Milzis islands

The Milzis islands, known for being frozen on the equator can be found to the west of Lume. The islands are home to the **Milzi** for which the islands are named. The central island of the strip holds the oldest city belonging to the Milzi, the others are also inhabited however the central island is the most densely populated. The population density decreases north and south the further from the city it is. According to the Milzi, their god Celi wanted to have land for her creations that would fully fall under her domain of Wonder. This is also the reason for each island in the strip having a distinct terrain feature.

Milzis islands were created and frozen long before the Milzi inhabited the land during the first age of Lume. When they arrived, the land was desolate and few things lived there though according to the Milzi this was not because they were unable. Since the inhabitation of the islands more species have been introduced to the area, each island home to a slightly different ecosystem.

Each island has at least on sailing port which is named by the Milzi and one ferry port for easier travelling between the islands - these ports after often not named but exist at the closest point to the next island.

## Wildlife

The island of Speks contains the least biodiversity of the Milzis islands due to the Milzi populating most of the area. Speks however is still home to most of the animal and plant life that can be found on the other islands.

**Lokos** created by the God Celi are indiginous to the Milzis islands, and spread with the Milzi. They can be found mostly where the Milzi are however outside following the Milzi will be found more in wooded areas. This places them mainly on Speks and Dein, though they can also be found in a high number on the mountains of Meli.

Spidlings can be found on the islands as they can across the rest of Lume. They can be found most in urban or wooded areas and so Speks and Dien respectively.

Due to the frozen nature of the islands, Magonflies cannot be found here like they would in other places across the equator, though the Common Butterfly can be.

Caribou in their winter adaptation can be seen on the islands. Mainly in the Ziem forest or the mountains of Meli. Caribou are hunted for food and their pelts by the Milzi and when it comes to shedding season they collect the dropped antlers. Despite the hunting the deer are still high in numbers due to the Milzi only taking what they need.

Bouncing sheep unusually also flourish on the islands. The sheep can be found on Speks and Ziem in small farms however in the wild mainly stick to Vidi or at the base of the mountains on Meli. The sheep are not farmed for their meat, but rather to be shorn for their wool, and their milk. The sheep in the wild however are hunted for their meat.

A few different species of mice are on the islands as they are across the rest of Lume. These ones have adapted to the cold. The small cousin of the **Shifter Mouse,** sized to a few inches rather than metres can be found in the tundra areas of the islands. These are usually hunted by the **snakes** that cover Lume.

A whole host of plant-life grows wild on the islands though some species are also grown purposefully in a greater number than they are found in the wild by the Milzi. A range of medicinal and poisonous plants are grown on Speks for adventuring and defensive reasons. While typical weeds, both pests and for cooking grown everywhere on the islands - similar species grow in other places on Lume, however usually only at the far north.

## Speks

Speks is the centre island, home to the first Milzi city, **Sakum.**It is the most densely populated island of the strip, housing a third of the total population of the islands. Most of the island acts as the city Sakum, however the outer reaches of the island is sparsely populated. At the south of the island is Port Eja, and to the north Port Bakbords, Speks is the only island of the strip to have more than one sailing port. Currently neither port has a permanent community, people opting instead to live in the main part of Sakum, the outer towns or in small family groups in the outreaches of the city.

Speks, being the centre island and holding Sakum is the trade centre of the Milzis islands. Most medicine and poisons are purposefully grown here. Most people come to Sakum for major trade or to prepare for adventures and exploration. It's not needed for them to come by Sakum, but most people opt to anyway for the ease of access to certain tools. The culture is mostly one of adventure and so in the city it is easy to buy what you want rather than make it yourself. Most are aimed at the younger of the Milzi, because the older giants often opt to do it themselves, or go into the business of selling to the youths of the Milzis islands.

## Dien

Dien is the first island to the south of Speks. It is the most wooded of the islands, and have evergreen woods. There are no forests on Dien like there are on Ziem however the woods are of such a size that Dien can still be considered the most wooded. The wood covers just over half of the island and most people live in it in large permanent groups.

The groups are usually start as smaller family based systems which then grow. Most are not big enough to be classed as towns, however over the island there are several villages and more hamlets of the Milzi. Unlike Speks, there is a permanent community located at the islands port. Port Osta is located on the south-west coast of the island, the Milzi who live there are an extended family group who man the port and fish.

## Vidi

Vidi is south of both Speks and Dien. Vidi is the island most covered by flat land and tundra. There is grassland, though it is rare due to the temperature of the area and that there is little cover from the elements. Because there is little protection from the cold wind and rain on this island the wildlife that have made home here are more hardy than they are on other islands. The bouncing sheep here have their wool grow much thicker than they do in other places - because of this when the sheep are hunted for meat the wool that is collected make the best clothing the Milzi have to offer.

The Milzi are not normally nomadic and live in permanent groups, however Vidi does have a few wandering groups, choosing to travel the island rather than make permanent settlements on the open ground. These groups are usually the biggest traders of the islands, bringing goods from one island to the next trading as they need them rather than for profit.

The port at the south of the island is not manned, though a few small groups live near it. Port Varti is usually the port to leave from if travelling away from the Milzis islands towards the south. It is not the biggest port by any means but it eliminates the need to traverse around the other islands first.

## Ziem

Ziem is the first island to the north of Speks. Parts of the island is covered in very areas of very dense forest, where in the very centre light cannot penetrate the canopy. Due to this, some of the mice that live in the forest are totally blind, never having had enough light to develop use of their eyes - to counteract the loss of eyesight the mice developed greater hearing, enough to make it difficult for even the snaked to hunt them. While dense enough to be classed as a forest by the Milzi, the Ziem forests don't cover much of the total area of the island, which gives Dien the title of most wooded island.

The rest of the island is made up of the usual tundra grassland, however more lakes and rivers run through. No mountains are on Ziem, though from the coast you can see the mountain ranges of Meli.

No Milzi permanently live in the centre of any forest due to the lack of light, however because it is often ventured into by the race. Most Milzi live outside of the forest, or on the edge. Some live around or even on some of the larger lakes of Ziem, though those are usually smaller non-family groups of 10-30 milzi.

Port Vins lies to the north of the island, close to the smallest of the Ziem forests.

## Meli

Meli is the furthermost north of the islands and the only one to have a mountain range. Being so far from Sakum, not many people live on the island, though many come to explore the islands, and some stay and live just to be there.

Port Luka at the north of the island is used less than Port Varti of Vidi however it is also a main port of the islands, used to travel north. Despite being more to explore north of the strip than south, Port Luka is smaller than Port Varti and so does not have as much traffic by the Milzi. This is however where most outsiders make port if travelling from the north.