Limspace Classification
| Difficulty | 0/5 | The Meadow is an extremely safe place. |
|---|---|---|
| Entity Count | 0/5 | No hostile entities have been found in The Meadows. |
| Chaos Gradient | 3/5 | The fog has unusual temporal properties. |
| Basset-Frazier Index | 1/5 | The Meadows are an ideal level for habitation. |
Description:
Despite my efforts, I was unable to persuade the UNCB administration to declassify its files on the domed system. Apparently, Precursor knowledge is far too valuable to simply hand out directions to. Regardless, the domed system has the desired safety and connection to the Backrooms necessary to sustain civilizations and their inhabitants. I cannot withhold this information from wanderers. If the UNCB will not release their files, I will release mine.
~Evlyn King
fig 1.0 The Meadows
The Domed Meadows are perhaps the most serene and unsettling of the Domed Limspaces. The landscape is an unending sheet of rolling green hills dotted with flowers of all colors and laced with winding streams and gently flowing brooks. Rather than floating through the sky, the clouds drift across the plains as banks of fog that fade away at the approach, always rolling across the horizon and never spilling out onto lands walked by man. The temperature is always fair and the sky never without the sun, even in the rain.
Running down the center of the land is the Hoffman Path, a dirt path that Graham Hoffman, its namesake, discovered during his original exploration of this world. Among the many features gracing the land is Crystal Lake, the body of water Hotel Meyer was built on; the Rowdare Loch, the largest recorded body of water in the level, measuring over 10,000 square miles; an unnamed apple orchard located ten miles north of the Rowdare Loch; Padruig Island, a large island within Rowdare Loch; and the Arrowhead River, a river that runs parallel to the Hoffman Path for its entirety.
In the fog itself strange spires can sometimes be seen that vanish with the gloom, revealing only ruins when reached. It is believed that the fog shows the world not as it is, but as it was, giving us a clouded window into an ancient past. In addition to banishing the fog at the approach, it would seem that the presence of people is required for time to flow, with areas remaining unchanged when covered by fog, and then racing to catch up with the season as people draw near. At the onset of winter it is common for children to run out towards the untouched greenery shrouded by the fog and watch as frost and ice forms in their wake, tracing paths of winter across an autumn landscape. This effect does not appear to hold true for the local livestock however, which when retrieved from the fog are found to be nothing but bones.
The first wanderers in the limspace arrived to find people already living there, who were initially cautious, asking trepidatiously in a dialect composed mostly of English if we were "The Others", but upon seeing we were as human as they, welcomed us into their homes. The people here appear to have lived in this limspace for generations stretching back to before the dawn of recorded liminal history, predating even the earliest of the UNCB's records. In manner and appearance, they seem to be a mixture of peoples from every corner of the world, possessing traits of many different ethnicities and even a few unique ones. Notably, some of them have a hair color that is as far as we can guess an extremely diluted black, resulting in a light gray with a purplish tinge which they describe as lavender. Whether this is a mutation that arose locally or an inheritance from some lost tribe of humanity is unknown.
The inhabitants live in many humble stone villages built with their hands in the meadows' grassy hillsides and bowled valleys. Extended lifespans are common in limspaces , but I have very rarely seen those potential years lived out. The Meadow is different. Here structures are built with such longevity in mind to match the long lives of their inhabitants, with most having already weathered many hundred of years of passing seasons. Individual homes are small, made from flat stones, and overgrown with flowering grapevines, allowing them to almost disappear into the landscape from which they were formed. The village well and livestock are shared communally, although the animals seem to know who they belong to. No more than a dozen homes cluster together in each village, housing a single extended family. Each village is built around a church of ancient and unknown construction, and are all dedicated to the local faith of "Allism". Most villages are within line of sight of one another, but some are distant enough that a wall of fog shrouds them from view, only to be parted by the occasional traveler between villages.
The religion appears to be a mixture of various theologies, predominantly Christianity and various Eastern traditions, and judging by the strange symbols built into the churches, some form of ancient mysticism. When questioning some of the monks on their church's symbol I was informed that I would be told "when I am older," presumably once I have a few centuries under my belt as they do. Despite the obvious patchwork nature of the religion and secrecy surrounding its rituals, it has drawn a number of converts from UNCB personnel stationed in the limspace. It is not difficult to understand why, after such a long time spent in the isolation of the backrooms the pull of belonging is a powerful one. The villagers themselves are unshakably pulled to the religion, most likely owing to a local legend about the time of heresy, when many strayed from the way and in punishment the gods threatened to unmake the world, drawing the ring of mist tighter around the villages until in repentance they returned to the faith and halted the advancing mist.
When someone is born or enters the limspace a tree takes root where they settle. This tree will live as long as they do, and die when they do, all the while producing fruit for them to eat. The fruit of the trees do not bear seeds, and even attempts to plant cuttings of the trees have failed. For this reason it is prohibited by law to cut down a tree, and the only things in The Meadow made from wood are coffins. Also for this reason people cannot leave the village of their birth, as their tree cannot be moved, unless they exchange places with someone else. When villagers exchange homes they do not merely join the new village but actually join the family, changing their last name and becoming an honorary "cousin" to everyone in the village.
I have personally found the residents of the villages to be extremely welcoming, and have been invited to morning tea with various families more times than I can count. While walking the village paths I have had the honor of meeting people as old as nine hundred, and as young as five. Of all my assignments the time I spent stationed in the Domed Meadows is the one I have enjoyed the most. The locals have a saying that "The will of the heavens is made manifest in the hearts of men," which I have in my more whimsical moments taken to mean that in a glimpse of paradise can be seen in the ways we live out our lives. I see that here, in this place. Never have I seen a world so clearly made to be lived in. The Meadow breathes with life where man sets foot on it, and rests in gloom when he is away. Although the beauty of the flowers is not greater than those found in any meadow, I cannot help but appreciate them more as they spring to life in my presence as if presented to me as a gift.
This can be no coincidence. The limspace needs people living in it, just as they need it to live. Somehow the villagers drawing water and praying and tending their flocks keeps the sun shining and the rivers flowing, and their presence keeps the fog at bay, whatever it may be. It's all connected somehow, it has to be, the ancient churches in their specific locations with the glyphs they each have, the dome, the trees, and the fog. It provides us with a livable environment and we stave off the darkness. That ever-lurking darkness. Sometimes I swear I caught a glimpse of movement in it. I fear that if the villagers were to ever leave or die out The Meadows would fall into a gloom that could never be lifted.
Communities
The Hotel Meyer
The only modern structure in the level, the hotel is built on the edge of Crystal Lake, and was built to house personnel stationed in the level. Despite the availability and relative luxury of the hotel, most personnel choose to exchange homes with locals to live in one of the villages, myself being among them, staying in King Village and taking the King name. The villagers that moved into the hotel have taken Meyer as their new surname. The Hotel is most notable for being the meeting place at which the founding treaty of the UNCB was signed between Wograd and Madrasden. Since then it has served as the UNCB base of operations in The Domed Cluster and as a monument to peace, albeit a monument in a limsystem the very existence of which is classified.
Tawayama
Outpost of the Jade Razor Clan, in agreement with the UNCB to maintain the limsystem's secrecy. Used as a bolt hole by their mercenaries, this is often where they have gone when they seem to "disappear". While the locals are welcoming and friendly to most people, relations with the Jade Razor Clan remain rather strained, with most locals steering well clear of the outpost and its inhabitants. Only one villager has ever exchanged residences to live with the Jade Razor Clan, a murderer who had been declared a wolf's head and had his tree burned, symbolically killing him and leaving it up to deputized citizens to make his death literal as well. The renegade outlaw took the surname of Razor upon joining the Jade Razor Clan.
Entrances and Exits
Entrances
Travelling west along the Hoffman path in The Domed Forest for long enough will lead here.
Exits
In the apple orchard there is a path called the Orchard Way, and following that path north for a varying amount of time will bring you to The Domed Mountains.
You can get to The Domed Mountains or The Domed Forest by the same method you arrived in The Domed Meadows, but reversed.
A number of Precursor portals to various levels of The Backrooms exist, apparently with the purpose of transporting various resources to and from the biodomes. Portals exist deep in bottoms of lakes and at the sources of rivers to The Flooded City, to supply the level with water and to prevent the lakes from overflowing their bounds. Portals deep in the bottom of cave systems in The Domed Limspaces lead to Cramped Caves, allowing water and methane to drain from the artificial habitat. Small portals to The Ruined City also exist in the ruins of Precursor structures, which are believed to have served as ventilation for the buildings. These portals can be found in every limspace in The Domed System. Of these exits the air vents are considered by far the safest.