Permagelum

Above and beyond the standards of summer in Casteur, it was a blisteringly hot day. Even Garlic was miserable, and he breathes fire! We were trudging through a sweltering market when I suddenly felt a wyrmling claw yanking on my pants leg, as Garlic desperately tried to turn my attention to a vendor with an enormous metal trunk under a heavy sunshade. Customers were lined up down the block to buy whatever she was selling, so I decided to see what all the fuss was about and claimed a spot in line. Nearly half an hour later, Garlic and I arrived at the front of the line. She asked how many, and I told her two. To my amazement, she cracked open the trunk and wisps of sparkling teal mist wafted out, before she quickly scooped up two small bowls and placed them atop the trunk. Here, in the middle of the desert, were two bowls of shaved ice, sweetened with sugar syrup. It was the best four gold pieces I ever spent.

— Julienne, Adventurer, Chef

Permagelum is an ice-like substance harvested in the far north, identifiable by its remarkable teal hue. Unlike ordinary ice which begins melting at temperatures above 0°C (32°F), permagelum consistently normalizes to a temperature of -18°C (0°F) unless exposed to temperatures above 26°C (80°F). Once the air around permagelum or a surface in contact with it increases to a temperature that the permagelum can no longer endure, it begins to evaporate into an extremely fine mist rather than melting into a liquid. There is no known way to reconstitute this mist into solid permagelum.

Usage

Permagelum is prized by chefs and adventurers the world over, as it can preserve foods with minimal alterations to their structure. Unlike smoking, picking, drying, or other common methods, permagelum prevents the growth of bacteria or the process of decay by freezing foods in close contact with it. Though previously frozen foods may become chewy or mushy when thawed, as the formation of ice crystals from the liquid inside them causes damage to the proteins or fibers of the food, freezing food is a revolutionary method of preservation. Some enterprising chefs are looking beyond permagelum's preservation potential to crafting new dishes designed to be consumed in a frozen state.

Collection

There are only three known permagelum mines in the world. Two of these mines are located deep underground, collecting permagelum from thin veins woven into hard rock. The third mine is actually located inside a glacier, where permagelum can only barely be discerned from the surrounding blue ice. Once the permagelum has been collected, it is loaded on carts and shipped to the port towns of Hepera, Cuppok, or Cupka, where it will be process and shipped to buyers across the known world. Most often, these chunks of permagelum are shaved and carved by local craftsmen into standard shapes like cubes, rectangles, or rarely spheres, which will make them easier to package for transportation and more pleasing to the eye of the customer. The permagelum shavings are then collected and sold for alchemical purposes.

Value

Because of the difficulty of extracting permagelum and the speed at which it can vanish if exposed to warm temperatures, chunks of permagelum sell at a premium. The most standard sized piece of permagelum is called a plate, measuring 20cm × 20cm × 5cm (12" × 12" × 2"), and sells for 50gp. An 8 fl oz bottle of permagelum dust sells for 5gp. In warmer climates in the far south of Cornucopia or the isle of Casteur, these market standards may be quadrupled or worse.

Dangers

Permagelum must be handled with extreme care, as contact with skin may cause frostbite. Inhaling the mist produced by evaporating permagelum has been known to cause dizziness and headaches. Permagelum vendors are careful to stress to inexperienced buyers that while the substance has remarkable uses in food preparation and storage, it is not safe to consume and should not be served with food.

by atlascompany

Type

Elemental / Molecular