Aldsayryn Dirty Lake

Place

Place Name:

Aldsayryn Dirty Lake

Biome:

Dirty Lake

Size:

Unknown

Continent:

Unknown

Subcontinent

Unknown

History

Historical Overview

Aldsayryn has remained an aquatic region for all of Taerel history, though its relationship with zu'aan has certainly changed across the years. Aldsayryn, also popularly referred to as Aldsumagan and Ald'airin in the local dialects is a lake formation just west of the Ack-ormaw plains, in the densely populated zu'aan region known as Bruzrcuvyr Shield. It was discovered as early as the Copper Age, as indicated by primeaval records on caves and carbon dating of buried zu'aan remains. As a water biome, it was infinitely useful to the zu'aan race as it grew and evolved, and served as a harbor point for many of their early civilizations. The Dirty Lake receives its name from the odd coloration of the waters, which are, as of the present age, consistent of a deep crimson color.

Early records indicate that this may have not been true as of the discovery of the lake. Later records hint at the coloration of the lake, but nothing tells that the lake had been red, per se. The reason behind the lake's odd color is a dissolving mineral found embued in the ground rock at the bottom of the lake. Researchers and geologists argue that the reason for the lake's apparent shift into a deeper color is due to erosion of the lake's floor, which over time increased the water's exposure to the mineral in question, which has been named 'qilian'. Qilian has been the name of the mineral found buried underneath the lake ever since it was found, around the early Ancient Age.

Mining efforts already somewhat existed at this point, but the finding of an underwater mineral that could be used for, among other things, as a pigment and ingredient for old medicine and even alchemy, stirred a desire to cultivate and harvest it. The practice of free diving in order to collect pearls and bare-handed fishing had already been practiced at this point by many coastal tribes, so it was not at all strange that the lake-side zu'aan decided to invest in free diving in order to collect this precious and unknown ore. Of course, at this point in time they could only find whatever got pried off the rock by natural means, since they did not possess enough tools or knowledge to actively mine underwater, but for a long time, this is how business in Aldsayryn was conducted, and qilian brought them a great amount of export riches.

As the mining industry grew in other places and knowledge spread around, the zu'aan of Aldsayryn gradually improved their ability to retrieve qilian, and a deep, rich and expansive mining system would come to envelop the Aldsayryn region all the way until the modern era and the Awakening Age. As of the Awakening Age, the zu'aan managed to persevere in the region no doubt due to the concealed and hard-to-transverse nature of the mining shafts beneath the lake, as well as the few land formations adorning it. As of the Shattered Age, many of the initially destroyed infrastructure has been rebuilt, and the flickers of a city loom once more around the shore of the red waters.

Geography

Aldsayryn is a lake situated west of the Ack-ormaw Hilly Plains. It covers an average of 349 square kilometers, at an average depth of 149 meters. It is shaped roughly like the head of a trident, with a short base and three thick strands of water running underneath it slightly pointed to the southwest. There are a few sparse isles on top of the lake, though none of them are large enough to support proper infrastructure and are mainly used for small buildings and fishing. The two mini-peninsulas formed between the gaps of three streaks of water are called the Moyo and Toyo Aldsayryn peninsulas, from west to east. They mainly serve to host mining related buildings as the stable land point closest to the deeper reaches of the lake.

The lake itself is formed by the Zu'o river, a river that comes in from the northwest passing through the Aesse Ancient Forest region. The lake then flows out once more into the Zu'o, through thin currents in the west, until eventually the river reaches the shore. Because of this, it is a freshwater lake. As mentioned previously, the lake is colored deep red due to the presence of a certain dissolving mineral, qilian, in the water. Qilian is a fragile substance that easily dissolved in water and is very useful in medicine, art and chemistry applications. It is, however, toxic in great quantities, such as the ones present on the lake. Therefore in order to drink it, even in ancient times, local zu'aan have to take more detailed steps in purifying the water than their peers from other shores.

This process separates the mineral from the water, but it will be damaged and very little, if any at all, will be available for proper use. Therefore mining is the only correct resource that works in harvesting qilian for industry purposes, and removing it from the earth has no adverse effects on the ecosystem, since the presence of the mineral is not particularly helpful to any species, and even detrimental to some. There are three sub-biomes in Aldsayryn. The shore, where zu'aan can most often be found, the lake itself, which supports an array of marine life despite its high toxicity to zu'aan, and the cave system carefully built around and underneath it in order to not destroy the lake in any form.

A large part of this 'cave system' consists of artificial, i.e metal, caverns and tubes built on the water itself and leading to the lake floor, in order to make diving and underwater mining better. Some of these are actual caves around the shore, though, where concentrations of the mineral can also be found. Overall it is a very fragile and dangerous exploit and many old, unused caves, some of them no longer useful, some of them destroyed or caved in, remain throughout the lake as living testaments to the efforts of the zu'aan. Some of these spaces have developed special characteristics, and are as such referred to as a sub-biome. Climate-wise, Aldsayryn receives mild amounts of precipitation, and flooding or drying has never been an issue.

The water line shifts a few meters during the year, as normal, but it always goes back. The temperature is mild and there are no known natural disasters. There is no chance of snow or hail. Storms occasionally occur, but they are very tame. Strong winds have a possibility of occurring. Due to the harvesting of qilian throughout the recent years, the lake's odd coloration has been deteorating, and nowadays it appears to be less red than it previously was. This is thought to continue as mining efforts also continue. As of the Shattered Age, temperatures have not yet reached beneath the negative, but frigid storms from the north occasionally attack the lake. The waters are significantly cooler, and evaporation has slowed down. Luckly, the Zu'o river flows still and prevents flooding.

Plants

There are a number of native plants that have evolved to resist the high mineral content of the Adlsayryn waters. Here are a few selected examples: Naet'm, an algae structure shaped like a giant flower, with four large, green triangular 'petals' protruding out of an equally large, golden yellow core, and four smaller purple 'petals' wedged in between the larger ones. It uses a mechanism to suck in the freshwater and filter out the necessary nutrients while casting aside waste. It's anywhere from 0.3 to 1 meter wide, and lives up to five decades. They are not usually found together, but instead dotted across the underwater cliffs, typically away from exposed rock.

Due to their air secretions, they are able to clear the dirty water around them and other animal species tend to stick close to it. It spends the say sucking in and filtering water for sustenance, and it disposes of it during the night. To avoid filtering the waste water all over again in the morning, they lace the waste with a sweet molecule that makes it attract fish, which will dab it away and even consume it. The 'petals' are harvested by zu'aan and used as natural tissue for knitting and making tapestries. The plant can be dried and processed to use in cooking as well, and has a tangy, mild spicy taste that buds well in some zu'aan cuisine. It goes largely unnoticed, however.

Marr-er, a type of reed that grows near the shore of the lake. It has multiple thin sprouts that erupt straight upwards and then bend slightly, and a spiky tip that portrudes from the inside of the stalk at the end. The tip, colored white, serves as a defense mechanism. If the plant is threatened or plucked in any way, a joint system is actived within, and the plant will jerk wildly in an attempt to sting its attacker with an extremely mild 'poison' that causes small amounts of irritation in zu'aan, and is generally not painful. The reason as to why it has such a poorly evolved, ineffective means of defense is unknown, althought there are suspicious of genetic in-breeding with another plant that has smaller, similarly activated stingers.

This erratic movement causes, more often than not, the plant to lose the stinger and die. They exist mainly on rocky shores and places with little movement. They are not edible and they provide little use for zu'aan, though there was a time before the Awakening Age where their stingers were collected for the making of collars and bracelets. They last for up to 12 years, though it's estimated that they could last much longer if their predominant cause of death weren't its own defense mechanism. They have outpointing, thin leaves in clusters along the stalk, formed on tiny branches, and they tend to grow in large groups. They are able to recognize their own and touch within them (and a few other plants) does not activate their defense mechanism.

Animals

Aldsayryn Dirty Lake is a fragile yet rich ecosystem. Not only fish live in fresh waters, but also a large number of mammals that breathe air, but cannot live without an aquatic environment. Kipaf - these large mammals cool themselves by immersing their massive bodies in the cool water of the lake for a long time - up to 16 hours daily, after which they come out onto land completely smeared with mud so as not to overheat. Although they can hold their breath for half an hour if necessary, kipaf usually stick their head out of the water. At night, kipafs stop taking baths and go to pluck grass. If the animals remain in the sun for a long time, they will quickly become dehydrated.

Kipaf has sharp fangs that can reach up to half a meter in length. They show fangs to each other to determine which animal is dominant. Sometimes the display of powerful teeth is not enough, so the animals engage in bloody fights. Kipafs are quite dangerous to the zu'aan. Lamans live in shallow, warm waters of lakes and can live in salt water. These large mammals reach a weight of 600 kilograms. They are born under water and never leave their native waters until their death, but they are forced to swim to the surface of the water every few minutes to breathe air. Lamans are herbivores that feed on various types of marine plants, including algae and others. Several species of laman also inhabit Aldsayryn Dirty Lake.

Odatra is a resident of wet areas, swamps and lakes, where she builds tunnels along the banks. The body length of this large rodent is about 30 centimeters, and the flat tail is twice as long as the body. Odatra have adapted well to life in the water and begin to swim as early as 10 days old. They are well known for their communication skills, being able to exchange information with each other and warn of approaching enemies with a distinctive scent. There are many shellfish in the world, but only one of them is truly freshwater - lake niviya. Animals live at Aldsayryn Dirty Lake. Although new generations of lake nivia are born every year on the shores of the lake, these animals are in serious danger of extinction. One of the reasons is the hunting of other species, and a lot of competition in a rapidly shrinking body of water.

The charismatic spotted laita uses echolocation to track fish and crustaceans in the murky waters of Aldsayryn Dirty Lake. During the annual floods, the laitas swim in the flooded regions, hunting for prey between the trees. Laita is quite easy to spot due to its pink or very pale mottled coloration. The color of the lights and their natural curiosity make them easy prey for predators who come to the lake in search of easy prey. In recent years, the population has been greatly reduced. Locals have long believed that these animals have superpowers and can turn into zu'aan.

Historical Timeline of Ages

Age Name	Dates	Controller
Stone Age	Before 1E 0	Unknown
Copper Age	1E 1–1E 2200	Unknown
Bronze Age	1E 2200–1E 4400	Unknown
Iron Age	2E 0–2E 700	Unknown
Ancient Age	2E 700–2E 2200	Unknown
Middle Age	3E 0–3E 2050	Unknown
Early Modern Age	3E 2050–3E 2600	Unknown
Industrial Age	3E 2600–3E 2700	Unknown
Machine Age	3E 2700–3E 2800	Unknown
Atomic Age	3E 2800–3E 2850	Unknown
Space Age	3E 2850–3E 2875	Unknown
Information Age	3E 2875–3E 2900	Unknown
Genetic Age	3E 2950–3E 3000	Unknown
Awakening Age	3E 3000–3E 3415	Unknown
Twilight Age	4E 0–4E 500	Kin'eng City Zu'aan

Place

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Aldsayryn Dirty Lake

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This article is written by mightyvanilla, kasstellia. Copyright 2026 kasstellia, mightyvanilla. All rights reserved.