Novels

Travel to Belliboos is limited, as the region is largely surrounded by mountains. The most reliable method is travel by hot-air balloon, though there is a train line that cuts through the mountains. It is perhaps a more direct route, but certainly has less in the way of impressive views.

The Red Morning Balloon Ferry is probably the best option for most travelers, as they also include several minor convenience services, such as a currency exchange and purchasable guide-books and maps.

Travel by balloon will take anywhere from two to three hours, depending on the wind, while the train will only take one and a half hours. There are no meals on the train, however, while most balloon ferries provide at least a small snack and drink for purchase.

Once a towering empire that spanned countless kingdoms and continents, the Old Kingdom has since dwindled in strength and prestige to the polished museum piece it is now. Countless ancient legends have their origins in the Old Kingdom, with historical mores and cultural tropes spreading through the ages. It is suggested by some historians that the world culture that exists today is largely a byproduct of the Old Kingdom. I, of couese, don’t know any facts of the matter. What I do know is that the Old Kingdom is a place of deep historical significance.

Personally, I have an awkward relationship to the historical. I am a person who tries to concern themselves with the present. While I do not dispute the importance of history, much less its impact on current events, I find myself somewhat ambivalent when standing in front of ancient artifacts or visiting the locations of important historical events.

Getting to Morlastig’gna and the Achinean Spire is surprisingly simple, given its inhospitable location. The Green-Ridge Flier branch-line departs from the Logoruun Spike in the evening, and arrives at the Morlastig’gna Tail at lunchtime the following day. Tickets will likely run you up to F200, though there are sometimes seasonal specials for local holidays and festivals, and sometimes bulk rates.

The Green-Ridge Flier doesn’t have seats, but rather cubbies for passengers to sleep and recline in. The Flier doesn’t serve evening meals, leaving late enough that passengers are expected to settle dinner on their own. They do, however, offer breakfasts from simple to hearty, and a small midday snack to tide you over until you can find lunch in Morlastig’gna.

Winterkesh is one of the larger regions in Flororenghashst, and yet is one of the most difficult to reach. Winterkesh is an isolated place with only one reliable method of ingress: the Icepick Engine in Esquan.

While there are several ways to reach Esquan, the simplest starts in Fhanna, which is relatively easy to get to from any of Flororenghashst’s urban centers. Once there, purchase a ticket to New Dally on the Dingrun Flyer for F50 a seat. Trains leave twice a day; late morning and early afternoon.

When you reach New Dally, you will have to cross town to the Stables, a caravan meet-up point where you can purchase a seat on any caravan heading for Esquan. There are no train lines connecting the larger cities to Esquan, due to the mountainous topography and inhospitable climate. This is the longest leg of the journey, and may take up to a day if the weather is bad. Remember to bring warm clothing and snow-gear.

The Akcriskkap is a region of over five-thousand square lengths in the Egralpian sea. Easily reachable by ferry or flight, your best bet for cheap and reliable transit is the Barkwater Ferry. Operating out of Hamllerdad, the Barkwater Ferry travels to and from the Akcriskkap four times a day. Tickets run 100F to 130F, and the journey will take about three hours to reach Nightgroan. For 50F more, you can purchase a private cabin.

Alternately, chartered flights disembark from Gromswik Local at semi-regular intervals. Prices are steeper, ranging from 200 to 300 face, and the trip will only take about three-quarters of an hour. The flights will drop you on a small island just off the coast of Akcriskkap, from which you will have to charter a river-boat to get you to Nightgroan proper, for only 20F.

Travel to and from the Ironbar Cave Forest is largely hangled by the Fhanna Ranger service and their guides. While traveling to the forest on your own is certainly doable, either via charter-bus service or rented vehicle, the Ranger service discourages entering the forest without a properly accredited guide.

The Fhanna Ranger Guide service operates out of Moortla City, which has several available train lines and plane routes to various travel hubs across the world. Prices will vary based on your origin and travel-line of choice.

Purchasing a trip to the Ironbar Cave Forest will cost anywhere from four to ten face, depending on which hicking path you wish to take, which guide service you purchase, and how much equipment you need to rent.

Called the Land of Errant Hopes, Flororenghashst is not a land for the timid wanderer, nor the inexperienced tourist. I don’t want to frighten you away from visiting this rich and savory land, full of wine-dark shadows and smokey forests. While it may be an acquired taste for some, the land of Flororenghashst is well worth experiencing.

All the same, I’ve been told Flororenghashst is like an exotic meal. If you don’t know how to hold the utensils or what sauces to dip different bites in, you won’t get the full experience. The people of Flororenghashst are a sturdy and humble sort, with a rich history centuries in the making. There is a deep reverence for history and the education of children in the country, and tourists are expected to show an interest in the history of any town they visit, restaurant they eat in, and even people they meet. It is not uncommon for a simple “hello, how are you” to turn into a long folk-tale about the surrounding region and how the building you stand in was built.

Poshlin Parade is the large mountain range on the eastern edge of Eddling. Visible from across the country, Poshlin Parade extends from the Gorland Plains to the south, all the way to the Eddling border and Silver Lake to the north. The White Needle is its tallest peak, at 2,400m, and contains a total of 27 peaks higher than 1,000m. Reaching Poshlin Parade is as simple as catching a train or bus to either Loreidell or Grumwei, the two closest towns, and chartering a bus-service to one of the several base-camps from there.

Hiking the Poshlin Parade is best done with a guide. While the paths are generally safe, they are not easy to climb, and there are several places where passage becomes dangerous without suitable experience. Hiring a guide is simple enough, as there are multiple tour-groups and guide-services in both Loreidell and Grumwei for reasonable prices.

The southern edge of the Adamant Cliffs is accessible by Lopna-drawn cart, and a semi-regular taxi-service operates out of Loreidell. The northern edge will require hiking to reach, due to the narrow passes.

Nottish Ins is one of the largest principalities in Eddling, and the Rutile City is one of its largest urban centers. Most major train-, ship-, and airlines offer service to the Rutile City; check your company of choice for their schedules.

Travel within the Rutile City is made slightly more complex than usual due to the city’s different eras of construction; the central district is made of curving roads and angled corners, while the outer streets are placed on a more common urban grid. This makes travel in the outer districts predictable, while the inner-city is a bit more organic.

In the outer-city, trolleys and rolling-trams travel down every fourth street, and cost only a Qua-Tin to ride. Most of the trolleys serve one street only, while the outermost streets are served by “ring-trolleys,” or trams that travel a circular route around the city, rather than back and forth. These trolleys are labeled by letter instead of street-name; the A-Line, for example, instead of the Grimsby-Street-Line.

Hapsprat is on the eastern edge of Eddling, and is accessible by train and bus. Bus travel is best purchased from the neighboring city of New Ricland for only 3 scrip. This is the cheapest method of reaching Hapsprat, if time is not a concern; it can take anywhere from one to two hours to get from New Ricland to Hapsprat, considering traffic and weather conditions.

Train travel is the fastest, though service is unreliable; Hapsprat is small enough that trains only visit once or twice a day at most. It can also be expensive, depending on where you purchase your ticket from. All the same, travel from nearby Porriwat takes only 15 minutes.

Once you reach Hapsprat, the Museum of Eddling History is hard to miss. It is easily walkable from the train and bus stations, and there are plenty of local taxis that will drop you right at the muesum’s front door.