Gylynos, the Glass Citadel

From the beauty of the bridges of Kylix to the serenity of the orchards of Polem, the island citadel of Gylynos is unparalleled in both beauty and innovation. This glass citadel-city is nested in an immense quartz cradle, carved from crystal at the center of the inland sea. It is radial and symmetrical when viewed from the air, a great pinwheel of shining glass and dancing light. This grand city serves as a triumphant piece of art and the capital city of Veile.

Despite the Aurumel tendency to embellish their works with more ornament and extravagance than necessary by the estimation of other Folk, Gylynos is deceptively precise in its design. Fanciers of architectural beauty claim it has something to do with some elder crafters who sought to arrive at some crazed single theory of assembly, while the more sensible realize that the materials themselves — glass and crystal, with accents of the smooth black stone found at the bottom of the inland sea — are themselves as unforgiving as the cruelest master. Each piece must be meticulously balanced against the next by the masters and their laborers and, if an error is made, rebuilt and reconfigured from the very beginning.

The quarters of Gylynos are stacked on top of each other, with the harbor level at the bottom and the manses of the highborn set high in the spires, connected by spun-glass bridges and walkways leading to secluded balconies and gardens. The quarters between are filled with a dizzying array of pleasures and enlightenments, from feast halls and palatial brothels to galleries and towering libraries.

The laws of Gylynos are almost entirely aesthetic. Unlike the laws of the seven cities, which are determined by the whimsy of deranged aristocrats or the arbitrary will of a privileged elite, the Code of Gylynos controls appearances and public appropriateness. Certainly the palaces of the ladies and lords of the place contain the same decadence and perversion as anywhere else they dwell, but the debauchery does not spill out into the streets of Gylynos as it does elsewhere on the shard. No, the citadel of Gylynos, through its rules, seeks a sort of visual perfection, which is the crux of its legalism. Here, design and beauty are the law. It is for this reason that the houses of the rich are laden with passages and secret access points to prevent public embarrassment or abject disgrace. Unlike the public face of Gylynos, which shines forever with unbroken dignity, in these tunnels and backways it is not uncommon to find the bodies of disappointing servants or the would-be suitors of Aurumel mistresses that failed to please or appease.

There can be no doubt that Gylynos is a banner of pride for the Aurumel. But, for those who know, the entire island of Gylynos is a citadel of war. It is here that the arms are made for the Aurumel — those heretical instruments that can weaponize the very Overlight itself, those things the Haarkeen call laser rifles. Beyond all else, however, is the Golden Blade of Gylynos — a laser cannon extending through the very core of the island and believed to be empowered by the rainbow light trapped in the walls of every structure in the city.

It is in the concealed hangars that the shipwrights assemble the sky flotillas and their arsenals. The airships are a pivotal part of not only the defense of Veile, but also the functioning economy of all of the Seven. Without the easy and regular transportation from shard to shard provided by the airships, much of what we take for granted in the current state of the world would cease to be. It is for this reason that the Shipwright’s Guild, and specifically those families and lineages responsible for the creation of the airships, are among the most powerful in all of Veile.