The Upper City

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**The Upper City** is, as the name would suggest, the above-ground portion of the City. Though it was once the size of a normal city (probably Cairo), the Upper City has grown to span the entire surface of what was formerly called "the Earth".

## **Description**

The Upper City is the home of nearly the entire population of the City. It is a sprawling yet carefully planned metropolis. The vast majority of the city is composed of densely packed buildings, though farther from the Nile, special "wilderness areas" have been carved out from their urban surroundings. The city is bisected by the 100-mile wide Nile channel; the two halves are referred to as the Western Bank and the Eastern Bank, respectively. Each bank is subdivided into three zones called mintiqas (MQ), and each mintiqa is further divided into regions called jaras (for those close to the Nile) and taratans (larger rings that are farther away). Each MQ has 15 total jaras.

## **The Western Bank**

The Western Bank is home to the Giza Towers, which serve as the AmunTech Inc. headquarters, as well as the City-famous Flood District. The inner jaras of each mintiqa are considered to be the cultural centers of the City, and feature many museums, clubs, restaurants, and shops of great renown.

### Upper West Mintiqa

The Upper West mintiqa contains, among other things, the mass of hydroponics and tiered towers that make up the so called "Agricultural District" of the Western Bank. Its jaras have some of the finest restaurants the City has to offer, with some seeing lines nearly a block long.

#### Notable points of Interest

* **Agricultural District and AmunTech Hydroponics** (3rd Taratan): A massive complex of interconnected greenhouse towers responsible for growing a great deal of the City's food.
* **Egyptian Edibles** (1st Jara): An alleged favorite of the AmunTech elite.
* **Khufu Tower**: The first of the Giza Towers and the headquarters of (among other things), the Minenutet Distribution Facilities, the Office of Geb's Vision, and the Institute of Science, Innovation, and Society.

### Mid West Mintiqa

The Mid West mintiqa is most famous for the Flood District, the region of low-income housing whose members are celebrated in the festivals of the Yearly Flood, though it is also the home to the largest of the City's museums, colleges, and libraries.

#### Notable Points of Interest

* **The Flood District**: A region of low buildings that borders the Nile. AmunTech makes good on its promise to provide housing for all by guaranteeing a spawn space within this district at no charge to the tenant; however, the Yearly Flood, which occurs at the very end of Inundation, destroys about 1 in 10 homes in this region per year in a celebrated but nonetheless catastrophic event. Those who survive the destruction are given homes in the tallest buildings of the nicest part of the outer Flood District. The cycle of destruction and celebration is lauded as an example of the ideals of AmunTech, as without the Yearly Flood, the ancestors of humanity would not have survived.
* **The Library of Alexandria** (3rd Jara): The largest of the Libraries of Thoth, this complex is nestled in a valley of shorter buildings and is decorated with beautiful ever-changing artwork on the exterior walls.
* **Khafre Tower**: The second of the Giza Towers and the headquarters of (among other things) the House of Hathor and the Ministry of Thoth.

### Lower West Mintiqa

The vast majority of industry is relegated to the Lower West mintiqa, as this mintiqa is location of the SunSphere Maintenance Offices and the Regional Transportation Hub.

#### Notable Points of Interest

* **The Regional Transportation Hub** (13th Jara): By far the largest group of interconnected buildings in the City, the RTH provides high-speed transportation between many jaras and taratans on both banks of the Nile. While the vast majority of these connections are made via ornately decorated underground tunnels (some of which are said to offer rare glimpses of the beauty of the Lower City), the above ground presence is no less striking, as it features some of the largest stained glass scenes in any of the City's architecture.
* **Menkaure Tower**: The third of the Giza Towers and the headquarters of (among other things) the SunSphere Maintenance Offices.

## **The Eastern Bank**

Not too much is known about life on the Eastern Bank, but nothing seems to suggest that it is any different than life on the Western Bank. It is assumed to be composed of features that are largely similar to the Western Bank, though it lacks the distinctive Giza Towers and Flood District. The buildings closest to the Nile are all the same height and seem to form an unyielding wall that stretches alongside the Nile.

## **History**

> *“The CEOs of AmunTech… recognized the burden that a growing humanoid population placed upon the land and put into motion their vision of a happy and healthy future. They began with… the Upper City… a city that spread from its original location to encompass those around it, then further, across the land, and across the seas. When the only thing left was the sky, they began work on the construction of the SunSphere.” - The Ministry of Thoth*
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