The walls of Steel Haven rose high
above the land. The humans had achieved great feats with their discovery of
steel. The stone castles of kings and lords were impressive but most people
could only rely on the protection of wooden homes. The lower class needed to be
protected from the harsh world of deadly animals and roaming bandits, and so
King Alexander Chalybs decided it was his burden to protect as many people as
he could.
King Alexander had a grand vision
for a new city surrounded by steel walls as tall as any castle and thicker than
a stonewall. The city would be a welcoming place to those friendly to the King
and his people but would be a threatening fortress to those who sought to do
harm.
The city fortress of Steel Haven
did not spring up overnight, it took years of dedication and vision. King
Chalybs, who became known as the King of Steel, led his own Kingdom to this
goal. Many villagers and lower class left their own kingdoms and traveled for
months just for the chance to be allowed access into the city. People were
arriving to Steel Haven even before the city was complete.
King Chalybs was inspired by the
work and the devotion of the people. He saw the new arrivals as a testament
that his vision was pure and good. Any family that wished to live in the city
had to contribute in some way. Men and women could choose which profession was
best suited for their talents and so, Steel Haven had an enormous labor force
of workers, builders, black smiths, metal workers, cooks, hunters, cleaners and
any other job that needed to be done.
A giant forge was built first
before anything else. The forge was a large source of heat surrounded by every
kind of metal working tool available in those times. Everything was housed in
an open-air structure and the best metal workers worked tirelessly around this
scorching hot forge. The great forge was put to use just as it was finished and
from that moment it was considered the heart of Steel Haven.
Not everything in Steel Haven was
made of steel or metal, most of the homes and buildings were built with stone
and wood with steel used to reinforce the structures. The great walls of Steel
haven were made from steel, as was most of the Steel Haven Keep that the king
lived in. The Great forge was almost completely sheltered in steel.
As time passed and the city grew,
the citizens were restricted from going to the forge unless authorized to do
so. Six foot high walls were build around the forge and guards were placed at
the small gate door in the front. This didn’t seem unreasonable to the citizens
of Steel Haven, as they all knew how important the Forge was.
After only a year the city was
completed. The wall had not been finished yet but every important building was
built as was enough homes for every family who helped in some way. The King
left his own castle and moved into Steel Haven Keep. The Kings old castle was
converted into a military structure, which housed his best and most loyal
soldiers and his top general.
Steel Haven finally had fully built
walls by the second year, completely made from steel with battlements atop the
walls, walkways, guard towers and every other security measure a castle wall
could have. The large gates were well protected by a draw bridge that went over
a deep moat, a solid steel gate and a second gate used to trap intruders. Steel
forge keep also had a smaller but still formidable wall that separated it from
the rest of the city.
This newly finished city of Steel
Haven would force to reckon with and the news of its creation spread throughout
the land. The more the news spread, the more people wanted to move there. The
more people that moved into the city the larger the city grew. After several
years the city was twice the size of the original Steel Haven with Steel Haven
Keep and the first part of the city known as the “Steel Core” and every new
structure and home was built outside of the Core’s walls. Only the citizens and
their families that helped with the original construction were allowed to live
in the Core of the city behind its sturdy walls.
Eventually the outer city grew so
much that new walls were made to protect that section as well. Any attacker who
wished to assault the Steel Keep would have to make their way through the Steel
Haven outer wall, through New Steel city, then passed the Core’s giant walls,
through Steel Core city, then breach the Steel Keep’s walls and then breach the
keep itself. No one ever invaded Steel Haven.
The forested area around Steel
Haven was maintained by the city but was greatly thinned. The forest was once
dense and filled with wild animals. Wood was needed for the city and much of
the woods were clear cut, when the King saw his people clearing the local
forest his ordered them to only thin it out but to leave the forest standing as
a whole.
Twenty miles north of Steel haven
was the coast, where the King’s men would barter with sea fairing merchants for
goods. To the south of Steel Haven was an enormous iron mine, this mine was
one of many sources of steel for the Kingdom and each mine was well guarded.
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