast which would open up the evolving market to areas that would eventually include Styne and a route that stretched back all the way to Valhalla. The Santarian Trade Route served as a crucial avenue for exports and imports. The towns it connected in trade included Styne, Praemon, Leramato, New Eckis, and Pyre, and was the largest such route in the eastern hemisphere and, eventually, the world.

Praemon

Established 1495 M.E. by Charles Bannick, Praemon was originally settled at a major crossroads in the Byfaynes as the hub through which supplies would be shipped to Pyre. At its conception, Praemon was built up as a fort, eventually expanding into a town as capitalist sensibilities drew in hunters and traders from across northern Solara.

     Over the course of the next several centuries, the predominantly Durant and Werewolf population would express itself through its unique architecture and design, echoing the aesthetic inclinations of Northwestern Werewolf found most often in Elvytican cities and Mid-Arctanican Durant. Its population would diversify, though, and Praemon would see continued expansion throughout the final years of the Medieval Epoch.

     As tensions rose leading up to the start of the Relias wars in 223 M.I, the need for protection became clear. As a result, an ambitious project went underway to construct a wall running around the outskirts of Praemon, closing it off and protecting itself as well as the trade that was its ultimate livelihood.

     It would experience a subtle, nearly unnoticeable change in leadership in 262 M.I. as a result of the Praemon Subversion. From this moment on Praemon would be considered a stronghold of the Darks.

Brysdal

In 1453 M.E, a small group of orthodox Durants migrated from Arctanica  to north Central Marsecta where they discovered what would become known as the Brysdal Alternate Time Field. This time field, where time is accelerated nearly four times that of normal Havok time, stretched across a five mile space with 98 % of this space taken up by a sprawling plateau. After much deliberation, the Darks settled on this location to construct a new colony.

     Over the next five hundred years, the Darks would carve out the center of this plateau down to below ground level using strategically placed Chargers and Decimators, leaving thick columns of rock across this manmade gorge that would eventually be carved out into sky rises. As Brysdal increased in size and population (this expansion being minimal) the need to expand beyond the edges of the Alternate Time field became necessary. Instead of expanding above ground, though, and betray the location of this secretive colony, the Darks continued to expand beneath ground until the borders of Brysdal's alternate time field were a web of caves and subterranean suburbs of Brysdal.

     The implications of the Alternate Time Field had a profound effect on the cultures and lifestyles of Brysdal. Because time inside of the Alternate Time Field moved exponentially faster than the time outside, men in charge of hunting and gathering as well as those responsible for making repairs to water pipelines outside of Brysdal would be gone for months after being gone for a matter of weeks.

     From the outside, the plateau that Brysdal is carved out of appears untouched. This effect is due to the fact that, from outside the Accelerated Time Field, time within its borders appears to pass normally. This gives Brysdal the appearance of being suspended in space time. It's this quality that makes it nearly impossible to find.

     At the end of the Durant Revolution, Brysdal would serve as a haven for the few Durants and Darks that remained. It was here where they would rebuild, using the alternate time field to their advantage and getting back on their feet in a period of time that would have been fatal had they been anywhere else.

Demondrak

First established circa 3500 Ae.E, Demondrak would be the capitol of the Vampire civilizations in eastern Elvytica. It would stand as a monument to the courage and the ingenuity of the Vampires and their precursors in surviving and flourishing in such an inhospitable and unforgiving land.

     In the 9th Century an assault by a werewolf army coming in response to massacre conducted by the vampire  supremacist Syn Vyna resulted in the destruction of Demondrak while the attacking werewolves made it a point to destroy every last building in the city.

     Demondrak would be rebuilt on its overgrown ruins, though it would be much smaller and much less populated than its predecessor. Over the centuries leading up to its reconstruction, Demondrak would become the subject of religious superstition, alleged to be a gateway to hell. This superstition would result in a general aversion to not only Demondrak, but to the Elvytican continent.

Elysium

In 223 M.I, Durants fled central Arctanica as the Relias Wars escalated. Led by Miles Scarsborough, the Durant immigrants arrived at the edge of a sprawling lake fed by several major Arctanican rivers located near the Aliyan coast. As they moved further along the lakes edge they discovered an incredible series of waterfalls at the edge of this lake. These waterfalls would pour off into the four mile basin below, the majority of this basin being enclosed by the lake located above it. What resulted was a massive basin formed by three hundred foot waterfalls. After reaching the basin's roughly uneven floor, the water would run towards the narrow opening at the southern end of the basin in a twisting series of rivers.

      On the northern end of Elysium is a large outcropping that juts out from the waterfalls just fifty feet below the lake's edge. Located on the edge of this outcropping was the first Durant Temple, a pure white castle-like structure surrounded by battlements which ran a circle around the entire complex. It served as a place of worship where only the most worthy and faithful Durants were allowed to visit. This structure, reflecting light in a way that caused its pure exterior to glow, would serve as the focal point of Elysium and established the city as the unofficial capitol of the Durants.

     Buildings would be build up throughout the entire city, the largest and tallest being located at the center of the basin while smaller buildings were constructed as the grouping of buildings stretched outward, giving it a rough, conical shape. On many of the dozens of rocky platforms located at various levels along the edges of the basin, smaller buildings were constructed, giving way to shopping malls, restaurants, and prime real estate. To access these various levels, a complex infrastructure was put in place, running along the edges of the basin behind, in front of, and through the massive waterfall that formed the Elysium basin.

     Elysium's population grew slowly,

     Elysium would be abandoned in 253 M.I as a result of the Elysium Invasion, the first major act of aggression on part of the Commune to eliminate the Durant race. Following its abandonment, Elysium was bombed and ransacked. The Elysium temple was left standing, though, as a visual testament to the downfall of the Durant race and would slowly deteriorate over decades of neglect. Over the years Elysium would become an overgrown ruin, its rubble being consumed by the tropical overgrowth of the surrounding jungle. 

Diamide

Being one of the oldest cities in central Arctanica, Diamide would eventually become the capitol of the Arctanican Empire, slowly evolving into a large alpine city built around the surrounding mountains, valleys and ravines. Originally built around 5th century M.E, Diamide would serve as the hub from which Ayker Blacktree would launch the Arctanican Conquest. With a population of over two million, Diamide would be one of the most populous cities in the world leading up to the eventual plague of Halzetti's Disease, reaching the pinnacle of its onslaught in 228 M.I.

Olsgrad

Olsgrad is an ancient civilization built around the temple carved into the cliffs at the end of Olsgrad Canyon in central Marsecta. With the temple carved into the cliffs on one end, a small town was built into the smaller cliffs at the Temple's base and on the ground below that. A thick, granite reinforced wall would be built around the city for defensive purposes, while secret tunnels would be carved into the cliffs on either side of the canyon serving as the only entrances and exits into the sacred city. Estimated to have been built circa 1300 Ae.E as asserted by ancient stone tablets recovered from archaeological digs in south-central Marsecta around 115 M.I, Olsgrad served as a home to Durant priests and priestesses who lived in convents built around the temple. According to the ancient stone tablets, referred to as the Supernal Tablets, Olsgrad is one of seven ancient Durant temples. Its population of priests and priestesses would mysteriously disappear in an event believed to coincide with the same cataclysmic event that wiped the Marsectan Empire from the face of the globe.