Hvergelmir (The Spring of the Unknown)

Bay windows like portals to other worlds. Distant lights on the horizon the only hope for light years. Often we can see only darkness, but sometimes, when life and her lover align, a piercing light, a shining star, breaks between them and points us home.

— Fyrri Dagbók

Hvergelmir, also called The Spring of the Unknown, is one of the most interesting features of any of the seven planets that were colonized. During certain times each midcycle each of the eight planets in the habitable zone align with one of the ruined arches or podiums within the stone circle. Once every several midcycles the planets align in such a way that the planet in front blocks Yggdrasil from the planet behind it. This creates a simultaneous eclipse on every planet in the system. During this event every habitable planet aligns with an archway or podium in Hvergelmir. Because of this the stone arches of Hvergelmir hold great significance among the Eight Realms.

Significence

_{Vanaheim cresting over the arches of Hvergelmir.}

Religious

_{A childs drawing of the Nidhogg}
Many believe that Hvergelmir is a gateway to the gods. When Ragnarok returns, it is believed that the gods will step down from the skies through the gateways. The hot spring at the center of Hvergelmir is thought to be the place from which all life flows. Some think it has healing properties, but few will swim in it's deep waters as many have returned from the well with deadly snake bites. It is said that those without honor will be bitten to mark them for the Níðhöggr (Nidhogg), a dangerous reptile like creature that will drag you down to the very depths of the well and gnaw on your flesh. Religious leaders and devout believers often make pilgrimages to Hvergelmir to commune with the gods.

Scientific

Several scientific advancements have come from studying Hvergelmir. It was previously thought that no cold-blooded life could survive on Niflheim. When the snakes of Hvergelmir were discovered this view changed. A search for other creatures living in the few hot springs on Niflheim commenced, resulting in the discovery of three new species. Scientists studied the composition of the hot spring to determine if it really had healing properties and discovered bacteria that consumes dead cells, waste products, and toxins and repairs DNA. The bacteria was then reproduced in a laboratory and made into several different types of medicine. The study of the alignment events has lead to a greater understanding of the planets interactions with each other. One thing that puzzles people most is that this is clearly made by some sort of sentient creature and yet no other signs have been found on any of the seven colonized planets that suggest intelligent life inhabited them before us.

Architecture

Four large grey stone stone arches form a circle around the northern most pole of Niflheim. Each arch comes to a sharp peak 30 meters from the center. In the center of the circle is a perfectly round hot spring, once surrounded by stones now crumbled, with a large stone gazebo hanging over the water. Once a stone wall, standing at twice a humans height, encircled the entire glade allowing entrance only through the arches. Now all that remains is a few sections here and there. Inside of that a circle of stone pillars surrounded four ornate podiums each with a different design of carefully stacked stone. Most of those stones have long since been weathered away by brutal storms, but symbols carved into several stones remain.

_{A recreation of Hvergelmir shortly before the first landing.}

History

_{Yggdrasil breaking through the arches of Hvergelmir.}

Ever since being discovered nine years after the first landing while searching for habitable land on Niflheim, Hvergelmir has been a point of interest for all who learn of it. Many historians, scientists, and religious leaders have come to study the eerie arches. Even so, very little has been discovered about Hvergelmir. Every attempt at dating the arches has been inconclusive, no one has been able to interpret the possible use of Hvergelmir, and the writing that is visible has not been able to be translated.

_{An artists rendition of the planets aligning.}

Pronunciation Guide

Hvergelmir kvair-kel-meor
Ragnarok Rak-nar-ok
Níðhöggr neeth-hur-kr
Niflheim nif-l-haym
Yggdrasil yg-dra-sil
Fyrri Dagbók fi-ri dak-bawk

RUINED STRUCTURE
No one knows when Hvergelmir was built or when it was abandoned.

Type

World wonder