Jarkor's Tail [Location]
Posted: Sun Mar 27, 2022 12:33 pm
Jarkor’s Tail
Jarkor’s Tail is one of the most visible monuments and features of Drathera, and is a surviving relic from Dratir. The Tail, as it is commonly called, is a vast set of stairs that wrap around the mountain of Drathera, starting from the entrance at the ground level facing the harbor, and ending at the peak. The stairs are carved into the mountain itself, a stunning seam of pale green marble against the dark greens and browns of the mountain. They are wide enough that an Ecithian battalion can march up it side by side, with the standard reserve rows in behind. The stairs are twenty miles long from bottom to peak, and they have a series of fountains fed by the mountain spring built in along the way. The steps themselves are taller than those found in most lands, to accomodate the larger built natives, almost twice as tall as a standard step.
The history of the Orks themselves, from before Ecith was even a country, is carved into the face of the mountain along the stairs. It is shown through the same style of pictographic language as the very tattoos the Ecithians place upon their bodies. It was carved by the master of master stone sculptors from each generation for the last hundred years. It is not yet done, still being worked through the Age of Dreams, as historians haggle and debate the historical claims of the Orkhan people. Creative license is given to the sculptor, but the stories must be held true, which is difficult for much of Orkhan history was passed on orally, and many times has it been lost due to war, kingdoms falling, and of course, those taken by the Unknown.
The stairs are a rite of passage among the youth of Ecith, especially those raised in Drathera. Children regularly race up and down it, often playing games of tag and chase upon it. As they near to adulthood, the children often attempt to run the entire length from start to finish. And while it is by no means formal, or even expected by the parents, pretty much every child manages to accomplish this by the time they hit adulthood at 18. These stairs are beloved by all, and during the invasion by the Imperium, many Imperials were slaid attempting to scale these stairs. For while in other places the Imperium has invaded, many peoples attempted to flee away from their homes, in Ecith, they doubled down. The citizens went inward and upward in the mountain. They sealed off the lower entrances, forcing the Imperials to have to do battle while climbing up these stairs. Their losses were great.
The stairs are a memorial to many things, and are a source of a great many wounded prides of foreigners. Many curse and swear at having to climb these stairs, for while there’s other ladders, ropes, and interior stairs, there are no elevators, no publicly available forms of flight. So if one wishes to ascend the mountain, the stairs are the primary mode of travel, and is among the reasons why natives of Drathera are in such good physical shape.