By Javeer Akcher: Senior Physical Investigator for the Guild Energetic Research Collective (GERC)
Martles, of course, wander the oceans of our planet, Ethem. It is not as well known they they also roam the Tamarran Continent as well as (according to rumor) beyond the reaches of Tamarra.
Martles do not found cities or kingdoms because they spend much of their lives traveling and exploring the world. They do have homelands on Ethem where they are born and where they return periodically for large gatherings of their kind. It is said that there are four martle homelands on or near the Tamarran Continent:
Allassa Marren, in The Icy Wastes: Deep beneath the surface of the Icy Wastes lies a vast network of tunnels. It is said that it extends far beyond the borders of the Tamarran Continent, an expanse that is so large that even martles rarely travel it all. It is said among martles that “It takes five lives to know the tunnels of the ‘waste land’”. Some martles, a very few, have made it their life’s quest to explore and understand all of these tunnels.
Vashaff, in The Eastern Coastline Volcanoes: Six major volcanoes line the eastern coast of Tamarra where it meets the Kellith Sea. They run from the Zwingel Territories of the zweyjen along the southern coast of the continent to the Sea-Looking States, which lie off the eastern coast. There are martle enclaves scattered among the many firths and caverns found where the Eastern Mountains meet the rough ocean waters.
Tooleesa Arroon, in the Long Coral Reef: The Long Coral Reef is hundreds of miles long, running north to south through the Lossolla Sea off the western coast of Tamarra. The martles have long had a homeland in the northern parts of this reef. Over many centuries they have developed a strong racial bond with the various kamari enclaves that live here in these forested lands that line the western coast.
Ka Gra Kanna, in The Rock Islands: These islands are located in the ocean in the far north of Tamarra, a little over 300 miles north of the Land of Hetherall and almost 200 miles below the southern coast of the Icy Wastes. The martles and the Ice Giants that live there have, over many centuries, become strong allies and often good friends. They are known to help each other in time of need.
It is interesting to note that martles have eidetic memory: their minds capture everything that happens to them and around them as they travel the world. For this reason they are sought out as “witnesses” to history and as guides to help travelers find their way on their journeys.
Martles can live very long lives; there are some who are believed to have lived as long as six or seven hundred years or more. One of my great friends, the martle named Aktil Na Baylarassa, is no exception. Born in SP~4,682, he is one of the oldest martles in the world. He can remember when the Regma Worms rose out of the sea to attack Eldrim city and when the Nulentians arrived on the shores of Tamarra to launch their second invasion of our Continent. He was even there during the bloody Wars of Sorcery.
If you are ever fortunate enough to meet a martle in your life’s travels, it would be wise to make their acquaintance. If the opportunity presents itself, befriend them. If it should happen that the martle you meet is Aktil Na Baylarassa, please give him greetings from his loyal friend Javeer.