The Village of Lotus Vale

        This is the home of the Skyreach Tribe, whose cave-holts line the mossy walls the deepest river valley, Lotus Vale. So named for its abundance of rare blooms, this valley is also home to various species of fae, who co-exist with the otter folk. Members of this tribe tend to be even more frivolous than is usual for lutrai. The ambient energy of the forests and waterfalls is so strong that it saturates the spirit and causes a sort of low-key euphoric giddiness, and even the most somber of people will have strange tingles of humor if they stay here for long. That, or insanity. The lutrai have adapted quite well here, living amid limestone grottos laced with waterfalls and clusters of raw aquamarine. Members of this tribe are typically identified by a chunk of this mineral worn around the neck. These shards are used to focus light into fire, and are capable of storing magical energy as well. The village population is close to five hundred, with a shifting fae population of roughly two hundred.

        The chieftain of this village is a willowy female druid named Kiral. She is typically under the charm of one fae or another, and the forest folk wind up getting the better part of their co-existance. The lutrai here have been coaxed into doing many things just for the amusement of the fae, and have learned that their own idea of mischief pales in comparison to that of their spirited neighbors. Kiral is torn between trying to keep her people safe and following along the rollercoaster of whims laid upon her by the fae, and stresses quite a lot. She's rather eccentric, bordering on mad, and has curiously mismatched eyes - one blue, one green. Kiral is friendly enough, but it's clear the charms have been getting to her.

The Watery Caves

        The waterfall caverns that honeycomb the cliffs are another of the island chain's wonders. Fantastic mineral formations glitter in the dripping walls, mostly types of berylium that accumulate in the limestone. Aquamarine is most common. Many of the cavern ceilings are pierced by thin waterfalls, and most of the small grottos inhabited by the lutrai have their own natural showers. Others are chosen for their particularly intense gem veins, or diving location. Even within the caves, deep mineral pools allow the lutrai to dive from tier to tier, a popular sport among the otter-folk. Some of these caves have natural skylights that allow small gardens or simply a place to catch a bit of warmth. Others are submerged, twisting off into darkness deep below the valley.

        Rumors of these gem veins have spawned countless expedition attempts to the island chain, another reason there are so many wrecks in the coral maze. If mines were set up here, the sheer mineral wealth would pay for every ship lost in the maze three times over. Unfortunately, the veins are so large that to dig them out would cause the entire cave system to collapse, something any local lutrai could tell you. This is why the otter folk are content to take only a few for their decorations. These are often polished in special tumblers; wooden tubes filled with raw stones are mounted under small runoffs, which keep the tube spinning on a wooden axle for weeks at a time in order to polish the stones inside. These are then used in a variety of lutraic jewelery.

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