Snaking lines of roads, ancient and new, crossed the landscape, punctuated by much newer veins of railroad between major towns and spreading out into the horizons beyond. Clouds of smoke and steam betrayed the locations of locomotives far below, and out of place spires that towered above some of the busier hubs showed lifelines for many a tired airship captain on their way to and from the capital. And sure enough, more than a few airships of all sorts had gathered at these outposts of civilization at winter’s edge, to rest and warm up or to take care of final matters before traversing the harsh skies beyond.