Spires

The **Spires** are the living location of all known humans in the Cinder Spires series.

## About

The Spires are where all the humans live since Surface is uninhabitable and very dangerous. There are at least ten Spires. Each one is kind of like a separate country—having its own language and culture. There is some limited exchange of communication and goods between them.

### History

The history and origins of the Spires are shrouded in mystery. They were created by the Builders many thousands of years ago, before the Builders vanished without a trace.

As far as the inhabitants of the Spires know, all humans live in the Spires or surrounding ships. The surface is considered dangerous, filthy and alien.

### Construction

The construction methods used to create the Spires are unknown. They are built out of an indestructible black stone named Spirestone that shows no signs of wear and tear despite thousands of years. Each spire is a cylinder with a diameter of 2 miles. The Spirearch of Albion states Albion is ten thousand feet high and has 250 habbles of which 236 are occupied. Each habble is quoted as 50 feet floor to ceiling. This has to assume that the none inhabited habbles are somewhat less that 50 feet high in order to fit within 10,000 feet overall height [1.89 miles]. It is possible the Spirearch is generalising the dimensions and the spire is a black tower 2 miles high. There are references to a 2 mile fall for aeronauts.

The living use-able floor area of each habble is a square circumscribed within a 2 mile wide circle. This then allows for various utilities and engineering needs at the periphery of each habble. It is possible that some habbles are not used for habitation and do not require a 50 foot ceiling. Their living conditions are not cramped or uncomfortable, and there is a sky-like ceiling above each habble that allows the feeling of freedom and space. There are also many Ventilation Tunnels and channels throughout the Spire. Spire Albion uniquely has an additional landing for ships at Habble Landing Shipyards so they can travel and ship goods in half the time rather than slogging from Habble to Habble.

(See quotes below in Quote section)

### Spires

They created Spire Albion in the shape of a perfect circle with each habble being a square fitting into that circle. The spaces around the square were located at the Carina's points of the compass, These spaces contained a variety of supporting structures—cisterns, Ventilation Tunnels, waste tunes, and so on. All known spires so far appear to be located in the former United States, east of the Rocky Mountains. Whether spires exist elsewhere in North America or the rest of the world is unknown.

### Known Spires

* Spire Albion: appears to be located in upstate New York, Albion presumably being a garble of Albany; for story purposes, a cultural stand-in for England
* Spire Aurora: appears to be located near Chicago, presumably the old town of Aurora; for story purposes, seems to be a stand-in for Spain, from its rivalry with Albion to a navy called the Armada.
* Spire Olympia: red cheeks, green and gold clothing, laurel leaf wreath pattern on their clothes, rings or pendants.  Appears to be located approximately in eastern Tennessee, possibly Knoxville

More:

* Spire Nephesis: Its inhabitants have golden brown skin. The women wear long, sweeping skirts in multiple layers, patterns and colors.
* Spire Atlantea: near Atlanta.
* Spire Pike: wear spiral scar patterns on their faces; keep bees, export honey; not a true Spire, inhabited caves at a mountain top, seemingly Pike's Peak; notably poor compared to other spires, presumably originated as a makeshift shelter for people unable to make it to a true spire during whatever cataclysm made the surface uninhabitable
* Spire Kissam: Calliope Ransom has a load of medicine bound there.  In Florida, presumably a garble of Kissimmee
* Spire Jereezi: Grimm has a Fedori model teapot from there.  located somewhere in New Jersey
* Spire Dalosia: the Mistshark was flying the Dalosian flag. Dallas
* "Nephesians" — golden-brown skin; long skirts in layers of colors; Aeronaut Captain's coat: Indigo.
* "Atlanteans" — very dark skin with ice-blue eyes.
* "Pikers" — swirling ritual scars designed their faces.

## Spire Symbols and Colors

* Spire Albion: deep blue coat with gold trim;
* Spire Aurora:
* Spire Olympia: green coat with gold garb and a laurel wreath upon their breast or pendants or rings.
* Spire Nephesis: multiple layers, patterns and colors.
* Spire Atlanta: (or Atlantis?)
* Spire Piker: wear spiral scar patterns on their faces; keep bees, export honey;
* Spire Dalosia: the Mistshark was flying the Dalosian flag.
* Spire Ethosia:

### Habbles

Spire Albion (and the other Spires) is divided into many Habbles. These Habbles are similar to cities, each with their own culture, focus and crime level. They are distinctly divided, but are accessible via internal ramps, external windlasses, and airships,

Cats are able to walk from Habble to Habble using tunnels and air channels that humans cannot easily access.

Notable Habbles of Spire Albion include:

* Habble Morning
* Habble Landing
* Habble Risen

### Airship Travel between Habbles

* SHIPMENT OF GOODS: Since Habble Landing broke a hole through the outer Spirestone wall and built a shipyard, there is booming trade between Habble Morning and Landing—making for easier faster movement of goods between all the Habbles.
* MECHANICS: A long tether cable runs down the side of the Spire to which airship attach heavy lines to prevent the ship from drifting away from the tower. And, a pair of long oars were set out on the side of the ship to prevent it from crashing into the tower.

### Details

* Most Habbles in every Spire modified the original spaces as designed by the Builders.

## Connections

* Fleet and list of Albion Ships
* Fleet Shipyards
* Airships
* House Lancaster
* Lancaster Vattery
* Habble Morning
* Spire Albion
* Auroran Marines
* Captain Esterbrook
* Spirearch Manor
* Spirearch's Guard
* Francis Grimm
* Stern
* AMS Predator, the crew

## Events

### 1. *Aeronaut's Windlass*

Spire Aurora sends an invading marine force on a covert mission to raid and disable Spire Albion. Bridget Tagwynn observes the various ethnic groups from other Spires while walking with the Team to the Temple of the Way through Habble Landing. Calliope Ransom offers Grimm a job to take a shipment to Spire Olympia while she takes a load of medicine to Spire Kissam.

## Quotes

* Lord Albion rose and took a couple of the large maps down from the wall behind him, revealing a to-scale rendering of the entire Spire. "Spire Albion." He said "Ten thousand feet high and two miles across. There are two hundred and fifty Habbles, of which two hundred and thirty-six are occupied. . . ." — Lord Albion
* The Builders created Spire Albion in the shape of a perfect circle, each habble laid out as a square fitting within that circle. The extra spaces, at the Carina's points of the compass, were filled with a variety of supporting structures—cisterns, Ventilation Tunnels, waste tunes, and the like. — *narrator*

## Book References

1. ↑ *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 20, p. 197
2. ↑ *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 19, 20, 33
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 33, p.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 25, p. 240
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 25
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 26, p. 249
7. ↑ *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 31, p. 295; HC 1st Ed.
8. ↑ *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 46, p. 412; HC 1st Ed.
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 31
10. ↑ *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 24
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 22
12. ↑ *Aeronaut's Windlass*, ch. 19, p. 183