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Notes from As Seen From Above: The Travelogue of Avera Earwick, Gadgeteer and Navigator, Inventor of the Single-Seat Airship, Explorer Extraordinaire: (Recovered from the wreckage of author’s airship following her crash in 59AW and published posthumously.)
Ambergran – The southernmost township of the west’s sprawling farmland. Delightful rooftops of thatch and gawking farmers! If you have seen one, you have seen them all. Your author chose not to disembark.
Armistice Island – Ah, the island of the gods. It does not look like much from above, does it? Small, round, with trees. Very much island-like. Hard to believe it’s the graveyard of champions where all our fates are decided on a yearly basis. Exciting! Unable to confirm reports of changing topography. Your author was prevented from landing by the gentle but firm hand of the gods (or particularly inexplicable winds).
Beach of Blades – Nearly impossible to access by land or sea due to the surrounding crags. Clearly, the assassins of the Brokerage have a way in and out. A secret! Surveyed from above, the beach is striking with its sands white enough to seem studded with diamonds. The mansions and keeps built within the crags are grand. Apparently, business is good. Your author was invited to land and enjoyed a dinner with various masked hosts. The meal was delicious, though I politely declined to partake in any wagers or games.
Beacon – Ah, what is there left to be written about your author’s beloved home? That the skyscrapers of the open city are rivaled only by Infinzel in stature? That its smooth stone roads and network of trolleys connect a city known for peaceful coexistence and collaboration? Your author took flight from Beacon and she will one day return!
Besaden – The enormous redwoods of Besaden’s vast forest are majestic to behold, even from above. The thick canopy provided little window for surveillance, although your author did espy numerous avian creatures that have gone unobserved elsewhere. One such little darling even landed on your author’s finger! What other unique creatures have the beastlords made homes for within their protected woods? The subject could fill another book!
Flamingo Islands, The – The archipelago is vaguely bird-shaped (if one squints) and home to a delightful number of the vivid if unintelligent avians. Piracy is perhaps not such a lucrative trade in this era, but those who ply the ancient trade from the Flamingo Islands have made the most of it. These are a people who value their outsider status and yet are quite welcoming to visitors. Your author dissuaded an attempted hijacking by explaining that the airship is not buoyant.
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Gen’bi Desert – Rolling sand dunes and blistering heat. Hard to imagine the hardy sort who choose to live upon the lifeless desert. At least until I met them! Your author had occasion to land when the starboard propeller overheated. The nomads proved quite welcoming and quick studies at repairing your author’s machinery. May they one day find what they’re searching for!
Grotto, The – An ugly rock. Said to house the most unpleasant of oca’em. Perhaps the Queen of the Coralline Throne would accept a more evocative name? The Fishbox?
Infinzel – The obsession of the Gadgeteers! The most impressive achievement of engineering in the world not built by us. A manmade mountain with a city hidden within, the sinuous Troldep River passing under and through. Beautiful to behold the graystone pyramid. Secured a personal tour from King Cizco Salvado. Disappointingly, he did not try to seduce your author. A joyful evening was further spent in Soldier’s Rest, one of many districts that have sprung up outside the pyramidal city’s walls thanks to the After War population boom. One woman’s slum is another woman’s shindig!
Magelab, The – Your author was granted the privilege of landing at the Magelab itself. The arcane fortress fills an island at the center of a lake. No crossing allowed unless you practice arcane bargaining! The archmages wished to study your author’s gravity-defying conveyance, but were disappointed to learn no magic was employed in its construction. Thus, complimented for ingenuity in a way that felt condescending, your author was banished from the Magelab to the township across the lakeshore whose residents are comprised of those who serve the mages and those who aspire to be served.
Merchant’s Bay – Numerous offers were furnished for your author’s airship, but this bird is not for sale! A dizzying amount of (traditional) ship traffic here; boats zipping efficiently through wish-created channels. The fourteen villas arcing around the bay seem in constant competition to improve upon their neighbor’s decadence. Your author was provided a significant fee to mention here that the Russi villa was most opulent of all. Perhaps that will even still be the case upon publication!
Orvesis – Frightening, even from above. Your author can confirm that the dead kingdom remains dead. The choking atmosphere forced your author to heights perhaps not recommended (see attached chart). Even the coastline harbors danger. Movement throughout the ruins suggests either suicidal treasure hunters, bizarre cultists, or perilous creatures. Perhaps all of the above?
Reef, The – Ah, to have witnessed what might once have been. Your author understands that decades ago, the glittering Reef bisected the entire Central Sea with its glittering palaces and submerged cities. So little now remains. The Coralline Palace catches the eye, while the Horizdock strikes your author as a sad imitation of a merchant villa.
Ruchet – They claim lost things flow to Ruchet. The waters and surrounding swamplands appear murky, the shanties uninviting. Luckily, your author is an expert cartographer and thus is never lost!