cinnabar gate - the sky

anyone looking up at the skies of the Sea of Flowers for the first time1 would almost immediately notice Ashe and the Cuts.

Ashe /æʃ/, ASH, the companion planet, constantly hangs unmoving in the Ashebound sky (hence the name of the direction). in the Sea of Flowers's folk history, the Ashen peoples2 used some lost Break power to travel from their home in Ashe to the Sea of Flowers at the start of the Cinnabar Era, before they were left behind during the Heavenly Schism and permanently settled on Lilith3. people have attempted to observe Ashe for signs of a continued presence there, but limited telescopy has mostly revealed thick forests and ash clouds.

looking seaward (to the left of Ashe) are the Cuts, a series of thin red bands that arc above the horizon. during the day these are barely visible against the blue sky, but at night they glow, making them far more visible. they're viewed symbolically as scars left behind by the Schism, the final and most prominent accent to an entire landscape painted with reminders of what happened to the world.

moving outside of the perspective of the Sea of Flowers briefly, Lilith and Ashe are a binary planet system. Ashe is the more massive by the slimmest margin but for most purposes the two are the same size, orbiting a barycenter just about halfway between them. the Cuts are a set of narrow rings around Lilith, formed during the Heavenly Schism from displaced ground and residue from the mass amount of Break used. Ashe4 is still inhabited, but the lack of more advanced telescopes and the frequent wildfire-driven soot storms on Ashe make it impossible for anyone in the Sea of Flowers to see them, and knowledge of how to return to Lilith was intentionally allowed to be lost.

Ashe-Lilith have a minor moon5 orbiting them collectively, usually called Alt /alt̚/, AHLT. the three bodies orbit the system's star, Atelkou /a.'tel.koʊ/, a-TEL-koh, once every 277 days.

details on the rest of Ashe-Lilith's system are only sparsely known to the Sea of Flowers. the other planets, known as the "traveling" stars (or just travelers) are visible as bright points of light that move regularly through the sky, which naturally makes them astrotalically important. there's some debate on what all counts as traveling stars and speculation about lost or undiscovered travelers, but the following eight objects6 have been easily observable through all of known history7 and correspondingly are part of nearly8 every system of astrotala:

• Atelkou, the Origin - the system's star. it's not a planet, but gets included as a traveler as a holdover from old lilincentric tradition. associated with life, renewal, and beginnings.
• Ordaraël /oɹ.'dæ.ɹaʲ.el/, or-DA-ry-el, the Serenity - the closest (confirmed, see below) traveler to Atelkou. associated with moderation and calm, as well as the need to show restraint and limit one's own power.
• Gwikeniqýël /gʷɪ.ke.'nɪ.qi.el/, gwih-ke-NIH-qee-el, the Wisdom - the brightest of the travelers (aside from Atelkou and Ashe). usually associated with knowledge, and often tied to negotiation and planning as well.
• Alt, the Path - also included despite not really being a planet. usually associated with voyages, travel, and distance, and occasionally also with luck.
• Metataqýël /me.ta.'tæ.qi.el/, meh-tah-TA-qee-el, the Patience - a distinctly orange-colored traveler, and the first one outside of Ashe-Lilth's orbit. associated with patience, endurance, and kindness.
• Dimisaqýël /dɪ.mɪ.'sa.qi.el/, dih-mih-SA-qee-el, the Depth - associated with unassuredness, the unknown, and the depths of the world and the mind. often used to represent forbidden information and the mystic light of knowledge.
• Mahelýël /ma.'he.li.el/, ma-HEH-lee-el, the Force - the second-brightest of the travelers (again, not counting Atelkou or Ashe), associated with strength in numbers, profit, and the use of power. popular as a symbol among Justices and conservatives.
• Entasafel /en.'tæ.sa.fel/, en-TA-sah-fel, the Joy - the last of the travelers usually visible with the naked eye. associated with either harvests and the spread of knowledge, or with lust and strong emotions, depending on the tradition9.

past these eight are more objects, with a handful having been rediscovered in the last 100 years, more known to the pre-Schism world but not yet rediscovered, and a few more speculated to exist beyond those. most non-conservative traditions have accepted the "restored" travelers into their systems, as listed:

• Ranqałifel /ɹan.'qæ.ɬɪ.fel/, rahn-QA-łih-fel, the Change - the second traveler to be rediscovered, located between Dimisaqýël and Mahelýël, and found in 1899. associated with volatility, and with the positives and negatives of change.
• Sigéqýël /sɪ.'gə.qi.el/, sih-GƏ-qee-el, the Beauty - the first rediscovered traveler, found outside the orbit of Entasafel in 1890. associated with beauty, nature, and fragility, and is often used to represent flowers.
• Xépsalýël /ʃəp̚.'sæ.li.el/, shəp-SA-lee-el, the Health - the third rediscovered traveler, located past Sigéqýël and found in 1921. represents good health, healing, and cooperation.
• Ixaraël /ɪ.'ʃæ.ɹaʲ.el/, ih-SHA-ry-el, the Peace - the most recently rediscovered traveler, found past Xépsalýël in 1962. represents the cycle of death and rebirth, endings, peace, and finality, though some schools view it as a sign of destruction and decay.

various planets beyond these were known or speculated to exist in the Cinnabar Era, but have yet to be rediscovered. accordingly, they aren't as widely accepted, but reconstructive schools of astrotala which include them on speculative orbits have been growing in popularity. these are:

• Oumeqýël /oʊ.'me.qi.el/, oh-MEH-qee-el, the Progress - thought to exist closer to Atelkou than Ordaraël, either as a traveler or a debris field formed from the remains of one, potentially undetectable from Lilith. generally associated with technology and progression, and often fortune as well. has been used more recently as a symbol of mining interests.
• Witabrýël /wɪ.'tæb.ɹi.el/, wih-TAB-ree-el, the Light - a smaller traveler supposedly close to Ranqałifel but still lost. represents inspiration and self-improvement.
• Pakanaël /pa.'kæn.aʲ.el/, pah-KAN-eye-el, the Discovery - a very small traveler thought to be located between Entasafel and Sigéqýël. associated with exploration and recovery of lost things, which has led to it being used as a symbol by a few adventurer groups.
• Houloël /hoʊ.lo.el/, HOU-lo-el, the Loyalty - the lost companion of Ixaraël, believed to accompany it in the same way Ashe and Lilith accompany each other. associated with service, loyalty, and the power to create10.
• Sovaraël /so.'væ.ɹaʲ.el/, soh-VA-ry-el, the Rest - supposedly the last planet identified during the Cinnabar Era, located past Ixaraël and Houloël. associated with sleep, energy, and self-care.

beyond all of these are various speculative travelers, usually only accepted as real by whatever specific speculative school of astrotala proposed their existence. the three outliers that have some degree of broader acceptance are:

• Bantýn /ban.'tin/, bahn-TEEN, the Reflection - a "dark moon" that supposedly exists at a point within Alt's orbit. represents an inversion or negation of the aspects of travelers it approaches in the sky.
• Vidris /'vɪd̚.ɹɪs/, VID-ris, the Revelation - a second moon of Ashe-Lilith that supposedly accompanies them too far out or in a spot where it's impossible to observe. usually represents revelations and acceptance, which has led to it seeing some use as a queer symbol.
• Utevuël /u.'te.vu.el/, oo-TEH-voo-el, the Retribution - another planet said to exist at the furthest reaches of Atelkou's light, unknown even to researchers of the Cinnabar Era. the person that originally speculated its existence associated it with revenge, but its more prominent associations ended up being forgotten things and painful returns.

the planets are a major component of astrotala, influencing reality through their alignments with Ashe and the constellations of the astral band, and have corresponding associations in other disciplines such as alchemy. there isn't actually a known mechanism for how they influence the world, but it'll surely be revealed given enough time.

the stationary "fixed" stars (or just stars) that the travelers move against the backdrop of are usually grouped into constellations. the most widely known of these are the astral band, a specific group of constellations that pass through Ashe in sequence as the year progresses. whichever sign is emerging from Ashe at the time of someone's birth is said to be their birth sign, and is generally used as a base point to determine the effects of the travelers on someone. the constellations in the astral belt, in standard sequence, are:

• Amaxkwenoku /a.maʃ.kʷe.'no.kɯ/, ah-mahsh-kwe-NO-kuu, the Small Bear - 15 Týöda11 to 4 Axiqoda
• Rumixadeta /ɹu.mɪ.ʃa.'de.ta/, roo-mih-sha-DE-tah, the Stone Worm - 5 Axiqoda to 26 Axiqoda
• Amaxkwakareku /a.maʃ.kʷa.'kæ.ɹe.kɯ/, ah-mahsh-kwa-KA-re-kuu, the Large Bear - 27 Axiqoda to 17 Mitela
• Dehelen /de.'he.len/, deh-HEH-len, the Crane - 18 Mitela to 15 Zoroxa
• Rumixamedýöhý /ɹu.mɪ.ʃa.me.di.'o.hi/, roo-mih-shah-meh-dee-O-hee, the Ocean Worm - 16 Zoroxa to 5 Chénalý
• Tugesakený /tu.ge.sa.'ke.ni/, too-geh-sa-KEH-nee, the Unicorn12 - 6 Chénalý to 27 Chénalý
• Goxex́adeta /go.ʃe.xa.'de.ta/, go-sheh-kha-DE-tah, the Stone Beast - 28 Chénalý to 17 Nérilý
• Ilakogw /'ɪ.la.kog̚ʷ/, IH-la-kogw, the Porcupine - 18 Nérilý to 15 Halsala
• Ampakanurý /am.pa.ka.'nu.ɹi/, am-pa-ka-NOO-ree, the Furred Crab - 16 Halsala to 6 Sqéqelý
• Laqosimazý /la.qo.sɪ.'mæ.zi/, la-qo-sih-MA-zee, the Witch - 7 Sqéqelý to 4 Séxelý
• Tokahikik /to.'kæ.hɪ.kɪk̚/, toh-ka-hih-kik, the Seal - 5 Séxelý to 26 Séxelý
• Isibivaný /ɪ.sɪ.bɪ.'væ.ni/, ih-sih-bih-VA-nee, the Magician - 27 Séxelý to 15 Xémala (including Year's End)
• Guzovoqa /gu.zo.'vo.qa/, goo-zo-VO-qa, the Whale - 16 Xémala to 5 Tozýra
• Iramatuwaný /ɪ.ɹa.ma.'tu.wa.ni/, ih-ra-ma-TOO-wa-nee, the Hutner - 6 Tozýra to 4 Fisýra
• Goxex́uëki /go.ʃe.xu.'e.kɪ/, go-sheh-khoo-EH-kih, the Poison Beast - 5 Fisýra to 26 Fisýra
• Biziwa /bɪ.'zɪ.wa/, bih-ZI-wa, the Goat - 27 Fisýra to 16 Liägýra
• Narimovexe /na.ɹɪ.'mo.ve.ʃe/, na-rih-MO-ve-sheh, the Sloth - 17 Liägýra to 14 Týöda

after these, the most well-known constellations are Loukeé /loʊ.'ke.ə/, loh-KE-ə, the Rose, and Xwéteösý /xʷə.'te.o.si/, khwə-TE-o-see, the Rainbow, both of which are very visible in the sky for a good chunk of the year. there's also the Heavenly River, the bright band the local galaxy splashes across the sky, which has its own constellations described from the shapes formed by it and interstellar clouds that cross it, thought the only one of these that's widely recognized anymore is the Rabbit. the River's constellations are only known by their descriptors, with any original poetic names they once had likely being long lost.

despite everything that's happened and the obvious reminders left behind, peoples' interest in space has only really gone up with time. maybe there's a comfort to knowing that, whatever happens to it, or to them, they will always manage to still be there, just like the sky.