The Screaming Sands

Along the outskirts of the Hali'Asam, The Screaming Sands, the fiercest desert in the known world, four ancient cultures defend the borders of their vast cities from each other and the many dangers of the sands.   Each of the four cities are under constant attack by a vicious horde of beetle-like insectoid creatures known formally as Karasects, but commonly as The Noise. Though casualties are an unfortunate fact of daily life, the border cities have also formed a sense of symbiosis with the Noise, as it is from karasects that Twist is extracted.   Twist is the thread that powers civilization. Any fabric that has Twist woven into it can be controlled in place of any limb. These fabrics are used to power complex constructs, vehicles, and sundry conveniences that are indispensable to modern life, including the first and last line of defense against the Noise - The 4 Clothus.   Some cities have embraced the constant conflict as a necessary price for a thriving economy. Some strive to find a way to destroy the Noise permanently, regardless of the technological setbacks that would occur. With unrest in every direction, the threads of alliance and compromise soon begin to fray...