Nova Borealis

The City in The Sky.     The Magic City.     Whichever name you know it by, the city of Nova Borealis is one of the most unique cities on Tarris Six, and for many reasons. It is not a city that can be reached by land.     The city of Nova Borealis is a skyborne city, and can be found primarily residing in the sky amongst the drifting clouds above the earth throughout the year, although it has been known to have descended near the surface although on very few occasions. It is a city built with the assistance of magic and other technologies, and it harbors the homes of many famed wizards and mages from through the years.     Nova Borealis was founded sometime in the early thirteen-hundreds by the Grand Wizard Krolius Borealis when he realized that the subjects he had gathered for the teachings of the elements and other magics would need a place to study freely and without constant disturbance. Thus, after spending many years of searching for the best locations to establish his great school of magic, he found himself looking to the skies above the world's surface. Thus, with the help of scientists, he founded the city of Nova Borealis and the subsequent school which he named the Borealis School of Magic and The Elements. This school would for the first few years of it's life be located in a widely unknown location until the scientists he had partnered with pioneered the construction of massive technological machines that could allow large chunks of ground to be lifted from the earth and suspended in the air at great heights. This technology was continually mass-produced after tests affirmed it's ability to lift large amounts of earth above the ground.     As the years went by and the technology was further improved upon, a massive chunk of land was eventually pulled from the ground and successfully held aloft by the fans and rotor blades that had been manufactured and connected into the ground to keep the earth chunks above the ground. The city of Nova Borealis is now a city of well over two million people in modern times and is still the primary home of mages, witches, elementals, warlocks and other magic-studying individuals. The population of Nova Borealis is made up of many known races from Tarris, these being the Humans, Kitsune, Fielne, Orc, Anseryan and Elves. Even though the city is not very highly populated, the density between races is almost even. Of the Human race, their population within the great flying city above the planet's surface holds to roughly fifty percent of the city, while the Kitsune hold forty-seven percent and the Fielne forty-two percent of the city's population size. The Elves hold approximately thirty-five percent of the population, and the Anseryan take up thirty-three percent of the city's population. The Orc as the last race to have found their magic-studying roots amongst the streets of this ancient flying city hold only to twenty-one percent of the population, indeed the smallest density of them all.      When Nova Borealis was first founded, it was only comprised of a school, the Master's manor and the dormitories in which the students attending the school would live during their tenure. As the years progressed however and more individuals proved themselves capable of learning these ancient magics, the school and it's grounds were expanded upon and increased. It grew from a simple floating school to a small city within a few decades, and by the late fourteen-hundreds or so, the city of Nova Borealis had grown to host several thousands of individuals who had brought their minds and their own working talents to the sky city to give those living there a means of survival and the continuation of their own lifestyles while still living above the surface of the planet. From here the growth only continued onwards, with hundreds if not thousands more moving to the grand flying city to find a new life or to attend the Borealis School of Magic and The Elements, which is still managed by the ancient wizard himself to this day.     Nova Borealis is now a city divided by districts to keep the populous organized. These districts have also been separated by large bridges suspended between the different islands. There are five districts, with each one devoted to a different aspect of life for the city. The first district is Ozon, which is home to the manufacturing and industrial section of the city. This is also the district where the majority of flights coming to and from Nova Borealis will be located, with the floating docks often packed with ships of all shapes and sizes transporting goods and passengers to and from the city and the planet's surface waiting below. It is also home to the NovaStar Transport Company, the manufacturer of a majority of the ships that belong to the city and which move those goods and services between the city and the ground. The second district is called Exalos, and is home to the residents of the city. They live here, and travel across several large bridges to reach the main city of Nova Borealis. Most of these bridges are built as either sloped suspension bridges or drawbridges that can be controlled from command stations to open or close them in case of an emergency. This does allow the islands to be separated from one another periodically, but the flight technology has been constructed in such a way that even when disconnected from the main island, the separated one will remain steadily on course with it's larger neighbor. If one stands on the promenades of Exalos, Ozon and Borealis and looks down, they are often welcomed with clear skies and an open, panoramic view of either the land or waters below as the city continues on it's seemingly endless flight path across the world. The third district is the Cirrus district, and is home to the commercial section of the city such as the shops and other venues, although the shops and other venues do extend far into the main island and mix with the homes from the Exalos district which also merges onto the main island where the magic school is located. The fourth district is known as the Ether district, and is home to the entertainment section of the city, some of which also merges into the main island with the Exalos and Cirrus districts to provide a sprawling cityscape that equally covers the surface of the many floating islands, some of which are much smaller than the others and only hold a few parts of their respective districts above the ground and beside the main islands. Each of these islands is connected to the main island by a collection of automated bridges that run by a schedule, opening and closing especially when airships are moving through to transport passengers around the city through the local airspace, as a ship diverting from these specified airlanes may become disconnected from the airwaves of the islands and become stranded unless they can find a safe place to land on the surface without risking a dangerous crash on the surface.      If one looks to the city from the ground, they will be left with the sight of a very intricate network of rotor blades, large fabric wings suspended by large wooden masts and other pieces of technology, as well as tangles of catwalks and other maintenance structures that are used to keep the machines running while the city continues to fly. They must be monitored routinely and with great care to prevent the intricate machinery from breaking down and causing a potential accident to the islands that are kept aloft by the intricate and powerful machinery.      One of the most advanced types of airships was also pioneered here, this being the Dirigiship, a large vessel primarily constructed for flying either long or short distances depending on their size and capability. They are primarily made of metal coaches suspended from underneath a very large fabric balloon filled with helium due to it's lighter-than-air properties. They can also be constructed to appear like vessels akin to sailing ships of varying sizes and shapes, also suspended from an appropriately-sized balloon yet still filled with helium rather than any other gas. Their largest ship was named The Albatross, and served as the main transport vessel for the school attendants between the school and the surface for the first few decades before being given a second vessel to accompany it, named The Gentille, a slightly smaller version of The Albatross but also built to be slightly faster than it's predecessor. Both of these vessels have been integrated into the Nova Borealis Historical Museum for preservation and historical mention.