Polycarpa (series)/The Darkling Plain

The Darkling Plain (also known as "Book Eight: Urbivore") is the eighth book of Polycarpa, and the adaptation of the first novel of the titular steampunk/fantasy trilogy by L1quid. 
The book's alternate name is gained from Urbivore, a conceptual short story written by Philip Reeve before he started writing the Mortal Engines quartet.L1quid's notes and outlines for the Wings of Fire adaptation of The Darkling Plain
It is in the perspective of an unknown protagonist.
It succeeds Dark Wings and proceeds Book Nine.
==Map==
==Guides==
===A Guide to Pern===
<tabber>
|-|=
Click on each tab to view the Guide to Pern.
|-|DarkWings=
Description: wingless, shadow-like bodies; four legs; no wings; pupiless white eyes
Species Adaptations: can manipulate shadows (umbrakinesis) and a dragon’s reality (ontokinesis) through the Darkness
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Archmonarch Nyx
Territory: somewhere in Polycarpa, we don't know (pre-Shattering)
|-|Dragons=
Dragons are the native lifeforms of Pern. They were created when the human settlers genetically modified the original native lifeforms to be larger, stronger, and sentient for military purposes. However, this backfired, when the dragons thought for themselves and overthrew their creators in an event known as "the Scorching".
They are divided into eleven species - BeetleWings, HiveWings, IceWings, LeafWings, MudWings, NightWings, RainWings, SandWings, SeaWings, SilkWings, and SkyWings.
There are also dragons connected to the seven Primal Sources, the seven natural entities of the world - the Sun, the Moon, the Stars, the Earth, the Sky, the Ocean, and the Darkness. The origin of these types has been hotly debated over the centuries.
|-|HiveWings=
Description: scales in shades of yellow, orange, and red; four dragonfly-like wings; patches of black scales here and there on bodies
Species Adaptations: although many do not have any, some have differing "abilities" based on genes and environment, including shooting venom from teeth, stingers in wrists, shooting acid from tail stinger, and poisonous teeth
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Monarch Blister
Territory: the central plains and savanna of Pantala (pre-Shattering)
|-|Humans=
Description: skin in all shades of white, brown, and black; bipedal (walk on two legs); two arms, hands, and feet; sexual dimorphism (males are taller than females); wear different forms of clothing, with material from surrounding environments
Species Adaptations: can create tools from surrounding environments
Homeworld: planet Earth (origin), all across the universe (after spaceflight technology development)
|-|IceWings=
Description: scales in shades of white, grey, and blue; forked blue tongues; serrated claws to grip the ice and other surfaces
Species Adaptations: can breathe smoke-like ice from their mouths ("frostbreath" or "freezing death-breath"); can resist all forms of cold and shades of light; very sharp eyesight
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Monarch Arctic
Territory: the northwestern arctic of Pyrrhia, north of the continent's western desert (pre-Shattering)
|-|LeafWings=
Description: scales in shades of green and brown (accenting colors can be any known color); two leaf-shaped wings
Species Adaptations: can gain energy from sunlight, knowledge of plants, some individuals have "leafspeak" (a form of chlorokinesis (plant manipulation))
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Monarch Odollam
Territory: the northwestern mountains and the northeastern jungles of Pantala (pre-Shattering)
|-|MoonWings=
Description: black scales; crescent-shaped white spikes and horns; twin tails; translucent wing membranes
Species Adaptations: have some form of telepathy which can be used to read minds, and telepathically communicate with non-MoonWings; can create illusions of any type and can manipulate moonlight (lunar photokinesis) through the Moon
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Archmonarch Ilargi
Territory: somewhere on Polycarpa, we don't know (pre-Shattering)
|-|MudWings=
Description: scales in shades of brown, with orange and gold scales seen occasionally; thick, armored scales; nostrils on top of snout like crocodiles and alligators; muscular and beefy stature
Species Adaptations: can hold breath for one hour (sixty minutes), can breathe fire if body is warm enough, can camouflage into the earth and the waters of swamps/marshes, exceptional strength, resistance to heat and fire if hatched from a blood-red egg
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Monarch Copperhead
Territory: the eastern swamps and marshes of Pyrrhia, sandwiched between the continent's central mountains and the eastern sea (pre-Shattering)
|-|NightWings=
Description: scales in shades of black or darker shades of other colors; silver scales scattered on undersides of wings, resembling a sky full of stars
Species Adaptations: can breathe fire, can blend into shadows and dark areas, can foresee the future or read minds if hatched under any of the three moons
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Monarch Seeker
Territory: the southern jungles and rainforests of Pyrrhia, south of the continent’s central mountains and southwest of the continent’s swamps and marshes (pre-Shattering)
|-|OceanWings=
Description: scales in shades of blue and green; gills on neck; webbed claws and spine; bioluminescent stripes on their bodies; five joints on their wings
Species Adaptations: can breathe underwater; can see in the dark; can resist all forms of underwater pressure; can resist varying temperatures; exceptional swimming; can manipulate water (hydrokinesis), ice (cryokinesis), coral (anthozoan manipulation), and other elements of the sea through the Ocean
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Archmonarch Deep
Territory: the waters of Polycarpa (pre-Shattering)
|-|RainWings=
Description: scales in all known shades and tints of colors in the universe; ruff behind ears; fangs in mouth; prehensile tails
Species Adaptations: can camouflage by changing the coloration of their scales with the chromatophores in their scales, can shoot an acid that degrades all organic matter from fangs
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Monarch Anaconda
Territory: the southern jungles and rainforests of Pyrrhia, south of the continent’s central mountains and southwest of the continent’s swamps and marshes (pre-Shattering)
|-|SandWings=
Description: scales in shades of yellow and light brown; scorpion-barbed tail; forked black tongues; rippling dune-appearing spine
Species Adaptations: can breathe fire, can camouflage into desert sand, heat-radiating scales, can go a long time without food and/or water, highly tuned sense of smell and hearing
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, an unknown monarch
Territory: the western desert of Pyrrhia, sandwiched between the continent's northwestern arctic and the southwestern peninsula (pre-Shattering)
|-|SeaWings=
Description: scales in shades of blue, green, and purple; gills on neck; webs between claws; bioluminescent stripes all over body
Species Adaptations: can breathe underwater in all bodies of water, well-tuned nocturnal vision, can use tails to create large waves or to kill enemies, exceptional swimming skills
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Monarch Brine
Territory: the eastern ocean and island chain of Pyrrhia, although some dragons prefer Pern’s global ocean instead (pre-Shattering)
|-|SilkWings=
Description: scales in all colors of the universe; four butterfly-like wings with appear at age six during a process known as "Metamorphosis"; antennae on head
Species Adaptations: can shoot silk from wrists after "Metamorphosis", can detect threats within surroundings with antennae, some individuals can shoot a form of flaming silk known as "flamesilk"
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Monarch Cinnabar
Territory: the central plains and savanna of Pantala (pre-Shattering)
|-|SkyWings=
Description: scales in shades of orange and red; enormous wings
Species Adaptations: can breathe fire, can fly faster than an average dragon, high endurance and stamina, can resist all forms of cold
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Monarch Rubicund
Territory: the central mountains of Pyrrhia, sandwiched between the continent’s western deserts and the eastern swamps and marshes (pre-Shattering)
|-|SphereWings=
Description: scales in shades of black or darker shades of other colors; resemble a cross between a NightWing and a SandWing; have a sphere at the end of their tails
Species Adaptations: can create portals and can foresee the future through the Stars
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Archmonarch Theia
Territory: Pern's heavens (we think)
|-|StormWings=
Description: grey or black scales, reminiscent of storms; long, narrow wings; five joints on their wings
Species Adaptations: exceptional flight; can channel lightning through bodies; can manipulate rain (ombrokinesis), lightning (electrokinesis), clouds (nubikinesi), ice (cryokinesis) and wind (aerokinesis) through the Sky
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Archmonarch Tempest
Territory: the Skyridge Mountains of Polycarpa (pre-Shattering)
|-|SunWings=
Description: golden scales; spikes protruding from head like sunrays or a crown of thorns
Species Adaptations: can manipulate heat (thermokinesis), light (photokinesis), and fire (pyrokinesis) through the Sun
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Archmonarch Corona
Territory: the Burning Desert of Polycarpa (pre-Shattering)
|-|TreeWings=
Description: scales in shades of green; two curved brown horns on head; large leaf-shaped wings; five joints on each wing
Species Adaptations: can camouflage in forests or forested areas; can manipulate flora (cholokinesis), fauna (faunakinesis), rocks and stones (geokinesis), minerals (crystallokinesis), and metal (ferrokinesis) through the Earth
Leader: at the time of the Shattering, Archmonarch Forest
Territory: the Great Forest of Polycarpa (pre-Shattering)
</tabber>
----
===A Guide to the Traction Era===
<tabber>
|-|=
Click on each tab to view the cities of Pern's traction era.
|-|Caelestis=
Description: dedicated to the Sky Primal
Leader: none
Points of Interest: Sky Parks
|-|Calypso=
Description: a two-tiered city was covered in waterworks and beautiful, braided horn-like structures; large like a gigantic, metallic reef; dedicated to the Ocean Primal
Leader: Lord Adamson
Points of Interest: Calypso Marketplace
|-|Cimmerian=
Description: dedicated to the Dark Primal
Leader: Lord Fekete
Points of Interest: Cimmerian Museum
|-|Corona=
Description: made of golden metal; resembles a giant dragon with multiple sunray-like horns; dedicated to the Sun Primal
Leader: Lord Rousseau
Points of Interest: The Crown
|-|Floris=
Description: enormous metallic, eight-tiered mountain covered in plants; dedicated to the Earth Primal
Leader: Lord Holt
Points of Interest: Floris Museum
|-|Luna=
Description: enormous, seven-tiered metallic mountain; crescent-shaped buildings; dedicated to the Moon Primal
Leader: Lord Zilberstein
Points of Interest: Luna Museum
|-|Planetae=
Description: dedicated to the Star Primal
Leader: Lord Hewitt
Points of Interest: Hall of Knowledge
|-|Zenith=
Description: a mishmash of various cultures across Pern; a gigantic, seven-tiered mountain
Leader: Lord Altamura
Points of Interest: Zenith Library, Zenith Museum
</tabber>
==Epigraph==
“Ah, love, let us be true
To one another! for the world, which seems
To lie before us like a land of dreams,
So various, so beautiful, so new,
Hath really neither joy, nor love, nor light,
Nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain;
And we are here as on a darkling plain
Swept with confused alarms of struggle and flight,
Where ignorant armies clash by night.”
- Matthew Arnold, Dover BeachDover Beach (Matthew Arnold) - The Poetry Foundation
==Part One==
===Chapter 1: The Dawn Chorus===
Lying on a bed in an airship, especially when it had been flying for five days straight through a storm, was a luxury.
Especially if there were eight other people in it.
Right now, the Dawn Chorus’ gondola was quiet, most of its inhabitants sleeping on the wooden floor.
Tom, on the other hand, had found a book from the airship’s miniature library.
He had been eying it for some time, as his mother refused to let him read because of “filthy content”.
But now that he was reading it, he could see that there was nothing to fear about reading the adventures of teenagers who lived in their world.
Except it wasn’t their world.
The Traction Saga had been written long before the real Traction Era began.
It was set in a world similar to Pern and was used to satirize the times before the Shattering.
That it predicted, without even trying.
Mortal Engines (elementally known as “Book One: Earth”) was the first installment in the quartet. Tom had used his breaks from either serving the others or being at the Dawn Chorus’ controls to read it.
It was actually a fun read – with some gruesome moments here and there. (Especially that protagonist with a face-splitting scar.)
He was just getting to what he hoped to be the novel’s climax, when a hand touched his shoulder.
Tom’s gaze quickly diverted to see who it was.
It was Pandora Carter, the woman chosen to represent Zenith’s second Tier; she was also the wife of the Bulletproof… I Wish I Was’s pilot.
She noted what was in his hands.
“A book?”
He nodded, and showed her the cover.
Her grey eyes briefly went wide before returning to calmness.
“Oh”, she said. “I’ll leave you to it.” She hastily turned away, and Tom heard complaints coming from his half-asleep comrades.
He sighed, and continued on.
Steering the ship eastward, terror didn’t seep into Tom.Driving this cobbled machine gave him a sense of power. The power to do anything.Moonlight trickled through the clouds above the mountains, shimmering on the Jenny’s front windows.He turned, turned, turned until he managed to match the position of Zenith as it rolled on.Below, trees that had peacefully stood for centuries were ground under the predator city’s wheels. Their new form were wood chips and splinters.And I was a part of this, he thought. A dying system.
Huh? Tom raised an eyebrow at the fictional character’s thought. “A dying system?” Tractionism is a dying system?
Tractionism was not a dying system. In fact, it was a mechanical version of natural selection – the process by which nature exterminated genes that led to a species downfall, and preserved those that she deemed “useful”.
Except that in this world, what made up your city – from its people, to its infrastructure – determined its survival.
There’s absolutely no way that tractionism is a dying system. There isn’t!
He continued.
Tom steered the Jenny around Zenith, one, twice, a third.He checked the abovehead clock.Several minutes had passed since Hester jumped off the ship to finish what she started.As he began another loop, something slammed into the gondola.
Oh?
It was brilliant, sparkling, and lethal. Tom was knocked off of his chair, and he instinctively grabbed a nearby support to keep himself alive.Papers, cables, books, and priceless artifacts flew out of the newly formed, falling to the far-below ground.
It’s the defense system, Tom thought. Only that would be able to cripple an airship like that.
Unless…
An awful thought came to him.
Another airship is engaging him.
The forward windows shattered into tiny diamonds. There was a faint burning smell from the side.
He’s screwed.
Tom craned his neck, hoping see what had besieged him.At first, he saw nothing. Only that Zenith was getting farther from him. Then he saw a giant armored envelope and its similarly small armored gondola slide through the sky. Two men were at its controls, making it perform a lazy victory roll around the partially destroyed airship before turning around to face its prey.It was the 13th Floor Elevator.
Yep, he’s screwed.
----Enclave was the apex of predator cities. Its small size might make you think otherwise, until it devoured you.
This was what Tom learned about predator cities all those years ago in the public school system.
And now, he, alongside several other people representing Zenith’s Trades and Tiers were bound for it.
The Dawn Chorus and the Bulletproof found the city gnawing at several small insignificant traction towns. Even Zenith’s Navigators, who controlled the city from Lord Altamura’s palace, couldn’t locate them on the ruined plains of Archai. They approached the city on the starboard side, hailing them.
“This the Dawn Chorus of Zenith”, Brand, the current pilot, said into the nearby radio station.
“And this is the Bulletproof… I Wish Was of Zenith”, crackled the voice of Thaddeus Blackwood from the same frequency. “We are requesting landing. Our representatives have arrived.”
A static slam!, and there was silence.
One heartbeat.
Two heartbeats.
Another.
And another.
From the forward windows, Tom watched the city’s harpoon-like Jaws fired at the last traction town, and dragged it backwards towards its Gut.
He swallowed.
Working in Zenith’s Gut was one thing; but Enclave’s boggled his mind. He didn’t want to think about it.
A sharp, electric, staticky crack! came from the radio, and a gravelly voice spoke.
“Dawn Chorus and Bulletproof, you are cleared to land at the air harbor at Tier Two. The open dome should be your clue on where it is. Welcome to Enclave.”
As soon as the voice flicked off their speaker, Brand turned one of the side dials of the radio, and checked into the frequency that allowed only Zenith ships to communicate with each other.
“Thaddeus, can you lead? You’re more experienced than me. This is Brand, your son’s aide.”
There was static crackle before Thaddeus spoke.
“Brand? You’re steering the Dawn Chorus? I thought that my son would be driving that thing.”
“Unfortunely”, Brand griped, “it was my turn to fly the beast.”
Behind him, Alexander Blackwood let out a tsk.
Aides weren’t allowed to badmouth their bosses in front of everyone, including their parents.
An exasperated sigh came from the radio.
“You shouldn’t put a lot on your people”, Thaddeus muttered under his breath as Tom saw the metallic envelope of the Bulletproof veer in front of the Dawn Chorus.
“Alright”, the old man agreed over the static. “Follow me.”
The Bulletproof started lowering itself to Zenith’s Tiers, almost as if it wanted to do a suicidal nosedive.
Brand watched from the pilot’s seat, as Tom could feel the others gather around the cockpit.
There it was again, that sweaty undertone reeking throughout the cabin the last week.
When the Bulletproof leveled itself with Tier Two, a crack! came over the radio.
“You can come down now”, Thaddeus said. “Just calm yourself.”
“Okay”, Brand muttered to himself and pushed the Dawn Chorus’ navigational levers forward.
The ship went down, down, down.
The ruined earth was getting closer and closer.
When the airship was at level with Tier Three, Brand yanked the levers up and the Dawn Chorus jerked upwards.
Tom looked out, and saw that the airship was several feet away from the Bulletproof and nearly crashed into the city.
It was only the instinct to stay alive that had saved them all.
“Not bad but not good”, Thaddeus mused over the radio.
Below them, a giant bowl of a building waited for them. Men scrambled about, gathering to tools to properly anchor the airships.
“The next step”, Thaddeus voiced crackled again, “is to slowly descend. And then, you’re arrived on a traction city.”
The radio shut off, and Tom could feel Brand perspire through his washed out clothing.
He was so close, yet so far.
On his right, Tom saw the Bulletproof effortlessly lower and glide onto the docking pan below.
It looked so effortless to do.
To an experienced aviator, of course.
“Easy, my boy”, Blackwood purred behind Brand. “Just take it easy. Let the airship do the work.”
Brand took a deep breath, and the Dawn Chorus began to lower into the bowel.
The men’s faces were getting clearer and clearer.
These men Tom did not know of. These were strangers.
Their faces were pasty and covered in soot and burn scars. Their clothing was the same as well.
In Zenith, Tom wore a heavy black uniform while working in the Gut. Heavy leather gloves covered his hands, and used goggles protected his eyes from any sparks and fumes that belched out at any given moment.
From the far wall of the bowl, a group of people entered. Tom recognized their attire as the multicolored uniforms of the Trades.
The many Trades of Pern were associated with one or more Primal Sources – the seven enormous entities that made up the world. Like most life on the planet, they went extinct during the Shattering.
Because of that, it was their obligation to preserve their teachings.
Death’s Trade was composed of assassins, bounty hunters, and mercenaries. They were associated with the Darkness, so they wore black.
Healers associated with the Earth; brown, green, and grey were their colors.
Because Navigators were associated with the Sky, they were clad in anything in shades and/or tints of blue and grey.
There were the Scholars, the Riders, and the Laborers, who were associated with many Primal Sources.
And then there were the Leaders, associated with the Stars.
Tom could make out, based on the coloration, who Enclave’s Lord was.
Their robes were a dark purple; tiny, silver diamonds flecking its arms and back.
The Dawn Chorus kept descending until a metallic thud shook underneath the gondola, jumpscaring everyone.
Another small tsk came from Blackwood, who seemed unfazed.
Tom noticed the look on Brand’s face – the look of someone who had accomplished something big.
He put a hand on his shoulder. “Good job.”
Brand turned. “I did?”
Tom nodded. “At least you didn’t kill us.”
“Enough complementing my aide”, Blackwood snipped, as he reached for the overhead controls that opened the gondola’s side.
Click.
The right side of the Dawn Chorus opened with a heavy, effortless, sliding thunk.
The old smell of bacteria left the airship and was replaced with a worser smell. The smell of the air harbor’s workers.
Gradually, once accustomed to the smell, Zenith’s Tier representatives exited the airship with their belongings. Blackwood, Brand, and Tom were the last to leave.
Standing alongside the others, Tom didn’t feel like he was special or meant to for this at all.
They all looked so posh and clean.
Tom was dirty; he had been scrubbed before boarding the Dawn Chorus.
His comrades – Ronan, Lance, and Atala – underwent the same fate as well.
You didn’t want your lower Tier representatives to look ugly when presenting them to the other cities.
Tom took his place beside Pandora and Veronica, the Tier Four representative, as Enclave’s representatives approached them.
Although they were the smallest of the predator cities, Enclave was powerful.
They stopped in front of the Zenites. Their leader, an old, Star-robed man, stepped forward and bowed in front of Zenith’s leader.
“Lord Altamura, Zenites. Welcome to Enclave.”
==Changes from Original Novel==
*The original novel (and series') guide at the beginning of each novel are the main traction cities of (planet) Archai. Its seven Primal Sources were revealed throughout the novel (and series), similar to "drip-feeding storytelling".L1quid's notes and outlines for The Darkling Plain In the adaptation, the guide is about the series' species.
*The Archdragons seen in the original series are made "Archmonarchs" (archdragons who are monarchs of their respective species) as compensation for the canon Wings of Fire lore.
*The dragons being the DarkWings are the original series' Shadow Drakes, a type of wingless, shadow-like that's considered an unkillable dragon. The SunWings are Sungold Dragons, a type considered to be "Archdragons" because of their vast power and rareness.
*In the original series, many books are actually the in-world equivalent of real-world series. In the adaptation, the books are real-world novels.
**The Traction Saga is the original series' in-world version of real-world steampunk dystopian series Mortal Engines. (This idea was actually L1quid piggybacking off of the idea of Skies of Fire, the Alien Dragons in-world equivalent of Wings of Fire.)
==Trivia==
*The novel's title came about because many of L1quid's favorite series or novels either have their titles derived from poems or have poetry woven into their plots.
**L1quid specifically scoured Victorian poetry for the title, as steampunk largely focuses on the technology and society of Victorian England. They were keen on using some lines from the James Thomson poem The City of Dreadful Night because it perfectly fits the novel's "vibe", but kept coming back to Matthew Arnold's Dover Beach.
----
*Many of the airship's designs were inspired by the design of the airships seen in Peter Jackson's Mortal Engines. (L1quid has a love-hate relationship with traditional airships seen in the steampunk subgenre.)
**The design of the Dawn Chorus was inspired by the film's design of the Jenny Haniver. Its name comes from Dawn Chorus, the fourth track on the Thom Yorke album Anima; its coloration comes from the coloration of the album cover of Thom Yorke's Anima.
**The design of the Bulletproof... I Wish I Was was inspired by the film's design of the 13th Floor Elevator. It was named after Bulletproof... I Wish I Was, the ninth track of Radiohead's The Bends.
==Notes==
On May 13th, 2024, L1quid started writing the rough version of The Darkling Plain (the outline has been completed and finalized). Although not final, part of its Wings of Fire adaptation will be placed on the wiki to get something on the page.
----On June 4th, 2024, L1quid has started the semifinal version of The Darkling Plain. They went back to the drawing board to nail down the plot, using various films, TV, books, and their old novels, series, and fanfictions for ideas. As of June 11th, 2024, they have changed many of the original story's concepts, while keeping its original plot points intact.
==References==
==External Links==
*The Darkling Plain (book 1) - Wattpad
*Book Eight: Urbivore (Archai) - The Dragon Prince fanon wiki
*Named Polycarpa characters, unnamed Polycarpa characters - Wings of Fire fanon wiki
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