The emergence of the Tel'Quessir was not entirely pleasant. The vast migration away from the inner cities to the coasts and into the sea came with a vast economic depression and impact. The economies of several cities either teetered on the brink or fell off the cliff, with other cities being overwhelmed. Those that went into the sea initially provided little economic value, but this would be reversed in time. As more and more cities sprouted up and the six billion Tel'Quessir started to search and seek a life under the waves, it was only a matter of time until positive results were returned. The three cities that led the way were Nederra, Illiyitri, and Lumathesha.
Nederra is the name of the Tel'Quessir city that sits in the Ruvellian Sea, between Lamoni and Arcadian Raj. The location of a small drilling platform from a major Lamonian oil company, the Tel'Quessir purchased rights to the majority of the land during the economic upheaval following The Shift. The reason became clear soon enough. The surface oil reserves were dry and efforts to locate more had not gone well, leading the company to believe the field was exhausted.
The Tel'Quessir were able to go deeper, however, and found vast oil reserves ready to be used. Quickly setting up shop and getting to work, it wasn't long before the Nederran Oil Group struck gold. Able to pump, process, refine, and then ship the product underwater safely and quickly, Nederra quickly grew to become one of the major oil producers in the region. Further investigations would reveal a number of large oil fields deep in the Ruvellian Sea and many Tel'Quessir cities would develop around them. Nederra, being the first and largest as well as the headquarters of the NOG, became a leader in the energy sector.
Today the city stands as a booming metropolis growing by leaps and bounds, with deep oil operations miles below the surface of the water pumping out thirty-million barrels of oil a day. The Ruvellian Trench is a transportation system that brings oil from Nederra and the Dozen Oil Cities of the Tel'Quessir in the region to Rukhta. The Nederran Oil Group is pumping 30 million bpd currently. It has currently explored and mapped 35% of the 'Nederran Oil Region'. It has an unknown amount of possible BPD, estimates from 35 million bpd low to 65 million bpd top.
Illiyitri is the name of the largest Tel'Quessir city that is not in Lamonian territorial waters. Settled four months after The Shift halfway between Lamoni and South Serif and shaded more towards the east, initial settlers found a large deposit of Rare Earth Elements and Minerals at the top of the Oceanic Crust. Using their native abilities to go deeper, they found what goes on record as the largest find of its kind in regional history. The Lamonian government quickly took advantage and vast sums were spent building the largest oceanic mining operation in history. This was aided by the Tel'Quessir's enormous endurance, capability, and Marshite focus on a task.
Nowadays Illiyitri is per capita the fastest growing economic juggernaut in Lamoni. A booming population and still expanding mining operation has allowed the exploitation of the 'seemingly endless' deposit to grow and multiply. Virtually no unemployment and a low crime rate has made Illiyitri the 'Jewel of the Sea', which is made all the more true by its advanced architecture. Situated two miles below the surface, the city is safe from all but the most dedicated attack, but still hosts elements of the Lamonian armed forces and the Underwater Guard. They help protect a vast operation that results in 950,000t annual production of Rare Earth in Illiyitri, with an estimated 550mt reserves in and around the city.
Lumathesha is less of a city and more a collection of them, being the largest of all Tel'Quessir cities. Located off the coast of Tikfata, it was among the first cities founded during the migration to the sea alongside dozens of others close by. Between Tikfata and the islands, a large number of such cities prospered on the coasts and in the water. They squabbled over political influence and economic domination, but such fights were short-lived as Lumatheshian leadership dealt with the Lamonian government in order to certify localized leadership duties. The other cities fell in line and all developed together. Nowadays the region between Cikfata and the island chain is packed with Sea Elf cities, partially because of its incredibly rich fishing and underground farming potential, as well as easy geothermal plant locations. Such plants, under the control of the Lumathesha government, provide power for much of south and south east Lamoni.
These three cities helped reverse the economic downturn and soon the Lamonian economy was booming as it had rarely done before. At this time it was decided to open up these regions, previously secured economically in order to protect the precarious position of the locals due to the upheaval, to foreign trade and investment. Other economic concerns were to be involved, of course. Industry, food production, medical and navigational companies all were interested. But everyone who was anyone knew that it was the Big Three that attracted the most attention. It was also decided to first contact close allies of the Lamonian state so that they could grow stronger as a united front against the forces of evil. Invitations were sent and the city- a resort city of the Tel'Quessir known as Elashore- was chosen. Several weeks of negotiations between the time they were sent and the arrival was used to hammr out the small details so that when they arrived they could begin working immediately.
For there was much to be done, and if done well, a lot of money to be made...
***********************************************************************************************
Elashore was not one of the major cities of the Tel'Quessir, not one of the many metropolises that were still growing deep under the waves. It was a resort city north of the Metro Collections of Lumathesha, which was itself blossoming in and around the seas north of Tikfata and the islands. Only a relatively small Waterpad stuck out as unusual. While it had ample room for multiple helicopters and ocean-going vessels it didn't have runways or air control facilities fit for larger aircraft, unlike many other Tel'Quessir cities. Guests would then gather next to one of several transporters heading below the waves. Each transport was circular in shape and was designed to follow a tube that was itself segmented and strengthened, able to survive crushing depths and fierce water surges. Eventually this transport would go far below where the sun failed to pierce, leaving occupants in the dark aside from the onboard lights.
Then they would see Elashore after a few more moments, a shimmering city of emerald and blue bathed in bioluminescent light. Great villas and retreats were built into the seabed and the corral, which all were modified by the magic of the Tel'Quessir into the works of art that made up the living spaces of the Tel'Quessir. Vast underwater fields filled with strange and unusal wildlife next to buildings that would defy any known structural logic and law of the mainland. When the transport arrived at the end of its travel it would open up into an equally circular hub that had a dozen exits depending on where they needed to go. For the sake of the incoming delegates, they would be led to the National Authority Office, where the meeting was taking place.
They could walk there if they so desired, but in each path there existed a canal of water with water transporters flanked by sidewalks inside of a clear tunnel. Tel'Quessir could be found swimming in the canal but also outside of the tunnel, protected from the crushing depths entirely. Stores, buildings, and stands existed as in any city, and the tunnels split off as anywhere else. Eventually the delegates would be led to a major building called the National Authority Office, where Tel'Quessir security would do their work and allow them in.
The National Authority Office was a Lamonian and Tel'Quessir found in every city, the size of it dependent on how much work needed to be done in the city. The lobby of the one in Elashore was flanked by large statues of corral, one of a famed Lamonian admiral, one of a Marshite saint, and another of Elashore, a figure of deep Tel'Quessir mythology and the namesake of the city. Here they would be given some time to prepare for the meeting, commiserate, and generally come down from the travel.
When it was time, they would be led down a few more hallways and finally into a large conference room. Lamonian and Tel'Quessir representatives were there. Multiple members of the Nederran Oil Group were seated across the table from Illiyitri Mining Consortium, both equally convinced that they were the main economic driver of the future of the Lamonian state and Tel'Quessir elves. Lumatheshian representatives of the various geothermal energy concerns were almost forgotten about, which suit them just fine. Other economic concerns of the Tel'Quessir were represented as well, as was the Lamonian government at large.
