The Aeropelago
Location: (-764, 295 Dynmap)
Before island chain of The Aeropelago rose to the sky, it was formerly known as the town of Marblemount. It was a reasonably small town located near the crash zone, it acted as a trading hub for scavengers and adventurers who wanted to retrieve Technica Arcanum from the nearby crash site. From this, the town slowly grew with traders, adventurers, scavengers, and inventors. Along with the normal rift raft you would find in a trading hub like this, you will also find the mage clan "The Highlanders", little is known about this group of mages as they sprung up at about the same time as adventures and scavengers were successfully bringing back Technica Arcanum from the crash site.
The Highlander mage clan are the sole protectors of The Aeropelago and is taking claim for raising the city from the ground to the sky by magical means.
With their recent transcendence to the sky, the bustling economy of The Aeropelago has skyrocketed. A sky dock has been built around The Aeropelago which is used by sky traders and expeditions into the crash zone. The Sky Ships are built with the help of the local Highlander mage clan and local craftsmen and exhibit fine craftsmanship infused with mage magic. The most well known Sky Ship is "The Huckleberry" which is used for dropping off adventurers and scavengers into the crash zone and bringing back their goods for a small price. It is also well known that "The Huckleberry" has been used for resupply missions, local aid, and research and rescue missions.
LEIGH&CO and The Aeropelago maintain a close relationship that allows The Aeropelago the rights to send small expeditions into the crash zone to salvage materials and tech which then filters into the economy.
City Layout -
Sky Town: The original town of Marblemount that inhabitants have modified to suit their needs now that they are airborne. The streets are cramped and claustrophobic, small alley ways and dwellings are nestled in everywhere that you look. The city has started to grow vertical to suit the needs of the townsfolk. Leftover rumble from the previous town can be seen around town which is slowly being converted into new shops and dwellings.
Undercity: For those who didn't fit in Sky Town, townsfolk started to drift downwards into the cities foundation to carve out their own living. No one truly knows the actual number of people who live down there but you can easily get lost in the network of tunnels carved through the foundation. It's not unordinary to accidently find yourself in someone's living room purely by accident. There is also rumor of a black market that sells various goods.
Upper Docks: Used for general arrivals and departures to and from The Aeropelago. All arrivals must go through a customs check at the cities entrance.
Lower Docks: Mainly used for shipping in and shipping out goods. ALL cargo will be checked by a customs officer before it reaches the storage warehouse.
The Highlander Clan Mage Tower: Not a lot is known about the mage tower as only mages are allowed inside but it's rumored that they have a vast archive of books and artifacts that they use for their magic and to invent new things.
First Contact -
The Aeropelago is a collection of floating islands located west of New Eden City. The islands and associated town have been torn out of the ground by some means and levitated, perhaps with Technica Arcanum. However the Praxis Arcanum is, at least at this point, denying any involvement with the creation of the islands. A motive for this event is unknown, although it is obvious that the town is now fully protected from the monsters inhabiting the region. The islands are thought to have been levitated in late Y2S3. RockyRoads is currently the town mayor. The prevailing law, as stated on a sign at the docks, is no smugglers or pirates allowed.
"And what about the islands? What are we going to do about them?" Castor asked.
"What do you you mean? You were in the same meeting I was. He said to do the same thing we always do. Send a LEIGH&CO embassy. And then if anyone messes with it, call FORCE with their velcro and space-ships and instruct them to dramatically over-react" Amy replied.
"You've seen the overheads, right? Even the biggest island. I mean I am sure he also said humble, and we do humble in my office, but the island is pretty small. And he wants a full embassy right. Not a consulate or just a mission office"
"Yes. A full embassy. He says the Aeropelago is going to take take off and fly. He wants to get in on the ground floor."
"He was joking right. That was a pun."
"Have you ever known him to joke? Even once?"
"Okay. So how are we supposed to get a humble full-services embassy onto an island that is barely bigger than my yard in Broadmoore?"
"They have been working on those rapid diplomatic modules down at Applied right? The ones we're supposed to deploy the next time the pirates burn down some backwater village, because, evidently, they don't have lawyers like civilized people".
"Yeah sure. But even one of the modules, I mean yeah they are full service, but I don't see them fitting in the town".
"It doesn't have to fit".
"What?"
Amy sighed. "How long can one of the rapid jump lifters stationkeep? A long time right. Miguel was bragging about them at the bar a couple of weeks ago."
"Without refuelling? A few million years. Give or take ten thousand."
"And they are stable right, like people don't get seasick on them"
"They don't move at all. Like physically. They are a fixed point. The planet and the universe in general precessing out from under them is a bigger problem, but they compensate for it".
"So just send a lifter. Forever."
"And what? Just dock it and roll out a purple welcome mat?"
Amy smiled. "There he is".