Retracing

URGENT MISSIVE, PLEASE READ!

i am writing to you all, leaders of the corners of the world, for i am the apprentice of the master cartographer (or, as i knew him, map lord), and he has sadly just passed away. while his health has been in a steady decline for some time and this is no surprise, i cannot help but feel a great sadness, most of all because he has left me an especially dire task. i am afraid i must redraw the entire world maps, which my master had finally gathered the information to complete right before he passed away.

luckily, i have inherited a few things to help me on this journey! i have searched everywhere and came up with a few items:
- the set of map-making gear, which conveniently folds into a small pod-shaped item
- a cane, possibly imbued with magic? good for thwomping!
- a neat hat
- an enchanted ear-ring through which he used to communicate with the world, that will let me talk to people miles away by sending out some sort of magical signal that can be picked up by most dream-catchers or the like. im not entirely sure of the mechanics behind it.

this is obviously a great tragedy to the world, as my master had made his name known far and wide before his passing, venturing to all eight corners and in-between too! that is why i beseech of you a particular item you each hold: the piece of the map pertaining to your location of the world, which my master would have given you as a gift, some time ago.

if youve lost it, fret not, as i can redraw it as long as you provide me with an adequate description. for you see, i am an excellent mapmaker, but i have never step foot outside of this tower. i will require much aid if i am to complete the task given to me, and finish the map of the world as my master once sought to!

the map fragments you give me will combine to make the base of the world map, which i shall record all my discoveries on immediately, so i do not fall into a similar trap as my master did. there are eight missing map fragments that make up this great continent of ours. each one should contain your capitol city of residence, and the surrounding areas, and be somewhat eighth-shaped, if you do not remember what it looks like.

please help, as i fear this world may be forever in peril if i do not complete this map!
cartographers apprentice
- lun

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huh???

Suggest a drawing with the bolded parameters above, and see what happens! Lun is very important, and so is her quest. A description will of course do as well.

To the sender of this letter that feels to be stuck in my brain, self-proclaimed as "lun," that lowercase might be an intentional stylistic choice and I wish to respect it,

Please observe the attached description of the area surrounding the wonderful city of Beblort. Our lands are flat but arable, which is why we live very far away from them.



Thank you for your consideration.

Dear Cartographer Lun,

Thank you for contacting us. I had the pleasure of meeting your Master during his time in Valeport all those years ago. Though it saddens me to hear of his death, it is good to know that you are carrying on in his footsteps. Unfortunately we are no longer in possession of your Master's original maps of the region, though our archivists have drafted a handful of official copies. Of course, we cannot part with those either, but I've done my best to duplicate them herein.

Our city of Valeport lies on a river that runs to the sea, north of the Tirsalfang Mountains. As with the other local cities in the region, we specialize in mining and fishing, and are known for our ironworks, and for shipping quality metal goods all along the northeastern coasts. The foothills north of the mountains are warm, rainy, and forested, though the land becomes drier as you move east and south. Across the mountains to the south lie the Red Sand Badlands. Many Gremlin cities dot the cave networks in the mountains and foothills along the edge of the badlands. They are one of our most important trade partners, and their mechanical expertise, engineers, and knowledge of ancient tools and relics have been of great benefit to our mining operations in the region.

I do hope this information aids you in your duty. Should you make your way to the region, please contact me! I would be honored to meet you. In addition, your Master left something with our archivists when he departed. As his protegee, I think it's only right that we return it to you.

Sincerely,
Councillor Sera Tallowick, Valeport City Council.

To the Cartographer;

Portus Occidenta (more commonly, Portus) does possess an earlier map of the city and its immediate surrounds. Unfortunately, we do not have any of the late Master's works of a larger scale, but we hope that this will aid the reconstruction process.

Our grand city straddles the Sodland Lagoon, which is fed periodically by the Laymal Lakes upstream. Between them is 'The Locks' - a mechanical wonder of canal locks, water wheels and a hydraulic elevator used to transport ships and goods between the two bodies of water and over a fifty-metre tall waterfall. The lagoon itself features a series of marshes but also provides a protected harbour for ships and a rich fishery. Our population is large and growing, something we have begun to accommodate through new settlements elsewhere, chiefly along the roads within our territory.

We may not have the armies of some, but this proud city-state of ours is famed for its industry; from glasses crafted from dune sands trapped under the Verdes Forests, to giant salted halibut, to the timbers sawn at the Locks mills to the legendary ships laid down in our drydocks. While we do have our own farms, it is our trade with others that brings us prosperity. It allows us to maintain our mighty city walls and commission many cartographers such as yourself. We need not care for the archaic gremlin-tainted items of purported rivals like Valeport.

Our fair Republic is a jewel without peers in the West. Oh, but you think us boastful, no doubt!
Visit and you will find us modest.

Most Respectfully,

Charles III de Bouchard
Mayor-Marquis of Portus Occidenta

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Spoiler

Hello, hello, hello! Sorry for the delay, it takes a while for messages to reach the City of Vak.
While the people of Vac are not yet as far ahead as the other cities, we are still one of the biggest exporters of the Creative arts. Almost all paintings and pottery alike emerge from our beloved City. I do hope we all come along just fine!

Regards, Dan K. , City mayor

Attent a Carttor Lun
To the attention of cartographer Lun:

KENREGIEM EI ENNO-ECHAR recepti carttorquetmissiv a Carttor Lun. Carttorarach ancifugi requetiv a aterasimm tilla iliecarttores, a perabeliv.
The kenregiem(?) of Enno-Echar has received this request for a map from the cartographer Lun. The esteemed ancient master cartographer who had passed away bequeathed us a relic map to us which was destroyed in the recent great war.

Inna tilla atusiarach quetmissin mieli inna siatt siv siensti carttor, siv carttore finai. Sais perbolach maren sechregiem. Annai mabelach, annai fusccein.
It is appreciated for the apprentice of the late master to request this from us, however, for our own cartographers, using our satellite scrying methods, have been able to pierce through an unfortunately placed veil which does not have to do with any neighboring polities, and produce a new map directly by imaging. Indeed, we are still at peace since those years ago. There is no war.

Aren keregach dalaach attorim Enno-Echar sechren sienes en peraach amissi. Siatt echais ei ancimiagsach kessuich kessuin ennsai.
In response, the ruler of the lacquered crimson banner, ruler of Enno-Echar cast out their(?) eyes into the stormclouds. Through our work, we provide you the names of these lands, of ours and our kin.

Amiesiregach Sineiatrin Capital: Sineiatrin (Eye of the world)
Sechamiesiregach Corrieavrim Unrelated capital: Corrieavrim (The untarnished)
Keneshuis eisimach Erchotteim Riverine provincial center: Erchotteim (Golden field)
Keneboas eisimach Saimsach se Oracaanich Oceanic provincial centers: Saimsach and Oracaanich (Seabird and Ocean-fisher)

Sech ushi aid se kenateboach se kensiperach.
There are also many other villages, mountain districts, and barren districts.

Ennoarachi keregach a kenregiem siv sesella karshavach scuvash percu perasaimach attorach corich esiens avatesh perebomach essech fi.
The great ruler (unclear meaning) our kenregiem produces steel, glass, fire, perasaimach(?), red lacquer, gold, esiens(?), stone, and perebomach(?) among other goods and services.

Enno-Echar requetiv atusiach anmiagi mieacui okescinai.
Enno-Echar welcomes the esteemed apprentice with open arms and warm care.

Inna tilla quetmissich avaativ inna siatt kiveiren avaativ arequetich asennsinich.
In the way that you end your message, we alter this to end similarly, before our way of ending, out of respect and interest.

AMISSIV KEREGACH DALAACH ATTOREM ENNO-ECHAR.
Letter from the ruler of the lacquered crimson banner, ruler of Enno-Echar.

Avaat.
End of message.

Am here. Water next to hill and bigger hill. With great forest. In stone and crystal forest. Empty.

To Cartographer Lun

It is unfortunate to hear of the recent passing of the Master Cartographer. When he had visited our great city of Mosenthir, they seemed to have enjoyed the fruits of our labor, trying to turn more of the desert lands into arable farmlands. While we do still have the map piece that was left with us, we fear that it might not make the trip back without sustaining some sort of damage, which would not do you any good. We have included a duplicated copy of the map piece (that is on a fairly durable textile as to prevent damage in travels) as well as a description of our capital and some of it's surrounding lands. Unfortunately we can't provide too much more in the way of information beyond that, due to a combination of issues regarding traveling in and out of the immediate area (as the Master might have shared once or twice in their travels). The description will be included in this letter so that in the event that the map copy we're sending doesn't make it, you would still have something to work with in your endeavors.

Mosenthir is a bustling metropolis, and an oasis that sits at the end of a valley. While we have historically been a group very invested in the creation and exporting of created textiles, jewelry, and foods harvested from the jungles of Oone, we now also have sparse farmlands that we use for growing crops for our animals as well as for food. It is a nice change away from the inhospitable place that it all used to be, and we have put in much work since the late Master Cartographer's visit to create more live-able spaces. There are a number of villages that dot around the jungle and the coast, as well as the great capital city that sits near the coast. This capital is a great hub for trade, both for the villages within our area between each other, as well as being a useful spot for traveling merchants. One notable landmark that is difficult to miss is Mount Lerine, the mountain that sits close to our settlements, and is the highest point on one of the valley walls.

Hopefully all of this will be useful in your endeavors regarding the late Master Cartographer's work.

~Alesaya, high scholar and minister of Mosenthir

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Spoiler

Most prodigious cartographer Lun,

It is my pleasure to provide you a map-piece of our land. May my contribution provide you with enough knowledge to construct this world map you wish to create. I too look forward for this piece you're about to create.

This land of ours, Ikrikith as we call it, is a cold place. It can snow and frost all year, but thank goodness for the sea that provides us with climatic stability through our long cold seasons that take up three-fourths of our year. Much of our people live in the islands, but most of our commerce occur in the self-proclaimed and defending-titleholder of capitol city, Biziril. It is the unofficial capitol of our nation, and for good reason, as it is where much of the life shines and the money flows in. It is where people go to find new opportunities.

Our lands are blanketed in green forests of pine and fir. Most of our river-water come from the glaciers up in the mountains. It is unfortunate that my kin are not very bright; much of my kin live in modest towns, and lead mostly uneducated lives in the wilderness. Poaching and kidnapping occur in our territories, especially in the mainland out of the islands. Despite such primitiveness of our fellow folk, we have a quite rich culture with many unique stories and tales to tell. Almost all of our fellows are natural-born soldiers just to survive the harsh everyday life. Our people are also quite adaptable, easily learning from any circumstance that arises, but it is not often you see one of our fellows peddle their number-crunching knowledge here in Ikrikith.

With sincere regards,
ēt batuzh zik zeltos (The master of Science), Fenyel.

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