Rising City
A lake that could save a city, if only the water were not poison. Rising City fills a flooded basin east of Sinking City, a former metropolitan area swallowed when a massive poisonous lake sprang up in the dry depression. Small islands of land and scrap serve as living areas, connected by oar boats piloted by Lake Rats who control the water and everything that depends on it.
The Lake Rats operate the purification pumps that send water to Sinking City, giving them enormous economic power. They are the only ones who know how to make the water safe, and they charge for the knowledge. The lake water itself causes temporary paralysis to those who drink it and death to those who try to live off it. The reason for its toxicity is known only to the Lake Rats, who keep the secret close.
An unusual choking mist often clouds vision of the shore. During sunset, refraction on the mist creates a blindingly bright orange color that looks like a smoking fire from a distance. The effect is beautiful from afar and dangerous up close.
La Isla de Fuerza rises from the western half, a small island of about thirty people where the Fitness Club, a Telling Visions community, practices strength and fitness culture. Weak members get voted off the island. A broadcast tower and old TV station provided the tapes that inspired the community. The Submerged Prison, operated by the Federales as part of a deal for shore-patrolling rights, consists of a tower whose top peaks six feet above the lake. An iron hatch is the only entrance. Sound amplifies through the entire structure, driving prisoners mad from the constant din. If the water level rose, everyone inside would drown.
The Dire Shore forms the western border with Sinking City, a grey mud beach with no plant life. Infected are drawn here in numbers that suggest something in the mud itself calls to them. Some say the dead are not just drawn to the shore but birthed from it. Natural Ones adapted to the lake waters defend their territories against outsiders, and Sinking City's gang conflicts occasionally spill onto the islands. The water continues to rise.
The Lake Rats operate the purification pumps that send water to Sinking City, giving them enormous economic power. They are the only ones who know how to make the water safe, and they charge for the knowledge. The lake water itself causes temporary paralysis to those who drink it and death to those who try to live off it. The reason for its toxicity is known only to the Lake Rats, who keep the secret close.
An unusual choking mist often clouds vision of the shore. During sunset, refraction on the mist creates a blindingly bright orange color that looks like a smoking fire from a distance. The effect is beautiful from afar and dangerous up close.
La Isla de Fuerza rises from the western half, a small island of about thirty people where the Fitness Club, a Telling Visions community, practices strength and fitness culture. Weak members get voted off the island. A broadcast tower and old TV station provided the tapes that inspired the community. The Submerged Prison, operated by the Federales as part of a deal for shore-patrolling rights, consists of a tower whose top peaks six feet above the lake. An iron hatch is the only entrance. Sound amplifies through the entire structure, driving prisoners mad from the constant din. If the water level rose, everyone inside would drown.
The Dire Shore forms the western border with Sinking City, a grey mud beach with no plant life. Infected are drawn here in numbers that suggest something in the mud itself calls to them. Some say the dead are not just drawn to the shore but birthed from it. Natural Ones adapted to the lake waters defend their territories against outsiders, and Sinking City's gang conflicts occasionally spill onto the islands. The water continues to rise.
History
The basin east of Sinking City was dry ground once. When the water table beneath Sinking City collapsed from generations of over-pumping, the geological disruption sent water flooding into the eastern depression. What had been a metropolitan area became a lake, and the lake proved to be poisonous.
The Lake Rats were the first to adapt. They established control over the purification process and the pumps that send clean water westward, creating a monopoly that gives them leverage over every faction in Sinking City. The Federales negotiated shore-patrolling rights in exchange for space to operate the Submerged Prison. The Drowning Children, a Natural One tribe, adapted to the poisoned waters entirely and claimed the shallows as Drowner's Rest.
The water has not stopped rising. Low-lying islands shrink with each season, and the Submerged Prison would flood entirely if the level increased significantly. The infected congregation at the Dire Shore has worsened over time, suggesting the lake's influence extends beyond its shores. What lies beneath the water, and why it poisons everything it touches, remains a secret the Lake Rats have never shared.
The Lake Rats were the first to adapt. They established control over the purification process and the pumps that send clean water westward, creating a monopoly that gives them leverage over every faction in Sinking City. The Federales negotiated shore-patrolling rights in exchange for space to operate the Submerged Prison. The Drowning Children, a Natural One tribe, adapted to the poisoned waters entirely and claimed the shallows as Drowner's Rest.
The water has not stopped rising. Low-lying islands shrink with each season, and the Submerged Prison would flood entirely if the level increased significantly. The infected congregation at the Dire Shore has worsened over time, suggesting the lake's influence extends beyond its shores. What lies beneath the water, and why it poisons everything it touches, remains a secret the Lake Rats have never shared.
Geography
Rising City is an entirely flooded area east of Sinking City, where a massive poisonous lake fills a former dry basin. Small islands of land and scrap have been developed into living areas, many containing water pumps that send purified water to Sinking City. Travel between islands is done on small oar boats, often led by Lake Rats. An unusual choking mist frequently clouds vision of the shore, and during sunset, refraction creates a blindingly bright orange glow that resembles a fire from afar.
Key locations include La Isla de Fuerza in the western half, the Submerged Prison that peaks six feet above the waterline, and the Dire Shore forming the western border with Sinking City. Drowner's Rest, the Drowning Children settlement, occupies the shallowest northern reaches near the scrap wall. The Broken Wall gap sits where the scrap barrier between the two cities was never repaired after the flooding.
Key locations include La Isla de Fuerza in the western half, the Submerged Prison that peaks six feet above the waterline, and the Dire Shore forming the western border with Sinking City. Drowner's Rest, the Drowning Children settlement, occupies the shallowest northern reaches near the scrap wall. The Broken Wall gap sits where the scrap barrier between the two cities was never repaired after the flooding.
