Aeon is a gigantic city, situated near a natural port in a huge bay.
history:
It was born from two warring cities of names long-forgotten: the East City and the West City. The East City was a major trading post, and its people grew rich by creating beautiful art with the power of Psionics - and stealing it from across the planes with the same power. The West City was a trading city, as well, but it was a port town, and they would build some of the greatest ships and psionic trinkets ever known.
Both sides wanted what the other had very badly, so they waged a great and terrible war against each other for centuries.
The war finally stopped when the ruler of the West City, Arturius, and the Consular which ruled the East City reached an agreement: The East City would gain access to all the West City's goods, and in return, the West City's nobles got a seat on the East City's Consular. Many people in the East City suspect that more than one member of the Consular was under mind control.
Over time, the cities have spread out their duties and economies more evenly between each other, and certain Houses moved into the East City. Today, the City is separated into three districts: the Western City, the Capital, and the Eastern City.
Aeon today (description):
The districts of Aeon are separated by walls, and the city itself (except for the Port District of the Western City) is surrounded by a high wall made of stone, marble, and ectoplasm. The Eastern City is still a trade area, but the Western City has turned into an area with primarily farmers and skilled craftsmen, especially blacksmiths. The Capital is now the heart of Aeon, and it houses the Consular Building, the high-ranking officers' quarters, and the Psion Academy, where the psions of the various disciplines are trained. It is situated so that the river Xerxes runs directly through it.
The Capital City itself is surrounded by a wall, in addition to the walls separating its 'area' from the Eastern and Western cities (it is situated between them.) The Capital Area holds a decently-sized forest, which itself is home to a rather large community of Blues and Halflings, and the Hive City of the Aeon Dromites.
There is a main road connecting the Eastern and Western Cities, passing through the Capital City. It then separates into several other small roads, which lead to the City's various trading partners.
Aeon is currently at war with the barbaric tribes known as the Horde that exist near its border, although there has been a recent lull in the fighting...
Military, Police and the Wall Guard:
The entire City of Aeon is surrounded by a huge wall known as the Wall of Ages. It is made out of various different minerals and held together by the psionic powers of the Shapers that originally made it and ectoplasm. It is at least twenty feet across, and eighty feet high.
The Wall is guarded and patrolled by the Legion of Aeon. Siegemasters, Soulbolts, Seers, and Aegii are stationed all along the Wall, making sure to keep unknown visitors out. These brave men and women are known as the Wall Guard.
The Legion is separated into four Companies, two controlled by the West, two controlled by the East.
The City itself is policed by all manner of Astral Constructs, controlled by house Antiges in the West, and Alindas in the East.
There are many different types of constructs employed in keeping the City safe.
Noble Houses:
The City of Aeon is controlled economically and socially by powerful Noble Houses, which each focus on one of the psionic disciplines. Almost everyone in the city has ties to at least one House.
House Dethan: The seers of house Dethan are reknowned for their ability to predict the outcome of unfolding events with astounding accuracy. Lead by the feared Matriarch Auriana Dethan (a woman well feared throughout the city for knowing people's secrets), this house also boasts the most spies; it's an open secret that House Dethan has an academy dedicated to espionage.
House Lean'sith: The telepaths of House Lean'Sith are widely sought after as psionic bodyguards, rooting out spies and protecting their clients from (mainly) the divinatory abilities of House Dethan. At one point engaged to Auriana, patriarch Acastus Lean'sith is oft quoted as having said about her during their engagement: "I'd sooner marry a viper; at least you know the when the viper will bite you." The calling off of their marriage was the cause of the current strife between the two great houses.
House Colgar: The nomads of House Colgar run the lucrative docks of the city, ensuring that goods flow into and out of the city, while taking a healthy profit. The only house whose patriarch, Dorin Colgar, does not fill the council seat provided by his family (Dorin believes that it's more important to make money than "play at running the city"), Dorin's son Alenth currently holds the position on the council.
House Antiges: The kineticists of House Antiges specialize in the development and testing of psionic weapons and other magic items. Lead by matriarch Kalistril Antiges (A well-loved figure who held the position of Primus Centurion for over 40 years before stepping down to lead her house on the death of her father), Kalistril has refocused her house from being simple "demolitionists" into an economic powerhouse within the city, which also employs the majority of the city's Aegii.
House Alindas: the shapers of House Alindas were the largest house overall until the death of the patriarch of House Antiges, employing 99% of the city's Aegii and other craftsman, and having a stranglehold on the manufactured goods trade in the city. All of that changes when the exceptionally popular Kalistril Antiges took over her house. Wooing away the best craftsman of House Alindas, House Antiges has seen unparalleled growth in the past few years. Unable to attack Lady Kalistril directly, matriarch Caocuri Alindas has taken to hiring industrial spies and assassins to take out key parts of the House Antiges infrastructure. So far Caocuri has kept the war to the shadows, but it seems to be only a matter of time before it spills over into the light.
House Maoril: the egoists of House Maoril secretly run almost all of the inns and taverns in Aeon through a tangled web if shell companies and proxies. specializing in performance art, House Maoril prides itself on being the "soul" of the city. Lead by the vivacious patriarch Thorig Maoril (widely considered the most eligible bachelor in the city since the death of his wife), House Maoril enjoys a (for the most part) well deserved reputation of charity. Recently, however, dark rumors have begun to spread about the death of Thorig's wife, which he has been unable to quell.
Houses Lean'Sith, Colgar, and Antiges are based in the Western City, and Houses Maoril, Alindas, and Dethan are based in the Eastern City.
Races of Aeon:
The city enjoys a large population of all psionic races, who live alongside the majority, humans.
The largest race within the city, the Goliaths, are often employed as Aegii and smiths, owing to their innate resistance to heat. They have lived in Aeon since time immemorial, and even though they are sometimes treated as 'lesser' beings by the humans because of their natural clumsiness, their strong ties to the various houses, especially Lean'Sith, ensure that they are well protected.
A tribe of blue, psionically-talented Goblins, known as Blues, live in the hills surrounding the Capital Area. The Consular puts down their resistance quickly whenever they revolt, and so they have been cowed into servitude of the Great City. Many of them scorn their petty brothers and sisters and go to make a living as merchants and kineticists in the City proper. The Blues are favored by House Colgar, and are often sent as diplomats to the Goblin Kingdoms to the south.
Aeon boasts its own brood of hard-working Dromites, who revealed themselves from the underground and built their Hive City upwards shortly after the Capital was built. The Dromites live all around Aeon, but most live in or around the Hive City that was built within the Capital City. However, there is a small group that believes the Dromites should never have come to the surface, thinking that they have been used as slaves by the Humans. The Aeon Brood is favored by House Antiges.
The Xephs were originally nomads, but those who were trapped within the City when the walls were built have managed to make a living as entertainers and performers. However, they have also recently been recruited as spies and politicians, using their natural charm to their advantage. The Xephs are favored by House Maoril.
Almost all nobles and wealthy people in the City have been turned into Elans by this point, and their children are often put through the procedure so that they can become great psions and politicians. The Elans are favored by no one House, instead being in the leadership roles of the City.
The Maenads have an interesting story:
the Maenads:
early on during the war with the horde, House Alindas shapers managed to create a new race of psionic super-soldiers, the Maenads. Changed from normal humans using a ritual (which has since been more or less lost to the houses) into Maenads, they were initially incredibly successful on the battlefield: able to channel psionic might into their body, making them faster, stronger, and tougher; as an unexpected benefit, Maenads began manifesting psionics in a way that had never been seen before. At first, House Alindas was thrilled. They would be able to muscle into the lucrative bodyguard industry and also have access to a unique style of psionics.
As time went on, however,Alindas began to see just how hard to control their new creations were. in addition to being prone to uncontrollable outbursts, Maenads were quickly shown to have another major issue: their ability to quickly breed with humans, half-giants, and even some of the captive members of the horde. any children from such a mating always ended up being Maenad. Alindas knew that they would have to act quickly, or all of Aeon would be overrun with MAenads, who would breed out the remainder of the races in the city within a couple of generations.
Fortunately, it appeared that the process by which someone ascended to being an Elan prevented them from producing a Maenad. instead, the product of all such upbringings were stillborn.
After presenting their findings to the Council, a decree was passed unanimously within the council that stated that any Maenad female that wished to have a child must first serve 3 consecutive terms in the legions. In an effort to quell what they knew would be a tide of uprising, the Maenads were given their own colony and a seat on the council.
Goliaths:
The massive Goliaths were the original inhabitants of Aeon. When the Humans came from the east and west, the Goliaths accepted them, seeing that the Humans were simply there to trade. The Goliaths were the people who originally showed the Humans the wonders of psionics - how the mind could be focused, and used to manipulate people and things. The Goliaths helped the Humans build the first of the beautiful buildings where the townspeople still live and work.
Unfortunately, owing to their natural trust, the Goliaths were subtly subjugated by the society that they had built up.
The Goliaths are still treated as second-class in many of the more rural areas of the Empire, so long as the other races can keep their distance. Because of this, the Goliaths tend to live near the more powerful Elans in the City, who respect them for the part they played in the City's creation.
Goliaths tend to either pledge their service to the Legion, where their ferocity in battle and great strength help make them accepted, or they join the Monastery in the Eastern City, where they learn how to use their psionic aptitude to defend the City in times of need.
Politics:
The City is ruled by a Consular, which is a representative government. Each of the six Houses send a representative to the Capital thrice per year, typically the house patriarch or matriarch. The leader of the Legion (the Primus Centurion) and the leader of the Maenad Islands are present as well. As a result of how the City has evolved, the Consular has become a power struggle between nearly all aspects of the City - Eastern and Western, old House rivalries, money for the Legion, trading, et cetera.
