Eva Cendre

From the Ashes

"Just a word of advice; don't ever wager against a Cendrian. Those people just don't know when to admit defeat."

— Fournan, Caravan Master

Located in the Northern Frontier of the Rhyliss Empire, Eva Cendre is a curious place to look at. It has been on maps for several generations, yet it looks like was built in recent years. There is very little wear on the buildings, and coats of paint haven't even begun to fade in the sunlight. There are still buildings in construction where people swear they lived for several years, or have been passed down from their parents. None of this is untrue or misleading, because Eva Cendre is in fact still being built. Or, thanks to an intense fire, it is being rebuilt where the older city once stood.

Eva Cendre began as a series of lumber camps slowly spreading through the evergreen forest, and then turned to being a safe hub for trading caravans to pass through before entering Estebrook and the other northern kingdoms. It was built around a hill, with numerous major efforts being made to adjust the terrain and make it easier to expand. A valley which had a small river running through was first dammed up and filled, before an aqueduct was burrowed through that space to keep the river active. Wooden walls were put in place before stone ones, and most of the city was actually quite taller than the surrounding terrain to make it easier to defend. The local Legion fort was actually constructed underground, along the interior of the retaining walls. A significant portion of the city is actually located inside the "filled valley", including storage cellars where supplies are kept in case of a siege.

However, these cellars became an issue in 1520 AF when an oil lantern was left unattended and accidentally ignited dry timber being stored for future expansion efforts. The underground area became a channel for swiftly-spreading fire which would escape into the open air through airways. It was said these blasts had surprisingly intense flames taller than most people. With it being impossible to fight the fire underground, the city was quickly evacuated and it was fortunate the known casualties was limited to a small fraction of the populace.

As soon as the damage was investigated and funeral services completed, work began on removing the burned husks of older buildings and new construction was planned. More stonework was done, along with plaster coatings on buildings made primarily with timber, as a means to prevent this from happening again. Many cisterns were built to collect water, and residents organized efforts to respond quickly to any more threats of fire. The Order of Walls inducted them into their ranks, but allowed them to remain largely seperate as "the Fire Wardens". Ten years after the fire, Eva Cendre has now mostly recovered and made Cendrians known for tenacity in the face of losing everything.

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Type

City

Inhabitant Demonym

Cendrian

Owning Organization

Rhyliss Imperium