Sayrem

## The City

Sayrem is a large city, it was the seat of power for Kothari before The Shatter. The city sits on the edge of an inland sea. To the south are the remnants of the former nation of Eze.

The center of the city is walled, protecting the richest and most powerful, at the heart lies the seat of power, the King's palace. The land surrounding the city is largely agricultural. Some smaller towns fall under the rule of the city, though they are at a greater threat from the monsters that roam the region.

The city's technological level is on par with the early Industrial Age, the mid- to late 19th century, but with magic. It is situated in a Mediterranean climate; hot and dry in summers, occasional rain fall, but still temperate winters.

### Districts and Features

* Castlemount - Castle, Council buildings, a nice safe, restricted district on top of the hill at the center of the city.
* Still Harbor - the harbor of the city, main shipping port. Bustling.
* Downslope - on the back of Castlemount is a steep slope, built up as shanty towns and poor homes, cramped and precarious. Portions were built on top of. Beyond the Curtain is a theatre, located between Downslope and Crescent Hill, the sort of place nobles go to feel like they are engaging in something dangerous or risky, while barely leaving the relative safety of the nobles district*.* The weird theater is freshly painted deep-red building with black velvet curtains on the outside of the windows. The building invites to "live like the world hasn't ended". The road in front of it is so thin, everyone has to get off individually and walk the twenty feet to the door: it is like a red carpet that ensures you are seen when you enter.
* Glassfalls - Referred to as “Skull Soup”, Academic district.
* Five Irons - major industrial district with several factories, train depot, and laborers. located between the city docks of Still Harbor and the Edge Lands.
* Crescent Hill - noble houses and district. Referred to as “The Shade” by the commoners, as they are in the shade of the king, and also throw a lot of shade.
* Rosebank - merchants, middle class, more upscale markets.
* Lockhart - district with a lot of nightlife, a place to fulfill mot vices, gambling, drinking, also red light. Several artists collectives and such.
* Wallside - first district outside of the city, still agriculture, farmers, poor.

* Blinkhollow - location of the Midnight Market, a place for the more strange, magical, or illicit goods:
> *Here, like most parts of the city outside of the wall, are buildings with terra-cotta roofs, painted bright colors, lining narrow cobblestone streets; though the market here is unique and known for its strange, often magical goods. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it opens at midnight. During the day, closed and covered stalls are quiet and unassuming, while at night they come alive: lanterns line the streets and stalls, alluring sounds and smells drifting through the now bustling streets. Ozar and human alike blend in among the crowds*.
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* King’s Shield - former military, now overrun by Ozar, thought to be the source of the shatter.
* Scatter Stacks - poor, crowded
* Asar Straight - the sea between the continents
* The Edge Lands - space outside of the city, unsafe lands that are controlled more by creatures. Beyond the reach of the Crown. "That is where Ozar exists, and there are not people out there, because the Ozar are dangerous." Erion, who as a Sleeper is familiar with the Edge Lands, reckons: "I'm just ... a little edgy—always edgy in the Edge Lands." The following quote depicts the area where markers show the limits between the city proper and the Edge Lands:

> *We follow Luna as she drifts through Five Irons, to where Vee and Erion are now. Luna lands softly on Vee’s shoulder, as they reach the edge of the city. Behind them we see the buildings of Five Irons with their peeling paint and soot-covered walls. Here there is a small no man's land, the city stopping short of the markers, which indicate the Edgelands beyond. The markers act as a warning and little more, telling travelers that beyond this lies danger, though the city itself also offers plenty.*
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## Trade routes

There are three ways to bring anything in and out of the city: by train, by road or by sea; and the trains are a substantial portion of that.

Everyone in Sayrem knows the Sleepers, who are officially contracted by the government to collect supplies and run the trains along the tracks that still remain—very poorly maintained, not upgraded in a hundred years—in the Edge Lands. These tracks extend, at least, "a lot farther north".

The trains themselves were created to run off of magical runic energy rather than steam engines — relying on magical crystals rather than coal, which means crews need at least one magically inclined person. It costs money to create these crystals, which is part of why the Sleepers work with the government: they need all that funding from it. Running the trains is both not cheap and super dangerous.

The Sleepers have a lucrative side business in addition to their official contract. Even the Nobles know the Sleepers: they don't deal with them directly, but they buy from merchants who themselves buy from the Sleepers.

## Notes

1. ↑ Lauren gave more details on Discord: "Technically I think we decided it was on the edge of Downslope, right next to crescent hill."
2. ↑ See ep. 9.
3. ↑ See ep. 9.
4. ↑ Source: Narration at the beginning of ep. 7. Transcript courtesy of Lauren.
5. ↑ Source: ep. 4.
6. ↑ Source for this quote: the scene with Vee at the beginning of ep. 8.
7. ↑ Source: Narration at the end of ep. 7. Transcript courtesy of Lauren, with minor edits.
8. ↑ See ep. 8.
9. ↑ Source: ep. 8.
10. ↑ Source: ep. 7.