Shiny
(Site; Mt. Celestia/Lunia)
written by Heiner de Wendt
Character. Independence and individuality are as important as the
greater good of the society. The perfect community is one where no one commands or rules, yet everyone obeys freely.
Description. Once an Indep Village in the Outlands, the inhabitants
of Shiny have slowly developed a society so similar to that of Mt. Celestia, that their little burg simply shifted over to the Seven
Heavens.
Shiny is made up by about five hundred small huts, each providing
living space for single beings or small families. There is no
ruler here, and though the inhabitants have a good relationship to
the other beings of Mt. Celestia, they stay very independent.
All citizen of the burg have a particular profession helpful for
everyday life. People help each other out without hesitation, yet
never ask for such help - indeed, they know each other so good
that they always notice when some other inhabitant of Shiny needs
help. Some Guvners have already suggested that the "Shinies" (as
they call themselves) are on their way to forming a unique Hive
Mind, though the former Indeps all laugh at that idea. They
strongly care for each other, right, and the whole burg's like
one perfect family - but still it has been an Indep Village once,
and with good reason.
Special Features. Although they themselves aren't aware of it,
it could be that the Guvner sages are right. All inhabitants
of Shiny somehow "feel" when someone in their village needs help,
and they know how strong that need is.
Far more than a simple social effect, this results in outsiders
really feeling like that - not belonging to people here. They're
treated friendly, and the Shinies don't understand why many others
don't feel too comfortable in their village, but visitors stated
that they just didn't feel "right" there, not belonging to the
place.
Services. At first glance, Shiny is a normal burg; people here
produce common goods, although most of it is for their personal
use and not for sale. A notable exception is the tailor Shandor, an aaracokra who has specialized in making wonderful
clothes from white feathers, seemingly made out of pure, flowing
dreams. These are especially often bought for marriages, Shandor
doesn't hesitate to tell.
Another notable citizen here is a really strange figure: Chk'drabn,
a lawful good illithid who has developed psionic powers to
provide him with sustenance. He's a being of many secrets, and
even the other Shinies don't know everything about him. A few
of the Guvner sages have actually speculated it is due to his
presence that the burg's Hive Mind is forming.
The Chant. Just recently, Shiny has made another slide. It was
situated at the shore of the Silver Sea before, while now it
is higher up the mountains of Lunia. The inhabitants themselves
believe that it might not take long anymore before they slide
up into the second layer of Mt. Celestia, while said Guvners
believe this will only happen when they have formed a complete
Hive Mind, when they will be transformed into something utterly
new and unique.