Zeo Genesis Travelogues
Greetings, star-nomads! You can call me Trev. (You can also call me Trevallion Franklin-Ridgeway III, but I’d rather you didn’t). I’ve left behind my shallow executive existence to explore the Hundred Suns, to re-connect with insignificant voiders just like you. These are my travels. You’re welcome.
“Day two of trekking up to Sommet du Nuage. Day nine of Rex’s surely-record-breaking hangover. He’s discovered the latest hologame of his favorite sport, S-racing, so at least that’s helped occupy his mind. People were passing around rhyme slime at the Bahbaby Babe after-party, and the prodigious amounts he ingested still haven’t fully worn off, so I could use the break, frankly.”
“I’ve been fortunate enough—the kind of fortune you’re born into, in fairness—to have joined a trading caravan led by the legendary local mountain guide, Monsieur Pulphace. We’re climbing La Montagne de Dieu on Dea Matrona, up to the aforementioned town. I’ll be honest, I’m struggling to understand him. We’re speaking the same language, so my autotranslator refuses to activate, but his accent is so thick, it’s hard going.”
“Not only is Sommet du Nuage famous for its bazaars, but the very nature of the place intrigues me. ‘Nature’ being the word. The entire town is swamped in thick clouds. Pulphace has been showing me all the necessities for living in this damp, opaque setting. Everyone’s got thermo-sonar goggles to aid vision and wears breathing filters and skin creams to combat the oppressive moistness and precipitation.”
“Flying up? Pulphace tells me it’s a practically impossible deathtrap with the clouds, but terrain is treacherous, hence why the caravan is zeo-based— Watch out!”
“…”
“Made it! Well, most of us.... That rockslide took out several caravanners, with little remark, I might add. Pulphace explained it happens all the time. Life is cheap here and people are desperate to trade.”
“Sommet du Nuage is something else, though. There’s an eerie beauty to the place. The culture and wares are vibrant, rich… unlike the population’s bank balances. More than any outpouring of grief could, people’s indifference to tragedy has made me remember my ‘thrilling adventure’ is their daily lives.”
“Against my expectation, there’s parked cargo aircraft up here, but they’re hanging reminders of Pulphace’s words. Flight is a deathtrap for the desperate.”
“I admit, I feel a little guilty. My own transport away might be a flier, but its crew and systems are far beyond what anyone here could afford. Fortunately—again—I’ve been able to ease the lives of a few, as well as my own compunction by spending an absolute hepworth on their goods. Never thought I’d see people who live among clouds so happy I made it rain!”
“Stay zippy, star-nomads…”
- Sommet du Nuage – Must Visit Merchants:
- Sommulier Fruits
- From traditional “pots froids” (coal-powered refrigerators), Sommulier sells some of the most highly regarded perenges, mollimonts, and favafavs in the sector.
- Shementent & Soliely
- Known for their immaculate mollimont leather, their footwear is favored by celebrities across the spheres, yet they’ve never raised prices for reasons they refuse to disclose.
- Sullimer
- Three generations deep, this warren of a family bookshop is hiding some of the most hard-to-find and esoteric paper, parchment, and perenges papyrus books on everything from studies into the rumored “Nuhu” movement to the necromantic beliefs of the ancient Chemical Valley Civilization.
These journals were recorded via Tymphony Aural Augmetics… TAA: Listen Up!
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