Nascent Glory is The Azure Phoenix's first manse.
Nascent Glory is a five dot solar-aspected manse in the middle of the desert. It is constantly ringed by shifting sand dunes, and is hard to find. Inside a craterlike arrangement, a huge circle of sandstone is constantly swept clean by the wind. At the very center of the disc, a large glass sphere is supported by a sandstone pillar five feet above the ground. During the day, the sphere shines brightly in the sunlight. At night, it glows weakly, providing very faint illumination to the edge of the dunes. For five miles out, reality seems somewhat fluid, as with the Wyld or an uncapped demesne. Anyone stumbling across it will find the terrain more friendly and responsive, and travel easily across it, but will be subtly steered away from the manse itself. Actual Wyld-Shaping effects do not work. Additionally, anyone who resides in the area too long is subject to mutations set by the Hearthstone bearer, up to the effects of a level 5 demesne. Under the surface, the manse forms a giant cone. Through the center of the cone runs a large sandstone pillar, and at the center of that pillar is a two foot core of glass running from the bottom of the sphere above to the very tip of the cone, deep underground in a spring that had previously never seen any sort of light. The Wyld Revocation trait makes the solidity of stone in the area much more subjective than usual; a person can step into the stone pillar at the center of every level and sink or float to the floor of their choice, though the manse can be set to only permit certain people on certain floors. Additionally, the north side of the pillar is much thicker on the first 8 floors, allowing very large objects to be moved up and down with ease. Light is provided throughout by a network of glass tubes running through the stone. The tubes all connect back to the central column, and from there back to the globe above. During the day, this means that everything is brightly illuminated by the light of the sun. At night, the stored light that radiates from the globe provides more subdued light throughout. Water from the spring is floated up through the stone to a reservoir on the first level, which acts as a water tower for the entire structure. Time flows strangely inside the manse. Duration is much more subjective here, and one person’s quiet afternoon reading and relaxing might take the same time as another’s month of grueling work. More intense work compresses and takes less time, while leisure expands and takes more. Only the hearthstone bearer can control how time flows compared to the outside world, up to ten days inside for every day outside, or vice versa. The very bottom of the cone is a tip of solid stone. Waste drops down to this stone block, where it is compressed and dried into coal, which is delivered to the workshop. Above that are nine useable levels.
Closest to the surface, the first level is split into four areas: a temple to the local deity in the west, a temple to the Unconquered Sun in the east, a large arena to the south and a vast, empty storage space in the northern third of the level. This level is by far the largest, with ceilings fifty feet high and a radius nearly the full width of the disc.
Below this level are 4 unused levels, which currently stand empty, but which could be filled with inhabitants. The sixth level is a well furnished home and a series of guest rooms, occupying half of the level. The other half is given over to a moderately large garden with a large lawn and flowerbeds. There are several vegetable beds on the edge, which can provide food for a dozen people, but would not be an adequate food supply if levels 2 through 5 were populated.
Level seven is “servants’ quarters.” The Manse comes with a bound servant force of automatons. Most of these have specific functions (one small round one roams around cleaning floors, for example), but a few higher level ones also exist to act as a servant force. There is also a small complement of combative automata, but they are bound to the premises of the manse and not really equipped to be more than a police force anyway. These automatons perform all of the maintenance on the Manse, cleaning, gardening and making minor repairs.
Level eight is a magnificent workshop, dedicated to Magitech. This room has the second highest ceiling in the manse, and is easily 40 feet tall
The lowest reachable level is the Hearthroom. This is a large room with exquisite glass artwork on every surface, including the floor and ceiling. It has a system of lenses that causes the entire room to glow with breathtaking beauty when no hearthstone is glowing. All light coming into this room passes through a central point between two lenses which is no larger than the head of a pin. If no hearthstone exists, commitment of a single point of essence for 1 week to that point will cause that entire week’s worth of light to crystallize at that point into a Stone of Inhuman Beauty, allowing the hearthstone bearer to tap into the manse’s variable time while far away. For that week, the entire manse will be dimly lit and the Hearthroom will be dark, except for the concentrated light becoming a hearthstone.