Cynosure

The Harbour District

All things considered, the Harbour of Cynosure is a rather mundane place befitting a large port city. Most businesses, embassies, and merchants operate from here. It is a transitory area that easily accommodates both the land-dwellers and the aquatic species, and it stretches along the entire coastline.

• Anthelion Avenue & the Sunway

Starting in the northern section of the Harbour, the Avenue is the largest and most important artery of Cynosure, stretching along its entire length. Going south, it passes through the district, then crosses one of the two rivers of the city, via the Sunway, a tall, ornately decorated bridge. On the other bank, intersecting Prominence Promenade, it continues uphill towards the Tower of Glass, then turns east, and finally goes back north, ending on the other side of the bay. 

- The Avenue is a wide, two-way boulevard, flanked by manicured treelines and lush gardens; and bisected by a deep channel intended for the aquatic denizens. Small bridges cross it periodically, allowing the land dwellers to walk to the other side.

• 'Chase the Dragon'

During Unknown, Ariana and Reiko visited a colourful magic shop called "Chase the Dragon", run by Vodda. It is somewhere on the terrestrial outskirts of the Harbour, where it transitions into another, yet unknown district. Further information is on Vodda's page. 

• 'As Above, So Below' 

To facilitate trade, communication, etc between the land dwellers and the sea inhabitants, the borders between the Drowned Quarter and the rest of Cynosure feature specialty vendors, riding on top of large, floating fish, used as beasts of burden to carry piles of cargo and merchandise. These mobile shops are a family-owned business chain, called "As Above, So Below" (in Sylvan).

- There, customers can purchase magical and alchemical equipment that allows them to breathe underwater, or stay hydrated on dry land. Most of these shops are in the Harbour, but they are a common sight everywhere in Cynosure.

- One of these merchants, called Midori, was encountered during Unknown; later, she was reunited with Mizu, her long-lost brother. Further information is on her page. 

• St. Nivenn's Chapel

A chapel dedicated to the previous Crossroads Guardian, a city hero who served Cynosure before Praetor Nymanne. It is surrounded by a large plaza. Here is the southern endpoint of Prominence Promenade. 

The Drowned Quarter

An entire quarter is below the waves of the bay surrounded by the Harbour, fully or partially submerged, and it houses aquatic and amphibious citizens. Some roofs and spires extend above the surface, suggesting (alongside its name) that this part of town wasn't always underwater.

- There are gangs of sea-urchin street urchins, the homeless young of Avareks. Further information is on Kǂalvis' page (see below).

• 'The Watering Hole' 

- Closer to the shore, there is a busy underwater tavern called 'the Watering Hole'. Outside of it, Jirel encountered Indir, a (literally) heartbroken violinist. He got better. Further information is on his page. 

• A Shipwrecked Neighbourhood

One neighbourhood of the Drowned Quarter was partially abandoned, and what does remain is now almost a shanty town.

- A ship sunk here, landing on top of the main plaza of this section and the surrounding buildings, and until recently, it was haunted by its crew. JIrel and Indir silenced the Spirits, but not before she grabbed a peculiar glass case from the untouched cabin of the Captain... 

- Now that this area is safe, there are plans to restore it. 

• 'Chained Reaction' 

On the outer edges of the Quarter, where the sea floor abruptly plunges into the depths, there is "Chained Reaction", a hydrothermal forge operated by Runesmith Kǂalvis. Lava flows and bioluminescent life barely illuminate the surroundings. Further information is on his page. 

La Plage

To the north of the Halo, further by the sea, that lavish domain of nobility and gentry abruptly transitions into the Harbour District. However, to the northwest, that transition is instead gradual, and this section of the city is called La Plage – a relatively humbler, residential quarter of the middle-class. The lowest reaches of this hillside area contain many transient tide pools of various sizes, which stretch along the coastline. A number of them were transformed into the more permanent features, such as water-gardens, ornamental ponds, and natural swimming pools.

• Wunda-Dra'aspir Residence 

Closer to the Halo and thus the top of the hill, and yet tragically still not within that quarter, there is a small manor, the current residence of the Wunda-Dra'aspir family, disgraced and financially struggling Draxie Sprites. Tarantassia and her mother Ruenvida Wunda-Dra'aspir live here. 

The Halo

Once Anthelion Avenue crosses over the Sunway, intersects Prominence Promenade, and starts going uphill towards the city centre, one enters the Halo – the affluent heart of Cynosure, two concentric rings of lavish buildings and streets which surround the Tower of Glass. The light of Creation's Forge (see below) is the brightest here, and most potent. 

- Here, the nobility of the Fey reside, attend their soirées and balls, or otherwise luxuriate. Not much of it was seen, since it was visited in passing. Two Draxie members of high society, Tarantassia Wunda-Dra'aspir and her mother Ruenvida Wunda-Dra'aspir, live here, as encountered by Ariana Yaxiri.

• Prominence Promenade 

This street is much shorter than the Avenue, but equally lavish, if not more so. One of its endpoints is next to St. Nivenn's Chapel in the Harbour, where that quarter directly borders the Halo without La Plage between them. The other is somewhere southwest of the Sunway.

• 'The Silken Salon' 

Where the Harbour meets the richer, upper districts of Cynosure, on the intersection of Anthelion Avenue and Prominence Promenade, there is 'the Silken Salon', a fashion atelier run by Mademoiselle Macqueline, favoured by the high society of the Fey, including Lady Sjel. It was visited by Hecret. Further information is on Macqueline's page. 

• Former Wunda-Dra'aspir Residence 

On the northern edges of the Halo, where it is yet to become La Plage – even if its dazzling glamour grows tarnished – there is a collection of domes and spires nestled around and above a murmuring brook. This is the former manor of Tarantassia and Ruenvida Wunda-Dra'aspir, who were forced to sell it due to financial issues. The elegant architecture looks Elven, and the cluster is surrounded by a lush garden, confined by other adjacent buildings but sufficiently large to somewhat separate the manor from its immediate neighbours. Overall, there are bigger, more impressive residences, but when one takes into consideration that Draxies are much smaller than most other creatures, suddenly this place becomes a regal palace in comparison.

The Tower of Glass

An impressively towering structure resembling a lighthouse pierces the heavens above Cynosure, offering itself as the most visible landmark of the area, and dominating the skyline of the city. 

- At its base, it is rather mundane, especially considering the standards of the Fey.

- The higher floors, however, are warped into almost-alien shapes made of coloured glass and impossible crystals. Not that most of this can be easily seen – the very tip of the Tower of Glass is a pinpoint of luminous light, like a false sun which conceals finer details with its blinding brilliance. This is a small portal to Creation's Forge, and it is constantly bombarding Cynosure with raw vitality. For visitors who are unused to such climate, this can be a sickening experience. 

• The Base of the Tower

This is a brilliant structure, hewn partially out of Luminous Warpglass that Jirel saw in 'Chained Reaction', and features a grand array of colourful sea-glass windows, similarly vibrant mosaics, and decorative turrets. Calming sounds of splashes and ripples filter out of the palace, and some fountains and waterfalls can be spotted around it.

• The Grand Foyer

The first room inside is the Grand Foyer, where receptions take place. The floors are flooded by a foot of crystal-clear water, and guests are encouraged to walk barefoot. Dellingr and Nymanne were encountered here during Unknown, but this is not their usual residence or station. 

The Foyer continues deeper into the Tower, and its entrance hallway opens into a circular chamber with two sets of stairs leading to the next floors.

Taking the exterior dimensions and proportions of the Tower into consideration, those with good spacial awareness know that this is the centre of the structure. A crystal chandelier hangs from the tall ceiling, though it holds no light of its own, but reflects the radiance coming from above, intensifying it. In fact, that very same ceiling is made of crystal too, allowing Creation's Forge to shine through the hollow tube that runs along the cental, vertical axis of the entire Tower.

- The air is full of refreshing mist, and some of it often coalesces into larger bubbles of water, suspended mid-air, sometimes in clusters. This humid mixture is breathable by both the aquatic and the land-dwelling creatures. Another minor detail is the presence of jellyfish-like critters made of gelatinous bubbles. They can typically be seen in small schools, floating through the air lazily.

- Seashells are floating here and there, producing gentle melodies. 

- Courtiers can usually be found in this circular portion of the Foyer, mingling and socialising. 

• The Spiral Staircase

Ascending to the next level, visitors quickly reach the exterior walls of the Tower. A grand staircase spirals along this outer perimetre, interspersed by long landings, one for every floor.

- One cannot help but notice a gallery of artwork decorating these spaces. It is masterfully crafted, and seems to have been fashioned from various materials that could wash up on beaches – interestingly shaped driftwood, coral, seashells, even discarded fishing nets, flotsam, and other debris, now given a new life and purpose.

- Where the flights of stairs and their landings meet the walls, there are grooves for water to flow down. The outer walls themselves feature stained glass windows, which provide visitors with a breathtaking aerial view of Cynosure. Behind the inner walls, there are instead other chambers of the Tower, which in turn surround the hollow axis.

• The Greenhouse

The Tower is slowly growing narrower as visitors approach the middle section, and rest on the final landing of the spiral staircase. There are no other chambers here, beside the hollow tube itself – the only way forward. However, unlike before, it is far from being hollow this time, and takes the form of a verdant greenhouse, the domain and personal haven of Niloufer.

- Its pathways are transparent, letting visitors see down the central axis all the way to the distant ground level. Above, there is a glass dome, and all around, there is lush greenery, the likes of which is hard to find anywhere else. An occasional waterfall is splashing down from the ceiling – this is the source of all the rivulets that flow to the lower levels.

• The Throne Room

Reaching the greenhouse's side opposite of the entrance, visitors find two more semi-circular staircases, flanking this exit and both leading up, to the Throne Room. Here, the Tower is transitioning into its upper, crystalline half. Thus, the ambiance consists of a mixture of mundane stone, Luminous Warpglass, and the alien crystals that stretch all the way to Creation's Forge above.

The marbled floors are polished to a shine, and covered by a thin layer of water. Two colonnades of tall pillars – carved to resemble waves about to crash upon the beach – support vaulted ceilings, with gilded edges and a twinkling and shifting night-sky pattern.

- The ever-present mist and the floating clusters of droplets are the thickest here, making it seem as if visitors are underwater, even more so than the floors below. This moist, gently perfumed air is fresh and invigourating, and it carries voice and music very well.

- On the far end of the hall, there is the Driftwood Throne, the seat of Lady Sjel. It mostly consists of an impressive tangle of washed-up lumber, untouched by any crafter save for nature itself – the greatest artisan of them all. The rest of it is intricately carved into ornate, geometric, interlaced shapes.

During Unknown, there was a section nestled between two of the grand pillars, put together recently and temporarily. It looked like a cosy, slightly elevated nook meant for sleeping and study. Apart from the veritable mess of random items and paperwork, strewn about the bare floors, carpets, and pillows, the main point of interest was a comfortable bed, lavishly decorated by hanging pearls and rich fabrics, and fit inside a ginormous, open seashell. This is where Sjel was conducting her manic research into the recent crimes that plagued the city. She has an actual, proper study and private bedchambers elsewhere in the Tower. 

• The Crystal Archives 

Despite the air of grandeur and finality that the Throne Room possesses, it is not at the top of the Tower. There are other floors even higher, in the crystalline portion of the structure, and this is the domain of Velapuri the Vitreous, the guardian of the shining portal, and the Court's archivist. Exiting the grand chamber through a passage flanked by two of the pillars that support the vaulted ceiling, visitors can ascend using a new staircase, carved into the alien glass in a manner that seems both haphazard and meticulously planned.

Further up, there is a veritable maze of passages and rooms, which are subtly shifting their layouts. In such proximity to the portal, reality is somewhat warped, since the relatively mundane rules of the Material Plane are mixing with the otherworldly traits of Creation's Forge. One of them is the occasional need to remind this place that "down" should be near one's feet. Sometimes, visitors could swear that they are supposed to be walking across the ceiling, despite their subjective perspectives failing to reflect this.

Everything around is throbbing with vitality, yet it feels utterly sterile. The only semblance of life are gardens of tree-sized flowers made of gemstones, grown upon open-air terraces that overlook Cynosure. More information about these Crystal Archives is available on Velapuri's page.

- Most of this section is forbidden even to the majority of the Court, so visitors are simply not allowed to climb further than a floor or two.

• Chamber ΣΤ΄

Chamber ΣΤ΄ is heralded by its plaque, made of pure flame. Inside, instead of even more fully crystalline halls, is an elegant library. The edges and corners of this room look like they are being digested, for the lack of a better term, by the glass beyond it, as if the entire Tower is a massive, alien amoeba, capable of absorbing architecture. If it is indeed devouring parts of this reality, then where did this part come from? Chamber ΣΤ΄ appears Elven – yet another sign of these people's former presence in Cynosure. In this library, the ciphered petals brought from the garden-archives are sometimes handled, translated, or otherwise worked with. 

Spectacle Street

The street that stretches in the north-south direction, leading from the entrance to the city that is guarded by Rooster's Rest, down to La Plage. The view from the south, after exiting the gorge that contains the aforementioned fort, is as follows:

The street itself is used as the name for the entire district around it, in which case it might get shortened to just "the Spectacle". This is the entertainment quarter of Cynosure, and features theatres, opera houses, music venues, circuses, bars, pubs, cafés, restaurants, inns, taverns, brothels, and similar establishments.

Even when taking the ever-present light of the Tower into consideration, this part of the city is positively radiant. Many of its buildings are rather tall, and cast deep shadows over the streets. To combat this, especially at night, every alley and passage is illuminated by numberless lanterns, which shine like a warm, starlit sky.

Some of the places of note include:

• "The Guest Star" 

Ducking into an inconspicuous alley, visitors discover a small plaza; in the middle of it, there is a house on wheels. It is covered in vibrant greenery that defies winter's cold. A star-shaped sign hangs above the door, and it reads "the Guest Star" – in Sylvan, naturally. The building is parked next to a stable, which presumably shelters the beasts of burden that would pull this wagon when it needs to be moved.

Stepping inside, visitors find themselves in a room which is much bigger than the exterior would suggest. It is richly decorated, once again contrasting what can be seen from the plaza. Lavish stained glass windows allow the light of the Tower inside while dimming it somewhat. Comfortable seating invites visitors to delight in its soft velvets. Despite the chill of winter, it is pleasantly warm, and just like outside, plants are flourishing as they would during summer. A bit of a dreamy haze shimmers gently in the air, as if a nebula was plucked from the night sky and suspended around the patrons.

Hedymel always has a seat reserved here, even though this exclusive venue is usually packed, and requires placing one's name on a waiting list. It is popular among the Cynorite elite. 

Some of the staff includes Unknown waiters. Inside their gourd-heads, they carry menus etched into wooden tablets, and this is also how the deliver orders to customers. 

The owner of this restaurant is the enigmatic Master Bhari. Details about the menu can be found on his page. 

• "The Snickering Wolf" 

'Refined' seems to be the norm in the Spectacle, but there is a building that stands out from the rest with its simplicity – an eating venue of some kind. Almost all of the seating is outside, in a courtyard that the structure surrounds on three sides. A sign hanging above the entrance to this patio reads "the Snickering Wolf", and indeed depicts that animal, upright and raising a keg in celebration; its lips are curled into a smile.

Even though the courtyard is rather humble, and features hardly more than a dozen places to sit, it is almost completely empty – not the most popular of venues, it seems. Here, the hustle and bustle of the Spectacle dies down a little, despite no real barriers that would dampen the sounds.

This is the favourite venue of Doriel Grisard. According to him, "the Snickering Wolf" is one of the oldest buildings and taverns around, and hasn't changed much during its long existence. It isn't particularly impressive in either appearance or its menu, but he visits it still due to unknown sentimental reasons. 

- The city is ruled over by Lady Sjel; she is bonded to the bay enclosed by the Millennium Forest's eastern Broken Beach and the peninsula where the city is located, as well as the waters that surround the nearby Garland.

- This is an ancient settlement, and it existed in some shape or form for a very long time. Occasional ruins of these cultures still exist as parts of the city. 

• This area was first settled by the Achaean civilisation. 'Chained Reaction' was originally one of their structures. 
• During the time of the Elves, Cynosure was known as XXX, their fabled Shining City. It was one of the last bastions of the living during the Unknown apocalypse. Some foul play and sabotage later, the portal to Creation's Forge was temporarily shut off, and eventually most of the city sank underwater. What remains is on the ocean's floor, or within the Drowned Quarter. 
• The Radiance-worshipping Ivory Halflings also lived here for some time, and it was one of their most important cities, for obvious reasons. Even today, Cynosure remains a pilgrimage site for the Unknown and Gnolls of the Coalition.
• A Dwarven outpost was situated within the short mountain range south of the city proper. Called Kog-heol in their native tongue, today it remains as Rooster's Rest. 

Famine and Mutiny

- The sunken vessel in the shipwrecked neighbourhood of the Drowned Quarter was coming from Meridian, on the Continent. The glass case that it was bearing is related to Kwashior, and its curse caused a mutiny, an urge for self-mutilation, and overwhelming hunger.

- The ship eventually drifted into the Harbour with only ghosts left on board, and Cynosites sunk it, seeing it as a bad omen. 

- It was meant to deliver goods ordered by Master Bhari for his restaurant in the Spectacle, "the Guest Star". 

Sea Urchin Street Urchins 

- An Avarek clan moved into the Harbour at some point in the past, aiming to harass all the vessels there. Naturally, Cynosites were not happy with this, and squashed most of the tribe.

- The survivors either dispersed, or died off, leaving the clan's children to fend for themselves. They joined the other street urchins of the Drowned Quarter.

Trivia

- In Cynosure, it is a common naming convention to use various optical, solar phenomena, as well as various terms related to the sun and the stars, to name many features. Examples include Rooster's Rest, Aphelion Avenue, Prominence Promenade, the Halo, and La Plage.