THE SHEER-ROCK RUINS
There's something... off about this place.
At first, I wondered, why did the dragons living here just vanish? What drove them to leave the city behind?
Then, sometimes, I swear I see the shadows move. I almost hear the voices of the dragons who once walked the city streets. And, one night, when the moons were full and the sea mist thick, I caught a glimpse of a gleaming temple. But when I came to investigate it in the morning, there was nothing there.
I don't wonder why they left, anymore.
- From the journal of Malady, explorer of the Ruins
City Name: Sheer-Rock Ruins
Population: 11,534
8,492 VeilWings
2,204 SilverWings
838 Other
Ruler: Marquis Tangle
Region: Forest Dukedom
Famous Residents:
Population: 11,534
8,492 VeilWings
2,204 SilverWings
838 Other
Ruler: Marquis Tangle
Region: Forest Dukedom
Famous Residents:
A Look into the City
Rising up on the steep southern cliffs of the Forest Dukedom, the Sheer-Rock Ruins is a puzzling City, and despite its name even the oldest sections of are in remarkable condition. It is a relic from the time the SilverWings inhabited the Island, a honeycombed system of caves sculpted from marble, limestone and basalt columns centuries ago. While there are other SilverWing structures scattered across the island, those are weathered and crumbling.
The Ruins extend deep into the cliffs and have never been fully explored, for the further one goes, the more obscure and maze-like the passages become, and the air is heavy with sea mist. What areas that have been mapped show a city of immense prosperity; dozens of palaces and gardens and public baths fill every street corner, and the place is wondrous to behold, and could house a few hundred thousand dragons.
Despite this, only just over ten thousand make their home here, along the edges of the city, where the waves hitting the cliffs spray them with great gushes of seawater. For those of non-SilverWing blood, the city emanates an ominous, unsettling feeling the moment you touch any bit of stone, the subtle memories within all shouting the same thing - you do not belong here. For those SilverWings who live there, however, the city is a different beast entirely; they are called deeper into the Ruins, each step tempting their talons to take them into the dark passages, to some unknown destination. Those SilverWings who are educated in the matter of stoneworking say that the entire city is Cursed, and should be destroyed or abandoned, but since it is VeilWing territory, nothing can be done.
The Ruins extend deep into the cliffs and have never been fully explored, for the further one goes, the more obscure and maze-like the passages become, and the air is heavy with sea mist. What areas that have been mapped show a city of immense prosperity; dozens of palaces and gardens and public baths fill every street corner, and the place is wondrous to behold, and could house a few hundred thousand dragons.
Despite this, only just over ten thousand make their home here, along the edges of the city, where the waves hitting the cliffs spray them with great gushes of seawater. For those of non-SilverWing blood, the city emanates an ominous, unsettling feeling the moment you touch any bit of stone, the subtle memories within all shouting the same thing - you do not belong here. For those SilverWings who live there, however, the city is a different beast entirely; they are called deeper into the Ruins, each step tempting their talons to take them into the dark passages, to some unknown destination. Those SilverWings who are educated in the matter of stoneworking say that the entire city is Cursed, and should be destroyed or abandoned, but since it is VeilWing territory, nothing can be done.
Famous Buildings
While the ruins themselves are quite famous and have attracted all sorts of scholars and treasure-hunters, some buildings are more important than others. Some of these include:
Located at the edge of the inhabited section of the Ruins, the Grand Baths is a favourite of many residents and visitors; the SilverWings who built it where able to use their stoneworking skills to channel hot springs into the building, so the water is always hot and the air full of soothing steam. The entire building has been covered in mosaics, tiles, and slabs of fresh stone at the demands of the new ruler, Marquis Tangle, in an effort to block out the unsettling sensation of touching the original buildings and roads of the Ruins. While this succeeded, many scholars found the project controversial, as it destroyed a significant historical site.
The Prince's Garden is another significant location, a walled park with fountains, dragon-made rivers and ponds, a collection of beautiful pavilions, and vast flower gardens. It is thought to have once belonged to Prince Octavian, a figure famous for betting his land (the modern Forest Dukedom) while gambling with a VeilWing named Gambit, resulting in the creation of the third dukedom; or, well, so the statues of him, Gambit, and their dragonets would have you believe.
Lastly, legend tells of the Temple of the Shattered Moons, an ancient SilverWing temple that can only be found during a full moon, that holds the secret to how their Kingdom once spanned all of the Blessed Isles. Tales of it are, however, dismissed as urban legends by any serious scholars.
Located at the edge of the inhabited section of the Ruins, the Grand Baths is a favourite of many residents and visitors; the SilverWings who built it where able to use their stoneworking skills to channel hot springs into the building, so the water is always hot and the air full of soothing steam. The entire building has been covered in mosaics, tiles, and slabs of fresh stone at the demands of the new ruler, Marquis Tangle, in an effort to block out the unsettling sensation of touching the original buildings and roads of the Ruins. While this succeeded, many scholars found the project controversial, as it destroyed a significant historical site.
The Prince's Garden is another significant location, a walled park with fountains, dragon-made rivers and ponds, a collection of beautiful pavilions, and vast flower gardens. It is thought to have once belonged to Prince Octavian, a figure famous for betting his land (the modern Forest Dukedom) while gambling with a VeilWing named Gambit, resulting in the creation of the third dukedom; or, well, so the statues of him, Gambit, and their dragonets would have you believe.
Lastly, legend tells of the Temple of the Shattered Moons, an ancient SilverWing temple that can only be found during a full moon, that holds the secret to how their Kingdom once spanned all of the Blessed Isles. Tales of it are, however, dismissed as urban legends by any serious scholars.
History
Before the Ruins became ruins, they were known as 'The Place the Moonpath Ends' - or, rather, by the memory of three full moons gleaming through the sea mist, lighting a brilliant, sparking path towards a dizzyingly vast network of caves that had formed into the cliffside. It was a prosperous SilverWing city, known for producing some of the most skilled stoneworkers in the SilverWings' vast Kingdom. They were abadoned for an unknown reason after the death of Prince Octavian, coinciding with a mass exodus of SilverWings to other Islands under their control.
It sat empty for some time, until being rediscovered by an enterprising explorer, Malady. She made a fortune off of the treasures she found within, but after her seventh expedition, she vowed never to go to the deep parts of the city again. By this time a large number of VeilWings had come, eager to explore the city and make themselves at home, but after a series of strange accidents, most of them left the Ruins for safer places. Malady, however, stayed in the city and raised her dragonets there. When her daughter went missing, however, Malady broke her vow, and set out immediately to find her.
Malady never returned, but after four months, her daughter reappeared, unharmed and with no memory of where she had been, back in the family home. The only thing she had to show for her disappearance was a strange alabaster statue of a SilverWing. She became increasingly attached to the statue over the following years, going so far as to having conversation with it, and only ceased this attachment when her older sister, concerned, took it away. She claims that the memories trapped inside the stone spoke to her, and she threw the statue across the room. It did not break, only rolling to the floor with an immense thud. She took the entire family and left later that day. The statue can be found in the Town Hall, on display behind thick glass, and is one of the Marquis' favourite things to show off.
It sat empty for some time, until being rediscovered by an enterprising explorer, Malady. She made a fortune off of the treasures she found within, but after her seventh expedition, she vowed never to go to the deep parts of the city again. By this time a large number of VeilWings had come, eager to explore the city and make themselves at home, but after a series of strange accidents, most of them left the Ruins for safer places. Malady, however, stayed in the city and raised her dragonets there. When her daughter went missing, however, Malady broke her vow, and set out immediately to find her.
Malady never returned, but after four months, her daughter reappeared, unharmed and with no memory of where she had been, back in the family home. The only thing she had to show for her disappearance was a strange alabaster statue of a SilverWing. She became increasingly attached to the statue over the following years, going so far as to having conversation with it, and only ceased this attachment when her older sister, concerned, took it away. She claims that the memories trapped inside the stone spoke to her, and she threw the statue across the room. It did not break, only rolling to the floor with an immense thud. She took the entire family and left later that day. The statue can be found in the Town Hall, on display behind thick glass, and is one of the Marquis' favourite things to show off.