Worlds Enough: Irkalla, City of Woe
Irkalla is a dark fantasy noir city bound to the Hells, where infernal sydereals rule, devils come and go at will, and crime and corruption run rampant. It lives and breathes in fear of the Angels who, it is said, destroyed the world above.
“The histories say little of the time before. But thousands of years ago, the Angels, at the behest of the Most High, laid waste to the world, for its surfeit of sin. The Lords of Irkalla begged Hell for help, and a contract was signed. Hell would preserve Irkalla, for eternity . . . but every soul in that city would belong to Hell forever. “
Irkalla is a vast city, each of its seven levels bigger than the one above. It was built inside an active volcano by a lost civilization, starting as a series of mines, then later, a bunker and refuge. Powered and heated by this geothermal bonanza, the city is kept warm and safe from the endless wastes of frozen glass outside, and the eyes of the Angels. Forty-nine million beings live there, lit with red lamps and draped in shadow.
Once a day, the sun shines down the open top of the volcano for an hour. For that hour, the city is silent, motionless, to avoid catching the gaze of the Angels. Everyone in the city knows stories of people who were seen by the Angels, and turned to glass.
It is ruled by a hereditary nobility of nine houses of infernal sydereans. Each is descended from a Lord of the Seven Hells, a powerful grouping of Hell worlds or separate 'layers' of the same Hell, called Kurnugia, the Earth of No Return. The more diabolic blood one has, the higher one's status. The status of one’s diabolic ancestor grants higher station yet. Lesser houses, descended from lower nobles, also exist. Warlocks are common, most of whom have pacts with devils. Celestial blooded sorcerers and wild magic are forbidden, as is any worship of other gods than the Nine and their minions. Void magic and pacts with entities of the Void are likewise illegal.
The Nine High Houses of Irkalla, from highest to lowest, with their ancestor:
Abedim -- Baal-Abed, the Devil King.
Lylim – the Devil Queen, Iht-Tabah, also known as Lylit.
Mahasirim – Hamarqal, devil prince of envy
Urcitim – Sha'Urcit, devil prince of lust
Betim – Iddet-Leil, aka Bet-Ur, devil princess of pride
Malhamitim – Malhamit, devil prince of wrath and war
Imzebullim – Immzebul, Mother of Flies, devil princess of gluttony
Jajaxim – Jajax Lal Anim, devil prince of greed
Ibacarim – Ibacar, devil princess of despair
Jar-Mot, Vizier of the Seven Hells, is agender and asexual, with no descendants.
The layers are named after the Gates that lead deeper into the Hells:
First is Agu, or Crown, layer of the aristocrats and nobles. Next is Zaginduru, or lapis lazuli, layer of priests and magi. Then Serser, the Chain, layer of crafters and mechanists. Fourth is Siram, or Armor, layer of warriors and guards. Fifth comes Har, or Ring, layer of merchants. Sixth is Sukku, or the Staff, layer of scribes and bureaucrats. Finally, the seventh layer is called Tugziza, or the Robe. One must give up all dignity to pass into the Seventh Hell, and thus the seventh layer is the layer of the poor.
Lucius Bochs is the uncrowned King of Tugziza. He's a mountain of a man in a white suit, a barbarian cloaked in civility. The Bochsers are his enforcers, and he controls the lion's share of crime in Irkalla. An infernal syderean himself, he was not born into any of the noble houses. He instead fought and clawed his way to power with strength, cruelty, and an iron will. Even the nobles of the upper layers walk softly in his domain, and treat him with respect, though they will sometimes speak of him with disdain if they are sure he will not hear.
Hellforged troops, automatons animated by infernal magic and commanded by warlocks, keep the peace and enforce the extremely draconian laws. Hellforged infiltrators, appearing as normal people, act as secret police. The spirits bound to the Hellforged bodies are conjured from the Hells.
Most of the machinery that keeps the place running, controls the temperature, and (sort of) cleans the air, is powered by a fuel called necro-diesel. The life force of millions of ancient creatures is in the stuff, and there are several deep wells of it in Tugziza. Even that isn't enough fuel, however, so discarded biomass (like corpses) gets turned into necro-diesel as well. Necro-diesel is used for warmth, power, weaponry, and medicine . . . it especially powers the Hellforged who police the city. The mechanists of Irkalla that maintain all this gain no recognition for their efforts. Instead, members of the syderean noble houses get all the credit and profits. After all, none of this work is free.
Like most worlds of the Labyrinth, warriors use swords, and hammers, and wear armor when they can, though it is often concealed under clothing. In addition, however, a commonly carried weapon is the ginagaz or 'smiting reed', usually just called a 'gaz': a short, easily concealable wand that fires stone bullets propelled by a necro-diesel powder.
Irkalla lies very near the Hell worlds, and is easily reached from them, with an especially large number of portals to and from the Hells of Kurnugia. Otherwise it is generally only reached via the tunnels of the Labyrinth itself, as the overworld is entirely inhospitable. There is no connection to the Styx or the Old Ring, and the Astral Sea leads only to the overworld, and allegedly, death at the hands of the 'Angels'.
Mortals might come to Irkalla to trade with devils in a place that is safer for them than the actual Hells, on their way to the Hells, or to buy nearly anything in the vast marketplace of Har.
