Skae

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  Located less than a mile from the coast of the Expanse, the island of Skae is home to the northernmost human civilisation on Etrea. The Skaesh are an ancient, hardy people, with their culture emphasising the importance of community, tradition, and a balance with nature. Their striking whale bone shelters pepper the landscape, whilst their vibrant paintings adorn both rock and ice, bringing unexpected splashes of colour to the otherwise stark landscape.
  For most of the year, Skae is connected to the Expanse by thick layers of sea ice. For at least a month in the summer, this sea ice becomes a mixture of slush and open water; this usually occurs during Canus, but can happen as late as Vatrus.
  Although around six thousand square miles, Skae is a rather barren island, with little in the way of flora and fauna. The majority of the ground is bare rock, and much of that rock is covered in ice and snow. Most of the coastline is dominated by stony beaches, with patches of dark sand that are often covered in frost. The land has some vast cave systems, however, where some hardy life can be found, such as some varieties of lichen and the giant amphibians known as kguga. The majority of the cave systems are flooded, making them unsuitable for human habitation - with some notable exceptions, such as the cave settlement of Nguntakki.