Cindersend
| Languages: | Common, Elven |
| Biome: | Salt flats, dunes, plateaus, chaparral |
| Allied with... | Nobody |
| In Conflict with... | the Harannossë, Miraj'Dah, Kharsaga |
There is a place in the Kaikias Desert where sands turn to choking dust, rivers run as poison, and not even the green of scrub brush drinks the rains. It is a place where the Shroud has thinned so much, that natural life cannot sustain itself. And at the heart of this dying land, lies the knife which bled it dry: Cindersend, the impossible city. An oasis in the desert, home to every comfort and vice, if one can afford to pay the price.
The founders of Cindersend were elves exiled from the temperate forests of Seldaesa - rebel generals, runaway criminals, and deserters of the endless Summer Wars. Those Scorned Houses, the First of Many, sought a land free of the rigid constraints of their society.
Governance & the Houses
Like their cousins to the North, Cindersend's echelons are made up of powerful Houses - though significantly fewer in total. Instead of governing people or territories, each House presides over a resource. Balance in the city is kept through the trade of these resources, or as the occasion calls for, the theft. The authority the Houses have over their people is fragile. If a leader of a House cannot meet demand, or they lose control of supply, then the loyalty of their rank will also run dry. The next-strongest will take up the House's titles, and the wheels of the city will continue to churn with or without them.There are three Scorned Houses which hold power in Cindersend, nobility in all but title. Though they may play at independence, the Warlords of other lesser Houses have no choice but to bend to the will of the other three.
The Water House of Saerce
The eldest, and most powerful of Houses. The Saerce family controls the only source of fresh water in Cindersend - an underground spring at the center of the city. The aqueducts, above and below ground, are theirs. Graciously, House Saerce allows water to flow to every Ward of the city. However, this magnanimity is only a guise, a gift that the House can take away at a moment's notice. Public water flows only at certain times, the wells and fountains drying during the hottest hours of the day, and in times of drought. The aqueducts are controlled by heavy sluice gates, guarded fiercely by Saerce's strikers and woven wards.
The Golden House of Talonrune
Pleasure itself is considered a resource in Cindersend, just as much as food or water. It is difficult to name a gambling den, brothel, or saloon that does not pay tithe to Talonrune. And rarer still, an entertainer who works outside of their purview. Large and sprawling, no one knows the full influence of the Gilded House, or how many strikers work under them. One thing is certain, however - they have flesh and gold in excess, and will lavishly pay in both to maintain control.
Thee Shrouded House of Feynrith
Elusive weavers, who rule from the shadows and keep a stranglehold on the flow of shroudstones and blood crystals. Their influence is not immediately obvious on the streets of Cindersend, where blood flows freely and magitech is quick to change hands. But if one stockpiles too many shroudstones, or comes into ownership of too powerful an artifact, they might find themselves face-to-face with one of the hooded strikers of House Feynrith.
House Hierarchy
A people naturally opposed to titles and rule, there are few official positions of authority in Cindersend. Even fewer that hold any true influence. One is either on top, or fighting to get there. Inheritance is not determined by blood relation, but nepotism is still common within powerful families.Warlord- The head of a House, the title a holdover from when they were once apart of the Harannossë of the North.
Myrmidon - Elite members of a House who have proven their worth, and act within the inner circle. Usually, they hold the loyalty of a small personal crew of Strikers.
Striker - A catchall term for any enforcer, bruiser, fence or fixer that works directly for a House. While they are the lowest rank, being employed by a House still offers protection and privilege above the average commoner.
Culture
Within the territories of the city, the ambient Shroud is too depleted for weavers to cast magic without aid. Shroudstones are in high demand, considered the most valuable thing one can trade with. If one is too poor to afford a mineral burst of Shroud, the next best thing is blood. Where the only living thing next to you is your neighbor, weavers of the deadlands have developed a grisly way of casting magic, by using the life's blood as a source of Shroud. Ritual sacrifice, runes etched upon skin, and "blood crystals" of dubious origins are all familiar sights in Cindersend.
Not everything is a fight to the death in Cindersend, however. Shepherds, scavengers, mushroom-mongers, innkeepers and waterway workers... a number of smaller Houses maintain the everyday needs of the city in relative peace. The lesser Houses act as guilds for merchants and journeymen, offering enough stability to work and live without a knife at one's back. Funnily enough, the leaders of these domestic Houses are still called Warlords, no matter how benign their domain.
Major Landmarks
Bone Ward - A bustling marketplace sheltered within the bleach bones of an ancient leviathan. Sitting outside the city's walls and sprawling out into the desert, the Bone Ward is a resting place for visitor and traders to do business without interference from the ruling Houses.Ardent Fields - A desolate stretch of land to the south of Cindersend, ravaged by armonium storms. A group of bandits called the Flamebreakers roam the territory, making it an undesirable route for caravans.
History
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