Downtown

**Introduction**:

Standing at the foot of the hillside that coasts into sea, you have full view of the city known as Downtown. The grass turns a soft white near the fringes of the town made of blackened iron and crumbling stone castles. Hanging ominously above the area is a gentle storm that seems to hold in place, the clouds appearing and reforming above the city more than anywhere else around it. The piers that stretch out furthest from the town seem unaffected by the shadow the looms over it from the perpetual clouds. You stand at the edge of the Borderland's territory, with the mesa city Hollow-Point to the north standing like a skeleton hanging over a large cavern. A river flows around Hollow-Point's lower village and finds it's way trickling down the side of the decline in the grassland. The monolithic mountain drifts down into the ocean and shelters Downtown from the northern desert heat, as a white shelf of snow hangs at the furthest edges of the city tucked into the side of the mountain range.

As you begin to walk down the dirt road towards Downtown, the buildings begin to take a hard silhouette against the blue ocean behind it. You begin to notice the soft rain pelting the town from above, giving everything a grey mist around it that makes it harder to distinguish shapes. After walking for a while longer, and clearing the final cobblestone bunkers and dusty trenches of Borderland, you come across oddly shaped stones in the ground. Spherical stones, some mossed over and others half buried, begin to dot the landscape around Downtown the closer you get. Staring down at the city shows a mirror reflection on the smooth stone pathways that show the aching grey sky above in the rain. The city is a mesh with jagged shapes, scaling buildings, ladders, signs, electric lighting, and awash in trash. High up above, you can faintly make out frost fluttering down, swirling behind the tall black iron spires. Your feet make an unsatisfying crunch, and you look down to notice the grass has become patchy, and clay has started to take it's place. You can feel your connection to The Weave fading the closer you enter this domain.

There are people! As you make your way to the very edge of the slope that connects into Downtown, you actually see living creatures hiding among the shelved stone arches, the bridges, tucked away under scaffolding, and existing in between cracks in the walls. No one here seems excited for your arrival, but then again, who are you? who are they? They shift like serpents in the darkness, and you're never quite sure who's watching you at any given moment. Finally you step onto the cobblestone streets off the white clay and shale that's built up around it's edges. Your body feels hollow and empty without the presence of magic, but it's only as disturbing as you let it be. You stand at the crossroads of one of many streets of Downtown, all sloping downward, and you can see well over some buildings roof tops. High above the streets are kids sitting on the sides of the buildings, or standing staring out into the grey fog, their heads hidden inside cowls as the rain continues to penetrate. The Ocean stands out as the only splash of color, dulled by the grey tones of the rain, and can be seen as the only bit of hope for the harbor town.

Your feet leave more unsatisfying wet white footprints as you make your way through the main street. You come across a coffee shop called "Just One More". You duck inside to avoid the rain and maybe purchase a hot cup of something to stave off the weirdly bitter cold despite it being close to summer. You sit down, glance at the bulletin board where several blokes in black leather coats are leaning against. They have masks around their face, and their skin is a sunken grey; you try not to make eye contact, but unsuccessfully attract their attention. Both men have a deadened red hue to their eyes, as though they've been awake for a week straight. They walk by you, and brush against your seat forcefully, as though to silently let you know they don't appreciate gawking. Despite the rudeness, everyone else seems preoccupied with staring into a book, smoking a cigar, or staring boredly out the window. The rain begins to let up, and you finish your hot drink to leave.

The wind is no less oppressive than the rain, and you struggle to stay upright as you continue to make your way to the heart of the city. Down and down and further down you walk, from stairs to sloping roads, your feet take you closer and closer to the ocean ports. You pass by another store called "Err Edge", with iron bars over windows covering a selection of different colors swords, axes, and spears. "Intensity" is another shop, looking very similar to every other building around it, but dedicated to the sale of used firearms. As you continue to window-shop, your attention is quickly diverted to the rumbling below your feet, and the thunderous crashing of metal that echoes throughout the town. You brace yourself, but everyone else on the streets next to you seem unphased by the shocking vibrations. After a moment it leaves you confused and worried for the structural integrity of the town, but you continue forward. Stopping at a crossroads, you can begin to see that reaching the top of the tallest tower is going to be increasingly difficult.

You ask around, and initially, no one is willing to talk, or has much time or energy to lend you any advice, but without realizing it, you step into a brightly lit casino away from the flurry of wind. You're calmly instructed not to make a mess with your wet boots by a tall slender half-orc wearing a suit, but with some conversation you begin to unravel the maze of buildings with some helpful instructions. You enter a stairwell that's softly lit by a lamp, and begin to make your way up the smooth stone staircase. On several occasions, you pass by people sleeping on the stairs, or teens smoking on the railing; a few of the floors don't actually have functional lamps as it seems they have been busted down. Finally you make it to the 7th floor, and walk into what can only be assumed is a theater, with a stage set up with wooden mannequins. The room is dark, but you notice a door off to the left that leads to a balcony. You step back out into the rushing wind and brace yourself on the railing stopping you from tumbling over the edge and down into the quietly hustling streets.

Up the iron bar staircase, into another building across the way; this time it's an apartment complex with holes in the walls, and a trash fire in the corner where seemingly homeless vagrants make their stay. Up to the roof, with the jammed door, breaking it open and pushing aside the wet clothes set against it; your trek takes you further around the tops of the city. Eventually you come up to a massive hole in the side of the tallest tower, guarded by about a dozen armed men, leather vests and sporting blunt objects. They stop you from entering and give you a disgusting time, remarking your very tourist nature, but from behind them comes a woman in a black dress. She seems elven, and waves them off, inviting you in. the hole in the wall seems large enough to fit a dragon through, and you contemplate just how many times it took before a dragon did just break in. Inside is a beautiful fountain, though the water isn't flowing. Great chandeliers, though the lamps aren't lit. Once great marble floors, clawed and broken from too many scuffles. The woman in the black dress stays silent, and takes you up to the next floor, where glass walls are riddled with scratches and cracks. You're lost, and you don't know where this person is taking you.

She remarks her name is Shezza Mont'arc and it is her job to safely transport friends of the city owner to the inner chambers. She takes you through more rooms, each colored in various wools and carpets, bathed in intoxicating light of reds and blues. Men and women of higher dress are sitting, drinking, talking, flirting, or watching entertainers as they relax on worn out furniture that has never seen repair. The atmosphere goes from loud and obnoxious, to the quiet and reserved as you enter a series of green rooms. At the center of these rooms sits a glowing green crystal, to which a scantily clad image of a woman is seen dancing on air. The occupants of these rooms seem much more appropriately dressed for business, and typically have briefcases closed and by their sides. Their eyes are always hidden, but you can't help but feel you're being watched like prey. Eventually you come to a very nice marble set of doors. They open into a small room that gives way softly as you step inside.

The doors close, and you feel a sense of vertigo for your first time in a functional elevator. The walls creak and the metal softly grinds in places, but it all seems to be working fine. After a few minutes of falling, the elevator stops, and the doors open to a large strip mine underneath the city. Shezza takes you across a large catwalk as you pass by soot dusted miners, dwarves of various race as well as humans holding pik axes. The walls are barren and chipped away, and the hole below dips deep below the catwalk into a black abyss. You see lights dotting the walls, but you can see no further than your eyes allow. Peering over the edge though, you're nudged and pressured to keep moving as Shezza remarks this isn't what you came to see. You come to a large shining metal warehouse at the far end of the strip mine, and well dressed guards wave you inside.

The first thing you notice is the massive square table made of black polished wood in the center of the room. The carpet is a beautiful rich red and spreads across the room like fire. In each corner is a magnificent piece of art that touches the ceiling, from a neon sculpture to a bronze statue of a goddess holding a pot. All along the wall is carved stone with intricate designs that tell a story, but your eyes are quickly diverted to the opening doors. Shezza stands to the side and remains silent, as a ferocious looking elf in a beautiful golden pair of boxers steps out. His body is covered in black tattoos that show very little tanned skin, and his hair is black, standing up on it's own in long spikes. He greets himself without shame as Augdein Deci Rosencroft, and sits on the side of the table. His hands and neck are covered in beautiful silver jewelry, hanging off him in such clusters that almost seem uncomfortable to look at. He beckons you to a seat at the large table.

Though unsure of his motivations, he assures you that his town is safe and that you and him can afford to live it up. Augdein Deci Rosencroft, leader of the city of Downtown, welcomes you to his never-humble mansion below the depths! He pours you a drink, and insists you two finish this bottle before moving onto the next one. While you struggle with the intense burn of the alcohol, he carries on talking about how hard it was to get this particular year, but it's just been sitting around for ages, so why not get rid of it? This is a special occasion, he remarks, and throws the bottle across the room, laughing. The drink begins to hit you, and the night starts to blur together, as places and faces start to make little sense. You remember there was something Augdein was smoking, while laying on the table flat on his back. You remember there was a moment when you were on the floor, and he was standing on a chair, remarking awful poetry about a demon and a beautiful woman. There was a brief memory of Shezza Mont'arc entering momentarily, cleaning up the mess and dropping off more food.

The nights and days seems to last forever, or maybe just a few minutes. You seem to remember staring down into the open shaft standing, swaying uneasily on the catwalk, as Augdein talked on and on about some great treasure laying below the mine. Another flash of memory as you think you even saw some great green demon clawing it's way around the strip-mine. There was even a part where you and him were standing in the rain, and he was screaming out at the city- eyes red and face in anguish. You're not sure if any of it was real, but you do wake up with a terrible headache. You're laying in a dark room, and after a moment of fumbling for the door, you find yourself standing in one of the many apartment complexes. All your stuff is present, but your head feels like it was hit with a crowbar. Shezza Mont'arc is no where to be found, but you find a note sitting on the night stand next to the bed.

"A.D.R. sends his regards- stay as long as you like, and the buffet is free as well."

You're the furthest from eating at the moment. As you rest, you find yourself dreaming of someone not yourself. You dream of a great world beyond this one, where you have a connection to someone...or something beyond this realm. The dream leaves you with more questions than answers, and you decide it is best to stay away from drinking for a while.

**History**:

Formerly Spiral Hill, whatever is left of the hill has been replaced by concrete. Downtown is a deadzone magically, as in, magic barely operates normally at it's center

Known as the Seeking Port, those who live and grow up around Downtown have a different kind of sleep schedule. Staying long enough in this dead-zone starts to trigger past lives dreams in it's citizens.

To some this can be a new and mysterious part of their life in Divadlo, to others it is a grim reminder of the lives lost at start of the era.

Most that do not find comfort in these strange visions spend their nights drowning themselves in bad habits of the nightlife.

The town itself is coated in a perpetual darkness, as though through some supernatural means, the clouds form and disappear in a controlled state. Because of this, plants have a hard time growing in these conditions, leading to the soil around the city to become a gray shale and white clay. It is because of this unnatural degradation that it is considered the town has been cursed by druids.