Koval
Koval is a city near the center of the Free Republic of Avelax, in the foothills of the Verecan Mountains. It is known for its preeminence in magical research; many of the magical discoveries and developments that the Freeman onirarchs have come up with originated here. Even the onirarchs, however, don't know all the secrets Koval hides; it is built on the site of a much older city, predating the Avelachian Pall, and perhaps even the Great Plague, and the extensive tunnels beneath the city still conceal many mysteries.
History
Like all else in Avelax, the history of Koval before the Avelachian Pall remains shrouded in darkness—both literal and figurative. The city was certainly around back then, however—or a city was there back then, though probably called by a different name—but little is known about it. Few traces remain aboveground of the antelodical city: only the corner of a foundation now incorporated into the Candle Hall, some stone shapes of uncertain function in a plot that has been set apart for historical preservation purposes as Oldstone Park, and a single mostly intact building called the Fallen Tower. Belowground, however, is another matter; the mountains beside and beneath Koval are riddled with ancient tunnels, extending all the way into Bathk, where some structures of similar antiquity have been found in the vicinity. Some historians have inferred from the layout and contents of these tunnels that antelodical Koval was the center of worship for one or more major gods; others believe that it was the site of an ancient race or civilization that lived primarily underground; still others believe that
After the Pall, the area of Koval was settled by the Kenever, but, as elsewhere on the continent, they built no lasting structures there. They did, however, colonize the underground, and in fact there deep beneath the surface some Kenever communities escaped the extermination or displacement suffered by their kin above, at least for a time. Subterranean populations of Kenever were found long after the Balians had overtaken most of Avelax and even after the Free Republic was formed, and it may well be that some such populations yet remain to be discovered today. There is also speculation that certain life forms found only in the tunnels beneath Koval may be descendents of Kenever inhabitants who were altered by ambient magic there or by active rhegi or hyspleges.
The current city of Koval was not built until after the formation of the Free Republic of Avelax. At first the major industry of the city was mining, the mountains nearby containing considerable mineral wealth, but when the extent of the tunnels beneath the city was recognized, it was decided that the site would be ideal for magical research—not (at least at first) because the tunnels' contents might be worth investigating, but because they provided a relatively secure place to conduct dangerous experiments with minimal risk to their surroundings. Koval gradually grew from a small mining town to the thriving city it is today.
Geography
Koval is very much a non-planar city, built on a sloping mountainside of varying steepness. While the heavy use of streampaths and flitter cars make this less of an issue than it would be for a settlement that relied more on foot traffic and wheeled vehicles, still some concession has been made to these other forms of transportation in switchbacks and layout that tends to follow isohypses much more than gradients—the more so, of course, since much of the city's plan still reflects its preonirarchic origins when wheels and pedestrians were more important considerations than they are today. Overall, the city tends to slope upward to the south, though the terrain is sufficiently nonuniform to present many local exceptions.
Koval lies near the edge of the Free Republic's urbanized area; while it merges with other cities on its north end, to the south Koval borders nothing but undeveloped mountainside. Even where it does touch other cities, most of the boundary is fairly clear, due to cliffs and waterways; only the boundary with Ariscad is gradual and unobvious. This makes Koval relatively unusual among Freeman cities, most of which seem to form undifferentiated continua with the neighboring cities that surround them.
Broadly, Koval can be divided into eight sections, though these areas simply correspond to common reference and have no correspondence to its administrative wards. The Heights, comprising the southern part of the city, are the highest in altitude, and is where the city's magical research is centered. It is also the part of the city with the largest relative population of onirarchs. The Springs, between the Heights and the city's center, take their name from the plentiful streams and springs in the area, including a couple of hot springs; they have a reputation for being the heart of the city's artistic inclinations. A part of western Koval is still known as the Woods, although few trees now remain within or near the city's boundaries; the Woods are a relatively quiet part of the town that houses the city's largest library. Northwestern Koval, called the Gate for the fact that it is where most people enter the town, is the lowest part in elevation and caters largely to visitors and travelers. Northeastern Koval is called the Bluffs and has as much a reputation of lawlessness as can exist anywhere in the ruthlessly run cities of the F.R.A. Southeastern Koval is called the Mines, although little mining now goes on there; it is notorious as a place of punishment for those who cross the onirarchs. As for the heart of the city, the west part of the city's center is mostly residential and is often known as the Grade, while the east part, the Piles, is the site of most of the city's industry aside from the magical research conducted in the Heights.
As with all cities of the Free Republic of Avelax, Koval is divided into two overlapping groups of blocks. In the case of Koval, the block names, particularly of the second partitioning and particularly in and near the Heights, are often celemological nouns, such as "Rhegus" or "Corollary". Adjectives dealing with celemology or with the underground are common in the first partitioning throughout the city, though other adjectives and nouns are also plentiful, including geological terms; the second partitioning includes many names of noted past onirarchs, as well as (perhaps somewhat confusingly) other Freeman cities. In the Woods, botanical terms are common, especially in the second partitioning, while the Springs contain many blocks with water-related names. In all, Koval contains 220 blocks in the first partitioning, and 229 in the second partitioning.
Government
Koval is part of the district of Othifax, although in practice its relative remoteness and its importance to the Republic's magical progress means the city is left relatively autonomous. Koval's mayor rules the city from the City Hall at 10 High Gaver in the southwestern part of the Piles. The current mayor, Narom Voruvi, is rather more multiethnic than most Freeman onirarchs, and takes advantage of this by appealing to the populace as an advocate for racial equality by the Freeman government—though in practice, she strives for nothing of the sort.
Below the mayor and her overall city government, Koval is divided into thirty administrative wards. Conforming to the boundaries of neither the conventional sections of the city nor its blocks, these wards are so irregularly shaped that there is widely suspected to be some hidden purpose to their bizarre delineation, though no one has managed to convincingly explain just what that hidden purpose may be. As with other Freeman cities, each ward is overseen by a selectman under the mayor's supervision; the most powerful of Koval's selectman is Keron D'mar, whose Gopher District encompasses much of the Heights and who therefore has power over much of the city's all-important research. For the most part, D'mar and Mayor Voruvi are allies, which makes things all the more difficult for any other selectmen who may disagree with their policies.
Economy
Certainly what Koval is most noted for, and what makes it a relatively powerful city, is the magical research that takes place within and underneath the city. Many talismans now in wide use in the FRA among the onirarchs and their agents were invented in Koval, and many enchantments perfected here now in wide use elsewhere. Even a few minor dreamworlds were discovered or developed here: the strange but beautiful dreamworld of Ngaloroi and the nightmare dreamworld of Rackfire.
This magical knowledge, however, is not Koval's only export. Though mining is no longer the major economic boon to the town that it once was, it still supplies some income. The factories of the Piles produce some goods, primarily ceramics and talismans of various sorts, that are distributed all over the country. But Koval's government also takes advantage of its proximity to some of what best passes for unspoiled wilderness within the FRA's boundaries. Some Kovalites organize hunting and exploration expeditions for visiting onirarchs from elsewhere, while others themselves forage in the mountains for rare goods. A few enterprising individuals have even founded farms in the mountains near Koval, making it one of the few landlocked cities of the FRA to actually export food.
The tunnels beneath Koval make their own contribution to the city's economy. Not only do they harbor valuable magical secrets of their own (and it's a matter of some dispute exactly how many of Koval's vaunted magical advances really are original and how many are rediscoveries from some subterranean vault, though the claims that all Koval's discoveries come from those tunnels are almost certainly exaggerations), but they also have more conventional goods, including fungi and other life forms with culinary or medicinal uses. Like the mountains outside the city, the tunnels also provide a venue for tourism—though tourism through the tunnels is dangerous enough that those who partake are required to sign strong disclaimers absolving their guides of any liability. Of course, to some adventurous souls, the risks only heighten the attraction.