Zenexia

The peaceful and harmonious building style of Zenexia is celebrated by artists and architects, but it’s the sky islands that most Toba will mention first if asked about the moon.

The islands give the appearance of being entirely natural, but that’s a testament to the work of the craftspeople who build them. Sky island crafting is a centuries old art amongst the people of Zenexia and bears some similarity to the Earth art of bonsai. A new sky island can be laid down in just a few months.

The process is simple: the steel beams imported from Caldera Chaos are welded into a supporting skeleton, boulders are bolted and epoxied into the structure, the silent anti-gravity hover engines and other infrastructure are installed underneath, and then soil is spread to cover the upper surface. …but this is only the first step in building a sky island, and just the crude engineering. Turning a crass, functional levitating brick of steel and rock into a sky island involves artistry. Small armies of gardeners descend on each island, planting trees and shrubs. Landscapers sculpt delicate paths of gravel, stones, or wooden planks. Architects and builders construct temples, homes, and tea houses using intricate hand-cut wood joints, then build wall screens of delicate paper, cut bamboo-like canes, or woven rushes.

Expert tile makers craft, fire, glaze, and install the roofs. Then nature is allowed to take its course - with a bit of help. Delicate algae are encouraged to grow on the boulders, small mosses are planted along the walking paths, and birds and animals are allowed to make their homes. Only once a new build looks like it is natural and ancient are the engines turned on and the island silently lifts itself into the sky.