The Sparkling Chain

Like an emerald and diamond encrusted necklace resting on the sapphire throat of the ocean, the islands of the Lizon Archipelago sparkles in the sunshine like nothing I have seen before.

— Kenda Otany, scholastic wayfarer.

Active Islands

The Lizon Archipelago, better known as the Sparkling Chain, is a chain of islands in the Soundless Ocean south-east of Erumir Proper. Crescent shaped, the Sparkling Chain embraces the Temiss Sea. The archipelago comprises at least a thousand islands clustered in three major island groups: Valenvin, Camsir and Lamcana. There are twenty-one major islands, which contribute to about 90% of its land area. Many of the smaller islands are uninhabited, most of which don't even have a name.
The region is seismically active, and several earthquakes can be felt weekly. Most of them are almost too weak to be felt and cause no damage. The archipelago has nineteen active volcanoes, the most famous two being the Ogelom and Narlès, both of which have been actively erupting for the past century, since the Great Quake.

A Unique Biodiversity

Located in a tropical region, most of the islands of the Sparkling Chain are covered in thick jungle vegetation. The species richness has gathered the attention of a few famous botanists, like Adelard Greenhand, who became one with the sea to study life underwater. On some islands the vegetation continues all the way out to sea, creating rich mangrove forests with mangrove palms and several Rhizophora species. Other islands have clear beaches and some islands are even fully deprived of vegetation due to their small size and the ebb and flow of the ocean preventing plants from settling. At the higher altitudes, on the mountains of the larger islands grow montane forests with pine trees and low shrubbery.
The fauna is equally diverse with the islands having their own species of tropical birds and lemurs, and two species of tigers. In the mangrove forests, many species of fish and amphibians thrive, but the most well known animal making the mangrove their home is the Lamcana manatee.

Land-walkers and Sea-dwellers

Before the Enthuri crossed the Temiss Sea from Erumir Proper and started to colonise the islands of the Sparkling Chain, the islands were mostly inhabited by sea-dwelling nomads. Most merfolk adopt an amphibious lifestyle, living portions of their life in their splendid ocean floor cities, and portions of their life on land. Their settlements on land are small and more primitive than their underwater cities, but more than appropriate for their land lifestyle.
The largest conflict between the Enthuri land-walkers and the merfolk took place little over a century ago. For many years, the two peoples had lived in strained peace, which fully collapsed in the aftermath of the worst earthquake the area had experienced in maybe forever. And so, the Great Quake led to the Great Displacement. The war was bloody on both sides, and after three years resulted in the Treaty of Good Will, in which all the islands were divided between the Enthuri and the merfolk. Most merfolk were forced to different islands and back to their ocean floor cities, while the Enthuri gained about fivehundred islands.