Welcome to Abhidria, capital of the floating island of Aveera. Home nearly one million inhabitants, Abhidria is the largest city aloft, beating both Asheeri in Rayal and the holy city of Berdaan in Yothara. Founded over six centuries ago by Amon I of the House of Hidra, the city has become the most cultured and innovative settlement in all the lands that float over the World Sea. At the heart of the city lies the port and market district. Daily hundreds of flying vessels come in from all over the world. A quick walk down it's narrow and bustling streets will easily inundate oneself with dozens of languages and the scents of cuisines from near and far. And rising above all the side alleys, warehouses, piers and smaller jetties, are the Grand Market, with room for nearly 1,000 vendors selling their wares, and the Abhidria Central Station, which has mechanized cart trains coming and going at all hours of the day and night, connecting all parts of Aveera to the capital. Passengers disembark as valuable cargo is loaded and unloaded. Some say this place is the beating heart of the whole Kingdom.
One of the city's central avenues, the Way of Merchants, begins at the ornate front entrance of Central Station and heads gently up-hill away from the port, terminating nearly a mile and a half away, at Simms Square, named for Lyzer Simms, the heroic leader of the great Freedom Movement just under two hundred years ago, when the masses of workers and common-folk rose up and forced the House of Hidra to accept a written constitution and abide by the rule of law, and not the whim of the Gryphon Throne. Simms Square was the location of the first home of the monarchy, Amon Palace, which today is the home of the Aveeran Parliament. In the center of the square is a statue of Simms, standing in a fountain. He is standing tall and proud, with one arm raised up, holding the written scroll which contained the proposed constitution that he personally delivered to High King Horath II. Today, scissor pigeons sit on his bronze arms looking down at the crowds crossing the plaza. Food vendors stand around the edges, selling their refreshments to families headed to one of the twin museums that flank two sides of the Square. And opposite the palace sits Nameria Temple, with it's traditional seven spires reaching towards the seven gods they represent. One of the oldest buildings in the city, its white stones having turned grey with age, it is no longer the largest temple in the city, but it remains one of the most important, as it still houses the Royal Crypt. The mortal remains of near countless generations of the House of Hidra and other nobles are interred underneath the temple's sacred stones.
On the opposite side of the square from the Way of the Merchants is the Way of Kings, which heads farther inland from the coast and farther up the slope of the foothills of the Darandrian Mountains. This grand avenue, lined with statues of Kings and Heroes of the Kingdom that interspersed among the Aveeran oaks, heads all the way up to Darandria Palace, built over 250 years ago by King Thall III. Initially intended to be a country retreat from the hubbub of the city, Darandria Palace became the preferred residence after renovations made by Thall III's grandson, Vadim VIII, who transformed the country get away into a stately palace and lived there almost exclusively. The grand central building is flanked by two large wings on either side that form fore and rear courtyards, and the whole complex is surrounded by a lavish garden estate. Today, the city has now reached out and joined Darandria Park to Abhidria proper, but the noise and crowds are still less in comparison to Simms Square or the Port District. For the past 50 years, most of the palace gardens have been open to the public, and has become a popular spot to escape the bustle of the world's largest city. It also provides commanding views of the whole city, expanding out from it's ancient center into newer construction on the outskirts, homes and schools and neighborhood temples in the foothills, and new factories closer to the coast and the port, before dwindling out into hamlets and farms in the far distance. You can see the airships moving to and from the port, heading off to the horizon. sailing across an ocean of clouds that often obscure the World Sea.
Back down from the Palace and on Simms Square, two other great streets branch out: the Way of the Artisans and the Way of Scholars. Along the former, there are dozens of the Kingdom's finest artists and artisans practicing their craft. Jewelers, stonemasons, fine metal workers, wood workers, painters, sculptors and more. This boulevard terminates at the Square of the Muses, where the Royal Opera House dominates, flanked on either side by separate wings of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. Following the opposite road from Simms Square one will find print shops, book binders, book merchants, tutors, and housing for students. This street terminates at Goran Square, where the great grey buildings of Abhidria University stand as testament to Adron Goran's dream of making Abhidria not only a center of trade but also a center of scholarship. People come from lands near and far to learn from some of the finest minds ever known. Often referred to simply as THE University, it's only serious rival is the Temple School of Berdaan.
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This is the planned first in a series of locations that are part of this still developing Floating Islands world. For now these will be world-building exercises that may get expanded into real stories later on.
One of the city's central avenues, the Way of Merchants, begins at the ornate front entrance of Central Station and heads gently up-hill away from the port, terminating nearly a mile and a half away, at Simms Square, named for Lyzer Simms, the heroic leader of the great Freedom Movement just under two hundred years ago, when the masses of workers and common-folk rose up and forced the House of Hidra to accept a written constitution and abide by the rule of law, and not the whim of the Gryphon Throne. Simms Square was the location of the first home of the monarchy, Amon Palace, which today is the home of the Aveeran Parliament. In the center of the square is a statue of Simms, standing in a fountain. He is standing tall and proud, with one arm raised up, holding the written scroll which contained the proposed constitution that he personally delivered to High King Horath II. Today, scissor pigeons sit on his bronze arms looking down at the crowds crossing the plaza. Food vendors stand around the edges, selling their refreshments to families headed to one of the twin museums that flank two sides of the Square. And opposite the palace sits Nameria Temple, with it's traditional seven spires reaching towards the seven gods they represent. One of the oldest buildings in the city, its white stones having turned grey with age, it is no longer the largest temple in the city, but it remains one of the most important, as it still houses the Royal Crypt. The mortal remains of near countless generations of the House of Hidra and other nobles are interred underneath the temple's sacred stones.
On the opposite side of the square from the Way of the Merchants is the Way of Kings, which heads farther inland from the coast and farther up the slope of the foothills of the Darandrian Mountains. This grand avenue, lined with statues of Kings and Heroes of the Kingdom that interspersed among the Aveeran oaks, heads all the way up to Darandria Palace, built over 250 years ago by King Thall III. Initially intended to be a country retreat from the hubbub of the city, Darandria Palace became the preferred residence after renovations made by Thall III's grandson, Vadim VIII, who transformed the country get away into a stately palace and lived there almost exclusively. The grand central building is flanked by two large wings on either side that form fore and rear courtyards, and the whole complex is surrounded by a lavish garden estate. Today, the city has now reached out and joined Darandria Park to Abhidria proper, but the noise and crowds are still less in comparison to Simms Square or the Port District. For the past 50 years, most of the palace gardens have been open to the public, and has become a popular spot to escape the bustle of the world's largest city. It also provides commanding views of the whole city, expanding out from it's ancient center into newer construction on the outskirts, homes and schools and neighborhood temples in the foothills, and new factories closer to the coast and the port, before dwindling out into hamlets and farms in the far distance. You can see the airships moving to and from the port, heading off to the horizon. sailing across an ocean of clouds that often obscure the World Sea.
Back down from the Palace and on Simms Square, two other great streets branch out: the Way of the Artisans and the Way of Scholars. Along the former, there are dozens of the Kingdom's finest artists and artisans practicing their craft. Jewelers, stonemasons, fine metal workers, wood workers, painters, sculptors and more. This boulevard terminates at the Square of the Muses, where the Royal Opera House dominates, flanked on either side by separate wings of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. Following the opposite road from Simms Square one will find print shops, book binders, book merchants, tutors, and housing for students. This street terminates at Goran Square, where the great grey buildings of Abhidria University stand as testament to Adron Goran's dream of making Abhidria not only a center of trade but also a center of scholarship. People come from lands near and far to learn from some of the finest minds ever known. Often referred to simply as THE University, it's only serious rival is the Temple School of Berdaan.
-------------
This is the planned first in a series of locations that are part of this still developing Floating Islands world. For now these will be world-building exercises that may get expanded into real stories later on.
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