"Place of the Ocean's Song:
An Exploration of Aesry Surlaenis'a"

by Tsarenzi Muinoskyl

Far off the mainland coast, the island of Aesry Surlaenis'a resides safely away from the bustle of the continental cities. Only two boats travel there on a regular basis, the Lybadel of Riverhaven and the Halasa Selhin of Ratha, and over time it has developed a culture all its own. U-shaped houses with beautiful courtyards and paper-screen doors line streets of colorful crushed shell. Statues, fountains, topiaries and flower gardens lie around every corner.

The city itself is a pleasant climb from the port. It encircles Lake Cha'walkas, which is nestled in the mountains of the island.

Aesry is well known as a peaceful retreat. While it may not be as easy to find someone to talk to as it is in the mainland cities, I find that when I do come across someone, they are more liable to be worth talking with. Older rangers and clerics find the island particularly appealing because the hunting is well suited to them, and theirs are the only guilds with full-time guildleaders there. The Empath Guild also has a guildleader, but it shares it with the guildhall on Ratha, and the Bards and Warrior Mages have inaccessible towers at the crest of the mountain pass. This makes it inconvenient for the other guilds' members to live on Aesry, but many still do.

Even a short stay is worth the boat ride, as there is plenty to see. Aesryan shops are particularly renowned, for example. There are all the usual shops and services. However, there is also a number of more unique shops. Taernen's alchemy shop offers both a complete selection of herbs as well as customizable alchemy supplies. There are several shops that sell furniture and things for the home. One such shop, located in town, sells some mainland-style furniture, and another one, situated in a warehouse at the harbor, sells Aesryan style things like paper-screen walls and sleeping mats. An extravagant Elothean woman named Miakoda owns a shop that sells clothing in an interesting selection of styles and colors. Nakuge's Scriptorium carries prayer parchments, song scrolls and writing utensils. There are clerical supply, bard, and ranged weapon shops. The general store combines the usual articles with garden supplies. Erianthe's Floral Shop has always been a favorite, selling wares from perfumes to bouquets to the ever popular dream pillows. Another store engraves customers' weapons with their choice of design. The elderly Gor'tog Bayanzi and his sons run Aesry's Leatherworks, which sells leather luggage and footwear. The Puzzle Shop is another popular place. It sells puzzles, juggling items, dice and supplies for magic tricks. Whatever a person has an inkling to buy, they can probably find in Aesry.

For the more religiously inclined, there is still plenty to do. The city centers around Halasa Temple on Tethloren Island in the middle of Lake Cha'walkas. The island is mostly composed of rocky tide pools, and it is not uncommon to find stranded sea creatures there. The ground floor of the temple is composed of the island's own rocks, leveled and smoothed. Several rooms on this floor have been inlaid in themes related to each of Eluned's aspects. Watch out for the shark's teeth in the Drogor-themed design, however; their sharp points can leave you cut and poisoned. Further up in the temple, you can find altars, candles, bowls of holy water and a handy bell. By simply ringing this bell, you can save yourself the more than fifteen roisaen row back to the shore.

Once on the shore again, your religious pursuits need not end. Surrounding the lake are four holy monuments: the Stones of the Cloud. Pilgrims can prove their devotion to the gods by touching each of these stones on the first, hundredth, two-hundredth, three-hundredth and four-hundredth days of the year. Other shrines and holy spots also abound. The presence of Eluned is especially prominent. A pool, located on the second terrace, is rumored to be the place where Eluned wept over the destruction of her oceans when the World Dragon ravaged Elanthia. Another shrine, this one dedicated to Drogor, sits in the shadows of the sea caves.

Drogor's altar isn't the only thing in Aesry's sea caves; the caves are also infested with unyns, a type of giant spider. Wir dinegos, an island monster that even elder cleric often find difficult to face, are another island dweller. Other undead creatures make their homes on the island as well. Moss meys are one of these; their very touch causes injuries, and they seek to lure hunters into their clutches with seductive words. The ur hhrki'izhs, however, try a less deceptive approach: in addition to the risk of fatal injuries, these undead carry a dangerous disease. There are also blood wolves and bobcats that are significantly less difficult on the cliffs above the mountain pass. Even further up the cliffs live the frostweavers and snowbeasts. On a completely different set of cliffs, there is an odd creature called the yvhh la'tami. It is winged and lizard-like. Then there are the snaer hafwas that literally suck the life out of you.

If you manage to survive Aesry's ferocious beast population, a good meal is just what you'll need to recover. While the island doesn't have a lot of places that serve food, the ones it does have are well worth it. A basket that opens into a picnic cloth is sold in the general store, and in the back room of that same shop is a catering business where you can fill your new basket with a delicious selection of food. There is also Denison's Pub, located on the waterfront. Denison sells a wide variety of dishes at reasonable prices. In addition to the food, its convenient location to the docks and sea cave hunting ground makes it a popular place for islanders to hang out.

The perfect accompaniment to a good meal is a bit of good entertainment, and Aesry has plenty to offer in that respect. There is the main theater in town, with its carved wooden benches and open roof. Next door to it is a playhouse, and a puppet stage can be found on the next terrace up. There is also an art gallery, though it is not currently open to the public. If reading is more to your liking, Aesry's beautiful and expansive library, the Misrel Lemicus'a, has books devoted to nature, science, language, the bardic arts, religion and music.

Surprisingly, Aesry's most famous singing group isn't in the business of entertaining at all. The last surviving enclave of the Ru'atin Peri'el, the mysterious singers who help Peri'el to keep the World Dragon asleep, reside in Aesry. Their songs are carefully guarded secrets and not allowed to be repeated to outsiders. However, you can sometimes catch a bit of their music by standing outside their house. It is located up a small hill on the first terrace and behind a locked gate.

The most visible member of the Ru'atin Peri'el, nd old S'kra woman, is actually no longer a part of it. Instead, she wanders the streets of the city, feeding the seagulls and conducting them in song. At night she is joined by the will o' wisps, magical creations of Faenella. They are essentially tiny balls of light that dart around, blinking on and off and flashing around playfully. They are usually careful to avoid being touched, but if you do manage to touch them, they will transport you to a random location in the city--a rather different way to explore and see the sights.

Aesry Surlaenis'a is a place that touches the soul: remote enough to be peaceful, but not without the conveniences of any mainland city. Its rich culture and beauty are undoubtedly enough to earn it recognition as 'Place of the Ocean's Song.'