Arsineh

Arsineh is a massive shelled city in the northwestern area of the northernmost island of Alaris. Though the dome itself rises approximately two thousand feet above the ground, the city itself is rather massive, as most of the city is underground, deep within the cliff atop which the dome sits. Arsineh is surrounded by bleak cliffs and mountains, and to the north is the sea. In fact, part of the city sits in an excavation that leads directly to the sea, providing Arsineh with docks. A dome overlays these docks, and another small dome protrudes from the base of the cliff on its land side as well.

Arsineh is currently the only dome city in Alaris to have made any sort of contact with Cardinal officials. Arsineh is perhaps the only dome that is (almost) fully-operational, and claims to have taken over the political duties of the Alaran Cathedral until the old capital dome is restored. Whether or not this claim is true cannot be verified by Cardinalian officials, as the other domes remain silent.

Vital Statistics

Official Name

Dome 614-NNW, colloquially known as Arsineh

Universal Location

On the planet Earth, on the continent of Alaris

National Allegiance

Alaris

Population

274,000 sentients

Population Makeup

266,000 humans

6,000 demihumans

2,000 other (mainly Nameks)

49.2% male

50.17% female

0.63% neuter (such as Nameks)

Geographic and Cultural Description

Regional Geography

The area surrounding Arsineh is mainly cold, rocky cliffs and mountains. Weather conditions are typically stormy; it is rare that there is not snow or lightning and freezing rain. Travelers in the area - if anyone was stupid enough to travel in that harsh environment - would come across sections of land where the earth appears to have been removed in favor of large metal plates. The purpose of these plates is unknown to outsiders; in fact, it is unknown to most of Arsineh's citizens as well.

Within the climate-controlled dome, the air is a constant 22 degrees Celsius (72 degrees Fahrenheit). The above-ground level of the city is well lit and always has a gentle breeze blowing due to the system of fans and vents in the dome.

Local Government

Arsineh's government is made up of a circle of councilmen, each of whom oversees a certain aspect of the city. While there is an innumerable amount of councilmen, only seven are truly important; these seven Councilors make up the governing council of Arsineh.

The government building is on the fourth level of the city, in the central hub of that level. It is colloquially referred to as City Hall, though the building itself has an actual name that nobody ever remembers or cares about. The Councilors meet in City Hall once every two weeks to discuss problems and to develop ways to deal with such concerns. The Councilors themselves do not create city legislature, but may suggest bills to the legislative body of the city government, which itself is a subcouncil, and all prospective legislation must be approved by six of the seven Councilors.

Each Councilor has his or her own subcouncil to head, and these seven subcouncils are located on the fourth level, one in each of the seven sectors. The entire fourth level is made up of government buildings.

City Description

Arsineh is mainly underground, having a small above ground area and eight below ground levels. Each level is set up in a wheel-like pattern, with seven distinct sectors surrounding a central hub area. Elevators and transporters connect the levels, and many levels have escape tunnels.

The top level, the above ground level, is akin to a massive customs agency; most of the buildings on this level are government customs buildings. Its central hub actually takes up most of the land area, and contains these buildings. The sectors are mainly uninhabited, the only structures being defense turrets and automaton lockers.

The first underground level is a merchant level. Most commerce occurs on this level, with the various sectors dealing with various goods.

The second and third levels are residential.

The fourth level is the government level, described in the Local Government section of this sheet.

The fifth level is a mixture of merchant holdings and public buildings, such as schools.

The sixth level is a massive agricultural level; however, most of Arsineh's goods muct come from outside sources.

The seventh level was once an industrial level, but has recently become something of a massive series of slums. Those citizens unable to afford the space on the second and third levels live here, where water, electricity, and purified air tend to be rare.

The eighth level is an industrial and trading level. Most of the level is taken up by massive factories, which produce the city's automaton force and most of its defensive equipment. Sector three opens to the docks dome, and sector seven opens to the land dome.

Life in Arsineh can often be straining. Citizens must carry ID cards at all times, and most buildings have scanners that read these cards without the cards needing to be out in the open. Many buildings only allow access to certain card types, as each level has its own type. Upper level citizens often treat lower level citizens as lower class trash, and the lifts tend not to allow seventh level citizens to rise beyond the fourth level. While the upper levels are well provided for, the seventh and eight levels can feel like some tiny version of Hell for those living there. The degradation of living quality on these lower levels began only a little while ago, and the government claims to be investigating the causes of this unfortunate happening.

The city as a whole distrusts outsiders, and has a particular hatred for mages. While the distrust has been apparent since the city's beginnings, the hatred toward magic has been a recent development after the Council for Mecharcanical Research announced that magic and technology seem to be somewhat exclusive within the dome, though there seem to be no problem with magic and technology interacting in other locales.

While Arsineh has no conventional army, the city itself is a weapon. Buildings are outfitted with cameras, thick metal armor plating, and in some cases defense turrets. The streets of each level have sections that can open to deploy large turrets or automatons, as do the outer walls of the city. Each sector on each level can raise armored walls around it, enclosing it completely from the rest of the level, as can the central hub of each level.