Worlds
Arculeatus is home of the quillochs. It is divided into two worlds, the Old World and the Sanctuary. They are parallel dimensions, each with the same, artificial landscape created by a mysterious, watery eldritch being. Transport between worlds is rare, other than for the exceptionally gifted, or the exceptionally lucky.
Model of the Worlds
Quillochs model their worlds as two projections from a spinning disc. The 'disc', the eldritch Lake Sanctimonious, is double-sided, representing its presence in both worlds. The lands themselves, although they appear to be natural, are simulations created by the Lake after it destroyed the first world.
Lake Sanctimonious, the Beloved
The Lake Sanctimonious is a massive body of purple substance, caustic to all organic life but the quillochs themselves. The center of Sanctimonious is contained within one temple, where it is worshipped and tended to by the quillochs. Many of the Lake's properties are still unknown to the quillochs, but it is known to be their birthplace, a living entity in itself, and the connection point between worlds.
The Sanctuary
The Sanctuary is home to the upper nobility and their servants. It is a large, grassy island with a mountain range to the northeast and a dead ocean surrounding it. Its inhabitants have planted numerous forests and terraformed various rivers, ponds, and hills to their liking. The temple at the center contains one end of Lake Sanctimonious and is still under construction.
The Old World
The Old World is the residence of lower nobility and working classes. Like the Sanctuary, it was once a grassy island surrounded by a dead ocean, but it has since been flooded to honor Sanctimonious. The Lake itself lives at the center of the world, with the oldest temple surrounding it. Most quillochs live in crowded cities on stone bridges sprawling out from the Lake, the remaining mountain peaks, or small islands of industrial farmland.
Flora & Fauna
While some grasses, lichens, algaes, and microbes are native to each world, most plants and animals were created through careful bio-engineering. Animals for game or companionship are considered a luxury for quillochs. Many living in the Old World will have never seen animals, other than working dogs, cats, livestock, and horses.
Given the lack of trees and grasslands, the air quality in the Old World is worse than the Sanctuary. However, vast amounts of oxygen are still produced by algae and therefore their island world is still viable.
