The Crystal Springs
"I thought I heard the faint sounds of whalesong, so I conjured a sphere and hurried west. The water became shallower - much to shallow for a whale to comfortably swim in, let alone sing - but still I could hear the echoes. I entered a lagoon to find that what I was hearing was not whalesong at all, but strange reverberations from half-buried crystals."
- Tassik, sphere-tender If the decryption of the first glyph crystal was the birth of cetalinguistic study, the discovery of the Crystal Springs was what nurtured its growth. The location has by far the richest deposits of glyph crystals of anywhere currently known in the Balacen, and the findings made there have been invaluable to cetalinguistic libraries the world over. The library closest to the springs has become the de facto hub of whalesong translation.
- Tassik, sphere-tender If the decryption of the first glyph crystal was the birth of cetalinguistic study, the discovery of the Crystal Springs was what nurtured its growth. The location has by far the richest deposits of glyph crystals of anywhere currently known in the Balacen, and the findings made there have been invaluable to cetalinguistic libraries the world over. The library closest to the springs has become the de facto hub of whalesong translation.
Geography
The Crystal Springs are composed of a small inlet in an island in southern Dirhun as well as the surrounding ocean. Intact glyphs have been found as far as fifteen miles away from the shore, and the entire area is considered to be part of the springs.
As suggested by the name, the Crystal Springs are fed by a freshwater stream located on the island. The resulting conditions of the water in the springs area seem to be better suited for the preservation of crystals than the more saline conditions of other glyph reserves.
Two small human settlements lie on the coastline of the springs. They were founded as small fishing villages, but as the springs grew as a place of archaeological interest, the villages also grew. Human divers are known to assist dolphin archaeologists with excavation and transport of glyph crystals, and the dolphins in turn help the human fishers with their trade.
Fauna & Flora
The less-salty waters of the Crystal Springs have contributed to the formation of a unique but isolated ecosystem in the area. Many ocean fish find the water irritating and have learned to avoid the area, but those that were able to withstand the hypotonic water established their own populations in the cove. These mostly include smaller fish and bottom-feeders, such as rays or gobies, but some other species use the springs as a waypoint on their migrations from the ocean to the rivers and back.
Plant life is also influenced by the unusual salinity of the springs. Both the water itself and the effects it has on the geological characteristics of the area dictate the types of plants that can thrive there. Unique species of kelp have been identified in the region, along with various types of seagrasses.
Notably, no filter-feeding organisms have been found in the springs. This is most likely due to the natural property of the glyph crystals to dampen and absorb vibrations around them. This nullifies most of the natural currents in the area, meaning that there is nothing to carry plankton through the water.
Natural Resources
The most important resources of the springs are its glyph reserves. Though they were not discovered for thirty years after the birth of cetalinguistic study, the springs were one of the fundamental aspects of the field's growth. Before the findings at the Crystal Springs, cetalinguistic translation had mostly been guesswork or reliant upon concrete references. But a key discovery from the springs provided a breakthrough for the translation of whalesong: a conversation between a whale, an orca, and a balaceti. This provided previously unmatched insight into the syntax and vocabulary of whalesong, as well as the startling revelation that it had been previously understood.
The discovery led to renewed interest in previously-archived glyphs, and a rush to revisit them. Other findings from this rush include descriptions of ancestral whale migration routes, historical organization of orca pods, and the first contact between dolphins and balaceti as told by songkeepers. The historicity of these accounts is not verified, but their impact on cetalinguistic understanding has been transformative nonetheless.
Type
Cove
Location under
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