Badeçasyon (bat-eh-say-shyawn)

It is up to us, to find our way home. No other will aide us in this endeavor. Death is as clueless as her people. It is in this spirit that I have founded Badeçasyon. Not only will the architecture illustrate our culture and our strength, not only will the reasearch we conduct illustrate our intelligence and perserverence, but we will prove to every being in these evening lands that we deserve a chance to redeem our people and our respect. Take up the tools of this land as you once took up arms for the Flayn. Build what you will, but look to the future and a return to Gabridar. A return to our true selves.

Eyne Dorsteldyn, to the first Gabridarço to arrive at Badeçasyon

In this article:

artwork by Shade Melodique unless otherwise stated

Gabridarço ship
Miguel Aguire, Adobe StockImages

History

A 100 years previous, the world of Sensour was invaded by a fleet of Gabridarço ships, led by General Thedeçe Suyove. They flew under the banner of the The Flayn Monarchy, an interstellar government centered on Gabridar, and one intent on conquering other worlds to gain valuable resources and wealth. The Flayn saw Sensour as a fledgling space-faring planet ripe for conquest. General Suyove saw an easy victory over a planet with inadequate technology. Neither anticipated Death. The Syimlin of Death, Erse Parr, arrived on a plateau overlooking Mandebek, Keelsland, as the invaders attacked the city. She killed them, then expanded her reach. Whether those beings led the assault anywhere on the continent of Talis, or still orbited in interstellar ships, she spared no one. Her action prompted other forgotten death deities around the globe to lend their support in defeating the enemy. Technology fell to the unexpected magical assault.

Depending on where they died, the souls of the unlucky invaders were channeled into the various evening lands of Sensour. Hundreds of thousands of shocked, unprepared military and support personnel found themselves in the lands of the dead, forced to endure an afterlife created by a deity not their own--and not all felt compassion for the deceased.

Some death deities Judged and punished the invaders. Some, like Erse Parr, attempted to aclimate the ghosts and smooth their transition into afterlife existence. Unable to speak the languages and floundering in unfamiliar cultures, even with help, they struggled to make sense of what happened and what to do next.

Hate followed them; the native Sensour ghosts, furious at the invasion and wanting revenge, drove them from the civilized afterlife. Many of their number met the Final Death in these conflicts, leaving the rest to dwell in the outskirts of society and wallow in helpless hopelessness. Their leaders congregated, but only empty promises of retribution ensued.

Founding

Badeçasyon was founded 52 years later in the evening lands of the Evenacht, by a Gabridarço lieutenant called Eyne Dorsteldyn. He wanted a safe space for other Gabridarço dead, a place they could congregate, live without fear, and devise plans to leave Sensour. He chose the island in the center of Lake Neyfal, which marked the far edge of the Evenacht and the start of the Voidlands, a desolate landscape whose winds were rumored to send the deceased to the Final Death. His first project, the Den Tower, reflected Gabridarço architecture and technology, even if he could not make an exact replica due to Evenacht material and tech limitations. He not only wished for the tower to act as a beacon to other Gabridarço, supplying hope to the desperate, but to house a sophisticated research facility that studied how the wayward spirits could return to their home planet, and subsequently enter their own evening lands. He invited his fellow invaders to join him, and many flocked to him, hoping he could achieve their desperate desire to return home. More arrived. Some wanted safety and a sense of the familiar. Some, who had lost hope in the strangeness of it all, and did not know where else to go.

Den Tower
Mihai Vlasceanu Tanghe from Pexels

Lake Neyfal
Lake Neyfal credits

"I will aid you as I can. But know this, Eyne Dorsteldyn. Sensour is unlike the other planets your people have encountered, and the Evenacht moreso. It may be, there is no afterlife for your souls, and if you return to Gabridar, you will be as outcast as you are here."

~Erse Parr

Death told Dorsteldyn if the opportunity arose, she would see the Gabridarço safely home. Nothing has come of it because:

Sensour death deities have discussed options, but none know how to return the invaders to their homeworld. They have no way of contacting death representatives of Gabridar for help, either; after their absolute defeat, the Flayn abandoned their offense, their ships, and the remains of their fighters, and forbade any entity associated with their empire to go anywhere near the planet. No interstellar craft outside the Flayn, commercial or private, has passed the planet. The deities have no way to send a message to appropriate religious institutions.

Badeçasyon scientists have not solved the ryiam problem. The dead in the various evening lands of Sensour absorb ryiam, a magic energy that animates ghostly essences. Ryiam is typically absorbed from water droplets found in mist, which are infused by way of the water cycle (water filters into the earth, where it attracts ryiam, then it enters rivers, streams, lakes, oceans etc. The water evaporates, creating ryiam-rich mist ghosts can absorb). On an interstellar ship, there is no water cycle that can re-energize mist, and if ryiam is found in the emptiness between planets, no one knows how to extract it for use.

some conspiracy theorists believe Dorsteldyn promised Death something in return for her help, and has yet to accomplish what she asked. More believe him an opportunist, and wonder if he plans to subsume the Evenacht under Gabridarço control, accomplishing that which he failed to do in life.

there is no guarantee that Gabridar has an afterlife. Spirits may travel there, only to meet the Final Death.

Districts

The basis of Badeçasyon districts are the towers; Den Tower sits in the center and the other twelve circle it. Many of the inhabitants stay in their designated tower, refusing to leave, even to traverse to the one next door. Dorsteldyn finds their despair aggravating.

Towers are the foundation of Gabridarço living. On Gabridar, buildings rise instead of expanding out, including homes. Creating a community with towers provides a touch of Gabridar way of life absent in nearly all other Evenacht endeavors.

The city is situated on the southern half of Lake Neyfal's island. The northern part holds the ports and several farms that grow food for the few .

General Info

Type: Metropolis
Age: 48 years
Total Population: 91274
Primary Race: Gabridarço
Districts: 13
Population Density: high (Avg 15.79 people per residence)
Attitude: Mistrusting and Sophisticated

The small native glejeth settlement of Endwervs welcomed Dorsteldyn into their community. Situated on the western shores of Lake Neyfal, they gave him space he used as a base while he scouted for land to build a permanent Gabridarço settlement. He chose the island in the center of Neyfal, and set about constructing a defense wall and Den Tower with their help. Twelve other, shorter towers eventually surrounded it.

Social

Government: Meritocracy
Primary religion: Atheism
Urban Population: 90014
Rural Population: 1260
Known Criminals: 1341

Considering how many Gabridarço had given up on existence, Dorsteldyn instituted a merit-based government and promoted those who shared his ambition of returning to Gabridar. Most Gabridarço consider themselves atheists, since they refuse to follow the syimlin or native Evenacht deities. They see them as glorified beings with a few special abilities--but not divine. A few still follow Gabridar religious precepts, but most feel abandoned by their gods--if they even exist. Few besides Gabridarço live within the city walls. The rural population includes Endwervs, but also the farming and fishing villages in the north of the island and on the Neyfal shores.

Geography

Major Landform: Eolian
Landscape: sandhills
Water Features: In the center of a lake fed by a wide river

The land, rich in mining and fishing resources, would typically attract far more peoples than the glejeth, but the nearness of the Voidlands and its monsters keeps both the natives and the spirits away.

Climate

Biome: Warm Temperate Desert
Seasons: Dry season, wet season
Winds: northeast to southwest

Temperatures are warm in the day, cool at night, and drop slightly during the rainy season. Heavy, dry winds blow in from the Voidlands, and sandstorms are common.

Architecture

Primary Building Style: Reinforced concrete
Other Building Styles: Cement, Stone, and Marble

There are no trees for wood, so the buildings are made from other materials. Dorsteldyn cobbled together enough local materials to construct Den Tower, but the remaining towers have imported components. He attempted to build as close as possible to Gabridar ideals, working around the limitations of Evenacht technology.

Infrastructure and defenses

Primary Road Type: Cobblestone Roads
Secondary Road Types: Dirt, Sand Walls: Reinforced Concrete Wall Natural Defenses: Lake

The Gabridarço are not the most popular group in the Evenacht. Dorsteldyn placed a lake between them and the evening lands proper, a way to protect his people from the rest of the dead. There is one bridge that leads to the island, and the Badeçasyon guard can raise the drawbridge end of it to prevent attackers from accessing the city that way.

Assets

Badeçasyon runs over two dozen mines and trades ores, precious metals, gems, for materials to build their various technologies. They employ living natives to mine because so many Gabridarço have difficulty with Physical Touch. What they receive in return is a mystery, since assoicating with the hated invaders stunts any prospects they may have of finding homes elsewhere. The shores of Lake Neyfal and the Scornful River have shellfish farms. The shells are used in dyes, and some colors, like the rich purples and the blues with golden sheens, fetch high prices. These are sold only through Badeçasyon traders. The caretakers have forbidden the selling of Gabridarço technology, but a few merchants sell their tech-enhanced services. For example, the Evenacht's most prominite shipwright is Gabridarço.

Resources

Trees: None
Stone: Alabaster, Caliche, Slate, Limestone
Ore & Gems: Zinc, Peridot, Garnet, Topaz, Titanium, Zirconium
Cultivated Crops: Quinoa, Oats, Buckwheat, Cotton, Brussel Sprout, Beets, Spinach
Livestock: None
Wild Animals: Mice, Roadrunner, coyote
Aquatic Animals: Trout, Pike, Catfish
Grass: Pampas Grass Shrubs: Sagebrush

While spirits do not have to eat, the native beings of the Evenacht do, and there are enough of them in the area, farming is still lucrative. Before Badeçasyon, the small farms exported food through Endwervs to the larger habitations. After, they only sold to the city. Most of the produce goes to feed the miners.

The Column Complex Ruin
orig. image by Vincent Pelletier from Pexels

The ancient columns and the mostly-buried complex have no history other than being a ruin. No one claims them, native or ghost. Curious Gabridarço have attempted to research their origin, but have discovered nothing. Scholars think the Hallowed Collective might have information, but the Collective remains mum on the matter.

Special Features

Fossils: 6.66 miles northeast
Ancient Column Complex: 5.40 miles northeast
Ancient Shipwreck: 1.20 miles east
Amber Encased Creatures: 1.98 miles southwest
Insect Mounds: 5.51 miles northeast

The Scorn is known for its large and diverse fossils, and the area around Badeçasyon is no different. Tourists and rock enthusiasts pay to dig for them. The shipwreck has a sordid history; some 7,000 years previous, the Beast became upset with a naval captain of an ancient Keelsland fleet, took his Evenacht ship, threw it into the winds. He cursed the man to never sail again. The wind deposited the ship in an ancient riverbed in the Scorn, where it resides to this day, ghostly river waves lapping at the hull. The insects are wasp-like creatures called ceur. They vary widely in size, with the largest reaching 3 stories tall. They hunt in the Voidlands, bringing back all manner of beasts to the mounds to consume. Where and how these beasts live in the desolate place, no one knows--and no one dares to study it.