The Fallows

The Fallows is a large dead zone on the Isle of Mists, created two millennia ago by the twisting of the spell intended to protect the island, where the water and all living things are poisonous to humans. Within the Fallows lies the ruin of a great city of the remote past — or perhaps it is of the distant future, or of some other world altogether? The towers of the nameless city are giant pillars of metal and glass, visible for miles, whose construction would be far beyond the skill of any modern builder. Some of the residential buildings, surprisingly well-preserved, give evidence that the inhabitants were human-sized and that they enjoyed every imaginable luxury, from running water and magical lighting to plentiful and comfortable furniture and other material goods. Superstition on the Isle says that in the Fallows, “doors open themselves,” and indeed the city seems to be haunted, perhaps by the ghosts of the dead, and certainly by a dangerous and stealthy species of predator. A conspicuous central building appears to have served administrative purposes and to have contained a sort of library. A panoramic view of the city can be seen through the glass walls of the top floor. In the center of that floor is a glassed-in booth containing an apparatus with a single prominent button. If a traveler enters the booth and pushes the button, he will witness all the surrounding buildings destroyed in a fiery cataclysm, apparently triggered by the button-pushing. However, the buildings are later seen to return to their original condition; the destruction is presumably an illusion, perhaps one that hints at the fate of the city’s people. The soul-stealing black sword carried for a time by Rodrigo was found in this facility.