Murky Chasm

“Where Morality Dies”

“What falls between the cracks? We do. And we’ve learned to thrive there.”
—Vex Shadowhand, Black Sky Cartel

Quick Reference

Murky Chasm - Where Morality Dies

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Geography and Structure
• Key Locations
• Economy and Trade
• Population and Society
• Notable Residents
• Current Situation (287 S.)
• Secrets and Mysteries
• Quest Hooks
• Related Topics
• In-World Document

Overview

Murky Chasm isn’t built on an island—it’s built between two slowly separating fragments, a vertical settlement of rope bridges, hanging platforms, and structures that defy both gravity and good sense. As the two fragments drift apart at 2 meters per year, the Chasm grows wider, and the settlement adapts with longer bridges, deeper drops, and increasing desperation.

This is the last stop before the deep Murk, where the Aether darkens to gray and the Rot clouds drift thick. It’s where you go when every other settlement has turned you away: criminals fleeing justice, Rot-Touched seeking community, smugglers plying forbidden trades, and the desperate willing to do anything for survival.

The Chasm operates on a simple principle: Nothing is illegal here because there is no law. Murder gets you hunted by the victim’s friends. Theft might earn retaliation. But there are no guards, no trials, no moral authority—only the pragmatic rules of the Black Sky Cartel that keeps this chaos from consuming itself.

Vex Shadowhand runs the Cartel from somewhere in the shadows (no one knows exactly where), maintaining order through intimidation, economic leverage, and the understanding that everyone benefits from keeping the Chasm functional. The alternative is the void.

The settlement lives on borrowed time. In 50 years, maybe less, the fragments will drift too far apart and the bridges will snap. The Chasm will cease to exist. No one seems to care much. People who end up here tend not to think long-term.

Geography and Structure

The Two Fragments

Fragment Alpha (Western, larger): - 600m diameter, roughly circular - Steep sides, minimal flat area on top - Rocky terrain, little vegetation - Pre-Shattering ruins (watchtower foundation) - Drifts westward at 2m/year

Fragment Beta (Eastern, smaller): - 300m diameter, elongated oval - Gentler slopes, more accessible - Some corrupted vegetation - Natural cave system - Drifts eastward at 2m/year

Current Separation: 400 meters (increases annually)

History of Drift: - 220 S.: Fragments touched, single island - 230 S.: 20m apart, first bridges built - 250 S.: 60m apart, settlement established - 270 S.: 100m apart, Black Sky Cartel takes control - 287 S.: 134m apart (current)

Projected Collapse: ~320 S. (33 years)—bridges too long to maintain

The Chasm Itself

Vertical Space: Infinite drop into Aether below

Width: 400m horizontal span

Bridges: 47 major bridges, hundreds of minor connections

Structure: Three vertical layers

Layer 1 - The High Span (Top level, between fragment peaks): - 15 major bridges - Thick rope and ironwood planks - Relatively stable - Upper-class housing (by Chasm standards) - Less Rot exposure

Layer 2 - The Middle Web (50m down): - 20 bridges connecting cliff-side platforms - Buildings hang from above or protrude from cliff - Most dense population - Market district - Moderate Rot exposure

Layer 3 - The Deep Tangle (100m down): - 12 bridges, increasingly precarious - Hanging structures sway in Aether currents - Rot-Touched enclave - Smuggler warehouses - Heavy Rot exposure

Below Layer 3: Void—fall here means death

Atmospheric Conditions

Aether Quality: Dark gray, oppressive

Visibility: Poor (50m on good days)

Rot Clouds: Drift through regularly

Temperature: Colder than Bright Reaches (10-12°C)

Psychological Effect: - Claustrophobic despite open space - Constant awareness of falling risk - Long-term residents develop unusual comfort with vertigo

Key Locations

The Abyss Bar

Description: Famous tavern literally hanging over the void, no visible support

Location: Middle Web, center of Chasm

Structure: - Wooden building suspended by chains (anchor points unclear) - Sways gently in Aether currents - Glass floor section (look down into infinity) - Three stories (bar, private rooms, storage)

Atmosphere: - Dark, smoky, loud - Everyone here is dangerous or stupid - Surprisingly good alcohol - Information flows freely (for price)

Owner: Unknown—“The House” manages itself

Staff: Rotating bartenders (never same one twice)

Patrons: - Smugglers making deals - Cartel members on business - Rot-Touched seeking company - Foolish tourists (occasionally)

Rules: - No fighting (enforcement: ejection over rail) - Pay your tab (or disappear) - Discretion expected

Significance: Neutral ground—even enemies can drink together here

Quest Hook: Need to meet contact, must be Abyss Bar

Black Market Plaza

Description: Permanent market on Beta Fragment’s surface, anything can be bought

Layout: - 30+ stalls and shops - Open-air (covered walkways) - Guards (Cartel enforcers) patrol - Access via three bridges

Goods Available (all illegal elsewhere): - Rot-Shards (crystallized corruption, valuable to alchemists) - Stolen artifacts - Forged documents - Weapons (no questions) - Forbidden texts - Drugs and poisons - Slaves (rare, expensive, morally abhorrent)

Merchants: - Licensed by Cartel (pay protection fees) - Diverse (from across Aetherium) - Discrete (no prying questions)

Prices: - Higher than legitimate markets (risk premium) - Negotiable (haggling expected) - Currency: Aether-Coins, barter, favors

Security: - Cartel ensures no violence (bad for business) - Theft punished by “falling” (off edge) - Cheating tolerated if clever

Atmosphere: Oddly orderly chaos—dangerous but functional

The Rot-Touched Enclave

Description: Community in Deep Tangle, openly corrupted individuals gather

Population: ~100 Rot-Touched (various stages)

Structure: - Hanging buildings connected by walkways - Communal gathering space - Individual dwellings - Chapel to Constellation of Serpent

Atmosphere: - Terrifying to outsiders - Peaceful internally - Philosophical discussions common - Acceptance and understanding

Leadership: Sister Morrigan (corrupted priestess, charismatic)

Philosophy: - Rot is transformation, not death - Voice Beneath offers truth - Embrace change rather than resist - Corruption is liberation from fear

Activities: - Daily sermons (Morrigan preaches) - Meditation and communion with Voice - Helping newly corrupted adjust - Researching Rot’s nature

Relation with Chasm: - Tolerated (Cartel doesn’t care) - Provide services (Rot knowledge, healing paradoxically) - Don’t proselytize aggressively - Keep to themselves mostly

Danger Level: - High for prolonged exposure - Residents friendly but unsettling - Corruption risk from proximity

Quest Hook: Need information only Rot-Touched possess

Vex’s Territory

Description: Section of Alpha Fragment controlled by Vex Shadowhand, Cartel boss

Location: Upper platforms, northwest quadrant

Features: - Fortified compound (walls, guards) - Warehouse district (smuggled goods) - Cartel headquarters (planning, operations) - Vex’s personal residence (exact location secret)

Security: - 50 Cartel enforcers - Controlled access (invitation only) - Hidden exits and escape routes - Surveillance (informants everywhere)

Operations: - Smuggling coordination - Black market regulation - Dispute arbitration - Protection racket management

Meeting Vex: - By appointment only - Pat-down, weapons surrendered - Escorted by guards - Never in same location twice

Reputation: - Fair by criminal standards - Keep your word or pay - Competent and dangerous - No moral compass but reliable

The Hanging Gardens

Description: Impossible terraced gardens on Beta cliff face, corrupted flora thrives

Creation: Built by Rot-Touched as art project and food source

Plants (all corrupted): - Murk-Root (edible, nutrient-dense, tastes like ash) - Flesh-Fruit trees (disturbing but sustaining) - Black vegetables (normal vegetables, wrong colors) - Glowing mushrooms (light source, mildly psychoactive)

Atmosphere: - Beautiful in alien way - Unnatural but functional - Tended with care - Strange tranquility

Gardeners: - Rot-Touched volunteers - Treat plants with reverence - Share harvest with community

Significance: - Provides food (most residents malnourished otherwise) - Demonstrates corruption need not be purely destructive - Philosophical statement about adaptation

Access: Open to all, donations encouraged

The Deep Chapel

Description: Chapel dedicated to Constellation of Serpent, 100m down in Deep Tangle

Architecture: - Carved into Beta cliff face - Serpentine motifs - Dark stone, green lighting (bioluminescent fungi) - Acoustics carry whispers eerily

Purpose: - Worship of Serpent constellation - Sermons by Sister Morrigan - Rituals (nature debated by orthodox clergy) - Community gathering

Congregation: - Rot-Touched primarily - Some uncorrupted seekers - Curious or desperate

Services: - Daily prayers (dawn and dusk) - Corruption counseling - “Transformation ceremonies” (help newly corrupted accept) - Communion with Voice Beneath (guided)

Orthodox View: Heretical, blasphemous, dangerous

Attendee Experience: - Unsettling but not overtly threatening - Teachings focus on acceptance, change, truth - No forced conversion - Leave more disturbed than arrived

Quest Hook: Infiltrate chapel, report to Constellation Clergy?

The Anchor Platform

Description: Central platform where main bridges connect, unofficial town square

Function: - Meeting point - Public announcements - Conflict resolution (trial by combat if necessary) - Social hub

Features: - Large (40m diameter) - Stable construction (reinforced) - Torch-lit at night - View of entire Chasm

Daily Activity: - Morning: Merchants setting up - Midday: Deals, meetings, arguments - Evening: Fights, entertainment, gossip - Night: Quiet (everyone retreats inside)

Entertainment: - Knife-throwing competitions - Stories from travelers - Musicians (surprisingly good) - Gambling (cards, dice, fights)

Atmosphere: Chaotic neutral—anything might happen

The Fall Holes

Description: Designated disposal points for bodies, garbage, secrets

Locations: 6 points around Chasm periphery

Usage: - Bodies (murder victims, natural deaths) - Waste disposal - Getting rid of evidence - Occasional live disposal (executions)

Protocol: - Informal but observed - Witness disposal to confirm death - Say nothing about what you see - Don’t ask who the body was

Superstition: - Whistling when throwing body (ward off curse) - Never look down after drop - Count to ten before turning away

Nickname: “Making someone fall” = murder

Economy and Trade

Black Market Specialties

Rot-Shards: - Primary export - Mined from corrupted regions - Valued by alchemists - Extremely dangerous to handle - Price: 50-200 coins per shard

Forbidden Texts: - Pre-Shattering books (banned elsewhere) - Heretical religious texts - Rot research notes - Luminar Council documents - Price: Varies wildly

Forged Documents: - Travel permits - Guild memberships - Identity papers - Medical clearances - Price: 10-50 coins

Weapons: - No questions asked - Quality varies - Some pre-Shattering - Poisons and unusual weapons - Price: 20-500 coins

Legitimate Trade

Yes, Some Exists:

Ironwood Charcoal: - Harvested from corrupted forests - Burns hotter than normal wood - Airship fuel - Exported to Skyport Eos (quietly)

Corrupted Plant Products: - Medicinal herbs - Alchemical ingredients - Textile fibers - Food (desperate markets only)

Information: - Trade route intelligence - Political secrets - Personal blackmail material - Price: Whatever market bears

Currency

Aether-Coins: Standard (when available)

Barter: Common (goods for goods)

Favors: Accepted currency (owe me one)

Rot-Shards: Valuable enough to use as payment

Cost of Living

Cheap by Aetherium standards: - Sleeping space: 1 coin/night - Meal: 2 coins - Week’s lodging: 5 coins - But: No security, high danger, Rot exposure

Population and Society

Demographics

By Type: - Criminals (30%): Fleeing justice - Smugglers (25%): Profession requires base - Rot-Touched (20%): Rejected elsewhere - Exiles (15%): Political, social, personal - Opportunists (10%): Seeking fortune

Origin: - Every settlement in Aetherium represented - Heavy Bright Reaches representation (closest) - Some from impossibly distant islands

Turnover: High - Average stay: 6 months - Some lifelong (nowhere else to go) - Mortality: 20% annual

Why People Come

No Choice: - Corrupted (no settlement accepts) - Wanted (crime elsewhere) - Broke (can survive here cheaply)

Opportunity: - Black market profits - Smuggling routes - Information trading - Cartel employment

Ideology: - Believe in Serpent constellation - Embrace Rot philosophy - Reject mainstream society

Hiding: - From enemies - From past - From self

Social Structure

Black Sky Cartel (top): - Vex Shadowhand (boss) - Lieutenants (enforcers, smugglers) - Members (pay dues, follow rules) - Everyone else (tolerated)

Informal Hierarchy: - Wealth and reputation matter - Violence capability respected - No formal titles or ranks - Fluid, changes quickly

Rules (unwritten but enforced):

1. Pay Your Debts: Or disappear
2. Don’t Damage Bridges: Everyone needs them
3. Cartel Gets Cut: 10% of all transactions
4. Murder = Retaliation: But legal isn’t relevant
5. Rot-Touched Welcome: But stay in Deep Tangle
6. No Slavery (exception to amorality): Vex’s rule, oddly principled

Daily Life

Survival Focus: - Find food (expensive, limited) - Maintain shelter (structures need repair) - Avoid falling (constant danger) - Manage Rot exposure (inevitable)

Work: - Smuggling runs - Market vending - Bridge maintenance (paid by Cartel) - Bodyguarding - Whatever pays

Leisure: - Gambling - Drinking - Fighting - Sex - Sleep (luxury)

Community: - Surprisingly tight-knit - Shared danger creates bonds - Help neighbors (enlightened self-interest) - Found family common

Culture

Amoral but Pragmatic: - Right/wrong irrelevant - Consequences matter - Keep your word (reputation is currency)

Dark Humor: - Jokes about falling - Gallows humor constant - Laugh or go mad

Acceptance: - Don’t judge - Everyone has history - Past doesn’t matter

Fatalism: - Settlement is temporary - Life is temporary - Enjoy while it lasts

Saying: “We’re all falling. Here, we just fall together.”

Notable Residents

Criminal Leadership

Vex Shadowhand - Black Sky Cartel boss, effective ruler of Chasm, master of disguise

The Captain - Mysterious Cartel leader, identity completely unknown, operates from The Underbelly

Rot-Touched Spiritual Leaders

Sister Morrigan - Corrupted priestess, Rot-Touched spiritual leader, charismatic evangelist

Brother Caelum - Former clergy, seeks forbidden knowledge, ally of Morrigan

Enforcers & Hunters

“Grim” - Bounty hunter, silent enforcer, never fails contracts

Merchants & Traders

Merchant Vex - IS Vex Three, operates Skyport Eos branch of the operation

Detailed Profiles

Vex Shadowhand

Role: Black Sky Cartel boss, effective ruler of Chasm

Age: Unknown (30s-40s)
Appearance: Varies (master of disguise)
True Identity: Unclear (might be multiple people)

Personality: - Calculating, ruthless, oddly fair - No moral compass - Keeps word (reputation is business) - Surprisingly principled about slavery

Management Style: - Light touch (let people be) - Heavy response (cross lines, consequences immediate) - Economic control (everyone pays cut)

Relationship with Merchant Vex (Skyport Eos): - Merchant Vex IS Vex Three (youngest sibling) - Operates legitimate front in Skyport Eos - Coordinates with siblings through coded messages - Connection deliberately kept ambiguous to outsiders

Secret: Planning expansion into Ironhold’s markets

Quest Hook: Hiring for sensitive operations

Sister Morrigan

Role: Corrupted priestess, Rot-Touched spiritual leader

Age: 36
Corruption: Stage 2-3 (advanced but stable)
Appearance: Black veins, pale skin, glowing green eyes, still beautiful

Background: - Former Constellation Clergy orthodox priest - Sought to understand Rot - Corrupted during research - Embraced transformation

Philosophy: - Rot is evolution - Voice Beneath speaks truth - Constellations are distant, Rot is intimate - Transformation liberates from fear

Charisma: Extraordinary - Persuasive, compassionate, terrifying - Converts through logic and empathy, not coercion

Congregation: 100+ Rot-Touched, growing

Relationship with Orthodox Clergy: - Former colleagues view her as traitor - She pities them (sees them as blind) - Occasionally debates theology with visitors

Danger: - Not violent - But ideas are infectious - Exposure to her sermons = corruption risk (psychological)

Quest Hook: Clergy hires assassination (moral dilemma)

“Grim”

Role: Bounty hunter, enforcer, silent death

Age: Unknown
Appearance: Masked, armored, never speaks
Equipment: Rot-touched weapons (black blades), crossbow

Reputation: - Never fails contract - Never shows face - Never speaks - Never leaves witnesses

Specialty: - Hunting betrayers - Cartel enforcement - Impossible assassinations

Method: - Patient stalking - Unexpected angles - Kills quickly, cleanly - Disappears

Fee: Expensive (worth it)

Mystery: - Gender unknown - Origin unknown - Motivation unknown (just money?)

Theory: Multiple people using same identity

Quest Hook: Grim is hunting someone party knows

The Ferryman

Role: Operates ferry service between fragments

Name: Old Kellan
Age: 70s
Appearance: Weathered, one-eyed, surprisingly strong

Service: - Basket on rope pulley system - Transports people, goods across Chasm - Alternative to bridges (faster, safer) - Fee: 1 coin per crossing

Personality: - Taciturn but friendly - Knows everyone - Sees everything - Says nothing

Significance: - Neutral party (everyone trusts) - Information broker (doesn’t sell, but remembers) - Been here since founding

Secret: - Was pre-Shattering engineer - Built much of infrastructure - Keeps settlement functional

Quest Hook: Kellan knows where body is hidden

Current Situation (287 S.)

Major Developments

Fragment Drift Acceleration: - Separation rate increasing (2.5m/year now) - Engineers predict collapse sooner (25 years) - Some planning evacuation

Cartel Expansion: - Vex planning operations in Ironhold - Increased smuggling to Skyport Eos - Recruiting aggressively

Rot-Touched Growth: - Enclave population doubled last year - Morrigan’s influence spreading - Orthodox clergy concerned

Ironhold Attention: - Commandant Vask planning military strike - Sees Chasm as existential threat - Invasion possible within year

Tensions

Cartel vs. Ironhold: - Vask wants Chasm destroyed - Vex preparing defense/evacuation

Orthodox vs. Serpent Worship: - Theological war brewing - Each side sees other as damned

Long-term vs. Short-term: - Some want to abandon Chasm - Others say nowhere else to go

Internal Cartel: - Lieutenants questioning Vex’s decisions - Power struggle possible

Opportunities

Smuggling: - High demand, high profit - Connects all settlements

Information: - Everyone’s secrets pass through - Valuable to multiple factions

Research: - Rot-Touched provide unique insights - Morrigan’s teachings controversial but informative

Secrets and Mysteries

Vex’s True Identity

Secret: Vex Shadowhand is not one person

Truth: Three siblings operating as single identity - Vex One and Two operate in Murky Chasm - Vex Three operates as Merchant Vex in Skyport Eos - Use disguises, coordination, coded messages - Separate operations simultaneously - Rumor of single criminal mastermind maintained

Why: Protection, efficiency, legend-building, expanded reach

Who Knows: Only the three siblings

The Anchor’s Secret

Secret: Central platform sits on pre-Shattering structure

Evidence: - Platform too stable - Ancient metalwork visible beneath - Predates fragment separation

Implication: Fragments were connected pre-Shattering, drifted apart after

Discovery: Sealed hatch in platform floor

Contents: Unknown—locked, no one has opened

Quest Hook: What’s below? Pre-Shattering tech? Vault? Tomb?

Morrigan’s Vision

Secret: Sister Morrigan experiences prophetic visions

Source: Corruption grants glimpses of future (claims Voice Beneath shows)

Accuracy: Disturbingly high (80% accurate)

Recent Vision: “Fire falls from above. The Chasm burns. But from ashes, truth rises.”

Interpretation: - Ironhold attack? - Constellation judgment? - Rot catastrophe? - Metaphor?

Response: Preparing Rot-Touched for “transformation event”

The Deep Cache

Secret: Hidden warehouse 150m down, below Deep Tangle

Contents: - Weapons stockpile - Gold reserves - Escape airships - Supplies for 1,000 people for month

Owner: Vex (emergency contingency)

Access: Secret—only Vex siblings know location

Purpose: - If Ironhold attacks, evacuation - If fragments collapse, escape - If Cartel falls, personal survival

Quest Hook: Rival faction knows it exists, wants location

The Whisperer

Secret: Someone in Chasm reporting to Ironhold

Activity: - Intelligence on Cartel operations - Maps of settlement - Lists of residents

Identity: Unknown—could be anyone

Vex’s Response: - Knows spy exists - Hasn’t found them yet - Feeding false information

Ironhold’s Use: Planning assault with inside knowledge

Discovery Risk: If found, “falls” from edge

Quest Hooks

1. The Smuggling Run: Deliver contraband, don’t get caught

2. Infiltrate the Enclave: Clergy hires party to investigate Rot-Touched

3. Find the Spy: Vex recruits party to identify Ironhold informant

4. The Deep Cache: Rival wants to steal Vex’s emergency supplies

5. Morrigan’s Request: Corrupted priestess needs favor (moral complexity)

6. Bridge Sabotage: Someone weakening bridges—find them before collapse

7. Cartel War: Lieutenants fighting for control, pick side or flee

8. Ironhold Invasion: Warn Chasm? Join attack? Stay neutral?

9. The Anchor Vault: Open pre-Shattering hatch beneath central platform

10. Rescue Mission: Extract prisoner before they “fall”

Related Topics

• The Murk - Region containing Chasm
• Black Sky Cartel - Ruling faction
• Vex Shadowhand - Cartel leader
• Sister Morrigan - Rot-Touched leader
• Constellation of the Serpent - Worshipped here
• Rot-Touched - Major community here

In-World Document

Carved Into Anchor Platform

THE RULES

1. Keep your word
2. Pay your debts
3. Don’t break the bridges
4. Cartel gets 10%
5. No slavery
6. What you do is your business
7. What happens is your problem

—Vex Shadowhand

[Below, in different hand:]

We’re all falling.
Here, we fall together.

“Murky Chasm is what happens when society gives up on you. So you give up on society. And you find that freedom, even falling, feels better than safety in chains.”
—Old Kellan, the Ferryman