Chathorn Station

Chathorn Station and a rare example of a Verdial population center that lies beyond the Verdial Arc. Equal parts trading post for Sprucehaven Exports, research facility for the Petalcap Vale University, and military base for the Petalcap Vale Department of Defense, Chathorn Station is a tiny town located in Dorsal D built atop the only rocky prominence in a vast, shallow lake of ice.

Demographics

Aside from its location, Chathorn Station is also unsual among Vale settlements because a narrow majority (65%) of residents are Blackthorn Verdials rather than Vale Verdial. Only around 5% of the population is non-Verdial; humans (mostly Voxelian) make up 2%, Civil Ovinex make up another 2%, and Rostrans only 1%.
A significant proportion of the station's 'population' are actually semi-nomadic, residing in houseboats, covered sleges pulled by decommissioned Walruses., or small clusters of structures scattered throughout the surrouding countryside, only coming into town to deliver trade goods or make use of the local facilities (see Infrastructure). Residents tend to be older and more educated than the general population of Petalcap Vale owing to the life circumstances that would lead them to living in and around Chathorn Station. Religion is a significant uniting factor among locals, with the Blackthrorn conception of the Forgist Creator as a source of warmth in hard times predominating.

Government

Chathorn Station is so small that it is considered part of the Blackthorn Territory across the Inflection layer overhead for the purpose of representation in the Vale Bureau of Ballot Measures. Local matters are ostensibly handled informally or via direct democratic vote, but the military, corporate, and academic institutions that employ almost every adult citizen have outsized sway on important matters of local governance.

Industry & Trade

Chathorn Station exists to primarily serve as a staging area for research operations within the nearby regions of the local tesseract and as a way to funnel resources to be found therein back to Petalcap Vale for processing into finished goods. Food (mostly fish), water, timber, and some mineral resources can all be gathered locally, but machinery and precursor chemicals must often be imported. Agents of other nation-states operating in the Dorsal Tesseract, especially the Manifold Conservation Society and Voxelia, sometimes stop by Chathorn Station to trade for supplies.

Infrastructure

The chilly wetlands in which Chathorn Station are situated extend ten miles in every direction and is dotted with rocky islands, forming a sort of shallow archipelago. The station itself sits atop three of these islands that happen to be clustered closely together, the branching waterway formed by the space between providing a useful canal for boats to enter in the summer and sledges and other vehicles to use as roads during the rest of the year. Moveable bridges connect the station's islands so that residents can easily get from one place to another while still allowing vehicles to pass beneath.
Chathorn Station is bounded with a set of metal and brick walls designed more to serve as shelter from the Dorsal winds than to provide any defensive benefit. A set of floating bridge segments are anchored along the most direct route from Chathorn Station to the nearest commissure where a special commissure transit station is being constructed to make up for the frequent natural obstruction of the pre-existing commissure aperture.
Chathorn Station is powered by a combination of regenerative biodiesel generators and wind turbines. Communications with the rest of the Manifold Sky is accomplished via the use of a short-range RadNet mast on one of the islands and is typically relayed through the Petalcap Vale Customs Authority skystation overhead. PVU provides on-site educational, archival, and medical services free of charge to residents as an extension of their investment in the station.
Notably, as competitors to Sprucehaven Exports, MartMart International assets in the area have a habit of 'disappearing' without evidence or witnesses. After two separate mobile marketplaces in a row supposedly 'went off-target' and were accidentally '[air-dropped directly into the swamp,' the third was carefully guided to a popular dry camping site seven miles away with mercenary escorts to limit any further excuses.

Districts

Each island within Chathorn Station constitutes its own district with separate zoning and responsibilities. North Island is the residential district and contains most of the station's entertainment facilities. South Island serves as the masthead for the access road (see Infrastructure) and contains most of the station's warehouses, workshops, and commercial buildings, including the local Sprucehaven branch, Navigator's Guild office (but not a Guild hall), Ghostleaf Foundation drug store, and Burning Hearts pub. Distal Island contains most of the station's administrative offices and infrastructure (see Infrastructure), including the RadNet mast, hospital, town hall, school, police station, and fire station.

Climate

Dorsal D2 is cold, flat, and moderately more damp than the surrouding faces. The wetlands surrounding Chathorn Station occupy fully a third of the cube face and spend three-quarters of the year frozen over. Strong winds whip through the area in the fall because of the comparative dearth of tall vegetation or large landforms; late spring tornadoes spun up by circumvective forces are also not unheard of in the region.

Type

Trade post

Population

3,500 (seasonal peak)

Inhabitant Demonym

Chathorners, Flat-Icer(s)

Location under

Dorsal Tesseract

Owning Organization

Petalcap Vale